by Marita Hines, Artspell Web Solutions

Is Google Really Business Friendly? (April 23, 2011)

While many people search for the formula to rank high in Google search results as if it were the holy grail, they frequently overlook the obvious. According to Google, their search engine exists to provide a rich and informative search experience for its users. Period. They do not care how many widgets you sell or if your business website even gets a share of the search results for those widgets. But Google does care if searchers found your content compelling enough to stick around and enticing enough that they want to see more of what you have to say and offer.

Google's goal is to locate "content that is useful and relevant to a user's search." If you can integrate your own online business goals with those of the search giant's, chances are you will be rewarded with loyal, paying customers. So, to answer that question, Google is not business friendly, it is content friendly.

Create content that is original, informative, and compelling

This past spring Google updated it's search algorythm in order to get rid of spam in it's search results. It also targeted duplicate content, all in an effort to make the results more useful and relevant. But, not only did it successfully eliminate many of those spammy sites, but some legitimate business websites may have been inadvertently caught in the same net. One reason for this would be site owners who copy others' content. That's not to say that these site owners meant to violate copyright laws. Even an innocent use of vendor product descriptions may be the culprit. Consider a re-write regardless of the intentions.

The Lower the Bounce Rate, the Better

A low bounce rate means your content is compelling and relative. A bounce rate is the percentage of visitors who click on a website, then immediately click off. This bounce rate example demonstrates how to view this statistic for your overall website and individual pages using Google Analytics. The lower the bounce rate, the better. Make visitors want to stick around. Give them reasons to click through to other pages on your website. Give them a reason to buy what you're selling. Any good analytics tool should provide you with your site's bounce percentage rate.

The best strategy is one that will serve you best in the long run. Concentrate on your user experience, moving visitors through your website and converting them to a paying customer. You'll soon find that what's best for your company is really what's best for searchers!