Sandboxes and Google
Sandboxes are used to "quarantine" things in the real world (you keep all the sand in one place that way, in theory, but then again have you seen the trail from a kids sandbox?, still I digress), the term being also used with computers in relation to "dangerous things" like Active X controls etc.
Google on the other hand are using it to "quarantine" nothing more harmless than new websites. Why are they doing this? They would say because so many new websites are (a) awful and will soon wither, so why bother with them, or (b) that they are the "creatures" on SEM companies whose sole aim is to artificially increase the rankings of another website through interlinking, and that therefore we are going to ignore them too.
The Sandbox Effect
Websites can linger in this Sandbox for 3 - 6 months and whilst you can reduce the detention period, it's difficult to break a website out. Worst still, there is it appears a Sandbox Effect that lasts for up to 2 years! The effects here are mostly seen for high value (most searched for) keywords, where again research has shown that "new" sites (built after 2003) have little chance of good rankings on the Google engine.
The Power of the Lesser used Keyword
So what does this mean for businesses that want to get the most out of the internet and the promise that it offers? Simple, (a) don't rely on Google alone (there are other engines out there) and (b) target the lesser keywords. You'll be amazed just how many variations there in the words that people use when searching. Sure there are some that are used more often, but access to these is in effect barred to all new websites on Google (and can be hard to get for new websites anyway until they build up some momentum ) and besides all that, the number of searches for these "lesser" keywords is, when added together HUGE (just like your shopping receipt at Tescos - "How the hell did it add up to that, individually everything was so cheap?" being a thought that many must have had when reaching for the wallet/purse).
So, if you are interested in getting the best out of your shiny new website, remember those "lesser sought after keywords" they could well be the answer to your problems for the first few years of your websites life.
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