“Getting Un-Panda-lized: One Blog’s Response to Google’s Panda Update” plus 1 more

Getting Un-Panda-lized: One Blog’s Response to Google’s Panda Update

Posted: 14 Jul 2011 01:02 PM PDT

This guest post is by Ethan of OneProjectCloser.com

When Google rolled out the first Panda update on 23 February 2011, we saw our site traffic plummet by 40%. I learned about this four hours after quitting my day job to become a full-time blogger. I don’t regret the decision for a second, but it presented some unique challenges for the days ahead.

Since then, we’ve employed several different strategies to reclaim our former glory. Research and site analysis led us to remove potentially low quality content. We’ve experimented with modifying and removing ads, all the while trying to better the user experience. It’s important to know that we haven’t seen a recovery … yet. None of what I’m about to share has made a significant improvement, but hopefully this article will provide insight for other publishers.

When Panda struck

Site analysis

“This update is designed to reduce rankings for low-quality sites”—Amit Singhal, Google Fellow

Google has mentioned time and again that the new Panda document classifier impacts the entire site. Before, you could have a handful of really good posts and the onus was on Google to find them. Now, webmasters shoulder the responsibility to carefully curate every shred of content.

Since the term low-quality is subject to some interpretation, we began our site analysis to identify the high-quality content. The goal was to improve our link profile and eliminate everything but our best content. Using data from Google Analytics, Webmaster Tools, and backlink analysis tools, we rated every single post. Specifically, we looked at top landing pages, content by number of links, content by number of linking domains and domain authority. Many of these factors correlate with AdSense earning so we also took that into account.

Removing low-quality content

“…is blocked from crawling and indexing, so that search engines can focus on what makes your site unique and valuable…” – John Mu, Google Employee

We decided which articles needed to go and which would stay. It was painful to think about deleting about 75% of our archives, so it was a relief to find alternative ways of “removing” content. By blocking crawling, we would be able to keep informative posts that didn’t make the cut, and preserve link juice.

In another forum, John Mu stated that you should use a 404 or 410 error code for pages that are not worth salvaging, 301 redirect items that can be merged, and a “noindex” meta tag for content that you plan to rewrite. Matt Cutts did a live webcast on May 25 in which he verified that noindexing is a good solution for removing low-quality content. Blocking content in robots.txt prevents Googlebots from crawling whereas noindexing allows crawling and following links.

Ads and affiliate links

“While it’s exciting to maximize your ad performance with AdSense, it’s also important to consider the user experience…” – Best Practices Guidelines, Google AdSense

It seemed very telling that the AdSense team released new guidelines for ad placement about two months after Panda hit. A lot of publishers felt slighted because AdSense optimization specialists have always pushed for more ad blocks and more aggressive placements. Now it seemed there was a threshold for ads that pushed content below the fold. This isn’t a stretch, as Google already renders each page for the preview they provide alongside search results. They know where the ad blocks fall.

I’ll admit we were being aggressive with our ad placement. We took the plunge and removed AdSense for over a month, through the Panda 2.2 update, but saw no improvement. Since, we've only replaced AdSense on a handful of articles.

We suspect that Google views affiliate links much like ads, especially as it may bias the publisher toward a specific product. Eliminating the majority of our affiliate links was easy as only a few ever converted. But needless to say, overall these changes have really hit us where it hurts.

Duplicate content

“The Panda Technology appears to have helped some scraper sites” – Michael Martinez, SEO Theory

Michael shares that he had a hard time finding examples of scrapers outranking the original authors, but he hits the nail on the head in the last line of the section. If Panda isn’t demoting your site, you’ll still outrank the scrapers. Our site doesn’t.

I’ve submitted a lot of takedown notices since Panda hit, but that isn’t the only duplicate content we’ve been reviewing. A lot of our articles overlap because of similar (but distinct) topics. We began working to make sure each article could stand on its own merit with unique ideas and fresh perspective. This was no easy task, and is still a work in progress.

The end-user experience

“The +1 button is shorthand for ‘this is pretty cool’ or ‘you should check this out.’ Click +1 to publicly give something your stamp of approval.” – Google +1

Bloggers have known that social marketing (a good metric for user experience) is an important part of your online identity and a great way to build readership. With moves like the +1 button, Google shifts some of the power from site owners to the everyday web surfer. Before, we would build relationships and advocate for links from webmasters, but that system was easily gamed. Now, the end user experience and how they interact on your site matters more than ever.

We’ve made a lot of improvements, and in some ways I’m glad Panda has had such a dramatic impact. Nothing else would have spurred on many of the changes we’ve made. Our site will be refined by fire with the end result that will be much better than before. Sometimes webmasters are too close to their own products.

If you have ideas about overcoming the Panda demotion, or suggestions for how we can improve, I’d love to hear them.

Ethan is 28 years old, and loves construction and home improvement. He co-founded OneProjectCloser.com in 2008 where he shares how-to projects, tool reviews and more. To stay connected, follow One Project Closer on Twitter and their new Facebook page.

Originally at: Blog Tips at ProBlogger

Getting Un-Panda-lized: One Blog’s Response to Google’s Panda Update

The Secret to Feeding Your Family with a Blog

Posted: 14 Jul 2011 07:04 AM PDT

This guest post is by Russ Henneberry of Tiny Business, Mighty Profits.

It’s every blogger’s dream: to take something you created and generate enough money to take care of your obligations.

But time is running out. The time bomb is ticking. Generate sales, or die.

