Most webmasters keep their cool under pressure, but if you mention the words “panda,” “penguin” or “hummingbird,” you’ll likely see a little eye twitch. That’s because these have led to some major changes for website owners in the past. They signify monumental changes in Google algorithms, which affects all types of websites and usually makes it more difficult to get traffic.
There are some SEO services out there dedicated to following Google algorithm changes and making sure that a site’s traffic won’t be affected, but most of all, they optimize sites to withstand Google updates and keep your site in good standing every day. There are a few ways that you can always protect your site from falling behind after search engine algorithm changes.
1. Make Content Worth The While
While you have probably seen this before, it’s worth repeating. People only want to visit sites that have engaging content that’s useful and relevant. If you don’t have the time to focus on your content and produce quality blogs, then you probably won’t be able to get to the first page of results until you do.
Google is constantly looking for sites with more authority and usefulness to the user. That’s because this helps their business as well. If you want to be a Google helper, you have to strive to produce quality content. These are a few pointers to keep in mind when publishing anything on your site:
- Is it original?
- Is it free from spelling and grammar errors?
- How interested are you in reading it?
- Is it relevant to your target audience?
- What value does it have for your readers?
- Is it long enough? Text posts need at least 350 words.
- Does it have media? Videos and photos liven up content.
If you can answer each of these questions positively, then you’re on your way to star-studded content. The next step is to make sure that this content can be shared, and that a network of people are so interested that they are sharing and linking to your content every day.
2. Natural Linking Strategies
In the days of Internet SEO past, linking used to be quite simple, but then there was Google Panda. This algorithm update led to a complete change in the way marketing strategies used links, and further Google updates have made it difficult to simply add a link to some website.
Google wants links to have purpose and to demonstrate authority while also being helpful to the user. This is why natural links are preferred. So how do you create natural links? According to popular SEO services, natural links don’t come from buying link placement or placing links on irrelevant source pages. They should be used naturally.
The Penguin update made it further important to clean up your links, and if you have bad links out there, you may also need SEO services to clean up your linking profile so that you don’t have any negative marks from search engines.
If you want to create the ultimate natural link profile, you should consider the following:
- Exact-match anchor text is bad. Don’t use it.
- Incorporate a few general action anchor texts like “click here.”
- Use unique and creative link bait to get more interest.
- Naked URLs or http://searchengine.com/search are the most natural links according to Google algorithms.
- No link-building software allowed.
A healthy link profile appears like a pie with multiple layers. You may have one large source of inbound links, but the rest should be stratified into dozens of sources. You don’t want to purchase links as Google can detect exact match, bought links, and you’ll suffer the consequences if it suspects your site of such activity.
3. It’s Time for Social Media
As Google has suggested over the past two years and with the latest update Hummingbird, social media has gained new relevance to SEO. By its very networking nature, social media has changed the world, and if your business doesn’t already have profiles on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter, you’re likely not seeing the kind of results that you want in Google and other search engines.
Social media isn’t just worthwhile because it drives traffic to your site. Your site should be accessible through multiple channels with stunning visuals, engaging content and video that can be shared across the world. That’s how you improve interest in your online business.
Additionally, Google loves to see someone sharing your content and will add that to your ranking profile. If your content is constantly being shared and linked to, Google will recognize these social signals and place your site in a higher ranking.
While there will likely be plenty of new updates in the future with search engines, it’s best to be prepared and always think ahead. Technology is always looking 10 years into the future, and while that may seem like a long ways away, that’s exactly how Google is thinking when it develops the latest changes for its algorithms.
