March 2, 2021

The 200 Ranking Factors For Ranking Higher in Google

Learning the 200 ranking factors in 2021 and having an online presence for businesses are the two most important things in the world. It would not be wrong to say that nowadays everyone has a website of their own that they are trying to rank on the first page of Google. But only a few of them can achieve higher rankings in Google SERP. Why? Because Google aims to present its users with the best results only.

DOES GOOGLE ISSUE RANKING ON THE BASIS OF THE 200 RANKING FACTORS?

Google Search undoubtedly grants ranking to pages as per a site’s overall performance. The search engine uses Google Algorithm. Which is a set of rules that decides if your web page is good enough for ranking on the first page or not. Therefore, people who are serious about seeing their web pages on the first page of Google search should know about the 200 ranking factors. Since it goes in their favor if their sites are designed and updated as per the rules. In this article, you will get to learn about the 200 ranking factors that can help you improve your page ranking in the SERPs.

LISTING DOWN THE 200 RANKING FACTORS

DOMAIN RANKING FACTORS:

Be it a new site or an old one, it’s the performance that counts, not the domain age.
Having a keyword in the domain name is beneficial since it increases relevancy.
Having a keyword as a first word in the domain name is more helpful than being in the middle or at the end.
Domains that are paid for several years in advance are considered more legitimate.
Having a keyword in your subdomain can always boost the ranking.
A country-specific TLD can help you rank faster for that country. However, it may not help you rank globally.

PAGE-LEVEL FACTORS:

RANKING FACTORS SET 1

Having a keyword in a title tag or heading still remains important for the on-page SEO.
A title tag that starts with a keyword is way useful than a title tag that does not start with it.
Having a keyword in the meta description does not act as a direct ranking signal. However, it improves the (CTR) click-through-rate.
Having a keyword in the H1 tag will also act as a relevance signal.
Using a certain keyword or phrase repeatedly will signal the topic of your content.
Long-form contents are more preferable as compared to the shorter ones.
Using a chart or table of content help Google crawlers understand your content more.
Using keywords repeatedly will help signal the content topic to Google. However, overstuffing can harm your ranking.
LSI keywords help to make the content’s meaning clearer.
Using LSI keywords in meta tags also helps Google differentiate between words having multiple meanings.

RANKING FACTORS SET 2

Discussing a topic in detail will go in your favor. It is better than a brief discussion.
Have a good page loading speed. Google considers it to be a major ranking factor.
Google judges the page loading speed from the user’s perspective too.
AMP helps a page load faster in mobile web browsing. However, it does not affect the ranking directly but helps rank in the mobile version only.
Using keywords that people are actually searching in the SERPs can improve the ranking.
Google now prefers content that answers the most queries. Also, prefers meaningful content over keyword-centered content.
Google does not support duplicate content.
Proper use of the canonical tag can save you from Google penalties.
Image optimization also signals content relevancy to Google.
Google favors recently published and updated content more.

RANKING FACTORS SET 3

Updating an entire paragraph is better than updating a few words only. It signals the freshness of content.
The frequency of site page updates also signals freshness.
The use of a keyword in the first paragraph can improve ranking.
Having a keyword or its similar phrase in H2 and H3 Tags signals relevance. Though it is a weak signal.
Similarly, having quality outbound links signals trust to Google.
Create outbound links on relevant sites only. It acts as a relevancy signal.
Google prefers content that has proper grammar and spellings.
Only a unique content ranks in the Google SERPs. Thus you should know the 14 tips to rank your content on Google.
Your site should be mobile-user-friendly.
Mobile-friendly sites always have an upper hand in Google’s “Mobile-first Index”.

RANKING FACTORS SET 4

Google does not rank any content that is hidden behind tabs.
Having images, videos and infographics signal the quality of content.
Having internal links shows the importance of a specific page.
Do not keep too many broken links on a page.
Use simple language so that everyone can understand it. Also, Google prefers simple language more.
Do not have too many affiliate links also.
Well-coded pages are always a quality signal.
A page on an authoritative domain will rank higher than a page on a domain with less authority.
Page authority should be higher to outrank other pages.
Google favors shorter URLs more.

