This guest post is by Melody McKinnon of Canadians Internet Business.
The latest algorithm updates from Google have broken the hearts of many blog owners. The search engine appears to have lost interest in many of them.
Yet on every website and blog I own, my attention from Google has increased—even on blogs less than a year old.
Naturally, I want to stay in Google’s good books so I’ve given this a lot of thought. I’ve concluded that Google is simply looking for blogs with a personality worthy of its love. It’s no longer a matter of superficial gestures and pretty words. This somewhat fickle search engine uses several factors to determine if you are ‘the one’, and I happen to meet that criteria by nature.
- I prefer to write (and read) posts that are packed with information that may not be easy to find online.
- I write for people and what they’re searching for. I answer the question, “What would I be happy to find if I was searching for this topic?” When that task is complete, I go back and lightly optimize for organic search.
- I’m consistently active on social media.
- I’ve built quality relationships with other bloggers.
- I’ve been marketing online since the 90’s. I’ve seen every manipulative trick and they all had one thing in common: they came back to bite people on the butt every single time.
Desperately seeking
Google is trying harder to find what people are looking for these days, so it helps to view the search engine as a person rather than an entity. If Google placed a personal ad, here’s what it would be seeking:
- Good looks and a great smile: custom design, limited advertising, and shareable images.
- Charm: social media and blog interaction. Give them something to talk about.
- Friendly and open: user-friendly blogs with easy commenting.
- Intelligence: deep, meaningful content that is truly useful.
- Unique: dare to be different and create unique content.
- Good listener: cater to the searcher, not the search engine. Are you really giving them what they’re looking for?
- Integrity: are you a cheater? Manipulation has no place in a good relationship with Google. Neither does copyright infringement, illegal activities, or hate content.
- Long walks on a Vancouver beach: geographically-specific content when applicable.
- Sincerity: thinly disguised advertising, superficial posts built around keywords, and buying links will not be tolerated.
- Highly respected: Google respects those who are respected by websites it respects. You may have to repeat that a few times to get it!
- Great attitude: upbeat stories, suitable for a family audience.
- Hang with a good crowd: avoid linking to, or being linked to by, the “slums” of the Internet.
- No hookers please: there’s nothing wrong with making money with your blog. The key is to give more than you get.
- Love yourself: you can’t expect anyone else to love you if you don’t love yourself. Produce a blog that you would love to read.
- Love them back: sign up for Google+ and take the time to learn how to use it. Add both a follow and share button to your blog.
Oh Google, your love means so much to me. I’m inspired by your efforts to control your wandering eye and focus on those who are truly worthy of your attention. You make me feel like the most special website in the world wide web!
Melody McKinnon holds 52 certifications in business, marketing, writing, nutrition, biochemistry & general sciences. She blogs for the newly relaunched Canadians Internet Business, All Natural Pet Care, and Petfood Industry Magazine.
