Most of Google’s rank algorithm is shrouded in mystery. We have to take them at their word when they say social media isn’t a ranking factor (not directly, at least), and guess where factors that used to matter (like keywords) stand. Rarely do they come straight out and tell us what the more than 200 ranking signals are and where they stand in the hierarchy.
It was announced by Google in last year, RankBrain, their artificial intelligence system, was one of the top three ranking signals.
And during the Q&A session Andrey Lipattsev, a Search Quality Senior Strategist at Google, named the two other top signals in response to a question by Ammon Johns.
Those two signals? “Links and content” –
That means the top three ranking factors, according to Google, are RankBrain, links, and content. Andrey also stated there was “no order” when asked for clarification on the order of importance.
It actually mean that we’ve known for a long time that content and links matter, though the importance of links has come into question in recent years. For most SEOs, this should not change anything about their day-to-day strategies. It does give us another piece of the ranking factor puzzle and provides content marketers with more ammo to defend their practice and push for growth.
Source: Searchenginejournal
Peter Zmijewski is the founder and CEO at KeywordSpy. His expert knowledge on Internet Marketing practices and techniques has earned him the title “Internet Marketing Guru“ He is also an innovator, investor and entrepreneur widely recognized by the top players in the industry.
