Is Google Testing A New Algorithm Update?

By now, everyone should be prepared or at least preparing themselves for the incoming Mobile Friendly Algorithm beginning its rollout on April 21^st. But has Google been testing another Algorithm, or rolling out a sneaky Panda or Penguin update? During the last weak there has been some unannounced volatility in the Australian SERPs, with SERPWoo showing spikes around the 18^th/19^th and another spike on the 24^th of March – a strong indicator of some sort of Google algorithm-related activity:

Whilst this could be just another Panda or Penguin update, it may also be Google testing an algorithm on doorway pages which it has announced the webspam team have been working on:

“Over time, we’ve seen sites try to maximize their “search footprint” without adding clear, unique value. These doorway campaigns manifest themselves as pages on a site, as a number of domains, or a combination thereof. To improve the quality of search results for our users, we’ll soon launch a ranking adjustment to better address these types of pages. Sites with large and well-established doorway campaigns might see a broad impact from this change” – Google Webspam Team

If it is indeed Google testing a Doorway Page Algo, there’s going to be a potentially significant impact on Local Search, with service area businesses that have multiple geo-specific landing pages on the top of the list. So if you’re web site has been hit recently and you’re scrambling for answers, check whether your visibility has been affected by a doorway page-related algorithm.