Google Turns Up The SEO Heat Again
Last week I was reading Kim Kimberly Castleberry’s (Just Ask Kim) newsletter “Has the SEO Hell Frozen Over?” In that email was some very important information and links that caused me to re-think part two of Where Are Your Inbound Links? Actually, over the last week I have decided to delay, if not abandon, part two altogether. Why? Read on…
In case you haven’t noticed, things are drastically changing when it comes to search algorithm, social media’s very powerful role in the future of search and all of this is lending to a ton confusion and misinformation.
We’re seeing social media actions gaining importance and watching private blog networks getting deindexed.
The Google updates we tend to think of as trends e.g. Panda, Google Slaps, which are nothing more than algorithm of Google Search, can make or break sites riding the edge and we don’t want become part of the collateral damage.
My best advice for today’s blogger?
- Continue pumping out original, high quality, content based on what your readers are seeking.
- Become a social maniac. Continue visiting blogs and networking with other bloggers but now is the time to expand in a big way. By that I mean expand your social reach on the major social media networks and truly get to know your followers and peers.
- Here’s the tough part; it’s even hard to say out loud… “Stop worrying about SEO!” Does this mean forget about keyword research, building backlinks and all the other search engine optimization steps we have been taking? Well, not really. Google does not hate SEO, they just don’t want to see over-optimization. We can still build backlinks but they need to happen naturally. Never EVER buy backlinks. Read what just happened to BuildMyRank.com. Let me put it this way…
Google’s Matt Cutts recently said:Google is releasing an algorithm update [a smarter search bot] that will specifically target websites over doing their SEO. (paraphrasing)
- Finally, I recommend you stay on top of all things related to your online business. Subscribe to relevant sites and blogs, subscribe to great newsletters and actually open and read the content. If they’re not worth the time it takes to read, unsubscribe.
- Official Google Webmaster Central Blog
- Google Webmaster Central YouTube Channel
- Follow Matt Cutts on Google+
Related & Highly Recommended Reading:
- Ed Dale’s Blog -Winter Is Coming…
- Just Ask Kim -The Back Link Emperor Is Dead, Long Live The Back Link Emperor? [Aug 22, 2011]
- iTnews -Google takes aim at over-optimised websites
- Linkbuildr -Private Blog Networks Getting Deindexed?
- SEOmoz -Unnatural Link Warnings and Blog Networks
Does Google Consider SEO To Be Spam? – Video
Let’s see what Matt Cutts has to say about Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
What Changes Are You Making?
Are you still building backlinks? Are you worried about too many keywords in your posts? Are you concerned at all? I’d love to hear your comments and opinions.
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Hey Brian ,
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Thanks for your Advice. Frankly saying i am still building backlinks but after reading this i’ll stop this.
Yes i am worried bcz i am not using SEOPressor Plugin
Thanks.
Amit Shaw recently posted..Tips to Choose the Right Look for your Website
Hi Amit, I don’t think we need to stop building backlinks, we just need to avoid over doing it. We still need links back to our site and posts, both for traffic and seo.
After this google update is it safe to purchase profile backlink package from seller?
Brian, I was going right along until you got to #2 Become a social maniac. LOL!
Ok, as long as I don’t have to leave home, then I can be somewhat social.
I was reading the other day (I think I tweeted you the link) about how important Author Rank is becoming (or soon will be). Your social connections already play a roll and I think it will become even more important.
But, I think where people will screw up is that they think social connections = social success and that is not so.
I’m just glad that even though G+ is not huge or bringing in mass traffic, at least we are there and ahead of the rush.
Sheryl recently posted..Marketing Topics • Re: Pinterest
Great point Sheryl, social success has nothing to do with numbers. I see it all of the time on Twitter. I really appreciate all the sharing going on (look left) here so I’m not picking on our readers, but… I often see someone with a thousand followers retweet a post and it almost seems to go viral for a few minutes with all of the re-retweets. Then someone with 100+ thousand followers retweets and – nothing. If no one is listening, it doesn’t matter how many are in the room. <- Soon to be famous quote!
