How to Rank 1 on Google with a Solid SEO Strategy

To rank 1 on Google, you need to understand that Google's algorithm is constantly evolving, and what worked yesterday might not work today. Google's algorithm changes over 500 times per year, which can make it challenging to keep up.

The key to ranking 1 on Google is to create high-quality, relevant, and valuable content that resonates with your target audience. This is supported by Google's own research, which shows that websites that create high-quality content are more likely to rank higher.

To create high-quality content, you need to focus on providing value to your readers, rather than just trying to rank for keywords. As Google's algorithm expert, Pierre Far, notes, "The most important thing is to create content that is relevant and useful to users."

By focusing on providing value to your readers, you can increase your chances of ranking 1 on Google and driving more traffic to your website.

Optimizing your on-page SEO is one of the fastest ways to improve your Google rankings, taking just about 2 minutes to optimize your page and seeing a rankings boost within days.

To optimize your site around your target keywords, start by making sure your keyword is toward the beginning of your title tag, a technique called "Frontloading" your keyword.

You can quickly check for a range of on-page SEO issues with Semrush's On Page SEO Checker, which will provide you with an overview of your top pages to optimize and insights into your potential traffic gains.

A good internal linking structure and quality backlinks are also important for ranking high, as Google crawls the web following each link it finds.

Here are the top 4 benefits of ranking high on Google:

Improving your Google ranking can be a game-changer for your business, and one key aspect is understanding the top 100 search results for your keywords.

You can use a free keyword rank checker tool to see the first 100 hits for your keyword, including meta title and meta description. This feature is especially helpful in the field of SEO.

Having a clear view of the competition can save you a lot of time in your daily SEO work, and help you identify areas for improvement.

Here are the top 4 benefits of ranking high on Google:

To boost your click-through rate, use emotional title tags, short and descriptive URLs, target rich snippets, and compelling meta descriptions.

By understanding the top 100 search results and implementing these strategies, you can improve your Google ranking and drive more traffic to your site.

Technical issues can really hurt your site's rankings, so it's worth paying attention to them. Over half the world's website traffic is on mobile devices, and your site needs to be optimized for mobile devices by 2024.

Check your site's mobile optimization by looking at your Core Web Vitals in PageSpeed Insights or Google Search Console. A slow site load time can also impact your rankings, so run your site through site speed tools like PageSpeed Insights or WebPageTest.org.

If Google is having trouble indexing your site, they'll let you know in Google Search Console under "Indexing" > "Pages". If your site runs on WordPress, consider using the Yoast SEO plugin.

Google crawls the web, following each link it finds, so if your links are lacking, it can cause problems with ranking.

To rank number one on Google, you need to understand how your site is performing. The Google Search Console Impressions and Clicks report shows you how many people saw your site and how many clicked on it.

The more people who see and click on your site from Google, the better. This is a key indicator of your site's visibility and relevance.

Having a high number of impressions but low clicks can indicate that your site's title or description isn't enticing enough to encourage people to click through.

Google Search Console Metrics can give you valuable insights into how your site is performing. Impressions and clicks are two key metrics to track.

The more people who see and click on your site from Google, the better. This report in Google Search Console shows you exactly that.

You can also use Google Search Console to monitor your site's technical SEO. Technical SEO problems can really hurt your site's rankings, so it's worth paying attention to them.

Your site's mobile optimization is crucial in 2024, when over half the world's website traffic is on mobile devices. You can check your site's mobile optimization in PageSpeed Insights or Google Search Console.

A slow site speed can negatively impact your rankings, so it's essential to check how quickly your site loads. Run your site through site speed tools like PageSpeed Insights or WebPageTest.org to identify any technical issues.

Google Search Console's "Indexing" > "Pages" report can also help you identify if Google is having trouble indexing your site. If you're using WordPress, consider using the Yoast SEO plugin to help optimize your site's performance.

Indexing and crawl issues are crucial to understand, as they can prevent your site from ranking. Technical issues affecting ranking can be a major problem, and you should check if your page or website is indexed but not ranking.

Google crawls the web, following each link it finds, so if your links are lacking, it can cause problems with ranking. A good internal linking structure is essential.

To identify indexing and crawl issues, you should examine the Index Coverage report in Google Search Console. This tool categorizes your pages into various categories and explains why pages are not indexed.

Ensure your XML sitemap is current and accurately represents your site structure. Submit it to Google Search Console to help Google find your pages. Review and resolve any crawl errors such as 404s, server errors, or redirect issues.

Pages with low-quality or duplicate content might be excluded from the index. Focus on creating unique, valuable content that provides genuine user engagement. Use the URL Inspection tool to request indexing for crucial pages not yet indexed.

Websites with above-average "Time on Site" tend to rank higher in Google. This is according to a study that found a strong correlation between time on site and first page Google rankings.

The average time on site for a Google first page result is 2.5 minutes. This suggests that Google favors websites that keep users engaged for longer periods of time.

It's worth noting that Google may not directly use time on site as a ranking signal, but rather as a byproduct of high-quality content that keeps users engaged.

A clear site structure is crucial for SEO success, and having a proper internal linking structure is key to this. This structure leads to a better understanding of your site by Google.

Internal linking is not just about throwing links around, but about adding relevant and related links that add value for your users. You can use the Yoast SEO orphaned content filter to find posts without incoming internal links.

A good internal linking structure can significantly improve your chances of ranking high in search results, even with well-optimized content. Make sure to add links to your important posts and pages.

