Google, the most highly used search engine, explains page rank as a sort of ranking according to popularity. Google PageRank (also known as Google PR) is one of the ways that Google determines a page’s relevance. Important, or highly searched, pages receive a higher PageRank and are the more probable to appear at the top of the search results. PageRank is based on backlinks and ranges from 0-10.
PageRank is named after its Google cofounder Larry Page. The algorithm used to determine PageRank is discussed in detail on the Google website – if interested in finding out more about his process, go to this website to learn more. The process is a multi-tiered mathematical formulation developed by Larry Page and his team at Stanford University.
Google, speaking for themselves, says that PageRank is similar to “likes” or votes. They consider some votes to be more important than others. PageRank is Google’s way of counting the links or votes and determining which pages are more important than other pages based on the number of votes. These scores are used, along with various other sources, to determine if a web page will rank well in a random search. The goal, of course, is to provide pages that are reliable and informative for Google users when they search. In order to make sure that they are doing this, they actively and carefully analyze and monitor the information that is made available with their Google search software.
When Google discusses PageRank, many times, “they” (Google) will refer the readers with a link to the Google Technology page. The page describes PageRank as ‘the heart of their software’. The name “PageRank” is trademarked by Google and is described as a method of ranking web pages. This system was developed by Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin at Stanford University. Even with a team of engineers working constantly to improve the performance of Google, PageRank is one consistent part of Google that remains a central performance piece in many of the web search tools.
Basically, PageRank is created so that it uses the democratic nature of its web users by using unique link structure to indicate the value of each individual page. A simple way to consider the way that PageRank works would be to think about Google as interpreting a link from page A to Page B as a vote for page B by Page A. The system is much more complicated than this, but for a simple way to begin to understand PageRank, you can see how one page may have more “hits” or votes than another. Many web developers take facts like this into consideration by putting links on one of their pages to one of their other pages in an effort to get the viewer to “vote” for the other page and then “vote” for the first page again by returning.
Google considers much more information than just the simplicity of the number of votes, or likes, that a page receives. It also carefully examines the page that casts the votes. Some “votes” are more weigh as being more important than others based on criteria that Google sets. Because some web pages are more significant than others, a vote cast by that page would weigh more heavily and count as more than just one “vote”; almost as though certain pages carry proxy for more than one person in a traditional election.
How do searchers of Google use PageRank? As stated before, it is one of many considerations used when ranking pages. You may not be able to see PageRank at first – but, if you have a page that you want to be one of the first when an average viewer uses Google, it is important to know not only how it works, but also what is going on ‘behind the scenes’ so you can improve your own website and become informed.
Some computer owners already have PageRank on their Google Toolbar. If it is on the toolbar, there will be a small icon called a PageRank meter that Google doesn’t fully explain in their help files. On your toolbar, it will be towards the right, and it will say “PageRank” with a long green bar. If you hover over the bar with your mouse, it will show you where the page you are viewing (hopefully yours) ranks with other similar web pages. It will be ranked as 0/10 (for a poor ranking) or 10/10 (for a perfect ranking). When considering the launch of a new website and its value, the toolbar’s PageRank display will tell you the significance of the page you’re viewing.
When deciding to begin your own analysis of your website, remember not to interpret the information on the PageRank toolbar as a gauge of your ‘popularity’. It is only a tool used by Google to gauge or estimate the significance of the webpage. Obviously, a family photo album webpage may not have a ranking that is quite as high as a website for a highly, well-known publication like People Magazine. Google carefully checks the websites that are published and can “weight” some of the pages with higher PageRank scores than others, depending on the information that is being provided to the random web searcher.
Some may consider this a bias on the part of Google. Questioned in a US Court as to whether or not this could be considered a violation free speech because Google was altering some of the page ranks which directly affected search queries, the court upheld that Google was expressing an opinion, which in itself is protected by the First Amendment – the conclusion was that PageRanks are entitled to full protection by the constitution.
Back to further understanding how a Google PageRank works, let’s assume that you get a link to one of your pages from a high PR page. Some of that PageRank importance, or the points associated with the linking page, will be transmitted to your page. But this doesn’t full represent or take into consideration the context of the link – the actual keywords in the link, or anchor text.
Anchor text is text you write within your web page that a viewer can click on and it will automatically direct them to another web page. The anchor text is deliberately linked to the other page. This anchor text is called a hyperlink and is one unique way to interactively involve your reader with your web page. It will have them reading about other subjects of your choice as well as asking questions, which is what you want. For example, on a counseling website, the home page may have hyperlinks to appropriate research studies or other pages on your website, such as helpful links or questionnaires about certain mental health disorders.
