Top10 search engine optimization and Google ranking improve in 2020

A high search engine position is a crucial success factor for company homepages of all sizes.

Regardless of whether it’s a web shop, Internet service provider, local company or large company, only websites that are high up can prevail against the competition.

There are numerous factors that have an impact on the ranking in the results lists of Google and Co.

Let’s take a look at all the ranking signals and see which factors are important for a Top10 search engine optimization

How can I improve my Google ranking?

Most companies don’t use the full potential of search engine marketing.

Their websites stagnate in the search results and the company loses a lot of money due to low visitor numbers.

This is mainly because they fear the costs of professional search engine optimization.

Everyone is talking about SEO, but there is always the opinion that SEO is a vague pseudoscience.

But this is by no means true! The Top10 search engine optimization is about tried and tested measures that improve the Google ranking in a targeted and sustainable manner.

What is SEO?

Why is search engine optimization important?

What is SERP?

Search Engine Result Page, SERP for short, means search engine results page.

Here the search engines list the results of the search queries.

The central part of the SERP is the organic results list, in which Google and Co. display suitable websites in descending order according to relevance and quality.

When we refer to SEOs as “ranking” we mean positioning in this list.

The Top10 search engine optimization is now about adapting a website with suitable SEO methods.

The goal is to improve her Google ranking so that she appears on the first SERP.

Not only the organic results play a role, but also many SERP features.

What are Google search parameters?

On Google, the search is not limited to a few keywords. With the help of search parameters, also called operators, the search query can be formulated more precisely.

Many of the parameters are useful for a Top10 search engine optimization. They can contain important information about the search intent and help with topic and keyword research.

If you look closely at what potential customers are looking for, you can adapt the page content more specifically and thus improve your Google ranking.

The best known operators are quotation marks for phrase searches and the minus sign to exclude terms.

For example, Google lists websites related to the famous quote from Shakespeare’s Hamlet when asked to be or not to be.

If you are not looking for the Shakespeare play, but for Nick Whitby’s modern satire, you can refine your search accordingly with an added Shakespeare.

What does metrics mean?

In online marketing, a metric or a “key performance indicator” is basically nothing more than a measurement.

Metrics are numerical properties of websites, domains, links and keywords that can be used to test and compare reach, success and other aspects of online marketing.

Many ranking factors are closely related to certain metrics.

To improve the Google ranking, SEO tools such as Ahref, KWFinder, SEMRush or the Google Search Console are used. They can be used to list the metrics and evaluate them in detail.

How many Google ranking factors are there?

Various studies have found that Google includes at least 200 ranking factors in the rating.

That cannot be said exactly, since the search engines keep their algorithms secret.

In addition, Google employees often make contradictory statements about which factors can improve Google ranking.

On the one hand, this serves to protect business secrets and, on the other hand, they want to prevent manipulation.

Some factors reveal them or expressly refer to them, others are only known from statistical analyzes.

Larger SEO agencies and analysis companies in particular study the result lists and try to find correlations between the page order and certain properties of the listed websites.

For example, you can see how many words the texts of the web pages consist of in different positions.

They find that many of the high-ranking pages have longer texts and conclude that extensive articles can improve the Google ranking.

Such correlation studies are not always reliable, which is why, in addition to widely recognized ranking signals, there are also factors that are controversial.

In addition, not all are equally important for a Top10 search engine optimization.

In the following we want to briefly introduce all known factors before we take a closer look at the most important ones.

Google content factors

Google Hummingbird:

Google Hummingbird: Since the introduction of the Hummingbird algorithm, Google has been able to better understand and semantically assign search queries and page content.

Therefore, high-quality and informative page texts are more important for a Top10 search engine optimization than the classic keyword optimization.

Holistic content:

Research has shown that content that deals with the topic holistically and in depth can improve Google ranking.

Length of the page texts:

Another important factor shows the importance of comprehensive content.

Websites with longer texts rank much better than short content. The average number of words for a Top10 search engine optimization is just under 2000 words.

Useful and high quality pages:

Content with high utility value is particularly valuable at Google. It should be noted that demanding specialist texts are not helpful for everyone.

Depending on the target group, texts that find a middle ground between quality and intelligibility can rank better.

Unique content:

Google is not a fan of texts that only repeat the familiar and prefers websites with innovative content.

Superficial affiliate sites in particular have no place in the Top10 search engine optimization.

Copied content:

Pages with copied content get a lower ranking from the search engines than the original.

Since copyright aspects also play a role here, it can even happen that they exclude plagiarism from the index.

Difficulty:

Google analyzes the readability of a text and assigns it to the categories simple, average and advanced.

The influence of the difficulty level on the ranking is unclear.

Average texts are probably the best way to improve Google ranking.

Spelling and Grammar:

Error-free texts are equally important for users and search engines.

Too many mistakes make reading difficult and make the page appear dubious and inferior, which results in higher bounce rates.

Lists and tables:

Long texts without loosening elements are difficult to read and appear dry.

Google probably also sees it that way, which is why the integration of lists and tables can improve Google ranking.

Multimedia:

A correlation study found that the Top10 had significantly more pages with multimedia content than the following places.

Therefore, images, videos and audio data are important aspects for the Top10 search engine optimization.

Additional content:

Google considers additional content that adds useful features to the actual content as a feature of high-quality pages.

Examples of such extras are navigation bars, widgets such as cost or unit converters, and lists with similar products or relevant videos.

Table of Contents:

A linked table of contents is not only useful for human readers. It also helps search engines understand structure and content better.

