Google continues its emphasis toward quality. We saw this early last year with the Google Panda update that de-indexed low quality and duplicate content. This changed article marketing to a focus on high quality original articles.
Earlier this year we saw the blog network “Build My Rank” have all their links de-indexed, thus putting them out of business over a few day period. This is just another example of Google’s ongoing battle to improve the quality experience of search.
What do we need to do to stay ahead of Google? The answer is simple, focus on quality and on the user experience. This is for both content and in back-linking methods. High quality original content will naturally attract links.
So what will hurt you with Google?
- Hastily written, sloppy postings or articles will hurt you.
- Poor grammar, spelling errors will hurt you.
- Duplicate content, scraper content or spun content will hurt you.
- Low value content with high bounce rates will hurt you.
- Mass created content from offshore writers will hurt you.
- An excess number of ads that distract from the content will hurt you.
How do you outsmart Google? …Don’t try.
Content should be valuable, original and be similar to what you would expect to see in an encyclopedia or a magazine. It should inspire trust. It should be something people would want to bookmark. It should contain insightful analysis or interesting information. It should contain original research and contain specific information.
Focusing on quality and producing valuable and interesting content is the long-term solution to gaining great Google rankings.