Hi Keller, thanks for the Podcast, I enjoyed listening to you and the detail behind what you think contributed to your high PR.

Funnily enough I went from a 2 to a 5PR but then for some reason it was back to 2 in a very short time..maybe there was some kind of mistake, lol! My blog is reasonably new too.

I guess for me the main question I have is what is so good about high Page Rank, in particular, Toolbar page rank?

There are many Internet marketers who will say it has very little positive impact on your rankings in the SERPs. I can't say I'm totally convinced of that but after some research of my own I did get the feeling that the most benefit is gained by sites receiving inbound links from those high PR sites.

Given you now have a high PR I assume you've conducted some analysis on the benefits it's bringing you. Have you achieved high rankings in the SERPs for the keywords you're targeting? In a nutshell, how has it helped you besides the fact Google are visiting more regularly and indexing more of your content, which by the way, I see as incredible advantages. :)

Your blog is on my 'must frequent' list, thanks for the valuable content to date, I'm really enjoying it.

Fantastic question Michelle!

Since gaining higher PR, I’ve noticed my blog has gained some new number 1 positions in Google for certain keyword searches. These particular keyword searches have over 200 million competitors.

If you do some keyword research of your own, try using Google to search for a keyword term. What you should notice is the top rankings tend to be websites with high PR. Google often (not always) lists sites in ascending order from highest PR to lowest (of course based first on relevancy to the search term).

Though it’s important to find a niche with a reasonably uncompetitive base, if you want to rank number one for a keyword that has over 100 million results, PR would greatly benefit you. Since it takes time and work to achieve high PR, usually you want to target the less competitive markets first as it’s much easier to achieve high rankings.

I want to make sure I address one thing in particular you mentioned. You asked:

“I guess for me the main question I have is what is so good about high Page Rank, in particular, Toolbar page rank?”

I’m assuming your referring to the PR you check on the Google Toolbar. There is no difference between this and the PR you check on a website. It should all be the same. If there is a difference, it may mean Google has made an update and the website PR checker you use hasn’t caught up yet. I did mention in my Podcast that I like to use the Google Toolbar because I want to hear what my PR is directly from Google. This has nothing to do with a difference in PR. I just like to use Google’s PR checker as it is made by Google.

High PR does have an effect on search engine rankings. It also makes your website more attractive to other Internet marketers. This results in more relationship acquisitions, guest post applications, link exchange requests and advertising requests. Having high PR tells the Internet world that Google thinks your website is important.

Based on my experience with different websites, PR and rankings, I have definitely noticed a correlation between high PR and high search engine rankings.

Now, PR isn’t the “be all, end all” of SEO. You can achieve number one rankings with no PR, if your website is the most relevant to that search term and there is little competition.

Truth is, there are many factors that (when combined) contribute to search rankings. PR is one of those factors and should be considered, analyzed and worked on – just not completely obsessed over!

Thank you so much for you kind words! Please let me know if I answered your question.

Thanks for the detailed reply Keller.

It's great to hear you've definitely noticed a correlation between high PR and high search engine rankings. Having the actual experience of achieving high PR and the benefit of your own analysis means you've proven it and what matters to me are case studies based on facts such as yours.

Thanks for sharing the details you have, that's very generous of you.

Thanks for this excellent post . I am new to your blog and currently started following you on twitter. Hope to hear and learn more from you .

Sudeep - I'm so glad you found me! If you have any suggestions on articles, podcasts or videos that would help you, let me know in my feedback forum: http://fresheventure.uservoice.com/

I enjoyed listening to your podcast. I have a website with a PR of 4. I've been updating it multiple times a day for almost 7 years, basically by posting new articles. How do I get above PR4? I'm stuck.

Awesome Podcast really like your site. You provide some great advice here. I wish you all the luck in the world with you site and business. You really do a good job and provide value. Thanks.

Congratulations on your Page Rank status. That is no easy task. While some suggest there is not benefit to a high Page rank I clearly see a difference as the page rank increases.

Thanks for the great info.