The Dos and Don’ts of Dealing With Google’s Penguin Update
This is a guest post by Guy Levine of Return on Digital, a digital marketing agency that provides SEO, PPC, CRO and Social Media services to B2B & B2C clients across the UK.
It’s been a few weeks now since Google made its Penguin update, and by now, we’re getting a good idea of the implications. It looks as though Google is hoping to make the internet a spam-free environment by getting stricter in enforcing their SEO guidelines, which states that pages should primarily be made for users and not for search engines.
This new algorithm essentially deals with websites or blogs which indulged in excessive link building with no regard for quality, keyword stuffing and publishing lots of meaningless content just for the sake of traffic. These techniques aren’t likely to work anymore.
If your traffic fell because of Google’s Penguin update, you can repair the damage. Here’s what to do (and what not to do) to get your rankings back on track.
DO invest in content.
Whether your client provides more copy, you hire a full-time copywriter or you write the content yourself, content makes a big difference in search rankings. The more natural sounding the text, the better. If you create content that’s actually useful, this information will stand the test of time, and will provide a good quality link.
Spun articles are soon likely to do more bad than good. Avoid keyword stuffing and write for a real audience.
DO concentrate on quality over quantity.
It’s not about having thousands of links anymore. Sure, you will want to get as many as you can. But if they’re not valuable, they may as well not be there.
Concentrate on good content that will remain useful long after the link has met its need. You get the traffic you want and you’ve provided helpful information for a consumer, who may very well come back for more information in the future.
DO brush up on AuthorRank.
We know it’s coming, and it will take into account who has written a post, rather than just where it has been published. Now is the time to invest time into building authority. Then, if you publish a post, Google will promote it based on an authoritative author.
DON’T continue with business as usual.
This isn’t a phase and it won’t pass. You’re going to have to adapt. If you aren’t flexible, you’re probably in the wrong industry.
DON’T ignore social media.
Social media marketing may not get as many direct links as a guest blog post or a government website will, but it allows you to build a follower base. In the social sphere, users only link to high quality content. Getting retweeted by someone with plenty of followers mean a lot of attention and potential links.
There are plenty of ideas being put in motion to test these new waters but time will be a test for these. The overall point to take from Penguin is that being useful is more important than anything, and will surely get you links. Being relevant will pay off in the long run.
Was your site affected by Google’s Penguin update? Let us know in the comments section below.
3 Responses to The Dos and Don’ts of Dealing With Google’s Penguin Update
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There has been much discussion on my site’s forum and some of the savvier tech people think this may be due to a glitch in Google’s most recent algorithm update. I am waiting to see what happens, but will not write anything else until I know if this is a permanent change or not. If it is, I will slowly remove my articles and that will be that. No sense writing if nobody can find my work to read it!
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I couldn’t say that Penguin affected me brutally, but it certainly changes a few things. For example it is a lot harder to rank on first page, as all we see is Squidoo, eHow, Wikipedia and other, even if they are not related to the topic. There is always a learning curve, therefore I still need time to get used to the changes.
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The Penguin update reflects the shift of internet business in general… and internet business in general reflects the shift of values in the global village. Increasingly, people are looking for more passionate work, simplifying their lifestyles, seeking ways to do good for causes they believe in and align their purchases with their values. The global conversation is about finding deeper meaning and connectedness. Folks are turning from 10,000 square feet houses to humble cottage living. All of this is reflected back to us by the demands in the market. Flashy sales tactics are not as effective as before. Almost every big corporation has a blog in hopes of establishing deeper connections with their market. Penguin rewards genuine helpfulness and quality (or at least that is what it’s aiming for). More and more, snake oil salesman will fall off the map and businesses and entrepreneurs offering true value will become connected with their audience.
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