Has your website’s ranking suddenly plummeted? A recent change at Google may be the reason.

Google recently updated its search algorithm in a way that seems to target “keyword stuffing,” a black hat SEO practice that involves loading a page with keywords in an attempt to manipulate a website’s rankings in the search results. A search engine’s main priority is to return quality results to its users, and, as a result, Google constantly changes its ranking algorithms to ensure that SEO firms are not “gaming the system.” This recent update is of particular interest because Google has apparently broadened the definition of “keyword stuffing” to the point that what was once considered ethical keyword density is now being flagged as webspam.

Google’s Matt Cutts has posted an official guide to webmasters on the new changes and the Penguin Webspam Algorithm here.

These sudden changes illustrate the necessity of having your site’s SEO professionally managed by a company that engages in “white-hat” SEO practices. Google can change its algorithms any time it wants to, which leaves people and businesses that derive business from their website vulnerable to sudden drops in rankings and traffic, and as a result, cash flow. To ensure a level playing field, Google does give fairly clear guidelines regarding what it considers ethical SEO, and it rewards sites that are built according to its advice.

At PowerAdvocates, we have always taken pride in practicing only ethical SEO techniques and building high-quality sites that attract attention both from potential clients as well as search engines. 98% of our clients were positively affected by this recent update, and the 2% who were not had “left-over” content on their sites that existed prior to coming on board as PowerAdvocates clients. While other companies may promise overnight results, they are ultimately engaging in unethical black hat SEO practices which will get your site blacklisted, potentially permanently. We don’t promise instant results because steady, quality search engine rankings take time to achieve. Our sites are consistently on the first page for their major keyword queries, and generate calls and drive business to our clients. To learn more about us and view our portfolio, visit our website at Poweradvocates.com.

Written by:  David Arato, JD