There has been much speculation this week about some kind of major Google update. Google Penguin 2.0 was not the blame if you’ve lost search traffic. But you can expect the next Penguin update in the next few weeks, Google’s Distinguished Engineer Matt Cutts has confirmed.

“Nope, no new Penguin update this week,” Cutts wrote on Twitter, later adding “…we do expect to roll out Penguin 2.0 (next generation of Penguin) sometime in the next few weeks though.”

The “next generation” of Penguin has been the source of much speculation since Cutts mentioned it in March. He said it would be significant and one of the most talked about Google algorithm updates this year.

Google’s Penguin update launched in April 2012, and was followed by two refreshes last year – in May and October.

Sites that were hardest hit had too much exact match anchor text and link profiles that appeared unnatural to Google – and Google has increasingly applied a “stricter standard” on manipulative link profiles, according to a study by Internet marketing agency Portent.

Need some tips on how to get ready and what websites might be in danger of getting impacted by the next Penguin update? Check out the posts below.