It’s been about 3 weeks since Google unleashed their massive algorithm update that affect 11.8% of all search queries. So, I am curious to see how everyone has been doing since the updates and fallout. I know many have complained about the impact on their business. But, did Google go to far with their algo update?

When I checked various terms related to internet marketing, internet marketing tools etc., I have not noticed anyone that was there before, being kicked off their spot now. I checked some other terms too, like home based business and noticed the sites that were there prior to the update, are still there today. Given how some sites like Entrepreneur were supposedly impacted, they are now actually number 1 for home based business. This is a highly competitive term. The other site that has been battling it out for the number one spot over the years, is homebasedbusiness.com.

I have also re-checked a bunch other terms, to see if any difference. I still see some individual articles from content farms like Hubpages, Buzzle still ranking nicely. Now, this doesn’t mean they weren’t affected, because they got slammed big time overall. But, its worth noting some of the terms before and after to see if any difference.

Moving along, I came across the article about AOL and their strategic plans uncovered by Business Insider. Its a great article and note all how AOL actually was planning to go about unleashing their content plans to increase revenue per page created. They were planning to do exactly what the search engines like Google didn’t want to see happen. Clearly, this stems from other content farms like Hubpages and Buzzle.

I wonder what will happen now with the update, if AOL, will actually move forward with this strategy? I am sure Google and the other search engines will be paying attention. I believe and this is only my opinion, they will not be implementing this business plan. If they scale it up and optimize for search engines to make more revenue, I can see them becoming another JC Penny example. But, hey if they want to be stupid about it, I say go for it.

There was clearly a shake up that had an deep impact, and continues to have wide reaching effects. But, that is exactly what Google wanted to have happen. They want to put the fear of G into your online business. If you are providing great content, you should be OK, but not always. If you are providing crappy content, then you better get your act together. Fear can play a huge role in what their overall impact was meant to have. If you escaped the wrath of G, be glad you did. I still come across people that are still chatting about what they next move should be.

Simple, clean up your online content. Start investing in quality writing, especially for your own sites. You will be surprised at what can happen as I outlined in my previous articles about this farmer update as some referred to it.

Can you learn anything from all the chaos?

The take away, is to up the ante on your sites as I alluded to in the above paragraph. Don’t get lazy with your content. Write stuff that interests your readers for the topic or niche for your site. Of course it takes longer, but that is the whole point. If you want people to stick around for any period of time, then by creating juicy content that solves a question or concern in your readers mind, means you are likely to have more regular readers.

Make sure you are branding yourself and becoming the expert in your particular niche. Don’t rely on the search engines for producing the majority of your traffic. Again, this is stuff I have mentioned on a number of posts, but clearly people have not got this simple message. Give the bloody search engines what they are demanding. The most relevant and useful content for their customers.

One of the best pieces of advice I read, was creating timeless content. That is content that is relevant today, next week and in the years to come. Can anybody do it? In all reality, no they can’t for a variety of reasons. I suspect the main reasons for not putting in the time and energy, people are very lazy and have a lottery mentality. That’s why you see so many websites promoting crap out there, suggesting you can become rich in 3 to 6 months.

When in doubt, always come back to the basics and ask yourself an important question. Would you read the article you just wrote on someone else site? If the answer is honestly a yes, then great. If the answer is no, then edit your content until you can honestly answer that question above.

I personally think, although I did get impacted by the update too, that it was a positive overall. I realized that if I am not ranking on page 1 after doing an evaluation and being honest, then in some circumstances, I shouldn’t be there. In other situations, I know I got impacted unfairly and that was just part of the collateral damage of the serp update. Life goes on and it will for you.