Ian Hopkinson, founder and CEO of Melbourne-based digital agency Mad Scientist, has developed a platform, Terminology, that ranks websites based on their online performance.

The recent leak of Google's search algorithm has, according to Hopkinson, vindicated his work on Terminology.

The leaked document, Google's internal Content API Warehouse document, was accidentally sent to Rand Fishkin, a prominent SEO figure in the US. The document, a 2,500-page outline of previously unknown or unconfirmed knowledge about how Google ranks websites, has been confirmed by Google.

"Many companies were very sceptical that a small digital agency in Melbourne could crack the highly secretive code. But the leaking of the Google data has definitely vindicated our work," said Hopkinson.

The leak reveals that Google uses Chrome to rank pages and relies more on user clicks for search rankings than previously thought. It also suggests that exact match domain names do not always improve rankings and can sometimes hurt them. "Key people in the industry thought Google rewarded exact match domain names. It turns out that this isn't always true. In fact, an exact match domain can hurt your rankings," Hopkinson said.

Hopkinson believes the leak supports the importance of Trust, Relevance, Consistency, Engagement, Reputation, Longevity, and Identity in Google's ranking system. He also suggests that building a valuable online brand that regularly interacts with customers is crucial.

"It's our view that after decades of developing the algorithm, Google has refined search so much that very little will change. Even in terms of AI search Google has concerns about its ability to deliver trusted answers," Hopkinson said.

The impact of the leak on rival search engines is yet to be seen. "And I think it will be really interesting what rivals such as Bing do with the information," Hopkinson speculated.

Terminology's top 10 ranked media agencies include Ogilvy, WPP, and BWM Dentsu.