Search engine optimization is an all-encompassing science that deals with content, coding, marketing and a variety of other elements. To fully understand the dynamic of SEO takes years of expertise – and even then, the industry is constantly changing. For brands to be on their A-game, it’s important to keep track with changes that search engines are making. Many core components of SEO remain the same as ever, but how users interact with search engines – and how those search engines display information -is always changing. We’ll discuss a few must-know SEO stats today in order to help you better produce content for 2017.

Content Length

In years past, the average length of content in top ranking pages was relatively miniscule. It wasn’t uncommon to see pages and posts that clocked in at just a few hundred words. Today, however, things have changed. The top performers in search generally have an average word count of anywhere from 1500 to 2000 words, signifying that comprehensive and detailed content is preferred by search engines. If you are producing content consistently that uses fewer words, you may wish to consider alternating your content creation schedule in order to produce less frequent – but more in-depth – pieces of content. This way, you’ll be pinging to Google and other search engines yet another positive indicator that your brand represents quality and authority.

Brand Reliance on Search

While each brand is different and can generate traffic through a variety of sources, most of them still heavily rely on search engines in some capacity. More than nine in ten final queries first originate with a search query of some sort. Whether this results in more investigation that leads to your brand or a direct click via a SERP can vary, but many people will find out about you through what search engines show (or don’t show) about you. Because of this, SEO still remains completely relevant for brands of all backgrounds. Even if you’re generating ample traffic via email marketing and/or social media, you want to take advantage of those initial impressions within a niche that most users will have via search engines.

Extended Search Queries

In years past, it was common for search queries to consist of just one or two words. This was partially  due to the primitive nature of search engines and partially due to a relative drought of relevant results. Today, however, search engine users have adapted to the increased availability of information, with long-tail keywords being all the rage. The average search query today exceeds five words, meaning that you want to be targeting questions, phrases and extended queries rather than individual words. By pinging to Google a variety of long-tail keywords and phrases via your content, you can more effectively compete in niches where you can realistically dominate.

To understand where SEO is going, you must first know where it is. This year, we are seeing brands still being reliant on search engines for most of their traffic, a gradual but consistent increase in the length of search queries and more focus on highly-detailed content. If you can embrace these elements in your broader SEO strategy, then you’ll be well-positioned to dominate in the months and years to come.