Google search is losing the fight with SEO spam, study says

[DudeAsInCool]

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It's not just you—Google Search is getting worse. A new study from Leipzig University, Bauhaus-University Weimar, and the Center for Scalable Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence looked at Google search quality for a year and found the company is losing the war against SEO (Search Engine Optimization) spam.

The study, first spotted by 404media, "monitored Google, Bing and DuckDuckGo for a year on 7,392 product review queries," using queries like "best headphones" to study search results. The focus was on product review queries because the researchers felt those searches were "particularly vulnerable to affiliate marketing due to its inherent conflict of interest between users, search providers, and content providers."

Overall, the study found that "the majority of high-ranking product reviews in the result pages of commercial search engines (SERPs) use affiliate marketing, and significant amounts are outright SEO product review spam." Search engines occasionally update their ranking algorithms to try to combat spam, but the study found that "search engines seem to lose the cat-and-mouse game that is SEO spam" and that there are "strong correlations between search engine rankings and affiliate marketing, as well as a trend toward simplified, repetitive, and potentially AI-generated content."

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[JamesHenders]

Absolutely, the findings from the study are quite revealing and shed light on the ongoing battle between search engines and SEO tactics.

[DonnaJerrily]

It's concerning how prevalent SEO spam has become, especially in product review queries. The constant evolution of search engine algorithms makes it challenging to stay ahead of spammy tactics. However, it's also a testament to the creativity and adaptability of those engaging in SEO practices. It'll be interesting to see how search engines continue to evolve in response to these challenges. Also, I recently came across some SEO services on Upwork that might provide valuable assistance in tackling SEO spam: https://www.upwork.com/services/product/marketing-technical-seo-expert-audit-1750023067222003712. It could be worth exploring these options to strengthen online visibility and combat spam effectively.

Edited February 23 by DonnaJerrily