Understanding SEO Ranking

Well-optimized sites get more and more traffic over time, which means more leads and sales. Without effective SEO ranking, searchers won’t be able to find your site, and all your hard work will be for nothing. In this guide, we will share the updated and essential SEO ranking factors you need to dominate organic search results.

Basics of SEO Ranking

Before we delve into each ranking factor’s details, let’s take a quick look at the basics of search engine optimization ranking. SEO ranking refers to your content’s position on the search engine results pages (SERPs). A #1 ranking means that when people search for a particular term, your web page is the first result (apart from promoted results, featured snippets, and answer boxes). Appearing in the top 3 results is excellent because your click-through rates skyrocket the closer you get to #1. Appearing on the first page within the top 10 results is also useful since 95% of people never pass the first page.

Google’s Search Algorithms

Google aims to “organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.” Delivering relevant search results is a huge part of that. Google’s search bots crawl the web, visit web pages, add correctly optimized and crawlable pages to Google’s index, and catalog them. When people search Google, it shows what it thinks are the most relevant results based on the search terms they enter. Google’s complex algorithms decide which content gets displayed and in which order.

Importance of Page Titles and Meta Descriptions

Once your page lands on the SERP, you must rely on your page titles and meta descriptions to get searchers to click your link and visit your site. When people want to find information, they type or say words related to what they’re looking for. Those are called keywords, and we’ll look at those in the content optimization section of this guide. But keeping your website ranking on Google isn’t just about making the most out of competitive keywords; it’s also about the quality of information.

Evaluating Content Quality

According to Google’s own search quality ratings, when it indexes the main content of each page, it checks factors like the purpose of the page, content quality and amount, website info and info about the content creator, website reputation and content creator reputation, user interaction with the page (time on page, bounce rates, and so on), and expertise, authority, and trustworthiness (E-A-T). Expertise, authority, and trustworthiness have become very important. This concept, known as E-A-T, was emphasized in Google’s “medic update” in August 2018. Google aims to ensure that users aren’t just getting the highest quality content but also the right information from that content. This is especially crucial for websites that could lead to potentially life-altering results, such as medical and financial planning sites.

Building Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness (E-A-T)

E-A-T means evaluating not only a page’s content but the creator’s reputation. Expertise means the author of a piece of content has the requisite skills and knowledge in their field. Authority means this is the best source to answer the searcher’s question. Trustworthiness means the author provides an honest, unbiased presentation of the topic in their content. Google measures E-A-T through a combination of algorithms and human Quality Raters who assess search results.

Enhancing E-A-T for Better SEO

Some reputable people have documented strong correlations between E-A-T and ranking. To increase your E-A-T, create a detailed “About Us” page, optimize your page for searcher intent, display awards, certificates, or credentials, build your authoritativeness with guest posts, respond to reviews, keep your information unbiased and accurate, and provide an easily accessible contact page. These best practices manage your online reputation and can potentially boost your SEO ranking.

On-Page vs. Off-Page SEO

Two key terms in SEO are on-page SEO and off-page SEO. On-page refers to factors on your own website that you can optimize, such as the underlying code and the content. Off-page refers to actions taken outside your site to affect your site’s trustworthiness and authority by building the right inbound links and social signals. Both types are included in the top SEO ranking factors.

Tracking and Monitoring SEO Rankings

Monitoring and tracking ranking is crucial before improving your SEO ranking. Tools like Semrush can help you track the exact keywords you’re trying to rank for. Now, let’s dive into the top 10 current SEO ranking factors for Google.

A Secure and Accessible Website

A secure and accessible website is essential for good SEO. Google’s crawlers need to visit and understand your page content easily. Ensure you have a well-coded website, a robots.txt file, and a sitemap. HTTPS is also a lightweight ranking factor that improves user security.

Page Speed (Including Mobile Page Speed)

Page speed has been a leading SEO ranking factor for years. Google’s algorithm update focused on mobile page speed, penalizing slow-loading mobile sites. Use tools like Google’s PageSpeed Insights to evaluate your site’s performance.

Mobile Friendliness

With more people accessing the web via mobile devices, mobile-friendliness is a major SEO ranking factor. Ensure your site is responsive, has large fonts, accessible menus, and that ads don’t hide essential content.

Domain Age, URL, and Authority

Older domains tend to rank higher. While exact-match domains aren’t as crucial, having a URL that reflects your business and optimizing it is beneficial. Authority, measured by page and domain authority scores, is a combination of great content and off-page SEO signals.

Optimized Content

Quality content is a significant SEO ranking factor. Use keywords naturally, avoid duplicate content, and include LSI (latent semantic indexing) keywords. Understanding search intent and optimizing for longer content can also improve your rankings.

Technical SEO

Technical SEO involves getting the code right, such as adding keyword phrases in page titles, using header tags, creating meta descriptions, using keyword phrases in image alt tags, and using schema markup.

Conclusion

By focusing on these SEO ranking factors, you can improve your site’s visibility and attract more organic traffic. Remember, SEO is a continuous process, and staying updated with the latest trends and practices is crucial for maintaining and improving your rankings.