RANKING FACTORS SET 5

A page nearer to the homepage indeed has a slight edge over other pages.
Always fill in a page category for it shows relevancy.
Add a keyword in the URL.
The URL construction should be proper.
References and citations in the content are a sign of quality.
Use bullet points and numbered lists more. Because it makes your content easy to read.
The priority a page is given via the sitemap.xml file may influence ranking.
Having too many outbound links can become a distraction.
Google prefers ranking older pages too. If only they are updated regularly.
Parked domains are more likely to get de-rank.
Also, add value for users in the content. Make it useful for them.

SITE-LEVEL FACTORS:

Google will not rank any site that does not add value to its users. So write content that adds value.
Your name and contact information should remain the same throughout platforms.
Domain trust is an important ranking factor.
A good silo structure helps Googlebot to index all pages of a site.
Keep your website up-to-date. Because it shows its activeness.
A sitemap helps search engines index your pages easier.
Page speed and server issues can have a bad effect on the ranking.
Having a nearer server location can help a website in its ranking.
Use of SSL certificate improves ranking.
Terms of service and privacy pages help tell Google that a site is a trustworthy member of the internet. Thus consider including them.
Having duplicate meta information can of course bring down a site.
Breadcrumbs let users and Google search know where they are on the site.
Google is de-ranking websites that are non-mobile-friendly.
Google prefers ranking Youtube videos too.
An easy-to-navigate site ranks faster.
Having Google Analytics and Search Console can improve a site’s ranking.
Having good reviews on different sites can also improve the ranking.

BACKLINK FACTORS:

SET 1

Backlinks from an old trusted domain are more useful.
The number of referring domains is one of the most important ranking factors in Google’s algorithm.
One backlink per domain is always a good strategy.
The number of linking pages is also an important ranking factor.
keyword-related anchor texts give a good relevancy signal.
Alt texts are just like useful anchor texts for images.
Linking to sites having .gov and .edu TLDs helps to build trust.
A site’s page authority counts as a ranking factor.
Also, a site’s domain authority counts as a ranking factor.
Explore and create backlinks where your competitors are creating.

SET 2

Get links from an expected website of your industry.
Backlinks from sites having poor DA and PA may harm your site.
Guest posts and editorial links are both important. However, over guest postings may harm your site.
Links from Ads should always be no-follow.
Create more links to a site’s home page.
Create no-follow links as well but in a lesser quantity.
Have a variety of link types. Otherwise, it will be considered spam.
Links tagged as “rel=sponsored” or “rel=UGC” are treated differently than normal “followed” or rel=nofollow links.
Links embedded inside a page content are more important.

SET 3

Creating an internal link on a relevant text shows relevancy to Google.
A relevant link title is also a relevancy signal.
Getting links from a country-specific TLD may help you rank faster in that country.
Placing links in the first paragraph is better than placing them in others.
A backlink placed in the content is much effective than in the footer or sidebar.
Always create backlinks on a similar niche site.
Similarly, a link created on a relevant page is also beneficial.
Google favors links that have a keyword in the title tag.
Getting links from the “Hub” pages are beneficial.
Create backlinks on authority sites. It will go in your favor.
A link embedded in 1000 words is better than a link created inside 25 words.

SET 4

Getting a link from Wikipedia shows the trust factor.
Backlink placement is important. The surrounding words should signal what the website is about,
Google likes older links better than new links.
Links should be coming from the “real sites” only. Creating links on “Splogs” will not go in your favor.
Never use any black hat strategy to build links. keep it natural always.
Google does not appreciate links from “User Generated Content”.
A direct link is better than a 301 redirect.
Getting links from sites that are trustworthy in the eyes of Google is beneficial for you.
A few, quality outbound links are better than hundreds of external links.
Google does not appreciate links created on forums.
Write quality content while creating links.
Lastly, sitewide links are always counted as a single link.

USER INTERACTION SIGNALS:

A site’s ranking depends on RankBrain that decides if your site is user-friendly.
A page that has a good CTR is likely to rank higher in SERP.
The total CTR for the keywords, a site is using is considered to be a good user interaction signal.
Having an increased bounce rate will signal low-quality content.
Google is more likely to ranks sites that receive higher direct traffic.
Sites that visitors visit repeatedly, hence get a boost in ranking.
Pogo sticking is a kind of bounce rate that if higher, harms your ranking.
Google considers the blocked sites as a quality signal.
Chrome bookmarking is another quality signal.
User comments help a lot in ranking.
The time people spend on webpages signals the webpage quality. The longer “Dwell time, the better ranking”.

