Search Engine Optimization

Multiple Google trackers showed massive flux around December 14-15, including a rare MozCast temperature of 109°F. Webmaster chatter was heavy as well, but Google did not confirm an update.

• December 15th Google Search Algorithm Update Signals (SER)

MozCast detected a major (106°) spike on November 10th and another on the 18th. Industry chatter was high during both periods, with some suggesting that the second spike was a reversal of the first update. Google has not confirmed either event. Many people reported bad dates in SERPs during the same time period, but it’s unclear whether this was causal or just a coincidence.

• November 10, 2016 Google Algorithm Update – Was It A Core Ranking Update, The Mobile-first Index Being Tested, or Both? (GSQi)
• Was There A Google Search Update On November 10th? (SER)

The second phase of Penguin 4.0 was the reversal of all previous Penguin penalties. This seemed to happen after the new code rolled out, and may have taken as long as two weeks. Post-Penguin activity had one final peak on October 6th (116°), but it is unclear whether this was Penguin or a new update. Algorithm temperatures finally started to drop after October 6th.

The first phase of Penguin 4.0, which probably launched around September 22-23, was the rollout of the new, “gentler” Penguin algorithm, which devalues bad links instead of penalizing sites. The exact timeline is unconfirmed, but we believe this rollout took at least a few days to fully update, and may have corresponded to an algorithm temperature spike (113°) on September 27th.

• Why Didn’t You Recover from Penguin? (Moz)

After almost two years of waiting, Google finally announced a major Penguin update. They suggested the new Penguin is now real-time and baked into the “core” algorithm. Initial impact assessments were small, but it was later revealed that the Penguin 4.0 rollout was unusually long and multi-phase (see September 27th and October 6th).

• Penguin is now part of our core algorithm (Google)
• Google updates Penguin, says it now runs in real time within the core search algorithm (SEL)

MozCast recorded a nearly-record 111° temperature and a 50% drop in SERPs with image (universal/vertical) results. The universal result shake-up opened up an organic position on page 1, causing substantial ranking shifts, but it’s likely that this was part of a much larger update.

• Penguin 4.0: Was It Worth the Wait? (Moz)

While unconfirmed by Google, MozCast recorded extreme temperatures of 108° and a drop in local pack prevalence, and the local SEO community noted a major shake-up in pack results. Data suggests this update (or a simultaneous update) also heavily impacted organic results.

• Everything you need to know about Google’s ‘Possum’ algorithm update (SEL)
• Is a big Google search update happening? Chatter thinks so. (SEL)

Just more than a year after the original “mobile friendly” update, Google rolled out another ranking signal boost to benefit mobile-friendly sites on mobile search. Since the majority of sites we track are already mobile-friendly, it’s likely the impact of the latest update was small.

• Google’s mobile-friendly algorithm boost has rolled out (SEL)
• Continuing to make the web more mobile friendly (Google)

MozCast and other Google weather trackers showed a historically rare week-long pattern of algorithm activity, including a 97-degree spike. Google would not confirm this update, and no explanation is currently available.

• Google Dismisses Any Recent Major Algorithm Update (SER)

Google made major changes to AdWords, removing right-column ads entirely and rolling out 4-ad top blocks on many commercial searches. While this was a paid search update, it had significant implications for CTR for both paid and organic results, especially on competitive keywords.

• Four Ads on Top: The Wait Is Over (Moz)
• Google AdWords Switching to 4 Ads on Top, None on Sidebar (SEM Post)

Multiple tracking tools (including MozCast) reported historically-large rankings movement, which Google later confirmed as a “core algo update”. Google officially said that this was not a Penguin update, but details remain sketchy.

• Google Confirms: Core Search Ranking Update Took Place But Not Penguin Related (SER)

Google made a major announcement, revealing that machine learning had been a part of the algorithm for months, contributing to the 3rd most influential ranking factor. *Note: This is an announcement date – we believe the actual launch was closer to spring 2015.

• Google Turning Its Lucrative Web Search Over to AI Machines (Bloomberg)
• FAQ: All About The New Google RankBrain Algorithm (SEL)

Google announced a Panda update (most likely a data refresh), saying that it could take months to fully roll out. The immediate impact was unclear, and there were no clear signs of a major algorithm update.

