We know that Google changes drastically in the Florida Update in November and many sites are still feeling the effects. We will review the major changes in Google algorithm, which went under another minor change just a few days ago, and discuss what your long-term strategy should be.
Word Stemming
This represents a major shift in Google’s algorithm due to they did not include it before. Stemming refers to a search engine’s functionality to include the stem of words. For example the word “donation”, when used in a search query, normally returns only pages that contain the actual word or, in Google’s case, contain the word within an incoming text-link. However, with stemming turned on, Google also includes the word stem “donate” as a match.
This change has two effects. First, it greatly increases the number of competing documents for a search and exponentially increases the number of incoming links related to the search phrase. Secondly, stemming tends to make search results less precise – i.e., more of a broad match.
These two issues have one impact: more competition. With more competition, often your rankings will drop. However, with a long-term strategy, you can overcome the constant algorithm changes of Google.
Stemming In Use
Google highlights the keywords it’s matching in the search results, and prior to the algorithm update a few days ago, Google would actually highlight the stemmed words. Google was even using seemingly unrelated word stems. Google must have realized their mistake by making this information public as they are no longer bolding the stemmed words now.
Singular and Plural Word Forms
Google is now matching both singular and plural forms of words in their search results. Previously, Google treated two different forms of a word as separate words. However, now both forms are considered a match. According to testing, a preference is toward pages that contain the version used in the search query, which is how it should be. We are also seeing drastically different results depending on whether you use a singular or plural form of a word in a search. This change also makes the search results more broad, which is less relevant that the pre-Florida results.
Word Proximity
Another major change is a decrease in Word Proximity settings. Word Proximity is basically a changeable setting that is used to determine how close the keywords must be to each other within a document in order to generate a match. In the past, Google has favored pages that contained the search query words in somewhat close distance (proximity) to each other. Such is no longer the case because they have loosened the proximity requirements.
Google now has less regard for the general proximity of words to each other. For instance, a search for the keyword phrase “portable device” now generates an extraordinary 3,470,000 search results. However, a search for “portable device” (with quotes) only generates 87,700 results.
This example helps illustrate the vast difference in the number of documents returned depending on if we are receiving loose or close proximity search results. The end result is that you are now competing with more documents than were previously “relevant”, and the search results are now far broader.
In addition, we have reason to believe the requirement for the search term to be physically present on the page has been loosened as well. That means that you may also be competing with documents that do not even contain all the words of a search phrase but instead are being text-linked by other pages using some form of the phrase, including stems.
These changes to the Word Proximity portion of their algorithm also made the Google search results much more broad – and generally less accurate – especially for multi-word queries.
Semantics
Applied Semantics is a company that Google acquired April 23rd, 2003 and is primarily known for its technology to help determine what a page is about. This was a key component of Google’s AdSense ad distribution network which helps the engine know what ads to place on what pages to get the highest click through rates and relevancy.
There is some evidence that Google is now using this technology in part to help define which documents should appear in the search results. The use of semantics is now helping Google define when you are looking for phrases that are either topic areas or just word combinations.
Considering the vast quantity of searches done at Google, they certainly have enough data to determine which combinations of keywords are topic areas and which are merely word combinations. The high traffic phrases are topics and now appear to be treated differently than mere keyword combinations. This was the biggest change in the Florida Update.
We believe Google is making an attempt to serve much broader results specifically for topic areas that it has identified (i.e. revenue generating terms) in order to increase some users’ satisfaction with the results. For example, in the past if you were looking for Laptop Computers you would primarily get commercial results. Now, however, the results are more varied covering categories that include commercial, educational and information related sites.
In some areas these changes probably did help the searcher find what they were looking for faster because of the more varied results. In others the results are worse because there just aren’t enough quality sites that “fit” what the Google algorithm is looking for.
Site and Page Structure
Google appears to be favoring sites that are structured similar to directories. Why would they do this? The main reason is the directory style sites often cover topics and link out to a wide range of subtopics which make these pages good broad topic area matches. Which is exactly what Google is wanting with their algorithm.
While these changes make optimizing for Google challenging, once understood, it is manageable. When taking the knowledge from above, combined with building good solid pages and sites that are both diverse and rich in content, you will see your sites gain positioning in Google.
Many companies have given up trying to understand the Google algorithm and have gone completely to paid listings. Web searchers (our customers), when given a choice between paid listings and organic (non-paid) listings, are most likely to click on non-paid listings. And that is what makes it worthwhile for commercial sites to stay listed where our customers are most likely to look for us – in the organic listings.
Remember, if it were easy, everyone would be doing it. Fortunately for you, you have the information to stay one step ahead of your competition. In the long run, that is good news.
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