With 2014 coming to an end, search predictions for next year 2015 are already seen on the horizon. The annual local search engine ranking factors were a little predictable in the beginning of 2014. But as the year comes to an end and Google’s Penguin update having rolled out, more and more webmasters are planning for the year ahead.

What Mattered in 2014 and how Things will take Shape in 2015

Traditional factors are taking a center stage in search engine optimization. Although, Google places and citations still carry importance the shift is now heading towards high quality links and on-site signals. Even the latest Penguin didn’t hit the local websites heavily as it hit the websites with bad link profiles. In the end, the next year too requires that you should have an ethical approach to SEO and your users must have an awesome user experience. Stop fooling the nerds at Google and try to keep pace with the changing search dynamics.

Best SEO Tips for 2015

Awesome User Experience

Giving true value to your customers is at the heart of every search engine. It’s not easy being awesome in such a competition. But you can take care of few factors such as:

• Home Page Content – When customers land on your home page, they must get a clear idea of your brand. Also, search engines need to know what you are all about. Just some banners and simple text won’t do it. You need to add some great content and good images to make the right impressions.
• Thin Content – Never have thin content on inner pages. All the pages must have relevant content to go with the service. People want information on pages and you need to provide them the same with valuable content.
• Keyword Spamming –This is a no brainer. You simply cannot stuff your content with keywords and expect it to be red by your visitors. Get rid of the junk content and provide true value to your readers with informative content.

Local Factors

• Include city name in your title tag. Never over optimize your title tag and unnecessarily stuff keywords or your services.
• Mention city and state name in your H1 tag as well. Right in the top, the users must know that you serve their area. This increases the local relevancy.
• The page content must also include city and state name. In your page’s content, you must relate to a local area and mention the services you provide in that area. Know the local neighborhoods and add some long tail keywords.
• In image alt tags, it is suggested to clearly mention city and state information. This adds another local content element to your search factors.

There are many other factors such as structured local data and logo optimization that still carry significant importance. Not to forget that mobile experience is paramount. Mobile users are now equivalent to desktop users and this market simply cannot be ignored.

Hope you had plenty of information to get started. When it comes to SEO, sky is the limit and you simply have to keep exploring. Happy 2015 SEO!