Welcome once more to the Ricemedia Digital Marketing Monthly Round-Up, featuring all the latest updates in SEO, PPC, Social Media and more. As November leaves us and our Christmas trees go up, there’s still time to look back on last month and see what you may have missed. Grab a cuppa, sit back and take in the latest digital marketing news with Ricemedia.
1. Google Core Web Vitals Become Ranking Factors in May 2021
The biggest news for digital marketers during November was the announcement that Google’s Core Web Vitals will become ranking factors in May 2021. This update will combine Core Web Vitals and previous UX-related signals that Google used to rank websites. The new page experience signal combines core web vitals with these signals:
- Mobile-friendliness
- Safe-browsing
- HTTPS-security
- Intrusive interstitial guidelines
The original core web vitals, released earlier in 2020, were defined as:
- Largest Contentful Paint: The time it takes for the page to load the main content. Ideal time is 2.5 seconds or faster.
- First Input Delay: The time it takes for a page to become interactive for users. Best measurement should be less than 100ms.
- Cumulative Layout Shift: The amount of unexpected layout shift of visual page content. An ideal measurement is less than 0.1.
Google in future may add labels to websites in SERPs that do offer the best user experience. Digital marketers looking to optimise their site for the new ranking signals should look to Google Search Console’s Web Vitals report, where you can identify improvements that can be made to your site.
2. Twitter Introduces Fleets
In one of the biggest changes to come to the platform in years, Twitter has introduced their own version of Instagram stories, called Fleets. According to Twitter, they received feedback that users didn’t like the permanency of their tweets. Because of this, many tweets get left in drafts and never published. Not only can you post your own Fleets, you can also share Tweets you like into your Fleets. Time will tell if this remains a popular feature on Twitter, but it certainly opens up potential advertising opportunities in much the same way as stories operate on Facebook and Instagram.
3. We explore Anchor Text and How it Affects SEO
The use of anchor text and its role in search rankings has gone through changes over the years. Originally, marketers could use black hat SEO tactics to manipulate search rankings, by spamming a target keyword in many links. These days, Google can analyse the use of anchor text on websites and the content around it to understand context. What we place in an anchor text is quite important for your SEO, especially when you’re link building. For this reason, we explored What Is Anchor Text and How It Affects SEO on our blog during November.
4. Instagram Launches Redesign Focusing on Reels
Instagram has had the same layout for a while now, so any changes were going to be divisive at best. During November, the company launched a new layout that brought more attention to its Tik-Tok alternative, Reels and its Shopping channels. It’s unsurprising considering the company’s huge focus on these features as part of its business strategy. Many users were unhappy with the new focus on Reels, considering many users weren’t really connecting with the feature, preferring instead to explore posts themselves.
Will this update change user behaviour on Instagram? Time will tell.
5. We looked at Local Citations and How They Help SEO
Many SEO marketers believe citations are a vital part of local SEO. In fact, findings from BrightLocal found that local businesses that ranked in the top 10 positions of Google Local had an average of 81 citations. For this reason, it’s important that business owners chase citations. What are they and how do you get them? Find out more in our blog, Local Citations and How They Help SEO.
6. Twitter Introduce New Carousel Ads
Twitter Ads now allow marketers to use 2 to 6 images or videos in one advertisement. These ads are designed to help businesses reach their goals more effectively with a new interactive ad format. With a carousel, you can get an edge-to-edge design, third party measurement reporting, accessibility support and new reporting to measure the individual performance. Twitter advises that users should use all available components, tell a story, consider their audience, highlight the product you’re offering and its benefits.
7. We shared 3 Tactics for Generating B2B Leads
For a B2B business, generating high-quality leads is an important part of a digital marketing strategy. Gaining leads can bring in a steady stream of traffic that will help your business gain a steady growth. If you’re considering building your online client base and thus growing your online presence, explore Ricemedia’s 3 Tactics for Generating B2B Leads.
8. Google Updates Remove Outdated Content Tool
Removing outdated content is an important part of SEO, as you want to ensure all information on your site is the most up-to-date for users. However, users can also identify pages they feel are outdated and report this to Google. This is why Google has updated their Remove Outdated Content Tool to make it more user and mobile friendly. It is ultimately up to Google if they remove a page from the index or not. If they find no grounds to remove an outdated piece of content, it will remain on the index.
