How I Removed a Google Manual Action Penalty By Julian Goldie
Getting hit with a Google Manual Action Penalty can be really scary. In How I Removed a Google Manual Action Penalty, I’ll tell you the steps I took to fix it. It took time and effort, but I managed to make my website better and get the penalty lifted. If you’re dealing with the same problem, my story might help you find a solution.
Table of Contents
- 🚨 Receiving the Manual Action Penalty
- 📝 The Reconsideration Request Process
- 🛠️ Steps Taken to Fix the Issue
- ⏳ The Waiting Game
- 🔍 Interesting Observations
- 🚀 Next Steps and Recovery
- 🎓 Lessons Learned
- 🤝 Sharing Knowledge with the SEO Community
- 📈 Free Resources and Support
- 🌟 Conclusion
🚨 Receiving the Manual Action Penalty
In March, I received a manual action penalty from Google that resulted in my website being de-indexed. This penalty was issued due to the publication of low-quality public case studies and content that wasn’t properly quality controlled. While I had always stated these were experiments, Google eventually took action.
The penalty affected not just one site but several of my case study websites. It’s important to note that if you have multiple sites under your ownership in Google Search Console and receive a manual action on one, it’s likely to impact others as well.
📝 The Reconsideration Request Process
After receiving the penalty, we took immediate action. On March 12th, we submitted two reconsideration requests to Google. The first attempt wasn’t successful, so we refined our approach for the second submission. Here’s what we learned about crafting an effective reconsideration request:
- Keep it concise – our requests were around 100 words
- Be polite and apologetic about the situation
- Clearly explain the changes made to address the issues
- Be straightforward and to the point
It’s worth noting that the reconsideration process can take a significant amount of time. In our case, it took about 7 months from the initial penalty in March to the approval of our reconsideration request on October 9th.
🛠️ Steps Taken to Fix the Issue
To address the manual action penalty, we took several key steps:
1. Content Removal
We deleted approximately 80-90% of the content on the website. This included removing all AI-generated content created after the release of ChatGPT. The goal was to eliminate any low-quality or potentially problematic content that may have contributed to the penalty.
2. Disavowing Toxic Backlinks
We conducted a thorough review of our backlink profile and disavowed spammy or irrelevant links. This process has proven to be more impactful than previously thought. In recent months, we’ve observed that disavowing toxic backlinks can have a significant positive effect on a site’s performance.
It’s important to note that when we talk about toxic backlinks, we’re not referring to metrics like those used by tools such as Ahrefs. Instead, we focused on genuinely irrelevant and spammy links that naturally accumulate in a site’s backlink profile over time.
⏳ The Waiting Game
After implementing these changes and submitting our reconsideration request, we had to wait. The process took about 7 months from the initial penalty in March to the approval of our request in October. During this time, we didn’t submit any additional reconsideration requests.
It’s crucial to understand that even after getting a manual action penalty removed, your traffic may not immediately recover. In our case, even though the penalty was lifted, our traffic remained significantly lower than before the penalty.
🔍 Interesting Observations
Throughout this process, we made some interesting observations:
- The website was initially completely de-indexed when we first received the manual action penalty.
- During a live stream, we witnessed the site being de-indexed and then re-indexed in real-time.
- Even after being re-indexed, the site only received minimal traffic (around 4 clicks per day).
- Google didn’t remove our knowledge panel, which still displayed our social media links.
🚀 Next Steps and Recovery
Moving forward, we’re taking the following steps:
- Monitoring the site’s performance to see if rankings and traffic recover over time.
- Submitting reconsideration requests for other affected websites.
- Continuing to create content, but with a stronger focus on quality and adherence to Google’s guidelines.
It’s important to note that full recovery after a manual action penalty can take time, and in some cases, may not happen at all. We launched a new website as part of our recovery strategy.
🎓 Lessons Learned
This experience has provided valuable insights into dealing with manual action penalties:
- Quality control is crucial – ensure all content meets high standards before publishing.
- Be prepared for a lengthy recovery process – it can take months to resolve a manual action.
- Disavowing toxic backlinks can have a more significant impact than previously thought.
- Transparency in sharing experiences can help others in the SEO community.
🤝 Sharing Knowledge with the SEO Community
One of the main reasons for creating this detailed account is the lack of open discussion about manual action penalties in the SEO community. By sharing our experience, we hope to provide valuable insights to others who may face similar situations.
We’ve included all the details of our journey in our free SEO course, including screenshots of the manual action reconsideration requests and penalty notices. This information can be invaluable for those navigating the complex world of SEO and dealing with Google penalties.
📈 Free Resources and Support
If you’re interested in learning more about our experience or need help with your own SEO challenges, we offer several resources:
- A free SEO course with comprehensive training on various aspects of SEO
- Detailed video notes on the manual action penalty removal process
- A free strategy session where we can discuss your specific SEO needs and challenges
In this strategy session, we’ll share insights on how we’ve helped websites achieve significant traffic growth, generate sales on autopilot, and outrank competitors through effective link building strategies.
🌟 Conclusion
After reading How I Removed a Google Manual Action Penalty, we understand that fixing this kind of penalty is tough and needs patience, hard work, and a promise to make your site better. While the path can be hard, you can overcome these challenges and end up with a stronger, rule-following website.
Remember, to keep doing well in SEO, focus on making high-quality, helpful content for your readers and follow Google’s rules. This way, you can avoid future penalties and build a lasting online presence.
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