Am I banned?

This is the first question most people ask when their traffic drops, and their web pages fall of the Search Engine Results Pages. Google had an unforgiving attitude in the past. They have recently fixed their rules, and made it possible for webmasters to resubmit their web sites for a new review.

Before I continue, make sure that you do not try to pull a fast one on Google. If there are problems – fix them. A second ban is permanent. The only alternative is to toss the URL, delete the account, and start over from a blank HTML page.

There are several reasons why Google changed their rules. The first is that many people are buying domain names that were banned. The new owner may build a website and ask Google to reconsider the domain. Just make sure that the first template for the website/blog follows all Google’s rules.

There are help forums and the Google blog. The first step needs to be to visit your Google webmaster’s account. Make sure there are no messages in your inbox. If so, follow the instructions.

Step #1 Google Guidelines

The first step is to go through the guidelines. Go through your website carefully. Correct anything you believe might be the culprit. Ask for help in the forums and Google member’s forum.

Submit a Reconsideration Request. The only thing left is to wait until Google restores your website.

Step #2 Don’t Become Banned

The best way to avoid being banned is to follow the guidelines. This is easy to say, but daily webmasters publish hundreds of websites without once checking the Google or SEO guidelines. They then try to compensate by submitting to directories, spamming social networking sites, or spamming the search engines themselves.

If you’ve just purchased a pre-used domain name then make sure it wasn’t banned. Don’t worry if it was. Google will reinstate the domain name.

Step #3 You May Not Be Banned

Many people forget their websites for months on end. The search engines drop older pages from the search results. One way to stay on the top is to change the meta information. The description has little to do with the SEO factor of a page. Change the date, description, and some of the content. Sign into your Google webmaster’s account and resubmit the web page manually.

Before you toss the website, visit your Google webmaster’s account and the forums.