how to avoid and recover from google’s penguin penalty€¦ · how to avoid and recover from...

Jacob BohallVP of Marketing @Virante, Inc

How to Avoid and Recover from Google’s Penguin Penalty

IntroductionJacob Bohall is the Vice President of Marketing at Virante, Inc. - a leading search marketing agency known for white-glove link development services, industry R&D, and their suite of innovative SEO tools.

His 10+ years of experience in founding several start-ups, programming, SEO, and business development has made him adept at identifying practical online marketing strategies to fit a companies growth objectives and available resources.

He frequently speaks at popular industry conferences discussing the latest trends and techniques and also leads search marketing training programs for corporate clients and major conferences.

Virante, Inc.http://www.virante.org1‐800‐650‐0820@virante

Jake Bohalljbohall@virante.com919‐459‐2834@jakebohall

How to Avoid and Recover from Google’s Penguin Penalty

What is Google Penguin?

• Code Name for an Algorithm Update– April 24, 2012 (Penguin 1.0)– May 25th, 2012 (Penguin 1.1)– October 5th, 2012 (Penguin #3)– May 22nd, 2013 (Penguin 2.0 / #4)– October 4th, 2013 (Penguin 2.1 / #5)

• Enforces Google’s Webmaster Guidelines– Specifically the guidelines regarding link

development practices or “link schemes”

Image credit: http://www.seobook.com

What is a Link Scheme?

• Any links intended to manipulate PageRank or a site's ranking in Google search results may be considered part of a link scheme and a violation of Google’s Webmaster Guidelines.

Content Source: https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/66356?hl=en

What is a Link Scheme?

1. Buying or selling links2. Link exchanges3. Article Marketing or Guest Posting campaigns4. Automated programs or services5. Text ads that pass PageRank6. Advertorials7. Links with optimized anchor text8. Low-quality Directory or Bookmarking sites9. Keyword-rich links in widgets10. Widely distributed links in footers/templates11. Forum and blog comments with optimized anchors

Content Source: https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/66356?hl=en

What is the Risk?

Image Credit: http://seo‐website‐designer.com

What is the Risk?

– Algorithmic filter• Noticeable drop in traffic/rankings without receiving

any manual action in Google Webmaster Tools

– Manual Penalty• Notice in Google Webmaster Tools• Action Listed in Google Webmaster Tools

Algorithmic Filter

Image Credit: http://www.billhartzer.com

Algorithmic Filter

Manual Penalty

How do I fix it?

1. Cleanup Bad Links

2. Disavow Bad Links

3. Submit a Reconsideration Request (if Manual)

4. Cross your fingers and wait

Step 1 – Cleanup Bad Links

Create a Master List!

– Google Webmaster Tools– Bing Webmaster Tools– OpenSiteExplorer.org– MajesticSEO.com– aHrefs.com– Yandex Webmaster Tools

What is a Bad Link?

Image Credit: http://www.agentsofvalue.com

http://www.removeem.com/ratios.php

If it is keyword specific, consider PenguinAnalysis.com for guidance.

Step 1 – Cleanup Bad Links

• Review and flag each link to be removed• Obtain contact information for the

webmasters (whois, website, etc.)• Email each webmaster requesting that the

link be removed.• Track the links to see which ones are

removed

Streamline the Cleanup Process

Pay DeleteBacklinks.com to get rid of links from known directories

Check out these link removal companies• Remove’em• Rmoov• LinkDetox

Step 2 - Disavow Remaining Links

Image Credit: http://www.seosandwitch.com

Step 3 – File Recon Request

1. Apologize and take responsibility

2. Why are you so important?

3. Explain cleanup efforts and results

4. Link to spreadsheet with “proof”

5. Outline plans for future SEO efforts

Step 3 – File Recon Request

Step 4 – Wait it out

Google approves request

Google denies request

Image Credit: http://searchengineland.com/