These are the best recommendations to the bloggers .I ensure that the contents that I post on the blog contains an updated quality information that draws the interests of the readers.It is necessary to expand my social reach on the major social media networks like facebook.
Thanks David, I couldn’t have said it better. Oh wait, isn’t that what I said? lol
Of course! SEO is not spam, and Matt clearly said that. Google has recently updated their serp so that they have taken out the spammy type of sites.
Don’t overdo the SEO part, but don’t neglect it either.
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Samuel recently posted..How To Write A Good Article!
Exactly Samuel, well put, “Don’t overdo the SEO part, but don’t neglect it either.” I can hear Matt saying the exact same thing.
This is EXACTLY the point of all these changes. This really is designed to be some bricks dropped on the toes of those who are piping SEO cash into pushing posts that simply do not have the quality to link naturally. Google is merely aiming to scrape those guys off the top and produce a more natural result. Fundamental SEO skills however, like I teach in my WP SEO course, remain essential because the search bot actually DOES need SOMETHING to help it identify the content. With no logical thought process available to it, things like meta description, tags, categories and words in the post are going to remain important signals.
Kim
Kimberly Castleberry recently posted..Contemplating The Value of Backlinks Post-Panda
I’m not worried at all. It’s like you said as long you don’t over optimize you won’t have to worry about any further Google updates like the Panda. The most important thing also is to keep putting out original content and share that content through social media.
I agree John, blog to blog and write to write. The rest is just gravy.
Hi Brian,
Google update several hundred small things every day, sometimes they make major changes, but as long as you do it properly, it will not happen. Good SEO, regularly updating with fresh and original matrial Articles etc. Take it easy and work on as usual in a fair way.
Thanks Lennart, it sounds like most of us agree so far.
Awesome article and really good tips thanks. I totally agree that the way to hedge yourself against the possible disaster of the SEO changes is to actually write good content. Being a social media freak can’t hurt either if you do those in conduction you are set!
That’s right Elena, great content and friends to share it with. Who could ask for more?
Thanks for sharing these useful advices, I haven’t heard about this new thing about google, it’s the most significant change since the Panda algorithm has been announced. I think the SEO scene should have a purification.
I’m not sure what you mean by purification Julie but Google makes a ton of changes daily.
Awesome sharing. Important points for all bloggers. It’s important to share quality content with visitors. Be social and promote your content on social media sites. Do continuous hard work to obtain desired results.
Careful Saha, you’re going to scare everyone with all that “continuous hard work” talk. lol
What’s this nonsense? Hard work you say? No one wants any of that
Like Brian says, that stuff scares people! You’re totally spot on though because it IS work to build an online business. No doubt there. People that forget that will underestimate the work they’re going to have to do to get results.
Kim
Kimberly Castleberry recently posted..Contemplating The Value of Backlinks Post-Panda
I believe this good for those of us practicing white hat SEO vs. the black hat SEO tactics. I did find my retail website to have too many keywords on some pages and have since reduced them. You must keep up these days on the latest from Google as changes seem to come daily.
Lisa recently posted..1 Easy Way to Check Your Keywords Rank
It’s true Lisa, it seems that what was white hat has moved into the grey or black hat column.
It seem likes visitor will be generated to Social Media Sites instead of our lovely blog.
However, people is tend to find information and of course information from Social Media Sites don’t rich enough than the information of our blog because the information of the blog are so specific and help so many internet users.
Even though those Socia Media sites rank number one (#1) and our blog ranks 5,000,000.
I think I understand what you’re saying Ferb but we need to think of social media as a place to socialize/grow and as a marketing tool. The later sounds a little crude but it is what it is; a tool to use, not to compete with.
what’s the meaning of over optimization ? normally all blogs use seo plugins like all in one seo, seo slugs , robots meta etc. Creating quality back links (10 per a day is common) and creating buzz on social networking sites was common on every blog .. then what’s the meaning of over seo optimization ? what google think .. what Google want ? Why google not encouraging new bloggers … i think reply to this comment is take few minutes for you but i’m expecting a valuable reply from your side .
