37 experts in the search engine optimisation field voted on what factors they thought comprise Google’s ranking algorithm and the results were compiled by SEOmoz. Other than getting the information directly from Google, I can’t think of a better source of information.
Definitely worth reading when you have a spare few hours to work on your site. The guide to Search Engine Ranking Factors is split into the Top 10 Positive Factors (listed below), Top 5 Negative Factors and Most Controversial Factors.
Top 10 Positive Factors
- Keyword Use in Title Tag
- Global Link Popularity of Site
- Anchor Text of Inbound Link
- Link Popularity within the Site’s Internal Link Structure
- Age of Site
- Topical Relevance of Inbound Links to Site
- Link Popularity of Site in Topical Community
- Keyword Use in Body Text
- Global Link Popularity of Linking Site
- Rate of New Inbound Links to Site