Google sometimes shows sections of them directly in the SERP snippets, which can improve the click-through rate and thus the Google ranking.

Your-Money-Your-Life:

YMYL pages contain topics related to health, finance, safety and other serious matters.

Google sets higher standards for such content and prefers websites with a lot of specialist knowledge and thematic authority.

Sources:

The indication of recognized sources and references can represent an additional quality feature.

With YMYL topics in particular, it can be assumed that Google will probably devalue sites without reliable evidence of sources such as research reports.

However, Google officially denies that they consider outgoing links as a ranking factor.

Content update:

Hot topics (QDF):

Google has traditionally preferred older sites that have become established over time.

Since the Caffeine update and the introduction of the QDF formula, the search engine has primarily selected new or recently updated pages for certain search terms.

QDF stands for Query Deserves Freshness (literally: request deserves freshness) and mainly concerns topics of current importance.

Page age:

The factors content update and topicality indicate that older pages with regularly updated content do better than new pages.

Scope of updates:

When evaluating “content freshness”, it is also crucial how large the changes are. Larger updates in particular can improve Google ranking.

Hidden content:

So-called “hidden content” is content that is not visible to visitors or is only visible after a click.

They are used for manipulative SEO practices as well as for “legal” purposes – for example with accordion menus or tab-based interfaces.

Google has announced that hidden content may not receive full attention.

With a Top10 search engine optimization, the central content should always be directly visible.

WordPress tags:

The keywords under which articles are stored in a WordPress project have an impact on the relevance rating.

It is not known whether tags in other content management systems also help to improve Google ranking.

TrustRank:

The trustworthiness of a domain is considered one of the most important factors in the Top10 search engine optimization.

The TrustRank algorithm assumes that websites that receive backlinks from recognized domains are legitimate themselves.

Domain history:

If a domain name has changed owners frequently in the past, this can lead to a loss of trust with Google and possible negative consequences for the new owner.

Domain authority:

The domain authority is not an official Google metric, but a value that SEO specialists like Moz and Ahrefs have developed.

It serves as a measure of the thematic expertise of a domain.

The value is useful to improve the Google ranking because it correlates with a higher search engine ranking.

Domain age:

For Google, domain age is the amount of time since the crawler indexed the website for the first time.

The search engine assumes that long-lived websites have proven their usefulness and gives them a little boost.

Short periods of several months do not play a major role here.

Domain term:

Google is likely to include the validity period of a registered domain name in the rating.

The assumption is that reputable website operators pay for their domains several years in advance.

Domains registered early are very helpful in the Top10 search engine optimization.

Parked domains:

Domain parking is not welcomed by Google because many web spammers use this method. Without 301 redirect, there is a risk that Google will classify the domain as duplicate content.

Local top-level domains:

Country-specific TLDs such as .de, .at or .ch improve the ranking in the respective region.

If you want to appear globally, you can improve your Google ranking with a generic domain.

Server location and IP address:

According to Google, the geographic location of the hosting server and its IP number can play a role in the page order.

However, the impact is very small and limited to geo-targeting and searches with local relevance.

Domain diversity:

According to a Google tweet from June 2019, the search engine will no longer include more than two pages from the same domain in the SERP.

However, there should be exceptions if a website is particularly relevant to the search query.

Keyword in the top level domain:

Google analyst John Mueller has confirmed that keywords in the new top-level domains, such as .berlin, .shop and the like, are ignored.

Domain starts with keyword:

Domain names whose first word is the main keyword are considered a light relevance signal.

According to Moz, these domains do slightly better than those where the keyword is elsewhere or not at all.

Subdomain contains keyword:

Moz also states that keywords in the subdomains can improve Google ranking.

Exact Match Domain:

EMDs are domain names that correspond exactly to the keywords with which a website wants to rank – for example “BilligLaptopsKaufen.de”. Spammers like to use this technique, which is why Google punished many such domains in 2012.

If a domain has not been downgraded by the EMD update, an exact domain name can provide a small ranking advantage.

KEYWORDS AND SEARCH TERMS

Keyword and page title:

Keyword position in the title:

Pages with a title that starts with the main keyword have another small advantage.

Keyword in the description tag:

Google no longer includes the page description in the ranking calculation.

However, a keyword in the description tag can improve Google ranking because the SERP snippets contain the description.

Optimized description tags have an impact on the ranking factor click-through rate.

Keywords in the H1 heading:

The HTML tag H1 marks a main heading and represents a second page title.

In the Google Webmaster Hangout, John Mueller made it clear that H1 tags are not very important.

Nevertheless, many SEO experts are convinced that keyword-optimized headlines are a weak relevance factor.

Keywords in other headings:

If a keyword appears in the H2 and H3 tags, this can be another relevance signal.

However, it is weaker than the H1 day. Regardless, Google has confirmed that the H-Tags help you understand the structure and content of the page.

The sensible text formatting is therefore an important on-page measure in the Top10 search engine optimization.

Keyword in the URL:

According to Google, focus keywords in the URL of a page are “only a very small factor.”

Keyword weighting:

Some correlation studies suggest that the position of keywords in the text is critical.

Above all, the presence of the keyword in the first 100 words of the page text seems to be related to a positioning on the first results page.

The further the key word appears in the text, the less weight it has.

Keyword density and TF IDF:

Keyword density is one of the most controversial factors among SEOs.

In the past, a high number of keywords was important so that the search engines could understand the content of the text.

