My last blog post explained that Panda is now running in near-real-time and what that means for webmasters and business owners. Well, that was perfect timing as Panda just made another trip around the web as kids head back to school and the NFL kicks in.
I’ve seen multiple Panda clients see recovery starting on Friday 9/5. And some of the clients had been seriously impacted by our cute, black and white friend in the past. Two sites, in particular, saw drops of 60%+ from previous Panda updates.
Here are a few screenshots from companies seeing impact from the 9/5/14 Panda update:
Panda is Starting The School Year Out Right
Teachers always say that hard work can lead to success. And it seems the schoolyard Panda feels the same way. The clients seeing the biggest spikes in traffic have done a lot of hard work Panda-wise.
Over the past few months, massive Panda problems were uncovered from a content quality standpoint. That included finding thin content, duplicate content, low-quality content, scraped content, while also identifying ad problems and technical problems that were impacting content quality and user engagement.
The user experience across each site was poor to say the least and the changes they have made (and are actively implementing) are improving the overall quality of their websites. And that’s exactly what you need to do in order to see positive Panda movement.
A Note About Temporary Recoveries (or Tests)
I recently wrote a post about temporary Panda recoveries, which I have seen several of over the past month or so. It’s interesting to note that two sites that just bounced back had seen temporary Panda recoveries in the past month. Now, we don’t know if they were truly temporary recoveries or simply tests of a future Panda update that ended up getting rolled back. But since Friday 9/5, both of those sites have spiked again. Let’s hope these recoveries stick.
Beyond temporary recoveries, other websites battling Panda saw serious spikes in Google organic traffic starting on Friday 9/5. And like I said earlier, they had gotten hammered by Panda in the past. It’s awesome to see them bounce back.
For example, one site is up 85% and another is up 71%. Nice increases to say the least.
Summary – Everybody’s Working for the Weekend (Including Panda)
As I explained earlier, Panda is now near-real-time and the days of waiting for monthly Panda updates are gone. The fact of the matter is that you can see impact at any point during the month (or even multiple times per month). So, if you’ve been impacted by Panda in the past, then check your reporting now. Friday might have been a very good day for you. And on the flip side (for those facing the Panda music for the first time), you might see a frightening drop in Google organic traffic. One thing is for sure… with the mighty Panda roaming the web in near-real-time, it’s never been more important to keep a close eye on content quality. Panda sure is.
So get ready for the next update. I’m confident it’s not far away. Actually, it might be just around the corner.
GG