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This happens with every Google update - when a site owner feels their site was downgraded in Google, they blame the most talked about and recent Google update. Heck, I even see people blame the Google Sandbox for their site ranking issues.
With Google Panda, this is no different. Every time there is a Google shuffle or a site drops in the Google search results, more often than not the webmaster will call it an issue with Google Panda.
A new WebmasterWorld thread has some folks claiming there was a Google Panda update recently while others say no.
Could have been, who knows. But now, whenever there is a Google shuffle of any kind - fingers point at Panda.
Who is to blame? Google? Me? You? We all are.
Who wins? No one really - it doesn't really help either way.
The best SEOs are able to analyze the site's issue, target a fix and get the site working well in Google - be it Panda or a Sandbox. :)
So don't just assume it is Panda - give yourself some credit and dig deeper.
Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.
Image credit to ShutterStock for cute Panda cartoon.
Comments:
Paul Atherton
01/06/2012 01:32 pm
Interesting pointer... Actually saw an international customer's rankings drop from #3 in the UK, with the ranking replaced by the Australian page. It was only on one term though, so not sure I can blame the cute little panda!
David Iwanow
01/06/2012 01:32 pm
this time of the year is also a shitty time for traffic as a number of sites almost drop to zero but yes if you were doing crappy things it can be likely Panda is actually your issue
emory @ clickfire
01/06/2012 04:33 pm
When in doubt, blame Panda :)
Chrisre4356
01/06/2012 04:40 pm
Panda has been great for all of my client's websites. Must be due to great unique content creation :) philadelphia seo
essay writing service
01/07/2012 08:39 am
cool Panda^_^
SEHabitat
01/07/2012 02:44 pm
yayyy commentspam ;)
Atraxmusic
01/07/2012 05:58 pm
My pet Panda ate my Goat....no more Goat milk!!
sandeep kumar
01/07/2012 06:32 pm
People always try to find easy targets to blame...
Akash Shastri
01/08/2012 02:35 am
My site's traffic dropped by 70% after 5th Jan 2012. Was that a Panda update?
Jayden Smith
01/08/2012 06:52 am
I've noticed, when ever certain sites of mine get slapped, others bounce back. It's always the same sites that get slapped and it's always the same that bounce back
Pak Telecom
01/09/2012 05:08 am
I also notice that Panda update comes this month, there is small reduction in my sites, but I am fighting against it :D
Ashish
01/09/2012 07:06 am
Hi All, I don't think so panda is effecting ur site rankings. if u r best seo's no will blame to panda, if u don't copy from any where regarding content, design or all technical issues ur site is obviously ranked on google top 10 search results. So keep follow google webmaster guidelines & my opinion work hard & get results. Thanks, Ashish
Andreea Cojocariu
01/09/2012 12:35 pm
Agreed!
Andreea Cojocariu
01/09/2012 12:36 pm
Agreed! I've noticed changes for one of my B2B clients, but I don't think it's Panda...although yet, it would be much easier to blame it on that. Figuring out the real problem takes work and time, and when clients pay by the hour, I can see how SEOs would be quick to blame the ever so cuddly Panda.
Swamykant
01/17/2012 09:19 am
There is not point in blaming Google.
Claire
01/17/2012 04:27 pm
Useless article...
Truck Accident Attorney
01/27/2012 04:44 pm
I agree, Some will really blame Google panda about what happen to there websites, but did we really know how, what, and when does this update can hit us? No one can predict this. Barry is right we must be more sensitive enough to know what's happening to our site, and get a firm idea on how to get it back, instead of blaming panda update.
Digital Magazines
02/23/2012 02:41 pm
One of my sites took a serious drop for it's main keywords around the end of January and doing a few searches it does seem that i'm not the only one to see this problem. It does seem strange that certain sites have just lost all ranking for their main key terms like that. Just to confirm, my site wasn't manually penalised as I submitted a reconsideration request and was surprisingly contacted quite quickly to tell me I hadn't been so think an update might make sense.
Shoe
02/26/2012 10:47 am
How does one find "the best Seo's" from the imposters? Any referrals?