Seven Steps for Google Fred Recovery: Is Your Website Prepared?
In mid-March, many business owners and SEO companies noticed that their websites began to lose traffic and rankings. It’s now known to be the result of the latest Google algorithm update, unofficially named “Google Fred.”
Here, we’ll look at what Google Fred is, who is affected, and how you can recover from the latest Google update. Whether you’re a business in Tampa, web designer, or SEO agency, follow our suggestions to stay on the right side of Google’s quality guidelines.
What is Google Fred?
Google rolled out Google Fred on March 8, and it’s their most recent attempt to crack down on poor-quality websites. The worst-hit websites are those that feature lots of ads and affiliate marketing links, with very little quality content.
Basically, Google wants to demote websites in their search engine results pages that seem to exist only to make money from ads or affiliate links.
Who is Affected?
If your website has any of the following features, you could be affected:
- Content that is surrounded by lots of ads.
- A repetition of keywords on an individual web page.
- Deceptive ads that look like actual site content.
- Only text-based content.
- Poor web design that is not user-friendly.
The Impact of Google Fred on SEO
Marketing firms in Tampa and across the US have been working with businesses to avoid the damaging effects of the latest Google update on search engine optimization. Companies with decent organic traffic have reported a 50 percent drop following the update. Other companies have seen their rankings fall in search engine results pages for certain web pages.
Am I Affected by Google Fred?
The best way to find out is to talk to a professional SEO company, or check your Google Analytics report. If you find out that there was a significant drop in rankings or traffic around the middle of March, you’ve probably been hit. But there’s no need to panic. There are things you can do to strengthen your search engine rankings in the long term.
How to Recover from Google Fred
- Publish more original content that is useful to your target audience.
- Don’t display too many ads. Make sure any ads are relevant to your content. If not, remove them.
- Talk to your website designers to see how you can make your website more user-friendly.
- Avoid duplicate content across your website.
- Don’t repeat keywords too often.
- Use more video, images, and graphics across your website to improve the user experience.
Focus on the Long Game
Google Fred hasn’t been bad news for every business. Many sites have seen an increase in rankings and traffic. But if you think you’ve been affected, follow these tips and you should soon recover.
If you’re worried about the potential impact of Google Fred, please feel free to contact us. Our Tampa SEO experts are here to help.
VSF Marketing offers SEO consulting services, web design packages, and online marketing solutions for businesses in the Tampa area and beyond.