Imagine doing a search on the Internet. Especially if the topic is broad, a web search might bring up millions of results! People doing searches on the web are tasked with sifting through these results to find the specific information they need. How does a business make sure that they’re in the top results? This is accomplished in part through good authority. Authority refers to how trusted a site is, and is determined by a number of factors, including how many trusted links a site uses, as well as how often a site is linked elsewhere as a trusted source. Search engines, such as Google or Bing, have little seeking programs called “spiders” that run from site to site reading keywords and storing them in a massive database to be recalled when one of those keywords is searched for. From there, the search engines have algorithmic software that merges this information together to create results pertinent to a user’s search. While no one (except maybe the search engine’s programmers) knows how these algorithms assemble the results they do, domain and page authority both are major factors that push sites to the top because they show that a site knows its business.
The following ten tools are for testing site authority against these algorithms by ranking a page or domain’s authority.
1. Link Redirect Trace by Link Research Tools
This tool is excellent because it checks a whole series of things that help optimize site authority. Not only does it trace the links a site redirects to, but it also shows site owners what sites are directing to them. If a site owner is being dragged down by a link from another site, Link Redirect Trace can warn the owner so they can disavow sites that harm their traffic or bring its page or domain authority down.
2. Moz
Moz is one of the most respected SEO measurement tools, and their Check Moz is free. Many other SEO tool sites grade using the Moz rating system, including 99Webtools.com.
3. Hubspot Marketing Grader
Because it’s an award-winning tool, Hubspot’s Marketing Grader deserves mention here. The component that measures site authority isn’t free, but having the analysis by a program that is a Webby award winner can’t hurt!
4. SEO Report Card by Upcity
This tool is free and gives an overview of the site’s performance in an easy format. One of the major metrics it uses to judge a site’s overall performance is site authority.
5. Small SEO Tools Page Authority Checker
This web-based tool allows a user to simply enter the domain or page URL in order to generate an authority report. It also checks a page for plagiarism and grammar, increasing a site’s authority and decreasing the odds of embarrassing gaffes.
6. Google Webmaster Tools
While they don’t specifically measure domain or page authority, Google’s free service teaches users how to make a site that pops on search engines. Who is a better authority on how to make a page easy to find than the leading search engine?
7. Website SEO Checker
This website has a huge library of tools, including a separate domain authority checker and page authority checker.
8. SEO Review Tools
This Google Chrome extension puts its numbers out there for all to see – its rating by users as well as its other business statistics. Not only does it check a site’s authority, but it can also check the authority of competitor sites.
9. Robin Gupta/Robingupta.com
Branding itself as “the brain behind your business,” this site has a plentitude of SEO tools and informative articles for optimizing one’s business site.
10. SEO Tools Check
Enter domain addresses into this bulk tool for a report that also flags plagiarism. SEO tools check also has backlink checks and other services available.
Ensuring that a page is relevant, authoritative and plagiarism-free can attract hits and thus potential clients. A wise business should never overlook the power of their website. The search engine optimization tools listed here, and many others that can be found online, can boost a site’s hits by ensuring the information they contain is accurate and knowledgeable, as well as warn site owners about other sites which may reduce their place on the search engine’s results list.
Nick Rojas is a self-taught, serial entrepreneur who’s enjoyed success working with and consulting for startups. Using his journalism training, Nick writes for publications such as Entrepreneur, TechCrunch, and Yahoo. He concentrates on teaching small and medium-sized enterprises how best to manage their social media marketing and define their branding objectives.
