Our Head of SEO presents a game plan on how to create an SEO strategy that will help you dominate the SERPs in 2025.
In 2025, the world of SEO presents us with new challenges and opportunities due to the growing importance of artificial intelligence (AI). Your SEO strategy must be prepared for these changes.
A question that has become increasingly common in the marketing community over the past year with the resurgence of the Super Generalised Engine (SGE), is whether SEO is dead in 2025? Not at all! This is still a key element of the marketing strategy, but you need to adapt or update your approach accordingly, to continue to dominate the SERPs and gain organic traffic.
Check out what will be significant in 2025!
Key findings:
- SEO still holds great importance in 2025, although it requires adaptation to new trends.
- There is a need to update keyword strategies according to intent and opportunities due to the development of the Super Generalised Engine (SGE).
- The quality of content will play an even more significant role than before.
- Digital PR and acquiring high-quality industry-specific backlinks are key to assessing E-E-A-T
- Building strong entity connections helps Google understand your brand’s expertise and authority
- Implementing CRO as part of your SEO strategy is a necessity.
- It’s time to embrace AI and start collaborating.
- Local SEO demands attention with the rise of “near me” searches and voice queries
- GA4 offers deeper insights into user behavior and journey patterns – maximize its features.
Keyword Verification & Intent Analysis: The Start
Google SGE is expected to significantly reduce organic website traffic for many keywords as searchers will be able to get their answers directly from the AI-generated response.
It’s worth reconsidering your keyword strategy. Some of the traffic from informational queries may decrease, so yourfocus should be more on keywords with commercial, transactional or navigational intent. These keywords generate more conversions and can become the main source of organic traffic.
Our research indicates that YMYL (Your Money or Your Life) content remains entirely unaffected when it comes to informational intent. Google avoids queries that could lead to legal issues. Therefore, there is a significant opportunity for queries and websites primarily operating within the YMYL area.
Furthermore, it’s essential to regularly track trends and monitor changes in user intent. SERPs are constantly changing, and the keywords you’re targeting may have already shifted their intent.
Stay up to date with user behaviour, analyse traffic data on your website, and adapt your content and strategy to better meet the needs of your current target audience while maintaining competitiveness in the SEO field.
Content: Focus on Quality
Programmatic SEO is gaining momentum, and the creation of thousands of pages in a matter of seconds is becoming a reality. However, this presents a challenge for search engines, as they must carefully select what to index and what to discard.
To meet these challenges, focus on creating high-quality content. Avoid creating more subpages on general topics that already exist in large quantities.
Instead, create unique and valuable content. Base your articles on various content formats, such as infographics, videos, ebooks, or even podcasts. If possible, prioritise providing data-driven content. It’s essential to understand the significance of evergreen content.
Additionally, don’t forget about helpful content. Ensuring that your content consistently delivers valuable, accurate answers in a user-friendly format is essential to maintaining and improving your SERP rankings as ranking factors continue to evolve.
It is also worth exploring new opportunities and adapting your content marketing strategy. Researching your target group and analysing the potential associated with implementing the Tangential SEO strategy can help you reach a larger audience and build authority in the industry. This strategy is based on creating content thematically related to your main field, but going beyond its framework.
Imagine you run a cafe. Instead of writing only about coffee, you can create blog posts titled “Best study spots in [your city].” or “Best spot to work in [your city]”. This post attracts students and remote workers looking for a good place to work who may also be interested in coffee. This way, you will attract a wider audience, not just coffee lovers.
Time to Step Up Your GA4 Game
Universal Analytics stopped processing hits in July 2023, but many site owners still haven’t unlocked GA4’s full potential. If you’re not making the most of GA4, you’re probably missing valuable insights about your website’s performance. Sure, you’ve got it installed – but are you using all the tools at your disposal?
GA4 is a huge upgrade from Universal Analytics, not just a new version. While UA was all about counting pageviews and sessions, GA4 tells you the complete story of how users interact with your site. Every click, scroll, and interaction can now tell you something valuable about your audience.
Here’s what makes GA4 different:
Better Privacy Protection
GA4 is built with privacy in mind. It relies less on cookies and more on AI-powered tracking. This means you can still get valuable insights even as privacy regulations become stricter.
More Accurate Attribution
Gone are the days of simple last-click attribution. GA4 shows you the complete journey users take before converting, helping you understand which SEO efforts are really driving results.
Predictive Analytics
One of the most exciting features is GA4’s ability to predict user behavior. It can estimate which users are most likely to convert, helping you focus your SEO efforts where they matter most.
If you haven’t already, start by:
- Setting up event tracking for key actions on your site
- Creating custom reports that focus on your SEO KPIs
- Connecting GA4 with Search Console for comprehensive search insights
E-E-A-T: The Role of Trust & Authority
Google will continue to place a huge emphasis on E-E-A-T, rewarding websites that consistently address these factors. As we’ve already mentioned, many of these factors are based on content quality. Including information about the experience of people behind the site.
