Properly implementing basic search engine optimization techniques such as injecting strategic keywords, posting articles in distribution and social media sites, providing tags, etc. can help your site get noticed by search engine spiders. However, with the advent of Google+, the gaining popularity of social media sites, and even the abusive methodologies utilized by spammers, Google will most likely change their algorithm. The alteration will cause a wave of trends that SEO experts will have to address.

Here are 5 new SEO trends that are starting to prevail.

1. Google is rewarding high-quality sites.

Have you ever made a search on Google then landed on websites that comprise of 80% advertisements and only 20% content? Google is addressing this issue by rewarding sites that shows good branding, excellent design, and captivating content. Thus, you should consider increasing the value that you deliver to your visitors instead of blindly injecting keywords and providing backlinks.

2. Social signals are becoming important.

Are there many people who liked and commented on your blog? Did your friends retweet your Twitter messages? How many “liked” your article that you shared in Facebook? Google is now taking these social signals into consideration in ranking your site.

3. Links are not as important as before.

Links are still very important. However, since there is so much link spam in the Internet, Google is now assigning less value to links and more to social signals. In fact, in a survey done by SEOmoz, links now account for 40% of the ranking factors. In 2009, they used to be at 65%.

4. Domain-Wide Keyword Usage is gaining importance.

Before, when you want to have a good rank for the word “backpack,” you would have to create a page and optimize the content for that keyword. Never mind if the rest of the website is about real estate or health products—the most important thing is that the word “backpack” is there.

Now, Google is looking at the context your pages. The company would rather index a site from a company that manufactures backpacks, with lots of relevant pages and content regarding backpacks, than a real estate site that has one page that deals with backpacks.

5. Content is now being re-crowned.

Content is king, and Google is making sure that this philosophy is followed. Pages with longer, more interesting content tend to rank better than shorter pages.

Keep these trends in mind when you are attempting to rank your website