What Are the Most Important SEO Factors for Ranking on Google? Here Are 10 of Them
Written by Masie Pitchard
Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of improving the visibility and relevance of a website or a web page in organic search results. SEO is crucial for any online business, as it can drive more traffic, leads, and conversions to your website.
However, SEO is not a one-time thing. It requires constant monitoring, analysis, and optimization to keep up with the ever-changing algorithms and user behaviors of search engines. In fact, Google alone updates its algorithm hundreds of times per year, making it challenging for SEO professionals and website owners to stay on top of the best practices and strategies.
The top 10 SEO ranking factors are content quality and relevance, user experience, backlinks, technical SEO, domain age and history, social signals, user behavior, on-page optimization, schema markup, and content marketing. These are the factors that have the most impact on how well your website ranks in search results, based on our experience and research.
In this blog post, we will provide some practical tips on how to optimize your website for each factor, as well as some data tables to illustrate our points. By following these factors and tips, you can improve your website’s performance, visibility, and relevance in search results, as well as increase your traffic, leads, and conversions.
| SEO Factor | Check |
|---|---|
| Content Length | ✓ |
| Content Freshness | ✓ |
| Content Uniqueness | ✓ |
| Keyword Usage | ✓ |
| Loading Speed | ✓ |
| Mobile-Friendliness | ✓ |
| Navigation and Layout | ✓ |
| Backlink Relevance | ✓ |
| Backlink Authority | ✓ |
| Backlink Diversity | ✓ |
| Crawlability | ✓ |
| Indexability | ✓ |
| Security | ✓ |
| Site Structure | ✓ |
| Domain Age | ✓ |
| Domain History | ✓ |
| Social Shares | ✓ |
| Social Mentions | ✓ |
| Social Reviews | ✓ |
| CTR | ✓ |
| Bounce Rate | ✓ |
| Dwell Time | ✓ |
| Title Tag | ✓ |
| Meta Description | ✓ |
| Headings | ✓ |
| Review Schema | ✓ |
| Product Schema | ✓ |
| FAQ Schema | ✓ |
1. Content Quality and Relevance
Content is still king when it comes to SEO. Without high-quality and relevant content, your website will not be able to attract and retain users, nor satisfy the search engines’ expectations. Content quality and relevance are measured by several factors, such as:
- Keyword usage: Your content should include the keywords and phrases that your target audience is using to search for your products or services. However, you should avoid keyword stuffing, which is the practice of using keywords excessively or unnaturally in your content. Keyword stuffing can harm your ranking and user experience, as it can make your content look spammy and irrelevant. Instead, you should use keywords naturally and appropriately throughout your content, especially in important places like title tags, headings, meta descriptions, URLs, and image alt texts.
- Content length: The length of your content can affect its ranking potential, as longer content tends to provide more value and information to users. However, this does not mean that you should write long content for the sake of it. Rather, you should focus on creating comprehensive and in-depth content that covers the topic thoroughly and answers the user’s query. According to a study by Backlinko, the average word count of a Google first page result is 1,447 words.
- Content freshness: Search engines prefer fresh and updated content over stale and outdated content, as it reflects the current trends and user needs. Therefore, you should regularly update your existing content with new information, data, images, or links. You should also create new content on a consistent basis to cover new topics and keywords that are relevant to your niche.
- Content uniqueness: Your content should be original and unique, meaning that it should not be copied or duplicated from other sources. Duplicate content can confuse search engines and users, as they will not know which version of the content to trust or rank. Moreover, duplicate content can result in a penalty from Google, which can lower your ranking or remove your pages from the index altogether. To avoid duplicate content issues, you should use tools like Copyscape or Siteliner to check for plagiarism or internal duplication on your website.
| Industry | Average Content Length (in words) |
|---|---|
| Health | 1,200 |
| Finance | 1,600 |
| Travel | 1,000 |
| Education | 1,400 |
| Technology | 1,300 |
| Entertainment | 900 |
| Fashion | 800 |
| Sports | 1,100 |
| Food | 1,000 |
| Art | 1,200 |
2. User Experience (UX)
User experience (UX) is the overall impression and satisfaction that a user has when interacting with your website. UX is important for SEO because it affects how users behave on your website, which in turn influences how search engines evaluate and rank your website. Some of the UX factors that affect SEO are:
- Loading speed: Loading speed is the time it takes for your web page to load completely on a browser or device. Loading speed is crucial for UX and SEO because users expect fast and smooth web pages that can provide them with the information they need quickly. According to Google, 53% of mobile users abandon a site that takes longer than three seconds to load. Moreover, loading speed is a direct ranking factor for Google, especially for mobile searches. Therefore, you should optimize your loading speed by using tools like Google PageSpeed Insights or GTmetrix to measure and improve your performance.
