Google Penguin-Proof methods to Increase your Traffic

Google Penguin-Proof methods to Increase your Traffic

The Google Penguin update, also known as the Web Spam update, decimated the online SEO community and send a message loud and clear.  Since Google Penguin, Google will no longer tolerate cheap and easy methods to game their ranking algorithm and achieve high rankings.  They specifically targeted paid links, link networks, article and regular directories, and other methods of building link popularity without creating value to the user.

So what’s left?

The Google Penguin algorithm changed the importance and value of several ranking signals, lowering the importance of some signals and increasing the importance of others.  Amongst the signals that were downgraded were low quality, non-contextual links.  Additionally, links above the fold or part of the template, and links without any surrounding content became unimportant.

Similarly, they increased the importance of social media markers such as Facebook likes, Retweets, Diggs, Stumbles, etc.  They also started taking into account Analytic data for sites including number of unique visitors, percentage of return visitors, bounce rate, and more.  Finally, they downgraded the importance of money keywords in anchor text and are now looking for very natural looking anchor and backlink profiles.

Top 5 Methods to Build Your Site’s Popularity

Many website and business owners realized the importance of Diversification after the Google Penguin update.  Diversity is important not just in link building approach, but having such a reliance on Google for traffic and business is simply not a safe strategy.  Below we will outline 5 methods to both build links and increase traffic through other popular web portals.

For all of the methods described bellow, it’s important to determine whether the links placed will be DoFollow links, so make sure you check this in the source code of all of the pages.

Wikis & How To Sites

There are literally hundreds of sites that allow you to create an account and start posting informational content.   Don’t just talk about your company or about your products or services, branch out and talk about content that is of interest to your target users.  Use Google’s keyword tool to figure out exactly what people are typing in and build articles around those keywords.

Social Media Profiles

As Google is now tracking likes, retweets, +1 shares and many other social metrics, it’s important for you to build and maintain active social media profiles.  Create content on your blog and then share it through all of your social channels.  Make it easy for people to like, retweet, and +1 your blog by adding plugins to your site.

Press Releases

Writing press releases for important content or announcements is still a way of generating new links and visitors.  You can pay for a professional service or you can use free press release services that allow you to link to your site.  Continuously submitting press releases, especially when they get picked up by other sources, will help to increase your visibility & is google penguin proof

Guest Blogging

Today’s conundrum for many marketers is having the ability to generate enough unique and valuable content to share with their readers.  People love being offered good, free content.  In exchange, you get links back to your site.  It’s a win win.  Additionally, you can pick up new readers/followers as well as links to your site.

Infographics

Create an attractive and informational graphic, share it with your network as well as sites that accept infographics, and watch your links increase.  People love sharing infographics as they tend to be different from the constant stream of written words that everyone’s is barraged with.  If you get it in front of a few active social media users and they share it with their circles, infographics have the potential to grow viral and generate a lot of attention.

It’s important to create a realistic and sustainable list of goals so you can slowly and continuously build your popularity.  You will be rewarded as you gain both traffic and improved search engine rankings.

Marcela De Vivo is a freelance writer and internet marketer currently working with Process Moisture Sensors.