Wondering how the latest Penguin update will affect your search engine optimisation (SEO) efforts? Now in its fourth version, Google Penguin is one of the most significant algorithm updates to date. In 2016, Penguin 4.0 was released, signalling the start of real time crawling. While Penguin has largely been focused on websites that are spamming search engines, the update affects every website to some degree.
Why is the latest Penguin update notable? What can you do to ensure that your website is prepared for algorithm updates? Is website optimisation still a thing you need to think about? Let’s have a look…
Why search engine optimisation is more important than ever
First introduced in 2012, Penguin periodically filtered to flush out websites that were seemingly spammy. Not only spammers were affected though – many legitimate websites found themselves struggling due to duplicate content and other similar issues. Websites that were caught by an update had to wait until the next update before they could be reviewed, leaving the websites penalised during the wait. Penguin 3.0 took place in 2014, meaning that many websites that were hit by the update had to wait almost two years before having the penalties lifted.
So, why is it essential to keep Penguin in mind when it comes to website optimisation? The following interesting facts about this latest update show us exactly why this update is important.
Updates now happen in real time
Thanks to the real time filtering in Penguin 4.0, websites will no longer be subjected to long waits between updates. Instead, filtering will be done instantly as Google rolls out its real time updates. Website pages will be caught and freed automatically, meaning that you have the chance to revise any content that Google deems dodgy.
Ranking will be no long be purely site specific
Instead of focusing only on the website as a whole, updates will also be be focused on specific pages. But, that doesn’t mean Google will only trawl pages however. In Google’s own words, “Penguin now devalues spam by adjusting ranking based on spam signals, rather than affecting ranking of the whole site.”
Manipulation will become almost impossible
While we like to assume that most people do not try and jiffy the system, the entire reason for Penguin is due to attempts at manipulation. This has become very, very difficult with the latest update. Online reputation businesses may find this especially challenging.
The best way to avoid falling victim to Penguin is to focus your efforts on high quality content that adds genuine value to your audience. Search engine optimisation is also essential to ensure that your website and all its pages have nothing to worry about from algorithm updates.
To find out more about how to protect your site against updates like these with the help of an experienced marketing consultant, contact me today.
