Search rankings and the future of your web sites and blogs… It seems like everyone is talking about their search ranking these days, and why wouldn’t they? With Google throwing web sites and their rankings around like rag dolls, you never know where your rankings might be!
Thankfully there is a wide selection of tools and resources for you to use to track where you are in the search results, and some that will keep tracking reports and progress of your movements. In this post we are going to highlight a few of the best free, free trial, and paid solutions out there for tracking your blog’s movement in the search engines.
WhatPageOfSearchAmIOn.com
This web site has such a silly long name, yet it tells you exactly what you use the site for… WhatPageOfSearchAmIOn.com shows you exactly where you are currently ranked in the search results for any search term. It’s an extremely fast and easy to use tool. All you need to do is put in the search box the phrase you want to see if search rankings for, then also put in your domain name. In the example below you will see that this blog currently ranks on page 3 for “blog tips”.
SheerSEO Rank Checker
Knowing where you rank in the search engines right now is extremely useful, but knowing where you did rank in previous weeks and month is even more useful. Seeing your increases or decreases in movement through the search engines can be controlled by your current link building and content generation methods. If you see positive movement in the search engines, you can have a good idea what’s working and what’s not.
Through the use of the SheerSEO’s rank checker you can track the movement of various sites in the search engine. This is a premium software application, but anyone can download a free 60 day trial version to track and report your site’s search rankings and more.
SearchStatus FireFox Add-On
It’s great to have web sites, applications and resources for pulling up detailed site stats, but what about when you are working within your web browser and looking for some quick stats. The SearchStatus extension for FireFox might just be what you are looking for. This free add-on allows you to display the Google PageRank, Alexa Rank, Compete ranking and SEOmoz Linkscape mozRank anywhere in your browser, along with fast keyword density analyzer, keyword/nofollow highlighting, backward/related links, canonical links, WHOIS, robots and more. This tool is a must for anyone who is addicted to web sites and SEO, and currently has over 55,000 active users. If you are using Google Chrome, try SEO Site Tools extension instead.
How to Build the Best Search Rankings and Content for Your Blog
Every day I receive emails from people who are just starting with their first blogs. Many people will ask how to make money with their blog or how to achieve top search rankings. My response is always the same… I tell them that blogging is one of the slowest forms of generating money online, but it can also be one of the most rewarding and lowest cost investments as well. Instead of a physical dollar amount, you need to invest your time and dedication to finding a quality niche and creating really great content.
It takes a lot of time for a blog to go from nothing to an authority site that ranks very well in the search engines. There may be some short cuts or creative ways to get ahead at a faster rate, but in the end it comes down to QUALITY links and QUALITY content. I’m also a big believer in guest posting. Not only is it free and gives you exposure on other blogs to new traffic sources, but it also brings traffic back to your site and it creates long term and high quality backlinks as well.
My Advice About Getting Good Search Rankings
In the end… if you want to make it in the game of online marketing and building a blog into something big, focus on your content and link building methods and not trying to game the system.
{ 82 comments… read them below or add one }
Twitter: seoallrounder
June 30, 2012 at 5:06 AM
Great post Zac, i was looking for this tool , i googled a lot but couldn’t find any good legit serp checker.
google just released panda 3.8 on 25june and people would be busy checking their serps , so right post at the right time!
Saad Naeem recently posted..MaxCDN Review -Best CDN for WordPress
Twitter: moneyreign
July 1, 2012 at 4:26 PM
Excellent, glad you found these useful. It’s always a pain to weed through search results when so many of them are garbage.
Zac Johnson recently posted..Creating a Mobile App for Your Web Site, Business or Brand
Twitter: blogginginsight
June 30, 2012 at 6:04 AM
Hi Zac,
Thanks for this post. For me it’s timely since i just started a new blog and i’m in the process of building links and promoting it. These resources will come in handy.
I always look forward to posts done by you as it seems you always know what I’m planning to embark on.
Again Thanks!
Norbert recently posted..4 Ways to Increase Your Website’s Conversion Rate
Twitter: moneyreign
July 1, 2012 at 4:27 PM
Thanks, glad you enjoy my posts! I will be sure to write some new and interesting ones in the coming weeks.