Although semantic analyzes are increasingly used today, keywords can still improve Google ranking.

The search engine probably uses modern calculation bases such as TF-IDF formulas.

Caution should be used when optimizing keywords, since too high a keyword density is considered an attempted manipulation.

Local keywords:

For local companies, the integration of search words with a local reference is an important measure of the Top10 search engine optimization.

Local keywords consist of a thematic term and a geographical name, for example “Baumarkt Salzburg”.

LSI keywords:

LSI stands for Latent Semantic Indexing and describes a technique of semantic text analysis.

In simple terms, LSI keywords are synonyms or words that belong together thematically.

For example, the terms mouse and input device refer to a completely different topic than the words mouse and cat.

LSI keywords most likely act as relevance and quality factors.

LSI keywords and meta tags:

The same applies to LSI keywords in the title and description tags as for normal keywords.

LSI terms have a small impact on the relevance rating and can increase the click-through rate.

Ranking success with additional keywords:

Many websites don’t just place themselves for one keyword.

If a page with several search terms reaches a higher position, this can be an additional quality feature for Google.

INTERNAL LINKING AND PAGE STRUCTURE

Duplicate content:

 Duplicate content is identical or hardly any different content on several web pages inside or outside a web project.

For various reasons, Google does not like redundant information, so corresponding sites have to reckon with negative consequences.

This includes less organic traffic, missing pages in the index and, in the worst case, punishment and de-indexing

Canonical URLs and redirects:

Duplicate content cannot always be avoided, which Google also sees.

To ensure that the search engine treats such pages correctly, webmasters should set up HTTP redirects, or specify the attribute rel = “canonical” in the HTTP header or via LINK tag.

Quality of external links:

According to John Mueller, Google does not use outgoing links for the ranking calculation.

This is contradicted by a correlation study by Reboot Online.

The marketing company found out in an experiment that links to recognized specialist sites can improve Google ranking.

Topic of linked pages:

The fact that Google uses the Hilltop algorithm for the relevance assessment of linked documents is a further indication of the importance of outgoing links.

With the algorithm, the topic of a website can be determined based on the linked landing pages.

If a text with the keyword Top10 links to websites about SEO, then it is certainly about a Top10 search engine optimization and not about the music charts.

Link text:

The clickable anchor text of a link is another important relevance factor.

Too many external links:

Pages with an unusually large number of outgoing links can lose a little PageRank.

Google’s Quality Rater Guide also seems to confirm this. He points out that some websites have far too many links.

This obscures the page and distracts from the actual content.

If in doubt, webmasters should remove inferior links or set the nofollow attribute.

Number of links to a page:

The central pages often get the most links within a website.

Conversely, Google uses the number of links that point to a page to determine its importance.

Quality of internal links:

In addition to the amount of internal links, their quality plays a role in assessing the significance.

The higher the metrics like PageRank and Page Authority of the linking page, the more they can improve the Google ranking.

Quality of internal links:

In addition to the amount of internal links, their quality plays a role in assessing the significance.

The higher the metrics like PageRank and Page Authority of the linking page, the more they can improve the Google ranking.

Broken links:

According to Google’s Quality Rater Guidelines, many dead links point to poorly or not properly maintained websites.

Accordingly, the search engine classifies such pages.

Affiliate links:

In principle, Google has no objection to affiliate marketing. Participation in partner programs may not get out of hand.

The search service does not hesitate to punish “thin affiliate sites” with little content and lots of partner links.

These have nothing to do with the Top10 search engine optimization anyway.

Website architecture:

A clean and well-structured website structure is important for people and search engines alike.

The silo architecture in particular can improve the Google ranking, since it helps the search service analyze the topics.

Page categories:

Appropriate categorization is important when structuring the website.

The categories under which content is stored are considered a relevance factor.

A page that is classified under an unrelated category can become less important.

Categories in the URL:

On some pages, Google shows the URL split into categories: For example, the URL https://example.com/laptops/dell/inspiron can appear as “example.com> laptops> dell> inspiron” in the snippet.

This is an indication that Google recognizes rubrics in the link and uses them to determine the topic.

Breadcrumb navigation:

Navigation bars with so-called breadcrumbs also help the search engines categorize the pages.

In addition, they increase usability, which is an important ranking factor in the top 10 search engine optimization.

URL path:

Google prefers a flat site structure that is also clear for people. Therefore, pages higher in the hierarchy can get a little more authority.

URL length:

Various studies have found a relationship between URL length and search engine placement.

According to Ahrefs, the length for a Top10 search engine optimization is between 17 and 31 characters.

Very long URLs in particular seem to have a negative impact on the placement

Sitemaps:

Particularly complex or young websites without many backlinks benefit from a sitemap.

In both cases, it helps the crawlers find and index all pages.

Page priority in the sitemap:

If the sitemap is in XML format, a relative priority can be specified for each page, which may have an impact on the ranking.

In any case, it helps search engine crawlers to identify the most important pages and is therefore an important factor in improving Google ranking.

Contact pages:

Google writes in its quality guide that high-quality websites usually provide contact information such as email address, telephone number and postal address.

It is important to ensure consistent data that matches the entries in Whois databases or in business directories.

Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy:

Reputable websites should always include sub-pages on their general terms and conditions and a privacy policy.

For Google, these are important EAT score signals that can improve Google ranking.

TECHNICAL ASPECTS AND USABILITY

PageSpeed:

The loading speed of a page is an important factor in the Top10 search engine optimization.

