Google has announced in 2014 that it has started using HTTPS as a ranking signal. HTTPS is a protocol that provides a secure connection between user and server by using an SSL certificate. Google has indicated that page speed is one of the signals it uses in its page ranking algorithm.
- It gives Google a clear indication of what your content is about and also helps to increase relevance when users are searching for your keyword.
- Search intent refers to the purpose and motivation behind a search query.
- You can expect this to be a continuous process where search engines adapt to current search behaviour and adjust their algorithms to keep showing users the best results for their search query.
- Our own AI content detection tests show that AI-written content can be heavily plagiarised, leading to duplicate content.
- Aside from content itself, Google employs a number of ranking signals to determine how authoritative and trustworthy a site is.
Core Web Vitals Effect on Income and Traffic
Google’s algorithm evaluates over 210 known ranking factors to determine where a webpage appears in the SERPs. These Google ranking factors include content, page speed, mobile compatibility, and backlink relevance to the search query. Optimizing your website according to these SEO ranking factors increases the likelihood of ranking on the first page, leading to greater visibility, traffic, and conversions.
#5 – Backlinks Are Less Important
It offers valuable insights into your website’s performance, search traffic, and potential technical issues affecting your SEO. By leveraging GSC, you can optimize your website for better search visibility, user experience, and overall SEO health. You can also use GSC to perform bulk data exports for enhanced analysis in software like BigQuery. These inbound links, called backlinks, are crucial for search rankings.
A professional website design company can help you incorporate these features into your website and keep it updated with the latest trends. With over 60% of global online traffic coming from mobile devices, Google now predominantly uses mobile-first indexing. This means the mobile version of your site is the primary basis for how your content is ranked and indexed. If your website isn’t SEO Anomaly mobile-friendly, you’re missing out on a significant opportunity to rank higher and engage users. Note – while product schema is an important optimization for this ranking factor, we’ve categorized it under a separate ranking factor, structured data.
As far back as 2014, Google has discussed site security as a ranking factor. Now, it’s one of the most important Google ranking factors on this list. Sites with HTTPS encryption have SSL certificates that create a secure connection between a website and its users. It adds an extra layer of security that protects information exchanged between users and the site. The good news is that not all of the 200+ ranking factors are equal.
Duplicate content confuses search engines about which version to prioritize, which can negatively impact your search engine ranking factors. Google’s algorithms prefer unique, valuable content that adds something new to the conversation. If you inadvertently create duplicate content (for instance, through similar product pages), using canonical tags can help resolve this issue and improve your SEO ranking factors.