How search engines work and how to align your content with them in 2025
01
Crawling and indexing: how to make sure your content is findable?
New Web pages are processed by search engines only from the moment a crawler notices that page. Crawlers are search robots that search the Web for new or updated content. The pages found are analyzed and stored in a search engine index: a huge database of Web content. The moment you perform a search, the search engine links your query to that previously created index. Google uses about fifteen types of crawlers, both desktop and smartphone crawlers.
When you create a new page, a Google bot has to discover your page by crawling it. The bot mainly crawls already known Web pages, checking for updates and new links there.
> Therefore, always place links to your new pages on authoritative pages of your website. Preferably on the home page.
Click depth
If you want to serve crawlers well, make sure you don't have too many sublevels on your website.
Ideally, a Googlebot should reach each page within a maximum of three clicks from your home page. Greater click depth slows down crawling and usually does not benefit the user experience.
How do you apply this?
- A logical site structure makes it easier for crawlers to find your content.
- Make sure your website is also pleasant to visit on mobile.
- Make smart use of internal links and place news on your homepage.
- Choose a hub & spoke structure and use clear, content-rich urls.
Want to know more?
02
How Google determines which content ranks at the top
After pages are crawled and indexed, the search engine uses complex algorithms to determine which results come out on top for a search. Google uses hundreds of ranking factors that factor into the algorithm. But what are the major principles?
Relevant content
A page's content should be relevant to a particular search query.
That means, among other things, that the words and phrases the user searches for appear on your page. Synonyms and related terms also come into play. The algorithm also checks to see if your page really addresses the topic the searcher is referring to. The quality of your content and how directly you answer the query play a vital role.
E-E-A-T principle
Google evaluates content quality through the E-E-A-T principle, among others :
- Experience
- Expertise
- Authoritativeness
- Trustworthiness
Does the author have experience and expertise? Is the site an authoritative source and is the content reliable? This does not provide a direct score, but many factors that influence E-E-A-T weigh into your ranking (such as quality backlinks, author bio and content depth).
In practical terms, that means: write valuable, original content that really answers the search question. Completeness is important. A page that explains a topic from A to Z and includes related questions has an edge because Google sees such a page as more valuable to users.
Quality and user behavior
Although Google is coy about the importance of user behavior in the algorithm, it is believed that it is at least monitored to evaluate results.
How high is the number of users who click on your page in the search results list? How long do those users stay on your page? A page where users click right back to Google is seen as less relevant to that search query.
Context, intent, image and video and user behavior
The Google algorithm is looking more and more closely at the context and underlying intent of a search query. AI models such as 2015's RankBrain and 2021's MUM, which recognize and interpret patterns in content and search behavior, play a major role in that evolution. MUM is even capable of understanding content in multiple languages and making connections between different media such as text, images and video.
Search intent or "search intent" is the underlying reason why someone enters a query into a search engine.
Google distinguishes four basic categories of intent:
- Informational Intent. Users with informational intent want to gain knowledge. This ranges from simple questions ("What is content marketing?") to in-depth research ("How do you create a sophisticated SEO strategy?"). You capitalize on this with comprehensive blog articles, white papers, content experiences, infographics and videos.
- Navigational intent. Users with navigational intent have a specific brand or website in mind. Searches such as "SEMrush login" or "Ahrefs pricing" show that the user wants to go to a specific website. You capitalize on this primarily by building a strong brand name.
- Commercial intent. This is a hybrid intent where the user is orienting to make a purchase, but is not ready to buy yet. Consider searches such as "best SEO tools 2024" or "HubSpot vs. Marketo. Content such as comparison articles, in-depth reviews, content experiences, case studies and in-depth overviews work well here.
- Transactional intent. In transactional searches, the user is ready to take action, such as buy or subscribe. Searches such as "Buy Nike Air Max 90" or "Subscribe SEMrush" fall into this category. Make sure your product pages are well optimized with clear call-to-actions, fast load times, compelling product descriptions and customer reviews.
If the search intent is topical, the algorithm will favor more recent content because users want fresh info. If the query is timeless, then pages that have had authority for some time may win.
