Video: How to Deal with & Recover from Google Penalties

Malicoat_MainMy, how the search engine environment has changed in the last decade. Search engines have experienced dramatic changes in the past year alone, but the past five years really changed the game for marketers, largely due to Google’s Panda and Penguin updates. Interestingly, as Todd Malicoat, the SEO faculty chair at Market Motive told us at Pubcon in Las Vegas, Google actually warned that these changes were coming five years before they actually happened. Unfortunately, even the SEO community didn’t heed the warning.

As a result, many sites were hit with Google penalties with some are still trying to recover. When a site realizes they have a problem, they, first of all, need to identify what it is. This process involves understanding the difference between a penalty, filter and ban. A penalty can be either an algorithmic error where the site’s performance drops due to something like a content issue, or a it can be a manual problem, in which the search engine tells the site what it’s doing wrong. A ban is when a site included black hat SEO strategies, and a filter is more of an algorithmic issue. A penalty can be either an algorithmic error where the site’s performance drops due to something like a content issue, or a it can be a manual problem, in which the search engine tells the site what it’s doing wrong.

Malicoat says the majority of problems fall into the following categories: content-based or link-based. On the content side, he recommends using a tool called DeepCrawl. For a link-based or Penguin-type of issue, he likes link research tools such as Pitchbox to identify bad links.

Recovery can be complicated depending on the extent of the issue, but reputable SEOs are experienced in getting back in Google’s good graces.

Interestingly, as these changes have happened, Malicoat has noticed a shift in SEO from getting links to focusing on content marketing. Though some of the same techniques still work, many of them are no longer effective. The focus today is on quality both in content and promotional efforts. This means that the landscape is much more competitive, but the end result is better. Hear more from Malicoat in this video:

About author:

Although Abby Johnson’s education and early career are based in traditional broadcast media, her most recent experience has taken her into the world of “new media.” Abby served as a reporter for more 6 years covering topics ranging from highlighting the latest gadgets and applications to the more serious news of online consumer privacy concerns and the potential of cyberwarfare. She has also secured and conducted interviews with Vint Cerf, the Vice President and Chief Internet Evangelist for Google and who is recognized as one of the “fathers of the Internet;” Matt Cutts, Senior Software Engineer for Google; actor Jake Gyllenhaal (Jarhead, Love and Other Drugs, Prince of Persia, etc.) at the movie premiere of Source Code; comedian and radio personality Adam Carolla; former NBA star and actor Rick Fox; as well as other known personalities and Internet industry experts. By being actively involved in the Internet industry during the social media boom and working directly with many of the social media "early adopters," Abby's transition into social marketing came naturally. She now serves as the Social Media Coordinator for SugarSpun Marketing as well as Manager of Communications at design-build firm Gray. In these roles, Abby creates original content, produces digital strategies, handles media relations and blogger outreach, implements social media campaigns, and more. Through her consistent high standards and driven approach, these campaigns have resulted in meaningful conversations, relevant brand positioning, and achieved goals.

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