What is the Google Sandbox?



It is believed by some SEO experts that Google will place your website outside of the search engine rankings if it is new or has had some major changes done to it. This would mean that whatever SEO you do to your website you won't be able to rank in the Google results until your site has left the Sandbox.

Why would Google use a Sandbox?

Well it is believed that new websites could be looking to manipulate the search results and so Google wants to make sure that your website is valid and is producing great content. The only way it can do this is to hold your website back for some time and review it in a regular basis. This will allow it to get a full picture of what you are doing before it ranks you.

Does the Sandbox Exist?

Well there is a lot of debate about whether the sandbox exists of not with there being 2 clear camps in the SEO world. Those that believe it exists use the argument that many new websites will initially appear in the Google results and then will disappear for several months. This is quite common and so adds a lot of weight to the argument that Google is holding back new websites until it knows they are trustworthy. However if that is the case why do they appear initially and then disappear?

If you are in the camp that does not believe in the Sandbox then you will have an explanation for this. Basically one of the factors that Google will use to rank a website is how old the domain name is and how long it has been in use. For that reason it is clear that new websites will find it hard to rank at the top of the results. However the reason you may rank when you first set up and then disappear after that is down to Google's emphasis on news. This means that when a new web page is indexed by Google it will view it as news and give it extra weight at first and then remove this after a short time.

The answer is that no one knows for sure whether the sandbox exists or not and unless Google confirms or denies it there will continue to be debate amongst the SEO community for the reasons things happen.

The advice that we would give to any SEO client with a brand new website is that you need to be prepared to wait. Whether the reason is for a Sandbox or just being a new site you will not get search engine rankings over night. Anyone embarking on an SEO campaign should be prepared to wait a few months to get any effect at all and the newer your website the longer you will need to wait. Many people will get frustrated and give up before the real benefits come into effect however if you are prepared to invest you will see the long term benefits are well worth it.