So far in 2018, we have seen some progressive trends in SEO that will affect businesses in the long-run. One of those trends that are rocking waves in 2018 includes the use of ‘linkless’ mentions. Ever since the beginning of the internet, links have been the groundwork for SEO. Links help attach each other on the web. To refer to something or help navigate the searcher, we attach a link so that they can smoothly get from point A to point B. If we mentioned something without linking the site or brand, a lot of people probably won’t take interest if there’s no link to follow.
Links generally help create more traffic to the site, which leads to more of a trusted and authoritative website to Google. In today’s thriving times to get on top of the ladder board of Google rankings, thousands of marketers indulge in black and white tactics to boost their SEO. Google is doing a swell job of keeping up with the black tactics of marketers, but Google is always looking for new ways to provide the best results within the context of your search query. Hence, comes the trend of ‘linkless’ mentions.
What is a ‘linkless’ mention?
An easy explanation of ‘linkless’ mentions is that it’s just a brand mention. Instead of using a link to connect the dots from one source to another, a page will just mention the brand within the actual text. In traditional SEO, unless there is a link attached to my anchor text referring to a company, it wouldn’t affect them in any way. Even if someone linked a company or product, unless the searcher has any interest in the link, it’s very unlikely you will benefit from this exchange.
How is Google taking this into consideration? Search engines realize the huge impact of word of mouth for credibility. Both Google and Bing are taking measures into their own hands by creating methods to determine the authority and credibility a company or product garners in a particular space. Google can now figure out if your brand is common vernacular or a trusted source within your industry without depending on keywords and backlinks. In the SEO world, many sites mention Moz as an authority for testing, research, and knowledge.
What does this mean for the Average Marketer?
Boost your implied mentions
It sounds complicated, but it sounds scarier than it seems. Build up hype over your company’s blogs and make sure people are talking about your company on social media. If this is tough for your company to do, work with influencer specialists and prepare some marketing strategies to get mentions.
Addressing negative customer reviews
Bad reviews are something that a company needs to take seriously. Not only will it affect potential customers, but it will also affect your SEO ranking. Don’t panic! First, take a breath. Read the context of the review and figure out if this is just a spur of the moment review, or if there are multiple reviews being continuously bad.
The most crucial step in addressing customer reviews is to reach out to the customer. By doing this, you are allowing yourself to converse with the customer about the issue at hand, how it was fixed, and if that they can review your product again so that it can be satisfactory to their needs. This can open windows as in allowing the customer to change their negative review to a positive review and makes sure you have one less negative review that can bring you down negatively.