In summary, Google uses a mix of relevance factors (how well the content matches the query), authority factors (how much authority and links the site has), user experience factors (technology, speed, mobile, etc.) and user feedback factors.
How do you apply this?
- Tune your content maximally to the user's intent. Answer questions directly and clearly, without unnecessary frills.
- Use natural language and synonyms. Artificial intelligence understands concepts and context, not just exact keywords.
- Invest in valuable, original B2B content that fully answers a search question and includes related questions.
- Capitalize on long-tail searches. People are searching more and more specifically and in spoken language, especially with voice search on the rise.
- Be clear about the purpose of your page. On a transactional page, provide product benefits and an easy purchase path; on an informational page, bring entertaining or informative content.
- Showcase your experience and expertise. Add a bio or share concrete details, cases and experiences. Focus on your unique B2B expertise such as your own research or interviews to set you apart.
Want to know more?
Check out Neil Patel's blog on search intent.
03
SEO content strategy: how to determine what content you need?
The basic principle is: put user needs first and employ SEO techniques to make your content optimally visible. A good SEO content strategy combines creativity and data. You write for people, but with insights that help search engines.
Focus on value-added creation and optimization
A content strategy starts with understanding your target audience. What questions are they asking about your product category, what problems are they trying to solve? And how can your content help with that? Use keyword research and tools like Google Keyword Planner to identify popular questions and search terms.
Also read
Content marketing strategy: a hands-on guide for B2B
Look beyond single keywords and draw out topic clusters. For example, if you write about "sustainable living," your audience might search on everything from "energy-efficient home techniques" to "solar panel yield calculation" and "insulation subsidy.
Topic cluster strategy
Bundle your ideas into a topic clustering strategy tailored to your target audience's customer journey. Here, you create one comprehensive pillar page on a broad core topic, and underneath it, several subpages that cover sub-aspects or related sub-topics. The subpages all link back to the pillar page and often to each other.
A cluster structure increases the chance that your pillar page will rank high on the broad topic as well as that the subpages will each rank highly for their specific search terms. In addition, it improves the user experience: you immediately offer further relevant reading options via internal links. Because you cover the entire customer journey, you create content that matches different intents (from information to transaction).
Want to know more?
Check out Hubspot's explanation of Topic Clusters: The Next Evolution of SEO
04
Technical and off page SEO: performance and structure as the foundation
Technical SEO lays the foundation for the success of your content. While strong content and link building often get the most attention, a well-optimized website is equally essential to have your site crawled and understood correctly by search engines.
Some technical checks
- A faster site not only means happy users, but also a higher chance of good rankings. Optimize for speed and mobile. Make sure your CSS/JS and images are optimized (minified code, compressed images). Choose fast hosting. Go for lazy loading: load images only when they come into view. Choose user-friendly buttons, don't place less content on your mobile site than on your desktop version and so on.
- Google primarily looks at your mobile site for indexing and ranking. Check in Google Search Console to see what, if any, errors you find in your Mobile usability report.
- Make sure your website has a clean robots.txt (which does not block crucial components), an up-to-date XML sitemap, correct canonical tags and so on. Also properly manage your HTTP status codes (404 pages with deleted content and 301 redirects).
- Obviously, also make sure your site is running on HTTPS (with valid security certificate).
- If you have multilingual or regional versions , implement hreflang tags so Google shows the right language/region version to the right users.
- Titel-tag en Meta-description. Zorg voor een unieke, beschrijvende <title> voor elke pagina (max 60 tekens) die het hoofdzoekwoord bevat en uitnodigt tot klikken. Bijvoorbeeld: ‘Hoe maak je lasagne? – Recept & stapsgewijze handleiding | Kookplatform’. De meta-description (155 tekens) moet de pagina samenvatten en een call-to-action bevatten. Hoewel meta-descripties geen rankingaandacht geven, verhogen goede meta’s je CTR (en daarmee indirect je succes).
- URL structure. Content clear URLs with the keyword perform better than unclear parameters. So rather '.../sustainable-living-tips' than '.../article?id=111&cat=4'.
- Structured data. Use this format to generate rich results : special views at the top of search results with additional information. Consider a FAQ with drop-down questions directly in the search results list, events with date and location, etc.
