The top search result on Google for your keyword phrase receives more that 39 percent of all clicks.
Imagine the impact your business would have if you were ranked first for some of your preferred phrases.
This guide aims to provide information that will help you understand Google's most important ranking factors and how you can use them on your site to get more visitors.
What are Google Ranking Factors (Google Ranking Factors)?
Google ranking factors are elements of your website that Google searches considers when deciding which pages to display in search results for a particular search query.
You want someone to search for your service or business using a keyword that is relevant to you.
Google ranking SEO is essential to understanding how to rank your website in Google search results. There are many ranking factors that can make a difference to your website's position in Google search results. However, others have less impact.
This guide will cover the key factors so that you can choose the best SEO strategies.
It's important to know the Google Ranking SEO Factors
Intergrowth has a study that clarifies the ROI of SEO.
These five organic results account for 67.60% of all clicks. The percentage of clicks drops below 67.60 percent after that.
Let's suppose you rank first for a keyword that has 1,000 searches per month and a 30% click-through rate. This would bring 300 new visitors each month to your website. Even if you convert just 1% of these visitors, that would still translate into three new customers each month for a whole year.
Your business can get 36 new customers by ranking first on Google for one keyword.
You can make a big difference by following the steps in this guide to rank well for a few keywords.
Top 11 Google Ranking Search SEO Factors
Let's look at the most important Google ranking factors to help you increase your SEO rankings on Google.
1. Mobile-First Optimization
Mobile traffic made up 54.4 percent of all global traffic in the fourth quarter 2021. Most people who surf the internet on smartphones expect that your site will work well on their devices. If it doesn't they will likely leave your site.
Mobile friendliness is a key ranking factor for Google. Google will take you down if your website doesn't work on mobile.
Google has more information about this topic if you don't believe my assertions. They have started mobile-first indexing in summer 2019. This means that your mobile functionality is what determines your rank. Desktop performance is second in importance.
You need to ensure that your website functions on all devices, including smartphones, tablets and computers, in order to rank high in Google search results. You should ensure that the template or theme you choose is mobile-responsive. Next, make sure all images are clearly displayed, verify that no words fall off the screen and limit text walls. While they may look great on desktop, mobile screens can be covered by a lot of text.
You can make sure your site loads correctly by reducing the number and complexity of changing URLs for video and limiting the amount “lazy-loading” content.
2. Core Web Vitals
Core Web Vitals was added by Google in May 2020 as an additional ranking factor. These are a measure of the website's overall health and the user experience.
These vitals can be broken down into 3 categories:
- LCP (Largest Contentful Painting)
- FID First Input Delay
- CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift).
A 2021 study found that only 41% of websites scored high in each of the Core Web Vitals categories.
Let's take a look at each one to see how they affect your rankings.
Largest contentful paint: Google expects that your site will load its first page in 2.5 seconds. This decreases click-through rates and impacts Google's SEO ranking.
It is possible to improve the page loading speed by reducing complexity, shortening pages and limiting redirects.
First input delay: Google expects that your website responds quickly to users when they interact. A button or window on your site must respond within 100 milliseconds to users when they click it.
Page Speed Insights is the best way to increase FID. For an example, I did a test at neilpatel.com.
Cumulative layout Shift: Google expects that your site loads predictably and doesn't change once it's loaded. Did you ever click a link on a website while it was loading? Then it would jump halfway down the page to take you to another link. This is a key factor in Google SEO ranking.
This happens when pages load at different speeds, resulting in layout changes. This can be prevented by making sure all images are equal in size and that new content isn’t placed above existing content. Also, make sure animations load at the exact same speed.
3. High-Value Content
According to SEMRush 55% of brands saw better results because they improved their content.
Poor-quality content is not allowed on the internet. This is one of the most important Google ranking factors. It doesn't require any fancy or complicated. Google will reward you for writing great, detailed, and valuable content.
What does it mean to be value-rich?
This means content that people love to read, content that is helpful, and content that offers more than the rest. Researching the questions of your customers and creating content to answer them is a great place to begin. Use keyword research tools such as Ubersuggest and question forums such Quora to find common questions. You can also monitor social media chatter among your target audience via social media.
You can improve your SEO and ultimately your bottom line by creating high-quality content.
4. Domain Age and Authority
Domain age is one of the Google ranking SEO factors that you cannot control unless your domains are seasoned.
Domain age is the time that your domain has been registered. Authority refers to your Google reputation.
Although John Mueller, the “King of Search”, said that domain age is irrelevant, I believe it has a significant impact on your overall site authority.
You can improve your authority by focusing on E-A-T. This stands for authority, authority, and trustworthiness.
A few ways to improve your E-A-T score are involving subject matter experts and giving them bylines in your blog posts, including interviews and reviews by industry experts, leveraging social proof across your website, and increasing your website’s security.
E-A-T doesn't directly impact SEO ranking, but it can have an indirect effect on SEO. Although E-A-T isn't a ranking factor directly, it can have an indirect impact on SEO.
5. Links
Over 90% of web pages don't receive any traffic. This is often due to the fact that they don’t have backlinks.
Yes, links still matter for Google ranking SEO. Ranking factors include inbound, outbound, and internal links. They increase your site's authority and make it a valuable resource.
Backlinks, also known as inbound links or “backlinks”, are links from another site to your content. These links increase authority because Google sees that your content is so good that they want to link to it.
By providing relevant information to your visitors, outbound links demonstrate authority. Outbound links should be included to allow readers to learn more about a topic or support any stats and facts you have in your content.
Internal links are links on your website that link ideas together. Google Ranking SEO is important because it shows Google that you are an expert on the subject.