• Google Panda Update: Everything We Know About Panda 4.2 (The SEM Post)
• Google Panda 4.2 Is Here (SEL)

After many reports of large-scale ranking changes, originally dubbed “Phantom 2”, Google acknowledged a core algorithm change impacting “quality signals”. This update seems to have had a broad impact, but Google didn’t reveal any specifics about the nature of the signals involved.

• The Quality Update: Google Confirms Changing How Quality Is Assessed, Resulting In Rankings Shake-Up (SEL)
• Google’s ‘phantom’ algorithm update hits websites (CNBC)

In a rare move, Google pre-announced an algorithm update, telling us that mobile rankings would differ for mobile-friendly sites starting on April 21st. The impact of this update was, in the short-term, much smaller than expected, and our data showed that algorithm flux peaked on April 22nd.

Finding more mobile-friendly search results (Google)

7 Days After Mobilegeddon: How Far Did the Sky Fall? (Moz)

• Finding more mobile-friendly search results (Google)
• 7 Days After Mobilegeddon: How Far Did the Sky Fall? (Moz)

Multiple SERP-trackers and many webmasters reported major flux in Google SERPs. Speculation ranged from an e-commerce focused update to a mobile usability update. Google did not officially confirm an update.

Significant Google Search Algorithm Update Yesterday (SER)

Google Brand-eCommerce “Update” causing fluctuations (Searchmetrics)

• Significant Google Search Algorithm Update Yesterday (SER)
• Google Brand-eCommerce “Update” causing fluctuations (Searchmetrics)

Google’s major local algorithm update, dubbed “Pigeon”, expanded to the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia. The original update hit the United States in July 2014. The update was confirmed on the 22nd but may have rolled out as early as the 19th.

• Google Pigeon Update Rolls Out To UK, Canada & Australia (SEL)
• Local Search Results Affected as Google Pigeon Update Hits UK (Strategy Digital)

A Google representative said that Penguin had shifted to continuous updates, moving away from infrequent, major updates. While the exact timeline was unclear, this claim seemed to fit ongoing flux after Penguin 3.0 (including unconfirmed claims of a Penguin 3.1).

• Google Says Penguin To Shift To “Continuous Updates” (SEL)

More than two years after the original DMCA/”Pirate” update, Google launched another update to combat software and digital media piracy. This update was highly targeted, causing dramatic drops in ranking to a relatively small group of sites.

• Google Pirate Update Analysis and ​Loser List (Searchmetrics)
• Google’s New Search Downranking Hits Torrent Sites Hard (TorrentFreak)

More than a year after the previous Penguin update (2.1), Google launched a Penguin refresh. This update appeared to be smaller than expected (<1% of US/English queries affected) and was probably data-only (not a new Penguin algorithm). The timing of the update was unclear, especially internationally, and Google claimed it was spread out over "weeks".

• Google AutoCorrects: Penguin 3.0 Still Rolling Out & 1% Impact (SER)
• Penguin 3.0 Analysis – Penguin Tremors, Recoveries, Fresh Hits, and Crossing Algorithms (GSQi)

Google made what looked like a display change to News-box results, but later announced that they had expanded news links to a much larger set of potential sites. The presence of news results in SERPs also spiked, and major news sites reported substantial traffic changes.

• Google’s “In The News” Box Now Lists More Than Traditional News Sites (SEL)
• New Publishers Upset With Google’s “In The News” Box (SER)

Google announced a significant Panda update, which included an algorithmic component. They estimated the impact at 3-5% of queries affected. Given the “slow rollout,” the exact timing was unclear.

• Panda 4.1 — Google’s 27th Panda Update — Is Rolling Out (SEL)
• Panda 4.1 Analysis and Findings – Affiliate Marketing, Keyword Stuffing, Security Warnings, and Deception Prevalent (GSQI)

Following up on the June 28th drop of authorship photos, Google announced that they would be completely removing authorship markup (and would no longer process it). By the next morning, authorship bylines had disappeared from all SERPs.

