The top 7 ranking factors on Google that help you improve your SEO, increase your visibility, and achieve higher placements in the search results.
Ieva Treiliha
Over 3.5 billion searches are made on Google every single day!
Yes – you read that correctly! 3.5 billion.
To manage this astronomical number of searches and provide the best possible user experience, Google continuously evaluates more than a billion websites using an algorithm based on a wide range of factors. These are designed to ensure that the top-ranking pages in the search results are also the ‘best’ from the user’s perspective.
Google has confirmed using around 200 factors to rank websites, but many of these factors remain strictly confidential. This secrecy is partly to prevent websites from exploiting the knowledge to climb the rankings without genuinely delivering user value.
However, quite a few ranking factors are well known, but an article covering them all would be rather lengthy. For that reason, in this post, I will focus on 7 of the most important factors affecting 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 well-recognised ranking factor and covers a wide range of elements. In short, it refers to the improvements you make to your website so Google can better understand your content and present the most relevant results to users.
As on-page optimisation is one of the absolute most important factors for your ranking, this section is broken down further into some of the most crucial elements within the discipline.
We have said it before – and we are happy to repeat it! Content is king!
When it comes to SEO, you will find a range of clever hacks, quick fixes and loopholes. Yes – we have probably been guilty of sharing a few ourselves. But the fact is, you cannot simply ‘hack’ your way out of Google’s algorithms – at least not if you want long-term results. With 3,200 updates to their algorithm every year, you can be sure Google closes every loophole they discover, and it is impossible to predict where they will strike next. However, you can always count on one thing.
Google has one overarching goal: To make search results as accurate as possible and fulfil users’ needs.
You can read more about how SEO and content marketing go hand in hand here:
Maximise your content marketing with SEO
Knowing that Google’s aim is to deliver the exact result the user is seeking, it is vital to consider search intent when developing content. The user searches for a specific word or phrase – what do they expect to find, and do you deliver that? If you provide a precise and thorough answer, Google will be very pleased indeed. They also monitor whether users visit several similar pages after yours. If they do, it is a clear sign the answer they sought was not on your page.
So, always deliver on your promise – and directly answer the user’s query.
You can read more about search intent here:
What does CTR optimisation mean for your SEO performance
Alongside search intent, you should of course examine exactly which words and phrases your users are searching with. You may have an idea already, but it is not certain that the words you use to describe your products are the same as those your users use. Next, you need to check if you are using these keywords in your page content, and whether your keyword density (the number of times they appear in the text) is sufficient.
Google’s algorithm is heavily dependent on keywords, so it is crucial that the landing page users arrive at is specifically about what they are searching for. You demonstrate this to Google by having the relevant keywords and phrases clearly present in your text.
The amount of text on your website has a significant impact on your ranking. As shown in the graphic below, higher-ranking pages tend to have a greater volume of content.
TIP: The amount of text required depends heavily on how much your competitors have on their sites. As a rule of thumb, aim for at least 10% more text than your competitors.
BUT: Since text volume is a well-known ranking factor, many now produce long texts in bulk. Therefore, it is also crucial to ensure your content is of high quality, not duplicated, and offers something fresh and valuable.
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 writing copy for your website, it is essential that your content is both comprehensive and relevant to what users are searching for. That goes without saying.
But remember, Google is also a machine, and for it to identify which pages are relevant, you need to make this clear. One way to do this is by ensuring your target keywords are present in your page headings. Make sure your H1 heading clearly describes the page topic, using your primary keyword or phrase, and that your subheadings (H2 and H3) are optimised for secondary keywords.
This helps Google better understand your page’s topic and structure, making it easier to achieve higher search rankings, while also making your content easier to navigate for users.
We cannot emphasise this enough – it is absolutely vital that both Google and users can quickly find your content and obtain the answers they are seeking.
Metadata consists of a title tag and meta description.
The title tag is the headline that appears in Google’s search results, and the meta description is the snippet below.
Title tag
Getting your title tag right is crucial, as Google pays close attention to this to assess your page’s relevance. When optimising your title tag, ensure your primary keyword is at the beginning of the title and that the title is neither too long nor too short. You can check this using a tool such as https://www.storybase.com/da/ctr-tool/
Additionally, you should consider:
Meta descriptions
Google does not scan your meta description for keywords, but it is still a good idea to include your main keyword or phrase. This is because the search terms the user entered will be highlighted in bold in your snippet. The main purpose of your meta description, however, is to encourage users to click on your result. Therefore, it should be engaging, easy to understand, and provide an accurate summary of what the user can expect to find on the page. Where appropriate, use a call-to-action. Make sure it is the right length so your text is not cut off.
On-page optimisation is important not only for telling Google what your pages are about, but also for getting users to click through to your site. CTR (click-through rate) is also a ranking factor for Google, as it demonstrates your result has met the user’s needs.
Structured data, also known as rich snippets, is becoming increasingly prominent in search results. You may have seen it in the form of star ratings that show user reviews of a service or product, as well as other business information or images, for example in search results for “Swiss roll”.
