Whatever the reason behind Google’s decision to penalise your website—whether it’s because you bought links, published duplicate content, or stuffed keywords into your blogs and meta data description—you need to work quickly to recover. There’s no time to focus on the effects of the move. In the face of plummeting rankings and web traffic, you need to determine the cause and take the necessary steps to cope.
Here’s how your website can recover from a Google penalty:
Determine if it is a Manual or Algorithmic Penalty
Google penalties fall under two categories: manual and algorithmic. Manual penalties are easier to identify, as they are usually accompanied by a message found when you log into your Google Webmaster Tools account. They happen when Google’s spam algorithm gets flagged by a particular element relating to your site. The algorithmic penalty, on the other hand, happens naturally, as Google updates its algorithms. A small update or series of changes can create automatic penalties that can cause your site to suddenly drop in ranking.
Take the Appropriate Actions
Once you’ve identified the type of penalty given your website, take the appropriate actions to fix the problem. Manual penalties are often caused by manipulative link building. Remove as many links as possible and audit your entire inbound link profile. Afterward, file a well-written reconsideration request.
Algorithmic penalties are trickier, as you’re given no information as to why you’re penalised. This is where you need to play a detective. Compare your analytics data to Google’s algorithm change history to determine whether the penalty is Panda or Penguin-related.
Develop a New Game Plan
Link clean-up can be expensive and time-consuming; it’s easier to avoid penalties than to recover from them. Redesign your SEO strategies based on Google’s recent algorithm updates. Create fresh and quality content, and get valuable links from authority sites. Ditch black hat SEO tactics, and start working on a new strategy that gives value to your website.
Recovering from Google penalties can be difficult, but it’s possible. Contact us today for SEO services and let our team of experts help you develop a great SEO strategy and recover from a Google penalty successfully.
