Thread: Google Panda 2.0 Slaps Exact Match Domain Bonus

I came across this discussion about Panda lowering the weight of 'exact match domains' and 'keyword in the domain' rankings (for .com, .net, and .org).

Matt Cutts explains that Google has looked at rankings and weight that they give to keyword domains. Some people have complained that Google is giving to much weight for keywords in the domain and that Google will be turning the knob down with the algorithm so that it won't help you so much.

See: Google's Panda Update 2.0 And Domain Ranking Weight

My EMD's received a nice boost from Panda 2.0.

Originally Posted by Will.Spencer

My EMD's received a nice boost from Panda 2.0.

So did most of mine. A few new EMD sites dropped to page two, but these sites were weak to begin with. There may be an age or maturity factor tied to this. I suspect that going forward we will find that new EMDs will have a tougher time.

Originally Posted by Will.Spencer

My EMD's received a nice boost from Panda 2.0.

Premium one word 'e-commerce' EMDs (exact match domains) like travel.com and jewelry.com were slapped. Travel.com was #1 and now it's buried on the second page.

What I noticed in the video is that Matt Cutts mentions brands quite a few times and goes on to mention that "people have been complaining" about keyword domains getting more more weight. Seems like Google is listening to the brands

The EMDs that I have went up as well. But, I think that the boost was due to knocking out the content farms. Also, my EMDs aren't competing with brands.

Originally Posted by TopDogger

So did most of mine. A few new EMD sites dropped to page two, but these sites were weak to begin with. There may be an age or maturity factor tied to this. I suspect that going forward we will find that new EMDs will have a tougher time.

Are the EMDs that dropped competing with brands?

Originally Posted by bogart

Are the EMDs that dropped competing with brands?

Yeah, I'd say that one in particular was competing with big name online brands for a competitive niche such as recipes. It is not a big loss because I had not yet put much effort into the site. It dropped from the bottom of page 1 to page 3.

Originally Posted by TopDogger

Yeah, I'd say that one in particular was competing with big name online brands for a competitive niche such as recipes.

Between 28 March and 18 April, My "foodie" EMD's show:

• 7 added
• 1 dropped
• 8 moved up
• 5 moved down

Some of my medium-sized "foodie" sites did better with Panda II, such as EasyCookingGuide and HowToGrill.

Finally Google did a good thing. Giving more weight in SEO for a keyword domain name is the most stupid thing I ever seen since I am on internet.

Now the real competition is starting!

I have always believed that domain names should count for nothing when it comes to ranking on any search engine.
Same goes for page rank.

Finally Google did a good thing. Giving more weight in SEO for a keyword domain name is the most stupid thing I ever seen since I am on internet.

Actually not. Just like others are saying, Google didn't do much to change the rankings for exact match keyword .COMs. In fact, One of my sites that I have that is a one-page site sitting on a keyword EMD hasn't moved at all. Still in top 10.

Originally Posted by bhartzer

Actually not. Just like others are saying, Google didn't do much to change the rankings for exact match keyword .COMs. In fact, One of my sites that I have that is a one-page site sitting on a keyword EMD hasn't moved at all. Still in top 10.

There is a randomness factor with everything that Google does. I think they do it to keep us guessing.

Most of my sites improved improved in rank due to the reduction in rank for the competing crappy sites. My best site saw almost a 40% increase in traffic.

The recipe site is the one that I cannot easily explain, other than the fact that the EMD is fairly competitive, the site is new and I have not paid much attention to it.