Can A Small Business Survive Panda and Penguin?
To me the big factor with Panda was a major attempt by Google to define authoritative content.
Penguin was clearly a major attempt by Google to refine it algorithm as it relates to in-coming links to a website.
Can a small business properly deal with this heavy scrutiny?
Let me discuss Panda. The entire issue is related to the quality of your on-site materials. If you have “thin” content or duplicate content then you may be affected negatively by Panda. It is natural for Google to want to present the most authoritative content to its searching audience. If your content is thin and of little value or depth then you run the risk of being penalized. If your content is not original and Google can detect the original source then your page (or site) can be negatively impacted. If you have duplicate (but non-original) content then your page is clearly not the authority.
The lesson is to create (and to continue to create) high-quality web content that delights your website visitors. Google wants to present websites that delight. If you are a small business then you have the ability to delight and you should make every effort to do so.
In my next few posts I will explain more of what Google is doing with the Penguin and how to not get penalized.