A New Confirmed Ranking Factor To Be Introduced in 2021
Google have recently confirmed that a brand-new ranking factor will be introduced next year – but what’s it about, and how will it impact website rankings? We explain all below!
The Basics
The new ranking factor termed Google Page Experience is a ranking algorithm that’s been designed to measure how a user perceives the experience they have on a webpage – considering implications of performance, security, page-load experience, and intrusive content.
In other words, if Google decides that the user will have a poor interactive experience on your web site, your overall ranking potential may suffer.
Google has issued a document explaining what the page experience is all about. But we’ve to compiled a simple overview below!
Google’s Page Experience update is part and parcel of a handful of already existing search ranking factors, but the refinements being made to the current ranking factors are now referred to as ‘Core Web Vitals’
The factors involved within Core Web Vitals are each weighted, and it’s the overall weighting of all the elements together that will determine page rankings in Google search.
What are the factors?
Here’s how, in brief, Google documents the individual factors included in Core Web Vitals:
- Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): Measures loading performance. Ideally, a web page should load completely within 2.5 seconds of first starting to load.
- First Input Delay (FID): Measures interactivity.
- Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): A new metric that checks web page stability when loading.
What will the impact be?
Will the Google Page Experience update be a big one? Well, nobody knows as of yet, but with any core updated to ranking factors is crucial you prepare and make adjustments to your SEO strategy to prevent any sudden drops in rankings.
That said, according to a Google spokesperson, great content is still going to be the most important ranking factor!
And here’s what Google had to say about great content in combination with poor page experience:
“While all of the components of page experience are important, we will rank pages with the best information overall, even if some aspects of page experience are subpar. A good page experience doesn’t override having great, relevant content. However, in cases where there are multiple pages that have similar content, page experience becomes much more important for visibility in Search.”
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