Essential Ingredients of Good Website Ranking

If you’ve been monitoring your website ranking, you’ve probably noticed that it changes constantly. There is a day-to-day shuffle of rankings affected by search engine optimization strategies, new websites joining the ranks, and old websites going dormant. If you are at your wits end trying to figure out just what is causing all of this shifting, you are not alone. The fact is, getting your website a high ranking is no easy matter and there is no instant fix.

It takes several different strategies all working together over time to create just the right mix of ingredients. Furthermore, with Google updating their search engine ranking process every now and then, the rules tend to change, which means your strategies will also need to change. Therefore, make sure to implement Google Panda- and Penguin-friendly SEO methods.

Start with 1 Reputable Site

The most basic SEO ingredient when it comes to your website’s ranking is whether or not it is a reputable site. Google got tired of all the bogus websites out there that were simply built for the SEO purposes of other sites. To combat those sites, they are checking to make sure your site actually has more than just a page of links or ads. They want to see a fairly large site, with content that has a purpose related to the keywords and descriptions you filed your site under. That means, the more pages and the more content you have in your site the better. That content does have to be high quality content though. They have also been shunning SEO websites lately that offer black hat services. In other words, if you are taking part in unethical SEO services, you might receive a warning from them and you will definitely get a major downgrade in your search engine ranking. Once your site has been established as a reputable one though, you will see your ranking start to climb.

Mix in 6% Proper Keyword Use

Next come those all-important keywords. Keywords are the terms people use to search for websites in a search engine. You will also hear them called queries. It’s important to think ahead as to which keywords people will use to find your site. You should brainstorm words, phrases, and even questions. You can also use ranking tools like Alexa and Google adwords to find out what terms people search given a particular product, service, or website type. The more keywords associated with your site, the more often it will appear in the search results.

You can put keywords in your URL, website title, description, tags, and of course, the content. When used in your content, it is important that the keywords are woven throughout high quality writing and not just shoved into every sentence on every page. Overuse of keywords is called keyword stuffing, and the practice will get you penalized in the search engine rankings. Experts recommend a keyword density of about 6% or less for most pages. Most only like to have a density of about 3% though, which is about right when you are reading quality content.

Add Links In and Out Generously

The next ingredient you’ll want to add to the mix has to do with links. You want a lot of links out there on the web pointing to your website. You also want to have a lot of links pointing to other sites from your website. When it comes to the sites you are linking to or from, it’s important that they are reputable. If you are linking to unethical SEO sites, Google will assume that your company is also unethical and will penalize your website with a lower ranking.

 

Ideally, you want to be linked to big, well-established websites that get a lot of traffic. Many companies build multiple websites and maintain several social media accounts in an effort to create more places for their links. Another important linking step will be linking the pages within your site to each other. This is called interlinking. The more quality and frequently used links you have, whether inside or outside of your website, the higher your ranking.

Allow to Age for Best Results

You would think that Google would like fresh new sites, but it doesn’t. In fact, Google favors very old sites that have been around for years. This is because many people start sites but never do anything with them and Google wants to make sure a site is used and useful. The longer your website exists, the higher its ranking will be. Of course, you don’t want to just let your website sit there dormant, or Google will assume it’s been abandoned. Instead, you should update it regularly with new content and added pages. This shows Google that the page is maintained and important.

Stir Frequently with Clicks

The last ingredient for better search engine rankings is the most difficult. Google likes to see pages that get a lot of traffic. In other words, the more clicks your links get, the higher your ranking will be. Unfortunately, when you are desperately trying to raise your ranking to get clicks, it’s not exactly easy to show Google you’re getting used. Basically, you need to have clicks to get clicks.

This can be very frustrating. This is also why it’s so important to increase the number of links to your page. By exposing your link to more people, you’ll be much more likely to see a gradual climb in clicks and in your ranking. Carrying out a marketing campaign on your social media pages is a great way to encourage people to click to your page. Not only that, but you can post your link and links to various pages within your site, several times, ultimately upping your click count.

Because of this long and arduous task, many people hire SEO companies who can take care of it for them. SEO companies will use all of the aforementioned ingredients along with a few of their own personal tricks to get your website the best ranking results possible. Once these professionals give your website a taste of the top ranking, your site and your business will be rewarded with an increase in website traffic, customers, and hopefully, profits.