Google’s fight against SEO
http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/238040
Since its inception, Google has been in a battle against websites that try to game their PageRank algorithm to appear higher in search results. PageRank is Google’s attempt at quantifying the importance of websites, so obviously, websites that game the algorithm would appear higher than their “true” importance would suggest, something Google doesn’t want.
This is why Google has become increasingly secretive about the exact nature of its algorithm, and why it’s been a long time since pure PageRank determined Google search results.
Google’s search algorithm now requires websites to build a brand and actually put out quality content, so “optimizing” for search engine ranking now more or less results in the intended effect. Those who try to game the system with low quality content tend to fail, and those who organically and genuinely build a brand and content get rewarded in the end.
This also reveals the flaws in the original PageRank algorithm. It relies on web content creators to be honest–and we know that’s not a realistic assumption. Google obviously knows the vulnerabilities of the original algorithm, too; they’re at least as smart as SEO “experts,” and Google has a financial interest (i.e. advertising) in returning the best and most relevant results, so they’re always working to outsmart SEO strategies.