Google Revises Its Spam Policy Guidelines

Google has revised its spam policy documentation to include more details and clearer explanations, making it easier to understand.

The most significant change in this update is the introduction of a new definition for site reputation abuse. Additionally, there is expanded information regarding the consequences of manual actions. The rest of the updates focus on refreshing the content to improve clarity and conciseness.

Being aware of these changes can help you think about how to update your own content effectively.

What Changed

The documentation has undergone approximately eight updates aimed at enhancing the content, providing seven methods for refreshing older material.

Here are the specific changes made:

Additional information on site reputation abuse.
New details regarding the consequences of manual actions.
Revision of the term “thin affiliate” to “thin affiliation.”
A more suitable introductory sentence.
Consolidation of terms: “Practices” and “Spam Practices.”
Introduction of the concept of spam abuse.
General improvements in conciseness.
Enhanced coverage of the topic of machine-generated traffic.

More Information About Site Reputation Abuse

The previous documentation defined site reputation abuse as a situation where a third party posts content on an authoritative site with “little or no first-party oversight,” but it did not clarify what “first-party oversight” meant. The updated spam documentation now includes a new definition.

“Close oversight or involvement occurs when the first-party hosting site actively produces or generates unique content. This can involve staff who are directly employed by the first-party or freelancers working for those staff. It does not include arrangements with third-party services, such as ‘white-label’ or ‘turnkey’ solutions, that primarily aim to redistribute content to manipulate search rankings.”

New Details About Manual Action Consequences

Google has introduced a new sentence clarifying that repeated violations of their spam guidelines can lead to escalating consequences, including the removal of additional sections of a site from search results. While this consequence is not new, the information surrounding it is.

In the context of ongoing spam activity, the updated documentation states:

“…and taking broader action in Google Search (for example, removing more sections of a site from Search results).”

This addition helps to refresh the content by including important details that were missing in the original version.

Changed Concept Of Thin Affiliate To Thin Affiliation

Google has updated the section previously titled “Thin affiliate pages” to now focus on “Thin affiliation,” providing a clear definition of the term.

The original text defined thin affiliate pages as follows:

“Thin affiliate pages are pages with product affiliate links…”

In the revised version, it begins with:

“Thin affiliation is the practice of publishing content with product affiliate links…”

More Appropriate Introductory Sentence

Google has updated the introductory sentence in its documentation to better fit the topic. The new version now includes a definition of spam, while the previous sentence has been retained as the second sentence.

The original introductory sentence was:

“Our spam policies help protect users and improve the quality of search results.”

The revised introductory sentence is:

“In the context of Google Search, spam is web content that’s designed to deceive users or manipulate our Search systems in order to rank highly. Our spam policies help protect users and improve the quality of search results.”

By starting with a definition of spam, the new version aligns more appropriately with the subject matter.

Consolidation Of Words: Practices & Spam Practices

Google has streamlined its terminology by consolidating various euphemisms for spam into a single phrase: “Spam Practices.”

This change merges terms such as “content and behaviors” and “forms of spam” into simpler phrases like “practices” and “spam practices.” While the reason for this change isn’t clear, using consistent terminology helps make the content more straightforward and easier to understand.

Here are some examples of the phrase “practices” and “spam practices” being emphasized:

The second paragraph has been revised for clarity.

The original sentence, “We detect policy-violating content and behaviors both through automated systems…” has been simplified to: “We detect policy-violating practices…” This change makes the sentence clearer and easier to understand, which is a key improvement.

In the fourth paragraph, the sentence has also been updated.

Originally, it stated: “Our policies cover common forms of spam, but Google may act against any type of spam we detect.” The new version reads: “Our policies cover common spam practices, but Google may act against any type of spam practices we detect.” Although this new sentence is somewhat redundant, it reflects a deliberate effort to categorise similar activities under one umbrella term.

Concept Of Spam Abuse

The next update involves increasing the frequency of the word “abuse” in the revised spam policies. The term “abuse” refers to harmful activities, and in the context of SEO, Google likely uses it to describe actions that deliberately mislead both users and search engines.

In the previous version, the word appeared 11 times, while the updated version includes it 17 times. Although this is a minor adjustment, it strongly emphasises the idea that spam is a type of abuse.

Here are two examples of how Google incorporated the term “abuse”:

“Doorways” is now referred to as “doorway abuse.”
The phrase “Hidden text and links” has been updated to “hidden text and links abuse.”

There are additional instances in the documentation where the term “abuse” has been added. This change helps link various concepts by framing them under the umbrella of abuse, making it easier for readers to understand. Now, “hidden text” and “doorways” are associated with each other as forms of spam abuse.

Improved Conciseness

Another important aspect to consider during a content refresh is making phrases more concise.

Google revised the following text:

“Google uses links as a factor in determining the relevancy of web pages. Any links that are intended to manipulate rankings in Google Search results may be considered link spam. This includes any behavior that manipulates links to your site or outgoing links from your site.”

The updated version is much shorter:

“Link spam is the practice of creating links to or from a site primarily for the purpose of manipulating search rankings.”

There’s a significant difference here. This change is effective because it distills the original three sentences down to their core message. The original text contained a lot of information that was not easy to remember.

When rewriting content, it’s helpful to read through the sentences and ask, “What does this mean?” If you can express that meaning more clearly in fewer words, it’s worth considering a rewrite.

Improved Topic Communication: Machine-Generated Traffic

The latest change significantly enhances the section on machine-generated traffic by shifting the focus away from Google and instead providing a clear definition of what machine-generated traffic entails.

The original sentences:

“Machine-generated traffic consumes resources and interferes with our ability to best serve users. Examples of automated traffic include:”

Have been revised to:

“Machine-generated traffic (also known as automated traffic) refers to the practice of sending automated queries to Google. This includes scraping…”

While the mention of resource consumption remains, it has been moved to the end of the section for better clarity.

Additionally, there are other examples in the documentation where two sentences have been condensed into one, allowing for a more direct and concise approach.

For instance, the section on misleading functionality has been simplified from two sentences to one:

“Misleading functionality refers to the practice of…”

Similarly, the section on scraped content has been streamlined, reducing three lengthy sentences to a single definition:

“Scraping refers to the practice of taking content from other sites…”

Content Refresh Versus A Rewrite

The updated spam documentation is not a complete rewrite but rather a gradual refresh that includes some new information. It offers suggestions for improving your own content by adding new details and clarifying existing information to make it more concise.