--- title: SEO's Effect on Google Algorithms | Inbound Marketing | Vested description: Learn how Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is like a library and exactly how Google searches and finds relevant content for the end-user | Vested Marketing image: https://www.vested.marketing/hubfs/books-3348990_1280.jpeg --- 3 min read # How is SEO like a Library? [![Picture of Vested Marketing](https://www.vested.marketing/hubfs/Vested%20Logo/Favicon%20-%20White.png) Vested Marketing ](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/author/vested-marketing) : Updated on March 30, 2026 [Marketing](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/tag/marketing) SEO's Effect on Google Algorithms | Inbound Marketing | Vested 4:50 Business owners and bloggers usually have a lot of topics and expertise to write about, but the problem comes in when they discover that Google and other search engines control how and where that content gets ranks and presented to their potential customers. Below, we will describe explain how [Search Engine Optimization](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/why-having-a-boiler-plate-is-necessary-to-increase-your-companys-seo) ([SEO](https://www.vested.marketing/resources/seo)) is like a library and exactly how Google searches and finds [relevant content](https://www.vested.marketing/learning-center/the-newest-google-update-poses-a-threat-to-independent-bloggers) for the end user. Then we will show you how you can apply that knowledge to increasing your reach to future customers, generating [qualified website-driven leads](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/why-isnt-my-website-generating-qualified-leads-even-with-traffic), or how we incorporate it into our [inbound marketing services](https://www.vested.marketing/learning-center/inbound-marketing-services-that-actually-drive-results). The key to getting your content found is to have a clear understanding to how Google finds, analyzes, and then ranks your content.  So, first...let's answer the question: how is SEO like a library?! [![Free SEO Website Audit | Vested](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/4901264/5a3527b8-eac5-40a3-a53e-6c2498cf5466.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/4901264/5a3527b8-eac5-40a3-a53e-6c2498cf5466)   ## Search Engine Bots and Crawling Libraries One of the best metaphors on how to explain SEO to most people is by comparing it to a Library. Let’s say you are a librarian and you receive a request for a stack of random books. Now your job is to figure out where in the library these books are located so that you can retrieve them. You would first look over (or crawl) the list in front of you.  You would then pick each title and figure out a bit more context about the book so you could better locate it. Is it fiction or non-fiction? Who is the author? What are the titles of the chapters and how does that help determine what type of book it is? ### Search Engine Bots Work Like Librarians  This is how search engine bots work. They crawl throughout the internet and look for similar topics, genre’s, inquiries, etc. and then bucket them accordingly as they create similar semantic associations between the content.  So, back to the library. Imagine that now you have to decide what books need to go on your “Best Seller” shelving in the front of the store. Where would you start? With the most popular books that most buyer have bought in the past month, right? Or, you would place books from popular authors or titles that lots of people are talking about within the library, right? This is how SEO works as well.  Search engines want to place the most relevant, popular and [authoritative content](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/want-to-improve-your-content-engagement-focus-on-your-intention) they can find in front of their customers, on the “Best Seller” shelving = top of SEO ranking.  ## How Does Google Rank My Content? Your content’s ranking is primarily driven by two things: 1. How much high-quality content you have created and continue to create on the topics you want to be known for. 2. Authority built by getting lots of high-quality links back to your [website](https://www.vested.marketing/learning-center/the-importance-of-an-effective-website) and content. So, for the sake of this blog’s topic of [maximizing and understanding SEO](https://www.vested.marketing/learning-center/how-does-seo-work-with-google), we will stick to diving in on the main pillars of how search engines classify content.  ### 1. Discovery Stage Search engines utilize bots to crawl across the web and quickly decipher the content located on each specific web page.  ### 2. Relevance Stage At the relevance stage, the bots essentially decide how relevant your content is to the user’s search inquiry. They do this through a process known as “indexing”. This means they are taking the keywords and titles and comparing it based on the what the user initially searched.  ### 3. Authority Stage This stage primarily henges on your site’s authority in the given space the user is searching within.  This is determined by ranking backlinks used from other authorities linking back to a relevant topic on your site or a relevant and informative blog that you have written about. ## Discovery, Relevance, and Authority Depend on One Another It is important to note that the 3 stages bots use for SEO ranking are not mutually exclusive. They are highly dependent on one another and collectively determine how discoverable your business is online and how effectively your [brand can scale its visibility over time.](https://www.vested.marketing/case-studies/how-do-you-build-a-scalable-industrial-brand-and-website-for-growth) #### Relevant Content For example, if your content isn’t relevant, then it has little change of ranking, no matter how authoritative it is. #### But You Need Authority Yet, if you lack authority, then you have little chance of ranking, even if the content is extremely relevant. And now, with the rise of [Answer Engine Optimization (AEO)](https://www.vested.marketing/answer-engine-optimization-aeo), businesses need to think beyond just search engines. Answer engines, "like Google AI Overview, [ChatGPT](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/shopify-chatgpt-integration-optimize-for-ai-commerce), and Gemini?", evaluate those same signals of discovery, relevance, and authority, but use them to decide which content is trustworthy enough to be cited as the *direct answer* to a user’s question. That means your SEO strategy isn’t just about reaching page one- it’s about structuring your content so your expertise gets chosen as the answer. [![New call-to-action](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/4901264/361a1b5a-8f86-4ffa-a481-ee02aca6175c.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/4901264/361a1b5a-8f86-4ffa-a481-ee02aca6175c) --- #### [About](https://www.vested.marketing/connect/) [Vested Marketing](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/how-to-start-an-inbound-marketing-firm) [![Favicon - Color](https://www.vested.marketing/hs-fs/hubfs/Vested%20Logo/Favicon%20-%20Color.png?width=97&height=97&name=Favicon%20-%20Color.png)](https://www.vested.marketing)As a [certified HubSpot Partner Agency](https://www.vested.marketing/hubspot-partner), we not only understand the benefits of using the [inbound marketing ](https://www.vested.marketing/inbound-marketing)platform to [increase traffic and engagement](https://www.vested.marketing/more-stuff), [improve SEO](https://www.vested.marketing/seo), [generate leads](https://www.vested.marketing/the-30-greatest-lead-generation-tips-tricks-and-ideas-1), [design effective websites](https://www.vested.marketing/learning-center/the-importance-of-an-effective-website) and boost sales, we know how to make it happen. We are [inbound marketing experts](https://www.vested.marketing/learning-center/what-is-inbound-marketing), [SEO ](https://www.vested.marketing/learning-center/how-is-seo-is-like-a-library)gurus and top-notch [website developers](https://www.vested.marketing/learning-center/is-your-website-working-for-you). [Our team](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/meet-lydia-janasz-vesteds-newest-team-member) of [Engineers Turned Marketers](https://www.vested.marketing/our-team) can [help get you noticed](https://www.vested.marketing/our-work) - for a [more innovative and effective way](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/how-to-effectively-leverage-relationships-in-business) to [reach customers,](https://www.vested.marketing/relationship-marketing-ebook) or provide a more seamless way for companies to find your services. [Inbound Marketing](https://www.vested.marketing/learning-center/11-industries-benefited-by-inbound-marketing) has no limit to industry, serving from [Crypto ](https://www.vested.marketing/learning-center/what-is-the-game-coin)& [NFT](https://www.vested.marketing/learning-center/an-introduction-to-crypto-and-nft-marketing), [mining](https://www.ibatterymetals.com/insights/all-you-need-to-know-about-the-direct-lithium-extraction-process), [oil and gas, ](https://info.keystoneenergytools.com/blog/top-10-trends-shaping-the-oil-and-gas-industry)[technology & automation, ](https://www.vested.marketing/industries/technology-automation)[engineering](https://www.usdredge.com/learn/9-ways-technology-is-shifting-the-civil-engineering-industry), [technology](https://info.stonewallco.com/blog/10-ways-technology-is-shifting-the-engineering-industry), construction, [healthcare](https://www.vested.marketing/learning-center/marketing-in-the-healthcare-industry), [specialty pharmacy](https://www.senderrarx.com/prescriber-education/senderras-carepath-platform-covers-all-patient-requests), to industrial & [manufacturing](https://info.stonewallco.com/blog/what-is-manufacturing-engineering). - [Tweet](https://twitter.com/share) ## Related Posts [![Will AEO Replace SEO?](https://www.vested.marketing/hubfs/2025%20Website%20Files/Blog%20Feature%20Images/A%20Macbook%20Pro%20sitting%20on%20a%20table%20with%20a%20plant%20behind%20it.