Google ranking always triggers controversy and debate. Every time there’s a new Google algorithm up for release, rumors fly thick and fast as to which type of sites may be penalized and which are likely to be rewarded. Website owners sweat and seethe in anticipation of an update that may push their site into oblivion. Such reactions are not surprising because, as we all know, if you don’t show up as the first few results on a given search, then you’re practically nobody in the online space.
Today, the way things rank on Google have a lot to do with factors like domain authority and social activity. However, everything you find on the Internet is not 100 percent trustworthy. In fact, you can’t fully trust even the most popular sites. Why? Search engines never include truth or accuracy as a ranking factor. But, if everything goes as Google has planned, this may change soon.
Truth as a New Ranking Factor?
For the uninitiated, Google research teams released a report earlier this year proposing a way to rank websites by the veracity of their content instead of their popularity. This means the more accurate the content, the higher it would appear in the search results.
So far, the amount of engagement content can drive has been a yardstick for its popularity. Think of tabloid websites, for instance, whose selling point remains gossip and innuendo. Yet, many people like to read such content. There are hundreds of sites full of propaganda and link baits that hold the top search spot just because they are popular. Clearly, there’s a lot of garbage floating in the sea of online content.
The new research hints that Google may be on a mission to purge the Internet. What does it mean for the Web, website owners, and Internet users?