My Date With A Google Penguin

Last week everyone was talking about the new Google algorithm Penguin update. I thought it only fair to give you an update of how it affected my websites.

First the bad news: I got slapped. I think most people who create a lot of websites did. When you have over 400 websites it’s only logical that at least a few of them will be affected. Unfortunately some of my big earners got hit. Which ones? My sites that I made over a year ago got hit. Why? Because I build a shitload (technical term) of links to them with the same anchor text. Stupid, I know, but I was a newbie at the time…I didn’t know any better. At least those sites made me a relative shitload (still technical) amount of cash before losing their rank in Google. Oh well. The good thing is that they are not deindexed. Some of them just lost a few spots in the rankings…some took a nose dive. But it could have been a lot worse.

The Good News: My new sites that I’ve been making this year were all fine. Actually a few of them gained position in Google. I think this is due to the fact that I’m doing good keyword research, smart link building, and not hammering them with too many links. I’ve learned that too many links can be a bad thing…especially with niche sites. They don’t need the kind of link building that coveted “money” keyword phrases need in order to rank in Google.

So that’s my date with a Penguin. It was indeed an uninvited and unwanted guest, but I’m still standing tall and my system still holds true. Until next time, sweet sweet Google Penguin.