- Mobile-friendliness: Mobile-friendliness is the ability of your website to adapt and function well on mobile devices, such as smartphones or tablets. Mobile-friendliness is essential for UX and SEO because more and more users are accessing the web through mobile devices rather than desktop computers. According to Statista, mobile devices accounted for 54.8% of global web traffic in 2021. Furthermore, mobile-friendliness is a direct ranking factor for Google, especially since the introduction of mobile-first indexing, which means that Google uses the mobile version of your website as the primary source for ranking and crawling. Therefore, you should make your website mobile-friendly by using responsive design techniques and testing your website on different devices and browsers.
- Navigation and layout: Navigation and layout are the elements of your website that help users find and access the information they need easily and intuitively. Navigation and layout are important for UX and SEO because they affect how users engage with your website, such as how long they stay, how many pages they visit, and how often they return. Moreover, navigation and layout can also affect how search engines crawl and index your website, as they can help them understand the structure and hierarchy of your website. Therefore, you should optimize your navigation and layout by using clear and descriptive menus, headings, breadcrumbs, sitemaps, and internal links.
| Website Type | Average Loading Speed (in seconds) |
|---|---|
| News | 8.1 |
| E-commerce | 7.3 |
| Blog | 6.5 |
| Social Media | 5.7 |
| Gaming | 4.9 |
3. Backlinks
Backlinks are links from other websites that point to your website. Backlinks are important for SEO because they act as votes of confidence and popularity for your website, indicating that your content is valuable and relevant to other websites and users. Backlinks are one of the most influential ranking factors for Google, as they help Google determine the authority and trustworthiness of your website. However, not all backlinks are created equal. Some backlinks can have a positive impact on your ranking, while others can have a negative impact or no impact at all. Some of the factors that affect the quality and value of backlinks are:
- Relevance: The relevance of a backlink is the degree of similarity between the content and topic of the linking website and your website. Relevance is important for SEO because it shows that the backlink is natural and contextual, rather than random or manipulative. Moreover, relevance can also affect the traffic and conversions that you get from the backlink, as relevant backlinks can attract more qualified and interested visitors to your website. Therefore, you should aim to get backlinks from websites that are related to your niche, industry, or audience.
- Authority: The authority of a backlink is the level of credibility and influence that the linking website has in its niche or industry. Authority is important for SEO because it shows that the backlink is trustworthy and reputable, rather than spammy or low-quality. Moreover, authority can also affect the ranking power that you get from the backlink, as authoritative backlinks can pass more link juice or value to your website. Therefore, you should aim to get backlinks from websites that have high domain authority (DA) or page authority (PA), which are metrics developed by Moz to measure the ranking potential of a website or a web page.
- Diversity: The diversity of a backlink is the variety of sources and types of backlinks that you have for your website. Diversity is important for SEO because it shows that your website has a natural and balanced link profile, rather than a manipulated or unnatural one. Moreover, diversity can also affect the resilience and stability of your ranking, as diverse backlinks can protect your website from algorithm updates or penalties that may target specific types of backlinks. Therefore, you should aim to get backlinks from different websites, domains, IP addresses, anchor texts, and link types (such as dofollow or nofollow).
| Industry | Average Number of Backlinks |
|---|---|
| Public & Local Services | 6,500,000 |
| Media & Publishing | 6,000,000 |
| Education and Training | 4,000,000 |
| Travel & Vacation | 3,500,000 |
| Sports | 3,000,000 |
| Business Services | 2,500,000 |
| Health & Medical | 2,000,000 |
| Food, Beverages & Tobacco | 1,500,000 |
| Technology | 1,300,000 |
| Entertainment | 900,000 |
| E-commerce | 800,000 |
| Fashion | 800,000 |
| Home Services | 700,000 |
| Construction & Manufacturing | 600,000 |
| Legal Services & Government | 500,000 |
| Money & Insurance | 500,000 |
| Beauty & Well-being | 400,000 |
| Home & Garden | 400,000 |
| Events & Entertainment | 300,000 |
| Social Media | 300,000 |
| Animals & Pets | 200,000 |
| Utilities | 100,000 |
4. Technical SEO
Technical SEO is the process of optimizing the technical aspects of your website that affect its performance, functionality, and accessibility for both users and search engines. Technical SEO is important for SEO because it ensures that your website is crawlable, indexable, secure, and fast, which are essential for ranking well in search results. Some of the technical SEO factors that affect SEO are:
- Crawlability: Crawlability is the ability of search engines to access and crawl your website’s content and links. Crawlability is important for SEO because it allows search engines to discover and understand your website’s content, structure, and relevance. Moreover, crawlability can also affect how quickly and frequently your website’s content is updated in search results. Therefore, you should optimize your crawlability by using tools like Google Search Console or Screaming Frog to identify and fix any crawl errors or issues on your website.