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sai krishna recently posted..Few Words With Romy Singh (GeekyWriter)
Hi Sai, that’s part of the issue I think. There are no clear guidelines to follow. I would guess that most of us are all right. I use the WordPress SEO by Yoast plugin and I love it but it does tend to like pretty heavy keyword density. I’ve backed of of the heavy keyword density and just work on natural flow.
thanks for the quick reply brian
Hello Brian. I have recently see a lot of action in the sphere around Pinterest. I picked up on it’s relevance and early people were advocating it as THE platform for building SEO links and getting traffic.
However, I’ve read on a post shared with me on FB that Pinterest waves all and any responsibility for images you may get into trouble for. It basically means that if you pin an image or share one that is not properly licensed, free use or your own – you can get into trouble and Pinterest is going to leave you having.
Scary. So, I decided not to participate. It another platform for which I don’t have time. I recognize it influence but I’m old school and like using stuff I’m familiar with and that I know work.
Penalized for TOO MUCH SEO? It’s getting very difficult. Thanks for sharing.
Ivin recently posted..Article Writing Ideas Part 4
I completely understand Ivin but there’s room for digital content curation without the worry of lawsuits. Personally, I try to use my own images and photos and I’m delighted when others pin/share my posts; that’s what social media is all about. I think it’s a mistake to ignore social opportunities out of fear but I do understand your point, especially the time factor.
The original and high quality content for your site is a must for every site owner and bloggers. Many people always get interested with something new and something which they can learn on.
Hi Brian
I am happy to say that I think I always am following those advices you are giving in this post. Well of cause I could get more active in Social media, but I am trying to spread my effort in Social media, writing good quality posts, trying to connect to my readers and other bloggers and doing a little link building but in a “slow” naturally way so I don’t get punished for it by Google. One thing I should improve however is to be doing more YouTube videos in the future.
Thank you for your advices Brian.
Thomas recently posted..My Google Analytics Stats Report for Q1 2012
Thanks Thomas, I’ll try not to lead you along the wrong path.
Brian, I am doing SEO since the time Google was 4 men company. This topic exists since the time search engines were showing results in alphabetical order. Huge changes, well I doubt, the evergreen of SEO is still working and nothing really have changed. This Panda HYPE and the new 40 changes in algorithm, it is the same old song. There are no serious internet marketer that will put low quality content or photographs on their website. On the other hand, most bloggers feel affected, just because Google gave too many benefits to WordPress in the last 4 years, again for good reason, but nowadays all websites are dynamic, so bloggers feel like they are loosing ground.
That’s a good point Carl, perhaps we’re used to having the upper hand and now we’re seeing more of a level playing ground.
I’ve been reading articles about SEO and how Google relate it on changes. I’ve read an article of dangers of Over-optimization and chances to be penalized when Google sends your notification. Kinda alarming the fact that it will affect your site standing but you’re right. Quality content with uniqueness is the best key to survive the sudden changes.
Apple recently posted..Hello world!
I can’t help but note:
1. Send out original information (anyone remember the duplicate penalty myth?). Nothing new.
2. Socialise. Um… again the best way to generate relevant, contextual, quality links. Nothing new. Social media is there to be social, use it!
3. Define “over-optimisation”? I’m going as far as to calling bullshit on this one. My reasoning, keyword stuffed low quality pages are never going to convert. But a page that nobody can find won’t either. You need to optimise, but do it properly. Never buy backlinks? Um… what if you’re simply buying advertising on another website (Google should know it’s a sponsored link). Quality back links are obtained through, you bet it, points 1 and 2. Nothing new here either I’m afraid.
4. Nice point, keep up to date on things, but not because you’re going to get awesome rankings but so that you can contribute by offering, see points 1 and 2. Nothing new here.
These are all points that have been said for years, not just since the latest Google update.
Sorry if it seems that I’m just trying to rain on your parade, that’s not my intention. I simply want people to stop fueling the “Latest Google Update” hysteria. Build good websites, offer the world wide web something of quality and you’ll see results.
That’s a great comment Robert, I really appreciate you taking the time to share your opinion. In fact, I’m doing something a little new on Pinterest by pinning ‘Great Comments’ and yours was the first one there. I included a link back to your site of course. You can see it here:
https://pinterest.com/pin/280208408035594483/
I do agree that much of what we’re seeing is “old news” but there are major changes that we need to keep up with. There are three factors we can look at that makes recent ‘actions’ very important.
