In 2018, the growth of the visual service Pinterest suffered because of the updated search algorithm Google. This is stated in the application for IPO filed by the company the other day.
According to the document, in the first quarter of 2018, Google de-indexed the landing pages on Pinterest, which affected the search traffic and the growth of the user base of the service for the rest of the year.
The company said that they could not recover from the damage caused to the site by Google’s actions. Why the search engine has de-indexed the landing pages Pinterest, the application does not specify.
“In the first quarter of 2018, Google removed our landing pages from the index, which negatively affected traffic and audience growth in subsequent quarters. Our ability to appeal these actions is limited, and we can not always change our search engine optimization strategies in such a way as to restore the losses in traffic and user growth resulting from such actions, ”the statement reads.
The Pinterest document also warns investors that its business is partially dependent on search traffic. At the same time, the company cannot control the flow of users directed by search engines.
“Search engines like Google can modify their algorithms and rules, or they can enforce these rules in ways that harm us. This occurs without prior notice and we cannot predict such situations. As a result of Google’s actions, there may be a decrease in the position of our site or its deindexation, which leads to a drop in traffic, new registrations and retention rates and involvement of current users.
Pinterest also noted that they have already experienced such downturns in the past and expect further fluctuations in the future.
Recall that earlier this month, Google conducted the next update of the basic algorithm.
