Page 1 in Google – What This Means & Takes

Everyone wants to be #1. More specifically everyone wants to be on page 1 and in the #1 ranking spot on Google Search Engine Results Page (SERP). I mean, that’s great and all, but let’s not forget that there is only one #1 spot on page 1 for Google. Further, it takes a lot of work and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to get there – but what exactly is that? Well, that’s in another post or 20.  But to understand this one single concept a little better, let’s break this #1 ranking “spot” down a little more.

Spots needed exceed spots available

Let’s put this into perspective – there are just over 1.7 Billion sites on the internet and growing rapidly every second but yet the number of organic “spots” in the Search Engine Results Page (SERP) hasn’t changed. What does that tell you – more competition for the same amount of space. And by the way, the number of “spots” (for organic) was/is only 10.

You will find more infographics at Statista

Analogy on rankings in search rankings and parking spots

So, let’s think about that for a minute. Consider an apartment complex that has 100 units and there are enough for 2 cars per unit (200 parking spaces). Enter the holidays where many of those families in those 100 units have their family over. Did the parking lot grow overnight? Not likely, but the need is still there. So, now what?

Well, likely folks will be out of town which will leave a few extra spaces, and maybe there is an empty lot or street parking nearby, but at the end of the day, the need is in excess of the space and it’s not going to change. So, those extra cars will be vying for the same spot and will probably arrive earlier to get the extra spaces (work harder) and some might have to be creative in finding more spots, but you get the idea.

What that means in terms of SERP rankings

So those 10 organic ranking opportunities in the search engine results page are all heavily in demand. Everyone wants to be in the top 3 pages, more so the top 1 page for a given keyword phrase, so everyone has to get a little more creative, do a little more work in order to work your way to that spot. Sure, it is possible, but again, at the end of the day, there is only room for 10 on page 1.

Paid Ads alternative

You may consider paid ads because there are another 10 spots for paid rankings and that’s by an auction system per keyword. You may consider chasing another keyword phrase that may be less competitive (like that parking lot across the street), you may consider being more creative and find other ways to be seen, but again, you are doing the work to get there, somehow someway. The worst thing you can do is… nothing.

What if you do nothing?

You do nothing, you won’t grow, you won’t be seen, you won’t have any new opportunities to show up in search, you won’t work your way up the rankings so you’ll never get to page 1, let alone page 10. However, keep in mind, your competitors are working on it and your consumers are looking (searching) so you may want to reconsider.

So, you basically have to determine if you are willing and able to do the work to get your business seen in the search engine results page and what will you do?  Will you learn to your website for the benefit of the consumers and the search engines or outsource that effort to someone who knows about search engine optimization for the improved chances to show up in search engines where your customers can find you or just do nothing and get what you put into it, nothing?

Should you need to learn more about this optimization thing or want to outsource these efforts, reach out to me as that is my business.  I can help!

Kristen Day

CEO/Founder of A Visual Business

Kristen is a small business owner and thus dedicated to other small business owners by helping them improve their online presence with search engine optimization, social media marketing, email marketing and pay per click advertising all of which are necessary 'evils' in the digital marketing sphere but enables small business owners the opportunity to compete with larger companies. When not in the digital arena, you can find her riding her Honda VTX1300 or drinking a margarita.