Google Panda and HubPages

1. 80

   Sam Montanaposted 9 years ago

   I just read an article on WebPro News about the latest Google Panda update. They have a list of the winners and losers and HubPages is in the list of losers. Hubpages is down 46% in SEO visibility. Here is a link to the article:
   http://blog.searchmetrics.com/us/2014/0 … rce=EOACLK

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   1. 80

      LillyGrillzitposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Thank you for the link to this information. It is very telling. Good article.

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   2. 93

      PegCole17posted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I read this article and found it quite interesting, too. From the comments, it seems like game sites and downloading type sites are getting a boost, while content sites like Hub Pages are taking a hit. Anyhow, thanks for the link.
      Peg

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   3. 84

      ecogrannyposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I don't know much about SEO, but I read the article. Perhaps someone can explain why HubPages is in the losers section. Everyone else in that section has a larger number in the before column than in the after column. Only HubPages has a smaller number in the before column, as follows.
      
        Domain – Loser         Before         After       Change in %
      hubpages.com      30493     163548     -46%
      
      Forgive me if I'm missing something obvious, but shouldn't HP be in the winners section, with a nice fat gain?

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      1. 80

         Sam Montanaposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         I didn't even notice that. I think they left off the zero and it should be 304930...maybe.

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         1. 84

            ecogrannyposted 9 years agoin reply to this

            @Sam Montana, I discovered that if we right click on "HubPages" on the report, we can see some detail, and you are absolutely right. We are missing a zero. The peak number for HP is 304930. Shucks. For a day or two there, I had hope.
            
            Edit to add:
            
            Interesting to see the line on that chart.
            
            From July 6 to August 31, the line is fairly even, just beginning to dip down the first week of September, then boom! It spikes at exactly the time most of the Squidoo accounts transferred, then immediately slides back down, dipping past the previous even line, to its lowest point two days from now, October 12.
            
            I knew Google could do a lot of things, but I didn't know they could time travel too.

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2. 85

   rebekahELLEposted 9 years ago

   There is another thread that was started after the article first appeared.  It may answer some of your questions.  Issues like this cause a lot of speculation, it's hard to give an exact cause with the different factors that may be affecting the site. 
   
   Here's another interesting blog article on moz about the Panda 4.1.  The author makes an interesting statement about the Panda algorithm.
   Sites that perform well on Panda do not see boosts because they are being given ranking preference by Google, rather their competitors have seen rankings loss or their own previous Panda penalties have been lifted. In either scenario, we should remember that performing well on Panda assessments isn't going to necessarily increase your rankings, but it should help you sustain them.

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3. 70

   Glenda Motsavageposted 9 years ago

   @ecogranny  I read the article earlier today, and had the same question you did regarding the 'before' and 'after' number for HP.  Thanks for asking the question, but gotta admit... I was hoping it was a mistake, and HP should've been added to the "winners" list!

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   1. 73

      brakel2posted 9 years agoin reply to this

      My Google Analytics shows an increase in my page views. Anybody else?

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4. 87

   Marisa Wrightposted 9 years ago

   The HubPages figure is distorted, because there was a huge increase in traffic just before Panda hit, due to the addition of Squidoo lenses.
   
   So the 46% traffic "loss" just took HubPages back to the same level of traffic it had before the lenses arrived.

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5. 73

   brakel2posted 9 years ago

   Marisa. What do you think is the main problem?  Is it the sales hubs plus the site  being buggy plus Google not liking our content? Do we need to explain our authority  for writing certain content? We spend a lot of time updating our hubs. It makes sense to avoid downgrading hubs when Panda just hit and lowered everything. Should we not update? What about deleting hubs in the 60s if they only went into the 60s since Panda? I know you are smart, so I respect your opinions.

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      Elsie Hagleyposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I'm very interested in the comment brake12 has asked also.
      
      I will do anything that will help HubPages gain a better percentage.
      
      Thanks Marisa for all the help you have given me since I transferred over from Squidoo.

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   2. 87

      Marisa Wrightposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      HubScores tell you nothing about what Google thinks of your Hubs.  Don't judge your Hubs by what their score is, judge them by how much traffic they get and how much money they make. 
      
      You should not be spending a lot of time updating your Hubs!   The whole point of HubPages is passive income:  you go on earning from a Hub long after it's written.   Constantly tweaking just dilutes the value of that "set and forget" system.   Update when the rules change, or when you have some new information to add, or when you learn something new about how to use HubPages.  Otherwise, a refresh once or twice a year is more than enough.
      
      Explaining your authority on a Hub won't help.   Google's robots can't understand English so they won't understand it.  Google judges authority in a couple of ways.  If a website is all about one topic, that tells Google there's someone there who knows a lot about the subject.  If other people are linking to the site a lot, that tells Google people are respecting that site and using it as a reference. 
      
      That's why writing on health, especially, is tough because you are up against the large reputable medical sites.   If you are able to write a lot about one particular disease, it's worth considering your own blog because it's more likely to get traffic than a handful of Hubs - however, if you want to make money from a blog, it's a whole new learning curve.
      
      Have you read my Hub on how to optimise your Hubs?  It's in the slider on my profile, you might find it helpful.  It might also be worth reading the one on what to do with unFeatured Hubs.

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