Epic SEO Fail? Consider These Google Ranking Factors
- SEO |
Even the experts make mistakes. In the event you're beating yourself up over SEO fails, give yourself permission to be a human being and learn. It's hard to keep up with every single change to what the major search engines care about and you'd be surprised how many people are holding on to old, outdated tactics to gain the almighty rank increase. Don't keep doing things that don't work- that's madness. This list of current Google ranking factors in 2016 will help you understand and dissect what you're doing and put you at the forefront of thought on SEO.
Domain Level Google Ranking Factors
● Most of what I'm going to talk about is page level, relating to linking, keywords and tags, but there are a few tips to how SEO operates at a domain level that I'll go over quickly first.
● The age of the domain no longer has any significant role in ranking. It's still a factor, but a minute one you don't need to worry about.
● Having your most targeted keyword first in the domain is good practice.
● There is some indication that the length of the registration of your domain can help with ranking. More legitimate sites secure their rights to the domain long term, whereas less legitimate sites may not. If you can, lock down a lengthy registration.
● Don't worry about exact match domain names, or EMDs. Way back in 2012, Google underwent an EMD focused update that ruined many web page lives. If you already have an EMD, make sure there is quality content on your site, that you post content often, and make efforts to build some community with comments and backlinking. As long as you have a legitimate looking site, you won't be penalized for an EMD. The practice of scooping them up for their own ranking power alone is a total waste of effort in 2016.
Page Level Google Ranking Factors
I've used my own experience and research from thought leaders and authority sites all over the internet to compile a list of page level google ranking factors for increased traffic. All metrics aside, SEO is more of an art than a science, but here are some things you can focus on to get real results.
Keywords and Title Tags
Just like with domains, put your main keyword at the very front of your title tag. In fact, you can follow this formula for good title tag practice: Primary Keyword - Secondary Keyword | Brand Name.
Keywords and Content
You do want your keyword to appear often in your document, but post Hummingbird, it is more important that your content and page in general is on topic. This article, for instance, has lots of words in it that relate to ranking, SEO and traffic, and Hummingbird is going to feel satisfied that the article is about these things without a huge and stifling keyword density throughout the piece. It amounts to the same thing, really, but is a more holistic way of delivering quality content to people searching for that subject. The site Backlinko.com cites results from an analysis they did about 'topical authority' and ranking, ultimately stating, "we discovered that comprehensive content significantly outperformed shallow content."
Content Length
In 2012 with Panda and Penguin, Google began ranking longer, more in depth content higher than short blurbs of 200 words. There isn't exactly a consensus on precisely how long posts should be for the best search engine ranking, and we will clearly contradict this factor in a few moments when we talk about video content, but between 1500 and 2000 words is a good sweet spot to aim for.
Ranking Video
The current buzz from authorities online is that video is going to continue to gain ranking share. Youtube, Vine, Snapchat and live streaming plugins like Facebook Live and Periscope are popular with users and we see major media companies devoting time and money to developing them. There are YouTube personalities making a million dollars a year, and you can bet they rank highly for their video content in search engines. Here are some tips to SEO the crap out of your video content:
Source Video Keywords
Click that handy 'video' tab in Google and test out a few keywords that relate to your content. See what ranks highly and shape your keyword(s) around that. Keep in mind the sort of question you might have that a video would outperform a written tutorial to satisfy. Phrases like 'how to x,' review(s), tutorials, workout related searches, and cute or funny animal type queries often spit up video results from Google. Your goal is to pick keywords that get over 300 searches a month in Google. If you use Adwords, the Google Keyword Planner is a great asset to help you with that metric.
Create Quality Content
Hiring a professional to shoot your video will make things look more professional, and good sound quality is also a must. Think about the things that turn you off about video versus written content, and eliminate that with your upload. Keep things entertaining and informative and don't be afraid to be funny or quirky, both things play well on YouTube and with most internet users.
Invite User Input
You want people to interact with your video by sharing it, commenting on it, and pressing the coveted 'like.' Your number of subscribers and conversion for how many subscribe after watching a video is also something you want to cultivate. Put a friendly call to action about liking, sharing, commenting and subscribing in your content, and respond to as many comments as you can. YouTube has helpful analytics to help you track all of this data.
Content Length
There is a sweet spot suggestion for video content length just as there is with written content, and longer is better. This probably relates to the authority and on topic considerations Google is encouraging across the board. Do your best to structure your videos to be longer than 5 minutes, but entertaining enough to retain viewers till the end.
SEO and Filenames
Treat your filename and video title like you would a tag in a written piece. It should be long enough to include your keyword without sounding cumbersome and awkward in the title, and the keyword should appear in the file name as well. Anytime you can place your keyword first in the title of the video, do so, it helps.
SEO and Video Description
Your description is what Google is going to source to find out what your video is about. Put your link in the first sentence of your description and use your keyword in the first few lines. Your description should be at least 250 words long because, the more information, the better. Overall, your keyword should appear around 4 times in the description, but make sure it flows well and doesn't seem forced or spammy.
URL Length
Everybody's in a hurry, including the Google algorithm. Google ranks short URLs higher and what is in the first 5 words or so is key. Longer URLs also signify a further distance from the home page, and therefore less authority. A nice, concise URL spoon feeds Google with the information it needs and you want it to have about your post.
