Post updated from August 2009 to include major changes that Google makes which will affect the way businesses rank within the natural listings of the search engines.
For 6 of the main updates from Google earlier in 2009, see my post: Google SEO updates H1 2009.
Category: Index inclusion
What is it? According to the official Google notification of this update, Caffeine is not intended as a major update to the way Google ranks sites for search queries, rather it's an update to the indexing and retrieval architecture to
"let us push the envelope on size, indexing speed, accuracy, comprehensiveness and other dimensions".
However, some changes to rankings across keyphrases have occurred, so it is important to check your rankings using the preview tool listed below to be aware of any problems.
Why is it significant? At the time of the announcement on the 10th/11th August, Matt Cutts of Google said that the changes will be introduced
"over the next few weeks and months"
So, for what I think is the first time, Google is pre-announcing a major change and giving search engine marketers a chance to prepare (in fact I thought it was a spoof when I picked it up via Twitter).
Anyway, I applaud Google's openness given the importance of SEO to the effective marketing of a modern business.
What should site owners do? Ask the company / internal team responsible for SEO whether they have checked the implications for their marketplace, i.e. produce a report showing:
Alternatively, if you're more "hands-on", then check the trial version below.
Note that the sandbox is the US .com version. To compare to a country you will need to append the local search query string parameter gl=<country code> e.g. &gl=uk
Personalisation
Two big changes for natural search in December.
1. Real-time search personalisation for everyone. 4th December 2009.
This is one of the most significant changes to the organic search results according to Danny Sullivan at search engine land and I agree.
This is significant since tracking ranking positions becomes less relevant. It is also felt it will favour big brands since it is more likely to present results that its customers have already seen.
2. Support for rel=canonical across domains introduced 15th December
By Dave Chaffey
Digital strategist Dr Dave Chaffey is co-founder and Content Director of online marketing training platform and publisher Smart Insights. 'Dr Dave' is known for his strategic, but practical, data-driven advice. He has trained and consulted with many business of all sizes in most sectors. These include large international B2B and B2C brands including 3M, BP, Barclaycard, Dell, Confused.com, HSBC, Mercedes-Benz, Microsoft, M&G Investment, Rentokil Initial, O2, Royal Canin (Mars Group) plus many smaller businesses. Dave is editor of the templates, guides and courses in our digital marketing resource library used by our Business members to plan, manage and optimize their marketing. Free members can access our free sample templates here. Dave is also keynote speaker, trainer and consultant who is author of 5 bestselling books on digital marketing including Digital Marketing Excellence and Digital Marketing: Strategy, Implementation and Practice. In 2004 he was recognised by the Chartered Institute of Marketing as one of 50 marketing ‘gurus’ worldwide who have helped shape the future of marketing. My personal site, DaveChaffey.com, lists my latest Digital marketing and E-commerce books and support materials including a digital marketing glossary. Please connect on LinkedIn to receive updates or ask me a question.
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