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Algorithms change as
often as the weather. And like the weather they can be difficult to
predict.
If you understand how search engines have to change and reinvent
their algorithms in order to maintain or improve search results, then
maintaining your site won't be a problem no matter how big a storm you
face.
So why do algorithms change?
The instant there is a big change in a search engines algorithm, the
search engine result pages (SERP) change and these questions have to be
asked, "What is the search engine prioritizing most?" "And why?"
Many good examples to
these questions can
be found looking at the link building strategies for Google over the
past six years....
Google has always been know for putting a lot of emphasis of the
amount of links pointing to a site.
In the year 2000 webmasters were doing whatever needed to get as many
links to their sites as possible. They used simple and underhanded
internet marketing techniques such as adding their URLs to
guestbooks & message boards in order to create links. Unlike today,
Google would update their SERPs once a month.
Google would tally up how
many links a site had pointing to it. Google took other factors into consideration, but monthly updates
could easily give brand new sites top search engine placement in a
very short period of time if they had gained more links than other
sites.
Google needed to change its algorithm by introducing some new rules,
boundaries, and filters as webmasters were abusing link building
methods.
It didn't take long for the search engine to start making adjustments
in order to prevent such spammy internet marketing related techniques.
The sites that shot to the top were soon penalized.
It took almost 2 year for Google to fully prevent the use of such
underhanded marketing tactics.
Google established a filter method that no longer put so much
emphasis on links from non-related sites, leaving only a strong
emphasis on any links that came from related sites that weren't on
guestbook's and message boards.
By late 2002 link building was starting to pick up a lot more
momentum. Many link pages were being thrown up all over sites with
the objective to obtain as many links as possible.
Once again a major change in the algorithm was required to
prevent inflated sites.
It's thought that Google would count the amount of links on a site in
comparison to links pointing to a site. If the sum of links were even
then the links would not hold as much value.
The simple optimization solution to the savvy Webmasters: 3 Way
Linking
3 Way Linking was a simple solution, and is still a good method of
linking today.
If site A points to site B and in return site C points to site A,
site A can tally up the difference without the search engines
knowing (providing you have the skills to cover your tracks).
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