With each second that ticks by, the pressure mounts. And it becomes tough to know where to spend your time as a blogger.

Should you study methods for getting more comments? Should you become an SEO ninja and analyze your traffic data on Google Analytics? Should you master the art of getting retweets or Facebook “likes?”

The answer? Yes and no.

Allow me to explain with a quick story about how I defused my own time bomb.

The time bomb starts ticking

image is author's own

I wasn’t ready for her, but she came anyway. She weighed 6 lbs 10ozs, and she was beautiful. She looked like a peanut and the name stuck.

Five weeks prior to her birth, I left my job with a pink slip and a prayer, laid off with little or no sympathy from my employer. Those five weeks went by in a blur:

Contracts were created.
Business cards were printed.
A stapler and sticky notes were purchased.

And … I launched my blog.

The day Peanut came home from the hospital, we settled her into her crib. I tore open a pack of note cards. With a thick, black Sharpie, I wrote what would become my new mantra and pinned it to my office wall. It said:

“FEED THE PEANUT”

Then, I went to work defusing the time bomb.

I cut the red wire

For you, Feeding the Peanut may mean paying medical bills or mounting credit card debt. Or perhaps recovering from a bad stock or real estate investment. Maybe you need to supplement your retirement to lead the lifestyle you want.

For me, Feeding the Peanut is taking care of those that I love, including my newborn daughter. And I didn’t have much time, so I searched for shortcuts.

I worked 12-hour days while my wife took care of the kids. I toiled and toiled for more comments, more visits, and more social media connections. I spent my days (and nights):

marketing my products and services to the masses using social media and email blasts
writing blog post after blog post that I optimized for Google but not my readers
checking my Google Analytics twice a day
using tricks to get thousands of Twitter followers
automating my Twitter and Facebook streams
submitting articles full of keywords and gibberish to thousands of article directories
using tools to bookmark articles on dozens of sites.

Wrong answer. The time bomb clock sped up. I was seeing no results.

Meanwhile, the Peanut was going through a pack of diapers and two cans of formula a week! Feeding the Peanut was becoming increasingly expensive. I wasn’t sleeping, and not just because we had a newborn. With each passing night, I felt like less and less oxygen was in my bedroom.

One day, however, I stopped and did a 180-degree turn because of something my four-year-old son said to me.

I cut the green wire

Ever had one of those head-smacking moments when someone simplifies something you have complicated?

Late one night my son came down to kiss me goodnight and he asked me what I was doing.
“I’m working on getting more people to read what Daddy is writing.” I said.
“Why do you want to do that?” he asked.
I nearly spit coffee on my keyboard.

Why did I want more traffic? Traffic isn’t sales. Google rankings, Facebook Likes, and Twitter retweets aren’t sales either.

Sales are sales.

So, I tried cutting the green wire. I began spending my days (and nights):

selling my products and services one person at a time, meeting one on one
going to in-person networking events
meeting one on one with people that would be a good fit for my services
listening
shaking hands
creating products and services that were laser-focused on the individuals I was meeting on and off-line
handing out business cards
having real conversations with people via social media
posting answers to people’s questions on my blog
burning educational video content to DVD and personally delivering it to people
ignoring my Google Analytics.

Getting closer. The bomb clock slowed down, but it didn’t stop. I was landing sales and my savings account was not hemorrhaging like it was when I was using Red Wire tactics. Meanwhile, the Peanut started walking. Day care costs doubled as my wife went back to her teaching job and both my son and daughter needed care.

I was extremely busy, but I could see that I wasn’t going to make it. I was at my breaking point. I couldn’t possibly work any harder, yet I was merely delaying the inevitable. Until something happened.

I crossed the red wire with the green wire

Using only Green Wire tactics, I would die a slow death. Using only Red Wire tactics, my demise would be swift. So, I took the most effective Red Wire tactics and combined them with the best Green Wire tactics.

I spend my time today:

selling high-dollar products and services in a personal one-on-one environment and low-dollar products via email and social media blasts
writing high-quality, search engine optimized content
working hard to increase my Twitter and Facebook connections by connecting with influential people and providing them value
using data in my Google Analytics to make better decisions about my marketing, once per week
attending off-line networking events that are consistent with my business objectives
scheduling some of my Twitter and Facebook stream but always participating in conversations with others as well.

This combination of Red Wire and Green Wire tactics stopped the clock.

Today, I sleep through the night and work hard during the day. It’s not easy but I am able to Feed the Peanut better than I ever was working for someone else.

You can defuse your time bomb!

The time bomb is a morbid but accurate metaphor. The truth is that it is hard. The pressure can feel like it will crush you at times. After all, this is real life, not a game.

But don’t panic. You can do this! Remember that blogging is just like any other business. It’s about making sales. It’s about making enough money to stop the time bomb.

Marketing your products and services through your blog is about both volume (Red Wire tactics) and quality of interaction (Green Wire tactics). But either one alone is likely to explode in your face.

In hindsight, I could have avoided a lot of pain by beginning with Green Wire tactics and adding Red Wire tactics as my blog grew. Lesson learned: blog comments, traffic, retweets and Facebook Likes will feed your ego, but they won’t Feed the Peanut.

So get out there and make sales. Your Peanut is counting on you.

Russ Henneberry is the founder of the #1 resource for tiny business owners in the galaxy, Tiny Business, Mighty Profits. Find out how Russ learned to Feed the Peanut with his blog by watching these 10 free Internet marketing videos.

Originally at: Blog Tips at ProBlogger

The Secret to Feeding Your Family with a Blog