Zac Johnson recently posted..Creating a Mobile App for Your Web Site, Business or Brand
Twitter: lisapatb
June 30, 2012 at 6:31 AM
Love the “what page of search are you on” – first time I’ve seen this one and I’ve used quite a few different methods over the years. Fascinating. Thank you!
Lisa recently posted..Let’s Make Your Computer Last Longer!
Twitter: moneyreign
July 1, 2012 at 4:28 PM
It’s one of my favorites too, I love how it shows you the scanning through of results then highlights you listing.
Zac Johnson recently posted..Creating a Mobile App for Your Web Site, Business or Brand
Twitter: abhibalani
June 30, 2012 at 8:48 AM
Hello Zac,
It’s good to see your post here. I hope I can get on on mine someday. hehe..
I loved these tools.
I tried the keyword phrase “Blogger to WordPress Migration” for my blog oddblogger.com and my post came on 4th number. Good? bad? I wrote it 3 months ago.
I am going for a trial for the second one. And I don’t use Firefox. I hope there is a Google Chrome substitute for that plugin.
What would you say about Google Chrome incognito mode? When we open a tab in incognito mode, then we are completely NEW to Google (if I am right). No cookies, history etc are stored.
Do you think, one can check if he or she appears in Google SEPRs by doing a Google search in incognito mode of Google Chrome? I have tried that many times.
Abhi Balani recently posted..OddBlogger WON the game once AGAIN – 1st prize $250
Twitter: dietfitnessdeck
June 30, 2012 at 10:00 AM
Searchstatus comes in quite handy with Firefox. The other two tools are quite new to me. Thanks Zac!
Jane recently posted..What Topics Potentially Become Killer Posts Without Much Effort?
Twitter: raajtram
June 30, 2012 at 10:09 AM
Wow Zak! WhatPageOfSearchAmIOn.com is amazing! Now we wouldn’t have to go on Google everytime to check our blog moved up! It’s really an amazing tool! Thanks for sharing! Sometimes, we even forget to look for such tools, but there are people like you who help everyone
Cheers
Raaj Trambadia recently posted..How To Make Money With CommentLuv Premium Plugin
Twitter: moneyreign
July 1, 2012 at 4:29 PM
It’s great because it isn’t influenced by your cookies and previous search results.
Zac Johnson recently posted..Creating a Mobile App for Your Web Site, Business or Brand
Twitter: CoolWPTips
June 30, 2012 at 10:22 AM
Really the What Page Of Search Am I On tool is awesome. Thanks for sharing this great tools.
Sai Kumar recently posted..Google Officially Announced Nexus 7 Tablet – Have a look
Twitter: GuideAndNews
June 30, 2012 at 12:17 PM
Hi Zac,
Awesome tools! What Page of Search Am I On seems like interesting tools to find out the search ranking of a website. I never knew tools like this before.
Ehsan recently posted..How Guest Blogging On Other Sites Can Help New Bloggers
Twitter: makewebworld
June 30, 2012 at 12:25 PM
Hey Zac, nice share..I like WhatPageOfSearchAmIOn.com concept…I usually use market samurai to do this work for me but will defiantly try this service..
I agree with your views on Guest Posting, its a great way to expand your reach and present yourself to new audience…
Sanjeev recently posted..How To Move Your Blog To Another Hosting
Twitter: techblowup
June 30, 2012 at 2:05 PM
These are the best tools I have ever used.
Thanks for sharing such nice tools.
Prakash recently posted..The Google Earth App for Android Updated with 3D View
Twitter: bihar
June 30, 2012 at 4:45 PM
Brilliant tools, I just checked my ranking for one of my websites and it proved me right, its not bad. whatpageofsearchamion.com is pretty simple to use, just keywords and URL. I have not heard of the searchstatusFirefox addon, will check it out. Thanks for these tools.
Shalu Sharma recently posted..How to wear saree
I used to check my blog ranking from whatpageofsearchamion.com but I didnt know other way . your advise would help me to maintain my blog ranking thanks for your suggestion.
Twitter: makemoneyinlife
June 30, 2012 at 7:06 PM
Interesting tool Zac, for checking competition
I will try it out, thanks for sharing
JamesW recently posted..MakeMoneyInLife Giveaway – 3 Themes from MyThemeShop ($105 Value)
Twitter: sylviane101
June 30, 2012 at 7:49 PM
Thank you for those tools Zac, I have to say that I didn’t know about any of them and I have to check those out.
