Panicked the last time you saw the toolbar PR go gray? Don’t worry too much about what you might have done wrong because until now what the graybar really exactly means is still unclear. According to Ann Smarty of Search Enging Journal though some of the things that we do know about the graybar includes the following facts:

  • It does not mean that you have zero PR.
  • It does not necessarily mean that the site has been taken out of the index or has been penalized in some other way.
  • It can serve as a warning that you are doing something improper (according to tedster link selling is one of them).
  • It does not impact the performance of your site nor the internet statistics of your site.
  • It can mean that the site is still new and has not had its PR updated just yet or the site’s PR isn’t enough to reach PR1.

    • Whatever the graybar really does mean Google still hasn’t cleared it up but what’s important is that if you do see the TBPR turn gray just do a quick review on the latest changes you’ve made to your site and assess whether some of the tactics you’ve employed are questionable. Check the usual things that could have gone wrong like being hacked/spammed. If everything’s as it should be then there’s no reason to panic, more likely than not the TBPR will eventually just go back to showing your old PR. We all know that Google constantly tweaks its algorithm so you’ll just have to ride out the changes they might have made.

    Please share your thoughts