As a way to fight against Webspam, Google launched their Penguin update on the 24th of May. As many of you may have noticed; this is changing what types of things count towards your SEO and completely altering the way SEO as we know it helps us get traffic. But, do not fear; because there are plenty of things you can do to make sure your website is safe.
What is Webspam?
Before we get into the meat and potatoes, let’s focus on the basics. What exactly is Webspam and why is Google trying to prevent it? Well, according to Google, “Webspam refers to pages that try to trick Google into ranking them highly.” The main two issues the popular search engine is trying to focus on in this update is keyword stuffing, and article spinning in which links/anchor text are placed within an article where they do not logically fit.
Maintaining a Successful Site
There are a few things you can do in order to maintain your ranking or increase your SEO ranking. First of all, you want to make sure your site has unique content. Copying content from others is not going to get you anywhere. Google is really cracking down on these kinds of things and if you want a high SEO ranking, then you really need to work for it. Be sure to update your site often and not try to cheat the system.
Linking
Link to other pages within your site only if the link is helpful as well as legitimate. Do not place a random link within a post that has nothing to do with what the post is about. All this is going to do is upset your readers and lower your SEO ranking over time. Sure, you may not be caught right off the bat but as far as long-term potential; is it truly worth the risk?
Create Buzz Organically
Faking your way can only get you so far. If you want backlinks and are looking for promotion, do it the organic way. Use social networking sites such as Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest as tools to really get your brand out there. Connect with people on a personal level and show all that your site has to offer. The more excited you are about your work, the more others are going to be excited. Show your personality and how unique you are.
Create posts that are worth reading and that get people intrigued enough to comment. Don’t focus on stuffing keywords into your content because all that’s going to do is either confuse or irritate your readers and lower your traffic. Ask questions, have contests or find other creative ways to get individuals interested in whatever it is you do.
We aren’t saying this whole process is going to be simple; but it definitely can be done if you put your mind to it. Penguin is an attempt made by Google to get those of you who work really hard at what you do to get the rankings and attention that you truly deserve.
If you were hit by this update by mistake, there is a Feedback Form for that.
Todd works with a ct seo company and believes that Google has not reached perfection but they should soon be able to give us a webspam free search engine.
