"When Will I Be on Google?"

If you're looking at SEO or search engine marketing, then you no doubt have one ultimate goal: ranking at the top of Google, Bing and Yahoo. Having the No. 1 ranking for highly competitive keywords and phrases places your website far above your competitors, and when your website earns a No. 1 placement, you're almost certain to get the most traffic – and business – instead of your competition.

But, it's difficult to say when this will happen. If you're wondering, "When will I be on Google?" or when your website will rank at the top for a certain phrase, don't expect it to be an overnight thing. Companies who promise top rankings in a certain period are most likely looking at you as low-hanging fruit ripe for the picking. So, why can't predictions be made about search engine placements? There are several reasons:

Algorithms are always changing

Search engine algorithms are always changing to make for a better user experience. These are trade secrets, and techniques and strategies that may have worked six months ago might not today. And when a change happens (especially in Google's case), rankings can be affected.

Rankings are the results of effort

You've created a great website, and you're ready to roll. You let it go, waiting for things to happen. Three months later, they haven't, and you're getting frustrated. Understandable, but rankings don't happen just by creating a website. A great SEO campaign can get your site the rankings and traffic you desire. If you want your website to rank No. 1 for an extremely competitive term, know it will only happen after a great deal of effort.

New competition everyday

While you're waiting for your website to get to the top, so are your competitors. And the battle for rankings can be fierce, and if you don't have an Internet marketing tank on your side, then your website might be a forgotten casualty.

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