SEO Trends You Need To Be Aware Of In 2017

The world of SEO is constantly and rapidly changing and as we quickly move towards 2017 it’s incredibly likely that we’re looking to see even more changes, buzzwords and trends appearing in the near future. While nobody can truly predict the future of SEO, through looking at current trends we can work out what might be to happen in the upcoming year. Today we’ll be making our SEO predictions and looking at how they can be taken forward into the next year.  

Content Over Keywords 

Whilst keywords are and will continue to be significant factors in SEO, recently there has been much more focus on the overall quality of the content as well as the inclusion of relevant keywords. Whereas many would have included repeated keywords and little information, writers are now looking to provide engaging and relevant information, that also includes keywords. Not only does this look better but it also means that as search engines start prioritising quality over quantity of keywords, that your content is much more likely to rank.  

Creative SEO 

As well as including quality content in your SEO text it’s also important that your brands stands out in search engine results. We’ve seen this to some degree with big businesses already and it’s likely that in the coming year there’s going to be even more focus on the creativity and originality of your business. Consumers are looking for innovation, they don’t want the same things they’ve seen before, 2017 is going to be all about consumer engagement and interaction and creative SEO content is sure to allow this.  

Voice Search 

With voice control applications like Ok Google and with even more attention being put on Siri, text based searches are quickly becoming a thing of the past. These days people are wanting to simply ask a question and be told the answer, whilst great for the consumer may be difficult for optimising your website. Now you must start to think about the keywords customers might be saying, as well as what they are typing, which could mean the smallest changes are in order or completely new words need to be used. By optimising your website for web search you’re not only making your business look savvier you’re also showing a new way to make your site visible.    

Continued Focus on Mobile 

Mobile devices have been the focus of SEO, web design and even marketing for years now and it looks like this won’t be changing any time soon, becoming even more popular as the years roll by. Where you might have just about got by without a mobile optimised website in recent years in 2017 if you don’t have a responsive website, you may as well not have a website at all. With the increase in people using mobile devices, search engines have changed in order to accommodate mobile friendly sites, meaning mobile sites rank slightly better than those who are suitable for desktop only and this isn’t looking to change any time soon.  

Answer Questions

When people search online, they’re probably looking for some kind of answer, meaning the more questions your content answers, the happier you’ll make users. These days if you type in a question on Google you might find a dictionary definition or “featured snippet” as the top result, meaning in order to get your website to rank underneath you need to be answering questions, not only offering more answers for users but also increasing your likelihood of ranking in search results.  

SEO is one of the most useful and effective marketing techniques, keeping up with upcoming and current trends is a sure fire way to make your year much more successful, allowing you to create modern, relevant SEO content which can not only help you rank within search results pages, but can also see an increase in your traffic, engagement and even your sales.