• Official Announcement from John Mueller (Google+)
• It’s Over: The Rise & Fall Of Google Authorship For Search Results (SEL)

After months of speculation, Google announced that they would be giving preference to secure sites, and that adding encryption would provide a “lightweight” rankings boost. They stressed that this boost would start out small, but implied it might increase if the changed proved to be positive.

• HTTPS as a ranking signal (Google)
• Google Starts Giving A Ranking Boost To Secure HTTPS/SSL Sites (SEL)

Google shook the local SEO world with an update that dramatically altered some local results and modified how they handle and interpret location cues. Google claimed that Pigeon created closer ties between the local algorithm and core algorithm(s).

• Google “Pigeon” Updates Local Search Algorithm With Stronger Ties To Web Search Signal (SEL)
• Google Updates Local Algo with More Web Based Signals – Turmoil in SERPs (Blumenthals.com)

John Mueller made a surprise announcement (on June 25th) that Google would be dropping all authorship photos from SERPs (after heavily promoting authorship as a connection to Google+). The drop was complete around June 28th.

• Google Announces the End of Author Photos in Search: What You Should Know (Moz)
• Google Removes Author Photos From Search: Why And What Does It Mean? (SEL)

Less than a month after the Payday Loan 2.0 anti-spam update, Google launched another major iteration. Official statements suggested that 2.0 targeted specific sites, while 3.0 targeted spammy queries.

• Google Spam Algorithm Version 3.0 Launches Today (SER)

Google confirmed a major Panda update that likely included both an algorithm update and a data refresh. Officially, about 7.5% of English-language queries were affected. While Matt Cutts said it began rolling out on 5/20, our data strongly suggests it started earlier.

• Google Begins Rolling Out Panda 4.0 Now (SEL)
• Panda 4.0, Payday Loan 2.0 & eBay’s Very Bad Day (Moz)

Just prior to Panda 4.0, Google updated it’s “payday loan” algorithm, which targets especially spammy queries. The exact date of the roll-out was unclear (Google said “this past weekend” on 5/20), and the back-to-back updates made the details difficult to sort out.

• Official: Google Payday Loan Algorithm 2.0 Launched: Targets “Very Spammy Queries” (SEL)

Major algorithm flux trackers and webmaster chatter spiked around 3/24-3/25, and some speculated that the new, “softer” Panda update had arrived. Many sites reported ranking changes, but this update was never confirmed by Google.

• Did Google Do An Algorithm Update Yesterday? (SER)
• Did the Softer Panda Update Arrive on March 24, 2014? (GSQi)

Google “refreshed” their page layout algorithm, also known as “top heavy”. Originally launched in January 2012, the page layout algorithm penalizes sites with too many ads above the fold.

• Google Updates Its Page Layout Algorithm To Go After Sites “Top Heavy” With Ads (SEL)

As predicted by Matt Cutts at Pubcon Las Vegas, authorship mark-up disappeared from roughly 15% of queries over a period of about a month. The fall bottomed out around December 19th, but the numbers remain volatile and have not recovered to earlier highs.

• Google’s December Authorship Shake-up (Moz)
• Authorshipocalypse! The Great Google Authorship Purge Has Begun (Virante)

Almost all global flux trackers registered historically high activity. Google would not confirm an update, suggesting that they avoid updates near the holidays. MozCast also registered a rise in some Partial-Match Domains (PMDs), but the patterns were unclear.

• The Biggest SERP Flux Since Penguin 2.0 (Dejan SEO)
• Google Denies A Major Update On December 17th (SEL)

Multiple Google trackers picked up unusual activity, which co-occurred with a report of widespread DNS errors in Google Webmaster Tools. Google did not confirm an update, and the cause and nature of this flux was unclear.

• Was There a November 14th Google Update? (Moz)
• Was There A Google Update On November 14th? (SER)

After a 4-1/2 month gap, Google launched another Penguin update. Given the 2.1 designation, this was probably a data update (primarily) and not a major change to the Penguin algorithm. The overall impact seemed to be moderate, although some webmasters reported being hit hard.

