By Caragh McKenna
Online Marketing Account Manager
At the recent Search Engine Strategies Conference in London a variety of new technologies and market changes were discussed; one of the hot topics being the "Google Sandbox".
Not to be confused with the Google sandbox keyword tool, the Google Sandbox is thought have been introduced by Google as a filter for new websites. At SES London website owners discussed how the Google sandbox is "not a fun place to play".
These discussions were prompted by the fact that website owners were noticing new websites being placed on probation when they first entered the Google Directory. Although optimised for Google with relevant content and inbound links the sites were not doing well from launch.
At the conference webmasters asked if the sandbox does indeed exist, and if so, why?
The general response from the experts was that Google introduced the Sandbox new site filter to stop spam-related sites that purchased numerous inbound links and as a result ranked highly for their keywords from the date of launch.
Since Google considers a high number of inbound links from launch to be rather suspicious, these links are not considered to be naturally occurring. Another suggestion was that spam sites would use various tactics to rise to the top of the search results, and gain heavy sales prior to being banned from the Google directory. Once the site has re-entered the index, the spam site would then repeat this process.
Any type of site could appear to be in the Sandbox, but the problem appears much more frequently for new websites seeking rankings for highly competitive keywords. Many examples scrutinized in London were "Travel" related sites.
A site could stay in the Sandbox for any period from one to six months. Sites targeting less competitive searches appear to be given a shorter stay, while sites targeting very competitive keywords will often spend six months in the Box.
If you think your site may be in the Sandbox there are a number of symptoms indicative of this:
- Does your site have a Google Page Rank of 4 or above, but is nowhere to be found for the most important keyword searches?
- Does your site have strong inbound links and good search results for secondary search phrases?
There does not appear to be any quick fix to get out of the Sandbox, most sites will simply move out in time. In this period do continue to improve the website by improving intensive link building campaign and relevant keyword content. When the website eventually re-enters the index, your listings will be stronger and more stable.
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