Google analyzes both the HTML code of the webpage and the usage data that it collects via the Chrome browser.

Both measurement data are included in the ranking calculation, which is why webmasters should test their pages in Chrome to improve the Google ranking.

Mobile First:

In view of the increasing importance of mobile devices, Google prefers websites that are optimized for smartphones and tablets.

The search service goes so far that it has declared the slogan “Mobile First”.

Making a website suitable for mobile is a very effective measure to improve the Google ranking.

Therefore it should not be missing in the Top10 search engine optimization.

Google AMP:

The controversial AMP framework for fast mobile sites is not a direct ranking factor.

However, it may be a prerequisite to rank for the mobile version of Google’s news carousel.

At least Google developer Dave Besbris announced this in 2016.

Optimize graphics:

Images and other purely visual content can still not be properly analyzed by the search engines.

You need information from the file name and from the ALT, TITLE and CAPTION attributes to understand the content.

The ALT attribute is particularly important for barrier-free, disabled-friendly websites – and thus for a Top10 search engine optimization.

Furthermore, optimizing the file size is a not negligible factor for the loading speed.

Code errors and validation:

According to Google, faulty HTML or CSS code have no direct influence on the ranking.

Nevertheless, all websites should go through a tool for W3C validation.

Errors in the code can affect browser compatibility, display and usability, which affects the bounce rate and length of stay.

Code errors and validation:

According to Google, faulty HTML or CSS code have no direct influence on the ranking.

Nevertheless, all websites should go through a tool for W3C validation.

Errors in the code can affect browser compatibility, display and usability, which affects the bounce rate and length of stay.

User-friendly layout:

A clear page layout, in which the users can find their way quickly, is a key quality factor in the Top10 search engine optimization.

This is also confirmed by Google’s Quality Rater Guidelines.

Downtime:

Occasional operational disruptions usually do not affect the ranking.

In the event of maintenance or technical problems, Google recommends sending HTTP status code 503 to indicate that the page is (temporarily) unavailable.

Permanent downtimes, on the other hand, can be noticeable through a deterioration in search engine placement or temporary de-indexation.

HTTPS:

Google takes security very seriously and has made it clear in its webmaster blog that HTTPS is a ranking factor.

If you have not yet set up HTTPS encryption, you should do so immediately to improve your Google ranking.

Duplicate meta data:

According to a Twitter post by John Mueller, duplicate meta data in multiple pages is not a problem.

Nevertheless, some SEO experts are convinced that they can have a negative impact on the visibility of all relevant websites.

Usability:

In addition to poor page layouts and a lack of navigation aids, an inappropriate color design also affects RankBrain factors such as dwell time and bounce rate.

Good usability is therefore an important aspect in the Top10 search engine optimization.

QUANTITATIVE BACKLINK FACTORS

Number of linked domains:

Backlinks from many different domains have a significant weight in the PageRank and TrustRank algorithms.

A systematic structure of links from varied sources is one of the most effective measures to improve the Google ranking.

Links from various Class C IPs:

Traditional IP numbers are divided into classes A – E, where A provides few large and C many small networks.

A common assumption is that backlinks from different Class C IPs indicate a higher bandwidth of link sources.

According to a test by SEO specialist Greg Niland, this can actually improve Google ranking.

Different types of links:

Likewise, the variety of link types has an impact on search engine placement.

Many links from blog comments or forum posts can indicate link spam.

Different types of links:

Likewise, the variety of link types has an impact on search engine placement.

Many links from blog comments or forum posts can indicate link spam.

Number of linked pages:

Despite all of this, according to a Moz study, there is still a strong correlation between the number of all links to a page and their search engine placement.

Collecting backlinks is still one of the central measures of the Top10 search engine optimization.

Link building at high speed:

Link building too quickly is generally considered a risky SEO practice.

In an experiment, Barry Schwartz of the Search Engine Roundtable found that this is not always the case for new pages.

A speedy link building can improve the Google ranking in the short term.

Link building with decreasing speed:

Conversely, a slow link gain may indicate a decrease in the popularity of a website.

Number of outbound links:

Links pointing outward pass a little of their limited PageRank to the linked page.

This means that many references inherit less PageRank than few.

Sitewide links:

Page-wide links are links that are found on all pages of a web project.

Typical examples are general terms and conditions or imprint pages as well as links to other websites in link lists and blog rolls.

Since the Penguin update, Google has only counted such links once.

QUALITATIVE BACKLINK FACTORS

PageRank:

Although the PageRank algorithm is no longer the measure of all things, pages with high link authority continue to tend to rank better.

Natural link building:

Google insists on link building that takes place naturally.

If the search service finds out that a page works with manipulative linking practices, this can lead to negative consequences.

Authority of the linking page:

Since the source page inherited part of its PageRank to the target page when linking, the PageRank of the linking page was one of the most important ranking signals from the start.

This is one of the reasons why the backlink structure can sustainably improve Google ranking and is therefore one of the most common measures in the Top10 search engine optimization.

Mutual link exchange:

Placing backlinks together has long been a prevalent SEO practice.

There were many attempts at manipulation, which is why Google now punishes the excessive exchange of links.

Mutual link exchange:

Placing backlinks together has long been a prevalent SEO practice.

There were many attempts at manipulation, which is why Google now punishes the excessive exchange of links.

Links from competing sites:

If a webpage receives backlinks from other pages that rank with the same keywords, then the Google ranking can improve.

