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Can you believe it's almost the end of 2023 and 2024 is right around the corner ready to bring so many exciting possibilities to the world of SEO?
You may think it might be too early to start getting new strategies into gear but trust me, with the ever-evolving Google updates and changing algorithms you want to be on top of all the latest trends possible, especially when it comes to ranking high on Google.
Google is the most popular search engine in the world, and if your website is not ranking high on google’s first page you are unfortunately missing out on a lot of traffic.
Ranking high on Google's coveted first page is no easy task though, it takes a lot of hard work, time, effort, and dedication to do so.
You might be surprised to know that Google receives over 95 billion monthly visits, Facebook receives 20 billion, and Instagram and Amazon receive slightly over 4 billion. In fact, Google has ruled the web for the past decade as the most popular site.
Just as all trends change and evolve over time, Google constantly evaluates which factors indicate a high-quality website for its users.
Just as all trends change and evolve over time Google is constantly evaluating which factors indicate a high-quality website for its users.
It’s important to keep up with these ranking factors if you want to stay on top of the search engine rankings pages (SERPs). So, without further adieu, let’s break down how to rank higher on Google in 2024.
1. Content is Still the King
Google has made it imperative that your website must make an effort to produce content that is fresh, educational, and interesting.
Though it does matter how optimized your website is this especially applies to on-page SEO in 2024, if you can't create high-quality content then Google won’t be interested in ranking you higher on their search engine page results.
Google pays special attention to the uniqueness of a site's copy.
No matter what kind of SEO techniques are being used, there needs to be something unique about the text for Google not only to help boost rankings but also to make people want more information from this site's content.
One of the most important ranking factors is to not cannibalize your own original content, which means you don't want to compete with yourself by creating blogs, newsletters, etc with the same topics and keywords over and over again.
This will not only improve organic search engine traffic but also increase customer engagement. In order to get a higher ranking in Google, it is important to follow all the tips that we can give you.
To rank higher on Google you would want to create posts that answer your reader’s questions and that provide value while being different from other web pages.
If the content is similar or literally the same as what's already ranking for a specific keyword query, it could have a seriously negative impact on how well your site ranks in SERPs.
Google prefers trustworthy, fresh, and high-quality material.
Make sure you're providing answers as well as valuable tips within the post; anything less than an A+ grade may have repercussions such as a reduced crawl rate from Googlebot sites that are checking out what's trending online!
Another rank booster is the length of your content. You may not realize it, but the length of your blog post has a huge effect on how well you rank on Google.
If you are wondering why some posts show up before others in search engine results, this is probably one reason. More words mean better ranking and higher quality content for readers!
2. Artificial intelligence
The use of Artificial Intelligence is one of the leading trends in the digital sphere that will not bypass how we rank on Google.
Even if the use of AI technology and its impact on SEO confuses many users, it does not change the fact that AI is slowly taking over the digital world.
Indeed, content derived solely from Artificial Intelligence is still not considered to be better than the content written by humans, but there are numerous ways to use this technology to rank better in 2024.
One of those ways is to use the incredible speed of AI to help with SEO. From searching for keywords and gathering information about users to finding new content topics and better optimizing copy, AI technology offers numerous benefits that you can leverage for your ranking strategy in 2024.
3. Search Intent
Search intent is an important factor in how Google ranks your content. It’s essentially what a user is looking for, and every keyword is different on Google.
For example, if someone searches for the best Chinese food restaurants, you’ll see that the results in the top 10 include listicles.
To rank higher with search intent, you need to understand why they would be searching for that keyword. What are people trying to achieve?
Once you know this, it will be easier to figure out what type of content you should produce that matches their needs and solves their problem!
4. Backlinks
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You may have heard of the term "backlinks." You know, those things that Google crawler uses to find your website for indexing?
Well, they're an important part of their ranking algorithm and without them, you won't get any organic traffic.
We shouldn't need to tell you this but the content goes hand in hand with backlinks because if web pages don’t receive at least one backlink then what are the chances it will rank on page 10 or higher just by virtue of its own merits?
That's right- pretty much zero!
