Panda update
In February 2011, Google implemented the Panda update to its search algorithm. The purpose of this update was to redetermine the ranking of low-quality Web pages. In addition, adjustments were made to also give higher quality pages higher scores in search results.
So the Panda update has affected the ranking of Web sites. This is evident in the search results. For example, websites with excessive use of ads had significantly lower rankings. On the other hand, websites with newsworthy content suddenly received higher rankings in the results. Calculations show that the Panda update affected about 12 percent of Google search results.
The rules of the Panda update
Initially, the Panda update was updated monthly, which caused a lot of casualties. When websites were hit by the Panda update, all bad content had to be removed in order to rank well again in the algorithm, which meant companies had to wait a long time to improve their rankings. Therefore, Google incorporated the Panda update into the standard algorithm. But what aspects does the Panda algorithm pay attention to? These are website errors such as:
- Wrong technical bases
- Unreliable designs
- Dubious links
- Excessive use of keywords
- Duplicate content
- Spelling mistakes
But people's ratings about Web pages and the pages themselves are constantly changing. Because of these rapid changes, the Panda update is often re-rolled. With the effect that search result positions can change regularly.
Avoiding a Panda penalty
As long as you keep improving the quality of your website, you are less likely to get a penalty from Google. The guidelines Google gives for a good website are to avoid duplicate content, excessive use of keywords and misspellings. For this, you can look at the keyword density of blogs and product or service descriptions. Google is a huge fan of naturally written text on websites these days. These texts have an organic use of keywords and use of internal and external links. By paying attention to this, you are less likely to get a penalty from Google's Panda update.