Backlinks from industry giants:

Some SEO experts suspect that Google only trusts a website completely when it receives links from the major websites of the respective industry.

Age of linked domains:

In most cases, Google prefers websites that have proven to be trustworthy and helpful over time.

Backlinks from older domains can have a stronger influence on the ranking than references from young websites.

Authority of the linking domain:

The authority of the domain also plays a role in calculating the value of a link.

Links from domains like .gov and .edu:

Backlinks from university or government websites (.edu and .gov domains) have always been particularly valuable for a Top10 search engine optimization and should effectively improve the Google ranking.

However, due to persistent problems with link spam, Google claims that they often ignore such links.

Links from expert sites:

Since Google uses the hilltop algorithm, it can be assumed that links from the top expert pages lead to special treatment of the target page.

Links from websites with high authority:

In any case, sites with a lot of domain authority pass on more LinkJuice than small or unknown sites.

Links from “bad neighbors”:

In the environment of every website there are pages that do not adhere to the rule and work with manipulative methods.

Links from this so-called “bad neighborhood”, in English called “bad neighborhoods”, can have a negative impact on the ranking.

Link text:

The link or anchor text is the clickable string that web browsers display for each link.

Sometimes it’s the actual URL, but mostly a short description.

The link text gives Google information about the content of the landing page and is therefore an important relevance factor.

But be careful: over-optimized anchor texts with too many keywords have a manipulative effect and should not occur with a Top10 search engine optimization.

ALT attributes for image links:

Since pure image links have no anchor text, Google uses the ALT attributes to determine content and relevance.

The same applies to them as to the texts of normal references.

nofollow links:

Normally, Google does not include links with the nofollow value in the ranking calculation.

Many SEO specialists are of the opinion that a certain number of such references belong to a natural link profile and can improve the Google ranking.

Advertising links:

Purchased links violate Google guidelines.

The search engine therefore recommends that backlinks from partner programs and other advertisements be marked with the REL attribute as “sponsored” or “nofollow”.

Sponsored links:

If Google finds terms such as “sponsor”, “link partner” or similar words in the context of a backlink, this can affect the value of the link.

User generated content:

User generated content (UGC) are, for example, blogs on blogging platforms, comments or posts in forums.

Links from such content do not have the same status for Google as links from page owners.

Forum links:

Many online forums have been massively abused for link spam, which is why Google considers keyword-optimized links in forums to be manipulation attempts.

Therefore, many forums now set the links to “nofollow”.

In the Top10 search engine optimization, this measure should only be used with caution.

Guest article:

Links in guest articles give less LinkJuice than references in the texts of editorial authors.

If a page contains many such articles, it can make sense to set the REL attribute with the value “ugc”.

Links from blog networks:

After the link farms stopped working, many blog networks were created with the same purpose.

Google is most likely able to recognize such manipulative blogs and devalue their links.

Wikipedia links:

Many industry experts believe that links from Wikipedia can significantly improve the Google ranking.

Targeted manipulations of Wikipedia articles are taboo in the Top10 search engine optimization.

Links to the homepage:

Links that point to the homepage of a website may have additional weight.

The assumption is that the entire web project receives a recommendation from the linking page.

Links in the content:

Backlinks, which of course fit into the content of the source page, are considered more valuable than other references.

TITLE attribute of a link:

In contrast to the ALT attribute, the HTML attribute TITLE has little meaning.

Nevertheless, the TITLE of a reference can serve as an additional relevance factor.

Country-specific top-level domains:

Links from national TLDs such as .de, .at or .ch can improve the Google ranking in the respective country.

Position of a backlink in the content:

As with internal references, the position of a link also plays a role in backlinks.

Links that are at the top of the text have a little more meaning than links at the end of the content.

Positions of a backlink in the page:

Links in the sidebars or baseboards are worth less than references in the actual content.

Relevance of linking domains:

Relevance is one of the most important factors at Google and in the top 10 search engine optimization.

Links from domains from the same thematic environment have significantly more weight than references from websites from unrelated areas.

Keyword in the title:

If the keyword with which the landing page is ranked appears in the title of the linking page, this is an additional relevance factor for Google.

Keyword in the title:

If the keyword with which the landing page is ranked appears in the title of the linking page, this is an additional relevance factor for Google.

Keyword in the title:

If the keyword with which the landing page is ranked appears in the title of the linking page, this is an additional relevance factor for Google.

Common words in the link context:

Terms that can be found both on the landing page and near the backlink are called co-occurrences in the technical term.

They are a relevance signal because Google can tell them what the linked page is about.

Common words in the link context:

Terms that can be found both on the landing page and near the backlink are called co-occurrences in the technical term.

They are a relevance signal because Google can tell them what the linked page is about.

Age of backlinks:

In United States Patent Number 7346839, Google describes a technique according to which older links should be more valuable than recently set backlinks.

Schema.org data:

Google itself points out that recording structured data in one of the Schema.org formats helps to analyze the page.

Since Google displays some of the information in the SERPs, this can also lead to a higher click-through rate, which can improve Google ranking.

TrustRank of the linking website:

As with the PageRank, the concept of inheritance also plays a role in the TrustRank algorithm.

The higher the TrustRank of a linking website, the more trust the backlink passes on.

Length of the linking content:

Since Google prefers detailed texts, links in extensive content count more than references in short texts.

This shows again that extensive content can improve the Google ranking.

Quality of the linking content:

Likewise, backlinks in high-quality content have more value than those in superficial and incorrect texts.

This is another reason why high quality is so important for a Top10 search engine optimization.

