Changes in Google Algorithm Over the Time (Google Updates)

[shruchi nagar]

Algorithm update: Typically yields changes in the search results on the larger end of the spectrum. Algorithms can change at any time, but noticeable changes tend to be less frequent.
As I am discussing about SEO top 10 ranking in Google I should not forget what several sites say about that. You can see elsewhere that following are the major ranking factors for Google:
1. Inbound links.
2. Appropriate Meta Content.
3. Appropriate use of Keywords on page
4. Appropriate page content.
5. Hyper linking within site.
No doubt these all are very important but these are what that are taken under consideration by every SEO person.
As we all know that Google is frequently updating its algorithm. So what are the factors that you should more emphasize and which are the factors that should be taken lightly. So what are the current criteria for ranking in Google. Latest update-
A brief dissection of the criteria:
• Domain Trust/Authority - I think this was a factor that most SEOs did not seriously feel until after the Florida update in November of 2003, but over the last couple of years, has become the dominant factor in the success of rankings at Google. The preferential treatment has reached new heights. Just in the last couple days, we’ve started seeing authority sites like Technocrat re-ranking for their tag pages on virtually every SERP they target.
• Anchor Text in External Links - While this is still a very powerful ranking tactic, it’s not the powerhouse it once was, Today, my belief is that anchor text has come to be regarded much as Page Rank was after its dominance in the algorithm - as a technique that SEOs have focused on gaming to such an extent that much of it has become noise, and it’s only really valuable when found in conjunction with other positive signals (or at least, this is how Google thinks now, and their algorithm is still moving in transit towards that destination).
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• On-Page Keyword Usage - There’s little doubt that when I initially started doing SEO, even Google was more susceptible to keyword stuffing. Incidentally, I think this gave rise to the myth of keyword density as a ranking factor. Today, it’s not lost all of its ranking power, but it still sits in the middle as an essential element, but one where “more” won’t help you.
• Raw PageRank / Link Juice –
When I say “PageRank” I’m referring to the original, egalitarian concept of links as votes, and the idea that every page and every link passes link juice in a similar fashion to help calculate the raw popularity of URLs in Google’s index.
In the early days of my SEO career, PageRank was everything. Manipulating rankings was as easy as getting a few high PageRank links, and this exploit, along with Google’s display of PageRank in the toolbar, built industries of link sellers and buyers we still see today. In 2003, PageRank was already on the decline as a ranking factor - a decline that has continued to this day. PageRank can still make some difference, but it’s much more effective for Google as a determining factor for inclusion in the index and comparison against duplicates & scrapers.

[stephen186]

Hi Shruchi,

Good article, but still I think some of the content is copied from other sources.

It is a good practice to list the sources and give them the credit.

[nsagent]

I find they are doing a lot more local stuff lately. Does anyone else find this?