Off-page SEO: backlinks and brand awareness
By off-page SEO, we refer to factors that lie outside your website, but which you can influence to some extent. Therefore, within this article, we will deal with them only very briefly.
A very important part of off-page SEO is link building: gathering quality (back)links to your site. Backlinks are considered real ranking boosters: they offer Google a strong indication of your authority.
The most powerful method of link building is to bet on content marketing. Create content that people want to share or reference. If you want to go a step further, you can also start guest blogging. **Or **search for broken links on relevant topics on other sites and ask to replace them with your link.
Want to know more?
Check out this Semrush overview to score with rich snippets in 2025
05
AI and other innovations
The search engine world is not standing still. The advance of artificial intelligence (AI) is making search engines today read almost like a human.
Content, voice & image search
- Smart algorithms are making SEO optimization increasingly broad and content-driven . Those who want to make a difference must focus on quality and authority in their entire content strategy and execution .
- Another development is voice queries. Capitalize on this with longer combinations of keywords and more conversational content. Think FAQ pages and Q&A content.
- AI also makes visual searches better. With Google Lens, you point your camera at an object and Google searches for information about it. Or you combine a photo + text in your search ("find shoes like these, but in blue").
- Make sure your image SEO is in order, with images that have good alt texts and lots of relevant images that can be understood by Google. Video content also continues to grow and may gain even more importance due to AI, as AI chatbots can process videos quite easily.
AI search engines
Google remains by far the most used search engine, but is also getting AI search engines like ChatGPT Search or Perplexity alongside it.
AI search engines like ChatGPT Search and Perplexity work largely in a similar way to Google, with crawlers, indexing and ranking algorithms.
Perplexity does rely on a smaller index that is updated daily and therefore values current information higher.
ChatGPT Search, in turn, uses Bing's search infrastructure and indexing system.
Those who want to rank in AI search engines follow the same path as what Google recommends:
- Focus on the quality of your content and work on your authority.
- Create quickly scannable content with a logical structure.
- Create content that maximizes the user's search intent .
Want to know more?
Check out this annual overview from the agency First Page Sage on how heavily different factors count in the current Google algorithm.
FAQ: SEO in 2025
1. What will be the most important SEO trend in 2025?
The biggest SEO trend is that smart algorithms are causing SEO optimization to become increasingly broad and content-driven. Those who want to make a difference must focus on quality, authority, search intent and content relevance. Structured data and image and voice search are also becoming more important.
2. How do I get my content crawled and indexed quickly?
Place internal links to new pages on your homepage. Make sure your site has a logical structure and that Googlebot can reach each page within three clicks. Use an XML sitemap and check your robots.txt file.
3. What factors determine whether my content ranks high in Google?
Google is looking at a combination of:
- Relevance (does the content match the search query?)
- Authority (how many quality backlinks does the page have?)
- User experience (loading speed, mobile-friendliness, internal link structure)
- User signals (click rate, time on page, bounce rate)
4. What is E-E-A-T and why is it important?
E-E-A-T stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness. Google uses that principle to assess the reliability and quality of content. Provide well-researched content, clear author attribution and quality backlinks to improve your E-E-A-T.
5. How do I optimize my content for search intent?
Tune your content to the four main categories of search intent:
- Informative: Offer in-depth, educational content such as guides and blogs.
- Navigating: Make sure your brand and product names are clearly present.
- Commercial: Create comparison articles, reviews and case studies.
- Transactional: Optimize product and landing pages with clear CTAs.
6. What is a topic cluster and why is it useful?
A topic cluster consists of a pillar page (main article on a broad topic) and multiple subpages that cover specific subtopics. This structure helps search engines understand the structure of your content and increases your ranking chances on broad as well as specific search terms.
7. How important will technical SEO still be in 2025?
Technical SEO remains a foundation for good rankings. Important aspects are:
- Speed: optimize images, minimize code and use fast hosting.
- Mobile-friendliness: Google primarily indexes the mobile version of your site.
- Structured data: helps Google generate rich results.
- Indexing: make sure Googlebot can crawl and process your pages properly.