Backlinks and 301 redirects:

Matt Cutts made it clear in a webmaster video that backlinks from pages with 301 redirects pass as much PageRank as direct links.

However, some SEOs suspect that links from 301 pages carry less LinkJuice.

Chained 301 redirects:

According to another statement by Matt Cutts, consecutive 301 redirects should have a maximum of two or three levels.

With longer chains, the chance that the Google crawler will continue to follow them is very slim.

SEARCH INTENT AND USER SIGNALS

RankBrain:

Google’s RankBrain is an artificial intelligence that is used for semantic analysis of search queries and content. It also plays a role in evaluating user interactions. Since the algorithm is now Google’s third most important component in the ranking calculation, it is of outstanding importance in the Top10 search engine optimization.

Matching entity:

The Entity Match is about answering complex search queries like “Books by Austrian authors about Vienna”. Google is using the entity comparison more and more frequently, so that texts that match the entities searched improve the Google ranking.

Website reputation:

The public perception and reputation of a company or website are included in the evaluation.

Google most likely uses both manual and technical methods to determine its reputation.

User ratings:

According to Google, reviews, reviews and ratings on portals such as TripAdvisor, Jameda and Yelp are an important part of public awareness.

Organic CTR for a keyword:

Whether Google uses the number of clicks on a SERP link as a ranking factor is a hotly debated topic.

The majority of the studies and other indications indicate that the search service actually includes the CTR for individual keywords.

Organic clickthrough rate for all keywords:

The same applies to the question of whether a website benefits from a higher CTR for all of its keywords.

Many SEOs see this as a quality feature.

Length of stay:

The dwell time quantifies how long a user stays on a page. The value is very important for the Top10 search engine optimization.

Extending the length of stay – for example by providing comprehensive information about the topic you are looking for – is an effective measure to improve the Google ranking.

Bounce rate:

Whether a higher bounce rate is a negative factor depends on the search intent.

Bounces can also mean that users found what they were looking for immediately, especially with informational search queries.

Nevertheless, according to a correlation study by SEMRush, there is a connection between bounce rate and search engine placement.

Pogosticking:

If users jump back and forth between the SERP and the listed pages several times, SEOs speak of pogosticking.

Such behavior is an indication that the websites that were left could not answer the search query.

Unlike the bounce rate, this user signal is considered a strong negative factor in the top 10 search engine optimization.

Bookmarks in Chrome:

With its Chrome browser, Google collects numerous user data.

The ranking signals can also include the bookmarks of the users.

If users bookmark a website, this can improve their Google ranking.

Blocked websites:

The Panda update used Chrome’s website blocking feature for quality assessment.

Google has discontinued this feature, but some SEOs assume that the search engine is still using a variant of it.

Direct visits:

Direct traffic includes all page views where it is not known how the users came to the page.

This includes manually entered links as well as references in documents, email and chat programs or mobile apps.

A study by SEMRush found a strong correlation between direct traffic and search engine placement.

Repeated traffic:

If a website receives visits from the same person again and again, this can be an additional quality signal.

Creating the most useful pages possible is therefore a key measure of the Top10 search engine optimization.

Personalized SERPs:

Since Google has individualized the search results, websites that a user visits often rank higher in their SERP.

Personal search history:

If a search for the word “buy” follows a further search using the term “laptop”, then laptop offers tend to rank higher.

Personal search history:

If a search for the word “buy” follows a further search using the term “laptop”, then laptop offers tend to rank higher.

Comments:

According to Google analyst Gary Illyes, many comments are a strong user signal and can improve Google ranking.

SERP FEATURES

Search query deserves diversity (QDD):

 Some keywords are ambiguous, for example “Java” can mean the island, the type of coffee or the programming language.

Google sometimes thinks that the search query requires diverse results (query deserves diversity).

Then the search engine lists pages from several matching areas.

Featured snippets:

Appearing as a featured snippet is a great way to improve Google ranking.

SEMRush has found that Google-compatible formatting, a lot of page authority, HTTPS and a suitable text length are most important.

Safe Search:

Pages with FSK-18 content or certain swear words do not appear in the SERP if the user has activated the SafeSearch filter.

Transactional keywords:

Google often shows special snippets, especially for transactional requests.

Depending on the search term, they contain additional information such as prices, ratings, opening and departure times and the like.

Shopping results:

Commercial searches contain transactional keywords that signal an intention to buy.

The search engine lists additional product offers in the SERP.

Local search:

Google often shows specially formatted snippets for local companies for search queries with a local reference such as “Heizungsmonteur München”.

Even appearing in local results can significantly improve Google ranking.

News box:

For some search terms, Google shows its news carousel at the top.

In order to appear in the news box yourself, cutting-edge AMP articles with photos, Google-compatible formatting and structured Schema.org data are important.

Embedded pictures:

Keywords that Google combines with visual content trigger the display of images directly in the search results.

Image SEO has therefore become an important part of the Top10 search engine optimization.

Videos:

The search for instructions, pieces of music, news and similar things sometimes results in the integration of Google’s video carousel.

Creating your own videos can also help improve Google ranking.

YouTube:

Videos on YouTube receive special treatment from Google and appear in the top positions above average.

Easter Eggs:

 Google has hidden many funny and strange Easter Eggs in its products.

For example, the keyword “minesweeper” shows a playable version of the game in the SERP.

Easter eggs have no influence on the ranking of the websites, but can distract users from the actual search.

