By From AI to Authority: 9 SEO Factors That Still Matter (Based on 400+ Tests)
SEO is changing fast—but some things still work. Here are 9 proven ways to rank on Google in 2025, based on hundreds of real-world experiments.
We Didn’t Guess: We Tested—400+ Times
Let’s be honest: most SEO advice online sounds the same. “Write great content,” “build backlinks,” “be helpful.” Sure. But what does that actually mean in practice?
Instead of guessing, we tested. A lot. Over 400 times, to be exact.
From weird language experiments (yes, one of them involved fake Latin) to deep dives into Google’s latest AI behaviors—we’ve been tracking what actually moves the needle in rankings.
What follows isn’t theory. It’s what works.
User Intent & Engagement: It’s Not Just Clicks—It’s What Happens After
If someone visits your page and leaves right away, Google notices. And it doesn’t like it.
We worked with a supplement company that had okay traffic but weak rankings. By cleaning up the page layout, trimming unnecessary fluff, and making the content easier to scan, engagement went up 48%—and so did their rankings.
Human Tip: Put yourself in the reader’s shoes. Is your page useful? Fast? Easy to understand? If not, start there.
E-E-A-T: Real People, Real Proof, Real Trust
If your content covers health, money, or anything that affects someone’s life, Google holds it to a higher standard. They call this YMYL—Your Money or Your Life.
We helped a finance blog recover after an algorithm hit by adding:
- Author bios with real names and credentials
- Verified business contact info
- Trusted outbound links
- A transparent About page
The results? 80K+ monthly visitors and a major trust boost.
If your site looks anonymous, you’re invisible. Show you’re real.
Content Freshness: Old Posts Collect Dust (and Drop in Rankings)
Outdated content tells Google you’ve stopped caring. But you don’t need to rewrite everything—just keep it clean.
We updated a batch of science education posts (mainly rewording intros, adding new stats, and fixing links). Traffic spiked 90% in under a month.
Pro Move: Set a 6-month calendar reminder to review your key posts. Small updates = big impact.
Schema: Speak Google’s Language
Google doesn’t “see” your page like a human. It reads code.
That’s where schema comes in. It tells Google whether a page is a recipe, a service, a review, or something else.
With the rise of AI search summaries, schema is more important than ever. It helps your content get featured, highlighted, and pulled into Google’s new layouts.
Use Rank Math’s schema generator—it’s fast and no coding required.
UX: Fast, Clean, and Mobile-First or You’re Out
Google’s Core Web Vitals aren’t just a checklist. They’re a dealbreaker.
Make sure your:
- LCP is under 2.5 seconds
- TBT is under 200ms
We’ve seen sites jump rankings just by compressing images and improving layout stability.
Test your site on a phone. If it’s slow or confusing, fix it before you write another blog post.
Brand Authority: If No One Googles You, Why Should Google Rank You?
We helped a fashion and wellness brand grow search traffic—not by writing more blog posts, but by boosting branded search:
How? By getting them on:
- Podcasts
- Guest blogs
- Niche PR outlets
- Local directories
- Their own homepage more often
Within 2 months, branded searches went up—and Google started ranking them for more competitive terms.
Gut Check: Do people know your brand name? If not, your first job is building one.
Backlinks & Internal Linking: Not Dead, Just Smarter
Yes, backlinks still matter. But spammy ones can do more harm than good.
We got a client from page 5 to page 1 by combining:
- A few high-authority backlinks
- Dozens of smart internal links
- Cleaning up irrelevant ones
Tip: Link from your most-visited blog posts to your priority pages. That’s internal SEO gold.
Header Tags: Clear Structure Wins
We tested dozens of landing pages and found this simple truth: pages with keyword-aligned H1s and structured H2s rank higher.
No stuffing. No games. Just clarity.
H1 = What this page is about.
H2 = What’s in each section.
H3 = Details under each H2.
It helps users. And it helps search engines.
Image SEO: The Missed Opportunity Everyone Overlooks
Alt text isn’t just for accessibility. It tells Google what your images are showing.
We tested two sets of identical posts—one with image file names and alt text, one without. The optimized set consistently outranked the other.
Rename your images with keywords. Write clear alt text. It takes 2 minutes per image and pays off big.
Final Thought: SEO Isn’t Magic. It’s a System
When SEO works, it really works. We’ve helped brands go from unknown to unstoppable using these exact steps.
But none of it happens by accident.
Think of SEO as a machine. Every piece—content, trust, structure, speed—has to work together. Skip one, and it drags the rest down.
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