You can use Yoast SEO Premium to get helpful linking suggestions as you write, and other AI features that make the hard work easier.

To rank high in Google, you need to understand the importance of matching your content to search intent. This means making sure your page gives searchers exactly what they're looking for, as Google's RankBrain can figure out if your site is a good fit for a specific keyword.

To determine search intent, consider what someone typing a keyword into Google is looking for. Look at what's already ranking on the first page and identify the common themes among those results. For example, if you're targeting the keyword "Conversion Rate Optimization", you'll find that most top results include a definition, description, examples, and tips for getting started.

By understanding search intent and creating content that meets it, you can increase your page's relevance and attract more organic traffic. In fact, one example shows a page that matched search intent saw a 214% increase in organic traffic.

Here are some key considerations to keep in mind:

Content and keyword issues can affect your page's or site's ranking. If everything else is in order SEO-wise, then your page or site is not ranking might be related to your content or keywords.

Read more about why you should focus on long tail keywords.

Content that's lacking in uniqueness can struggle to rank. Search engines prioritize content that offers a unique perspective or provides additional value compared to existing articles on the same topic.

A good internal linking structure and quality backlinks are important for ranking high. Google crawls the web, following each link it finds, so if your links are lacking, it can cause problems with ranking.

Pages with more backlinks tend to rank higher than pages with fewer backlinks. In fact, pages with the highest number of total backlinks tended to rank best in Google.

Here's a rough breakdown of the average number of backlinks for pages in different ranking positions:

The more people that see and click on your site from Google, the better. This can be seen in Google Search Console Impressions and Clicks report.

The average time on site for a Google first page result is 2.5 minutes. This suggests that high-quality content keeps people more engaged, which in turn can help with rankings.

Content that's ranking in Google tends to be on the long side. The average word count of a Google top 10 result is 1,447 words. However, there's no direct relationship between word count and rankings.

Short URLs tend to rank slightly better than long URLs, which is why it's a good idea to keep your URLs concise.

Google recommends using "Simple URLs" and advises against "extremely long" URLs, which suggests that shorter URLs are better for user experience.

The average URL length for a top 10 result in Google is 66 characters, which is 9.2 characters shorter than URLs that rank in position #10.

Most URLs on the first page of Google are approximately the same length, ranging from 40 to 100 characters.

Short URLs may improve SEO by leading to a higher organic CTR, as our study found that short URLs have a higher CTR vs. long URLs.

A long URL tends to point to a page that's far removed from the site's authoritative homepage, which means there's less authority flowing to that page and lower rankings.

For example, a URL to a vase product page represents a page that's far removed from the site's authoritative homepage.

High authority sites like Wikipedia or Amazon often dominate the first page of search results for competitive keywords. This can be discouraging, especially if you're trying to rank for terms like [cat behavior] or [robot vacuum cleaner].

If you see many established sites in your niche, it's likely that your site doesn't have the authority to compete yet. Don't worry, this is a common problem.

Trying to rank for highly competitive terms can be a long shot, but there is a strategy that can help. Focus on long-tail keywords and phrases instead of directly targeting competitive keywords.

Writing content that targets related long-tail keywords can be a more achievable goal. If your long-tail articles start ranking, you can eventually rank for more competitive terms.

Long-term efforts are required to see results from a long-tail keyword strategy. But with persistence and the right approach, you can improve your chances of ranking high in Google.

Link building is a crucial aspect of ranking high in Google. According to Example 4, approximately 95% of all pages have zero backlinks, making it essential to create high-quality content that attracts links from other websites.

Creating incredible content is a good way to get links to your pages. High-quality content attracts clicks from readers who might share the content far and wide via social media. This helps to get those links.

Getting links from a diverse group of domains appears to be important for SEO. According to Example 6, the top results tend to have more linking domains than those towards the bottom of the first page.

Pages With More Backlinks Tend to Rank Higher Than Pages With Fewer Backlinks. One of the most interesting findings from this analysis was that very few pages have any backlinks. In fact, we found that approximately 95% of all pages have zero backlinks.

A website's overall link authority (measured using Ahrefs Domain Rating) correlates to higher first-page Google rankings. According to Example 5, the higher you go on the first page, the higher your Domain Rating tends to be.

Getting multiple backlinks from the same domain has diminishing returns. It's better to get 10 links from 10 different sites than 10 links from the same domain.

Ranking high in Google requires a deep understanding of what users are searching for and providing them with exactly what they need. This is known as matching your content to search intent.

To do this, you need to figure out what someone typing a specific keyword into Google is looking for. For example, if you're targeting the keyword "Conversion Rate Optimization", you might realize that users want content that includes a definition, description, examples, and tips for getting started.

According to the author, if your content doesn't match search intent, Google will eventually figure it out and your page will decline in rankings. This is what happened to the author's page on Conversion Rate Optimization, which initially got decent traffic but eventually lost traffic due to not meeting user intent.

To increase your chances of ranking high, you should aim to create content that is a great fit for what someone's searching for. This means providing comprehensive and in-depth content that covers an entire topic on a single page.

In fact, a study found a clear correlation between "Content Grade" and Google rankings. Increasing Content Grade by 1 approximates to increasing rankings by one position, suggesting a significant relationship.

Here are some key takeaways from the study:

By following these tips and creating high-quality content that matches user intent, you can increase your chances of ranking high in Google and driving more traffic to your site.