8 Ways to Improve Your Website Ranking and Position in Search Results

In a recent post, we explored a variety of tools that test page rank and the position of a website on search result pages (See How your Website is Ranked and Positioned by Search Engines).

In this post, we explore some ways to improve on these rankings and search result positions.

First, read the definitive guide to 2013 ranking factors by Searchmetrics. The listing of ranking factors is comprehensive and statistically based.

Second, if you are a small business and the page rank of your website is low, do not be discouraged! Rankings are only part of the story. After making obvious updates according to the information in (1), concentrate on developing sections of your website that highlight the keyword terms and phrases that people are using to find you. Use your analytics data and to identify keywords that are commonly searched for, but are low in competition. Then, work on developing the content of your site (posts, pages, etc.) which highlights these keywords and keyword phrases.  See the Post Category: Content Marketing.

Third, compare your rankings and results with those of competitors. Where do your competitors appear in the search results and rankings, and how do their sites compare with yours? (See How your Website is Ranked and Positioned by Search Engines).

Fourth, remember that age of a site has a lot to do with its rankings. If your site is new (less than 1 or 2 years old), the chances of it ranking well are very low. Be patient! Make sure that your domain name registration is paid for the next several years. This will help.

Fifth, begin the process of increasing the numbers of backlinks to your site; this is a slow process, but keep at it by exploring your network of business relationships. Collaborate with businesses who will link to your site from their site (often in return for a similar favor). Google, “how to build backlinks”.

Sixth, make sure that your site is listed on the directories that appear in relevant keyword searches (Google Places, Yelp, Manta, Yellow Pages, etc.) (see the Post Category: Directory Listings, and develop a suite of social media sites.

Seventh, encourage engagement on your social media sites; engagement translates to positive rankings.

Eighth, work on website performance issues, as discovered using the performance tools described in the post See How your Website is Ranked and Positioned by Search Engines.

We hope that this is helpful! Please let us know how we can help you reach these goals, and feel free to comment!

Also, see our Internet Marketing Flowchart (PDF), which outlines many of these strategies.

Image Credit: “PageRank-hi-res-2“. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikipedia.