5 Top Digital Trends and Must-Haves for Search Marketers in 2023

By Benu Aggarwal, founder and president of Milestone Inc.

This article was originally featured on Search Engine Land on December 15, 2022

Google released several major algorithm updates in 2022. These algorithm updates can be classified into three broad categories.  

• Core algorithm updates: Make search better and safer.  
• Helpful content: Make search results useful and relevant.  
• Experience: Make user experience across all devices better.  

Google wants to reward websites that offer excellent user experiences. 

That means your content must be relevant to their query. In other words, experience and relevancy are key to winning in search today and beyond.  

As we write the perfect recipe for search marketing strategies and must-haves for 2023, let’s keep these two critical ingredients in mind.  

Consumer insights 

Milestone research reviewed this year’s top search query data and helpful insights shared by various thought leaders and organizations; we realized how critical it is for brands to win the trust of their customers.  

While many data points and trends are being discussed, we are focusing on five of the key consumer insights you will need to remember while creating your marketing strategies for 2023. 

• Privacy will be top of mind: Consumers are concerned about privacy and look to brands to ensure their data is not shared.  
• Purposeful Advertising: Consumers are gravitating toward brands including sustainability initiatives as part of advertising and marketing efforts.  
• Personalization: Google Shopping is a great example of personalizing experiences based on location, preferences, search history, etc.  

• Direct to consumer: A more visual and interactive experience is critical to engage the consumer.  
• Predictive analytics: Making informed decisions based on several data points is also critical.  

Understanding consumer trends and insights helps us to be equipped to evaluate marketing priorities – giving us peace of mind that our advertising is purposeful, personalized, and helpful for consumers. 

Top Search Trends for 2023 

As we begin a new year of marketing, we must step out on the right foot and shift our mindset. Long gone are the days of keyword density and the concept that content is solely king. 

“More” is no longer “better.” Quality over quantity is the name of the game. We need to re-evaluate our priorities and rise to our customers’ expectations.  

After reviewing search queries, consumer and search insights, and the biggest releases of 2022, below are five key trends and the three must-haves to consider for a successful 2023.  

Trend 1: Multisearch – helping you search outside the box  

Consumers typically spend more than 82% of their time on discovery. Google launched multisearch and released several supporting algorithms this year to change how we all discover and receive information.  

The good news: We can now search between various assets, including videos, images, PDFs, text, languages, etc. 

Metasearch has opened the biggest untapped opportunities for marketers, and we can see the direct benefit. Consumers can take any image and use Google Lens to explore everything about the image.  

In 2023, we will see savvy search marketers leveraging all types of assets, Google Vision API and entity data to provide the most relevant and qualitative assets.  

Futureproofing your digital assets for discovery is your key to unlocking doors and winning in 2023.  

Trend 2: Helpful content – relevant, qualitative, accessible, authoritative, experiential  

Google recently updated its quality raters guidelines and helpful content system. The easiest way to evaluate whether your content is helpful is by covering critical touchpoints and micro-moments. 

Helpful content is readily available for your customer across all the digital touchpoints, minimizing the need for them to search elsewhere.  

Trend 3: Omnichannel Experience 

Discovery of content, good website user experience, and site health will also become must-haves for 2023. 

Centralizing critical information about the business and distributing it across all marketing channels is necessary for a seamless omnichannel experience in 2023.  

Trend 4: Personalization and Localization

Consumers seek information based on interest, location, and other known and unknown factors. 

Online shoppers are likelier to buy from brands with a strong local presence and engagement with their consumers. We must ensure our global search marketing strategies are customized for location.

Trend 5: Expert community building and Influencer marketing

Building an expert community of influencers will be critical in 2023  

Providing the most informative, helpful content in the most interactive format will allow a better brand experience.

SEO is a powerful growth lever which can produce an ongoing pipeline of high value leads. To know more about how Milestone can assist with your search marketing strategy in 2023, contact us at sales@milestoneinternet.com  or call us at 408-200-2211.   

To learn more, download the full deck and webinar.