You don’t have to be a big business to win big on Google. Thanks to its unique Page Rank algorithm, the search engine results on Google are a level playing field. That is, if you know how to Google your business.

 In Everything I Know about Marketing I Learned from Google, I share 20 “Googley Lessons” to help businesses of all shapes and sizes capture the hearts and wallets of new customers.

 Chapter 7 teaches businesses to create marketing assets that “Act Like Content.” The idea is to avoid creating overt, interruptive advertising messages and instead create niche content that your customers and potential customers will find valuable.

 In my book, American Express is singled out as a company that understands the importance of acting like content. I point to OPEN Forum as a great example of generating coveted share of mind (and market) through helpful content rather than just blasting mass advertising.

 This year, AmEx has taken the concept of acting like content one step further with its sponsorship, nay, invention of Small Business Saturday. Both OPEN Forum and Small Business Saturday carry minimal AmEx branding. It’s as if to say, “We’re not here to brag, just help.”

 AmEx knows that small businesses are a crucial part of its ecosystem. But rather than tell small business owners that AmEx is the right partner, it shows that it’s the right partner.

 This is the kind of stuff that Google looks for when deciding which websites to rank for various keyword searches.  Generally speaking, Google ranks the most helpful (and least “salesy”) websites highest.

 How does Google know which websites are the most helpful?

 Among other signals, Google looks at specific keywords on each web page and the number (and quality) of links pointing to each page.

 So how can you get your business to the top of Google?

 First and foremost, focus on keyword searches that allow you to show Google (and your customers) that you have the most relevant website. Don’t try to be something you’re not. And don’t try to win for a topic to which your business is not perfectly tailored.

 Once you’ve found your niche, create tons of helpful content about it so that other websites will link to yours as the authority on that topic. And remember to keep the content fresh as Google also looks at how often a website is updated.

 Google has changed the way businesses get found. But unlike the yellow pages that came before it, the business owner who pays the most doesn’t get the best real estate. Instead, the business owner that adds the most value gets the valuable space.

 What value is your site adding to the World Wide Web? How does it show your customers that you’re the right partner?  How can you act like content?

As I say repeatedly throughout my book, sometimes you just have to Get Googley!

Aaron Goldman is the author of Everything I Know about Marketing I Learned from Google and Chief Marketing Officer at Kenshoo, a global technology platform for search marketing and online advertising. He has worked with companies such as Omnicom, Adify, Google and Microsoft. For more on Googling your small business, see “What Small Businesses Can Learn from Google.”