Google Gets the Most Traffic

A recent Search Engine Report article reports that Jupiter Media Metrix and Nielsen//NetRatings have developed new means to determine the popularity of search engines. These new ratings indicate that Google is clearly the most frequently used search engine.

"Search Hours"

These new ratings are based on a new measure "Search Hours," which not only looks at the number of people visiting a site but also the average amount of time each visitor spends there. This differs from the more traditional means to ranks search sites' popularity, such as "audience reach," which records the percentage of the Internet audience that visits a site in a given month, without taking note of the number of times that each visitor spends at a site or the number of searches that they perform while they are there.

These new rankings make it clear that your ranking in Google is more important than ever.

Making your site Google-friendly

Fortunately there is a large amount of information available to help insure that your site will be indexed and well-ranked by Google.

Some good starting points are:

• Google Information for Webmasters
  A nice collection information, including tips on getting Google to index your site, a list of "Dos" and "Dont's", and an FAQ.
• Search Engine Forum's Google forum
  A heavily-trafficked forum discussing strategies for attaining optimum placement in Google.
• WebMaterWorld's Google forum
  Another great place for information about getting the best possible Google ranking.
• Successful Site in 12 Months with Google Alone
  A particularly insightful WebMasterWorld post on securing a good position in Google.