I cannot account for why I never looked previously, but there are web resources that explain how Google does its job and how to make better use of it.  Doh!!  Even if you aren’t involved in marketing and have nothing to sell, it makes sense to have a better knowledge of how this system works.

If you are involved in selling things, eventually you have to turn to the internet and view your ranking on the various search engines.  Google uses some kind of black magic to rank websites.  While the details may be proprietary, many of the general principles are out in the open. One of the criteria is the extent of interconnectedness the site has with other sites.  Sites that are linked to by many other sites will be ranked higher than those with fewer links, all else being the same. Clues to the ranking mechanisms are revealed in the Google patent appln link here. 

Th’ Gaussling is not so bored with life yet that this patent appln is high on the reading list. But digital savants and code monkeys out there may dig reading this stuff.