Sylviane Nuccio recently posted..The Three Main Components Of A Converting Sales Page
Twitter: RyanHanley_Com
June 30, 2012 at 9:14 PM
Zac,
Some great tools here. I’ve actually never used any of them. But from your description all of them seem like great resources.
Thanks for sharing I’m going to try these out soon.
Ryan H.
Twitter: moneyreign
July 1, 2012 at 4:31 PM
Thanks, always great to have a wide selection to choose from and play around with.
Zac Johnson recently posted..Creating a Mobile App for Your Web Site, Business or Brand
Twitter: IssuesEthical
June 30, 2012 at 11:24 PM
These are some great tools, thanks for sharing.
Michael Belk recently posted..The Stolen Valor Act; Ruled unconsitutional.
Twitter: raheelmushtaq
July 1, 2012 at 1:59 AM
I guess these tools can be used to analyze competitors rank too..!! which can be very beneficial..!
Raheel Mushtaq recently posted..Blogger Of The Month: Danish Mughal from Pakium
Twitter: Nimsrules
July 1, 2012 at 2:30 AM
Some truly useful tools and services shared here. Thank you for this helpful article. My personal favourite is What Page…!
Twitter: romerolijkwan
July 1, 2012 at 7:41 AM
Wow the SheerSEO tool is very impressive. I always used MS to track ranks but this looks way more advanced, especially the previous weeks rank can be very useful.
Twitter: TheArbazKhan
July 1, 2012 at 9:44 AM
Great post.
Helped me much.
I found out that my blog was ranking above ProBlogger.net for the keyword “top Probloggers” and that is something unexpected. A great feeling.
Thanks for such an informative article
Arbaz Khan recently posted..4 Blogging Myths prevailing in the Blogosphere !!!!!
Twitter: moneyreign
July 1, 2012 at 4:31 PM
Excellent!
Twitter: TheAmrik
July 1, 2012 at 10:54 AM
Nice list of tools you have mentioned above. Thank you for sharing the tools with us.
Good luck
Amrik recently posted..How To Make Full Time Career In Blogging
Twitter: NotMyHoliday
July 1, 2012 at 1:07 PM
Nice list here, i don’t tend to follow these statistics when it comes down to my blog’s – never gave it much thought but i’ll start to look into from now on i think.
Surminga recently posted..Greece, Athens – The Acropolis
Twitter: larrywjames
July 1, 2012 at 9:08 PM
I really like the SheerSEO resource. I have never heard of it. It looks like it can do a lot more that check your blogs search ranking. I am afraid to know what it costs. I am currently using Traffic Travis to check my blogs search rankings. It is very affordable and does an excellent job and just like SheerSEO, Traffic Travis lets me know at a glance if my position has increased or decreased.
Larry recently posted..SEOPressor WordPress SEO Plugin Review
Twitter: ProMairaj
July 2, 2012 at 12:55 AM
Great Post on BasicBlogTips.com Keep it up, thanks for such posts. Please Post some Cool Plugins!
Great tools. I am using search status. It is awesome tool to find search rankings. These all tools are awesome. These tools are useful to analysis the competitors websites or blogs.
The what page of search am I on tool seems to work really well. I have found with a lot of free tools that they work for a number of months and then seem to stop. Hopefully this one will hang around for a while. Good advice on the searchstatus add on. I will download it and give it a try.
Twitter: ayaz1988
July 2, 2012 at 4:23 AM
Great Post Zac!
I really like the first link you have provided and I think I need to work on that little bit more and doing comments blogging and guest posting for time now but only struggling to get the good search rankings of my site to find out. Can you suggest me any specific which I should use to know the search rankings?
Ayaz recently posted..Real Estate Marketing: 50 Simple Things Any Realtor can Blog to Become the Authority
Twitter: NoypiGeeks
July 2, 2012 at 5:17 AM
Great! I needed this! I tried whatpageofsearchamion and it works like a charm! I can now find my position in SERPs easily. Thanks!