Structured data makes it easier for Google to identify the essential information on your website so they can display better search results to users. It also makes your result more eye-catching, which can increase your click-through rate and, in turn, lead to a higher ranking. This creates a positive cycle, where each improvement supports the next.
Structured data is just one aspect of what is known as Schema Markup, a broader topic that will not be covered here.
Inbound links, also known as backlinks, are part of off-page SEO and involve getting other websites to link to yours. When other sites link to you, Google sees this as a form of recommendation. If authoritative sites link to your content, Google assumes your site is high-quality, and as a result, you move higher up in the search results.
There are many ways to obtain links, but not all are equally effective.
The best links come from high-authority sites that link to your page within content relevant to your topic. Google places more trust in recommendations (links) from strong, relevant domains than from irrelevant or weak ones. For example, if you sell men’s watches and a reputable site like GQ links to your product, that carries far more weight than a link from an unrelated food blog.
You can read much more about how to build links here:
How to build links
It is probably no surprise that mobile is the go-to device for many people searching online. Having a mobile-optimised website is therefore one of the most important factors, not only for Google rankings but also for user experience. Google uses what is known as mobile-first indexing, meaning they prioritise mobile-optimised websites. If your site is not responsive, you will automatically be pushed to the back of the queue – definitely a no-go!
You can use this tool to test your site: https://search.google.com/test/mobile-friendly
While you must take Google’s algorithm into account, never forget that the user is the most important – for both you and Google. Today, 58% of all searches are made from a mobile phone, and 40% of Google users say they search exclusively on mobile. In other words, you 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
Back in 2014, Google announced that having a secure website would be a ranking factor. However, there are still websites out there that are not secure – even though you now have to scroll far down the search results to find them. The reason is that Google wants to present safe results to users, and while they do not say they ‘punish’ non-secure sites, it is clear that secure sites rank higher.
A secure website simply means that your URL begins with https:// instead of http://. If you are one of the few who has not yet switched to https://, you can easily solve this by getting an SSL certificate.
Christian goes into depth on what an SSL certificate is, and which one to choose, here:
What is an SSL certificate?
The time it takes for your website to load is known as page speed and is an official Google ranking factor. One reason is that poor loading times lead to a bad user experience. Consumers today are more impatient than ever and expect instant access to information – a few seconds’ delay can cause users to leave your site for a competitor’s. If a page is not loaded within 3 seconds, you lose the majority of your visitors.
That is why your page speed must be as fast as possible. The quicker your website loads, the better the overall user experience – and the more positively Google will assess your site. That is what sends you to the top of the search results.
Note: Some plugins or scripts can slow down your site but are important for tracking or other purposes. If you want the world’s fastest website, it may come at the expense of these other critical features.
If you want to test your website speed, you can use Google’s own tool here: https://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/.
After the test, you will receive suggestions on how to improve your page speed.
You can also read much more about what affects your website’s speed and what you can do yourself in Mathias’ excellent article here: How to make your website fast
As mentioned several times in this article, Google’s main task is to present users with the very best search results. And what Google focuses on should be your focus too. That is why user experience is naturally included on this list of important ranking factors.
All too often, the user is forgotten in the battle for Google’s attention. It may work in the short term, but it is only ever a temporary fix. Google carries out so many updates every year – even every day – that it is impossible to keep up with them all. But you can always be sure of one thing: Google is always aiming to make the user experience as good as possible for the searcher.
One of the things you absolutely must look at is how long users spend on your website – time per session. If a large proportion of your visitors leave quickly because your site is uninspiring, difficult to navigate, or, heaven forbid, slow, Google will notice! And it will significantly affect your ranking. Time per session and the number of pages viewed per session tell Google whether your content is relevant and comprehensive enough for users.
It is important to have a good site structure, an intuitive menu, and internal links, so users can easily find the information they are looking for and are encouraged to explore more of your website.
In addition to considering Google by monitoring user behaviour, you are of course primarily interested in selling your products or services. Your job is far from done once a user lands on your site. This is when you need to highlight your USPs, excellent design, and user interface – in short, persuade them to buy from you.
There is no shortcut to SEO success, and there are countless factors to consider when working in this vital area of online marketing.
Many of these ranking factors are within your control or your developer’s, but be careful not to rely on too many tricks or quick fixes. There is no guarantee they will work tomorrow. Your primary focus should be on the user’s needs – or rather, Google’s perception of the user’s needs.
Therefore, the best long-term strategy for your SEO is to focus on how you can optimise for the user. At the same time, make the most of the factors Google has revealed do impact your rankings – you do not have to ignore the game altogether. Just make sure you do not base your entire SEO strategy on something Google might change. The one thing they will not change is their focus on the user.
SEO is a continuous and time-consuming task – but the rewards of good SEO can be great, and once you reach the top, you can reap both clicks and conversions.
And if you need help with that – you know where to find us!
Contact us here »
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