- Indexability: Indexability is the ability of search engines to include your website’s content in their index or database. Indexability is important for SEO because it determines whether or not your website’s content can appear in search results. Moreover, indexability can also affect how accurately and comprehensively your website’s content is represented in search results. Therefore, you should optimize your indexability by using tools like Google Search Console or Bing Webmaster Tools to submit sitemaps, request indexing, or remove unwanted pages from the index. Security: Security is the level of protection that your website has against malicious attacks or threats from hackers or cybercriminals. Security is important for SEO because it affects how users perceive and trust your website, as well as how search engines evaluate and rank your website. Moreover, security can also affect how smoothly and safely users can interact with your website’s content and features, such as filling out forms, making purchases, or signing up for newsletters. Therefore, you should optimize your security by using HTTPS protocol, which encrypts the data exchanged between your website and the user’s browser, and by implementing other security measures, such as SSL certificates, firewalls, or malware scanners.
- Site structure: Site structure is the way your website’s content and pages are organized and linked together. Site structure is important for SEO because it affects how users navigate and find the information they need on your website, as well as how search engines crawl and index your website’s content. Moreover, site structure can also affect how your website’s content is displayed and featured in search results, such as through rich snippets, sitelinks, or breadcrumbs. Therefore, you should optimize your site structure by using clear and logical categories, subcategories, and URLs, and by creating a hierarchical and flat architecture that minimizes the number of clicks required to reach any page on your website.
5. Domain Age and History
Domain age and history are the factors that relate to the age and past activities of your website’s domain name. Domain age and history are important for SEO because they affect how search engines perceive and trust your website, as well as how users recognize and remember your website. Some of the domain age and history factors that affect SEO are:
- Domain age: Domain age is the length of time that your website’s domain name has been registered and active. Domain age is important for SEO because it shows that your website is established and credible, rather than new and unproven. According to a study by Ahrefs, the average age of the domains ranking in the top 10 Google results is over two years. Moreover, domain age can also affect the difficulty and competition of ranking for certain keywords, as older domains tend to have more authority and backlinks than newer domains. Therefore, you should consider the domain age of your website when planning your SEO strategy and goals.
- Domain history: Domain history is the record of the previous owners, activities, and changes of your website’s domain name. Domain history is important for SEO because it can affect how search engines evaluate and rank your website, especially if your domain name has been involved in any negative or suspicious actions in the past, such as spamming, hacking, or penalization. Moreover, domain history can also affect how users perceive and trust your website, especially if your domain name has changed hands or niches frequently or drastically. Therefore, you should check the domain history of your website using tools like Wayback Machine or Whois to ensure that it has a clean and consistent reputation.
6. Social Signals
Social signals are the indicators of the social media presence and popularity of your website or its content. Social signals are important for SEO because they show that your website or its content is engaging and valuable to users, as well as relevant to current trends and topics. Some of the social signals that affect SEO are:
- Social shares: Social shares are the number of times that your website or its content has been shared on social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or Pinterest. Social shares are important for SEO because they can increase the exposure and traffic of your website or its content, as well as generate more backlinks from other websites that reference or cite your content. Moreover, social shares can also affect how search engines rank your website or its content, as they can indicate the popularity and authority of your content. According to a study by CognitiveSEO, there is a strong correlation between social shares and Google rankings.
- Social mentions: Social mentions are the number of times that your website or its brand name has been mentioned on social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or Instagram. Social mentions are important for SEO because they can increase the awareness and reputation of your website or its brand name among users, as well as generate more traffic and conversions to your website. Moreover, social mentions can also affect how search engines rank your website or its brand name, as they can indicate the relevance and trustworthiness of your brand name. According to a study by Searchmetrics, there is a strong correlation between social mentions and Google rankings.
