We’ve had quite the week over the past seven days, eh?

Whenever Google implements an algorithm update, the search engine optimization sector gets inundated with phone calls from clients questioning why their site placements took a sudden dive.

Though most SEOs realize that the dislocation seen by some well optimized sites is almost always corrected by the time the algo-shift runs its course, when a client has a problem, the good SEO goes into overdrive to provide solutions. Blaming Google or any other search engine is simply not enough. That means adding hours to the day doing extraordinary research while staying on top of the myriad of other responsibilities and job tasks.

For sleepy-eyed algo chasers working the web, this week is likely going to be as crazy-making as last week was. Google is rumoured to have implemented the second phase of what is said to be a three-piece update. The good news is that results we see this week will change by next week. The bad news is nobody has any idea what next week’s results will look like.

Dislocation caused by previous Google algo-updates have tended to last for about one month after the start of the update. In some cases, most notably with the Florida update two years ago, it might take up to three months for the results to settle down to what can be considered “normal”.

One thing that is different this year than in previous years is the increased power of Google’s spider and the ability for webmasters to move Google’s spiders using XML sitemaps. GoogleBot visits websites with far more frequency than in previous years which should make the time it takes to update their rankings far shorter. Also, Google invites webmasters to directly inform it using an RSS fed XML sitemap.

Given that this is only the second step in what is expected to be three phase implementation strategy, it is way too early to offer anything but speculative advice on how to deal with the Jagger Update. The only solid advice we can honestly offer is that of patience. For site owners who’ve lost position in the past week, chances are your site will bounce back in a few weeks. If not, your SEO specialist should be able to offer strong advice at that time.