What is Google’s Penguin 4.0 Update?

On Friday, September 23, 2016, Google announced that Penguin, which originally launched in 2012, has been updated. Penguin 4.0 is officially a part of Google’s core algorithm. Penguin’s main goal is to eliminate spammy search results from people who buy links or gain links through link networks. If you or your SEO manager has previously used the Google disavow tool to remove spammy links you may see a boost in rankings.

There are 2 major changes that all webmasters need to be aware of for Penguin 4.0. The first is that the data from Penguin will be real time. Previously, Penguin needed to be refreshed to take into consideration any changes a webmaster or SEO made to improve their site. Now changes will be recognized and visible at a much faster rate.

The second major change to Google’s Penguin algorithm is that it is “now more granular.” Rather than affecting your whole site, Google will now only adjust the ranking of the spammy page.

Google is always updating the ways in which it makes it harder to manipulate higher rankings, which makes things a lot fairer for the businesses providing quality content and gaining real, relevant backlinks. You will also be rewarded faster for these efforts. Building your brand in a safe way is the best way, and although quality SEO takes time, as Google continues to roll out new updates, the brands that did things the right way will thrive.

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