SEO in 2026: Beyond Keywords
The era of "keywords" is dead. The era of "answers" is ending. We are entering the era of "Experience and Authority."
For two decades, SEO was a game of matching strings: you type "best shoes," and I populate a page with "best shoes." LLMs (Large Language Models) have broken this loop. Search engines are becoming "Answer Engines." If your content just provides facts, an AI will summarize it, and you will get zero traffic.
The Shift: Search Generative Experience (SGE)
Google is no longer a librarian; it's a reader.
If your content is generic (e.g., "What is a CRM?"), an AI summary will answer it directly on the search page. Your click-through rate will be zero.
E-E-A-T becomes Vital
Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. Google needs to know who is writing.
Video and Visual Search
TikTok and YouTube are search engines for Gen Z. A text-only blog strategy is incomplete. Embed short-form video summaries and unique infographics. Google Lens prioritizes rich, original media over stock photos.
User Signals > Backlinks
Engagement
Is The New Currency
Core Web Vitals are table stakes. If users bounce, you lose. Use hooks, formatting, and interactive elements (calculators, quizzes) to prove your page is the *right* answer.