fbpx
SEO

Don’t listen to anyone promising “page one rankings”

SEO

Don’t listen to anyone promising “page one rankings”

How many emails have you received from people saying they can get your site on the “first page of Google”?

For a start, it’s an ambiguous claim. What search term are they promising to get you on there for? Is it one anyone is searching for?

Just about every page is on the first page of Google’s results for something. For example, if I type “wqhewhfoisdff”, I’m pretty sure that in a few days’ time, this very blog will be on the first page of Google if you search for “wqhewhfoisdff”, but who would search for that?

Secondly, unless it’s a ridiculously obscure search term like “wqhewhfoisdff”, there’s no way any search engine optimisation (SEO) company can guarantee first-page rankings for it. There’s too much mystery in how Google’s algorithms work and too many variables outside of your control, such as what your competitors are doing.

It seems Google itself has had enough of this sort of behaviour, and has even filed a lawsuit against G Verifier – a company claiming, among other things, that it can get your site on the first page of Google in return for a fee.

Search Engine Land describes this as a “scam” and it’s difficult to argue with that. In fact, Google alleges that G Verifier’s conduct extended to “impersonating Google”, phoning business owners about their Google Business listing and threatening that that it would be deactivated unless they paid a typical fee of $99 (around £80). The filing, which can be found here, also states that some fanciful claims appear on the company’s website, such as promises to get businesses on the first page and for their Google Maps location to be Google’s first result. Google labels these claims as “false and deceitful”.

I checked out the G Verifier website out of interest and found that it does resemble a Google site aesthetically, but the content is sloppy. There’s a page on “Online Rreputation Management”, and a footer at the bottom of the home page urging you to “Subscrible”. Typos like these are telltale signs of an unprofessional company that should be avoided.

This demonstrates two advantages of high-quality content – the first is that it gives your site more credibility, while the second is that it ties in with good SEO practices and Google’s current focus on “helpful content”. For websites and content built with organic SEO in mind, talk to us at Engage Web.

John Murray

Get in touch

Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.
Acceptance

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

>

Book a consultation with Engage Web