Late last week Google began rolling out their Panda 4.0 algorithm update. Google’s Panda updates are designed to prevent sites with poor quality content from moving their way into Google’s top search results. Whilst Google have been rolling out smaller Panda refreshes and updates over the past few years, this is reported to be a significantly larger algorithm update. Google told SearchEngineLand that Panda 4.0 affects roughly 7.5% of English search queries. It’s said that this update lays the groundwork for future changes in this direction, confirming what we predicted a few months ago when exploring the future of SEO – an increasing focus on good quality content. But what exactly does Panda 4.0 mean for your website?
Most of you probably won’t notice any difference to your search rankings. Some of you may even see your rankings improve. However, if all you’re doing is writing good quality content then you can’t expect your website to rank incredibly well on that basis alone. There’s still a very large number of factors which Google takes into consideration when ranking websites. The Panda 4.0 update just reinforces that Google is looking fondly upon websites with good quality content, and frowning at those without. And rightly so – if I’m searching for a particular bit of information I’d like to be presented with various websites which contain good content on the topic I searched for.
How can you ensure your website doesn’t get damaged rankings as a result of Panda? It’s pretty simple – just make sure your website contains good quality content. This is often a case of being critical with yourself. Is the content on this page actually good? Is it really? Put yourself in the frame of mind of someone who’s just landing on your page for the first time, who knows nothing about your business. This means creating content which isn’t just trying to sell someone a product/service, and isn’t necessarily just about your business; but instead actually provides useful information about a topic, and is of course well written. That doesn’t mean you need to cram your focus keyword into every sentence of the content, just allow it to be included naturally. Focus on writing your content for your visitors, not for Google.
Have you noticed a loss in rankings over the past few days? We can help! Get in touch and we’ll happily take a look at your website to identify ways to solve the issue. Find out more about our SEO services here, take a look at some of our DIY SEO tips, and keep an eye on our blog for future SEO tidbits.
