The most recent of the Google algorithm updates has gone live and is now affecting your sites search visibility and overall page rank. It has been coined the "Fresh" update by some while others are calling it the "Caffeine 2.0" update. Regardless of what you call it, once again the update introduces certain things you need to do to maintain and continuously improve your website's search results and page rank.

Most of us already do take the required steps to stay ahead of the crowd within the industry and vertical of our website and business. However this new “Fresh” Google update makes those steps that much more important. This is where integrated SEO solutions come in.



Of all the changes made, the one that seems to be getting the most attention is that of time stamps. Especially in terms of the XML site maps, as they will certainly enjoy a boost with regards to importance. If you aren't doing everything you can to produce frequent and relevant content with time stamps enabled – do it now. Note: Each time a new file is uploaded or created onto your website, a time stamp is recorded in the log files. This helps track the sequence of events (SOE) as they occurred and were created. Some content management software (CMS) platforms such as Wordpress or Joomla will also display the time stamp for any articles that are posted to the blog. It goes to reason that each of these may be of importance and could lead to improved page rank and search results.

This points to the fact that the main focus of the “Fresh” update naturally is freshness or specifically how recent the content of the website is, in relation to it's subject matter. Keeping in mind that some subjects are claimed by Google to be less affected by recency of the content, it does not mean that it can be ignored. It would appear that the objective focus of this recency matter is to enhance the advertisers results. Bringing them better targeted search prospects which directly correlate to improved marketing performance results and higher profits. It is only logical to come to this conclusion, as for Google, the main product generating it's revenue is ad space. Search is in fact only the medium with which it presents the advertisers adverts according to the relevancy of the search request - don't forget. Remember they use a fancy mathematical formula called Latent Semantic Indexing (LSI) to determine the relevance of the text on your website to the search term and it's context.

So you need to think of how to better improve the recency of your sites content while also staying on topic with all your new content. It is of the utmost importance to be loyal to your subject and produce content in a consistent, logical and quality-oriented fashion. One of the best ways to accomplish this is of course with a blog linked to your main site. Updating your blog often is however a task that requires you put in the time to research the industry of your niche and write quality articles that will be keyword optimized to terms that are high in search occurance.

Another great way to improve the recency of your sites content and to generate lots of it fast is to install a forum. This however is not to say it does not require time to manage and moderate, as forums can often run amuck if not managed properly. The benefits though could be well worth the extra effort as the social aspect of forums and the stickiness they bring to your site may be just the boost it needs to make the top 10 in search results for your chosen keyword(s).

No matter what the true reason for Google's update, it continues to make your websites search engine optimization (SEO) efforts that much more important. Requiring that much more technical consideration and excellence in practice to achieve the desired results and stay ahead of the competition.

Keeping a positive and progressive attitude in light of this, here is the best part of the newest Google update. Because it makes the search results that much more relevant in terms of both subject and time, it gives you a "Fresh" new chance to increase your page rank and improve your website. Which of course is better for your business - BIG or small.

For a detailed quote on our cost-effective, on-going website management SEO packaged services for new and existing websites do not hesitate to contact us.

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