The words used in the anchor text will also help determine the ranking that the page will receive in other search engines, such as Bing and Yahoo. Links without anchor text happen commonly and are referred to as naked URL’s. Different browsers will display the anchor text differently, but proper use of anchor text can help to link the page in a higher place of ranking in all search engines.
Search Engine Optimization, or SEO, best practices assume that the anchor text be relevant and not a sales gimmick of some sort of generic text. Anchor texts are one of many flags that search engines use when determining the topic of a web page. They can be used to direct the reader to an internal page within your web site or to an external link that might be indirectly related to what your page content is about.
Good webpage writers use grabbers for hyperlink text like “learn more here” or “try this page”, etc. “Click here” is overused and will usually drive your reader away from clicking on the hyperlink rather than trying to use it. Entice your readers and peak their curiosity by using creative text and consider offering free information within your site and you’re sure to have repeat visitors. And, remember, the more “clicks” – the more visits to your links, the higher your Google PageRank.
For example, assume you’re the company, Coach, and you want to rank for the word “handbags”. You get hundreds or thousands of PageRank9 pages to link like this:
“Coach”
Exactly what you wanted! Or is it? All of those pages are going to send loads of PageRank in your direction which automatically makes you appear to be important and the content on your site valuable. But, how are you important? Google will take a look at the word in the link itself as a key signal to determine the importance. The word says “Coach, so great for Coach, they rank just for their name! But is your webpage useful to the person who landed on it because of the keyword “Coach” or was it just a random hit?
But, let’s just say that you are Nine West, the same market as Coach. Not quite as well-renowned as Coach, but a decent reputation, you won’t get links from all of those PR9 sites – rather, you would probably get a mix of PageRank sites that are 4 or 5. They will provide links but more links that do have some importance. They may be less, but they do carry some market weight. The relevancy of the words is the key. They may be pointing to your site, but once there, the reader will be more impressed by a well-written site that tells about your product than the fact that Coach or Nine West drove them to that site. Remember – you’re selling your product. Maybe you are selling a beauty product, or a service as a fashion consultant – not exactly related to Nine West, but within the same parameters.
PageRank is significant when considering how your page will rank in a search engine result, but it is only one tool. It is not the most important part of your marketing strategy or proof of the validity or lack of that your site or your product carries. It is a rating strategy solely used by Google.
Another industry term that you may hear is “link juice”. This is simply another way of discussing how much attention your website received from a keyword which triggered a link to your page. When one site is linked to another webpage, the link will pass points – this is also known as link juice transfer. The amount of link juice that is distributed depends on two things – the number of PageRank points that the web page carrying the link has and the total number of links on the page that are actually passing PageRank.
Think of it another way: every web page has a limited amount of link juice it can pass, and the top of that limit is the total PageRank points that page has accrued. So, a web page with 15 accumulated PageRank points cannot pass more than 15 of those points of link juice per page. If a page with 15 PageRank points links to one other page, that one link will transfer the full amount of link juice to that one other web page. But if a page with 15 PageRank points links to five web pages (internal or external), each link will only transfer one-fifth of the link juice, or three of those points.
There are some flaws in the PageRank system, as with any system. One example would be what is known as a “Google Bomb”. A Google bomb is an automated attempt to have a search term return a website for an unexpected or unknown entity by creating numerous links to that website from pages including the actual search term. It’s a simple manipulation of the system.
Link farming is another method that is being used to manipulate PageRank – this is the practice of linking pages without any knowledge or thought to the relevance of the pages being linked. One could run into an entire web page full of nothing but random, unrelated links to other websites – this is a link farm!
Google is constantly working diligently to keep anyone from using Google analytics in any way other than what it was meant to do, and that is to inform its users about the traffic to the site. Google has teams of technology ingénues changing and refining its RankPage algorithms to recognize these flaws and remove them. Most of the time, those who are creating such flaws in the system are doing so just to show that they can with no thought to the validity of the use of their information or the problems they are creating for genuine business people who are trying to simply do their jobs. Nonetheless, Google is definitely aware and on top of any wrong-doers all of the time.
In a world where technology is part of everyday life, it would be virtually impossible to avoid being part of that technology which is part of every facet of work and home life. It is wise to at least know basic terms and practices that are being used. If you have any further questions or comments about any of Google’s products, they are ready and able to answer your questions and help in any way that they can.
Check your Google Pagerank in one of the following sites:
