Google Makes An Algorithm Change Promises More High-Quality Sites In Search

In an attempt at returning more high-quality sites in their search results Google has made a major shift in their search algorithms. The move seems to be a major shift for Google as it says the new algorithms will "noticeably impact 11.8% of queries."

"This update is designed to reduce rankings for low-quality sites—sites which are low-value add for users, copy content from other websites or sites that are just not very useful. At the same time, it will provide better rankings for high-quality sites—sites with original content and information such as research, in-depth reports, thoughtful analysis and so on.

We can’t make a major improvement without affecting rankings for many sites. It has to be that some sites will go up and some will go down. Google depends on the high-quality content created by wonderful websites around the world, and we do have a responsibility to encourage a healthy web ecosystem. Therefore, it is important for high-quality sites to be rewarded, and that’s exactly what this change does."

Personally I think its a great move! Spammers and content farms creating sites with nothing more than great SEO and very little (if any) original content shouldn't be rewarded with high rankings and front page turnouts. Sites that work their collective butts off and provide users with good quality content should garner more attention and be reward.

Its a little early in the game to tell how well the new algorithm works, or if it will have any impact on my own searches or our site. But hopefully it will silence some of the critics like Michael Arrington over at TechCrunch (one of my favorite haunts). He has been  heavily criticizing Google for several weeks of what he call "a lack of quality search results", particularly in certain categories like travel and commerce.

Hopefully as Arrington says "sites like Demand Media, Associated Content and Mahalo" are on the cut list, but I kind of doubt it!