How to Rank on Google: The First Steps for Your Business

If you want to know how to rank on Google, you first have to be visible before you can climb. That starts with the basics: Google has to be able to find and index your site, your important pages have to exist, and your business details have to be correct. In this article we walk through the first steps that get your business showing up in Google, even if you are nowhere to be found today.

Do the math yourself: put a euro figure on your organic traffic with our free SEO ROI calculator.

Why are you not getting found right now?

If customers cannot find you, it is usually one of two things. Either Google does not know your site well enough, or it knows your business fine but you are targeting the wrong words.

So the first step is not ranking higher, it is showing up at all. Only once Google knows and understands your pages can you start to climb. We cover that climbing in ranking higher on Google. Here we lay the foundation.

The channels for getting found

“Getting found on Google” is not one channel but several that you can run alongside each other. In practice we often see businesses fixate on one channel while another would deliver faster results. This table puts the main levers side by side.

We explain the first three step by step below. The fourth, getting found in AI answers, comes at the end, because it is quickly becoming more important.

Step 1: check whether Google knows your site

Type site:yourdomain.be into Google. Do you see your important pages come back?

• You see them: good, Google knows your site. The work then lies in becoming more visible and moving up.
• You see nothing or very little: your pages are not being indexed. That is your first problem to fix.

Step 2: make sure Google can read you

Google has to be able to visit and understand your site smoothly. Three things help:

• A sitemap. A list of all your pages that you submit to Google, so nothing gets missed.
• No blocks. Check that your pages are not accidentally set to “do not index”.
• A clear structure. Your most important pages are reachable within a few clicks from the homepage.

This is the technical foundation, which is also central to Google’s SEO starter guide. To dig deeper, move on to technical SEO.

Step 3: create pages for what you offer

You only get found for words that appear on your site. If you do not have a page about a service, you cannot show up for it. Google matches a query to the page that fits it best, so that page has to exist.

• Give every service or product its own page. One page that covers “everything” shows up well for nothing. The common mistake is a services page that lists ten services; split it up so each service can claim its own keyword.
• Target one clear keyword per page, the one your customers actually type. Pick the word your customer uses, not your internal jargon. “Accountant Ghent” gets searched, “financial support for SMEs” barely does. Our keyword research helps you find those words.
• Match the search intent. Someone typing “what does a roofer cost” wants a price indication, not an immediate quote form. Align your page with what the searcher expects, or they will click away. More on that in search intent.
• Put the word in the title and the first paragraph, so both Google and the visitor immediately see what the page is about.

Step 4: set up your Google Business Profile

For local businesses this is a quick win. A free Google Business Profile gets you showing up in the map and the local results, with your address, opening hours and reviews.

Fill it in completely and keep your details identical everywhere. The biggest win is in the details: pick the right category, add photos, answer questions and actively collect reviews. The common mistake is an address or phone number that differs between your website and your profile; that inconsistency undermines trust. This is how customers in your area find you. You can read more about this in local SEO.

Step 5: build trust

Once you are visible, trust helps you rise. You build it with backlinks, references from other trustworthy sites, and with good reviews. Google prefers to show businesses that others recommend. Quality weighs more here than quantity: one link from a relevant, authoritative site does more than ten random ones. Mentions on Dutch and Belgian comparison sites and directories reinforce that trust further, and they are often picked up by AI answers as well.

The fast route: Google Ads

SEO and your business profile build visibility, but that takes time. If you want to be at the top right away for a keyword with purchase intent, Google Ads is the shortest path: you pay per click and show up immediately, even if your site ranks nowhere organically.

In practice we prefer to use Ads as a supplement, not a replacement. It quickly delivers data on which keywords really produce leads, and those insights feed your organic strategy. The common mistake is advertising endlessly without working on SEO, because your visibility stops dead the moment your budget stops.

Getting found in AI answers too

More and more people ask their question not in the Google search bar but of an AI assistant like ChatGPT, Gemini, or the AI Overviews above the search results. Those give a summarised answer and sometimes name a handful of sources. So getting found also means: getting cited in that answer. That is called generative engine optimization, or GEO.

The basics overlap heavily with SEO: clear, factual pages that answer a question directly get picked up more easily by both Google and AI. If you want to know how to show up in those answers, read getting found in ChatGPT. Google itself is shifting more and more towards an AI-driven search experience: how to surface in that, you can read in getting found in Google AI Mode. For most businesses the order is: lay the SEO foundation first, then build on towards GEO.

Common mistakes

• Focusing on ranking before you are indexed. Without indexation there is nothing to rank. Check first with site:yourdomain.be.
• Targeting your own jargon. Your customer types different words than you use internally; start from real queries.
• One page for everything. Every service deserves its own page with its own keyword.
• A neglected business profile. For local businesses this is the easiest win to leave on the table.
• Impatience. Showing up can be fast, ranking high on competitive words takes months. Do not confuse the two.

How long does it take to get found?

Showing up in the index can happen within days to a few weeks. Ranking higher on competitive words takes longer and depends on your sector and competition. So be patient with the rankings, but get the foundation right straight away.

Not sure where it is going wrong? An SEO audit finds exactly why you are not getting found and what you should fix first.

From getting found to more leads

Getting found is not a goal in itself. The goal is more leads. People who find you also have to be convinced. The quickest win often lies in a better conversion rate through conversion optimization.

That is how our SEO approach at Gom Nederland delivered 400% more daily visitors within 66 days.

Frequently asked questions

Is getting found on Google free?

The organic search results and a Google Business Profile are free; you pay with time and effort instead of money. If you want to appear at the top immediately, you can do that through Google Ads. Most businesses combine both.

Why am I in Google, but not on the first page?

Then you are indexed, but not yet competitive enough for that keyword. Showing up and ranking high are two separate steps. Work on more relevant content, a stronger page structure and trust through backlinks in order to climb.

Do I need to factor in AI search engines now too?

If your customers use AI tools to find providers, yes. The basics overlap heavily with SEO, so good, factual content works for both. Start with your SEO foundation and then build on towards GEO.

Want to finally get found?

Tell us your situation, and we will honestly tell you why you are not getting found today and what the fastest route to visibility is. Book your free intake and within 24 hours you will know where your opportunities lie.