- Social reviews: Social reviews are the ratings and feedback that users have given to your website or its products or services on social media platforms or review sites, such as Facebook, Google, Yelp, or Trustpilot. Social reviews are important for SEO because they can influence the decision and satisfaction of users who are looking for your website or its products or services, as well as generate more word-of-mouth and referrals to your website. Moreover, social reviews can also affect how search engines rank your website or its products or services, as they can indicate the quality and reputation of your products or services. According to a study by Moz, online reviews account for 15% of Google’s local ranking factors.
7. User Behavior
User behavior is the way users interact with your website or its content, such as how they find, access, browse, and exit your website. User behavior is important for SEO because it reflects how users perceive and value your website or its content, as well as how they respond to your website’s ranking in search results. Some of the user behavior factors that affect SEO are:
- Click-through rate (CTR): CTR is the percentage of users who click on your website’s link in search results out of the total number of users who see your link. CTR is important for SEO because it shows how attractive and relevant your website’s title and meta description are to users, as well as how well your website matches the user’s intent and query. Moreover, CTR can also affect how search engines rank your website, as they can use CTR as a signal of user satisfaction and preference. According to a study by Backlinko, there is a strong correlation between CTR and Google rankings.
- Bounce rate: Bounce rate is the percentage of users who leave your website after viewing only one page without taking any further action. Bounce rate is important for SEO because it shows how engaging and useful your website’s content and features are to users, as well as how well your website meets the user’s expectations and needs. Moreover, bounce rate can also affect how search engines rank your website, as they can use bounce rate as a signal of user dissatisfaction and irrelevance. According to a study by SEMrush, there is a negative correlation between bounce rate and Google rankings.
- Dwell time: Dwell time is the amount of time that users spend on your website after clicking on your link in search results. Dwell time is important for SEO because it shows how interesting and valuable your website’s content and features are to users, as well as how deeply they explore and consume your content. Moreover, dwell time can also affect how search engines rank your website, as they can use dwell time as a signal of user satisfaction and relevance. According to a study by Searchmetrics, there is a positive correlation between dwell time and Google rankings.
| Industry | Average CTR (Search) | Average CTR (GDN) |
|---|---|---|
| Advocacy | 4.41% | 0.59% |
| Auto | 4.00% | 0.60% |
| B2B | 2.41% | 0.46% |
| Consumer Services | 2.41% | 0.51% |
| Dating & Personals | 6.05% | 0.72% |
| E-Commerce | 2.69% | 0.51% |
| Education | 3.78% | 0.53% |
| Employment Services | 2.42% | 0.59% |
| Finance & Insurance | 2.91% | 0.52% |
| Health & Medical | 3.27% | 0.59% |
| Home Goods | 2.44% | 0.49% |
| Industrial Services | 2.61% | 0.50% |
| Legal | 2.93% | 0.59% |
| Real Estate | 3.71% | 1.08% |
| Technology | 2.09% | 0.39% |
| Travel & Hospitality | 4.68% | 0.47% |
8. On-Page Optimization
On-page optimization is the process of optimizing the individual pages of your website for specific keywords and topics that you want to rank for in search results. On-page optimization is important for SEO because it helps search engines understand what your pages are about and how relevant they are to the user’s query. Moreover, on-page optimization can also help users find and access the information they need on your pages more easily and quickly. Some of the on-page optimization factors that affect SEO are:
- Title tag: The title tag is the HTML element that defines the title of your web page. The title tag is important for SEO because it is one of the first things that users see in search results, as well as in browser tabs and bookmarks. Moreover, the title tag can also affect how search engines rank your web page, as it can indicate the main topic and keyword of your page. Therefore, you should optimize your title tag by using descriptive and catchy words that match the user’s query and intent, as well as by including your primary keyword near the beginning of the title.
- Meta description: The meta description is the HTML element that provides a brief summary of what your web page is about. The meta description is important for SEO because it is one of the things that users see in search results, as well as in social media shares and links. Moreover, the meta description can also affect how search engines rank your web page, as it can indicate the relevance and value of your page to the user’s query and intent. Therefore, you should optimize your meta description by using persuasive and informative words that entice users to click on your link, as well as by including your primary keyword or a call to action.
- Headings: The headings are the HTML elements that divide your web page into sections and sub-sections with different levels of importance (H1-H6). The headings are important for SEO because they help users scan and read your web page more easily and quickly, as well as understand the structure and hierarchy of your content. Moreover, the headings can also affect how search engines rank your web page, as they can indicate the main topics and sub-topics of your content, as well as emphasize certain keywords or phrases. Therefore, you should optimize your headings by using clear and descriptive words that summarize the main idea of each section, as well as by including your primary or secondary keywords in the H1 and H2 headings.
