Google Updates October 2012

Another great recap from OrderDynamics on Google's latest changes.

During September, many businesses saw great fluctuation in their SERP rank. Several changes and updates to the Google Platforms and algorithms explain why, and how they can be used to improve business practices

Google Search
The Panda algorithm underwent three changes in September, the first taking place September 18. Google tweeted that a Panda refresh was rolling out on September 18, and that less than 0.7% of search queries would be affected. 

A much greater change was Panda’s 20th algorithm update on September 28, which Google reported affected 2.4% of search queries. The next day, Google performed what is now being called the EMD Update, targeted at exact-match domain searches. Previously, a website would automatically rank higher if the domain name matched the search query; however Google noted that many exact-match results were not necessarily of very good quality. The algorithm change, which Google asserts is not related to Panda or Penguin as they are actually algorithm filters – not algorithms themselves -  is aimed at better differentiating exact-match domain search results based on the quality of the website. Matt Cutts of Google tweeted that the EMD Update would impact 0.6% of searches, but given the proximity of the Panda and EMD Updates, many are struggling to understand which of the two has actually affected their site.

On the Google Search blog, Google announced the merger of search trend tools Google Insights for Search and Google Trends into the New Google Trends. The merger was aimed at consolidating the two tools as the data rendered for both is based on search behaviour. Google reported that the featured charts and tools are now based on HTML5, so that they can be loaded on mobile devices.

<<Read the full article here: OrderDynamics Google Updates October 2012>>