PAID SEARCH
Published: February 08, 2008
Are Google's SEO and quality score strategy the same? (page 3 of 4)
 

Not wanted
But some of you are going to have a very hard time because Google is specifically targeting your site for removal. If you're wondering which sites fall in this particular group, Google has laid it out. Here's what they don't want:

Data collection sites:
What, no more free iPods?

Real world example:

These sites, which showed up when I searched around for recipes, are in for some trouble. Users don't really get recipes, they get to give all of their personal info, sign up for some offers, get spammed and then they may get a free cookbook. Not a good experience.


 
Arbitrage sites: The bane of Google's existence.

Real world example:

Sites like this are going to have trouble in the future. I did a search for Screensavers on Yahoo and got an ad for Pronto. When I clicked on it, it took me to a page showing Google search results for the same query. Pure arbitrage. I couldn't find them on Google. Clearly arbitrage is Google's first, and most important, target. And that's a negative.



Click to enlarge

Malware sites: Of course they're on the list. Problem here is what is Google using to distinguish good software from bad software? Here are more guidelines for software publishers to read and follow.

eBook sites "that show frequent ads": 
Scrape together a bunch of content, wrap it all with tons of ads and make a good site? Not anymore. Here's where unoriginal content gets hit.

Get rich quick sites:
(But I love pyramids!) Anytime making money is "Guaranteed" you know the business, and the site, are garbage. We should see the end of these sites on Google very soon.

Comparison shopping sites:
This was a bit of a surprise but makes sense. Google really wants to stop arbitrage and this is an arbitrage play. Pricegrabber, Shopping.com and some of the big guys might be able to make it. If you're in this business and want to protect yourself, offer original, unique value to your users. That could be reviews, warranty info, user opinions and more. If you don't, you could see your minimum bids rising soon.

Travel aggregators:
This is another arbitrage victim. Follow the same advice I gave to your buddy above. One example is Travelocity -- is it in trouble? Probably not. But others trying to get into the space will have a tough time getting a foothold. What's the key to getting up and staying up? Original content, relevant results based on the search and some sort of value given to the user.

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