Throughout the year, Google makes regular changes to its processes, most of which users are unaware of. The largest updates, known as core updates, take place periodically and make significant changes to key search engine features, such as ranking processes.
The most recent update was announced last month, with the roll-out beginning on 25 May and completing on 9 June. The core updates revise the algorithms underlying the search engine to check their delivery relevancy and quality. Google introduces these updates to ensure it provides the best possible user experience, maximising use of the search engine and other Google products.
Designed to keep up with the ever-changing nature of the web and improve Google systems, the update will present noticeable effects, however users should be aware that it does not target specific pages or sites. This is highlighted in their announcement as adjusting the ranking processes means that sites may find themselves appearing in different locations in search results.
While some users may find their site improves in ranking results, others may suffer negative effects. If a page falls in the ranking, it is not as a direct result of the webmaster guidelines, nor has it been subjected to manual or algorithmic action, as can happen if a page violates the guidelines. Furthermore, it does not mean there is anything to fix. It is simply a result of Google changing how they assess information and relevancy for searches, and re-evaluating content against pages published since the previous update.
Data providers SEMRush calculated that the average level of volatility[1] prior to this new update was significantly higher than that for the November 2021 update. An overall increase in volatility compared to the baseline level of before the update was 19% less during the initial release for desktop users, and 24% on mobile. They also revealed that 17% of new top 20 ranked results in Google, after the latest update, came from position 20 or beyond – only a slight variation in November 2021. Similarly, RankRange found that the data’s average position changes were higher than with previous updates.
Navigating changes in search rank
Google says that changes in your search rank doesn’t mean that your content or webpage needs fixing. Instead, they advise users to focus on offering the best possible content to deal with the impact of a broad core update.
If users were looking to take a more proactive approach to navigating the new algorithms, Google has reshared a list of questions from their 2019 update, covering content quality, presentation and expertise, that can be used to assess a site and its content.
Additionally, it is recommended that users approach adjustments wholistically rather than trying to tackle individual changes, such as title tags. After all, it could be a range of factors, including content, user experience and speed, that have contributed to the algorithm reading a site differently.
While improvements can be made to navigate the core update, on-site optimisations do not guarantee recovery. Google does not suggest that users rework their entire site, but advise against taking no action with new content as it could possibly allow for no recovery.
Typically, with core updates, those most affected could be sites that were affected by the previous update and worked hard to optimise content in recent months hoping for more improvements, while those neglected risk being overtaken by competitors who have made changes, or shared new content, that better meet the new quality criteria set by Google.
So, what should users do?
The impact of the update should not be assessed too quickly after its completion, instead the effects should be observed over a period of time to identify trends in ranking movements. Using this information, users can then decide how they want to progress with any alterations.
It is, however, worth noting that sites might not regain traffic or rank positions lost until the next core update is completed – even then, it is not guaranteed that your position will return. This uncertainty is why Google recommends that you focus on driving your new content to be as relevant as possible, because that is what the algorithms will be looking for when re-evaluating the latest webpages.
[1] Volatility, in this capacity, is reference to a measurement of movement within search result placements and can be defined by specific timeframes, keywords and placement positions.