If you can get backlinks from high-quality websites, your chances of ranking higher will be boosted.
5. Keywords
Keywords are one of the best ways to rank for a search engine. If you want your site to be found, it needs keywords - words that people use when they google something!
So make sure those key phrases appear on every page of your website and all over blog posts if possible because Google loves these babies so much. When considering keywords for your online content, don't forget to use the title tags in order to attract more viewers.
Try adding a keyword at the start of your post's SEO title tag and include them wherever possible throughout all other sections so that search engines can easily find what you're looking for.
For example: Add an image alt text with one or two keywords about what will be shown on the page or add anchor text when linking pages together so Google can better understand which site is being linked to!
6. Mobile Friendliness
Ever since 2019, Google has gone mobile-first. Google made this shift because of studies that show there are over 5.27 billion individuals who use smartphones as opposed to desktops or laptops these days.
It’s key that your website is responsive across all devices.
Mobile-first means that now when you google a business on the go they will take into account what their site looks like and how well navigation works for people using handheld screens to search instead of desktop or laptop computers.
With over 5.27 billion mobile internet users worldwide we need sites with simplified navigation menus so everyone can easily get around without taking up too much space on our device's screen size!
7. Website Loading Speed
Google has a new metric to measure the quality of your website starting in 2021 and it's called 'Core Web Vitals.' This is Google’s way of ensuring that you are providing an optimal user experience.
The major factor they will be measuring according to their Core Web Vitals guidelines, is how quickly pages load on your site with response times for fonts and images.
You won't have any choice but to pay attention because if people don't feel like they're getting what they expect from your content as soon as possible then there might not even be time enough for them to see more than one page before leaving!
Which is an important factor for user experience, and if they're not fast enough? Well you might need to panic!
8. Domain Authority
The next Google ranking booster is your website’s domain authority (DA). It's a metric that shows how close you are to being the best for what people search and want.
Domain Authority is measured by Moz, which assigns points between 1-100 - so if you have an DA of 80 or higher, it means someone has determined that out of all these rankings on this topic then yours would be considered one of the top three in relevance!
Now there are different ways to boost your site's rank: starting with creating high-quality content focused on industry-specific keywords.
This will help ensure those coveted backlinks come rolling in effortlessly when customers do their research because they'll find new relevant information from sites like yours without having to dig through dozens more websites.
9. Website Structure
You should always have a sitemap on your website. It’s like the map of your site, and it tells Google where everything is so that they can find new content faster for you!
A well-designed architecture will help to make sure every page has an easy way back out through links or other navigation tools.
It allows Google crawlers to easily find your website and its pages, making discovery easier for both you and the search engine.
A sitemap contains all of the important pages that you want Google to know about—helping them navigate through your site with ease. This way they can uncover new content too!
10. Website Security
Your website’s security is now a key Google ranking factor.
This is where you need to ensure your site is on encrypted HTTPS, as it encrypts the data between your website and your user’s browser.
If not then this may be an important update for those of us with websites that are still running HTTP and have no SSL certificates in place!
11. UX - User Experience
You will rank better if you have a good UX. Google uses an artificial intelligence program called RankBrain, and it incorporates other ranking signals like CTR (click-through rate), bounce rate, and dwell time to assess the quality of your website's user experience.
These things all go into making up for how enjoyable people find navigating through your site so be sure that yours is as engaging and running smoothly as possible!
Click here now if you want us to perform a quick audit and determine how best we can partner with you going forward!
12. E-A-T (Expertise-Authoritativeness- Trustworthiness)
We mentioned EAT already but let's dive into the details. An evaluation of a webpage's quality and authority is performed by Google using a tool called Search Quality Rater.
Quality Raters are responsible for EAT. The authority and expertise of your content will determine your ranking. Furthermore, Google will verify that the information is accurate and reliable.
You should always provide up-to-date information on your website because your audience is always searching for new information, so as a content creator, you should do the same.
In Conclusion
You can now be ready for whatever Google has to throw at you in 2024.
You have the information you need, Google prioritizes visual, current, and educational content when building rich search engine results pages.
These tips will help you build authority in your niche and achieve your website traffic and conversion goals.
