Google’s New Update: Is Your Wedding Business At Risk?

Big Changes (and a Penguin!) Are Coming to Google’s Search Engine Results

Every business owner wants to see their company name on Page 1 of Google, and if you’re following best practices, Google’s new “Penguin” wants to help you get there too.  Learn more about the history of Penguin updates here.

If you only read one article on Search Engine Optimization (SEO) this week, I would suggest that you read this one.

As Jayson DeMers at Forbes notes, getting to Page 1 of Google is all about having a “strong content strategy.”

While Bing does have some standing in mobile applications, Google still rules, and their “Penguin 3.0” update is now the emperor of search. Why?

Its behind the scenes algorithm is specifically designed to penalize game players and click payers and reward natural, meaningful content.

With the number of ways there are out there to get clicks quick, it’s hard to keep up with all the latest SEO scams. However, for the moment, Google’s Penguin seems to be getting the natural way actual human beings think and speak right, promoting the website content that users actually want with higher rankings.

Google’s search engine also has the ability to spot and demote sites that don’t deserve a strong ranking, but merely used tricks to get there.

To paraphrase Ferris Bueller, the Internet moves pretty fast, so for the next few months, make sure to stop, look around, and notice the changes in Google search results. Most importantly, make sure to follow best practices and give your customers the content that they deserve.

Is Your Wedding Business In Trouble?

by Bri Swatek

The goal of the Penguin update is to eliminate poor quality and spammy results from the search engine results by minimizing links that were created for ranking purposes, but that don’t add value.

While MozCast’s recent study suggests that this latest update only affected about 1% of websites, it is being rolled out slowly world-wide. And if your website was one of those that was penalized, it’s certainly a big deal in your world!

Even if your website hasn’t been hit by Penguin yet, you can still be in trouble if:

• You’ve paid for links to your website.
• You’ve used automated link-building.
• You belong to a link network or “link farm.”
• You’ve hired cheap link-building SEO services.

If you’ve engaged in any of these practices, your website is at risk of being penalized by this (or the next) Penguin update.

Not sure if your website has been affected?  Find out how Google’s updates have impacted your website with this free tool.

How to Protect Yourself

At this point you’ve discovered (hopefully) that you’re in the clear and you’ve started to breathe easier.

Not so fast! Now is the perfect time to prepare yourself for the next inevitable update by making sure you’re following Google’s link guidelines. Failure to comply could mean no one finds your website.

Follow these steps to get on Google’s good side:

1. Conduct a link audit of your website. This will help you identify and eliminate any links that are hurting you.

2. Remove or disavow any spammy links you uncover. The article outlines the steps to follow for getting rid of bad links. “Spammy” links include:

• Links from guest blogging networks.
• Links from spam sites.
• Exact match anchor links.
• All optimized anchor links.

3. Regularly audit your content and links. This way you can spot and correct any issues before Google finds them. Simply refreshing the content on your pages can also give you a bonus SEO boost.

The Future of Penguins, Pandas and the Next to Join the Google Zoo

Gone are the days when you could buy or build poor quality backlinks and get away with it. Every time the spammers find a new way to game the system, Google releases a new updated to smack them down.

You won’t have to worry if you focus on creating valuable content that brides and grooms love. Period.

Great content earns backlinks, gets shared and attracts website visitors naturally. Align yourself with Google and make it your mission to build a valuable website with content that’s irresistible for brides and grooms, and you’ll be rewarded accordingly.

What do you think? Leave a comment and share your experience!

About the Co-Author

Bri Swatek is the proud owner of Hudson Valley DJ services for the best in unique wedding entertainment at DJBriSwatek.com, power networker, industry leader and a great person to have as a friend (and not just on Facebook!)

 

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