Google Penalty –Content
Google loves websites with unique, grammatically-sound and reasonably long content. In fact, the top results on Google’s search page usually average at 1,890 words. However, Google definitely gives a lot of leeway to website owners. There are many websites which are dominated by just rich media, embedded videos and blank spaces which still rank well on Google.
Nevertheless, once a website’s content becomes low-quality, thin, spammy or filled with scraped content, then Google drops the axe.
Spam is delicious, but spammy content will get you in all sorts of trouble with Google. Image courtesy of Bodo Akdeniz
Types of thin content that can get websites penalised
Google has a low tolerance for websites dominated by low-quality content such as:
• Scraped content – duplicate or copied content obtained using scrapers
• Spun content – content which are spun (synonymised) using software to appear original, but are unusually illegible
• Auto-generated content – content which are generated automatically using software. Can be spun, copied, or translated
• Thin content– just a couple lines of sentences wrapped around advertisements or promotional materials
• Doorway webpages – websites designed to funnel traffic to another website
If the issue is not severe, Google will just partially penalise the website. If it is severe, then the penalty will be site-wide.
How to fix Google content penalty
The remedy for a content penalty is quite simple. The first step is to remove all spun, scraped and auto-generated content, especially for affiliate pages. Disable any automatic content software or RSS content feed to prevent new low-quality content from being produced. You may need to use plagiarism detection software like Copyscape to detect duplicate content on your site.
If those pages are not important, remove them completely. Otherwise, replace the weak and thin content with fresh, unique and well-written content which do not contain grammatical errors. You must also absolutely remove funnel or doorway pages. Once you are satisfied with the remedial actions, submit a reconsideration request to Google. Or, remove your penalty by having a search engine optimisation service offered by countless agencies to do just this!