• Penguin 5, With The Penguin 2.1 Spam-Filtering Algorithm, Is Now Live (SEL)
• Google Penguin 2.1 Was A Big Hit (SER)

Announced on September 26th, Google suggested that the “Hummingbird” update rolled out about a month earlier. Our best guess ties it to a MozCast spike on August 20th and many reports of flux from August 20-22. Hummingbird has been compared to Caffeine, and seems to be a core algorithm update that may power changes to semantic search and the Knowledge Graph for months to come.

• FAQ: All About The New Google “Hummingbird” Algorithm (SEL)
• Some Reports Of An August 21/22 Google Update (SER)

Google added a new type of news result called “in-depth articles”, dedicated to more evergreen, long-form content. At launch, it included links to three articles, and appeared across about 3% of the searches that MozCast tracks.

• In-depth articles in search results (Google)
• Inside In-depth Articles: Dissecting Google’s Latest Feature (Moz)

MozCast tracked a large Friday spike (105° F), with other sources showing significant activity over the weekend. Google has not confirmed this update.

• Was There A Weekend Google Update? (SER)
• MozCast Update (Google+)

Seemingly overnight, queries with Knowledge Graph (KG) entries expanded by more than half (+50.4%) across the MozCast data set, with more than a quarter of all searches showing some kind of KG entry.

• The Day the Knowledge Graph Exploded (Moz)

Google confirmed a Panda update, but it was unclear whether this was one of the 10-day rolling updates or something new. The implication was that this was algorithmic and may have “softened” some previous Panda penalties.

• Confirmed: Google Panda Update: The “Softer” Panda Algorithm (SER)

Google’s Matt Cutts tweeted a reply suggesting a “multi-week” algorithm update between roughly June 12th and “the week after July 4th”. The nature of the update was unclear, but there was massive rankings volatility during that time period, peaking on June 27th (according to MozCast data). It appears that Google may have been testing some changes that were later rolled back.

• Google’s “Multi-Week” Algorithm Update (Moz)
• Google’s Matt Cutts: Multi-Week Update Rolling Out (SER)

Google announced a targeted algorithm update to take on niches with notoriously spammy results, specifically mentioning payday loans and porn. The update was announced on June 11th, but Matt Cutts suggested it would roll out over a 1-2 month period.

• Google Payday Loan Algorithm: Google Search Algorithm Update To Target Spammy Queries (SEL)
• Google Spam Algorithm For Spammy Queries: Pay Day Loans+ (SER)

While not an actual Panda update, Matt Cutts made an important clarification at SMX Advanced, suggesting that Panda was still updating monthly, but each update rolled out over about 10 days. This was not the “everflux” many people had expected after Panda #25.

• Google’s Panda Dance: Matt Cutts Confirms Panda Rolls Out Monthly Over 10 Of 30 Days (SEL)

After months of speculation bordering on hype, the 4th Penguin update (dubbed “2.0” by Google) arrived with only moderate impact. The exact nature of the changes were unclear, but some evidence suggested that Penguin 2.0 was more finely targeted to the page level.

• Penguin 4, With Penguin 2.0 Generation Spam-Fighting, Is Now Live (SEL)
• Penguin 2.0/4 – Were You Jarred and/or Jolted? (Moz)

Google released an update to control domain crowding/diversity deep in the SERPs (pages 2+). The timing was unclear, but it seemed to roll out just prior to Penguin 2.0 in the US and possibly the same day internationally.

• Google Domain Clustering Update (Justin Briggs)
• Google’s Matt Cutts: Domain Clustering To Change Again (SEL)

In the period around May 9th, there were many reports of an algorithm update (also verified by high MozCast activity). The exact nature of this update was unknown, but many sites reported significant traffic loss.

• A Google Update Is Happening (Google: Nothing To Announce Now) (SER)
• SEO Findings From Google’s Phantom Update (GSQi)

Matt Cutts pre-announced a Panda update at SMX West, and suggested it would be the last update before Panda was integrated into the core algorithm. The exact date was unconfirmed, but MozCast data suggests 3/13-3/14.

