Getting your website top ranked at Google isn’t easy, but it isn’t rocket-science either. It takes a long-term commitment to producing content that Google sees and then ranks. This week I’m going to share what it takes to get top ranked at Google. Let’s start with how it works!

Google ranks a website based on about a dozen KEY factors. Yes, there are “hundreds of signals,” as the folks at Google say, but there are really only about a dozen things that are heavily weighted in the ranking algorithm.

The #1 thing that Google wants for someone using their search engine is that they see very good results on a search engine results page. Without good results, people would choose another search engine. Sure the Google brand is cool, but not that cool. People would ditch Google in a minute if the results they got on a search engine results page were no good. This is very important to know and understand. In other words, Google ranks RELEVANCY and specifically relevancy to the search performed.

Relevancy is primarily created using “keywords” and “keyword phrases.” If you are a “wedding caterer in New Jersey,” and that is what people are searching for, those keywords/phrases must be on your pages for Google to see and then use to determine relevancy.

Take a look at the page copy on your website, not just your home page. Do you have the keywords and keyword phrases that match what people using Google are using to search when looking for your products and services in your geo-marketplace?

Tomorrow, creating your keyword/phrase list (VERY important).