Weeks after the implementation of Google’s Content Farm Update, the effects of the algorithm change have begun to surface.
Preferential Treatment? The Huffington Puff
On one hand, a ‘news’ site, the Huffington Post, which auto-publishes stories pulled from various news sites, managed to outrank its original news sources. This latest development appears to contradict Google’s intention to weed out content farms supposedly in favor of high quality content.
Google’s search algorithm reportedly includes a classifier that distinguishes high quality sites from the “content farms”, a term that has no strict definition and which Google simply defines as sites with “low quality” or “shallow” content.
Initially, it seemed to target the formerly high-ranking article directories that publish hundreds of user-contributed articles daily, and collect advertising revenue in return. But as days passed, a major flaw in the algorithm appeared to demote sites containing original content while upgrading the rankings of their copycats.
Conspiracy? OneWorld
On the other hand, a news aggregator site, OneWorldScam, is raising objections over the Google algorithm change (most would agree this a futile exercise), suggesting that it could be a part of a concerted effort to silence anti-establishment voices such as theirs. (Even the casual observer would see that this site gathers news items primarily to expose the plan to create a “New World Order” with a “one world government”.)
While the site admittedly republishes news items from other sources, it does so for purposes of providing insight and comment, not to rank well for search words as ordinary content farms do.
The problem obviously lies in Google’s criteria for determining low from high quality, which remain arbitrary and vague as it maintains source code secrecy to avoid being gamed. Instead of cleaning out web garbage, Google’s algorithm has promoted (G)arbitrage.
Google admits that its algorithm update is not perfect and that it is being constantly refined to approximate ‘near perfect’. In the meantime, legitimate websites that have been severely affected by the modification may just have to lay the facts before Google or bring it to their attention for manual white-listing just as it did with Cult of Mac, a popular Apple-focused blog.
Have the Google changes affected your sites or posts?
Hi Kerry,
I like your post, Google makes changes to its algorithm but uses flawed criteria in it, hardly seems fair. I hardly consider the Huffington Post anything more than waste of bandwidth.
Jon
Skype me – soonerdad3
I’ve always believed that using premium unique content will bring Google love – I hope things settle down so that this will be the case.
I may be a bit Naive (everyone seems to think that ) but I have never been concerned about Google, Yahoo the rest. My businesses and those of my clients grow because of well rounded exposure to all aspects of the Market. If one is entrenched in Adwords and Affiliate marketing I can see where these changes could be detrimental.And those who bit into the Importance of Article marketing etc.
Using all tools seems to be the way to go…yes we even use the phone, Direct Mail, personal mail and print media along with well designed on-line strategies.
I admire the success of the Google folks, but I would never rely on someone else solely for the success of any of our businesses.
And they WILL change again and again.
I believe it is the nature of the Code Mentality….
never staisfied
Chuck,
When you have an online business that relies on people coming to your site and taking action, being ranked in the first two pages (preferably the first) by search engines for your well-researched buying keyword is vital.
If you have an offline business and a site that provides information only, perhaps it may not be so important.
Thanks for contributing to the discussion.
I’ve always believed that using premium unique content will bring Google love – I hope things settle down so that this will be the case.
I found that the changes affected some whie not other sites that are similar. It is difficult to learn exactly what causes one site to drop but not another -similar site?
Greg,
You could go crazy trying to work out Google! I continue to put original content on my money sites first and then wherever I republish it, I link it all back to the money site either directly or in a chain from linking one to the next. But always ending up at the money site, which Google should see as the authority site if it has indexed the article there first. But as this post shows, it doesn’t always work that way.
I found that the changes affected some whie not other sites that are similar. It is difficult to learn exactly what causes one site to drop but not another -similar site?
Greg,
You could go crazy trying to work out Google! I continue to put original content on my money sites first and then wherever I republish it, I link it all back to the money site either directly or in a chain from linking one to the next. But always ending up at the money site, which Google should see as the authority site if it has indexed the article there first. But as this post shows, it doesn’t always work that way.