If you're in search of a web designer, you might see them talk about PageRank. PageRank is "Google-speak" for your website's ranking. The way PageRank works is a 1-10 number that shows you how you are doing with a set of criteria.
Some people say PageRank has recently changed
This rumor is actually true. A few years ago, Google set out to make their PageRank algorithm stronger. What PageRank does now is test your site for visit trends, keyword efficiency, inbound links, and outbound links. Think about a big website. When people say "big site", I typically think of Microsoft.com. It's in the top 5 most visited sites on the net. I don't even think some people at Microsoft know the vastness of their website sometimes. But usually big sites have the highest PageRank since they are searched most often, have specific keywords, millions of inbound links, and a fair number of outbound links. A medium size company, on the other hand, would be very lucky to receive a 10. The new algorithm is starting to hurt small to medium size business' rankings. In some cases, some bloggers have noted a 2 point decline. What does this show?
Does PageRank even matter?
Right now, I personally think that PageRank is irrelevant. I really don't care what my PageRank is. I can't control what Google does. Neither can you. You can't buy a higher PageRank or a higher position on a search result. It just doesn't happen. Plus PageRank only measures a website on a few dimensions. What if PageRank also rated your XHTML markup? Or what if it tested your site for an efficient title that isn't loaded down with junk? Well, it doesn't.
The moral of the story is that you shouldn't care about PageRank. It's that simple. A number is not going to determine things like your customer base or your local exposure. So don't worry about it. What you should focus on is your User Experience. Care about what your viewers see. Too many SEOs focus on what search engines see. If they would focus, instead, on what a user also sees, their customers would be more successful. That's why many SEOs use "Black Hat" practices such as hiding text from users so that only search engines can see the text. I'm sorry... but that sort of thing will not get your site far up on a search result and with most defiantly cause a low PageRank. At EagleEnvision.NeT, we're focused on User Experience.