JackR - 12:14 pm on Oct 12, 2006 (gmt 0)

My site is one year old tomorrow and this week I've made it to #3 for my primary keyword. This is showing across all DCs and is already bringing traffic from around the world.

The folks who have the #1 spot have been there for years and have a huge amount of organic search traffic. I know this because they do not advertise anywhere but are extremely successful.

Can anyone who has been in this position advise me what factors influence the top three placements? The reason I ask is that:

I know that Age of domain is relevant, but ...

#1 site: Online Since: 01-May-2003
#2 site: Online Since: 20-Aug-2001
My site: Online Since: 13-Oct-2005
#4 site: Online Since: 01-May-2000

... Judging from the above, age of domain is clearly not the most important factor.

Backlinks:

#1 site: 699
#2 site: 158
My site: 1760
#4 site: 710

Page Rank:

#1 site: PR5
#2 site: PR5
My site: PR6
#4 site: PR5

Site: Pages

#1 site: 575
#2 site: 2,060
My site: 230
#4 site: 705

Given the above, I can no specific indication of what the Big G is looking for.

Your thoughts would be most welcome.

[edited by: JackR at 12:49 pm (utc) on Oct. 12, 2006]