BRAND AWARENESS AND SOCIAL MEDIA

Vince update:

In 2009, Google introduced an adjustment that they themselves call “Vince Change”.

For some highly competitive commercial keywords, the search engine prefers websites from large and well-known brands (called “brand” in English).

Brand keywords:

If users specifically search for brand or domain names, Google shows more results from a website than usual.

Brand Search:

Regular searches for a particular company or brand give Google an indication of its value.

Search by brand and keyword:

Users often search for a specific brand name in connection with relevant keywords.

This can improve Google ranking even if searchers only enter the keyword.

Brand names in Google headlines:

It’s very difficult to appear in Google News with your own brand. Usually only the big names can do that.

If you still want to try it, you can integrate your own news feed into your page.

Unlinked brand name:

 It is controversial whether the mere mention of a brand name without a link has an impact on the ranking.

In a Google+ hangout, John Mueller wrote that it was not a primary factor.

Nevertheless, some SEOs believe that it is at least a secondary brand signal.

Brand names in anchor text:

The mention of a brand in link texts, however, is considered a strong brand signal.

Real business address:

Real companies always have a real branch.

Google may search for coherent location data to unmask bogus companies.

Google My Business:

When listing local companies, Google prefers companies that have entries in My Business.

Maintaining the company profile is therefore one of the measures of the Top10 search engine optimization.

Social media profiles:

Virtually all larger companies have their own appearances in the various social networks.

It is very likely that Google and Co. will include a lot of information from the profiles in the ranking.

They also improve the awareness of the website, which can lead to more backlinks and traffic.

Facebook pages:

Many reputable companies present themselves and their brands on Facebook.

The Google ranking can be significantly improved by company pages with many shares and likes.

Twitter:

Active Twitter profiles are considered an excellent measure for public relations.

Many followers and retweets provide backlinks, increase the click-through rate and make companies and brands better known.

Company page on LinkedIn:

LinkedIn is an important platform, especially in the B2B sector.

Well-maintained company pages help Google identify serious companies.

Company page on LinkedIn:

LinkedIn is an important platform, especially in the B2B sector.

Well-maintained company pages help Google identify serious companies.

Fake profiles:

According to a patent, Google can detect incorrect profiles on social networks.

The technology is probably used to determine the authenticity and credibility of company appearances.

Fake profiles:

According to a patent, Google can detect incorrect profiles on social networks.

The technology is probably used to determine the authenticity and credibility of company appearances.

OTHER FACTORS RELATED TO GOOGLE

IMPROVE RANKING

Known content authors:

 There is a lot of false information, rumors, errors and conspiracy theories in circulation on the Internet.

According to former Google boss Eric Schmidt, contributions from well-known and verified authors rank higher than content from other authors.

Manual human editing:

Google has repeatedly denied that human editors influence search engine placement.

However, the company has applied for a corresponding patent, so the statement may not be entirely correct.

Google Analytics and Search Console:

According to Matt Cutts, Google Analytics and the Search Console are not necessary to improve Google ranking.

However, some SEOs consider it unlikely that the search engine actually dispenses with all the useful data.

Copyright infringement:

In the event of copyright infringement, Google may remove the page in question from the index.

If this happens too often, the entire website can also be penalized.

That is why unique texts are so important for the Top10 search engine optimization.

Payday Loans Update:

 With the introduction of this adjustment in 2013, Google devalued many inferior websites with certain content.

The name refers to a form of short-term credit and refers to loans, medication, pornography, gambling and similar spam-prone topics.

ONPAGE WEBSPAM

Panda update:

Inferior websites have been less visible since the Panda update.

This particularly affects thin affiliate pages and web content from content farms.

Links to “bad neighbors”:

As with incoming backlinks, outgoing links to problematic pages have a negative impact.

Webmasters should remove them to improve Google ranking.

Cloaking:

Hidden redirects like cloaking are used to outsmart the search engine crawlers.

Google doesn’t like to see this at all and can penalize the page or remove it completely from the index.

Interstitial pop-up ads:

The term interstitial pop-ups refers to advertisements that overlay the actual content and make it inaccessible.

They occur particularly on mobile devices and, according to Google’s webmaster blog, lead to a loss of ranking.

Intrusive advertising:

In general, Google is not a fan of popup ads or highly distracting advertising.

Websites with such advertisements are considered inferior according to the Quality Rater Guide.

The use of moderate advertising can therefore improve Google ranking.

Over-optimization:

Gary Illyes confirmed in a Twitter post that “over-optimization” can result in a downgrade.

Keyword stuffing in content, meta data and anchor texts in particular has a negative impact on the ranking.

A Top10 search engine optimization must find the right level of adaptation.

Auto-generated and nonsensical content:

 Automatically generated content is often used to quickly create keyword-optimized pages.

This creates nonsensical texts that are illegible and useless.

Google will punish such sites with a devaluation or deletion from the result lists.

Bridge sides:

This manipulative technique uses special SEO pages that automatically redirect human visitors to the actual website.

However, the Google bot wants to analyze the page that users are also shown.

Bridge pages result in penalties such as downgrading or removing pages from the index.

Fred updates:

The so-called Fred updates give certain pages significantly less visibility.

This particularly affects websites that are aggressively monetizing with excessive advertising and inferior content.

Above the Fold Ads:

In web design, the term “Above the fold” refers to the top part of a website that is immediately visible without having to scroll down.

Google punishes websites that display too much advertising and too little content in this area.

