Search engine optimization (SEO) is constantly evolving, and it can be challenging to keep up with the latest ranking factors that Google uses to determine search engine results page (SERP) rankings. In this ultimate guide to ranking factors for 2023, we'll explore the major categories of ranking factors and provide educational tips and strategies for each category that you can use to improve your own SEO strategy.
Be sure to download the free SEO checklist to make this work for your website or digital marketing agency to ensure maximum SEO success.
Technical SEO ranking factors include elements of your website's structure, coding, and performance that affect search engine crawling and indexing. Here are some key technical SEO ranking factors to consider:
Site speed is a critical technical SEO ranking factor that affects user experience, bounce rates, and search engine crawling and indexing. To improve your site speed, consider optimizing your images, using a content delivery network (CDN), and minimizing HTTP requests. Explore website metrics in more depth here.
After all, people are 5x more likely to leave a mobile website that loads slowly and isn’t mobile-friendly. Check the speed of your mobile page with the PageSpeed Insights tool, or run a quick RunningSEO audit which includes PageSpeed and more.
Mobile-friendliness, the precursor to mobile-first, is another important technical SEO ranking factor, as more and more users are accessing the web on mobile devices. To ensure that your website is mobile-friendly, consider using responsive design, optimizing your font sizes and buttons for mobile screens, and avoiding pop-ups or interstitials that can interrupt the user experience.
Looking for more tips and insights on ways to create a stronger mobile experience? Explore tips from Think With Google.
Site architecture refers to the organization and structure of your website's pages and content. A clear and logical site architecture can improve user experience and make it easier for search engines to crawl and index your site. To improve your site architecture, consider using a clear hierarchy of pages, creating a sitemap, and using internal linking to connect related pages.
Content ranking factors include the quality, relevance, and uniqueness of your website's content. Here are some key content ranking factors to consider:
Quality content is one of the most important content ranking factors. Google's E-A-T guidelines were updated in late 2022 to include emphasis on "experience" turning it into E-E-A-T. Along with experience, the importance of expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness in creating high-quality content is critical to the searcher journey. To improve your content quality, consider using reliable sources, providing original insights and analysis, and using clear and concise language.
Explore Google's Search Quality Rater Guidelines: An Overview here or see the full guidelines here.
Relevance is another important content ranking factor, as search engines strive to provide users with the most relevant and useful results for their queries. To ensure that your content is relevant, consider using target keywords and phrases, creating content that aligns with your audience's interests and needs, and using internal linking to connect related content.
User engagement is a content ranking factor that measures how users interact with your website's content. Metrics like bounce rate, time on page, and click-through rate can indicate whether your content is engaging and valuable to users. To improve user engagement, consider using multimedia elements like images and videos, including calls to action and interactive elements, and analyzing user behavior to identify areas for improvement.
Backlink ranking factors include the quantity, quality, and relevance of external links pointing to your website. Here are some key backlink ranking factors to consider:
The quality and relevance of backlinks are critical backlink ranking factors. Backlinks from authoritative and relevant websites can signal to search engines that your website is a valuable and trustworthy source of information. To improve the quality and relevance of your backlinks, consider reaching out to relevant websites and asking for links, creating high-quality content that other websites will want to link to, and avoiding paid or spammy backlinks.
Anchor text refers to the clickable text that appears in a hyperlink. Anchor text can signal to search engines the relevance and importance of the linked page. To optimize your anchor text, consider using descriptive and relevant phrases, avoiding keyword stuffing or exact-match anchor text, and using a mix of branded and non-branded anchor text.
The diversity of backlinks is another important backlink ranking factor. A diverse range of links from different types of websites can indicate to search engines that your website is a valuable and authoritative source of information. To improve the diversity of your backlinks, consider reaching out to a variety of websites and sources, creating content that appeals to different types of audiences and interests, and avoiding relying on a single source of backlinks.
Local SEO ranking factors are particularly important for businesses that rely on local customers or foot traffic. Here are some key local SEO ranking factors to consider:
Your Google My Business listing is a critical local SEO ranking factor, as it provides key information about your business to potential customers and signals to search engines that your business is relevant and trustworthy. To optimize your Google My Business listing, consider providing accurate and up-to-date information, using relevant categories and keywords, and encouraging customer reviews and feedback.
Local keywords are another important local SEO ranking factor, as they signal to search engines that your website and business are relevant to local searches. To optimize your local keywords, consider using location-specific phrases and keywords, creating content that addresses local interests and needs, and using local events and news to generate backlinks and social media engagement.
