Over the next few days, we’re going to take a look at the factors that come into play in that all-important, highly-coveted #1 position on Google.
Okay. Here it is in a nutshell. Google is looking for hundreds of little things when they rank a site. Their algorithm is very complicated and takes a lot of things into account when they are calculating who gets the top position. While they never tell you what the most important criteria are, through research you can begin to see a pattern and understand what they’re looking for.
Look at it this way. If you search for a phrase on Google and compare the top results with those on page 10, you’ll start to see which things Google likes and doesn’t like. Do that for dozens of phrases and you’ll start to see a pattern. From our research, here are the three most important elements when trying to get that coveted #1 position:
Links are important because they are a way for Google to see what other people think of your site. By counting the links coming into your site, Google is able to see if people think your site is worthy of being considered a good site. It’s really neat actually. Google uses a computer that’s pretty smart but not as discerning as a human being, and they are able to see what other live humans think of your site, by determining if other webmasters are willing to cast a vote for your site by linking to it.
Content is king. It always has been and it always will be. The Internet is all about content and if you don’t have great, unique content on your site, then Google is likely to list your site low in their rankings. If you have great writing, filled with keywords ( from your keyword research ) that people are searching for, then you’ll eventually find people linking to your site naturally. But it’s not just about the content on the page itself. You also have to fill your code (we’ll go into more depth later) with great content too.
Dynamics. That’s my way of saying that your site needs to be constantly changing. If someone visits your site for a second time and nothing has changed, then why should they come back a third time? They won’t. Google knows this too. In fact, Google vows to provide the most relevant content in their searches. Obviously more up-to-date content is more relevant than old, out-of-date stuff so they look at how recently your content was updated. If your pages haven’t been changed in months, then you can sit back and watch your site slowly slide backwards, slipping lower and lower in the Google rankings.
Since this is such a big topic, we’ll just take it a little at a time. Come back daily for more SEO/marketing insight. Until next week, have a great weekend! We’re heading up to see the aspen leaves change. Looks like this will be the last opportunity for camping this season.
Wishing you success,
Chadd Bryant