Latest Change in Google Algorithm, Explained
Google’s latest Core Update attacks your rank in SERP and rates your website at the bottom if it has been running with stale content.
By ELLE GREWAR
Any online marketer worth their salt knows that you can’t trick Google and come out on top of the search engine’s result page. Trying to do so otherwise is a waste of time since Google’s algorithm has been developed to ensure any attempts to cheat the system are not rewarded.
Before you click on your content folder and repurpose some of the previously written blog posts or articles, we are here to tell you that you shouldn’t do this! Lately, Google algorithm has been on the prowl to pick all those websites that have been duping the system. Just like Groundhog Day, no matter what minor or major changes you make, the outcome will be the same ― Google will drop you so fast and hard before you could even say SEO. Your only saving grace could be to look into San Diego SEO services and get ranked in search engine results for relevant keywords.
So, let’s take a brief look at the major changes Google has made so far:
Panda
Power Unleashed: No more duplicate or plagiarized content, keyword stuffing, or user-generated spam.
What Panda Did: This algorithm update assigned every web page a “quality score” and ranked websites based on fresh, new content that didn’t have too many keywords.
Penguin
Power Unleashed: No more spammy links with anchor text that was over-optimized
What Penguin Did: With this algorithm update, website owners said goodbye to buying links. Penguin’s objective was to rank sites down that had unnatural looking backlinks. Many people turned to San Diego SEO companies to figure out how to adjust to this update.
Humming Bird
Power Unleashed: No more keyword stuffing.
What Penguin Did: Yes, keywords are still part of the SEO game. However, Humming Bird put a huge kink in webpages’ popularity by ranking them according to what users type rather than just fixating on the exact keyword. As a result, if your website had new content and just snippets of the keyword, you would still come out at the top.
Bert
Power Unleashed: No more poorly written content.
What Penguin Did: The new Bert here used language processing technology to better interpret text, search queries, and more content details. As a result, it has become impossible for websites to get away with content that lacks depth.
Now that you know about the revised algorithms, let’s introduce you to the big boss:
Google Algorithm Core Update
After some time, Google announces a “Core Update,” the mother lode of updates. When Google uses these two words for its algorithm, it means your business might get affected. Here’s what this Core Update will Change.
Power Unleashed: No more keyword stuffing, stale and plagiarized content, and dead backlinks.
What Panda Did: The new core update is a culmination of previous algorithms, such as Panda, Penguin, Hummingbird, Mobile, RankBrain, Medic, and Bert.
You are probably wondering why your website ranked below even though your content is new with a few tasteful keywords sprinkled here and there and great quality backlinks. Well, Google says that you don’t need to do anything.
Say, WHAAAT?
Many people saw their websites ranked at the top when the update was introduced. In fact, some of their other websites that weren’t doing so well also came out on top of search results. However, after a few days, the rankings changed, and website owners saw a huge decline.
Google’s representative gave this explanation for the changes in the ranking:
Imagine you are making a “Top 10 Best Movies” list. After a few years, you reevaluate the list and change the ranks by adding more movies. Some of them that ranked at the bottom are now in the top 3 because you think they are worthy of a higher place in the competition. The list will keep changing year after year, not because you no longer think the movies should be ranked high, but the new films are simply better and more deserving.
Google doesn’t recommend making any major changes to your website because when the dust settles, everything will go back to normal. However, your hasty decisions to rank high might affect you now. Better invest in San Diego SEO services to go about it the right way.
Questions to Ask Yourself When Reevaluating Your Website
The good news is that this time, Google hasn’t left website owners hanging. Below are a couple of Google-approved questions that you need to consider when assessing your content.
- Does your website’s content provide original analysis, information, research, and reporting?
- Does your website’s content provide a comprehensive, complete, or substantial description of topics you are talking about?
- Does your website’s content provide interesting information or insightful analysis, which is beyond the obvious?
- If your website’s content uses other sources, does it avoid rewriting or copying from other websites? Does it offer original content that provides substantial additional value?
- Are your page titles and headlines helpful, and do they provide a descriptive summary of the website’s written content?
- Do you write page titles and headlines to avoid being shocking or exaggerating in nature?
- Do your webpages provide visitors value that makes them visit them again, bookmark them, or recommend them?
- Do you think your content is good enough to be referenced by a book or magazine?
There’s plenty more where these came from. In case you are wondering, this update has been confirmed and put into effect over the past few weeks.
So, what’s the verdict?
You might not like the changes because they could be messing up your website’s ranking. Did you know that Google uses more than 200 factors to rank your website? Some of these factors are a mystery, and Google isn’t too keen on sharing its secret. In fact, it hasn’t been fully revealed how this new Core Update works. A San Diego SEO expert will surely be able to help you with this.
Better buckle down, and reevaluate your content, because this isn’t over yet. If you are worried about these changes in Google’s algorithm, we recommend dealing with a top SEO agency San Diego. If you have any questions about the latest Google update or need help ranking your website contact our San Diego SEO Experts who will make sure your website’s ranking is on track.