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Tag: Penguin 3.0

  • Google Penguin 3.0 – Diagnosis & Recovery Steps

    It has been over a year since Google announced Penguin 2.0 update and we had shared our thoughts on it. Since Penguin 3.0 update was announced by Google on Oct 17, 2014 – it was estimated to affect less than 1% of English queries as Moz pointed out. John Mueller from Google had said that this update could roll out over the next few weeks.

    This update is intended at reducing “web-spam” at a much higher and sophisticated level than Penguin 2.0 update. Let us now try to understand how this update actually works. First & foremost, Penguin 3.0 update is pretty much similar to the preceding updates with the main intention being reducing web-spam by demoting sites with bad link profiles (removing websites from Google Index which have acquired “paid links” over the years). Google experts say this is a refresh. This essentially means the algorithm was re-run to release sites that fixed their issues and to demote sites that had issues that weren’t picked earlier. Site owners & SEO experts may have to be ready to witness fluctuation in traffic and rankings.

    Diagnosis & Recovery Steps for Google Penguin 3.0

    If your website has seen drastic changes in organic traffic and/or keyword ranks over the last few weeks here are a few steps to consider immediately:

    1. Check for sources of links to the site

    Bad or paid links may also be a factor if you are affected by this update. Check for links from paid directories, irrelevant forums and non-industry specific sites

    1. Use Diagnosis tools effectively

    Google Webmaster tools and other tools like Moz come in handy. Conduct detailed tests using these tools and update your website profile. If your site is linked with some shady sites, then usage of Disavow tool can be an added advantage. Disavow tool on Google Webmaster lets you start disassociating from such poor/bad-links.

    1. Disassociate from bad reputation sites

    If your website is associated with sites of bad reputation including paid ones identified by the above mentioned steps, this is the right time to disengage yourself from these associations.

    Having said all of the above, be aware of with whom you are linking to in the future. Share your feedback and comments in the comment section below.

    Contact us to learn more. Have a happy spam free experience on the Net!

  • The Google Penguin Algorithm is Reborn

    After more than a year, Google has officially come up with a streamlined version of the Penguin algorithm which is being referred to as the Penguin 3.0 Update. The Google Penguin Algorithm was initially announced in April 2012. It was basically a deterrent mechanism for webmasters who indulged in Black Hat SEO techniques. These include but not limited to, deviously increasing the ranking of a web page by manipulating the number of links pointing to it. These tactics are commonly called link schemes which are in violation of Google’s Webmaster Guidelines. Google penalizes such websites by lowering their ranking and blacklisting them so that genuine websites have a fair chance of ranking higher on the search engine.

    In order to prove that your website is clean in the eyes of the Penguin, take special care to see to it that your links are all genuine. Black Hat specialists realized long back that if you have links from an authoritative site then your site is also ranked highly in the search engine. Hence they started buying links on a big scale and started creating link farms wherein you could choose which links you want to be associated with, for your website. Soon Google got a whiff of it and it started taking stringent actions. Thus, the Penguin algorithm was born.

    Penguin 3.0 is more of a re-write of the original Penguin algorithm than just being a refreshed version. So you need to be extra cautious in order to pass muster as far as Penguin 3.0 is concerned. Beware of paid links or text ads that pass PageRank since it is a clear violation of Google guidelines. Get rid of poor quality backlinks. Do not use the same optimized anchor text on too many links since Google thinks you are confusing the user and hence you will not be ranked higher.

    Penguin is a filter algorithm that sits on top of the search algorithm in order to check for fraudulent links and penalize the websites indulging in it. Penguin is not too concerned about the content on your website but is more interested in the links that point to your website. So webmasters need to abandon all Black Hat techniques in their quest for higher search engine rankings now.

    The best way to find out whether your site has been affected by the Penguin algorithm is to check the traffic to your website on the day Google launches a major update. The most effective way to do this is using the Penguin Penalty Checker Tool. That way you can take note if Google is penalizing you for some issues related to links pointing to your website. If in case you are being penalized then you need to rectify it at the earliest. If your website does not show any changes in the traffic on the day a major update is launched then you probably might be safe. But confirm it by getting an audit done for your website and find out if there are any objectionable issues with regards to your website that might cause your site to drop in the search engine results page.

    If unfortunately you have been hit by Penguin 3.0 and whatever you do does not seem to alleviate the matter then you will have to wait until the next Penguin update or release to authenticate what you have done is according to Google’s diktats. If you feel that some obnoxious website is trying to spam you by linking to your website in order to lower your PageRank then you can tell Google to ignore such websites by using the Disavow Links Tool.

    Quality content is always the most important aspect of your website to attract links from reputable sources. Never pay for links since that could make you vulnerable to getting blacklisted by Google. Always build your site with the end-user in mind. Consider it a given that the users are seeking using a smooth interface to navigate effortlessly on your website. That way you are bound to get a good ranking on Google search.

    Connect with Google Certified Professionals to find out what this updates means to your website.