Adam Parnala recently posted..HTC One S Philippines Price, Specs, Features, Photos
Hi
Thanks for posting.Nice list here. I am in love with this tool. this tool is so
Pulkit recently posted..Grade 10 – Science and Math Combo
Grate tools.
Nice tips of tools you have mention above. pretty simple to use, just keywords and URL. I have not heard of the searchstatusFirefox addon.Thank you for sharing such a brilliant
tools with us.
Zac, you are awesome. Those are the tools i needed. They are simple but in the same time efficient. Tried them and liked them. Thank you!
Twitter: russellworld
July 2, 2012 at 10:21 AM
I am already using Search Status Mozilla addon. It has all the basic information of SEO. I am impressed to know about WhatPageOfSearchAmIOn. It will help to show my site ranking as well as article ranking. Thanks for exclusive post
Twitter: khajamoin1
July 2, 2012 at 2:00 PM
I use searchstatus for firefox, have to try with other tools.
Thanks Zac for the helpful list of tools.
Khaja moin recently posted..4 Tips to Do While Writing a Blog Post
Twitter: ajnabiicom
July 2, 2012 at 4:03 PM
Hi Zac,
Wonderful post and tools you shared with us. whatpageofsearchamion.com is a great tool for checking keyword position on search engines. SearchStatus FireFox Add-On is new to me I will try it out.
Thank you!
Ajnabii recently posted..Five Great Resources for Understanding the Penguin Update
I use a different tool but these look great! Especially What Page Am I On! I think I’ll start to use that for checking my rankings from now on. Thank you!
Twitter: adriennesmith40
July 2, 2012 at 5:09 PM
Hey Zac,
Great post and great tools you shared. I knew about a couple of them but not the very first one. I guess it doesn’t go any further then ten pages. I like to see my progress from where I start and how soon I get to where I want to be.
Appreciate you sharing these with us, great resources.
~Adrienne
Adrienne recently posted..Are You Making This Same Mistake
Twitter: SuccessBB
July 2, 2012 at 5:22 PM
My brother has been a big proponent for a long time of going more for direct traffic and letting the rankings take care of themselves. In the wake of Penguin, I have to say that I’ve been feeling the same way. That way, you’re not totally gaming the system.
I still keep an eye on my rankings, but I have been striving more to make connections with people and building relationships. I feel in the long run, that will get me where I want to go.
Thanks for the post!
Grady Pruitt recently posted..My Understanding of the Law of Sacrifice for Success
Twitter: LogAllot
July 2, 2012 at 5:50 PM
Zac, excellent post. I haven’t heard of any of these and some I started putting to use as I read this. I love the first one with the weird name and it is very fast. What I like most about it and is that really showed me where I rank, and what my keywords is and isn’t doing for my blog. It also helps me get back to basics on what I need to revise and revamp as I change my blog template yet again. Thank you!
Sonia recently posted..How You Drive Determines if You’re A Follower or Leader
Twitter: growwithstacy
July 2, 2012 at 9:55 PM
Hi Zac,
Thank you for sharing these tools with us. I haven’t heard of any of them and they all sound very useful. I can’t wait to give them a try!
Thanks again!
Stacy
Stacy recently posted..3 Simple Ways to Improve Your Writing
Twitter: geojolly
July 3, 2012 at 3:02 AM
I just began a new site and am always worried about SEO ! Thanks a lot for the tips to check my sites performance…
Hello Zac,
thanks for the sharing me this is a very amazing Toolbar, and thanks for the solved my problem i think i am start to use for checking my rank
again Thanks
Pulkit Gupta
Pulkit Gupta recently posted..Grade 10 – Science and Math Combo
Twitter: succesAtSchool
July 3, 2012 at 11:59 AM
Thanks for spotlighting these tool. It’s easy enough to know what you’re not ranking for, but finding what you are ranking for can be a bit trickier – at least for me.
Magali recently posted..Homeschooling for Working Parents
Twitter: bobandrosemary
July 3, 2012 at 1:22 PM
Thanks for this great list of tools, Zac. I like the idea of being able to track my progress on certain search terms.
This will definitely give you a measure on how you’re doing with your blogging strategy.
Great stuff!
Bob Clarke recently posted..Are You Sabotaging Yourself on Facebook?
