Google and the SEO Companies

All search engines are database programs which use filters to organize the data. Major search engines differ in the complexity of their database filters. Yes, Google has billions of pages in its index, but only a small portion of them are actually ever viewed by a person. In reality, Google is a database filter and they are constantly modifying and improving that filter.

The battle Google faces is two fold: one, to filter in the relevant documents and two, to filter out irrelevant ones masquerading as relevant. Does Google penalize or get rid of offenders? Yes, in fact a recent exclusion appears to have been applied to Traffic Power owned by Hali Bote Corporation of Las Vegas. It is apparently being sued by former clients who have had their site's banned.

Google Inc. has filed a new algorithm patent. This will change the order of Web site rankings and the treatment of low page web pages. The algorithm may favor ethical search engine optimization services professionals and discount spam techniques. One SEO expert believes this new algorithm could have a positive impact on qualified SEOs that deploy real strategies based on activity within the community of the client's industry and markets, rather than manipulating keywords and high PageRank.

The reason for the new algorithm is to improve performance in the face of link text advertising buying, and protect their secreted search technology from copying by competitors, and perhaps, to remove any legal ties to Stanford University. The new algorithm patent application coincides with Google's new $2.7 Billion IPO launch which happened April 29th.

Aside from the Hilltop algorithm effect, a new variation on the authority sites effect is possible. Google may be examining the top results set for keyword searches and computing an extra relevance score based on the linking between all the top sites for that search. You can call this a result set. That may be the top 500 or 1000.

This would make it difficult for spammers who seek to generate links from non-keyword related Web sites. Google is utilizing deeper link analysis to create better search results so this would fit into their overall search philosophy. The hilltop algorithm is still an important factor to understand.

Google Affected by Hilltop Algorithm?

The hilltop algorithm is being suggested as the reason for the latest changes in Google's search results. Hilltop emphasizes the effect of authority sites. These are sites that Google assesses to be of strong importance on a particular keyword topic. They are often sites that have high PageRank and a high link reputation for a particular set of keywords.

The Hilltop algorithm even has a formula: {(1-d)+a (RS)} * {(1-e)+b (PR * fb)} * {(1-f)+c (LS)}. Application of this algorithm presents problems since it encourages the development of closed networks of links dominated by a limited number of authority sites. Perhaps Google will cross that hurdle when it has to. Right now, Hilltop may give the Google's search results pages a quality boost.

Authority Sites

Getting links from these authority sites is then a good way to boost your own rankings on topics related to those keywords. Just getting links from other sites isn't enough, as you must have links from sites that rank high on a particular theme, especially sites that have some sort of "authority" value. Yahoo and Google directory are two such authority sites.

Does Google Use Penalties?

Penalties do seem to be applied to sites that link to banned or FFA sites or sites that are "over-optimized" and it may be enough to damage your site's rank with respect to the set of keywords being used by your site. If you use link farms like Zeus or even Linkpartners.com, you should be careful. However, it is not certain that links to sites in these link networks will harm your site's rank.

Some SEO experts believe that the mere linking to a site not on the specific keyword topics in question, will result in penalties. Google and the hilltop algorithm would not bother with such a penalty. Besides the amount of computing it would take to calculate the penalties, Hilltop makes such links irrelevant, since your rank is determined by links from sites with high "authority" or link reputation value.

Another effect believed to be the result of the new Google Algorithm, is over-optimization. After studying sites that are very over-optimized, it seems unlikely. However, excessive use of any particular optimization technique could result in penalties. Take a look at this clever explanation of the possible over-optimization filter.

Google is also now deleting sites that appear to infringe someone else's copyright (as per FTC complaints). If you compete for a popular keyword that happens to be used in someone else's brand name, you could find yourself without search engine presence.

Another problem that's just arose is Google's battle with people who hijack Web surfers by tapping into Google's search page activity, or who misspell keywords in the browser address bar which happens frequently. This is often achieved through browser plug in software that detects searches and basically redirects the user to a designated Web page.

Microsoft doesn't seem to have any problem with address bar usage and probably view it as an opportunity for them to establish strength for their next operating system update and hence, usurp Google search. Why have a search engine if you can just type something into the address bar?. The address bar function is more sophisticated now than it was in the past. MSN may be a rising threat to Google so Google may do peculiar things to maintain the pre-eminence of their search page.

Google may see the address bar as erosion of the use of its search engine and certainly the redirects by scumware pose a problem for them.

Whatever Google decides to do, search engine optimization professionals will have a more difficult challenge and only the best will be able to produce good results. They just kicked it up a couple of notches!

The Sandbox or Holding Area

A great deal of speculation is going on regarding a special filter used by Google. SEOs are reporting that new sites are getting special filtering based on the age of sites in their index. New sites are being reportedly held in a waiting area for unknown reasons.

Bay Street SEOs research shows something deeper is happening in that any site regardless of age may be held in the waiting area. Google may be suspicious of any new material including linking that is being used. Google could check your site and perform a quick analysis of your optimized keywords, then put a hold on your rankings for those phrases until a certain time period (3 months) has passed.

This time period is a buffer period that stops spammers, link buyers and fly by night webmasters from getting quick results in Google's listings. This may be a good and necessary fix to prevent spammers from offering guarantees and other offshoots of unethical behavior. The time delay appears to apply to new content and links.