Penguin, Panda, Hummingbird and now Pigeon! While to some this would seem like the names of avian species. But wait! Actually, they are the names of algorithms rolled out by the search engine giant – Google. Pigeon is a Google search engine update that will bear an impact on local search results. According to Google –

“… that the new local search algorithm ties deeper into their web search capabilities, including the hundreds of ranking signals they use in web search along with search features such as Knowledge Graph, spelling correction, synonyms and more.”

From the above information, it can be easily concluded that the aim of Google’s Pigeon update is to keep you abreast with all the latest, useful, relevant and accurate information. You will get all of this at your fingertips. Pigeon seems to emphasize on local businesses over local brands. Google said, “There are relevancy improvements to distance and location ranking”. This means that brick-and-mortar business owners too can now benefit from this update. The initial reports around it suggest that it does not seek to impose penalties as with Panda and the Penguin.

CAUSE, EFFECT & SOLUTION – 

1. Traffic Drop: You might see a traffic drop due to the disappearance of certain local listings. The short-term solution to this problem lies in the PPC campaign. You can overcome the traffic losses with an innovative PPC campaign. In the longer run, you should focus on getting Web Search listings for ‘relevant’ keywords.2.
2. Drop in Local Ranking: With the update’s announcement, website authority will have a significant impact on local rankings. If you see a drop in your local rankings, you need to have a complete competitor analysis and see how well the content, backlinks and several other SEO characteristics stand against your competitors.
3. Shift to Local Directories: The update has had a considerable impact on the rankings of local directories. It is highly recommended that you have your presence on leading local directories.

Hopefully, your local SEO campaigns did not fare that badly. But, it will be heartening to hear about your experiences post-Google update. Kindly comment in the section below!