The most important factor which Google uses to determine your website ranking is to count the number of links to your site that are on websites which Google already ranks highly. The method it uses for this is called 'PageRank'. Google allocates each site a pagerank which essentially represents how important Google thinks the website is. You can actually see the pagerank of websites if you install the 'Google toolbar' available from Google. The problem is that if you are a new website, then it is unlikely that you will have many links to your website from other websites. Even if you get other sites with a high pagerank (over 5) to link to you then you will still be in competition with all the more established websites in your field which may have many more sites linking to them.
Google Adwords
The only way to guarantee a high ranking on Google is to use 'Pay Per Click' (PPC) which google calls 'Google Adwords'. Google Adwords allows you to bid on keywords. If the keyword is entered into Google, then your advert will either appear on the right hand side of, or above the standard search results. Every time a Google user clicks on your advert, you will be charged the amount you have bid. Because of the large number of people using Google, you can very quickly start making significant sales using Adwords. However ther are two things worth remembering. Firstly you have to pay for the user clicking on your advert even if they don't buy anything. Secondly because of the large numbers of Google users, adwords can very quickly cost you a lot of money. Success with adwords depends on having the right advert, the right keywords and the right budget.
So what does it mean in reality? If you are starting a business selling Teddy Bears in Brighton and you publish your Web site, it doesn't matter how many 'key words', like 'Teddy Bear' you have on your site, Google won't bother. Once every few days Google will send a 'spider' or 'robot' round to look at your site. It will record, or cache, every word that seems likely to be useful, but it is more interested in whether you have any links from major Teddy Bear manufacturers, or Google itself. Possibly, any potential customer who searches for '"Teddy Bear" Brighton'(note the quotes) will find you somewhere on the first few pages of Google. Search for 'Teddy Bear UK' and you will be low in the 1,800,000 sites it has found.
So you decide to go with Adwords. On a daily basis you make a daily bid for the keywords 'Teddy Bear' and say you are prepared to pay 10p every time someone clicks through the advert to your site. You also state a maximum daily spend of say £20. That gives you a potential click-though of 200 per day. Where you appear on the list of adverts depends on how much others have bid. If 'Teddy Bear Kingdom' down the road has bid 15p they will be above you. Google will make recommendations when you sign up and if your maximum is less than they recommend, your advertisement will be phased during the day. And you thought Google is just a useful information service - it's not, it's a profit-making company - like you wish to be. Advice - don't try to compete with Harrods - try for a happy medium.
What happens if a rival sits and clicks on your advert up to your maximum, using up your maximum and killing your advertising. It's illegal, but it has been known.
Google Checkout
Another for of Payment Gateway and bound to be a success. Go to 'Google Checkout' for more details, but basically:
- Cost per transaction - 1.5% + £0.15
- If you subscribe to Google Adwords - for every £1 you spend on AdWords each month, you can process £10 in sales the following month for free through Google Checkout.
Google is taking over the Web. Like them or loath them - ignore them at your business peril.
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