SEO, or search engine optimization, is continuing to evolve in 2026, and at a faster rate than many have expected. This is because Google has rolled out a few game-changing updates, technological innovations are changing the way that users search, and users’ expectations as a whole are shifting.
In 2026, SEO is about a few different things. First and foremost, it would appear that SEO is now, more than ever, about creating experiences that deliver quickly and effectively on users’ expectations, producing authoritative content that doesn’t beat around the bush, and optimising sites for a new era of algorithms and users.
Anyone can master these SEO techniques with time and effort, though it may require more of each than you initially expect. Though in the end, the results should speak for themselves: increases to visibility, traffic, and stable growth. So without any further ado, let’s take a closer look at some of these targeted SEO techniques.
Content Optimisation with AI
Here you have it: the obligatory AI section of the article. Yes, it’s been the dominant tech trend of the decade so far, but we can’t just dismiss its undeniable impact on SEO.
This year, Google has rolled out (and continued to tweak) its ‘AI overview’ – a section of the SERP (search engine results page), usually at the top of the page, that aims to answer queries from users – and the result has been nothing short of astronomical. Lots of sites have reported severe drops in organic traffic since the update was implemented, as users are no longer defaulting to the top result to answer their question.
So the goal has somewhat shifted – sites still want to rank first, but now the aim is also to appear in the AI overview too, as this further increases the chance of a user visiting the site.
So, how can you appear in the AI overview? Well, doing all of the traditional SEO techniques right is a great starting point: high topical authority, demonstrating EEAT (experience, expertise, authority, trust), and implementing schema. But the most impactful new technique to implement is answering questions directly in content; this is known as AEO. AI overviews are all about answering the question in a snappy manner, so make sure you create content based on users’ most likely queries and answer them in the first paragraph before expanding upon the answer in more detail later.
Search Intent Optimisation
Optimising for search intent is still a cornerstone of any successful SEO strategy. Because every search query is about a specific goal, like trying to find information or looking for comparisons. Those of us who can line up our content and web pages with this user intent stand to benefit the most.
The best intent optimisation starts with some good, old-fashioned keyword research. Obviously, monthly search volumes and year-on-year growth trends are important to watch out for, but analysing the content that’s already ranking is valuable too, so commit to doing thorough competitor analysis if you want to rank highly too.
Topical Authority Development
We all know that authority’s important. So much of what we do revolves around getting that number to increase. But topical authority combines this general, broader sense of authority with relevance – specifically around certain topics. With newer Google updates, websites with higher topical relevance have shot up the rankings of the SERP, so it’s clearly a way to get results.
Building topical authority is all about creating content on your site that is meaningfully interconnected by a topic; together, all of the content (whether they’re blogs, videos, or infographics) will cover the topic comprehensively, instead of just focusing on different keywords.
To check your topical authority, the best tool is Majestic, as its Trust Flow metric aims to measure the different topics that any given site covers, while giving the site an authority score for each topic. For example, an e-commerce site that sells photo books like Snapfish might have a score of 31 – Shopping/Photography.
Conclusion
SEO in 2026 involves a lot of spinning plates. It’s always been a balancing act, but now we all need to tweak our strategies if we want to rank highly and minimise the impact of the dreaded AI overview. Providing direct answers in content, optimising for search intent, and focusing on improving topical authority are all areas that, if improved, can all contribute to improved organic metrics and higher search visibility.