Behavioral signals like website traffic, engagement, and social media activity can also influence local SEO rankings. To improve your behavioral signals, consider creating high-quality and engaging content, using social media to connect with your audience and promote your content, and using local events and promotions to drive traffic and engagement.
SEO is complex and constantly evolving, but understanding the major ranking factors and implementing strategies to improve them can help you achieve higher search engine rankings and drive more traffic to your website. By optimizing your technical SEO, creating high-quality and relevant content, building high-quality backlinks, and focusing on local SEO, you can position your website for success in 2023 and beyond.
Need help? Find an expert SEO company to do the work for you →
As we approach 2023, it's important to start thinking about how to prepare your website for the new year. Updating your website to take advantage of recent adjustments and updates in the business world is crucial to staying competitive and on top of your game. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to get your website ready for 2023.
Take the time to analyze your competitors' websites and strategies from the past year. Look for pages that helped them gain organic traffic and analyze whether these strategies are relevant to your business. Don't just copy your competitors – adapt and apply what works for your own business.
Content creation often gets pushed to the back burner when things get busy, but it's crucial to plan it in advance. Take the time to review customer queries and pain points from the past year and use that information to create relevant and engaging content that addresses their needs.
Don't overlook technical SEO issues such as broken links, duplicate content, and missing alt text. These issues can harm your website's performance and should be addressed as soon as possible. Take the time to budget for technical SEO and fix any issues before moving on.
Running SEO is a free website SEO analyzer crucial to preparing your website for the new year. Use the latest SEO updates and strategies to gain more traffic and customers. Use Running SEO to optimize your website for success.
Preparing your website for the new year is essential to staying competitive and achieving success in 2023. Use this comprehensive guide to analyze your competitors, create relevant content, fix technical SEO issues, and optimize your website with Running SEO. With these steps, you'll be well on your way to a prosperous new year.
Effective search engine optimization (SEO) is crucial for driving traffic and revenue to your website. There are a variety of SEO tools available to help you improve your website's ranking on search engines like Google.
In this article, we'll introduce you to the top 10 SEO tools that experts like myself actually use to drive growth. These tools include Google Search Console, which allows you to monitor your website's performance on Google, and Google PageSpeed Insights, which analyzes the speed and performance of your website. SEMRush is a comprehensive platform for keyword research and online ranking data, including metrics like search volume and cost per click. Answer The Public is a tool that provides insights into the questions and phrases people are searching for, while Screaming Frog SEO Spider Website Crawler is a powerful tool for identifying common SEO issues and analyzing page titles and meta data. SpyFu is a competitor keyword research tool that exposes the search marketing strategies of your competitors, while Keywords Everywhere is a browser add-on that provides search volume, CPC, and competition data for keywords. Rank Math is a popular SEO plugin for WordPress, and YoastSEO is a well-known plugin for optimizing your website's content for search engines. Combined, these top SEO tools can help you improve your website's search engine optimization and drive traffic and revenue.
Google Search Console is a free tool offered by Google that allows website owners to monitor, maintain, and improve their website's presence in Google search results. It provides a variety of features, including the ability to submit sitemaps and individual URLs for crawling, view search traffic and performance data, and receive alerts when there are issues with your website. Google Search Console also provides insights on how Google crawls and indexes your website, as well as any security issues that may have been detected. By using Google Search Console, website owners can ensure that their website is optimized for search engines and provides a good user experience for visitors.
Google PageSpeed Insights is a tool used to measure the performance and user experience of a website. It uses lab data, which is determined in a controlled environment with predetermined network and device conditions, and field data, which is based on real user visits and reflects the actual devices, network conditions, and locations of users. Lab data is useful for debugging and testing features before deployment, but field data provides a more accurate representation of a website's performance in the real world. The tool uses Lighthouse to report lab data. Understanding both types of data is important for improving a page's performance and user experience.
SEMRush is a software platform that provides a range of tools and resources for search engine optimization professionals. It is considered one of the best tools for SEO because it offers a wide range of features that help users improve the ranking of their websites on search engines such as Google. These features include keyword research, online ranking data, and metrics such as search volume and cost per click. In addition to these core features, SEMRush also offers tools for social media marketing, content marketing, and website traffic analysis. Overall, SEMRush is a comprehensive platform that can help businesses and individuals improve their search engine ranking and drive more traffic to their websites.
