Google and URLs

[rtg20]

Hello,

I'm curious as to how URL can affect Google ranking. For example, consider this site:

http://www.mortgageflorida.co.uk

If you type "mortgage florida" into Google *UK* then it's top of the list.

However typing "florida mortgage" and it's not!! Why should the order of the keywords be so important, is it to do with the URL?

Having multiple sites with duplicate content is said to be an ineffective way of improving Google rankings - but if the URL corresponds to key words then surely it could be really effective?

Does anyone know what role the co.uk bit of the domain plays? Is that important too...?

I ask because I have worked on http://properties.usa-bound.com and am trying to understand how Google works in order to get this site at the top of the rankings. All advice appreciated!

thanks for any and all replies,

Richard

[dcsmith]

I'm using Google.com, not UK, and on the data center I'm seeing it is #1 either way Florida Mortgage or Mortgage Florida. It can change from data center to data center as well as from country to country.

It looks to me like you have a subdomain "properties" on a domain "usa-bound.com" The home page title will get you no where. Here is your title keywords Buy a home, real estate, homes, property in florida and the US-US homes and Mortgage

You page keyword are "US real estate, US and Florida homes and mortgages for UK residents" that consists of 2 and nothing specific, it reads more like a description tag than a keyword tag.

Target your keyword, British Florida Home Buyers, Florida Homes for British, you know what they are, then create title tags and keyword, as well as specific url names for pages like properties.usa-bound.com/british-florida-home-buyers.html

Page title "British Florida Home Buyers" H1 Tag, Briitish Florida Home Buyers

Then, have a blog title "British Florida Home Buyers" blog post "British Florida Home Buyers - Where to Start"

First you have to decide on your keywords to go after. Don't go after real estate, or usa real estate, or even florida real estate, if you know an area of florida that is attractive to British buyers, the go after that community or subdivision name, If there are attractions that bring the British, write about those and use keywords and titles for those.

You will be amazed at how quickly you can establish yourself on google by targeting specific keywords for your virtical market.

[rtg20]

Thanks for the swift and helpful response.

The keywords and titles are now hopefully better? However I read somewhere that if you specify a keyword in your META keywords and it doesn't appear anywhere in the page then Google will knock you down the search result list? I use different titles for each page but the same set of keywords for each, is that really bad...?

What about including keywords as directory names...? Is that also worthwhile?

I have also put some keywords in the H1 tag on the front page.

We hope to have a blog going soon.

I haven't renamed the pages. The problem with putting the word "Florida" in the names of the pages is that the client is hoping to expand to include other states as well. However he is focusing on Florida at the moment.

Also I have added a Google site-map, quite fiddly to do but hopefully it will be worth it.

Any idea how long it takes for Google to be aware of these changes...? I use Google webmaster tools and Google Analytics.

Anyone else frustrated by all these silly hoops we have to jump through in order to get a good Google ranking?! I've hardly changed the actual content of the pages. Seems really silly that Google cares what the name of the file is! :-(

Thanks,

Richard