What is Google Penguin?
“Penguin” was the name given to one of the most recent algorithm “fixes” put in place by Google. It sought to establish a new quality standard within its ranking algorithm by focusing on the validity and overall natural strategy applied to a website, especially its backlinks. It’s a continuation building upon previous updates, dubbed Panda, that emphasized quality as well. Items like text placement, matching content, user experience, and other valuable aspects suddenly became powerful overnight. Google’s Penguin update was no exception; in fact many companies and websites took massive, often unexplainable, hits on or around April 24th. We’ve dubbed this experience “Penguinitis.”
"Penguinitis Googlum"
What are the symptoms of Penguinitis?
- Unexplained drop in traffic, conversions, call volume, and/or other quantitative metrics.
- Rankings magically fell off, seemingly for no reason.
- Little to no benefit from strong marketing efforts (fighting an uphill battle).
- Mass hysteria and/or confusion at your local Starbucks as freelance SEOs viciously set fire to their keyboards blogging about the evils of Google.
- You haven’t heard from your SEO firm since the end of April.
So how can Apogee Results fix Penguinitis?
First, we’ll do a complete analysis of your site and gain understanding of your web based assets. Then we will filter through your assets looking for items and methodologies that were devalued and/or punished by the Google Penguin update. We will then devise a strategy and assist you in reconciling your site to Google so you can regain your status in the rankings and move forward with your business.
Secondly, only two of our clients have suffered from the Google Penguin update, and in both cases they are new clients with whom we inherited another SEO firm’s past-doings. All of our long-term clients either remained neutral or in some cases benefited significantly from the Google update. In the case with one client, virtually all of the pages on their website increased in rankings significantly within 72 hours. They now rank in the top 5 results for 3 terms that are highly competitive as a result of competitors above them getting punished by the Google Penguin update.
Why weren’t Apogee’s clients affected?
We focus on what is referred to as “white-hat” methodology. That is to say, we focus on quality and natural methods to obtain rank rather than trying to “game” Google’s algorithm. We realized long ago that user experience, persona matching, and in-depth research were a much better cornerstone to building an online marketing strategy than simply buying links, creating ten million online profiles, and other falsehoods. It might not get you to first place for a term and/or hordes of masses, but frankly we emphasize finding the right customers for your business model, giving them a good experience, and then letting them be brand champions for you. This leads to a steady flow of business not only from first time users, but from return customers. In fact, when’s the last time you’ve heard your SEO guru refer to customer lifetime value?
We can help.
If you know your site has been affected, or are unsure of Penguin’s affects on your site. Give us a call at (855) 360-4601, or fill out the form below. We’ll schedule a time with one of our SEO doctors to help diagnose your site and discuss treatment options.
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