How can I be number one on Google?

I just came across a posting on a freelance site.  It said something along the lines of, "I want a new website designed, I want it to be number 1 on Google, and my business opens in a month."  Hmmm....is that really possible?  No, honestly it's not.  Unless you want to pay to get your listing at the top (via Adwords), which can become costly if your website is ineffective.  So how can you get your site to number one without having to pay extra?

Getting listed on the first page of a Google search is not a fast or easy process.  Not only do you have to first get your site listed so that it will even show up in search engines, but you have to establish a presence and start driving traffic to it.

Moving up in the Google rankings has to do with how you create your website copy, how you create your URLs, what types of information you contain in your site, and how people find you.

If your site is stagnant and rarely accessed, it will start falling into obscurity and will never appear in searches.  If your site is active and thriving, eventually you will move up in the rankings and hopefully make it into that first page of listings.

The key is to get your site up and running, monitor traffic using a program like Google Analytics, and make sure it is functioning effectively.  You need to monitor how people are finding you, where they are moving around in your site, and whether or not they are leaving your site immediately (this is what we talk about with the term "bounce rate").

There are a few ways to help drive traffic to a brand new site.  The best way is to focus on inbound marketing - or, having people find you by linking to your site from other places.  How can you do this effectively?  Do some research on your own.  Or hire a marketing consultant or freelancer to help you.  A knowledgeable freelancer who understands how to write website copy can help you find the best ways to drive traffic to your site, and eventually get you closer to that coveted #1 slot.

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