As a follow up to my series of article on the latest Google Panda Dance, I thought it would be a good idea to show a video made by Matt Cutts, (Google Search Engine Marketing team) in which he answers several questions about the public about:
How Google Ranks Content.
The video is 8 minutes long and in it, Matt goes into some details about various aspects of the methodology of the Google Search.
In this video, Matt answers a question related to the process of ranking and website evaluation, starting from the crawling stage, to the analysis of a site, to crawling frequencies…
Google main priorities in their drive to be the best search engine they be are based on 3 principal factors:
- Crawl the web for existing and new pages
- Index these pages
- Rank these pages so that the most relevant are served first.
1. The crawling process
Starting at 1:15 min
In the “old” days (the year 2000), it took google 30 days to crawl, one week
to index and propagate to their data centers (another week) and this process
was called the google dance! In 2003, Google switched to a different format
and began to crawl on daily basis which is substantial departure from their
original method lasting 30 days. This allowed them to refresh their data banks
on a daily basis, and thus be kept more up to date to changes. Over time, they
have improved their incremental updating of their index.
2. The indexing process Starting at 3:55 minute. Here is where
it becomes interesting as it gives a very good insight into the google indexing
mindset. Given that indexing is taking things in word order, here is how it
works. To illustrate this process, Matt Cutts give the following two words as
an example of a Google search.
Katy Perry
In the crawl, Google established in which document each word was found. In
other words, in which document does the word Katy appear, and in which document
does the word Perry appear. So for example:
| Katy appears in the following pages | Perry appears in the following pages |
|
1 |
2 |
|
2 |
8 |
|
89 |
73 |
|
555 |
555 |
|
789 |
1000 |
So when someone types in Katy Perry in Google, the search engine sets upon
finding out in which document do these words appear, and it does it like this:
Document 1 has Katy and document 2 doesn’t so doc 1 is out.
Document 2 has both Katy and Perry, so that document is one of the possibilities.
Document 89 has Katy and document 73 doesn’t so doc 89 is out.
In other words, only document 2 and document 555 have both words.
So Google searches for pages and back links (anchor text pointing to that page)
where both words appear. When this document selection is accomplished,
not the ask is to figure out a way to rank them.
3. The ranking process
Starting at 5:45 minutes
This process is tricky and Google uses Page Rank (PR) in combination of some
200 different factors to determine which page to rank highest.
If this video has shown anything, it is that
- Page Rank is a determing factor as to how well a page can be ranked
- Page Rank is dependent upon the reputation of a site, the number of back links to that site, and the reputation of those sites from which the backlinks orginate!
Thank you for posting this video, Stevie. Actually, while watching I found myself more amazed as the video progressed thinking about the size of the computers that are needed to make this operation work.
I am astounded that the pages get indexed and ranked as quickly as they do. I think the idea of a search engine is a pretty smart thing. Truth is, I remember all the way back to Copernic, when there wasn’t even a Google. The internet world is a whole lot different now.
So true. And it is important to remember that this network of computers that Google uses in its various databanks are just “ordinary” computers that most of use ourselves!
Stevie,
Thanks for sharing this information. So in the end PageRank and Google SERP’s still factor in the number and quality of backlinks to your site. Good to know because sometimes people start putting out information or worrying about the importance of backlinks.
As long as they look natural and are from quality sites, life can be good for your site.
p.s. wish you were using CommentLuv Premium here so I could get a backlink to my site!
Thanks Jim, yes, nothing much as changed other than the major effort on the part of big G to weed out spammers. Problem with this is that people who don’t spam sometimes get caught in this. Hopefully things will settle down… Until the next dance!
Really interesting – reminds me I should check out more of the Google training videos. I feel like I’m doing okay, but as a ‘big picture’ kinda gal, I would like to understand their process … ha! Me and few hundred thousand other bloggers, huh? Thanks,
Stevie,
Great information and it would even be better if it weren’t so dry. Matt seems happy to discuss it. Lucky is the girl who picks him up at a bar looking for some action. ZZZzzzzzz.
Wonderfully, if we wait long enough all of this will change and a new algorithm will supersede what’s out there now. That’s why I love TSA so we don’t have to worry about Google, Yahoo, Bing, etc., etc.
RICK
What I like is the consideration that Google is putting forth for making sure sites with authority…real authority and social search power rank better. Of course, I have been seeing quite a few cases that some bloggers have been docked. I have not seen this with my site, but that is probably because it is 7 years old and has been consistent.
I think the biggest thing to consider is that rather than focus on the numbers game, focus on the quality game.
Thanks for sharing this. I get so many emails of people who own other websites, requesting that I link to their website and they will link back to mine from another one of their websites. It makes me feel so many people out there trying to cheat the system! I don’t think links are the best item to include in a Rank, mainly since people would do it only if it benefits them back, and not purely for the importance or relevance of a website. Anyway, this was a very informative piece and thanks again for sharing!
Links are one of the most important component of how Google establishes ranking. This is re-iterated in this video by Matt himself. You are are talking about two way linking that were popular a few years ago and were then replaced by 3 way linking structures… until Google eventually wised up to what was happening.
Hi Stevie
Thanks for sharing. An interesting video. Matt does a good job of explaining a difficult process. If hundreds of machines crawl the web for the word combinations in a search is there another machine that takes the top results from each of those machines to do another ranking process?
When you search for something on Google, your search will be processed by the machine in their vast data bank networks that is geographically nearest to you. Your query is then sent troughout the network where each machine has its own take on your query. Those are then extrapolated, compiled and served back to you. It’s like an ant colony where the sum of its part is awesome compared to nature of each member of the colony!
Steve, This is a very informative video. It’s very interesting for me to learn exactly how Google ranks your site. I like linking to sites that have content that can be helpful to me and my clients. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks Steve ! great post. I agree with Niles, quality is so important. The information on the video shows clearly the social search power. I am a neophyte in this arena and I have learned a lot from your article.
Hello Stevie
I’ve been sharing this new video of Matt’s too over the last week or so. I think it’s cleared things up for a few people! There is one thing for sure Stevie we’ll never be short of something to do or discuss so long at the Google wheels keep moving. Love your new site
Stevie! I can’t find your share buttons for this site! Not visible in any of my browsers… can you help?
Done!
Thanks for revealing this Stevie,
The number of good links generated by TSA members and consequent page rank gains is testimony that good back linking still rocks. Whichever way you look at it, getting consistently good rankings is an ongoing process, generating regular new content and having others comment on it and visiting your site. Then it is a matter of having good enough content that people come back and send their friends around.
With so many websites and blogs these days, it takes some doing. This post will attract a lot of attention! http://johngaydon.com
Very informative post. Thanks for sharing this… been looking for this and i stumbled it in this blog. Truly a must read/watch for everyone who is really trying to understand how page ranking is done.
Regards,
Brain
Thanks Stevie,
It is amazing that all these processes occur within half a second. Key lesson? Backlinks are important for improved search engine ranking.
- April M. Williams
Yes indeed!
I simply want to tell you that I am just newbie to blogging and site-building and really enjoyed your website. Likely I’m planning to bookmark your site . You amazingly have exceptional article content. With thanks for sharing with us your web-site.
Thank you!