Have you spent countless hours wondering how on earth Google evaluates, ranks and delivers results to its users? If so, you will be relieved to know that the search engine giant has published an interactive graphic that explains how search works in layman’s terms.
Google is without a doubt the search engine with the largest market share – and with its unwavering popularity, it is crucial for content marketers to know how it works.
According to a February US search engine rankings report by comScore, Google and Bing gained market share month-on-month, with Google extending its reach from 67% in January 2013 to 67.5% in February 2013.
What does a paltry 0.5% increase have to do with anything, you might ask – but with millions of people online on a daily basis, this seemingly small figure reflects a considerable upward trend.
To view the graphic and solve the mystery of web content ranking once and for all, click here.
Of course, this is not to say you should write your content for search engines. The fact that Google has published this graphic serves to illustrate their continued focus on the user, and accordingly websites seeking to gain visibility need to think along the same lines and produce user-focused content.
“Content may be king, but your readers are a high ace”
Your readers should still be your predominant concern, and creating engaging content that they will peruse and share should remain your top priority. If you write with just search engines in mind, you are more likely to end up with shoddy content stuffed to the gunnels with keywords. Not only does this look unappealing and act as a repellent to browsers, you will also be caught out – and penalised – by search engines.
“The majority of spam removal is automatic,” states the graphic. “We examine other questionable documents by hand. If we find spam, we take manual action.”
Content may be king, but your readers are a high ace – a guiding principle which should be adhered in your daily content marketing efforts.
