Google is constantly changing its search engine algorithms, with the goal of providing the best user experience possible. As a business owner, it’s important to stay up-to-date on these changes so that your website can rank as high as possible on search engine results pages (SERPs).
SEO (search engine optimization) is the practice of optimizing a website so that it can rank as high as possible in search engine results pages (SERPs). Digital marketing agency Houston says that one way to ensure your website remains compliant with Google’s algorithms is to avoid any of the five major penalties that can be applied to your website. One way to ensure your website remains compliant with Google’s algorithms is to avoid any of the five major penalties that can be applied to your website. Let’s take a closer look at each of these penalties: Let’s take a closer look at each of these penalties:
- Unnatural links penalty
Google’s Unnatural Links Penalty is one of the most common penalties applied to websites. This penalty is applied when Google detects that a website has been trying to manipulate its search engine results pages by creating or acquiring artificial links to its site.
There are a few things you can do to avoid this penalty, including:
-Disavowing any unnatural links using the Disavow Tool in Google Webmaster Tools
-Eliminating any low-quality backlinks from your website
-Monitoring your link profile for any suspicious activity
- Cloaking penalty
Cloaking is a technique used by some websites to try and trick Google’s algorithms into thinking that their site is something other than what it really is. Digital marketing Houston added that this can be done by serving different content to users and bots, or by hiding certain elements of your website from Google’s crawlers.
If you are caught cloaking by Google, you can expect to receive a Cloaking Penalty which will have a devastating impact on your website’s search engine rankings. To avoid this penalty, make sure your website is compliant with Google’s guidelines on cloaking and don’t try to trick the search engine into thinking your site is something it’s not.
- Duplicate content penalty
Google’s Duplicate Content Penalty is applied to websites that are found to be publishing duplicate content across multiple pages or websites. This can have a negative impact on your website’s search engine rankings, as Google will only rank one version of the content, and the other versions will likely be ignored.
To avoid this penalty, make sure that your website only publishes original content, and avoid publishing the same content on multiple pages or websites. You can also use the canonical tag to tell Google which page is the original version of a piece of content.
- Hidden text penalty
Hidden text is a technique used by some website owners to try and improve their website’s search engine rankings. This is done by hiding text or links from users but displaying them to Google’s crawlers.
If you are caught using hidden text by Google, you can expect to receive a Hidden Text Penalty which will have a negative impact on your website’s search engine rankings. To avoid this penalty, make sure that all of your content is visible to users and Google’s crawlers.
- Spam penalty
Google’s Spam Penalty is applied to websites that are found to be engaging in spammy behavior, such as posting low-quality comments on other websites or publishing irrelevant content. This can have a negative impact on your website’s search engine rankings, as Google will see your site as being untrustworthy.
To avoid this penalty, make sure that you only publish high-quality content that is relevant to your audience, and avoid any spammy behavior. You can also use the Google Search Console to help you identify any potential spammy activity on your website.
By following these tips, you can help to avoid any of the five major Google penalties that can be applied to your website. By keeping your website compliant with Google’s guidelines, you can ensure that your website remains visible in search engine results pages and continues to generate traffic and leads. Lastly, take advantage of getting digital marketing services so you can take note of how experts do SEO and digital marketing so you can take notes and do it on your own once proven successful.