• Google’s Final Manual Panda Refresh Here? #25 (SER)
• Google Panda Update 25 Seems To Have Hit (SEL)

Google announced its first official update of 2013, claiming 1.2% of queries affected. This did not seem related to talk of an update around 1/17-18 (which Google did not confirm).

• Google Announces 24th Panda Refresh; Not Related To January 17th (SER)
• Google Panda Update Version #24; 1.2% Of Search Queries Impacted (SEL)

Right before the Christmas holiday, Google rolled out another Panda update. They officially called it a “refresh”, impacting 1.3% of English queries. This was a slightly higher impact than Pandas #21 and #22.

• Confirmed: A Panda Refresh, Version #23 (SER)

Google added Knowledge Graph functionality to non-English queries, including Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Japanese, Russian, and Italian. This update was “more than just translation” and added enhanced KG capabilities.

• Get smarter answers from the Knowledge Graph from Portuguese to Japanese to Russian (Google)
• Google’s Knowledge Graph Expands To More Languages, Including Italian, French, Japanese And Russian (TechCrunch)

After some mixed signals, Google confirmed the 22nd Panda update, which appears to have been data-only. This came on the heels of a larger, but unnamed update around November 19th.

• Official Google Panda #22 Update: November 21 (SER)
• Confirmed: Google Panda Refresh #22 On November 21st; 0.8% Of Queries Impacted (SEL)

Google rolled out their 21st Panda update, roughly 5-1/2 weeks after Panda #20. This update was reported to be smaller, officially impacting 1.1% of English queries.

• Google Releases Panda Update 21, Impacts 1.1% Of US Queries In English (SEL)
• Official: Google Panda Refresh On November 5th (Version 21) (SER)

Google announced an update to its original page layout algorithm change back in January, which targeted pages with too many ads above the fold. It’s unclear whether this was an algorithm change or a Panda-style data refresh.

• It’s “Top Heavy 2?” As Google Rolls Out Update To Its Page Layout Algorithm (SEL)
• Google Page Layout Algorithm Officially Updated (SER)

After suggesting the next Penguin update would be major, Google released a minor Penguin data update, impacting “0.3% of queries”. Penguin update numbering was rebooted, similar to Panda – this was the 3rd Penguin release.

• Google Penguin Update 3 Released, Impacts 0.3% Of English-Language Queries (SEL)
• Google Released 3rd Penguin Update: Not Jarring Or Jolting (SER)

Google published their monthly (bi-monthly?) list of search highlights. The 65 updates for August and September included 7-result SERPs, Knowledge Graph expansion, updates to how “page quality” is calculated, and changes to how local results are determined.

• Search quality highlights: 65 changes for August and September (Google)

Overlapping the EMD update, a fairly major Panda update (algo + data) rolled out, officially affecting 2.4% of queries. As the 3.X series was getting odd, industry sources opted to start naming Panda updates in order (this was the 20th).

• 20th Google Panda Algorithm Update: Fairly Major (SER)
• How Do You Know If Google Panda Or EMD Hurt Your Site? (SER)

Google announced a change in the way it was handling exact-match domains (EMDs). This led to large-scale devaluation, reducing the presence of EMDs in the MozCast data set by over 10%. Official word is that this change impacted 0.6% of queries (by volume).

• Google’s EMD Algo Update – Early Data (Moz)
• The EMD Update: Google Issues “Weather Report” Of Crack Down On Low Quality Exact Match Domains (SEL)

Google rolled out another Panda refresh, which appears to have been data-only. Ranking flux was moderate but not on par with a large-scale algorithm update.

• Google Rolls Out Panda 3.9.2 Refresh (SER)
• Panda Update 3.92 Rolling Out (Or Is It Panda 20 Time?) (SEL)

Google rolled out yet another Panda data update, but the impact seemed to be fairly small. Since the Panda 3.0 series ran out of numbers at 3.9, the new update was dubbed 3.9.1.

• Confirmed: Google Panda 3.9.1 Update (SER)
• Google Panda Refresh On August 19th: Version 3.9.1 (SEL)

Google made a significant change to the Top 10, limiting it to 7 results for many queries. Our research showed that this change rolled out over a couple of days, finally impacting about 18% of the keywords we tracked.

