11 Reasons Why Your Website Isn’t Ranking Well on Google (and How to Fix It)

If your website isn’t ranking well on Google, it can be frustrating, especially if you’ve invested time and effort into creating content and optimizing your site through search engine optimization and digital marketing strategies. Several factors can prevent your site from ranking well in search results. Below, we’ve outlined 11 common reasons your website may not be performing and how to fix each issue.

1. Poor Keyword Targeting

Reason: Targeting the wrong keywords—or focusing on keywords that are too broad—can severely limit your website’s visibility on Google. Broad keywords like “windows” or “shoes” are highly competitive, meaning larger, more established websites are likely to dominate those search results. This makes it difficult for Google to recognize your website as relevant to user searches. Even if your content is well-written, if it’s targeting overly competitive or vague keywords, it will likely be outranked by more specific or authoritative sites.

Additionally, if the keywords you’re using don’t align with user intent, Google may see your page as irrelevant, causing it to rank lower. For example, if users are searching for specific solutions and your content is too generic or doesn’t address their needs, search engines may prioritize other pages that better match those search queries. In short, failing to optimize for the right keywords can lead to missed opportunities, low-quality traffic, and reduced conversions.

2. Lack of Fresh Content

Reason: If you’re not consistently updating your website with fresh, relevant content, Google may crawl it less frequently, leading to lower rankings. This highlights the importance of fresh content, as search engines view regularly updated sites as active and current. When your content becomes stale, it signals to search engines that your site may no longer be relevant, which can result in decreased visibility. Fresh content not only helps Google prioritize your site but also keeps your audience engaged, especially in industries where information evolves rapidly. By consistently publishing new material, you give your website more opportunities to rank for new keywords, attract backlinks, and stay competitive in search rankings.

Moreover, Google’s Freshness Algorithm emphasizes recent content for certain search queries. If your competitors are consistently posting fresh material, their sites are likely to rank higher for relevant terms, even if your content was once top-ranking. Failing to keep your content updated can result in your site becoming less visible, particularly in dynamic industries where trends or information evolve rapidly.

Additionally, fresh content gives you more opportunities to optimize for new keywords, attract backlinks, and engage your audience, which all contribute to higher search rankings. If your website isn’t keeping up with regular content updates, it may fall behind in the competitive race for visibility, engagement, and organic traffic.

3. Slow Page Load Speed

Reason: Google prioritizes websites that load quickly because page speed is directly tied to the user experience. Slow load times lead to higher bounce rates, meaning visitors are more likely to leave your site before it fully loads, especially if they’re on mobile devices or have slower internet connections. When users abandon your site quickly, Google interprets this as a poor user experience, negatively impacting your rankings.

In fact, slow-loading pages can increase the likelihood that users will never return to your site, harming engagement metrics like session duration and page views per visit—factors that are also considered by search engines when ranking websites. Beyond just rankings, slow load times affect your site’s overall performance by reducing conversion rates and user satisfaction.

Google has emphasized the importance of site speed in its Core Web Vitals update, which focuses on improving loading performance, interactivity, and visual stability. Websites that fail to meet these standards are penalized, meaning if your site loads slowly, you’re not just frustrating visitors but also reducing your chances of ranking higher in search results. Optimizing for speed, therefore, is essential for both maintaining a good user experience and improving your search engine rankings.

4. Mobile Unfriendly Design

Reason: Google uses mobile-first indexing, meaning it primarily ranks and indexes your site based on its mobile version. If your website isn’t optimized for mobile devices, you’re less likely to rank well, regardless of how well your desktop version performs. Since the majority of users access websites via mobile, a site that doesn’t function smoothly—whether it has slow load times, difficult navigation, or poor responsiveness—creates a negative user experience, resulting in higher bounce rates and lower engagement. Google interprets this as a sign that your site isn’t providing value to mobile users, leading to lower rankings.

Furthermore, Google’s Core Web Vitals update emphasizes the importance of mobile performance factors like load speed and visual stability. If your mobile site doesn’t meet these standards, you risk a drop in search rankings. To improve, ensure that your site is responsive, loads quickly, and provides an intuitive, seamless experience for mobile users.

5. Weak Backlink Profile

Reason: Backlinks—links from other reputable, authoritative websites to your own—are one of the most important ranking factors for Google. When high-quality websites link to your content, it signals to Google that your site is credible and valuable, essentially acting as a vote of confidence. The more high-quality backlinks your site earns, the more Google trusts your site’s authority in its niche. Without a strong backlink profile, your website will struggle to rank, especially for highly competitive search queries where other sites are being recognized for their credibility through their backlinks.

However, not all backlinks are equal. Links from trusted, authoritative websites like established news outlets, industry leaders, or high-traffic blogs carry significantly more weight than links from low-quality or spammy sites. Google’s algorithm evaluates both the quality and relevance of the backlinks to your website. If your backlink profile consists mostly of low-quality links, or worse, spammy ones, it could negatively impact your ranking. In competitive industries, where your competitors may already have strong backlink profiles, it becomes even more challenging to rank if your site lacks quality backlinks. Building a robust and trustworthy backlink profile is crucial to establishing your site’s authority and improving its ranking in search results.

6. Poor On-Page SEO

Reason: On-page SEO refers to the optimization of elements directly within your website, such as meta tags, headers, image alt text, and internal linking. Neglecting these essential components can severely affect how search engines understand and rank your content. Each of these elements provides important clues to search engines about the relevance and structure of your website, helping Google and other engines determine where and how your pages should rank for specific keywords and queries.

