The top 7 ranking factors on Google that will help you improve your SEO, increase your visibility, and achieve better positions in the search results.
Ieva Treiliha
More than 3.5 billion searches are made on Google every single day!
Yes – you read that correctly! 3.5 billion.
To accommodate this astronomical number of searches and provide users with the best possible experience, Google continuously evaluates over 1 billion websites using an algorithm based on many different factors. These factors allow Google to ensure that the top-ranking sites in the search results are also the “best” sites from the user’s perspective.
Google has confirmed that they use around 200 factors to rank websites, but they keep many of these ranking factors strictly confidential. One of the reasons for this secrecy is to prevent websites from exploiting this knowledge to climb the rankings without actually adding value for the user.
However, there are also several well-known ranking factors, but a post covering all of them would be far too extensive. In this article, I will therefore focus on 7 of the most important factors for your ranking in the search results.
Specifically, I will cover the following:
On-page optimisation is one of the core disciplines within SEO. On-page SEO has long been a recognised ranking factor and covers a wide range of elements. In simple terms, it refers to the optimisations you make to your website to help Google better understand your content, so it can present the right results to users.
As on-page optimisation as a whole is one of the most important factors for your ranking, this section is further expanded with some of the key aspects of the discipline.
We have said it before – but we are happy to say it again! Content is king!
When it comes to SEO, you will find an abundance of clever hacks, quick fixes and shortcuts. Yes – we have probably been guilty of suggesting some of these ourselves. But the fact is, you cannot “hack” your way around Google’s algorithms – at least not if you want to be safe in the long run. With 3,200 updates to their algorithm every year, you can rest assured that Google closes every loophole they find, often before you even know where they will strike next. There is, however, one thing you can always rely on.
Google has one overarching goal: To make the search results as accurate as possible and meet users’ needs.
You can read more about how SEO and content marketing work hand in hand here:
Get the most out of content marketing with SEO
Knowing that Google’s goal is to give users exactly the result they are looking for, it is crucial when creating content to consider search intent. The user searches for a specific word or phrase – what do they expect to find – and do you deliver that? I can assure you, Google is delighted when you provide answers that are both precise and comprehensive. They even measure whether users visit other similar pages after yours. If they do, it means they clearly did not find what they were looking for.
So always deliver on your promise – and answer the user’s actual question.
You can read more about search intent here:
What does CTR optimisation mean for your SEO performance
Alongside search intent, you should of course consider which words and phrases users actually use when searching. You may already have an idea of the words they use, but it is not necessarily the case that the terms you use for your products are the same as those your customers use. You then need to check whether you are using these words in the text on your site, and whether your keyword density (the number of times the keyword appears in the text) is sufficient.
Google’s algorithm is highly dependent on keywords, so it is important that the landing page users arrive at is specifically about what they searched for. You demonstrate this to Google by having the relevant words and phrases clearly visible in your text.
The amount of text on your website has a significant impact on your ranking. As you can see in the graphic below, higher ranking pages typically have more content.
TIP: The amount of text needed depends largely on how much your competitors have on their sites. As a rule of thumb, you should aim for at least 10% more content than your competitors.
BUT: It is also worth noting that because text length is a well-known ranking factor, many now produce vast amounts of long content. Therefore, it is important to ensure the quality of your texts is high, the content is original, and that it brings something new to the table, so to speak.
You can read more about creating valuable content in Ieva’s in-depth article here:
SEO tips and tricks: Guide to Google’s algorithm updates
When working on your website’s content, it is crucial that it is detailed and relevant to what the user is searching for. So, you have of course ensured this, right?
But Google is also a machine, and for it to understand which pages are relevant for users, you need to make this clear. You do this by including the keywords in the page’s headings. Make sure you clearly state what the page is about in your H1 heading by using the primary keyword or phrase, and that your subheadings are optimised for secondary keywords and use H2 or H3 tags.
This helps Google better understand your page’s topic and structure, allowing it to rank your site in the search results, while also making your content easy for users to understand.
We cannot stress this enough; it is absolutely crucial that both Google and the user can quickly find your content and get answers to exactly what they are searching for.
Metadata consists of a title tag and a meta description.
The title tag is the headline that appears in Google when a search is performed, and the meta description is the summary directly below it.
Title tag
The title tag is extremely important to get right, as Google closely examines this to assess the page’s relevance to the search query. When optimising your page’s title tag, you should ensure that the primary keyword appears as one of the first elements in the title and that the title is neither too long nor too short. You can check this using tools such as: https://www.storybase.com/da/ctr-tool/
Additionally, you might consider:
Meta descriptions
Google does not scan your meta description for keywords, but it is still a good idea to include the keyword or phrase in the description. This is because the words users search for will be highlighted in bold in the text. The main purpose of your meta description, however, is to encourage users to click on your result. Therefore, your text should be engaging, easy to understand and provide an accurate insight into what users can expect to find on the page. If appropriate, you can again use a call to action in the description. Also, ensure the length is correct so your text is not cut off.
On-page optimisation is essential for telling Google what your pages are about, but it is also crucial for encouraging users to click through to your website. CTR is also a ranking factor for Google, as it shows them that your result has successfully met the user’s needs.
Structured data, also known as rich snippets, is becoming increasingly prominent in search results. You may have come across it in the form of star ratings in the search results, which show users’ reviews of a service or product, and it can also include other company information or images, such as in the results for “Swiss roll”.