• SERP Crowding & Shrinkage: It’s Not Your Imagination (Moz)
• 7 Is The New 10? Google Showing Fewer Results & More From Same Domain (SEL)

After a summer hiatus, the June and July Search Quality Highlights were rolled out in one mega-post. Major updates included Panda data and algorithm refreshes, an improved rank-ordering function (?), a ranking boost for “trusted sources”, and changes to site clustering.

• Search quality highlights: 86 changes for June and July (Google)
• Google’s June-July Updates: Site Clustering, Sitelinks Changes & Focus On Page Quality (SEL)

Google announced that they would start penalizing sites with repeat copyright violations, probably via DMCA takedown requests. Timing was stated as “starting next week” (8/13?).

• An update to our search algorithms (Google)
• The Emanuel Update: Google Will Penalize Sites Repeatedly Accused Of Copyright Infringement (SEL)

A month after Panda 3.8, Google rolled out a new Panda update. Rankings fluctuated for 5-6 days, although no single day was high enough to stand out. Google claimed ~1% of queries were impacted.

• Official: Google Panda 3.9 Refresh (SER)

In a repeat of March/April, Google sent out a large number of unnatural link warnings via Google Webmaster Tools. In a complete turn-around, they then announced that these new warnings may not actually represent a serious problem.

• Insanity: Google Sends New Link Warnings, Then Says You Can Ignore Them (SEL)
• Google Sends Out New Batch Of Unnatural Link Notifications (SER)

Google rolled out another Panda data refresh, but this appeared to be data only (no algorithm changes) and had a much smaller impact than Panda 3.7.

• Official Google Panda Update Version 3.8 On June 25th (SEL)
• Google Panda 3.8 Live: June 25th & Refresh Only (SER)

Google rolled out yet another Panda data update, claiming that less than 1% of queries were affect. Ranking fluctuation data suggested that the impact was substantially higher than previous Panda updates (3.5, 3.6).

• Confirmed: Google Panda 3.7 Update (SER)
• The Bigfoot Update (AKA Dr. Pete Goes Crazy) (Moz)

Google released their monthly Search Highlights, with 39 updates in May. Major changes included Penguin improvements, better link-scheme detection, changes to title/snippet rewriting, and updates to Google News.

• Search quality highlights: 39 changes for May (Google)
• Google’s May Updates: Inorganic Backlinks, Page Titles, Fresh Results & More (SEL)

Google rolled out its first targeted data update after the “Penguin” algorithm update. This confirmed that Penguin data was being processed outside of the main search index, much like Panda data.

• Google Releases Penguin Update 1.1 (SEL)

In a major step toward semantic search, Google started rolling out “Knowledge Graph”, a SERP-integrated display providing supplemental object about certain people, places, and things. Expect to see “knowledge panels” appear on more and more SERPs over time. Also, Danny Sullivan’s favorite Trek is ST:Voyager?!

• Introducing the Knowledge Graph: things, not strings (Google)
• Google Launches Knowledge Graph To Provide Answers, Not Just Links (SEL)

Google published details of 52 updates in April, including changes that were tied to the “Penguin” update. Other highlights included a 15% larger “base” index, improved pagination handling, and a number of updates to sitelinks.

• Search quality highlights: 52 changes for April (Google)
• Google’s April Updates: Bigger & Tiered Index, Document Ranking, Sitelink Changes & More (SEL)

Barely a week after Panda 3.5, Google rolled out yet another Panda data update. The implications of this update were unclear, and it seemed that the impact was relatively small.

• Confirmed: Panda Update 3.6 Happened On April 27th (SEL)

After weeks of speculation about an “Over-optimization penalty”, Google finally rolled out the “Webspam Update”, which was soon after dubbed “Penguin.” Penguin adjusted a number of spam factors, including keyword stuffing, and impacted an estimated 3.1% of English queries.

