Google Penguin and Page Ranking
Recently, Google announced that they would be including the new Penguin algorithm into their core search algorithm. This article, written by Bill Hartzer, expands on Penguin’s basic function and purpose, in addition to providing webmasters with tips on how to optimize their websites for Penguin. The addition to Google’s popular search engine seeks to improve the quality of top ranked sites in search results in real time. It does this by assessing the inbound links that lead to a particular website. Penguin determines if these sites are spammy in nature, or if they are simply low quality, and having a number of low quality inbound links hurts the ranking of a particular website in search results. These efforts are valuable to users who are seeking reliable and accurate search results for their queries. The author also notes that what is considered spam is not limited to websites themselves, but also content that site owners may incorporate into their own sites to increase optimization. Sometimes, webpages will be filled with hidden keywords as text, which may mislead a user into accessing a website not relevant to their needs. The author then gives a number of options to users so that they can determine if their sites are being linked by low quality sites. These include software options to identify spam links, and instructions for how to have those links removed so site owners will not be penalized by the algorithm update.
In class, we have discussed the importance of links in affecting page rankings. In this case, the spam sites could be compared to low quality hubs and the pages we look for could be compared to authorities. We defined good authorities as those being linked with good, high quality hubs. For example, a spam website (low quality hub) that contains links to other low quality spam websites, would hurt the ranking of a particular website if it was linked there. Conversely, a website would benefit from Penguin if we applied these principles in a different situation. If a highly regarded review site like CNET linked a website, the ranking would benefit since CNET tends to link to high quality websites. The addition of Penguin to Google’s search algorithm is a welcome addition to combat the ever present annoyance that is web spam.
http://www.practicalecommerce.com/articles/127672-Google-Penguin-Now-Part-of-Core-Search-Algorithm