Algorithms 101: Google's Panda Algorithm

SEO Sparta's Algorithm 101 series teaches website owners the basics of search engine algorithms, specifically Google's algorithm, with its many iterations. This week we discuss the Panda algorithm, first released in 2011, and how it affected small local sites (image source).

The web used to look a lot like New York City in the 1980s when "homicides were at near-record highs, the crack epidemic was raging, and NYC had not yet experienced the wave of gentrification that has marked it in modern times" (source). Like NYC, the early web was beautiful in many ways but also crowded with seedy sites of ill-repute. 

Over the years, however, the great savior of the web, Google, instituted a series of algorithm updates meant to clean things up. One notable algorithm, the Panda algorithm, was released in February 2011 with the purpose of penalizing "low-quality" sites with excessive ads and minimal content.

Panda battled "content farms," websites that hired freelance workers to produce articles with the explicit purpose of manipulating search rankings. These websites often included copious ads and offered little relevance for a browser seeking answers. Of course, the web is much better without these sites.

For Google, these sites lacked the necessary "authority" to deserve a top ranking on the SERP (search engine results page). Incidentally, learning about authority is a great way to see how consistent effort of a period of weeks, months, and years can reap tremendous rewards for a website. 

Unfortunately, while battling content farms, Google also inadvertently penalized other sites without perceived "authority"--defined in many ways, but most notably by well-written, quality content. 

Notably, Panda penalized small businesses in favor of brand name sites, placing undue emphasis on Amazon and the like for many product searches. Smaller sites couldn't compete, even if they offered equal/or better products at equal/or better prices.

Most troublesome, however, was the effect of the update on local sites, like beauty salons or car repair shops. At the time, many browsers experienced the frustration of searching for a good local haircut only to discover a SERP packed with national brands, like Supercuts.

People live near Supercuts, of course, but undoubtedly a majority of browsers also prefer to learn about local salons. Google's Panda wasn't doing a great job of revealing this information.

Of course, a specific local search could help refine the results. We might search "Philadelphia Hair Salon" instead of "hair salon." But we expect Google to be smarter, don't we? And the reality is that many people still do not specify places when searching--and luckily, for the most part, they don't have to. After two years of complaints, Google acknowledged this problem in 2013. 

Since then, Google has made big changes to Panda explicitly to help small businesses. Today, for the most part, the mainstays of good SEO and digital marketing define the local search experience: Good design. Good development. And good content. 

Are you nailing all three of these key areas in your digital marketing efforts? If not, Google may penalize your site. 

If you are interested in transforming your website into a money-making tool or are interested in exploring opportunities to outperform your competition, we encourage you to contact SEO SPARTA.

We combine traditional marketing methods and organic SEO--emphasizing natural website optimization--to design thoughtful, inspiring, and effective marketing campaigns.

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