You may have heard about Google algorithm updates and wondered what they are. Maybe you’ve even noticed that your website has been affected by one.
It’s no secret that updates from Google can harm your website and SEO rankings. To prevent this, it is important to stay educated about upcoming updates, as well as keep an eye on any new changes.
Google algorithms decide the order and ranking of your website in the Google search engine results pages, so obviously it is important to understand how Google operates to use their services effectively.
Google algorithm updates and SEO
Google’s algorithms continuously evolve, so your site must stay on top of changes if you want to keep showing up on user searches. Google considers nearly 200 different signals when they index a website and define its importance, so it is essential to pay attention to all Google algorithm updates to maximise visibility for your website.
An effective SEO strategy helps ensure that Google algorithms recognise and reward your content; this is key to a successful online presence.
In this post, we’ll tell you everything you need to know about Google algorithm updates – what they are, how to tell if your site has been affected, and what you can do to recover. So let’s get started!
What are Google algorithm updates and why do they happen?
Google Algorithm Updates – you’ve heard of them, but do you know what they are?
Google algorithm updates are complex changes made on Google’s side that affect how websites rank in search results. Google occasionally make these changes to improve its services and provide the best possible experience for users.
Google’s algorithms are always changing, and it can seem like a never-ending challenge to keep up with all the updates.
Since 2000, Google has made more than 140 major Google algorithm updates, while also releasing smaller changes over time. The frequency of these updates varies but in recent years, there has been an increasing trend towards more regular revisions to ensure platforms remain secure and relevant to their audiences.
Algorithm changes can be minor tweaks or major shifts that can dramatically impact how search results are presented to users.
Algorithms provide a way for Google to refine results based on user needs and behaviours, ensuring they are presented with the most accurate information possible.
It is clear that keeping track of these Google algorithm updates is essential for any serious digital marketer – it could make the difference between staying ahead of the competition and lagging.
Sometimes, these updates have consequences for website owners, as their rankings can suddenly drop or completely disappear from Google!
Keeping up with the history of Google algorithm updates and knowing when an update has taken place and understanding why they are happening is essential if you want to ensure your website is recovering correctly.
How can you tell if your website has been affected by an update?
Google Algorithms can, at times, be a mysterious thing. They can suddenly change, resulting in websites affected by the update.
So, how do you know if your website has been affected?
Unfortunately, Google doesn’t make it easy to understand when these changes happen—which means you need to get creative in researching and tracking your visitors and traffic stats on Google Analytics.
If your site has been affected in any way by Google algorithm updates, don’t worry – finding out is easier than you think. Tools such as Rank Math Analytics, also available in an SEO plugin for WordPress, can easily confirm algorithm updates and follow them on their website.
After looking online for any recent Google Algorithm updates, start checking things like visits per day versus what it was before the update and look at whether Google Search Console is showing any issues with your websites such as pages with crawl errors or low search impressions.
When a website has been affected by Google algorithm updates, one of the best ways to look for clues is through statistics.
Analysing visits to the website, dwell time, bounce rate and click-through rate are all good indicators that the algorithm may have had an impact.
Additionally, comparing data from other sources such as organic search results or performance on social media can be incredibly useful in understanding how these changes have impacted your website.
It’s important to regularly review detailed analytics reports to be aware of any major algorithm changes or fluctuations that require further investigation and/or adjustment to your strategies.
If you think your site has been affected by Google algorithm updates, then try optimising and tweaking your content to see if Google notices.
Assess the damage
The recent Google Algorithm Update has been a serious wake-up call for many businesses, as it has significantly impacted bottom lines in some cases.
Depending on the scope of your business and the strategies implemented to maximise organic traffic, you may be encountering decreased revenue due to this update.
If this is the case, it may lead to changes in your SEO & marketing budget – so that budget better reflects your current reality. It may also pay to revisit your original marketing goals and consider whether or not more attention needs to be given to adjusting them in light of the algorithms’ effects.
No matter your current position, taking stock of how the algorithm update impacts each part of your business can help smooth out its impacts and ensure that we’re making decisions with both short-term and long-term success in mind.