Backlinks remain and will continue to be one of the strongest and most impactful signals of a website’s E-E-A-T. They allow Google to assess which websites and brands are trustworthy quite easily and without much cost.
That’s why in 2025, we suggest you focus on digital PR strategies. Strive to gain positive publicity and authority in your industry. Connecting with experts and reputable brands in your field can significantly impact Google’s perception of your website. Answer the question – “Do I want to have 10 backlinks from meaningless websites or 1 backlink from an expert in my industry?”
Another important aspect is the analysis of potential backlinks. Don’t just focus on one metric that can be manipulated relatively easily. Instead, compare at least a few different metrics from different tools.
Use the table below for a simple link analysis:
| Ahrefs | Majestic SEO | MOZ | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Domain | Organic traffic | Domain rating | Trust Flow | Citation Flow | Domain Authority |
| example.com | x | x | x | x | x |
| example2.com | x | x | x | x | x |
This multidimensional analysis will allow you to obtain a more comprehensive picture of the quality of the backlinks you are acquiring or want to acquire.
Entity Recognition: Make Google Understand Your Brand
After establishing your E-E-A-T signals, the next step is making sure Google truly understands who you are and what you stand for. Think about how Google sees your brand. Are you just another website talking about your industry, or are you becoming recognized as a key player? Building these connections isn’t as complicated as it sounds.
Start by defining your core topics and expertise areas. If you’re a coffee shop, don’t just write about coffee – build content that connects you to coffee roasting, brewing methods, and local food culture. Each piece of content should reinforce your position as an authority in your space.
In 2025, Google no longer just counts keywords—it now maps out how different topics and brands relate to each other. Make sure you’re part of that map.
UX: Take Care of the User
If your website drops traffic from informational keywords, every visitor to your site will be more valuable than ever before. It is important to make the most of each traffic and ensure a high conversion rate.
Monitor user behaviour on your site using tools like Hotjar and Microsoft Clarity to understand what they expect from your site and what their intentions are. Adapt the website to their needs.
Integrating SEO activities with CRO is extremely profitable. Conversion optimization affects the efficiency of converting traffic into customers or leads. Increasing your conversion rate can significantly impact your website’s bottom line.
Ask yourself: “What would my revenue look like if I increased my conversion rate by a few percent?”
Local SEO: Don’t Ignore Your Neighborhood
The rise of “near me” searches continues to grow in 2025. Google’s local search algorithm gets smarter with each update, so just having a Google Business Profile isn’t enough anymore. Your local SEO strategy needs real attention to stand out in your area.
Start by getting the basics right – your NAP (Name, Address, Phone) information should match exactly across all platforms. This includes your website, social media, and business directories. One wrong digit in your phone number on a random directory can hurt your local rankings.
Consider the rise of voice search – people are asking their devices for local businesses differently than they type.
Local reviews are becoming increasingly important for E-E-A-T signals. Encourage genuine customer reviews and respond promptly to both positive and negative ones.
AI: It’s Here to Stay
Without accelerating your SEO strategy with AI, you are actually falling behind because your competition is already using AI extensively.
However, let’s be real about AI – there’s no doubt it can speed up your SEO strategy, but there’s still a need for human verification. Smart SEO teams are using AI as assistants, not replacements, and focusing their expertise on strategy and decision-making.
AI tools allow you to handle time-consuming tasks faster. But AI can’t understand your brand’s voice, know your industry’s nuances, or build relationships with your customers. That’s where human expertise makes all the difference.
The sweet spot? Use AI to do the heavy lifting, then apply your expertise to make the final calls. Your competitors are already finding this balance – make sure you’re not falling behind.
See how you can get started yourself by using ChatGPT for SEO.
2024: The Year That Changed SEO
What a ride 2024 has been! From SGE shaking up how we think about search results to AI changing the way we approach SEO, this year has brought big changes.
Despite all the algorithm updates and challenges, the SEO fundamentals still hold true – good content, solid technical foundations, and understanding user intent matter now more than ever.
While AI helps us work smarter, having real expertise behind your strategy makes all the difference between ranking and being invisible.
Looking Ahead: 2025 Sneak Peek
While we’re saving our big 2025 predictions for another article (keep your eyes peeled!), some changes are already on the horizon. Google’s AI capabilities will keep pushing the boundaries of how content is discovered and ranked.
We’re also seeing shifts in how success is measured – traditional metrics might not tell the whole story anymore as personalization and AI visibility take center stage.
The Bottom Line
SEO isn’t going anywhere – there’s simply too much at stake. But the game is changing fast. If you’re still using the same SEO playbook from a year ago, it’s time for a refresh. Think quality over quantity, user experience over quick wins, and build a brand rather than just a website.
For SEO specialists: Take a hard look at your strategy. Are you ready for what’s coming? Because 2025 isn’t waiting for anyone.
For clients: Don’t be shy about asking your SEO agency tough questions. Your SEO strategy should be tailored to your website – accept nothing less. Ask questions and be actively involved in the campaign for your website.