For instance, meta tags—like the meta title and description—are key indicators for search engines to understand the content of your page and match it to relevant searches. Without clear, well-optimized meta tags, your site may struggle to appear for targeted keywords. Similarly, headers (H1, H2, etc.) help Google identify the hierarchy and importance of information on your page, allowing the algorithm to prioritize content more effectively. Poorly structured headers or missing header tags make it harder for search engines to index your content properly, often resulting in lower rankings.

Image alt text is another crucial aspect of on-page SEO. Not only does it provide context to search engines about the images on your page, but it also improves accessibility for users with screen readers. Failing to include alt text on your images leaves a gap in the information search engines use to understand your site, which can negatively affect your SEO.

Lastly, internal linking helps guide users and search engines through your website, providing pathways to related content. Without internal links, search engines may struggle to discover and index important pages on your site, leading to missed ranking opportunities. Proper internal linking also ensures that your site’s link equity—essentially, the value passed from one page to another—flows effectively across your site, boosting the overall SEO performance of each page.

7. Thin or Low-Quality Content

Reason: Google prioritizes content that provides real value to users. Pages with thin content that lack depth or are stuffed with irrelevant keywords signal to Google that the page is not genuinely useful. As a result, such content will struggle to rank. Google’s algorithms, particularly the E-A-T guidelines (Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness), favour comprehensive, well-researched content over pages that focus solely on keyword manipulation.

Moreover, keyword stuffing or creating pages with little useful information leads to poor user experience, resulting in high bounce rates, which further harms rankings. Thin content frustrates users and causes them to leave your site quickly, signaling to Google that your page isn’t providing value. On the other hand, high-quality content keeps users engaged longer, positively impacting search rankings.

8. No HTTPS/SSL Security

Reason: Websites that lack HTTPS encryption (instead using HTTP) are flagged as insecure by modern web browsers. This warning can immediately erode user trust, as visitors may be hesitant to interact with or share sensitive information on an insecure website. In a world where online privacy and security are top concerns for users, the absence of HTTPS signals that a site may be vulnerable to security risks, such as data breaches or hacking attempts. As a result, users are more likely to leave a site flagged as insecure, leading to higher bounce rates, which can negatively impact your SEO performance and overall credibility.

Google also factors security into its ranking algorithm and actively prioritizes websites with HTTPS encryption in search results. Since 2014, Google has confirmed that HTTPS is a ranking signal, and sites with HTTPS tend to perform better in search rankings than their HTTP counterparts. By securing your site with an SSL certificate, you not only improve user trust and experience but also send a signal to Google that your website is secure, which can positively influence your rankings. Failing to make this upgrade may result in your site being ranked lower, especially when competing against secure websites.

9. Technical SEO Issues

Reason: Technical SEO issues like broken links, missing sitemaps, crawl errors, or improper indexing can significantly hinder Google’s ability to properly crawl and rank your website. If your website has broken links—links that lead to non-existent pages—Google may struggle to navigate your site, reducing the chances of your content being indexed. This also creates a poor user experience, as visitors may encounter dead-end pages, leading to increased bounce rates. Similarly, a missing or poorly configured sitemap can make it difficult for search engines to find and understand the structure of your website, which can cause certain pages to be left out of Google’s index entirely.

Crawl errors—instances where Google’s bots are unable to access certain pages—also prevent important content from being discovered and ranked. These issues often arise from poor internal linking, incorrect redirects, or server issues. Additionally, improper indexing can result in entire sections of your site being excluded from search results. When Google can’t properly crawl and index your site, it significantly reduces the visibility of your pages, ultimately harming your search rankings. Regularly checking for and resolving these technical issues is essential to ensure your website is fully accessible to both users and search engines, improving your chances of ranking higher.

10. Lack of Service or City Pages

Reason: If your business relies on local SEO to attract customers, not creating dedicated service or city pages can result in missed opportunities for local search traffic. Local SEO is critical for businesses that provide services within specific geographic areas, such as contractors, medical practices, or retail locations. Google prioritizes local results for queries with location intent, such as “plumber in Toronto” or “best coffee shop in Vancouver.” If your website lacks city-specific or service-specific landing pages, Google has fewer signals to understand where your business operates and what services you provide, which may cause your site to rank lower or not show up at all for local searches.

Dedicated service pages allow you to target specific keywords related to your offerings, improving the chances of ranking for those services. Meanwhile, city pages focus on geographic-specific keywords, which are essential for capturing local search traffic. Without these pages, Google may not associate your website with relevant local queries, making it difficult for potential customers in your area to find your business. Moreover, Google My Business listings and localized content that directly reflect your services and location are crucial components in boosting your presence in local searches.

11. High Competition

Reason: In highly competitive industries, it can be challenging to rank well, especially if your competitors have stronger SEO strategies or higher domain authority. Businesses operating in competitive niches, such as law, finance, or healthcare, often face stiff competition from established websites that have been building their online presence for years. These competitors typically have extensive backlink profiles, authoritative content, and long-standing credibility with Google, which helps them maintain high rankings. If your website is newer or lacks a robust SEO strategy, you’ll find it difficult to outperform these established competitors.

Additionally, higher domain authority—a ranking signal that measures the credibility and relevance of your website—gives competitors an edge. Sites with a higher domain authority are more likely to rank well for competitive keywords because they have accumulated trust through quality content, backlinks, and user engagement over time. Even with a strong SEO strategy, breaking through the noise in a crowded space requires consistently producing valuable content, earning backlinks, and addressing both user intent and search engine algorithms.

By addressing these key issues, you can improve your site’s ranking and visibility on Google. Regular audits and continuous optimization are essential to maintaining strong SEO performance.