What is the Google Sandbox

The Google Sandbox theory has being around since early 2004 and many SEO experts agree and disagree on the what the impact of the Google Sandbox is on ranking in Google or if the sandbox really exists. Basically the Google sandbox is a filter applied to new websites (new domains). The result is that the web site does not achieve good rankings for its targeted keywords. Again this is a theory which has generated many heated discussions in the SEO community but in early 2004 many SEO experts started to notice that new web sites did not rank well despite good PageRank, SEO strategy and strong linking to relevant high ranking sites.

Why have Google introduced the Sandbox.

Google's objective is to provide relevant content to its user's. Google allegedly introduced the sandbox to reduce the number of spam sites using a number of techniques to gain high ranking and diluting the search engine results. Basically new sites submitted or spidered by Google are allegedly placed into the sandbox until they mature or having being around with updated content for a couple of months.

How long will my site stay in the sandbox for ?

Again this is open to discussion but the normal timeframe is between three to four months but this can increase depending on how competitive your target keywords are.

How do I know if my site has being sandboxed ?

If you have a good Google PageRank plus incoming links and relevant non spam content but only rank well on secondary search phrases but your site is burred deep in the index for your targeted keywords then you may be subject to the sandbox effect.

How do I get out of the sandbox ?

Unfortunately it's a waiting game all you can do is to introduce fresh content and build a good linking strategy with relevant web sites.

From my own personal experience I tend to disagree with the sandbox theory as I have a number of Joomla web sites which currently have high pagerank plus ranking for the keywords within Google, but again it's only my opinion.