Running the race...and winningNews Article Written By: iQuantum
What is
PageRank?
PageRank refers to the number a web page is given by a
search engine in attempt to quantify the importance of the web page and determine its placement in search results. The importance of the page is
determined by the links from one page to another. Effectively, the greater
number of genuine links to and from Page X, the greater the importance of Page
X.
PageRank was originally developed by the founder of Google, Larry
Page, at Stanford University, and was subsequently named after him. The
application was patented by Stanford University and is leased by the Google
corporation. PageRank is one of the few key constituents of the Google
algorithm to determine the ranking of a web page in any Google search result
list.
What is the importance of
PageRank?
In the world of online
marketing, there can be no greater sin than to be anything less than on the
first page of a Google search result list.
With billions of searches
being conducted on Google each day world over, and with each search returning
results lists with at least tens of thousands of hits, it is a wonder how we
ever find exactly what we are looking for. Yet somehow a link is always there,
if not in the first few results, then always in the first few pages of results.
It is a given that searchers will rarely, if ever, venture beyond the first few
pages of results.
For business owners, this effectively means that if
your site isn't there in the first few pages of a Google search result list, you
may as well close your online doors and forget about it; no one is going to find
you.
Yes, quality content is cool and will originally determine whether
the website will be included in the search result. However, it will not assist
you with being the customer's first choice. This can only be achieved through
knowing and understanding the intricacies of the Google search engine, and more
specifically, the PageRank constituent.
PageRank is Google's way of
ensuring that the top search results are of the highest quality and are the most
valuable to the searcher. In layman's terms, PageRank is the number given to
any web page based on the importance of the page, as determined by Google. The
greater the PageRank of a web page, the higher its placement on any related
search results list, and the greater the chance of any searcher clicking through
to the web page.
KA-CHING!
What is the quickest means of
improving PageRank, you now ask? Unfortunately, there is none; it's just not as
simple as it sounds.
PageRank is dependent on linkages to and from the
web page. Generally speaking, the greater the number of linkages on a web page,
the higher the PageRank will be. Simple, right?
Wrong.
The
catch is, the linkages need to be genuine and of importance themselves for the
PageRank to improve. For example, linkages to and from Link Farms simply do not
work and if anything, are detrimental to PageRank. Link Farms have no
importance (cyber garbage anyone?) and are deceptive by their very nature as
their sole basis for existence is to manipulate PageRanks. Google penalizes the
use of such guerilla tactics to improve PageRank, as they undermine the quality
of the search and ultimately undermine the credibility of Google. Tsk tsk.
Building PageRank can actually be a long and tedious process, and it
doesn't help that the PageRank function actually favours older sites. Okay, so
this may sound a tad discouraging, but one should always focus on the positive:
in the long term, PageRank is your friend. By building PageRank, your website
will be at the top of list, in full view of the consumer, each and every time.
Marketing your website can't get any better than that!
iQuantum is not in the guessing game business. As business experts we
are only interested in how the internet and online marketing can be
used as a concrete, proven profit making tool for your business. Please talk to us to make sure you get the strategy right.
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