1. First, everything has been diluted in a sea of rhetoric and misinformation. While we have always heard warnings of keyword stuffing, for example, we see products launching (especially SEO products) almost monthly to help do just that. This is just a mater of obtaining our information from a reliable source and not ‘blogging’ about information we see on every sales copy that lands in our inbox.
2. We’re gaining a lot more ‘official’ information than ever before because Google has become a lot more open with their agenda. It wasn’t long ago that every change and update was considered secret and left to us to interpret.
3. The one thing that has stayed consistent from the beginning is content quality. We can’t discuss SEO without agreeing that content should be current, unique and relevant. The problem is we have all heard this same ‘lecture’ a million times before and it starts looking like rehashed ezine articles. That doesn’t make the point any less important; like washing our hands, we know it’s important but others still need taught.
With those three points I’m going to still consider this post relevant and important. Panda wasn’t a big deal to anyone except the thousands of people following the wrong advice and pushing the envelope. The fact that sites are being deindexed isn’t a big deal to those that haven’t bought and sold paid links. To these people, the Google updates and actions meant a great deal.
The point of this post was to address the question, “Does Google hate SEO?” The answer is, of course, a resounding no. And the subtitle is “Google Turns Up The SEO Heat Again” emphasis on “again.”
One last point, Social media is becoming much more important in the serps than ‘just sharing’. With today’s personalized search and major weight giving for that sharing, it’s not the same old news. It’s not last week new but it’s certainly not old.
Why do I blog? I blog for exactly this kind of discussion! Thanks for that.
no google never hates seo because without seo we will get irrevelant results on search engine. So Google only hates if someone do over seo optimization for their blog.
That’s right Shenoy, they need those relevant results too.
Great post Brian! I think it is so easy to get caught up in the trivialities of SEO and keyword density etc. that you lose site of the value that honest, old school, connection building and marketing provide.
As long as you continue to write engaging, valuable material and connect with other internet users your SEO will take care of itself organically to an extent.
Content is always king and for some formats getting people to your content shouldn’t rely on the ever changing SERPS, it should rely on the factors you CAN reliably have an affect on such as your real social connections with people.
For example I didn’t find your site through the SERPS, but now I have bookmarked and saved it because of the quality of your posts.
Bravo, keep up the good work you have my readership!
Ever changing indeed Johnny and we can’t edit hundreds of posts with every change so engaging content is the only answer that makes sense. Thanks for bookmarking us.
Actually a lot of websites say that SEO might die in a few years (months?)
I think that SEO wont never die because search engines live thanks to seo. Try to imagine a world without seo specialists, where people make thousands of WP blogs or static Dreamweaver pages… What about PPC? AdWords? Do you really think that “average users” could even understand what an AW-campaign may be?
SEO isn’t going anywhere Danilo, we might call it something else but it will always be here.
Hey, I also thinks the same and it is true that we dont need to buy backlinks because nowadays social network is all what we want to do with and it is also true that backlinking should be going on naturally. Whatever google do if we have original contents then we can get much more traffic from search enginee.
Thanks Narendra
“Stop worrying about SEO!” I fully agree with it. All one needs to do is add ***relevant keywords*** to the title, and H1 tags and that’s it. I have personally seen pages with great information is always going to get popular and are eventually going to high ranking. Once the content is tweaked… no matter how well… it starts to sound weird. So, it is always advised to write with the natural flow of thought without thinking about stuffing keywords in them.
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Ganesh J. Acharya recently posted..Complying Copyright Laws When Blogging
I agree Ganesh, write for the readers.
I knew Google didn’t hate SEO; after all, without SEO, they would never figure out how to target ads and thus make more money themselves. There are just so many people out there trying to trick everyone else, and those are the folks bringing the rest of us down.
Mitch Mitchell recently posted..3 Things You Need To Do On LinkedIn
It’s true Mitch, without SEO, their serps and ads would be worthless.