Structured data makes it easier for Google to identify the essential information on your website, so it can display better search results to its users. In addition, it helps your result stand out in the search results, which can increase your click-through rate and in turn lead to a higher position in the search results. This creates a positive upward spiral, where each positive result further supports the next.
Structured data is just one aspect of what is known as Schema Markup, but it is a larger topic that I will not cover here.
Inbound links, also known as backlinks, are part of off-page SEO and involve getting other websites to link to your site. When other sites link to you, Google sees this as a form of recommendation. Google thinks that if other sites link to you, they must consider your site to be good. And if those sites that link to you find your website valuable, other users might feel the same. As a result, Google moves you higher up in the search results.
There are many ways to acquire links to your site, and not all links are equally effective.
The best links come from high-authority websites linking to your site within content that is relevant to your page’s topic. This is because Google naturally values a recommendation (link) from relevant and authoritative domains more highly than one from irrelevant or insignificant domains. Imagine you sell men’s watches. If an authoritative site such as, for example, Esquire links to your product, it carries more value and “weight” than if, for example, a local food blog links to your product.
You can learn much more about how to do link building here:
How to do link building
It will come as no surprise that mobile devices are the go-to for many users when searching. Having a mobile-optimised website is therefore one of the most important factors for both Google rankings and user experience. Google has what is known as a mobile-first index, meaning it favours websites that are mobile-optimised. If your website is not responsive, you will automatically be pushed to the back of the queue. So, it is an absolute no-go!
You can use this tool to test your site: https://search.google.com/test/mobile-friendly
While considering Google’s algorithm, never forget that the user is the most important factor – both for you and for Google. 58% of all searches are now made from a mobile phone, and 40% of Google users state that they use only their mobile for searches. You simply cannot afford not to have a responsive website if you want to rank highly on Google.
You can read much more about the importance of responsive design here:
Why responsive design matters more than ever
As far back as 2014, Google announced that one of their ranking factors is a secure website. However, there are still websites out there that are not secure – although you now have to go far back in the search results to find them. The reason for this is that Google wants to prioritise secure results for its users, and even though they have not explicitly said they “penalise” insecure sites, it is clear that secure sites rank higher.
A secure website simply means that your website’s URL starts with https:// instead of http://. If you are one of the few who have not yet switched to https://, it is fortunately something you can easily fix by obtaining an SSL certificate.
Christian goes into detail about what an SSL certificate is and which one you should choose here:
What is an SSL certificate?
The time it takes for users to load your website is known as page speed and is an official Google ranking factor. One reason for this is that a slow-loading site provides a poor user experience. Today’s consumers are more impatient than ever and have become so used to instant information that just a few seconds can mean users leave your website for a competitor’s. If your site is not loaded within 3 seconds, you will actually lose the majority of your visitors.
That is why it is so important that your page speed is lightning fast – the faster your website loads, the better the overall user experience, and the better Google will rate your site. And it is this rating that sends you to the top of the search results.
NB: It should be noted that some plugins or scripts may slow your site down slightly, but are important for tracking on your website. Therefore, be aware that if you want the world’s fastest website, it may come at the expense of other important features.
If you want to test your website’s speed, you can use Google’s own tool here: https://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/.
After the test, you will receive suggestions for how you can improve your page speed.
You can also read much more about what affects your site’s speed and what you can do yourself in Mathias’ excellent article here: How to make your website fast
As I have mentioned several times in this article, Google’s main task is to present users with the very best search results. And what is Google’s focus should also be your focus. That is why user experience naturally makes this list of important ranking factors.
Far too many people forget about the user in the pursuit of Google’s attention, and while this may work in the short term, it is only a temporary gain. Google makes so many updates every year – in fact, every day – that it is impossible to keep up with them all. But one thing is certain: Google always aims to make the user experience as good as possible for searchers.
One of the things you should absolutely pay attention to is the time users spend on your website – time per session. If a large proportion of users leave your website quickly because it is uninspiring, difficult to navigate or, heaven forbid, slow? Google will certainly notice! This plays a huge role in how you rank. The time per session and number of pages visited per session tell Google whether your content is relevant and comprehensive enough for the user.
Here, it is important to have a good site structure, an intuitive menu and internal links, so users can easily find the information they seek and are inspired to explore more of your site.
In addition to considering Google by looking at how users move around your website, your main interest is naturally to sell something. Your work does not end when you get the user onto your website. In fact, this is where you need to make use of your USPs, attractive design and good user interface – in short, persuade them to buy from you.
SEO does not happen overnight, and there are countless factors to consider when working with this particular discipline of online marketing.
Many of these ranking factors are things you or your developer can influence, but be careful not to rely on too many shortcuts and quick fixes. There is no guarantee they will work tomorrow. No – your focus should always be on the user’s needs – or rather – on Google’s perception of the user’s needs.
That is why the best long-term strategy for your SEO is to focus on how you can optimise for the user. At the same time, you should also take advantage of the factors that Google has revealed do affect your ranking – you do not need to be completely naive and ignore the game. Just be sure not to base your entire SEO on something Google might change. What they will NOT change is their focus on the user.
SEO is a continuous and time-consuming process – but the returns from effective SEO can be significant, and once you reach the top, you can reap both clicks and conversions.
And if you need help with this – you know where to find us!
Contact us here »
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