It’s not easy to predict what the coming year will hold, but it can be a good (and fun) exercise to forecast the trends that will direct the landscape of Paid Search in 2016. To be prepared, you should always look at what is happening in the industry to guide the actions of your company in a way that will keep things fresh and new, and ultimately bring in fresh, new customers. Here are the trends that we at 33 Mile Radius are predicting will dominate in paid search in the coming year.

Mobile Traffic

The shift to the mobile phone is happening faster and faster each year, bringing with it a whole new way of connecting with your customers. Sources predict that by the end of next year, more than half of all online traffic will be carried out on phones and other mobile devices. It’s not much of a surprise, things have been trending this way for a while, but now more than ever it is important to start thinking about mobile content first, even before desktop-oriented content. This should apply not only to your website but also how and when your customers find you.

Bing

With major changes underway in their strategy, Microsoft’s search engine Bing will finally start to see more traction in traffic. This, along with other small search engines, will be a driving force in finding more visitors and conversions. As search expands into other areas, remember that Google Adwords is not the only place to find new customers. Having a marketing strategy that covers multiple search engines will be a “must” going into 2016.

Higher Cost Per Click (CPC)

This one hurts everyone, but it is the very nature of paid search. As system and targeting algorithms become more and more sophisticated, expect the cost per clicks to rise. Much as it has over the past few years, we believe that the trend of rising CPC will only continue—especially with Google being a public company that wants to look for more earnings. On the flip side, as CPCs get higher, some suspect that sweeping changes may happen in the marketplace to make it easier for small and medium-sized businesses to compete with larger corporations. While we don’t recommend holding your breath for those changes, it is something to bear in mind.

While we recognize that predictions are almost always wrong, we also believe that there are some safe bets trending in the upcoming year. Look out for these, and other tips and tricks regarding Local SEO that we’ll share over the coming months, and let us know if you have any other ideas that should be included!