I think content is most important and I agree that sometimes we just need to focus on what we can do to provide more quality content as oppose to focusing on just backlinks and SEO. Building relationships with other bloggers and being active within the community can also work wonders.
- Cristina
Thanks Cristina, relationships are required with any business.
One thing I noticed in the last little over a year: One of my sites got hit hard by Panda. Traffic went from 300 visitors a day down to 3 or 4. But then, a few months ago, I looked, and it’s now over 400 a day. Now, this is all with me doing very minimal work on it… in fact, I haven’t really done much with this particular site since well before Panda (hence the low traffic in the first place), but there’s something to be said for having quality, useful content on your site.
I’d say I have to agree that Google doesn’t hate SEO, and in everything I’ve seen, it seems to me like it’s more about weeding out the spam than anything else.
Thanks for sharing!
Grady Pruitt recently posted..How To Set Goals For Yourself
I’ve had that happen on a few sites myself Grady, they tend to bounce back after a bit.
ohh, that was nice to hear him say that we are not criminales, because last time panda really hit my site very hard and I tought maybe they hated me at google!!
Don’t worry, you’re not a criminal… I don’t think you are. If anyone would know though, it would be the all-seeing Google.
people is tend to find information and of course information from Social Media Sites don’t rich enough than the information of our blog because the information of the blog are so specific and help so many internet users.
I never worry about my blog rank because my blogging journey is for fun. The problem is, today I have few clients and its become so hard to explain that rangking in search engine is not the only goal
Latief recently posted..9 Tips For Running An Automotive Blog
Clients make blogging a different ball game, don’t they Latief? We might blog for fun but a local hair stylist or storage rental company couldn’t care less about blogging, they just want to rank well with updated content. Clients want results, plain and simple.
Thanks for the post Brian, SEO is changing and that is for sure.
But I think that changes will be better and many people will rank better and enjoy in the hard work they put into their blog and online business.
Hard work and blogging… more people need to say that out loud.
So true! Thank you for a great post. No one can perfectly stay ahead of Google in the SEO optimization, mainly because Google is trying to prevent just that. So instead take control of the parts of your blog that you can affect positively and field where Google is not working against you.
I like that Steven, “Google is not working against you.”
This is one good stuff Brian
.. What I am doing now is extending my social media exposure the best I can hoping to “IN” with top bloggers like you 
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Herbert recently posted..Pin and Aggregate Your Social Feeds with Kulisha
Social media is definitely the thing we bloggers need to work on Herbert.
Dear Matt,
I love pandas.
Please don’t b****-slap me for my contesting mania.
Holly
Seriously? I’m all for any Google algorithm updates that encourage human interaction and slap the crap out of tricksters. As a reader and a POTENTIAL customer who is turned off by tricks and dishonesty and every other thing that tends to lower our trust in our fellow man, I’m all for “organic” – in both food and search.
If you think of SEO in terms of good indexing skills, rather than tricks to fool a search engine, that’s a GOOD thing, and I’m sure Google wouldn’t punish that at all. (As one who now does SoMe analytics as part of their day job, frankly, I do wish people would use common, meaningful words that convey exactly the meaning they want to convey…)
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Holly Jahangiri recently posted..Collapse of the Bees
Hi Holly, that video would have been much more interesting if Matt would have said something like, “We’re going to slap the crap out of tricksters.” LOL
Watching BuildMyRank go poof over night was wild. Google doesn’t mess around and they don’t care how much time you’ve put into your site and link building strategy. If they decide they don’t like it, that’s a wrap. Just keep building quality content and avoid all the other shenanigans. Good post!
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Charles recently posted..How to help your web developer in three easy steps
It really was wild Charles, even though many will wonder why they didn’t take action sooner. One thing for sure, Google is the first ad final word when it comes to their index.
Hi Brian,
I am probably the biggest fan of you. I loved your article. I agree with you on ther note that a site must not over do SEO. I always suggest everyone to write good quality content.
I never had a fan before Shubham, that’s so cool. Well… my Mother, I guess, but that probably doesn’t count.
Hi Brian!
You’ve got a great advice here.. Thanks for that!
Google is so complicating already, lot’s of changes and I ca no longer follow it! So this past few days, i’m more on concentrating on other social media.
