Answering the question: How long does it take to rank on Google
When small business owners ask us about our SEO services the first question they always ask us is, “how long does it take to rank on Google?” And for us here at MarketKeep we think that is an absolutely fair question, and one that should have a methodical answer. So we did some research and looked at the marketing trends and have come up with an answer to the question, how long does it take to rank on Google! Let’s explore some of the answers below and the dead simple SEO strategy you need to use to climb the search engine rankings faster.
The first thing that you must understand about ranking on Google is that there is no fixed timeframe to rank. Sometimes it can take you a year to reach the top 10 in Google, and other times you can reach the top 10 the day after publishing your page or post. So how long does it take to rank on Google really? The answer is in the variable, so we are digging into that!
How long does it take to rank on Google? On Average 2 years
Over the course of our research, we studied random keywords and found that on average the top 10 ranking page is at least 2 years old. The top organic search result on average was 3 years old. However, it is important to note that 22% of all top 10 search results were created within the last year, so there is hope! So how does rank faster on Google? The answer is your website’s domain authority.
Domain authority had a large impact on how quickly a website was able to scale the SERP’s. A website with a higher domain authority performed better than a website with a low DA. Common sense really. Again your domain authority represents the overall strength of a website’s backlink profile.
Another factor that played a large part in ranking within the Top 10 search results was the keyword itself. We found that when ranking for keyword terms with a lower search volume, a website ranked faster versus a website page trying to rank for a keyword term that had a high search volume and was a competitive term. To be exact a website that ranked for a low volume keyword or long-tail keyword ranked in the top 10 within 61 to 182 days.
Quick Ranking Strategy Recap
So let’s quickly recap we know there are two factors that impact the question of how long does it take to rank on Google.
1. Low search volume terms tend to gain visibility in the top 10 SERPS faster
2. Websites with a strong overall link profile rank faster versus those who do not which is reflected in a website’s domain authority.
Building an SEO Strategy to rank faster in Search Results
So knowing these 2 key components, let’s work on building an SEO strategy to rank faster online. A small business owner should start building their SEO by publishing content about their industry that is relevant, has lower competition, and lower search volume topics. Once they have started building content it is important that they build links that go to the home page of their website, because they want to rank faster and build backlinks as quickly as possible.
So how do you find content that offers low competition and can rank easily? Good question. This can be accomplished by generating keyword ideas with modifier keywords. Modifier keywords are add-ons to a base keyword. Common modifier keywords are “best”, “top, “buy” and the current year. So if you are a law firm that is trying to rank within a geographical location you might want to build content around a subject like, “best law firm in Baltimore 2019”. Now this example uses all sorts of common modifier keywords in its subject header, but it works!
You also want to select keywords that have a high density in search volume but are not as competitive as other keywords. This can be accomplished by looking at the keyword difficulty for your search term. Your keyword difficulty can be found next to your search report in the Google Keyword Planner.
Once you have started working on your content strategy it is important that you start making an effort to be a guest blogger or writer on other websites. This allows you to expand your presence online and gain notable backlinks to your website. We hope this answers your question on how long does it take to rank on Google, but if you have any further questions feel free to comment below, or contact MarketKeep to speak with our SEO team!