Google’s search algorithm updates are designed to remove low-quality content while also improving the user experience. By adhering to guidelines, avoiding black-hat SEO practices and refining website content accordingly, you can ensure your website ranks highly in Google search.
On March 5, 2024, this core update began upgrading multiple core ranking systems. Additionally, this was the inaugural instance wherein helpful content system integration took place.
1. Medic update
Google’s algorithm updates often create mixed reactions among both users and SEO professionals, with SEOs experiencing discomfort while users welcome more credible, accurate information. One such core algorithm update was released in August 2018 known as “Medic,” due to its substantial impact on health-related, fitness, medical, lifestyle content.
The Medic update specifically targeted pages ranking for “Your Money or Your Life” keywords, but also reduced rankings of websites with poor E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness) signals. As a result, many websites lost visibility in search results pages; although some were able to recover after making improvements in these areas. Unfortunately, many other websites remain affected by the Medic update and may never recover completely from its effects.
2. Hummingbird update
Hummingbird was introduced by Google in September 2013 as part of a core algorithm redesign effort, to shift away from keywords towards conversational search queries that focus on semantic search terms.
SEO updates imposed a requirement that businesses and services deliver content that reflects search queries that match user intent, rather than keyword-stuffed articles that match up poorly with user expectations. It was also meant to shift focus away from keyword stuffing content towards high-quality, informative pieces which align more closely with user intent. To understand the direction of the Google algorithm, people can refer to the click this link codyhochstenbach.com/ .
Hummingbird keeps SEOs alert, forcing them to consider user experience improvements whenever making decisions about site changes. As with other broad core algorithm updates, recovering from Hummingbird requires either sitewide or page-by-page approaches depending on which ranking factors were affected by its release.
3. Panda update
The Panda update targets website content and acts as a quality filter, devaluing pages of poor quality in search engine results pages (SERP). This impacts organic rankings and visibility for websites; in particular those publishing thin content – be it articles with lots of keywords but few useful sentences, or short pages lacking depth and focus.
Since that time, Google has continued to upgrade and refine their Panda algorithm. Now part of their core algorithm, Gary Illyes confirmed through tweet that Panda exerts significant influence over ranking. It serves as an important reminder to create content that meets real user intent rather than publishing thin or duplicate articles if you wish to avoid fearing Google Panda’s updates.
4. Penguin update
The Google Penguin update was designed to combat webspam by decreasing the number of websites ranking highly due to black-hat link-building techniques. Violators will be penalized, leading to both their ranking and traffic decline.
Finalizing this update in September 2016 saw it integrated directly into Google’s core algorithm, meaning adjustments are now made continuously rather than at scheduled intervals. Furthermore, this iteration introduced more granularity for pinpointing specific pages instead of entire websites being penalized.
This update also targeted websites that place too many advertisements above the fold, which can be distracting to users and negatively influence searcher intent.
5. Core update
Google’s regular algorithm updates necessitate SEO professionals staying abreast of how these changes impact their website’s organic landscape, with tools like SEMrush Sensor helping keep track of how these impacts play out over time and also allow for identification of factors affecting rankings and how best to optimize content.
This update to the core software aims to enhance systems that evaluate content overall and was launched on Oct 5 and completed one day later.
As with other core updates, this update did not specify a change and its effects were hard to pinpoint; however, it could have had an effect on pages considered low-quality or spammy – it is therefore essential that content creators pay close attention to how their work ranks within search results.