The Penguin is Coming – Be Social to Keep Your Feet Happy
At the Search Marketing Expo West held in March, Google’s Matt Cutts, was quoted as saying that the Penguin update was on the way and that it would be “one of the most talked about Google algorithm updates this year”. When the head of Google’s Webspam team talks, you better listen if your job involves online marketing and you want to stay employed.
While much has been written on the Penguin update and how it will penalize online merchants that engage in the typical no-no’s like keyword stuffing, excessive optimization, poor quality product content, excessive on page optimization, etc…, one important element has not received as much attention:
Lack of Social Signals.
As an online merchant it will be critical that your online store provides sharing and engagement tools for your customers. Google is “demanding” it. Be sure that from each of your product pages that customers can Like the item on Facebook, pin the Product to Pinterest, Tweet about the product, and clearly makes sure that they can Google+ the product. Additionally, be sure that your customers can review and also ask questions about your products.
Google has provided fair warning to eCommerce merchants so now is the time to prepare. Be sure your online store provides these social signals. The best eCommerce platforms (like Nexternal) will even wrap product reviews in a rich snippet so that the data is presented to Google appropriately.
The Social Penguin is coming. Be sure that your store is ready!
Craig is the VP of Sales at Nexternal and is known in the industry as an expert in eCommerce, systems integrations, and online marketing. Craig has been with Nexternal since 2000 and his passion and experience are apparent to all who work with him.
