Google SEO can turn us into winners or losers. Problem is Google wont tell us the rules of its secret algorithm and the rules keep changing. SEO experts make a living analysing and interpreting the nuances of SEO and the Google algorithm, so where does that leave the rest of us. If only there was some simple formula, we could fall back on. Well here it is, and it works for all SEO efforts not just Google.
Even Google uses this formula, although they may not know it.
Google and all website owners are collaborating on the same project. Google’s job is to make it easy for people to find the best content. We want people to find our content because it is the best. (’Content’ means information, entertainment, products, videos or whatever.) Think of SEO as collaboration with Google not a battle against the rules, which drive their algorithm. Use the same high-level formula as them.
Primary formula for Google SEO
Usefulness of content = relevance x validity x ease of finding
The usefulness of content it increased the more relevant it is to someone’s needs, the more validity is has and the easier it is to find. Our content will be easy to find if we can convince Google that it is relevant to the searcher’s needs and has high validity.
Convincing Google your content is relevant
Google matches a searchers search term with information gleaned by the Google Searchbot on its never-ending journey around the net. It can only look for a match between the search term and a web page in two places.
Google Searchbot looks for search engine relevance:
- On the web page
- In links to and from the web page
The web page will be highly relevant if the search term is prominent on the page and in or adjacent to links to and from it.
‘Prominent on the page’ means the search terms being targeted are repeated often near the top of the page (this includes in the header) and in important parts of the page such as headings. Google tells us that title and description meta tags are important and keyword meta tags are not. Google also tells us that headers and alt tags are important, SEO experts say that increased font size, bolding or underlining also give text prominence. However, rules change and to keep ahead of the crowd you need to consider the concept as well as the rules as perceived by SEO experts. For example, it makes no sense to ignore keyword meta tags, titles for images and bulleted lists.
Incoming and outgoing links are important to relevance as they represent the environment in which a web page operates. This relates to internal as well as external links. The search term in the link and the links title make it highly relevant. So no more ‘click here’ links.
Convincing Google your content is valid
Valid content is ‘fit for purpose’. Valid content is original and works. Valid entertainment is entertaining, valid information can be relied on, etc.
I can only think of two ways that the Google Searchbot can make decisions about the validity of a web page.
Google knows your site is valid when it is:
- Functioning
- Up to date
- Original
- Receiving links from trusted sites
The first three are pretty self-explanatory. Website content has no validity if it does not function, is copied from other sites or is out of date. Which brings us back to relevant links from highly trusted sites.
Relevance plus validity is key for all SEO
Relevance plus validity is essential for SEO to succeed, not just for Google. The rules you hear from SEO experts and even from Google are important today. But thinking for yourself about relevance and validity is likely to future proof your site for when the rules change.
Tagged with: Google • Promotion
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