Everyone wants to be number one. Why? Because the first organic result on Google gets almost 28% of all clicks. The second gets half of that.
But it seems harder than ever to get to the top of the search results because Google’s algorithms are always changing (for example, with helpful content updates, AI overviews, and E-E-A-T).
The good news is? You can still do it 100%. You don’t need a magic trick or a friend at Google. You need a plan that has worked before.
This is the exact plan for how to get to the top of Google in 2025 and beyond.
1. Figure out the “Why” behind the search in reverse.
You need to know what you want to say before you write anything.
If you sell running shoes and want to rank for “best shoes for hiking,” you will fail—even if your SEO is perfect. Google knows that the person searching for hiking boots doesn’t want sneakers, and trying to force irrelevant content can even increase your risk of a Google penalty for poor user experience or misleading intent.
How to do it:
Put your target keyword into Google. Check out the top three results.
Are they blog posts? Product pages? Videos? Tools like calculators?
Make sure the format matches. If all the top results are “10 Best [X]” lists, create one. If they are “How to” guides, follow that format.
2. Make content that is “10x” better, not just “good.”
The most important thing for Google to do is to make the user happy. The page that makes the most people happy wins.
To be number one, your content has to be a lot better than what is currently at the top. This is the “10x rule.”
The 10x content checklist:
Depth: Talk about everything. If the best result has 1,500 words, write 2,500 words. If they answer five questions, you should answer ten.
Originality: Include your own information, screenshots, case studies, or quotes from experts. Google finds AI junk that has been copied.
Use diagrams, charts, or your own photos as visuals. A wall of text will never be number one again.
Actionability: Tell the reader what they can do right away.
Pro Tip: Check out the “People Also Ask” boxes. Those are the exact questions your article needs to answer, and it should do so with separate subheadings (H2s or H3s).
3. Learn the Basics of On-Page SEO
If Google can’t read it, even the best content won’t work.
Be ruthless when optimizing these parts:
Use your exact keyword near the beginning of the title tag (for example, “How to Rank #1 on Google: Proven SEO Strategies”).
This is usually the title of your blog. Make it interesting.
URL Slug: Short and full of keywords. For example, /rank-number-one-google
Meta Description: It doesn’t affect rankings, but it does get people to click. Add a benefit to your keyword. “Want to be number one? From search intent to backlinks, learn the tried-and-true SEO methods that will get you to the top of Google—just like strategies used by the best SEO services company in India.”
Use them to logically break up your content. In subheadings, use keywords in a natural way.
Link to other posts on your site that are related to the one you are reading. This gives “link equity” to your site and helps Google understand how it is set up.
4. Make sure the user experience is good (Core Web Vitals)
Google’s “Page Experience” update in 2021 made speed and stability official ranking factors.
You will never be number one if your page takes four seconds to load. Before your content loads, users will leave.
Fix these three numbers:
Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): Your main content should load in less than 2.5 seconds. (How to fix it: use a fast host like WP Rocket or Cloudflare and compress images.)
First Input Delay (FID): How quickly the page responds to a click. (Solution: cut down on JavaScript).
Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): Those annoying jumps that happen when you try to click a button. (Solution: make sure that images and ads have clear width and height.)
You can use Google’s free PageSpeed Insights tool. It tells you exactly what you need to do.
5. Build backlinks like a pro, not like a spammer.
Backlinks are still one of the three most important things that affect rankings. Not all links are the same, though. One link from Forbes is worth more than 1,000 links from random directories.
Three ethical and tried-and-true ways to build links are:
The Skyscraper Technique (by Brian Dean): Look for a piece of content that is very popular and has a lot of backlinks. Make something that is ten times better. Then, send an email to everyone who linked to the original and say, “I saw that you linked to [old article]. I just put out the final word on this subject. Would you think about adding it?
Broken Link Building: Use a tool like Ahrefs or SEMrush to look for broken links on sites that are related to your business. Make a page that matches the broken link, and then email the site owner to say, “I found a broken link on your page.” I have a replacement that works.
Original Data/Study: Make your own survey or look at a set of data. Bloggers and journalists naturally link to one-of-a-kind stats.
Don’t buy links, join private blog networks, or spam forums. SpamBrain from Google will find you.
6. Use Schema Markup (The Secret Weapon)
A lot of people don’t pay attention to schema, especially when focusing on AI marketing trends, and that is why it is such a big opportunity.
Schema is a piece of code that you put on your page to help Google understand what it’s about. It also plays a key role in modern AI marketing trends, where search engines rely more on structured data to interpret content accurately. It also lets you add rich snippets like star ratings, FAQ dropdowns, and recipe times that make your result bigger and easier to click on.
These are the types of schema you should use for a blog post:
Article schema (for news and other content).
FAQ schema (for blocks of questions and answers).
How-to schema (for guides that show you how to do something step by step).
Use Google’s Rich Results Test tool to check your schema. This alone can raise your click-through rate by 30%, which is a hint to Google that you deserve to be number one.
7. Keep an eye on your rank, refresh it, and protect it
It’s only half the battle to get to number one. The new challenge is staying there.
Google updates its algorithms all the time. In 2023, a page that was number one might be number nine in 2025.
Make a schedule for maintenance:
Check your Google Search Console rankings once a month.
Every three months, revisit your best-performing content and evaluate whether the information is still accurate. Are any links broken? Does the data need updating? Adding a fresh section—like “Updates for 2025”—can keep your content relevant and competitive, especially when targeting topics like the Top 10 Search Engines, where trends and rankings frequently change.
When Google rolls out algorithm updates, monitor your rankings closely using tools like AccuRanker or SEMrush. If you notice a drop, analyze what changed and why. For example, the Helpful Content Update prioritizes user-first content, which is especially important when covering competitive topics such as the Top 10 Search Engines, where quality and relevance determine visibility.
The Bottom Line
To be number one on Google, you need both technical accuracy and human value.
The algorithm that Google uses is just a mirror that shows what users want: quick answers, deep knowledge, and reliable sources.
If you focus on search intent, build links in a way that is fair, care about the user experience, and keep your content up to date, the number one spot is not just a matter of luck. It’s just a matter of time.
Pick one keyword as your next step. Check the top three results. And make a page that makes theirs look like it’s not finished.