Visual Content in Written Posts
Posts with at least one photograph rank higher than those without, probably because it indicates an increased level of quality. It's an extra step to create or curate a picture that relates to the post, and Google rewards this with a little extra attention. According to research by backlinko.com, ranking increases with one image per post but no boost is given for several photographs in a post. One appears to be sufficient.
Domain Level Google Ranking Factors
● Most of what I'm going to talk about is page level, relating to linking, keywords and tags, but there are a few tips to how SEO operates at a domain level that I'll go over quickly first.
● The age of the domain no longer has any significant role in ranking. It's still a factor, but a minute one you don't need to worry about.
● Having your most targeted keyword first in the domain is good practice.
● There is some indication that the length of the registration of your domain can help with ranking. More legitimate sites secure their rights to the domain long term, whereas less legitimate sites may not. If you can, lock down a lengthy registration.
● Don't worry about exact match domain names, or EMDs. Way back in 2012, Google underwent an EMD focused update that ruined many web page lives. If you already have an EMD, make sure there is quality content on your site, that you post content often, and make efforts to build some community with comments and backlinking. As long as you have a legitimate looking site, you won't be penalized for an EMD. The practice of scooping them up for their own ranking power alone is a total waste of effort in 2016.
Page Level Google Ranking Factors
I've used my own experience and research from thought leaders and authority sites all over the internet to compile a list of page level google ranking factors for increased traffic. All metrics aside, SEO is more of an art than a science, but here are some things you can focus on to get real results.
Keywords and Title Tags
Just like with domains, put your main keyword at the very front of your title tag. In fact, you can follow this formula for good title tag practice: Primary Keyword - Secondary Keyword | Brand Name.
Keywords and Content
You do want your keyword to appear often in your document, but post Hummingbird, it is more important that your content and page in general is on topic. This article, for instance, has lots of words in it that relate to ranking, SEO and traffic, and Hummingbird is going to feel satisfied that the article is about these things without a huge and stifling keyword density throughout the piece. It amounts to the same thing, really, but is a more holistic way of delivering quality content to people searching for that subject. The site Backlinko.com cites results from an analysis they did about 'topical authority' and ranking, ultimately stating, "we discovered that comprehensive content significantly outperformed shallow content."
Content Length
In 2012 with Panda and Penguin, Google began ranking longer, more in depth content higher than short blurbs of 200 words. There isn't exactly a consensus on precisely how long posts should be for the best search engine ranking, and we will clearly contradict this factor in a few moments when we talk about video content, but between 1500 and 2000 words is a good sweet spot to aim for.
Ranking Video
The current buzz from authorities online is that video is going to continue to gain ranking share. Youtube, Vine, Snapchat and live streaming plugins like Facebook Live and Periscope are popular with users and we see major media companies devoting time and money to developing them. There are YouTube personalities making a million dollars a year, and you can bet they rank highly for their video content in search engines. Here are some tips to SEO the crap out of your video content:
Source Video Keywords
Click that handy 'video' tab in Google and test out a few keywords that relate to your content. See what ranks highly and shape your keyword(s) around that. Keep in mind the sort of question you might have that a video would outperform a written tutorial to satisfy. Phrases like 'how to x,' review(s), tutorials, workout related searches, and cute or funny animal type queries often spit up video results from Google. Your goal is to pick keywords that get over 300 searches a month in Google. If you use Adwords, the Google Keyword Planner is a great asset to help you with that metric.
Create Quality Content
Hiring a professional to shoot your video will make things look more professional, and good sound quality is also a must. Think about the things that turn you off about video versus written content, and eliminate that with your upload. Keep things entertaining and informative and don't be afraid to be funny or quirky, both things play well on YouTube and with most internet users.
Invite User Input
You want people to interact with your video by sharing it, commenting on it, and pressing the coveted 'like.' Your number of subscribers and conversion for how many subscribe after watching a video is also something you want to cultivate. Put a friendly call to action about liking, sharing, commenting and subscribing in your content, and respond to as many comments as you can. YouTube has helpful analytics to help you track all of this data.
Content Length
There is a sweet spot suggestion for video content length just as there is with written content, and longer is better. This probably relates to the authority and on topic considerations Google is encouraging across the board. Do your best to structure your videos to be longer than 5 minutes, but entertaining enough to retain viewers till the end.
SEO and Filenames
Treat your filename and video title like you would a tag in a written piece. It should be long enough to include your keyword without sounding cumbersome and awkward in the title, and the keyword should appear in the file name as well. Anytime you can place your keyword first in the title of the video, do so, it helps.
SEO and Video Description
Your description is what Google is going to source to find out what your video is about. Put your link in the first sentence of your description and use your keyword in the first few lines. Your description should be at least 250 words long because, the more information, the better. Overall, your keyword should appear around 4 times in the description, but make sure it flows well and doesn't seem forced or spammy.
URL Length
Everybody's in a hurry, including the Google algorithm. Google ranks short URLs higher and what is in the first 5 words or so is key. Longer URLs also signify a further distance from the home page, and therefore less authority. A nice, concise URL spoon feeds Google with the information it needs and you want it to have about your post.
Visual Content in Written Posts
Posts with at least one photograph rank higher than those without, probably because it indicates an increased level of quality. It's an extra step to create or curate a picture that relates to the post, and Google rewards this with a little extra attention. According to research by backlinko.com, ranking increases with one image per post but no boost is given for several photographs in a post. One appears to be sufficient.