Hidden affiliate links:

Since Google penalizes excessive affiliate advertising, some site operators try to cloak their affiliate links.

If the search engine finds such disguised links, this can lead to a significant loss of ranking.

Such practices should no longer be used in the Top10 search engine optimization.

Affiliate sites:

Officially, Google only disapproves of excessive participation in affiliate programs.

Nevertheless, some SEOs assume that the search service takes a critical look at all websites with affiliate links and takes a closer look at them.

Inferior advertising pages have no place in the top 10 search engine optimization anyway.

PageRank sculpting:

The targeted distribution of PageRank with “nofollow” has not worked since 2009.

Even so, some SEOs think that overusing this technique can harm a page.

Keyword stuffing in meta tags:

 Exaggerated search word optimization is not only a problem in the page content.

Keyword stuffing in the metadata can lead to a downgrade.

BACKLINK WEBSPAM

Penguin update:

Google’s Penguin update punishes over-optimized sites and black hat practices.

This includes the artificial generation of backlinks and keyword stuffing.

Unnatural increase in backlinks:

Without manipulative measures, such as excessive exchange or purchase of backlinks, a fast and strong increase in the link is almost impossible.

Accordingly, Google punishes websites with artificial link growth.

Temporary increase in backlinks:

Google also recognizes and punishes a short-term, sudden increase in the link.

Some use this method to quickly get more backlinks and traffic without risking a penalty.

The Top10 search engine optimization hardly uses such measures.

Warning for unnatural links:

For unnatural links, webmasters receive a warning about unnatural links via the Search Console, then they should act quickly.

Such an indication often precedes a downgrade.

Links from irrelevant pages:

In the past, uninhibited link exchange was a well-functioning SEO measure.

Today Google sees backlinks from thematically irrelevant websites as manipulation attempts. A high proportion of such links can therefore result in a penalty.

Many inferior links:

Linking through posts in forums, guest books and blog comments is now considered a violation of Google guidelines.

By removing such links, the Google ranking can be improved again.

Directory links:

Backlinks from cheap web directories and bookmark sites are considered link spam and can have corresponding consequences.

In today’s Top10 search engine optimization, they are hardly used anymore.

Links in widgets:

Google wants links to be created naturally and through deliberate setting.

Automatically generated references, as with website widgets, violate the search engine’s webmaster guidelines.

Since widgets often make a website more useful, Google recommends marking such links as “nofollow”.

Links from the same Class C network:

Because of their high potential for abuse through link exchange, Google does not like blog networks.

Websites in such networks often have IP numbers from the same Class C network.

If a page has many links from websites with such IP numbers, then suspicion of participation in blog networks can arise.

Links in press articles:

Backlinks in news magazines and online newspapers used to be seen as an effective measure of top 10 search engine optimization.

Due to massive unfair use of these link sources, Google now considers such links to be suspicious.

Toxic terms in anchor text:

If typical spam words appear in the anchor text of a link, this can have a negative effect on the ranking.

Corresponding terms come from subject areas such as gambling, medication, loans and pornography.

Link sales:

Trading backlinks violates Google’s guidelines and can lead to a loss of ranking.

This applies not only to buying, but also selling links.

Occasionally, this measure is still used in the top 10 search engine optimization.

OTHER NEGATIVE FACTORS

Server with a lot of spam pages:

With shared hosting in particular, it can happen that legitimate websites are on the same server as spam pages.

In rare cases, a very large number of bad sites can impair the impeccable websites.

In case of doubt, a change of provider can help to improve the Google ranking.

Private Whois entries:

Google is very critical of disguised Whois data.

Matt Cutts pointed out that they are not automatically bad, but are often a sign of secrecy.

Therefore, private Whois entries are likely to be seen as a weak negative signal.

It is not known whether this also applies to European domains in view of the GDPR.

Whois entries from web spammers:

If Google finds out that a website owner is running web spam, the search service also examines all the other sites of the person in more detail.

Hacked website:

Not surprisingly, Google removes hacked websites from the index.

This can also result in erroneous deletions, as Search Engine Land found out.

Security is therefore an important aspect of the Top10 search engine optimization.

Google Dance:

This term denotes occasional fluctuations in the search engine position of websites.

They were related to the recalculation of the page index, which takes place continuously today.

Dance in this form no longer exists, but temporary fluctuations can indicate a new edition.

Google sandbox:

Although their existence is controversial, Google appears to have a filter that temporarily lowers young websites with competitive keywords.

According to a widespread theory, this is to combat spam.

Disavow tool:

Backlinks from problematic pages can worsen the ranking of your own website.

If it is not possible to remove the unwanted links, they can be declared invalid with the Disavow tool in order to improve the Google ranking.

Manual measures:

Google cannot always automatically detect manipulations and spam.

Therefore, the search service has a webspam team that can intervene if necessary and devalue a website manually.

The team informs page owners in Search Console to give them a chance to fix the problem

Request for reconsideration:

Anyone who has received a reminder or punishment can request that the website be checked again after the problems have been rectified.

This can improve the Google ranking again.

What are the top 10 search engine optimization ranking factors?

In order to get a website in Google’s Top10, suitable measures are necessary, which differ depending on the type of page.

Some aspects are important for all websites, others are only used for special projects.

We have achieved the best success within the company with the following factors.

It is the ranking signals that, in our experience, occur most frequently in the Top10 search engine optimization and most effectively improve the Google ranking.

Nevertheless, this selection is only to be understood as a non-binding recommendation, because nobody knows exactly how Google works.