6. The On-Page Experience
Google's ranking factor for search results is the bounce rate. It can have a significant impact on where Google ranks you. One study showed that the average bounce rate was around 49 percent. Most people believe that a bounce rate of 50-60 percent is acceptable. Google will flag a lower bounce rate as indicating that the page doesn't provide users with what they are looking for. This can lead to your page not appearing in search results.
Other important factors in Google's ranking are the click-through rate, dwell time, and other aspects of on-page experience. These factors tell Google if someone is satisfied with what they see after they click on your site in search results.
Your on-page experience metrics can be improved by aligning your content with your target keywords, metadata and title tag. This will ensure that people click through to your site and find what they are looking for.
7. Technical SEO
Google still ranks technical SEO highly. These are some examples of technical SEO:
- Keywords in page titles and title tag
- Keyword-optimized header tags
- Properly optimized meta description between 110 and 150 characters
- Keyword-rich alt text and tags
- proper schema markup
The following was the result of a study on technical SEO:
- Every fourth website contains link errors
- 13 percent of websites have sitemap errors
- Websites abandon meta descriptions at 63 percent
- More than 20% of websites have low site speeds
Technical SEO is one of the most straightforward things you can do on your website. Use relevant keywords in headers and metadata. A quality keyword research tool is essential to do this. It will provide you with detailed competitor data as well as keyword gaps. This guide will show you how to run an SEO audit.
Header tags are important. You want to make sure you use keywords wherever possible in your headers. Headers are an important indicator for Google crawling your site and can be used to improve your SEO ranking.
When someone searches for a keyword, their meta description and the title tag will be displayed in the SERPs. Keywords should be used in the title and meta tags. But make sure they are natural and not forced.
8. Social Signals
Although this study is a little out of date, it provides context for the importance social media in SEO.
CognitiveSEO has created a graph and a study that shows how social shares affect the ranking of a website. The ranking decreases as the number of shares goes down. This factor won't have a huge impact on your ranking but it can make you stand out in a sea of competitors.
Remember that social media presence can also be a trust factor. Visitors will be more likely to buy from you if they can find you on social networks.
9. Relevancy of Content and Authority
The Google ranking factor can be divided into three categories:
- Search intent
- Content hubs
- Relevance to the current topic
These three factors are crucial in Google ranking SEO. Google is now paying more attention to what people write and how they present it to search engines.
Surfer conducted an amazing case study and found that of 37,000 keywords changed intent. Many shopping-related keywords turned informational. People who used to search for products are now looking for information that will help them make a purchase decision.
Content hubs are a place where people can go to find all the information they need about a topic. Google considers your website an authority if it provides a comprehensive look into a topic. These hubs are a way to show Google that you can do everything from A through Z.
10. Real Business Information
Although this Google ranking factor is something I consider to be somewhat new, it falls under the category of trust indicators. You need to make your online experience as similar to what you have in store.
What does this all mean? This means that people expect to be able call you and see your location, and to be able answer their questions immediately.
Google Voice can be used to create an “About Us” page with real photos and an address. This will increase your authority and prove that you are a legitimate business.
11. Content Length
It has been proven time and again that longer content is more effective.
Longer content is more likely to be shared on social media and to receive more pageviews. Also, longer pieces of content tend to stay in place for longer.
This doesn't mean you can just throw together a 15,000 word salad and expect it rank. These words must still provide tremendous value, resources and information. If you are able to create a longer article than the competition, your chances of ranking higher will be greater.
Future Google Ranking Factors
What direction do we see Google ranking SEO in the future? Based on my research and experience, five factors stand out to me as the most important for the next years. Google also mentions these factors.
- High-quality, relevant content
- Honest and relevant keyword research and placement
- Exceptional user experience and site functionality
- Mobile and voice optimization
- Strong backlink profile
These five points tell us a lot about Google's search criteria. Google expects you to offer a positive experience for users when they visit your site.
Content Science's study demonstrates the importance of content relevance. Summarising, they say that although it is great to have lots of traffic to your site and it looks good on Google, it does not generate any goal completions. Content relevance is the key.
Site functionality and user experience go hand in hand with content relevancy. You need a site that works well and meets all the technical requirements of Google, no matter how good the content.
It's clearly stated on its mission statement page.
Our mission is to make the world's information accessible and usable. Search allows you to quickly and easily find information from many sources.
Google Ranking Factors Commonly Asked Questions
What is the most important factor in Google's ranking?
I will always think that the key to Google ranking SEO is high-quality and valuable content.
Google releases a list of ranking factors
While it’s not necessarily a list, it’s a solid explanation of what factors are most important. You can see the focus is primarily on user experience.
How can I increase my Google search ranking
Improve your ranking by implementing all of the Google ranking factors in this guide.
What are the Google ranking factors?
There are likely hundreds if not thousands of factors ranging from small to large. Google has a rigorous process to determine what factors are most important.
Conclusion: Google Search Ranking Factors
Although there is no way to guarantee that your content will rank well, these Google ranking factors can help you increase your chances of being found for the keywords you choose. Hiring a qualified agency can also help you rank higher.
You don't need to do it all if you are doing it on your own. You can start with the most crucial factors and work your ways down. Although it may take some time, Google is a generous and honest leader who rewards those who do the hard work.
Which factors are you most concerned about Google ranking SEO over the next 5-10 years?
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By: Neil Patel
Title: 11 Critical Google Ranking Factors That Will Drive More Traffic
Sourced From: neilpatel.com/blog/critical-google-ranking-factors/
Published Date: Thu, 14 Apr 2022 20:25:14 +0000