This is a Guest Post by Craig Kilgore. Craig is an SEO with Mainstreethost. Craig has been practicing SEO for roughly 5 years with Mainstreethost. You can follow him on Twitter @ckilgs or contact him via email at ckilgore@mainstreethost.com.

If you are in any way involved with digital marketing, web development, link building, social media marketing or just follow what’s going on in the internet world, Google’s Penguin update shouldn’t be news to you. At Mainstreethost, we have been busy over the past several weeks performing Penguin recovery related consultations, fielding client inquiries and developing custom marketing strategies for those that may have been affected by Penguin. If your site has been hit by Google’s latest update, whether it be from blatant “over optimization” you have knowledge of or poor SEO tactics inherited from previous webmasters or SEO companies, below are a couple of tips to help you recover from that Penguin slap.



Implement a Content Marketing Strategy

If you don’t have one in place, there is no better time than now to develop and implement a well-planned and thought out content marketing strategy. As I will touch on later in my post, keep in mind that quality trumps quantity, especially post Penguin update. Depending on your industry, budget and resources, there are numerous types of content that you can develop that will earn you links, social shares, build brand awareness, drive traffic, increase conversions, etc. (the list goes on and on). Check out The Content Marketer’s Guide to Web Content for some creative content ideas.

For every content marketing campaign, you will want to define your end goals, consider the audience you are marketing to, create an editorial calendar and continuously analyze and re-assess your efforts and results.

Stop Participating in Shady Link Building Schemes

You know who you are, and were probably devastated when you heard the news that Google was dropping free directory sites. If you haven’t heard the news, check out this Search Engine Roundtable post. Another piece of advice, taken from Search Engine Roundtable, originating from a Google Webmaster Trends Analyst back in 2008 is:

A good rule of thumb is to ask yourself "would I be doing this (linking there) if search engines didn't exist?”

The bottom line is that search engines (Google in particular) are quickly catching onto and with the Penguin update, penalizing websites that participate in link schemes and other tactics intended to manipulate search engine rankings. Long gone are the days of building quick and effective links. Building the links that matter are going to take time, effort, more time and even more effort.

Quality Prevails

Quality prevails 100% of the time. Whether it’s quality content or a high quality / positive website user experience, those who market and develop with this in mind will continue coming out on top as Google takes more and more steps towards rewarding quality. Quality is what will earn you those beneficial backlinks, social shares, conversions and an overall positive experience for your website visitors / content consumers.

Conclusion

Have you been hit by Google’s Penguin update? If so, I hope you find the tips in this post useful in your path to recovery. There are no “quick fixes” but if you implement and stick to a content marketing strategy, stop the shady link building and continue creating quality content and user experiences, you will find yourself in a much better place for the long haul.

If you are unsure as to whether or not you have been penalized by Google, feel free to reach out to me via email at ckilgore@mainstreethost.com or on Twitter @ckilgs for a consultation.