For years, Google has denied using clicks on organic listings as a ranking signal, but we now know that this is not the case: Recently published documents show that Google does in fact use click-related signals in its algorithms.
Here I provide an overview of these documents and my perspective on their impact on search engine optimization.
Organic Clicks
During Google's federal antitrust trial last year, Google Search Vice President Pandu Nayak testified that the search engine uses a ranking system called “Navboost” (also known as “Glue”) that analyzes user interactions with search results (including clicks, hovers, scrolls and swipes) and stores that data for 13 months.
Navboost serves results based on user interaction with relevant search result pages. The system also decides whether to include other features in the search results, such as videos, featured snippets, “questions people ask,” and local packs.
The same test produced a 2016 internal Google PDF that listed “user interaction” (i.e. clicks) as one of the top three ranking factors.
Many in the search engine community have long suspected that Google uses click counts in its ranking algorithm. We've also said that this algorithm is very specific and only exists for top-ranking pages (those that generate a lot of clicks). Therefore, other ranking signals such as inbound links and on-page relevance and quality are fundamental for all pages except the top-ranking listings.
Chrome browser clicks
Last month, documents were leaked from Google Search's internal engineering department that revealed the importance of organic clicks to rankings, and also claimed that Google monitors how users interact with websites on their Chrome browser – a claim Google denies. that For many years.
So, regardless of the traffic source, Google knows how visitors who use Chrome interact with your website.
“Long click”
SEO pros have long theorized that click data determines content quality, with “time on site” and “pogosticking” being two commonly discussed metrics for bounce rate.
Thanks to an engineering leak, we now know that Google has such a metric called “long click”: the longer a ranking page keeps users on it, the better.
SEO Tips
- Closely monitor your most trafficked pages – Google has the most data on those pages. Make sure they are engaging and encourage meaningful interactions. Use heatmaps and other usability tools to understand visitor behavior and optimize accordingly.
- Focus on meaningful clicks, not just search results. Aim to improve click-through rates from email newsletters and ads. Google accumulates this data from Chrome. Target your link building campaigns to what drives clicks.
- Optimize your page titles as they impact click-throughs on search results pages. Regularly check your top SERP listings and snippets to improve your CTR. Use structured data to earn rich snippets where possible.