9. Schema Markup
Schema markup is a type of structured data that helps search engines understand the meaning and context of your website’s content, as well as provide rich and enhanced information to users in search results. Schema markup is important for SEO because it can improve the visibility and clickability of your website’s links in search results, as well as increase the traffic and conversions to your website. Some of the schema markup types that affect SEO are:
- Review schema: Review schema is a type of schema markup that provides information about the ratings and feedback that users have given to your website or its products or services. Review schema is important for SEO because it can display star ratings, review counts, and reviewer names in search results, which can attract more attention and trust from users, as well as increase your CTR and conversions. Moreover, review schema can also affect how search engines rank your website or its products or services, as it can indicate the quality and reputation of your products or services. Therefore, you should implement review schema by using tools like Schema.org or Google’s Structured Data Markup Helper to add the appropriate code to your web pages.
- Product schema: Product schema is a type of schema markup that provides information about the products or services that you offer on your website, such as price, availability, description, image, or brand. Product schema is important for SEO because it can display detailed and accurate information about your products or services in search results, which can help users compare and choose your products or services more easily and quickly, as well as increase your CTR and conversions. Moreover, product schema can also affect how search engines rank your website or its products or services, as it can indicate the relevance and value of your products or services. Therefore, you should implement product schema by using tools like Schema.org or Google’s Structured Data Markup Helper to add the appropriate code to your web pages.
- FAQ schema: FAQ schema is a type of schema markup that provides information about the frequently asked questions and answers that you have on your website, such as on a FAQ page or a blog post. FAQ schema is important for SEO because it can display the questions and answers in an expandable format in search results, which can provide more information and value to users, as well as increase your CTR and dwell time. Moreover, FAQ schema can also affect how search engines rank your website or its content, as it can indicate the comprehensiveness and usefulness of your content. Therefore, you should implement FAQ schema by using tools like Schema.org or Google’s Structured Data Markup Helper to add the appropriate code to your web pages.
10. Content Marketing
Content marketing is the process of creating and distributing valuable and relevant content to attract and retain your target audience, as well as achieve your marketing goals. Content marketing is important for SEO because it can help you create high-quality and engaging content that can rank well in search results, as well as generate more traffic, leads, and conversions to your website. Moreover, content marketing can also help you build authority and trust with your audience, as well as establish long-term relationships with them. Some of the content marketing strategies that affect SEO are:
- Blogging: Blogging is the practice of writing and publishing informative and entertaining articles on your website or other platforms, such as Medium or LinkedIn. Blogging is important for SEO because it can help you create fresh and relevant content that can target different keywords and topics related to your niche or industry, as well as provide value and information to users. Moreover, blogging can also help you generate more backlinks from other websites that reference or cite your articles, as well as increase your social shares and mentions from users who like or share your articles. Therefore, you should blog regularly by using tools like BuzzSumo or AnswerThePublic to find popular and trending topics and questions that you can write about.
- Video marketing: Video marketing is the practice of creating and sharing engaging and captivating videos on your website or other platforms, such as YouTube or Vimeo. Video marketing is important for SEO because it can help you create visual and interactive content that can appeal to different types of users, especially those who prefer watching over reading. Moreover, video marketing can also help you rank higher in search results, especially for video-related queries or features, such as Google’s video carousel or YouTube’s suggested videos. Therefore, you should create videos regularly by using tools like Lumen5 or Animoto to create professional-looking videos with ease.
- Infographic marketing: Infographic marketing is the practice of creating and sharing informative and attractive graphics that summarize data or information on your website or other platforms, such as Pinterest or SlideShare. Infographic marketing is important for SEO because it can help you create visual and concise content that can simplify complex or boring data or information, as well as provide value and insight to users. Moreover, infographic marketing can also help you generate more backlinks from other websites that embed or link to your infographics, as well as increase your social shares and mentions from users who like or share your infographics. Therefore, you should create infographics regularly by using tools like Canva or Piktochart to create stunning and professional-looking infographics with ease.
Final Thoughts
In conclusion, SEO is a complex and dynamic field that requires constant monitoring, analysis, and optimization to keep up with the ever-changing algorithms and user behaviors of search engines. By following the top 10 SEO ranking factors in 2023 that we have compiled in this article, you can improve your website’s performance, visibility, and relevance in search results, as well as increase your traffic, leads, and conversions.
However, keep in mind that SEO is not a one-time thing, but a continuous process that requires constant testing and measuring of your results and progress. Therefore, you should always stay updated with the latest trends and changes in SEO, as well as use the best tools and practices to optimize your website for SEO.