Yes! You finally made it to Page One (cue the celebratory music). Have your SEO efforts fully succeeded? Probably, but don’t put all of your faith in better search rankings. This is certainly an accomplishment to be lauded, and it will (usually) net you additional business. However, can you sense that big “but” coming?
While search rankings are important, you shouldn’t view them as your primary success metric. Take, for example, these related considerations:
- Do you really know how many customers you’re getting from each keyword? Is one particular keyword really driving additional business?
- Google churns out search results based on your geographic location. For example, if you search “power companies” in Texas, you’ll get results for companies located within or in close proximity to this state. Do the same in Maine, and much different results will pop up on Page One.
- Google+ offers personal search results. Therefore, if searchers sign into Google, they’re much more likely to see Page One results from people within their circle.
- Google also personalizes search results by placing a cookie in your browser, which tracks the websites you visit and then delivers results based on what it believes are your favorite sites.
- It’s becoming more and more difficult to track your rankings, as Google continually adds complexity to their algorithm and keyword data.
- Google personalizes ranking data based on previous queries. For example, if the entire nation searches trending “Joe Biden” topics, information detailing his stance on the economy or immigration may pop up. Results ultimately differ based on each individual searcher.
- Rankings also constantly fluctuate. For example, one day you might rank #7 for a specific keyword and then #2 on the next. If you watch your rankings on a daily basis, you’ll notice minor as well as more extreme levels of variation.
What Rankings Really Mean
Rankings reflect how well you rank for a specific keyword, providing a general idea of your positioning compared with other websites and businesses.
In general, if your SEO company does its job, you’ll enjoy more leads as your rankings increase. While these certainly are not the be-all-to-end-all with respect to your digital marketing performance, they are in fact useful as a general barometer of success.