Personally, I use it almost every day for my own websites and client websites alike to help gain organic growth, conduct competitor research, track positions, and post social media content on all my channels without having to pay for a service like Hootsuite or some other boring social media management software. I've even used it in the past to create a Looker Studio Dashboard (formerly Google Data Studio) to share near real-time information on their marketing campaign with a client.
Answer The Public is a SEO tool that helps businesses understand the search queries and questions that their potential customers are asking. It provides instant, raw search insights directly from the minds of the customer by collecting autocomplete data from search engines like Google. With over 3 billion Google searches happening every day, 20% of which are unique, Answer The Public allows businesses to tap into this vast pool of data and discover the specific needs and wants of their target audience. This can help businesses craft content and marketing strategies that more effectively address the needs of their customers and improve their ranking on search engines.
Screaming Frog is a tool that helps website owners improve their on-site SEO. It does this by crawling the website and extracting data that can be used to identify common SEO issues. It has features like finding broken links, analyzing page titles and meta data, discovering duplicate content, reviewing robots and directives, and integrating with Google Analytics, Google Search Console, and PageSpeed Insights. It can also visualize the site's architecture, compare crawls and staging, schedule audits, crawl JavaScript websites, generate XML sitemaps, and more. It is available for Windows, macOS, and Linux, and users can crawl 500 URLs for free or buy a license to access advanced features and remove the crawl limit.
Personally, I use this to audit websites ahead of a redesign, and to visually map out a current state sitemap, as I plan for a future state sitemap. It is super helpful with uncovering undiscovered pages and has assisted with tremendous SEO growth for both my websites and for my clients. It costs $209 per year for a license. But don't worry, they have a free version as well!
SpyFu is a competitor keyword research tool for Google Ads and SEO professionals. It allows users to spot new SEO and PPC opportunities, find the search marketing strategies of competitors, and boost SEO and PPC profits. It offers features such as keyword and domain research, competitor analysis, backlink building, rank tracking, and SERP analysis. SpyFu also provides data on over 109 million domains and 7 billion results, allowing users to see the top strategies used by industry leaders and smaller competitors. It helps users increase website traffic and track keyword rankings, and provides reliable contact information for building partnerships or generating leads.
Personally, I use it for keyword research on top of SEMRush as a secondary tool. It's more affordable than most other tools — starting at $8 per month for the limited time offers they usually run, all the way up to $58/mo if paid annyally for the Professional plan.
Keywords Everywhere is a browser extension for Chrome and Firefox that provides keyword research tools for SEO and Google Ads professionals. It shows monthly search volume, cost per click, and competition data for keywords on multiple websites, as well as trend data and "people also search for" suggestions. It also allows users to view traffic metrics and keywords for specific web pages or websites, and download lists of keywords in various file formats. Keywords Everywhere works by appending search volume, cost per click, and competition data to the interface of popular keyword research tools, allowing users to see relevant data in real time while using Google Search, Google Search Console, Google Analytics, Google Trends, Google Keyword Planner, Bing, YouTube, Amazon, eBay, Answer The Public, and more. In addition, users can download lists of keywords and their metrics in Excel, CSV, or PDF formats. Keywords Everywhere aims to streamline the keyword research process by providing accurate data directly on the user's browser, saving time and effort.
Personally, I use this regularly in my day-to-day browsing and work alike. It's intriguing and super helpful for me to see all the metrics right there, and I use it at the start of keyword research, and for monitoring specific targeted, high-value keywords. It costs $10 to fill up credits, which I use up approximately every 6 months.
Rank Math is a WordPress plugin that helps users optimize their website for search engines through built-in suggestions based on best practices. It offers various tools including keyword tracking, SEO analysis, and support for various schema types to help users improve their search engine rankings. It also integrates with platforms such as Google, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Rank Math has both a free and paid version available.
Personally, I switched from YoastSEO to Rank Math due to pricing only. They featured more bang for the buck and often run promotions, such as $159 or $199 for the first year, and I am locked in at $239/yr now for up to 200 websites. While they are based in India, they do have good support.
YoastSEO is a popular WordPress plugin that helps users optimize their website for search engines. It provides a range of features to improve the SEO of a website, including tools for analyzing and improving the readability of content, managing and generating meta titles and descriptions, and creating and managing XML sitemaps. YoastSEO also includes a feature called Focus Keyword, which helps users identify the primary keyword they want to rank for in search results and ensures that this keyword is properly incorporated into the content of the page. In addition, YoastSEO offers integration with social media platforms, allowing users to easily add social media tags to their website to improve its visibility on these platforms. Overall, YoastSEO is a powerful tool for improving the SEO of a WordPress website and increasing its visibility in search results. While they are a Netherlands-based company, I have never had an issue with their support.
