Earlier this year in March, Google’s internal content API was leaked online, and as such over 2,500 documents were released to the public. These files related to Google Search and gave information on how Google ranks content. There are many factors involved, and although we don’t yet know how each factor is weighted, the leak has highlighted which features Google prioritises, giving valuable SEO and content strategy clues.
The leak itself hasn’t given away any earth-shattering information, but it has confirmed several SEO principles and emphasised slight changes which are worth noting:
SEO and Branding
Strong branding is critical in SEO. The leaked documents stress the importance of brand presence, and not just for marketing. A solid brand is the cornerstone of organic search success. So much SEO is focused on nonbranded topics to drive traffic to sites, but a robust brand will strengthen overall ranking and visibility.
Site Authority
Google has always had a habit of denying the existence of site authority scores, but the lead references a feature called siteAuthority, which says to us that Google does in fact consider overall site authority when it ranks content.
This underlines the need to regularly audit and improve site quality. You can do this by removing or merging out of date or underperforming content and elevating the value of your site to avoid penalties on low quality pages.
Homepage
Google’s algorithm, PageRank measures the importance of pages via its backlinks and is still an important ranking factor. The homepage’s PageRank will have an impact on all pages on the website, which makes it a crucial element of SEO. A strong home page is a must! It needs to provide intuitive navigation to core categories and showcase the brand effectively, whilst creating a seamless and engaging user experience.
SEO Tactics
Google still associates content with its authors, tracking their expertise and reputation – this underpins the value of author driven content as a dynamic part of content strategy.
Backlinks still reign supreme, so it goes without saying that they’re vital for rankings. The leak confirmed that Google values not only the quantity of links, but their quality and diversity.
Google’s titlematchScore measures how well a page title matches with a question or query. The leak has revealed that marketers can use titles any length they want, but Google will truncate them after 60-70 characters whilst reading and considering the whole title. Create titles that include keywords and maintain relevance.
Understanding Search Intent
Google distinguishes between transactional and informational questions and queries. If pages combine these, they may struggle to rank effectively. Marketers need to create focused content that meets specific user intentions.
The ugcDiscussionEffortScore emphasises Google’s evaluation of User Generated Content quality. Ensure its quality through moderation – it’s essential for success.
User-Friendly Content
Google tracks user behaviour through metrics like badClicks, goodClicks and lastLongestClicks. This helps to evaluate content quality. The importance of user-friendly design and unique and compelling content is reinforced by positive engagement, which will directly impact rankings.
Rather than relying on lengthy content which may not ultimately add value, focus on creating original material that directly answers what the user is looking for. Google rewards original quality over quantity.
Google will evaluate the freshness of your content based on the byline, URL, and updates to the page. Updating the date isn’t going to cut it – substantial revisions will be needed to signal relevance.
The Google algorithm leak hasn’t given us any new revolutionary concepts; it’s validated much of what we already knew and drawn attention to Google’s focus on user experience and intent. Marketers can continue to build sustainable, effective strategies for search success if they align their efforts with these principles.
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