SPECIAL GOOGLE ALGORITHM RULES FOR RANKING HIGHER IN GOOGLE:

Google gives a boost to pages that answer fresh queries. It is one of the most important factors among the 200 ranking factors.
Google uses our browsing history and boosts pages that we visit frequently.
Our search history also matters. It shows us results for recent searches more than older searches.
Google prefers showing sites with local or country-specific IPs.
The genre really matters. Sites having adult content will never show in the search results if Safe Search is turned on.
Google has higher content quality standards for “Your Money or Your Life” keywords.
A DMCA strike can also de-rank the web pages.
Google places local results above the organic results. For this reason, it would be better if a site uses a local keyword too.
Targeting certain strong keywords can place your content in the top story box.
Google is giving a boost to big brands for using certain keywords. It is all happening after the Vince Update.
Google Shopping results can sometimes be seen in organic results also.
It is now normal to see Google images in the organic search results.
Domain or brand-related keywords can sometimes show your several results from the same site.

BRAND SIGNALS:

Branded anchor text is a simple but strong brand signal.
If people would search a site with its brand name, it signals trust to Google.
People searching for keywords along with a brand name gives your site a boost.
Brands having strong Facebook likes and shares will rank faster in SERP.
If a brand’s Twitter profile has a great number of followers, it is considered as a brand popularity signal.
Moreover, brands having company pages on LinkedIn, rank higher.
As per Google CEO remarks, “sites having verified online profiles will rank higher”.
Having an interactive social media account for your site is much beneficial than an inactive account.
Big-known brands are always a highlight in Top stories.
Hyperlinking for big brands is not necessary. Because for Google Search, a non-hyperlinked brand is considered a brand signal.
A brand’s location data help Google give a brand signal.

ON-PAGE WEBSPAM FACTORS:

Firstly, Google ranks those sites only that have quality content. Or else it issues penalty.
Linking a site to other spammy sites will harm your visibility.
Google issues penalties and removes a site from indexing if your site has sneaky redirect.
Popups are just a distraction that signals a low quality-site.
Google issues penalties to sites that show full-page popups to mobile users.
Especially, a spun or auto-generated content never indexes.
Show the user a direct page. Google does not like redirecting pages.
Having more ads and less content can go against a site.
Google always issues penalties to sites that are hiding affiliate links.
A Google update named Fred “targets low-value content sites that put revenue above helping their users.”
Google is not a big fan of sites generating revenue through affiliate programs.
A site having content generated by the computer is more likely to get de-rank.
If the IP itself is spammed. So it will affect the whole site badly.
Lastly, keyword stuffing in meta tag can be harmful to a site.

OFF-PAGE WEBSPAM FACTORS:

Once a site is hacked, Google completely removes it from the SERP.
An unnatural rush of links is a sign of fake links.
Sites that receive the Penguin penalty are less likely to rank in Google SERP. However, it does not penalize the entire site instead filters out the bad links.
Creating lots of comment and forum backlinks may be a sign of black hat SEO.
Creating backlinks from unrelated sites increases the chance of penalties.
Automatically generated links through widgets is a big NO-NO.
Moreover, Google does not like sites that have many links coming from the same IP address.
Having “poison” anchor text can hurt your ranking.
Even if it is a rush of links, Google checks if it’s natural and unnatural.
Getting links from articles and press releases is seen as a “Link scheme”.
Always stay away from back hat link building because it can de-rank a site.
If Google catches you selling links, it will hurt your search visibility.
Google limits search visibility for sites that signal a sudden influx of links. Thus it can put your site in Google Sandbox.
Google Dance can sometimes shake the ranking to check if any website is trying to mislead the Algorithm.
Disavow Tool helps remove penalties from sites that were once a victim of negative SEO.
A good reconsideration request to Google and knowledge about the 200 ranking factors may lift up the penalty.
Lastly, Google does not favor a site that uses a temporary link scheme.

LETS SUM UP THE 200 RANKING FACTORS

So the above 200 ranking factors were about the Algorithm that Google uses to rank a site. If a website’s content and design are as per the Algorithm, its pages are more likely to rank higher in Google SERP. In brief, the 200 ranking factors that one should take good care of are:

The quality of the referring domain
Naturally high click-through-rate
Lesser bounce rate
Higher conversion rate
Good domain authority
Mobile usability
Dwell time of a site
Number of backlinks and the quality
On-page, Off-page SEO
Above all, quality content on a site.

Asad Rana

Digital Marketing Specialist