Personally, I used to use the free and premium version on over a dozen websites. I still use the free version on just a few websites. It's a great tool for beginners and SEO gurus alike who are looking to optimize SEO for their WordPress website. If you want premium functionality, like redirection and more, it costs $99/yr for just 1 website.
In conclusion, the Top 10 SEO tools experts use for growth are Google Search Console, Google PageSpeed Insights, SEMRush, Answer The Public, Screaming Frog SEO Spider Website Crawler, SpyFu, Keywords Everywhere, Rank Math, and YoastSEO. These SEO tools offer a variety of features and benefits for SEO professionals, including keyword research, website crawling, competitor analysis, traffic tracking, and structured data integration. If you are looking to improve your website's SEO and grow your online presence, it is essential to utilize these tools in your strategy. However, implementing and maintaining an effective SEO strategy can be overwhelming, especially if you are new to the field. If you need expert help, be sure to connect with Key Medium for a free website consultation. Our team of SEO and digital marketing experts can guide you through the process and help you achieve your online growth goals.
The world of search engine optimization (SEO) is constantly evolving, with new trends and techniques emerging all the time. To stay ahead of the game, it is important for website owners and SEO professionals to stay up-to-date with the latest trends and best practices. In this article, we will discuss the top 21 SEO trends to consider in 2023. From personalization and helpful user-generated content, to e-commerce optimization and AI-powered tools, these trends will help you optimize your website and improve your ranking on Google. Whether you are new to SEO or an experienced professional, these SEO trends are worth keeping on your radar as you plan your SEO strategy for the coming year.
In conclusion, these 21 SEO trends are worth considering in 2023 to stay ahead of the competition and improve your website's ranking on search engines. From personalization and user-generated content, to e-commerce optimization and AI-powered tools, there are many strategies to choose from.
Start with an SEO analysis using our free SEO audit tool
Key Medium can help with a free website consultation and affordable expert SEO services.
Connect with us today to learn more and take your website to the next level.
Many people remember the days of fliers, newspaper advertisements, commercials, and pamphlets. While those mediums still exist and are utilized in most business’ marketing strategies, those traditional tools don’t even hold a flame to the massive influence of digital marketing.
Digital marketing is essential because not only is nearly everyone online but also, the various digital marketing tools actually help businesses reach markets that would have never been possible before. If you have a business, you need to be using digital marketing. When you create a digital marketing strategy, it is important that you include content marketing.
Content marketing is a digital marketing approach that is focused on crafting and sharing relevant, targeted, and regular content. The purpose of content marketing is to gain visibility in order to reach your target market, increasing your leads and ultimately your conversions.
This important form of marketing can seem simplistic, but is in fact highly focused and requires a great deal of skill. Being able to consistently provide SEO-optimized content that is relevant and top-quality is not something that just anyone is capable of.
This essential form of digital marketing encompasses platforms such as your business website, your emails, and your social media accounts. When you design your digital marketing strategy, you need to ensure that you include content marketing in order to effectively impact your marketing goals.
Content marketing has its own unique benefits that basically touch each area of importance when it comes to marketing. The great benefits that come from this one marketing tool make it a method that you won’t want to forget about.
Content marketing is one of the main ways that you will build the identity of your brand. This is important because your brand identity is what draws people to you, helps them connect with you, leads them to eventually become your customer, and keeps them around as a supporter and returning customer.
Today’s consumers are looking for businesses they can connect with and feel drawn to, those that have shared values and a message that the consumer can get behind. Crafting a unique and relevant brand identity helps to put your business in that position. You are giving consumers something to connect with and making your business identifiable in a number of ways.
Content marketing is one way to build your brand identity. The content that you put out into the world should reflect your business, your personality, your message, and your values. It should offer expertise and information from your brand to your target market, consistently building your identity and putting your business in the place of expert.
Your content is the main tool that will help your business rank highly on Google and other search engines. When you are able to optimize your website’s content, you are making it much more likely that you will receive a high ranking.
When you are able to provide content that utilizes keywords, is relevant, and is consistent, you are basically setting yourself up to strike SEO gold. The content that you provide is one of the best ways to achieve a high ranking if you can meet a few standards.
