What is Page Authority
Page Authority (PA) is a score developed by Moz, a leading SEO software company, designed to predict the likelihood of a specific page ranking well in search engine results pages (SERPs). While not directly used by Google as a ranking factor, it's still a valuable metric for understanding a page's overall SEO strength and potential to compete for organic traffic.
Here's what you need to know about Page Authority:
What it Measures
- Backlinks: The number and quality of websites linking back to your page. High-quality backlinks from relevant websites are strong indicators of authority and trust.
- On-page optimization: Factors like title tags, meta descriptions, and keyword usage within the page content.
- Domain authority: The overall SEO strength of the website containing the page.
- Technical SEO: The technical health and performance of the page, such as page speed and mobile-friendliness.
- Social signals: Shares, likes, and mentions on social media can indirectly impact PA.
What it Doesn't Do
- Guarantee top rankings: A high PA doesn't guarantee your page will always rank at the top; other factors like content relevance and search intent still play a crucial role.
- Directly influence Google rankings: As mentioned earlier, Google doesn't use PA directly for ranking purposes. It's just an indicator.
- Why it's Still Useful:
- Benchmarking: Comparing your PA to competitors can show you where you stand in terms of SEO strength for specific pages.
- Identifying improvement areas: Understanding what factors contribute to PA can help you focus your SEO efforts on high-impact areas.
- Estimating organic traffic potential: A higher PA generally suggests better chances of attracting organic traffic for that page.
- Tracking progress: Monitoring your PA over time can help you gauge the effectiveness of your SEO strategy for specific pages.