Why Doesn't Panda Run at the Individual Page Level?

[ackk]

If Google really has a magical algorithm to determine quality based on "Content Guidelines" [googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.com ], then why doesn't it run at the page level?

Clearly Google is able to identify which pages on a domain are bad (because they said that removing those pages may help one get out of Panda, and some pages are penalized more heavily than others).

If Google was interested in returning the best page for a particular query to the end user, why would they penalize the entire domain?

Or is it simply the fact that Panda is not as accurate, and more arbitrary, than they would have us believe?

[Staffa]

Why Doesn't Panda Run at the Individual Page Level?

Because it is not in Google's business interest to do so.

If instead of demoting a few pages of a site, they tank the whole site and if the owner's income depends on that site what is the only option left ? Signing up to Adwords.

[aristotle]

Panda isn't just based on evaluating individual pages independently. It also considers overall sitewide charcteristics such as internal linking structure, overlapping content, page layout and ad placement, overall user behavior (possibly), and probably others. So it looks at the site overall.

[danijelzi]

why doesn't it run at the page level?

Actually, I have a couple of very well ranked pages, although they're on pandalized domains. These pages have more content and more uniqueness when compared to other pages on these sites.

[potentialgeek]

Actually, I have a couple of very well ranked pages, although they're on pandalized domains. These pages have more content and more uniqueness when compared to other pages on these sites.

I've had the same experience.

Why Doesn't Panda Run at the Individual Page Level?

It does for really good pages, but the reason it doesn't for average pages is because Google has assumed responsibility for all pages a user visits after clicking on their SERP links instead of just the landing page.

I agree it seems draconian or extreme, but it's simply their old principle of penalizing links to bad neighborhood websites applied to the domain. A weak page on your site is the same as a bad neighborhood on your site.

Change your internal linking structure by removing links to bad neighborhoods or irrelevant content, and you might see some progress. That's a quick fix. A more demanding task is to develop the existing pages. If you don't have the time, you can just noindex, no follow the weak pages.

Incidentally, I've noticed on the opposite side, links to good pages/sites actually get some Panda credit, which is actually reasonable and logical.

Quality links (internal & external) and quality content (unique & not shallow) are the nuts & bolts of user experience, and Panda, the simple animal, simply focuses on them.

[gyppo]

I sent Matt Cutts a tweet earlier this week asking this same question. No Response yet.....

[Whitey]

Simply that Panda is a sitewide assessment that will effect individual good quality pages.

Because :
Google wants it that way, or
Google can't make it work any other way

As a curiosity question, who knows , who will tell us and when ? Best just to move on and focus on improving things sitewide to give those good pages a boost -it's not just about content, it's lots of other features incorporating the user experience. Hope that works for you.

[tedster]

Well, as others have reported, individual pages CAN be given exceptions from a Panda demotion. Individual pages can apparently be promoted, too, not just "given a pass".

Most of the reports we hear are about sitewide demotions - and that does seem to be, by far, the most common Panda effect. But it's not the only one.

[Leosghost]

If it ran at individual page level it would be far, far too easy for many to reverse engineer it, Google have realised that the "U" in FUD needs to be unfocused and diffuse, and even obscure in it's effects..otherwise it is not "uncertain" enough to prevent the mass gaming of their serps, that was hitherto the case..

However, the more small( ish ) sites one has been able to study, the less obscured the "what panda doesn't like" " and the "what panda likes" becomes..applying those observations to larger sites, makes what happens to them too, easier to understand..