Determine the best keywords in your industry and make sure to include them in your content. Keep your posts relevant to your target audience so that when people click on your links and visit your website, the content will keep them there and Google will rank you higher. You also want to ensure that your content is consistent, bringing in a regular flow of traffic, because if traffic dies down, so does your ranking.
Your content marketing strategy needs to include optimization tools in order to receive the highest possible SEO benefit.
You need leads. Without leads, there are no conversions. Without conversions, there is no success. Without success, frankly, you don’t really have a business.
Content marketing is one of the best ways to generate leads. When you create great content, you are increasing your visibility. Posting a link to one of your articles on social media provides an opportunity for new people to discover you and visit your website.
Once they click on your link, if your content is relevant, useful, or engaging, they will stay and read. If they value what you wrote, there’s a good chance they will either read more, follow you on social media, or sign up for your email list. Basically, there’s a good chance they’ll become a lead.
Getting leads is essential and the content that you put out provides a great opportunity for finding them. Without consistent content, you won’t be visible, and if you’re not visible, your target market will not discover your business.
You will also find leads with your content because relevant and useful content will be shared by others. Your social media followers will share your posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Their shares will increase your visibility and help you to gain more leads.
While 2023 will see a number of new marketing strategies, content marketing is just as important as ever because it has the ability to reach your target market like nothing else. You will want to make sure and craft a content marketing strategy as you are creating your strategy for 2023.
Content is basically a win-win, creating a cycle of visibility, traffic, lead, share, visibility, traffic, lead, and so on. As long as your content is consistent and relevant for your target market, while also utilizing SEO tools, your content marketing strategy will bring you the success you are looking for.
Sources: growthmarketingconf, SEMRush, toolbox
Are you looking to set a search marketing budget for 2023? In this article, we provide tips on how to allocate your budget based on your business's needs and goals, industry benchmarks, and overall marketing vision. We also explain how to use math and research data to determine a competitive budget and how to make adjustments based on changing data.
As a business owner, you know that success in marketing is crucial for driving growth and reaching your goals. One way to effectively reach potential customers is through paid search marketing campaigns, which allow you to advertise on search engines like Google and pay for each click on your ad. In this article, we will cover how to set and allocate a budget for your search marketing campaigns in 2023 in order to maximize your return on investment.
Before you start planning for your search marketing budget in 2023, it's important to review the success or lack of success of your previous marketing campaigns. Look at reports and data from campaigns you have run in the past and consider factors such as whether they helped you reach your goals, increased sales, or improved brand awareness. If you have had successful campaigns in the past and the budget you used for them, you can use that as a starting point for your 2023 budget. On the other hand, if your past campaigns have been less successful, you may want to develop a new plan and budget to achieve your desired results.
Get started with a free SEO audit here.
In addition to looking at your own past campaigns, it's also helpful to have an understanding of what your competition is spending on paid search marketing. Research industry benchmark data to see what other businesses in your field are allocating for their search marketing efforts. This will give you a sense of the cost of paid search marketing and help you determine a budget that is competitive but also fits within your overall marketing plan and goals.
You may want to consider an SEO tool like SpyFu or SEMRush to help find your competitor's secrets.
Before setting your search marketing budget, it's important to think about your overall marketing vision. What are you hoping to achieve through your marketing efforts? Do you want to increase website visitors, sales, brand awareness, or something else? Your marketing plan should be tailored to your specific vision, and your budget should be allocated accordingly. For example, if your main focus is on increasing website traffic, you may want to allocate more of your budget to search marketing than to other tactics like social media or email marketing.
One common method for determining an overall marketing budget is to base it on a percentage of your revenue. Many businesses allocate between 2-15% of their revenue for marketing. Once you have considered your past campaigns, industry benchmarks, and marketing vision, you can use this range as a starting point and adjust up or down based on your specific needs and goals. If your vision requires a strong focus on search marketing, you may want to allocate a larger portion of your budget to PPC campaigns. It's also important to keep in mind that your budget may need to be adjusted as you gather more data and see how your campaigns are performing.
Setting and allocating a budget for your search marketing campaigns in 2023 is an important step in ensuring the success of your marketing efforts. By considering your past campaigns, industry benchmarks, marketing vision, and basic math and research data, you can develop a plan that will give you the best return on your investment. If you want help developing a search marketing budget or have questions about other aspects of your online marketing strategy, Key Medium offers free website consultations. Book a time with us to get personalized recommendations and guidance on how to optimize your online presence. By working with a team of experts, you can be confident that your marketing budget is being used effectively to reach your goals and drive growth for your business.
Reference: SmartInsights
