Released in February 2011, Google Panda is a search engine algorithm that concentrates on quality. Some experts even refer to Google Panda as a “content quality filter.” Sites that promote high quality content will fare well with Google Panda. However, sites with content that doesn’t concentrate on quality will see their rankings drop, sometimes dramatically, once they have been judged by Google Panda.
The rumor about Google Panda is that once a site has been deemed low-quality by Google Panda there is almost nothing that can be done to regain the site’s ranking. However, there are tips that websites can incorporate to improve their sites and meet Google Panda’s high standards.
Block Low Quality Content
If you have low quality content on your site, you want to block the indexing of that content right away. Many sites have been terribly affected by Google Panda even though the majority of their site is composed of high-quality content. To make sure this doesn’t happen to you, block all low-quality content from indexing, so that when Google Panda crawls your site only your unique, quality content will be judged.
Do I Have Low-Quality Content?
When going over your site’s content, you may not be sure whether your content is low-quality or high-quality. Below are symptoms of low-quality content.
- Content has factual or grammatical errors
- Content is redundant, overlapping or duplicate
- All content is on the same or similar topic
- Content is short, unspecific and unsubstantial
- No attention to detail
If any of your content has any of the above symptoms, you will want to block it from indexing right away, and work to improve the content as well.
Old School SEO
Google Panda is centered on old school SEO techniques. This means to be successful with Google Panda you need to go back to high-quality content.
Content Oozes Authority and Clout
To impress Google Panda, your site needs to ooze authority and clout. To do this successfully, your content must be viewed as trustworthy. Visitors to your site will want to know that the content was created by an expert or enthusiast on the topic. The content also must be exciting enough that someone will want to bookmark the site or share it with a friend through email or social media.
Choose Your Ads Wisely
It’s essential to remember that using ads is okay with Google Panda. However, ads for your site should be chosen wisely. For instance, instead of choosing ten relatively cheap ads, choose three high-quality, more expensive, ads. The advertisements may cost you more, but it will create a more pleasant experience for viewers. Sites that are cluttered with ads, often turn off viewers, and Google Panda as well. So, go ahead and use ads, but choose wisely.
Respect Google Panda and Track Updates
Since the impact of Google Panda can essentially make or break your site, you can’t afford to ignore the new high-quality search engine. To make sure Google Panda doesn’t doom you, you need to track Panda updates. Since Google Panda updates periodically, it is crucial to track your page views. If you see a dramatic decrease in your page views, you may have been negatively affected by Google Panda.
If you think your site is suffering because of Google Panda, your best chance to recover your rankings is to make the changes listed above. Concentrating on quality information is the best way to impress the Google Panda. You can also ask Google to restore your rankings, but it’s advisable to do this after you have made changes to the quality of your content.
Here are a couple of resources worth checking out:
Google Panda update survival guide
Why I Love Google Panda (and you should, too)