WHAT DO PENGUINS HAVE TO DO WITH MY WEBSITE?

Although I do not specialize in Search Engine Optimization (SEO), I care a great deal about my clients and their businesses. SEO is integral to the success of the web side of your company. It is how your customers find you when they do a Google search for your product. Great, but I’m still not making the penguin connection.

Here it is. Google will occasionally change the criteria it looks for in rankings (how high on the list you are placed when someone does a Google search). Those criteria are called algorithms, and although they are constantly being modified, there is a package of fairly substantial changes about once a year. In 2012, it was called Panda 2.0. On May 22, 2013, Google released Penguin 2.0 and the Penguin changes could dramatically affect how many people see your website. If you have noticed a drop in your web traffic, it could be because of Penguin 2.0. You might wonder how you should react to this news. Some people panic and call an SEO company and order massive changes. Some just panic. Some people, hopefully you among them, are too busy running a successful company to do anything. But, what should you do? First thing is, don’t panic. Second is, continue running your successful business. Third is, consider your content.

Although the Penguin changes cover a wide array of criteria, the biggest thing is content, the descriptive wording on your website that tells your customers who you are and what you do. Google is looking for original content (ergo, don’t go copying your competitor’s content and paste it into your site). They are looking for how you stand out from your competitors, what you can do for the purchasing public and how you interact with them on your website. They want to see you post on Facebook, Twitter and Google+. They want to see that you are saying something that connects with your customers in such a way that your customers want to share your posts (back linking). As it relates, my advice is dealing with a Penguin is to think about what you are saying to your customers. Make them want to share with other people. Tell them something they don’t know, something entertaining, something interesting, maybe about penguins. If you need something, penguins see better underwater than in air.