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I got the following email this afternoon. Names and facts are eliminated to protect the folks who I am using to make a point.

Thomas,

We were just googling [keyword].
Our old site is coming up as the first few listings.
Can you please ask Google to immediately get the old site off – and add the new one.

Thanks,

If you have already rolled your eyes then you can stop reading now. My point is not the decisions that caused an old site to have better search engine optimization than the new one or that there are two sites competing with each other for placement. The point is the misunderstanding about how search engines work, who controls the listings, and how they are changed and that it happens more often that you’d think.

Google and most other search engines are not like the white pages. They do not change their listings based on a “request” from a webmaster. Search Engines use formulas in order to determine what results to display based on a user’s query. They developed this algorithm in order to deliver the best, most useful results because this is what gets you and I to return to that search engine rather than find another one that provides more useful or accurate results. If I could place a call to my buddies at Google and ask them to change the results then how could they guarantee that their results are the most accurate and not just helping me with my business objectives that they share no part in. That’s why sponsored links exist.

What can I do? Include better content that help spiders understand what content is on the website. Structure that content well. Include other clues to what that content is on the site and then encourage other websites to see the value in my site and link to it appropriately. In short, create a quality, well organized, correctly programmed site and you will be recognized. Do not expect to be able to solve the problems with your site by placing a call.

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