The Higher-Rankings Golden Rule

High rankings in search engines are better than gold.

It’s because the traffic you get are people who want what you have. They are actively seeking help. They are qualified – often highly qualified.

However, getting those rankings can be tough. There are loads of strategies, ideas, theories and the lot. Many work. Many don’t. Figuring out which works is the trick.

So, how do you figure out what works and what doesn’t? Try this.

The golden rule I like to fall back on when I tell clients who are seeking quick trips to the top or who are wondering where to put keywords is this…

Realize that search engines don’t want to give their users bad results, otherwise the search engines will be less used. Therefore, if Strategy X (whatever you’re contemplating) WILL HELP search engines bring about better results for their users, then it’s probably a good move.

On the flip-side, if Strategy Y is one that DOES NOT HELP search engines give better results, then it’s probably a bad move. Be wary.

Example 1 – Writing an article about healthy eating for your dog.

Is this a good strategy for increasing rankings? You bet, because search engines will be able to give good value to their users who search for “healthy eating for dogs”.

Example 2 – Putting keywords all over a page with the phrase “healthy eating for dogs.”

It’s too easy to just litter your page with this phrase and such a page becomes annoying and unreadable. Therefore search engines do not like this – and more so will penalize your page or site as a spammer (or abuser, etc.).

Example 3 – Paying $100/month to get high rankings.

Unless the service you’re paying for is building search-friendly content and links that are of value to people, then it might be worth it. However, if you have no idea what they are doing and they are doing “tricks” or things that don’t intrinsically help search engines give their users good results, then you’d best avoid them.

So to summarize, realize that, in the eyes of search engines, the sites that are most relevant and useful are the ones that go to the top. Then make sure your strategy is in line with that.

Questions for you

Got a strategy you’re using that’s working like gold? About to try something you’re not sure about?

I’m curious, please post it below.