Twitter: carollynnrivera
July 3, 2012 at 1:58 PM
Good stuff! I hadn’t heard of some of those so I’ll give them a shot. It’s unusual for a good tool to be free so I’m happy to experiment! I also use the SEOMOZ bar in firefox. It’s less about rankings and more about PR and other stats but you can use it to compare your site to others in search results, which is kind of cool. Thanks for the tips!
Carol Lynn recently posted..Interview With Entrepreneur, Podcaster, Forum Master And Owner Of The iFroggy Network, Patrick O’Keefe
Twitter: felipeveiga
July 3, 2012 at 8:56 PM
I also use Seomoz and I love it. I can easily search who is having better ranking than me with a due keyword and mimetize the results within the SEOMoz webpage.
Yet, your solutions seem pretty cool, but they are not automated
Felipe Veiga recently posted..O que é o Google+ e como usar – Tutorial completo para criar sua conta
Twitter: seotraffics
July 3, 2012 at 3:03 PM
This is indeed a great read and I am glad to read it. Search rankings have in fact bothered many of us and most of us must have felt helpless regarding what steps they should take to get the to ranks. After reading this post I am sure that many have been benefited with the tools you mentioned and will be beneficial for many to achieve their desired goals.
Thanks for sharing such helpful and wonderful posts.
Suneeta recently posted..How to SEO for magento Website
Twitter: blogsnewsreview
July 4, 2012 at 12:56 AM
Zac, tried out WhatPageOfSearchAmIOn Very cool and easy to use. With Panda throwing us around like rags dolls, as you say, SERPs could be just about anything. Also found some great and relevant sites to comment on.
Astro Gremlin recently posted..Funny Failures: Unsuccessful Exercise Machines throughout History
Twitter: maxtechdiary
July 4, 2012 at 3:02 AM
greate tips..specially for beginners like mee..thanx for providing such post..
selena recently posted..Google Shutting Down 5 More Services
I like the idea of Firefox Add-On, and I am using it now, but there’re just Pagerank and Alexa Rank, no Compete showing.
I used this tool just now. and it is the best tool i have ever used. Some tools are not providing right information according to our website. But this tool is much better than others. Thanks for sharing.
Pulkit recently posted..Grade 10 – Science and Math Combo
Thanks for sharing this great tools. Your post could be a good help for those people who are looking for excellent tools for checking their blog search rankings. Great article!
Sally recently posted..Is More Always Better?
Twitter: TechTricksWorld
July 4, 2012 at 1:32 PM
These are nice. I have just used the first one and found it fine. But I will love to use the firefox ad on. Thanks for the list.
Atish recently posted..Things To Follow While Writing Any Articles
Twitter: complearnhow
July 4, 2012 at 3:15 PM
Thank you Zac there are some great resources there that I had not heard of. I have been trying to find ways to track my keywords. Thanks for the share.
craig recently posted..10 Sites To Download Free Software And Open Source Software
Hi Zac,
These are all excellent ranking checkers. I would also suggest Raven Tools since it (like many others) is also bundled with a variety of search engine optimisation features (the difference -some are actually vauable
)
Also, as suggestion to every blogger, I would not look at rankings on a daily basis (you will go insane), but rather look at it weekly, write quality content and use the other SEO tips Zac referenced in the post.
Brent Yorzinski recently posted..International Search Engine Optimisation
Twitter: TommyGriffith
July 4, 2012 at 11:40 PM
Nice work Zac. I personally use AWR (Advanced Web Rankings) to check where I’m ranking. It’s a paid tool, but it’s only $99, so not that bad. I had heard a lot of great things about Sheer, and your post has inspired me to check it out.
One thing you may want to consider adding to the content of this article, is that if bloggers just do 2-3 minutes of keyword research prior to publishing (even for only their title tag!), they can see significant positive impact to their rankings.
Tommy
Twitter: FerbHinlor
July 5, 2012 at 11:06 PM
This is a great post, I wasn’t really concerned about tools that we can use to monitor blog’s ranking, but the last part was great, really help me understand how blog is actually going to help me generate revenue.
