In addition of Google Panda, Google Penguin is yet another cute animal Google made people scared of. Released in April of 2012, Google Penguin is a search engine algorithm that was created with the purpose of penalizing sites that employ blackhat SEO techniques and use low-quality content on their sites. Below we will discuss how Google Penguin affects sites and tips to improve your site and content in order to avoid being warned or penalized by Google.
How Google Penguin Affects Sites
As a result of Google Penguin, many established sites have seen their page rankings crash. This is a result of those pages using techniques that Google says are designed to deceive viewers. However, there are things web pages can do to improve their content, so that if they are crawled by Google Penguin, their site won’t suffer devastating page rank droppings.
Tips to Improve Your Content for Google Penguin
Don’t Use Hidden Links
Google Penguin doesn’t want to see hidden links on a page. Instead, make everything remarkably clear to users on your site. In addition to not using hidden links, don’t hide your text either.
Don’t Use Redirecting Links
Whenever possible, don’t use redirecting links. Google Penguin sees this as a deceptive practice, and your site will suffer from it.
Leave Google Alone
Don’t use computer software that sends automatic queries to Google. Google does not endorse this type of software, and it can negatively affect a page.
Use High-Quality Keywords
Content is king when it comes to page rankings, but you must use relevant keywords. If you use irrelevant keywords, it will be obvious to Penguin, and it will not increase your page’s ranking.
Keep Your Site Original
Some sites will buy domains and sub-domains, and use the same content on each site. To please Google Penguin, you can’t do this. Concentrate on one site, and make sure your information is original and unique.
Obviously Don’t Use Badware
A surefire way to sink your page rankings is to employ Trojans or viruses on your site. Avoiding this is easy; simply don’t do it.
Avoid “Cookie Cutter” Approaches
This means you shouldn’t include doorway pages on your site. It’s also crucial not to use affiliate programs that have no original content.
If you do participate with an affiliate program, make sure your page has value for viewers. If your page has no value, Google Penguin will not be impressed by it.
Concentrate on Users, Not Search Engines
Finally, the most valuable thing you can do to impress the Google Penguin algorithm is to concentrate on your viewers, and not the search engines. This means users need to create content that is valuable to viewers, doesn’t contain duplicate content, and provides a purpose.
While Google Penguin can seem intimidating, it is important to remember that it was created to provide users with better web experiences. It’s also essential to remember that by complying with the Google Penguin search engine algorithm, your site will be providing a better service to your customers. This service will instill confidence in your site, and surely bring you repeat customers and new customers as well.
Here are a couple of resources worth checking out:
Google Penguin Update Recovery Tips & Advice
Whiteboard+ What’s Unique & Noteworthy About Google’s Penguin Update