Google Panda has SEO’s all a bit worried, and probably with good reason. The introduction of the latest algorithm from the search engine giant represents big changes coming for SEO and the way that digital marketing is approached, which means we’re all wondering about what exactly we need to do to get around it.
Google’s search ranking algorithms often present new and sometimes frustrating challenges to those of us that work in digital marketing and SEO. They’re put in place to bring down the rankings of sites that violate Google’s Webmaster Guidelines, usually by identifying certain traits and trends in web content. While Google Penguin, the last algorithm, was designed to target Black Hat SEO tactics, Google Panda is a lot more difficult to get around because it targets not just the content, but the content’s quality. It’s essentially a content-filtering system.
Now, the way that we approach content is changing all the time. What once began as a structure in which to place strategic key words has since evolved into something more sophisticated. Content on the whole is expected to be longer, better crafted and containing more in terms of facts and authoritative writing, and these expectations have been reflected in recent times. However, it doesn’t matter how much high quality content you have on your site; if there are any pieces that Google Panda deems as low-quality then your rankings will suffer. What’s more alarming is that there are rumours going around that once your rankings go down, you won’t be able to build them back up again.
While I can’t confirm if that’s true or not, I can speak from experience and tell you that the best way to deal with Google Panda is to take preventative measures on your existing content before your search rankings are adversely affected. The first thing you need to do is remove any content from your site that Google Panda might identify: look for low-quality content in your backlog, duplicate copies or pieces that are overstuffed with keywords and delete them from the site as soon as possible. Once this has been done, you need to rethink your content strategy. As I said earlier, the way we approach content has changed, but it’s important to know that one of the best ways to get around Google Panda and keep your ranking safe is to focus on producing unique content. It can be difficult to come up with unique pieces in an already saturated market and will take a little more work and effort, but it’s arguably worth it for the sake of your ranking. Craft your content carefully, make sure it’s something that you yourself would want to read and write with confidence. There’s a preference for facts and authority in content at the moment, so be sure to emulate this in your work for a strong piece of content.
So perhaps Google Panda isn’t as frightening as we all originally thought. It’s a content-filtering system, so the way to get around it is to change up our content. Really, Google Panda simply reflects the wants of the readers, our target audiences, and if that means we have to improve on our content then so be it.
