Google’s #farmerupdate – what have we learnt?

03 March 2011

Now's not the time to harvest your spammy crops according to Google. A major algorithm update that came into force in the US late last month has slapped a host of well-known "content farms" down the rankings.

The jury's still out on how the update works (and it's yet to roll-out beyond the USA) but the clever money is on this being a shift in the weighting given to certain on-site factors rather than the wholesale change in link analysis that many had predicted.

SEO forums (of the white and black hat variety) have been buzzing with conjecture for the last couple of weeks. Some are suggesting that Google is paying greater attention to metrics such as page formatting, uniqueness and quality of experience, others that it's more about link diversity and anchor text variation and distribution. Most likely it's a devilishly clever combination of all sorts of on and off page elements that the uninitiated can barely conceive of, let alone understand.

The truth is that we'll almost certainly never know for sure and as soon as the world gets close to the answer of what boxes to tick and buttons to push, Google will move the goalposts again (or change the game entirely). Yes, the world is at their mercy but it's what keeps us on our toes and what prevents the internet from entirely falling into the hands of the black-hatters.

So, in the absence of the Colonel's secret blend of herbs and spices, the old rules still apply. Fill your site with good quality original content in a simple, accessible structure, acquire your backlinks naturally through content marketing and genuine participation.