The URL is the first piece of information about a page from the standpoint of a search engine, but it is also the unit of each page. Search engines know that a page exists based on its URL and checks the content for each URL. So, does the name of the URL or the name of the domain affect Google ranking?
Does URL affect ranking?
A while ago, I came across an SEO lecture by chance. In Bahamas Email List that lecture, they said that domain names and URL names must contain key keywords because they are Google’s ranking factors. This is half right and half wrong.
(1) Do keywords used in URLs affect ranking?
To be precise, I’ll borrow the words of John Mueller, Google’s Search Advocate.
“We use keywords in URLs with a very, very lightweight ranking factor. And it’s mainly a factor we consider when we haven’t accessed the content of that URL yet. So, if we don’t know where to classify the content of a URL we haven’t seen yet, then we can use the keywords used in the URL to rank as secondary. . But once we’ve crawled and indexed that content, there’s a whole lot more to it. So no matter what language the URL is in, it’s the same for us.”
So, it can be summarized in two ways.
It is only used as a supplement to the initial crawling and indexing of URLs.
It is not considered after it has already been indexed.
So, if the theme of your content is clear, you know you don’t need to spend too much time naming your URLs.
(2) Do keywords used for domains affect ranking?
So, does a domain name affect a website’s overall ranking or domain authority (DA)?
John Mueller says otherwise. (Ask Google Webmasters 2020)
“In a word, no. Having keywords in the top-level domain doesn’t count for any bonus points.”
You can see that domain names do not technically affect Google rankings.
How should I write the URL and domain?
So, how should the URL and domain be written? As you can see above, URL and domain name are not very important factors for ranking. However, SEO is not just about technical factors, it is also important how customers who visit our website view our website. It doesn’t have to be too elaborate, but it’s good to consider that our customers are watching.
(1) URLs are concise and in English
It is highly recommended that URLs be written in English as concisely as possible. In particular, when a customer checks a URL, it is usually when it is shared. Which of the URLs below do you feel more trustworthy?
(2) Domains include associated English keywords
Search engines don’t use domain names for ranking, but if you’re a CW Leads medical website, using relevant keywords like ‘medical’, ‘medi’, or ‘clinic’ will give your visitors confidence.
Of course, for the best optimization, it would be a little better to consider search keywords, including URLs and domain names, than not. However, if your resources are limited, the URL will be good enough to be able to predict the content by looking at this URL when a customer shares it, rather than considering it SEO-wise.