• Another step to reward high-quality sites (Google)
• The Penguin Update: Google’s Webspam Algorithm Gets Official Name (SEL)
• Google Penguin Update Recovery Tips & Advice (SEL)
• Two Weeks In, Google Talks Penguin Update, Ways To Recover & Negative SEO (SEL)

In the middle of a busy week for the algorthim, Google quietly rolled out a Panda data update. A mix of changes made the impact difficult to measure, but this appears to have been a fairly routine update with minimal impact.

• Google Mocks Me For Missing Panda 3.5 (SER)

After a number of webmasters reported ranking shuffles, Google confirmed that a data error had caused some domains to be mistakenly treated as parked domains (and thereby devalued). This was not an intentional algorithm change.

• Dropped In Rankings? Google’s Mistake Over Parked Domains Might Be To Blame (SEL)
• Updated: Google Update April 2012? Over SEO Penalty? (SER)

Google posted another batch of update highlights, covering 50 changes in March. These included confirmation of Panda 3.4, changes to anchor-text “scoring”, updates to image search, and changes to how queries with local intent are interpreted.

• Search quality highlights: 50 changes for March (Google)
• Google’s March Updates: Anchor Text, Image Search, Navigational Search & More (SEL)

Google announced another Panda update, this time via Twitter as the update was rolling out. Their public statements estimated that Panda 3.4 impacted about 1.6% of search results.

• Google Says Panda 3.4 Is ‘Rolling Out Now’ (SEL)

This wasn’t an algorithm update, but Google published a rare peek into a search quality meeting. For anyone interested in the algorithm, the video provides a lot of context to both Google’s process and their priorities. It’s also a chance to see Amit Singhal in action.

• Video! The search quality meeting, uncut (Google)

Google published a second set of “search quality highlights” at the end of the month, claiming more than 40 changes in February. Notable changes included multiple image-search updates, multiple freshness updates (including phasing out 2 old bits of the algorithm), and a Panda update.

• Search quality highlights: 40 changes for February (Google)

Google rolled out another post-“flux” Panda update, which appeared to be relatively minor. This came just 3 days after the 1-year anniversary of Panda, an unprecedented lifespan for a named update.

• Google Confirms Panda 3.3 Update (SEL)
• Confirmed: Google Panda 3.3 (SER)

As part of their monthly update, Google mentioned code-name “Venice”. This local update appeared to more aggressively localize organic results and more tightly integrate local search data. The exact roll-out date was unclear.

• Understand and Rock the Google Venice Update (Moz)
• Google Venice Update – New Ranking Opportunities for Local SEO (Catalyst eMarketing)

Google released another round of “search quality highlights” (17 in all). Many related to speed, freshness, and spell-checking, but one major announcement was tighter integration of Panda into the main search index.

• 17 search quality highlights: January (Google)
• Google’s January Search Update: Panda In The Pipelines, Fresher Results, Date Detection & More (SEL)

Google updated their page layout algorithms to devalue sites with too much ad-space above the “fold”. It was previously suspected that a similar factor was in play in Panda. The update had no official name, although it was referenced as “Top Heavy” by some SEOs.

• Page layout algorithm improvement (Google)
• Pages With Too Many Ads “Above The Fold” Now Penalized By Google’s “Page Layout” Algorithm (SEL)

Google confirmed a Panda data update, although suggested that the algorithm hadn’t changed. It was unclear how this fit into the “Panda Flux” scheme of more frequent data updates.

• Confirmed: Google Panda 3.2 Update (SEW)
• Google Panda 3.2 Update Confirmed (SEL)

Google announced a radical shift in personalization – aggressively pushing Google+ social data and user profiles into SERPs. Google also added a new, prominent toggle button to shut off personalization.

• Search, plus your world (Google)
• Real-Life Examples Of How Google’s “Search Plus” Pushes Google+ Over Relevancy (SEL)

Google announced 30 changes over the previous month, including image search landing-page quality detection, more relevant site-links, more rich snippets, and related-query improvements. The line between an “algo update” and a “feature” got a bit more blurred.

• 30 search quality highlights – with codenames! (Google)
• Google Announces “Megasitelinks,” Image Search Improvements & Better Byline Dates (SEL)