7 things that are not ranking factors for Google

by Durga | Sep 7, 2021

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As we all know, Google uses more than 200 ranking factors in their algorithm to determine the position of a website on the Google search results page. In brief, some of the most important ranking factors that can help you improve your rankings are quality content, backlinks, user experience, page speed, mobile-friendliness, search intent, website security, keywords optimization, domain authority and so on.

So, you might wonder now out of these 200 ranking factors which factors are important for your website? As some are proven significant while some of the factors appear to be not so important. There are plenty of things connected with ranking factors that may not be considered ranking factors themselves. But, many website owners spend too much time or attention on them and do not get the expected results.

Therefore, in our blog, we’ve tried to explain why these non-factors are insignificant. So, here goes the list of seven things that are not ranking factors according to Google’s SEO experts.

1.Domain age and registration length

Domain age and registration length are not ranking factors

Firstly, domain age is not an SEO ranking factor. Even Google’s John Mueller has confirmed that it is not a ranking factor while responding to a Twitter user saying that ‘domain age helps nothing’. Usually, older domains are likely to get more signals that go into ranking as they build authority as the website gains backlinks from other websites and not the domain age that is important for its search ranking.

Similarly, no search engine has ever committed that they use registration length as a ranking factor in indexing.

2. Page content length

Does page content length impact your SEO? The answer is no. However, more useful, relevant content is effective but the minimum word count for improving SEO is nowhere mentioned in Google’s quality guidelines. Content is an integral part of SEO. It is not the content length but the quality of the content on-page that is important to rank better in search engines. The content length should be such that it can deliver the required message to the visitors or answer their queries.

3. AMP

AMP (Accelerated Mobile Pages) is completely different from page speed. It improves page speed, but it is not a part of the ranking algorithm. It gives mobile users a -fast, and more engaging experience. Google’s John Mueller has specifically confirmed that AMP is not a ranking signal but implementing AMP is beneficial for the mobile version of your website for greater visibility and extremely faster loading speed.

4. Social signals

Social signals are not a direct ranking factor. However, they are a powerful approach for the presence of your website in SERPs. The more users communicate, the greater is the level of awareness of your business and thus have an indirect impact on the SEO ranking.

5. LSI keywords

LSI (Latent Semantic Indexing) keywords are the keywords that are semantically linked to the main keyword. They help to add more context to the content and make it easier for both search engines and users to know what your domain is all about. It’s a myth that LSI is an important ranking factor for Google.

6. All caps in site URL

Google’s John Mueller also cleared that capital letters in URLs do not have any impact on its search ranking. Google also does not recommend using special symbols in the domain address. It considers URLs as case-sensitive and can create duplicate content issues if you don’t handle them properly and can hurt your SERP performance.

7. Pogo sticking

Pogo sticking is not a ranking factor but it acts as an indirect metric that impacts your ranking. It is an act of a user visiting your page and then clicking back to the SERPs immediately. It can be linked with factors like bounce rates, CTR and dwell time but doesn’t turn up to be a ranking factor in the Google algorithm.

Conclusion

To summarize, you can note that the factors mentioned in the blog are not directly important for Google but it does not mean that they can be completely ignored. Always optimize your site for users rather than for the search engines.

If you are concerned about your website’s SEO or rankings, check out our SEO Strategy and Services. Our leading digital marketing agency is a one-stop solution for your multiple problems. Contact us today to get a quote on our SEO Services.

Durga

About The Author…

Durga has a master’s degree in engineering. Technological advances in digital space interest her a lot. Digital marketing is her forte and she passionately follows latest trends in the digital marketing space. She has written many trending articles on various social media platforms. Her areas of interest include SEO Optimization, structured data, SMM, Keywords research and analysis etc. She is focused, resourceful and dedicated.

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