%20It%20has%20a%20Google%20Chrome%20browser%20open%20and%20someone%20is%20searching%20the%20question%20Will%20AEO%20replace%20SEO%20and%20they%20are%20viewing%20the%20AI%20breakdown.%20(1).png) ](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/will-aeo-replace-seo) 1 min read #### [Will AEO Replace SEO?](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/will-aeo-replace-seo) Sep 24, 2025 8:00:01 AM Will AEO replace SEO? The answer is no. Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) is not a substitute for traditional Search Engine Optimization (SEO).... [SEO](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/tag/seo) [Marketing](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/tag/marketing) [AI](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/tag/ai) [ChatGPT](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/tag/chatgpt) [AEO](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/tag/aeo) [Read More](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/will-aeo-replace-seo) [![Which Industries Should Adopt Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) first?](https://www.vested.marketing/hubfs/a%20group%20of%20four%20people%20working%20together%20to%20analyze%20data%20(1).png) ](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/which-industries-should-invest-in-aeo-first) 1 min read #### [Which Industries Should Adopt Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) first?](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/which-industries-should-invest-in-aeo-first) Sep 18, 2025 3:36:49 PM If you’re wondering whether AEO (Answer Engine Optimization) is worth prioritizing in 2025, the short answer is yes. Especially in industries... [Online Presence](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/tag/online-presence) [Marketing](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/tag/marketing) [Industry Talk](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/tag/industry-talk) [technology](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/tag/technology) [AI](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/tag/ai) [ROI Tracking](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/tag/roi-tracking) [AEO](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/tag/aeo) [Read More](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/which-industries-should-invest-in-aeo-first) [![What Are The Best Practices In SEO?](https://www.vested.marketing/hubfs/What%20your%20Business%20should%20know%20about%20SEO%20Featured%20Images.png) ](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/what-are-the-best-practices-in-seo) 1 min read #### [What Are The Best Practices In SEO?](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/what-are-the-best-practices-in-seo) Oct 11, 2021 5:16:06 PM You have probably heard of SEO before, but do you know what it means? Search engine optimization is the process of improving your website so that it... [Inbound Marketing](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/tag/inbound-marketing) [SEO](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/tag/seo) [Online Presence](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/tag/online-presence) [Read More](https://www.vested.marketing/blog/what-are-the-best-practices-in-seo) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Vested Marketing", "url" : "https://www.vested.marketing/blog/author/vested-marketing" }, "dateModified" : "2026-03-30T18:31:44.022Z", "datePublished" : "2020-02-11T19:31:48.000Z", "headline" : "SEO's Effect on Google Algorithms | Inbound Marketing | Vested", "image" : [ "https://www.vested.marketing/hubfs/books-3348990_1280.jpeg" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://www.vested.marketing/blog/how-is-seo-is-like-a-library", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://www.vested.marketing/hubfs/logo%20wide%20color-1.png" }, "name" : "Vested Marketing" } } ``` ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org/", "@id" : "#WebSite", "@type" : "WebSite", "name" : "Vested Marketing", "url" : "https://www.vested.marketing/" } ``` ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "Organization", "alternateName" : "Vested", "logo" : "https://www.vested.marketing/hs-fs/hubfs/Logo_Vested-1.png?width=450&height=188&name=Logo_Vested-1.png", "name" : "Vested Marketing", "sameAs" : [ "https://www.facebook.com/vested.marketing/", "http://instagram.com/vested.marketing", "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQbU-ww5l2lzMjEvpU_922g", "https://www.linkedin.com/company/vested-marketing/" ], "url" : "https://www.vested.marketing/" } ```