Google’s algorithm update Penguin 2.0 has arrived
Posted by Carly BaracloughMay 23rd, 2013
So yesterday, 22nd of May saw the release of the anticipated algorithm update Penguin 2.0. This is not just a refresh, but an update to the Penguin algorithm. It had been referred to internally as Penguin 2.0 and has now been officially launched and rolled out across all languages. It is now worth having a look at what the original algorithm update aimed to do as we assess the impact of this update in the coming weeks.
It was suggested that Penguin 1.0 was primarily concerned with low quality links such as link/blog networks. We expected penalties to be applied where this seemed to be the case, in an effort to ensure these low quality links were of no benefit to the website, and instead guide people towards higher quality and more relevant links to benefit the user. It also superceded previous efforts to combat keyword stuffing and other on-page efforts of manipulation as well as exact match keyword anchor text.
The update to 2.0 is expected to enable Google to assess websites deeper and gain a better overall view of any unnatural links and techniques. This suggests that Google are able to take a more comprehensive look at product and service pages. More specifically, Matt Cutts says that Advertorials should not pass page rank. This illustrates his point that there should be a clear distinction between paid advertising towards a specific product and how a website performs organically, so that paid efforts should not support SEO.
Some of these things we already knew and as mentioned in my previous post, we should concentrate on making our websites a concise and happy experience for our users. Google are trying to reward good quality content that deserves to EARN links, rather than pay for them. Content that is valuable enough to develop a following and be shared directly and socially. You can see the full video from Matt Cutts here.

