Article printed from SiteProNews: http://www.sitepronews.com
  HTML version available at: http://www.sitepronews.com/archives.html

Does Google Have A Golden Rule?
By Titus Hoskins (c) 2008

As a full-time webmaster and site owner, figuring out just
what Google wants has been the most challenging aspect of
running an online business. For many webmasters Google is
the eight ton elephant in the room and you only have two
options: upset the elephant and get trampled or quickly
find out what it likes to consume and try to feed it.

In order to keep Google fed, webmasters have to jump
through more than one set of hoops. When it comes to
getting top rankings in Google's Index or SERPs, there are
200 of these hoops or ranking factors. And if you want to
play in Google's ballpark, you have to try and master the
majority of them.

For years, frustrated webmasters have been guessing and
searching for these ranking factors. Asking what does
Google want? How does Google rank pages and keywords? How
does Google want you to build your site?

Ten years ago it wouldn't have mattered what Google thought
of your site for it wasn't even in the picture, but now
when it comes to online search, Google is king of the hill.
And as we all know, kings get whatever they want.

Besides, any webmaster worth his salt, knows Google is what
counts when it comes to organic traffic - you can achieve
#1 spots for a keyword in all three top search engines
(Yahoo and MSN being the other two light-weight contenders)
but Google will simply deliver the most traffic to your
site.

Google doesn't as yet have a monopoly on web search, but
it's getting close to 70% of U.S. traffic and in some
countries it's up over 90%. But it's not only the search
numbers which makes Google king - it is the prestige and
power of the Google brand name. Google has truly permeated
into popular culture and the public psyche like no other
brand name in history.

Google brings respect and trust into the equation. Web
users respect and trust Google to give them a quality
answer to their question. That's why it was rather ironic,
that for years webmasters have been asking Google about
their ranking system, their algorithm, their practices...
for years Google remained for the most part silent. This
was mainly to keep at bay, those who would like to "game"
the system in order to get high rankings within Google.

Until now that is, maybe it's just me but doesn't it appear
that Google is suddenly opening up about its whole ranking
procedures and what they expect from webmasters. Maybe the
answers have always been there, we just couldn't find them.
However, a more likely scenario is that someone high up
within Google made the decision to be more transparent when
it comes to webmasters and how much they would tell them.

In recent Webmaster live chats, Googlers Matt Cutts, Maile
Ohye, among others... have been honestly answering
questions about what Google requires webmasters to do
regarding their sites. These are Q&A sessions dealing with
the "burning questions" webmasters have had for years
concerning Google and what Google wants. Do a search in
Google for "Google Webmaster Help | Google Groups" if you
want to find these sessions.

Since I run several modest sites on webmaster tools and
Internet marketing I am approached by more than a few
people who want me to help them build their online site or
business. One of the major issues that always comes up
somewhere in the process (usually phrased in different
ways) is this question:

What does Google want? What does Google expect of my site?
How do I get ranked high in Google?

Mainly because my chief goal is to help these webmasters
understand Google better in order to build a profitable
site; I have struggled and puzzled over this question for
years.

What is Google's Golden Rule?

Many experts believe it is related to relevancy - the key
to getting high rankings is how relevant your content is to
the question being asked? Maybe so, but in order to explain
it to a would-be webmaster, I had to find the words that
would most appropriately sum up Google's prime directive?

After you go through all the SEO checkmarks, take into
account the quality and uniqueness of your content, factor
in the credibility and authority of your site and
backlinks, and factor in the relevancy issue... this was
the simple Google Golden Rule I came up with:

"Always think of your visitor first when creating any
content for your site."

This may or may not be what Google is expecting but all
indications are pointing in the direction of the "visitor's
experience" and how good you or your content make that
experience? Google is serving up a product, it wants the
user of their product to be happy with the results. If
they're happy, Google is happy. And if everyone's happy
then the kingdom grows.

Still anything as simple and as complicated as getting top
rankings in Google can't be boiled down to a single catch
phrase. You must do your homework and a good starting point
would be to thoroughly read Google's Webmaster Guidelines.
Studying and listening to the latest Google webmaster chats
may also prove beneficial and helpful.

However, there are still those 200 hoops you have to jump
through and you must be extremely careful of how you build
your site if you're trying to please Google. Listen when
the king speaks. Observe his rules. Be on your guard, and
it helps to become just a little paranoid. And always,
always remember, an elephant never forgets.
===========================================================
The author is a full-time online marketer who has numerous
websites. For the latest web marketing tools try:
http://www.bizwaremagic.com . If you liked the SEO tips
above, why not try the Free 7 Day Traffic course here:
http://www.marketingtoolguide.com
2008 Titus Hoskins. This article may be freely
distributed if this resource box stays attached.
===========================================================

Copyright © 2008 Jayde Online, Inc.  All Rights Reserved.

SiteProNews is a registered service mark of Jayde Online, Inc.