It’s always been important to have a quality website. Even in the old days when it was easy to fool search engines into perceiving your site as a quality source of information; you could get rankings, but without quality, you couldn’t get sales. These days, quality has become even more important. As a matter of fact, a high quality website with little exposure is most likely going to get better rankings than a low quality site with quite a bit of links pointing in. Why? Well, because people like to see quality and Google wants to show people what they want to see.
What Does Having A Quality Website Really Mean
Having a quality website means far more than simply producing high quality content. The only problem is that even marketing experts didn’t have a guide to follow when it came to building quality websites…that is, until a recent post by one of our favorite Google guys, Amit Singhal. In his most recent post, Mr. Singhal explains exactly what we should be doing when building quality websites for our business or clients. Here are the major points that Mr. Singhal informed us of. To read the full article, click here!
- Would you trust the information presented in this article? - If you can’t trust the information that you provide, you can’t expect your visitors to trust it either!
- Is this article written by an expert or enthusiast who knows the topic well, or is it more shallow in nature? - Google has been focusing heavily on in depth content that answers all questions or concerns consumers may have about a particular topic. By providing that type of content, you provide quality.
- Does the site have duplicate, overlapping, or redundant articles on the same or similar topics with slightly different keyword variations? - This type of thing is considered to be a black hat marketing technique and Google is nipping it in the butt. Simply put, stay away from any and all duplication.
- Would you be comfortable giving your credit card information to this site? - Now that’s a serious question isn’t it? That just goes to show that these days, Google’s core focus is to display trustworthy websites to their audience….this may be why they released that info about https:// being used as a ranking signal.
- Does this article have spelling, stylistic, or factual errors? - Any authority in any industry is going to want to avoid making simple mistakes like spelling mistakes and incorrect fact quotes. Now you have more of a reason to avoid these types of things!
- Are the topics driven by genuine interests of readers of the site, or does the site generate content by attempting to guess what might rank well in search engines? - Just like anyone else, search engines don’t like to be fooled. However, they do like it when websites make an honest attempt at providing quality information to their audience. So, if your topics are chosen based on rankings, IT’S TIME TO STOP!
- Does the article provide original content or information, original reporting, original research, or original analysis? - As mentioned above, Google doesn’t like duplicate information. So by providing original information, chances are, your site will rank better!
- Does the page provide substantial value when compared to other pages in search results? - This is one of the biggest factors. If you don’t add any value to what’s already out there about a topic, there’s no reason for Google or any other search engine to display your work. So, take a look at competitor sites that rank well, and make sure to provide something of value that they don’t have.
- How much quality control is done on content? - When you publish new content, do you check your sources? Do you proof read? Or, do you just write what you’ve got to write and click publish? To make sure your site is quality, there’s got to be some sort of quality control.
- Does the article describe both sides of a story? - Some of the topics you write about can be seen from different angels. So, if you write about one of these topics, make sure to cover it from all sides.
- Is the site a recognized authority on its topic? - If you have an authority site, chances are it will rank well. If not, you can still rank, but it will take a bit more work.
- Is the content mass-produced by or outsourced to a large number of creators, or spread across a large network of sites, so that individual pages or sites don’t get as much attention or care? - Mass production generally leads to poor quality. Google is no stranger to this concept.
- Was the article edited well, or does it appear sloppy or hastily produced? - As mentioned above, you can’t just write and click publish anymore. It’s important to make sure that there are no errors and the article is aesthetically pleasing.
- For a health related query, would you trust information from this site? - This is another sign that Google really values trustworthy content.
- Would you recognize this site as an authoritative source when mentioned by name? - If not, it’s time to work on branding! You can start by claiming your free local listing in our directory!
- Does this article provide a complete or comprehensive description of the topic? - In the olden days SEOs would focus on word counts. However, Google is far smarter than they used to be. Now they’ve got ways to make sure that your content addresses the topic completely. If not, chances are that you won’t rank well.
- Does this article contain insightful analysis or interesting information that is beyond obvious? - Anyone can come up with an article full of obvious information. However, it’s your job to cover the sections of the topic that aren’t so obvious.
- Is this the sort of page you’d want to bookmark, share with a friend, or recommend? - Quality content makes users want to share it.
- Does this article have an excessive amount of ads that distract from or interfere with the main content? - It’s OK to have advertising; as long as that advertising doesn’t take away from the main content.
- Would you expect to see this article in a printed magazine, encyclopedia or book? - If you would expect to see it in print, chances are that it’s quality!
- Are the articles short, unsubstantial, or otherwise lacking in helpful specifics? - This is what we in the industry call thin content. Don’t be a creator of thin content; instead, be the expert that creates detailed resources full of valuable information.
- Are the pages produced with great care and attention to detail vs. less attention to detail? - As in any other facet of life, attention to detail is incredibly important.
- Would users complain when they see pages from this site? - If Google users complain about what you’ve got to offer, chances are that you’re not offering quality!
Final Thoughts
Having a quality website is incredibly important if you plan to drive leads to your business from the internet. If you need help getting your website up to par, contact us today to find out how affordable our help really is!
The post How Google Decides If Your Website Is Quality appeared first on ControlYourCity.com, LLC..