The introduction of the Google Penguin Update has made a major difference to how small businesses operate online. It is no longer possible for websites that violate Google’s Webmaster Guidelines to survive for long on Google. But for websites that deliver great content on a regular basis, the Penguin update offers an excellent opportunity to stand out from the crowd.

What Penguin does is simple; it lowers the rankings on Google’s SERPs (search engine results pages) of websites that follow shady SEO practices such as Black Hat SEO tactics and makes sure that quality websites get ranked higher. The whole idea of Penguin is to eliminate search engine spam. Some Penguin updates have been released since 2012, which aim to clean up the Web for everyone.

So, here’s the question – how can your small business survive the Penguin update and advance higher on Google’s SERPs? How can you gain higher online visibility for your small business? We have put together four strategies to follow to help your small business standout in the crowd and rise to the top on Google. Read on for more.

Strategy #1: Focus on the Content

As they say, content is king on Google, and this point cannot be emphasized enough now that it’s been four years since the release of the Penguin update. Google likes great content, especially if it is original, compelling and fresh.

What does it mean to have great content? Well, for one, your content shouldn’t just be a string of keywords. Keyword stuffing is strictly frowned at, and the Penguin Update has made it possible for Google to identify quickly and cast aside websites that do that.

Google today uses highly sophisticated machine learning and intelligence to identify great content. Understand this – as long as you create great content on a consistent basis, which your audience finds to be a compelling read, you will have no trouble rising up on the search results.

What constitutes great content? Anything that is informative, interesting, grammatically correct and valuable to your target demographic. Content marketing today is the cornerstone of search engine optimization.

Strategy #2: Consistently Monitor your Rankings on Google

Here’s a question – have any of your web pages gone down in search rankings? If so, then find out why that is. Has there been a violation of Google’s Webmasters Guidelines that is completely inadvertent and of which you have no idea about?

That is possible, which is why it is so important that you should get an SEO audit done by a reputable SEO firm. During the SEO audit, each web page is reviewed, the traffic logs are analyzed, and reasons for any major changes to the traffic are investigated at length. Your traffic will be compared on a week-by-week, month-by-month and year-on-year basis and causes of the fall in traffic are identified.

Strategy #3: Make your Website Mobile-Friendly

Google strictly penalize websites that are not mobile-friendly. In fact, Google introduced the Mobile-Friendly update in 2015 and made it mandatory for all websites to be compatible with the mobile since April 2015.  Google has provided tools to help you check the mobile friendliness of your website.

Why is this so important? Well, it’s pretty simple; the smartphone usage in America and the rest of the developed world is over 85 percent. Even emerging nations such as India and Brazil have a very good smartphone usage.

So, most of your audience will be looking for your business on the mobile phone and not on a desktop computer.  That’s why it is only logical that your website should be compatible with the mobile. In fact, Google has made the mobile friendliness of a website one of its ranking factors.

 Strategy #4: Access Google’s Search Console (Webmasters Tools)

Using Google’s Search Console (Google Webmasters Tools) allows you to track keywords and to look out for changes. It is important to do this quickly as Google archives no more than 90 days of data. You are sure to experience changes in your traffic as well as in the rankings as additional updates are rolled out by Google, which is why it is important to track changes on a regular basis.

Google is constantly updating its algorithm so it’s essential to understand these critical updates and adhere to them if you’re using web marketing for businesses. These tips are not only vital for small businesses but just about every businesses out there with an online website. Implement these core strategies and Google will award your website.