Updated January 12, 2023
Reading Time: 2 minutesDays of Hot Weather
The last couple of days has been extremely hot… in the SF Bay Area and with regard to SEO. If you follow Mozcast you’ve noticed some major activity over the last week. Triple digit temps indicating significant changes to SERP results. For those not familiar with Mozcast, this temperature gauge keeps track of SERP changes; it’s a good way to keep tabs on what’s happening behind the scenes at Google with their search algorithm.
In the last month, Mozcast has registered temperatures of over 90° five times, reaching highs of 107° and 110°. These end-of-summer peaks indicate that Google has been fiddling with something in the background. This assumption that was proved correct with last week’s’ announcement regarding Penguin. Penguin refers to elements of the search algorithm that reviews and processes links.
Penguin is one of Google’s many algorithms that tries to keep the SERP as spam-free as possible. Penguin, first announced back in 2012, targets websites that don’t conform with Google’s webmaster guidelines. Using tactics like linking schemes or use of bogus link farms and directories decrease a website’s visibility in organic rankings.
Penguin Algorithm Updates
Here’s the main idea behind the Penguin Algorithm: it pushes people away from black hat and grey hat SEO techniques. It encourages website owners to focus on creating quality content that inspires links from other reputable and credible websites. Which creates happier customers for Google and more money for everyone.
On Friday, September 23 Google announced via their Webmaster Central Blog that Penguin would now be done in real time. In the past, Penguin would carry out its checks periodically. Meaning that if your site had been given a black mark, it would stay until Google ran another check. However, now the link assessment will be carried out in real time. Meaning, links will be reviewed each time a search is made.
So, in theory, this means that if your website has had a problem with a poor link profile and you’ve fixed it, you will reappear in SERP more quickly. Webmasters who don’t follow quality guidelines are penalized faster. Basically, it means that a website’s SEO gets more real-time feedback. Theoretically, the more you follow the rules, the better your results.
Have you noticed any changes to your SERP results due to this September Penguin Algorithm update?
Photo credit – Top: Wikipedia
Photo credit – Bottom: India7 Network