Google’s Panda Algorithm Throws Out Baby With Bath Water

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When it comes to making adjustments on the fly, Google is not even slightly shy about making a big move. Take for example the latest changes made with the Panda Algorithm.

The idea was a solid one and certainly needed in an Internet world where search engine results for the phrase “heart attack symptoms” might return an article written by twelve year old over an article in a medical journal.

But was the move too rash on Google’s part?

Did Google consider the various consequences to websites across the Internet? Some say yes and others say no, with the biggest determining factor being what and how you use the Internet. If you are a freelance web writer, you almost certainly took a major hit from this change in one way or another.

Some writers benefited from the changes, but it really depended upon who you wrote for. Google seemed to have a specific idea about what needs fixing and the seem to have taken a large step towards getting there. So what is the problem? Why is it not just a great move on Google’s part?

For one thing, Google did not consider the massive number of websites and writers that they would hurt. There are a number of websites and writers out there that did things the right way, and in many cases wrote circles around the so-called “pros” found on some of the more mainstream websites. When Google decided to enact the Panda Algorithm, they did not consider that they were essentially torching the good with the bad.

Perhaps they did consider it, and simply did not care. Either way, there are some great websites and writers out there that are quickly finding out that Google really can make or break you in the Internet world. In fairness to Google, the idea was sound and really needed doing.

As a freelance writer myself, I was tired of seeing search engine driven content trumping good sound information when I researched my articles and work. Article spinners seemed like they were at or near the top of every search engine. That needed to change.

The only real problem I have with the Panda Algorithm change was that it was so general in nature. It took and virtually wiped out entire websites with one broad stroke without considering the good or the bad within those websites.

When it comes to places like Associated Content, Demand Studios and other “content farms” as Google so affectionately has deemed them, there are plenty of awesome contributors to offset the bad. Rather than make such distinctions, Google simply wiped them all away with a broad brush of indifference. That will come back to hurt Google in some way eventually one would think.

Still, the cream of the writing and website world will rise to the top and the Google machine will rumble forward. The people who owned websites hurt by the Panda Algorithm will either build new ones and stock them properly with good quality content, or they will get out of the business. Writers will adjust to the new way of writing, or run out of clients and work. Hopefully, the changes will bring about a positive difference in how we get our information fix.

It just seems a shame that so many good people had to be hurt to do it.

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Vishal Gaikar

Article by Vishal

Vishal Gaikar is a professional blogger from Pune, India. If you like this post, you can follow him on Twitter.

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