If you want your business to thrive online, understanding how Google ranks is imperative for success. They use a complex and ever-changing list of criteria to determine which website will be the most relevant and valuable for its users. While you should focus on quality content first, there is also a range of other factors that you should understand.
These can include factors such as user experience and even technical optimisation, to name a few. Let's look at some of these in this article so you can better curate your content for the best results.
Relevance
Relevance is one of the major factors in determining the ranking of a website in Google's search engine results. This is because the ultimate goal is to rank highest the articles that are most relevant to your query. Therefore, having relevant content on your website is the first step in improving your ranking.
To determine the relevance of a website's content, there are a range of factors considered, such as the quality and originality of content. The use and placement of relevant keywords within the article also play a significant role in determining relevance.
It is crucial to focus on relevance for on-page ranking because the goal is to provide the most value to the user, and by bringing relevant results, Google search will be considered effective.
Backlinks
Backlinks are another important criteria that Google uses to rank websites. These are the links that are directed to your website from other websites. It shows a level of authority and is evidence that others find your content useful and informative. These typically happen organically or if you find an Australian link-building service they will be able to build backlinks for you.
You will need to pay attention to the quality of backlinks though, as this will affect your ranking from Google. They consider high-quality backlinks from authoritative websites a positive ranking signal, while low-quality or spammy backlinks can harm your website's reputation.
User Experience
No one wants to be suggested poorly-constructed websites with unappealing layouts. This is why Google also emphasizes user experience. It can sometimes be an overlooked aspect of a website, especially for those focusing solely on content.
The way Google usually evaluates user experience is by looking at mobile responsiveness, navigation structure, and visual appeal. The search engine aims to provide users with a positive experience, and websites that offer a good user experience are more likely to rank higher in search results.
User experience is essential because it affects how users engage with your website. Ranking aside, if the user experience is poor, then you will see a high bounce rate. Meaning that visitors won't be on your website for long before leaving due to the unsatisfactory experience. Just another reason why you should focus more on user experience.
Content Quality
Another important aspect when it comes to ranking is content quality. Google evaluates the quality of a website's content based on expertise, authority, and trustworthiness. They want users to be able to find high-quality, well-researched content for their users, so it does also look at these facts to deliver the best results.
It's not only important to focus on quality for ranking but also to establish your website as a source of exceptional content. With so many pages having subpar, poorly written content, it's an excellent way for you to stand out from the crowd. This informative, valuable content will ultimately attract organic traffic to your website and improve engagement with your audience.
Technical Optimisation
Technical optimization is an essential ranking factor that impacts how well a website can be crawled and indexed by Google. It includes website speed, mobile responsiveness, and structured data, among other technical elements that affect a website's performance and user experience.
Website speed is a critical technical factor influencing user experience and search engine rankings. Slow-loading websites can lead to higher bounce rates and lower engagement, negatively affecting search engine rankings. This can be improved by optimizing images, reducing server response time and a range of other tactics to improve performance.
They also look at mobile responsiveness, which is another crucial technical factor that affects search engine rankings. With more people using mobile phones to access websites, the algorithm also looks at how optimized websites are for mobile. Those who don't have a responsive design or friendly navigation might experience lower rankings.
Conclusion
So, as we've gone through in this article, Google's algorithm uses a complex set of ranking factors to determine the relevance and authority of a website. While you can implement many of these points now, the algorithm constantly changes. This means your best bet would be to ensure your website is completely optimized to be the highest standard that you can produce.
That said, by keeping up with changes to the Google algorithm and optimizing these factors consistently, website owners can stay ahead of the competition and achieve greater online visibility and success. So keep optimizing to get ahead, and good luck!