Hey dude, i haven’t done much both on-page optimization and off-page optimization but i am seeing there is huge drop in traffic and adsense revenue this april. what may be the issue?
Brian,
Thanks for the great article. I definitely agree about not buying backlinks! I relied on the BMR network for quite a bit of my traffic, and I actually made quality posts that would be valuable to someone reading them – but it was all to no avail in the end.
Berna Marean recently posted..Google Panda Update: Changes to SEO in 2012 updated Sat Apr 7 2012 5:35 pm EDT
now sites which are over optimized have be careful now it may effect there ranking in future.
I have read on other sites that Google is targeting various blog networks now
Hi Brian,
Awesome post! Does google hate SEO ? I Don’t think so. Well Google always made good changes. I’m not worried bcoz google still loves natrual same niche backlinks and I’m doing natural for my blog to increase blog traffic. That is good point Don’t overdo the SEO. Loved your post, plese let us know for any new changes in google.
Thanks for sharing.
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Ajnabii recently posted..Editing a Guest Blog Post For Maximum Success [Infographic]
I think Google suggests to not buy backlinks and stop over optimization of the website. Instead get the backlinks and traffic by conventional way from forums, submission sites etc,. Post articles periodically,so that site gets promotion quickly by search engines.Thanks
Krishna..
SEO specialist
So I’m still rather in the dark as to where Google stands when it comes to back linking. I have a bit of a vested interest there.
When it comes to black hat SEO methods, whilst I of course applaud Google making any change possible to obstruct such practices, it seems to me that the second one door gets closed somebody else forces open a window. Buying backlinks, keyword spamming, malware… it seems like black hat SEO is something that is always going to be with us that we’re just going to have to accept.
How much is over optimization ? and what is consider as natural linking ?
SEO is not dead. It is just transforming. You need to put more efforts into building great site rather than getting great links. And try to have impressive social media presence and do not rely solely on Google as it can serious backlash.
It’s another step in the right direction in Google’s quest to make the web as user-friendly as possible.
I do agree with you but without SEO we can’t improve our website visibility on search engines. So for these we need to do work on White Hat SEO but I know that google definitely hates black Hat SEO.
Well nice article Brain after doing some research I have started to realize Google is going after websites exchanging links from high profile blogs with exact matching keyword anchor text. I guess we need to vary the keyword a bit to maintain our top rankings and keyword stuffing should like always be avoided to prevent any upcoming search engine penalty on a website.
I do not think it’s something like ‘Google hates SEO’, I think SEO is the traffic backbone for any blog. Just it needs to be done within some limitations. There are some things to be avoided like that of bulk Link Building which can be harmful for any blog and even such blogs can be sandboxed. And Fresh and Unique content is as always the key to success.
Thanks Brian for sharing helpful knowledge.
Debasis recently posted..Got Hit By Google Penguin? Learn How To Recover
Yeah, creating quality content is the single biggest draw to attracting an audience. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve gone to a blog, been unimpressed, and left without commenting or bookmarking, let alone telling a friend about it. Something with great photos, great prose and quality content though? That’s going to get more than one repeat visit!
My site is Brazilian. I was affected, but I am working to build natural backlinks now, and slowly.
Well I guess Google wants social signals from a website. The more shares a website receives on social media websites the more popular content is in the eyes of Google. Google still loves SEO but just the best practices have changed. The more diversification in incoming links a website has the higher exist chances for top ranking.
I don’t think Google hates SEO! I think that he hates just those who use spamming and spinning programs.
Creating an original unique articles is hard. It would really consume time if you don’t know the topic you are writing at. But I think with constant effort and perseverance, one could create a unique high quality article.
By creating good content for your blog, you can make Google love you and not hate. I would like to suggest new bloggers not to indulge in bad link building practice, just focus on work and quality link building.
SEO still matters but its now the quality of the website and its social presence. Google is paying a lot of importance to Twitter backlinks and surprisingly twitter has started to ban accounts engaged in spam this shows Twitter is the future of SEO but again content matters as no matter how much search engines evolve they will continue rewarding content. Thanks Brain for highlighting this issue.
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