One of the first thing that people do when they are trying to understand SEO, and how to improve the rankings for their website, is to download the Google Toolbar and figure out the PageRank(PR) for their website and their competitors. While the concept of Pagerank is not the point of this post, it is a concept that every aspiring SEO consultant should have at the very least, a working understanding. That being said, it is important to note that PageRank needs to be weighted as only one factor of Google’s algorithm, and it is also not the only measurement of Google’s link profile for a website.
Matt Cutts alluded the fact that even back in 2000, when he first joined the company, Google was using vastly more sophisticated link computation than those outlined in the classic PageRank papers. That was 11 years ago, and countless revisions to the Google Algorithm, and since link computation is one of the core elements of Google Search, it is reasonable to assume the sophistication is much greater today. But alas, PR value is still often seen as the sole factor in locating potential inbound links by many beginning SEO’s, and often their more experienced colleagues.
Some of the early notions of basic SEO are often mistakenly still considered gospel in the realm of SEO, which can be a costly mistake. Google has been aggressively changing the criteria and composition of their search algorithm in order to provide more relavent SERP’s, and while they have not publicly divulged the factors and weighting of that criteria, they have publicly disclosed the objectives and intent of the algorithm. In addition, Search Engine Optimization specialists have spent a great deal of time and resources testing various suspected ranking factors and criteria, to confirm or refute their assumptions. And while PR is still an important factor to both know and understand, it is a mistake to look at the PR of a particular website or page within a particular website, and decide whether it is worthy pursuing an inbound link.
Often, a little knowledge can be dangerous. One of the basic ways to improve the link profile for a website is via directory submissions from the major online directories. But it is surprising how many people decide to save the $300 fee that Yahoo charges per submission, because the directory category page for their topic has a PR1 or even PR0 on the Google Toolbar. While I am not advocating whether the Yahoo fee is worth it or not (that is a separate discussion), using the Google Toolbar PR indicator is simply silly. The fact of the matter is that there are few opportunities for a website to get an authoritative inbound link, especially one as authoritative as Yahoo!
It is equally as foolish to try and put a square peg in a round hole, which is to try and submit to another category page in the directory that has a higher PR value, but is not relavent (or as relavent) to your websites subject matter. The core principal behind Google Search is relevancy, end of story. Google spends a great deal of their resources looking for methods to provide more and more relevant search results to queries, and that has been the ticket to their success.
The point of this post is not to provide a number of detailed secrets on Google PageRank, that would be a waste of time. Secrets are not the solution to improving your search results, focus and hard work will do that. What is important to keep in mind is that PageRank is only one factor, and it should used the appropriate manner. PR is an excellent indicator of a quality domain, it can also be an indication of why a particular SERP changes suddenly. Perhaps the main thing to keep in mind is that PR is one of the only measurements that Google publicly discloses with regards to a website, and for that reason it needs to be respected and understood. But just remember, PR is only a fraction of the equation and shouldn’t shape your SEO decisions. Focus on completing the widely known and accepted SEO practices as a core to improving your website’s rank, and remember to focus on relevancy. Good luck!!