The Google Penguin update and its consequences.
ABOUT THE GOOGLE PENGUIN UPDATE
SEO keeps getting more important and it is a world in constant change. Google releases update after update to its algorithms and we constantly have to take other factors into account to score, and keep scoring, high. The big Google Penguin update is coming in 2016. That will probably happen in late February or early March. Penguin is the Google system with which all your backlinks can be checked. We are glad to explain it all in understandable language, and to give you a number of important tips for the SEO year 2016 as well!
NEGATIVE BACKLINKS
The most important new feature of Penguin is surely that it will run in real time. It becomes possible to be freed from Penguin penalties immediately by removing backlinks. Backlinks are incoming links from a website other than your own. Previously, if you had a bad backlink (which of course you don’t want) and you removed it, it took a while before Google had processed that. With the new update such penalties are lifted straight away! Backlinks will also become less important in the near future.
FOCUS ON QUALITY
Google keeps focusing on quality content. With the new update to Google’s quality filter, smaller websites with high-quality content also stand a better chance of scoring high. We smell opportunity!
USERS
There have never been so many people carrying out their search on a mobile device. Google has been responding to this since April 2015 by placing responsive websites higher in the search results. And it keeps getting more and more important. Websites optimised for the mobile visitor will therefore be placed higher too. So don’t underestimate the importance of a responsive website.
A FEW TIPS
We also want to give you some practical tips. We have our SEO checklist for 2016, of course, but below are a few quick SEO tips for you. Quality and user-friendliness are and remain Google’s key words in 2016.
So focus on the visitor’s search intent, help them, and don’t spam with keywords. That is outdated and Google penalises it besides.
Make your website responsive. Right away if you can, because by now more than 50% of searches happen on mobile devices.
Make sure the technology behind your website is sound; at Webba we naturally already watch out for this. As an existing customer you don’t have to do anything about it yourself. You’re welcome!
MORE INFO?
We hope this has helped you another step towards scoring higher in Google. Should you still have questions about the Google Penguin update, for example, you can always get in touch with us!
