Search engines go through detailed steps to protect their algorithm from being exploited or manipulated.
This means any information about search engine ranking steps is more of an experience-based art rather than a science.
Experience shows that reliability and relevance have an impact on the search engine ranking.
Factors that impact reliability are registration lengths. A domain that is registered for one year seems to be less reliable than a domain that is registered for ten years.
From a practical point of view, it is easier and with the prices of domain registration increasing every year, perhaps cheaper to register a domain for more extended periods.
Relevance seems to be another key in search engine ranking. A domain name that includes the words, “Web Hosting” is likely to be related to hosting than a domain named XYZ company.
On the other hand, if you own a Webhosting company and choose to include the words web hosting within it and then begin using the same words in your categories and pages, you will reduce your chances of ranking high.
This practice is called keyword stuffing, and search engines frown on them as they frown on spam.
I hope you can see why I call the process of search engine optimization an art more than a science. Every step may work for or against you.