Evaluate the purpose of the update
Figuring out whether and to what degree a Google algorithm update has impacted your website isn’t the easiest question to answer, especially if you’re not an SEO expert.
However, it’s possible to glean some insight from Google, although they don’t often provide too many details. For example, when their June 2021 spam algorithm update was rolled out, Danny Sullivan from Google confirmed that it was targeting spam.
So, if you’re seeing changes to your website afterwards, it could be connected to this new algorithm update.
Of course, making sure is almost impossible without more information on the exact nature of the update – which is unlikely for any of these big releases.
Evaluating which segments of the site are affected
Diving into analytics data can be a great way to spot patterns in your content or website.
You may find that specific types of content are declining, making it easier to identify the root cause and figure out how best to move forward with improvements.
With analytics data analytics at your fingertips, you can get a better picture of what is and isn’t working for you, so don’t hesitate to take advantage of this insight!
If you’ve noticed potential changes in your site’s organic traffic, Google Analytics has all the tools necessary to identify and monitor it.
All you need to do is navigate to Behaviour > Site Content > All Pages and compare the period you suspect your analytics are affected against the period right before that.
That way, you can quickly pinpoint any posts or pages that may have been affected by an algorithm change and take the appropriate action – be it improving or finding alternative marketing strategies for them.
Analysing analytics goes a long way towards helping you understand what caused such a shift in organic traffic, so if you’re seeing some interesting trends, make sure to investigate it further with analytics!
Were your competitors google search affected?
When analytics show that your website’s traffic has taken a hit due to an update, it can be discouraging.
A closer look reveals that it doesn’t necessarily mean a loss of interest in what you have to offer; it just means the algorithm changes have caused searchers to gravitate elsewhere.
That being said, analyzing analytics from your competitors to see what they are doing differently or better may uncover some answers and help get your website back on track.
Taking the time to analyse your SERP manually has countless benefits that you don’t necessarily get with analytics. It allows you to gain a unique insight into what people are looking for and how they interact with search results.
Additionally, performing manual SERP analysis will help you keep up with any algorithm changes Google might implement and stay ahead of any competition. We wholeheartedly recommend putting aside time to create detailed manual analytics so that you can keep on top of your web presence!
What steps should you take to recover from an algorithm update on your website?
If you’re worried that a recent Google algorithm update has impacted your website, don’t panic yet! While it’s normal to feel overwhelmed (we’ve all been there!), the first step is identifying which update might have caused the issue – was it Fred or Rankbrain?
With this information in hand, you can start researching the specifics of what should be done to recover.
Generally speaking, this may involve revising content that could be affected to improve SEO, or even making additional changes to increase your website accessibility.
Adopting a proactive attitude and getting started immediately on making any necessary updates is key; this will help reinforce your site and ensure you don’t fall too far behind while attempting to recover from an algorithm update.
Does Google advise?
The analytics say it all – Google core updates are known to cause major stirs in the market, affecting sites from one corner of the internet to the other.
Year after year, analytics tell a story of some sites succeeding through core algorithm changes while others losing out due to their tanked rankings – resulting in millions of Pounds worth of potential income lost.
So, you might be wondering, is there any way to recover from Google Algorithm updates? According to Google, there is nothing that can be done to truly recover from core updates– likely meaning no quick fixes or analytics tricks here.
Google has even recommended that webmasters avoid trying to make any undue changes that aren’t issued in the first place. It looks like only through analytics and understanding algorithm updates can websites have any hope of taking their rankings back!
How can you prevent being affected by future algorithm updates from Google?
It’s no secret that updates from Google can harm your website and SEO rankings.
To prevent this, it is important to stay educated about upcoming updates and keep an eye on any new changes. Additionally, having a smart and efficient SEO strategy is essential to mitigating the risks associated with updates from Google.
Another preventative measure that site owners should take is to make sure they have a strong organic search presence through keyword research, blog optimization and social media engagement.
Taking such proactive steps help reduce the risk of becoming affected by future updates from Google and allows your website to remain in good standing with search engine users.
