Google Algorithm: What
and How They Affect the Digital Marketing World?
We
all know whenever we need to find information, Google is the best place to go.
We get information as easy as clicking a button. But, have we ever stopped to
think about how it worked? How does Google show all the information we need in
just a matter of seconds? Well, it's all thanks to the algorithm it has.
Now
more questions arise, what is Google algorithm? It is a calculation made by
programmers to sort out all the information on the website so we as the readers
or consumers don't get the wrong information. For instance, when you type 'buy
a cheap house' you get a list of websites offering you cheap houses and not
cheap phones.
Is Google algorithm very important? Of course, it is. But, for business people,
the right question is, how does the algorithm affect businesses?
When
you have a business, of course, you want people to be well informed about what
you're trying to sell, and you do that through advertisements on the internet.
You make websites to introduce your products or services and you make content
on them. Now, this is where Google algorithm works, it analyzes every aspect of
your website so it can appear on the number 1 list on the first page.
Throughout
time, Google always changes its algorithm. They need to do that because
everybody wants their businesses to be the first one to appear while the
competition is fierce. With the algorithm, Google will decide which websites
deserve to be on the number one list in the search result.
For
the last 5 years, Google has changed its algorithm for at least more than 7
times. Each update will have an impact on websites. Some of the impacts were rather
small and some others were significantly down-ranked certain websites. Below
are some of the Google algorithms that have a sizeable impact especially in the
business environment.
1. Google Panda
Released
on February 24, 2011, this algorithm impacts website that has duplicate,
plagiarized, and keyword stuffing content. This will have a huge implication
for digital marketing agencies who used too many keywords stuffing in their
contents.
2. Google Hummingbird
Released
on August 22, 2013, this update was also still punishing some websites with
keywords stuffing. In this update, Google advised content creators to focus on
the concept and use natural language.
3. Google Pigeon
Released
on July 24, 2014, this update focus on websites handle on and off-page SEO.
4. Google Mobile
Released
on April 21, 2015, and judging by the name, this update emphasizes improvements
of the mobile page. A good website should be user-friendly both on desktop
computers and mobile. This is because more and more people nowadays surfing the
net using their smartphones. In the digital marketing view, of course, this is
good news due to more people can be exposed to your brands.
5. Google Fred
Released
on March 8, 2017, Google warns that websites with affiliate-heavy and
ad-centered content will be down-ranked. In digital marketing, affiliation and
ads are widely known, but this doesn't mean that you can do as much as you
want. People don't wanna see so many ads thrashing their views on the
site.
So
those are some of the Google algorithm updates in the last five years. Each
update aimed for better user experiences. What digital marketers should do is
adjust to the changes and be innovative in finding ways to advertise. (AKB)