Ferb recently posted..09 Popular WordPress Plugin for Related Posts
Twitter: intlQuest
July 6, 2012 at 10:13 PM
These are really useful websites for any webadministrator. Normally I would look at my ranking on the Google toolbar until I found out that the results posted there are at most 3 months old! Now with these sites the only thing I should be doing is to look for keywords that would help me alleviate my site
Nice information, all these tools are new for me. But surely I will try to use these tools to check my blog rankings. Thanks for sharing this information.
Twitter: techbloghub
July 8, 2012 at 12:22 PM
thanks for WhatPageOfSearchAmIOn.com, this is very helpful site for me. Nice tools listed here.
Shahid recently posted..How to Configure Dial Up Connection in Ubuntu Linux | Connect Reliance Netconnect+ in Ubuntu
Twitter: astrageeks
July 9, 2012 at 3:13 AM
Hi,nice list is here really the What Page Of Search Am I On tool is awesome. Thanks for sharing this great tools.Glad to read your post.
Very handy list Zac, locating the search results of new client websites is actually quite a time consuming process, this should hopefully speed it up somewhat, SEOMOz pro also has a Search ranking tool, I do like the whatpageofsearchamIon.com which must win the Leo Tolstoy URL award
Carl Potts recently posted..Enter title here
Twitter: mondejar2009
July 14, 2012 at 3:19 AM
These are nice resources that can be used to determine blog standings and if properly followed good rankings in Google shall be obtained. Thanks for posting.
Marvin recently posted..Paid To Click – Clixsense
Twitter: xlimderek
July 14, 2012 at 6:32 AM
Cool
I love Mozzila addon
i bet you are a linux user
Derek recently posted..Using So.cl To Get Blog Traffic
i’m usually use rank tracker free version to check my website ranking, this is new tool that i know from you i will try this. thanls
Currently when evaluating Link Prospects I’m using a combination of Page Rank, SEO Moz Domain Authority and Page authority(SEOMOz Toolbar for firefox) I’m not completely happy with this so I’ll research more Firefox add ons later
Carl Potts recently posted..Enter title here
I must say, these tools do look like they’re worth checking out. I’m using different tools right now but these ones look better than what I have.
Twitter: Dherish09
July 24, 2012 at 1:57 AM
Thank you for sharing this article. I use one ranking checker but i like this one than my tools
Dherish recently posted..Offer – Affordable Pasig House and Lot for only 2.532M
Twitter: SoCalMobileAuto
July 24, 2012 at 1:57 PM
Lmbo… I was just on Google Analytics trying to figure out the best to determine how to see stats like these tools show. This read was right on time.
Thanks!
Joe recently posted..Protect your Investment with San Diego Auto Detailing
Twitter: sajithsand
July 25, 2012 at 5:41 AM
These three tools are great. I used all of those and #2 is best fitted with me. So I’ll use it to check my page ranks
GREAT article and I appreciate you posting about whatpageamion.com! I have a few domains and trying to check progress on various keywords and looking to see where the h*ck I am takes serious time… this is an awesome tool.
These tools look great and user friendly. I have not used any of these now, but would surely like to give them a shot. Thanks for sharing this useful info.
Twitter: techn0_freaks
August 18, 2012 at 5:08 AM
Nice way to optimize our site Performance, and keep tracking about our keyword ranking. Nice post helpful too.
Harsh Bhatt recently posted..Google plans to fight with online piracy !
Twitter: blogvkp
September 14, 2012 at 8:38 AM
Hey thanks ZAC, these tools are awesome. The one spot to check all your positions. Great..
Vivek recently posted..Image SEO : 5 Image Optimization Tips For Better Ranking
Twitter: games_rise
September 19, 2012 at 4:18 AM
I’m already using Search Status Firefox Add-On. But other tool never met before. What Page of Search Am I On seems like interesting tools. Thanks for sharing. Cheers!
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Twitter: Adil_Khawaja
October 7, 2012 at 2:02 PM
Nice share Ileane. After reading the post I searched my blog ranking first time. It is nice that we can search our blog ranking for particular keyword so easily.
Thanks again
Adil recently posted..Men’s Clothing Winter Trends
Twitter: mchhimwal
April 28, 2013 at 5:50 AM
Hello Zac Johnson
Thanks fir sharing these tools with us.All of three are new to me.I just check these and what I found out is these sites are awesome.Thanks again for sharing these.
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