You may have heard that the search engine, Google uses a search algorithm that determines the “authority” of a web site depending on how many sites link back to that site and other items. In recent years an entire sub-industry in the world of web development has arisen to the point that all some companies will do is SEO which stands for search engine optimization. I think it’s a good thing that they are people who are working on help clients optimize their content thus helping potential clients find them easier on the web.

Everybody would love to be at the top of a search engine result page but it’s also pretty obvious that not every one company or web site can be at the top of the list. I have also seen and experienced that while the top result is often very good it is by no means always an indicator of a companies authority within their field. I personally never go by the first result of a search but will bring up anywhere from 5-10 results depending the short summaries I will see underneath the results. Often the result I settle on will not be the top result but a few down this list. I often see companies and web sites I think deserve to be at the top of a search result for some reasons they aren’t. Often the top result may be a directory web site or something similiar.

What are some “Authority” indicators, those things that will obvious help search engine optimization but in the long run are not a “formula” for increasing search rankings? In my experience I have seen the following has ways to build authority on your web site and within your field;

• Fresh Content - Regular articles (i.e. blog posts), specials, new products, announcements, etc. This is a constant reminder your web site and company is still “alive” and connected to the world.
• Community - Speaking of being “connected to the world if you can develop and promote ways current and potential clients can leave feedback, discuss your products or services you are way ahead of the crowd. Community can be developed through online social networks, enabling comments on blogs (these can be moderated by the way), feedback forms, forums, etc.
• Professional Design - Besides “looking nice” professionally design web sites can also optimize the usability and search of your web site allowing people to find what they need quickly.
• A Good Name - Do you have a good domain name? Are you using it to it’s fullest? Does it reflect your companies brand and your products and/or services?
• Customer Service - you may have the freshest content, a thriving community of “fans”, a professional design and a good name but if your your business doesn’t make great customer service a priority then all other attempts at becoming an “authority” will be wasted. However if you do have a heart for Great customer service then it will show in your content, community, design and of course you will have a good name.

Of course they are many other points I may have missed but when you go searching for company or organization on the Internet they are more things to consider than the “top of the list”. That being said I am very happy to make the front page or yes I admit I am thrilled if my our company does have a #1 ranking but I’m truly happy when we have a satisfied customer who is not only happy with us but tells others about what we do and encourages them to consider our service.

Update: I have decided to update the title of this post. I will be turning this post into a series over the next few days including and possibly adding to the points above.

This entry was posted on Saturday, November 22nd, 2008 at 7:20 pm and is filed under Tips, blogging, branding, social networks, web design. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.