Content revised 20 October 2026.
Start with an explainable website and marketing process. Reducing policy risk means reviewing the actual work, not treating every traffic decline as a Google penalty.
Check whether there is a manual action
Search Console’s Manual Actions report identifies issues that Google has reported through that process. Read the notice before deciding on a response. A decline without a notice still needs investigation, but it should not automatically be described as a manual penalty.
Keep approvals close to the work
Know which pages, links and campaigns an agency is creating. Review claims about credentials, results and locations before publication. If someone can't explain the source or purpose of a placement, ask for clarification before it becomes part of your website’s history.
Watch for avoidable problems
- Pages that promise a service or location the business doesn't actually provide.
- Repeated keywords that make the answer harder to read.
- Paid or arranged links presented as independent editorial recommendations.
- Large amounts of content with no useful audience or original contribution.
- Unauthorised changes that your team can't account for.
Fix the cause and keep a record
Document what was wrong, which URLs were affected and what changed. If a manual action applies, follow the relevant remediation and review process. For a technical or content problem, test the fix and monitor the affected pages. Neither a request for review nor an SEO package guarantees a particular ranking afterward.
Official guidance: Google’s Manual Actions report.