Google launched a core update on August 15, 2024, which finished rolling out on September 3. Core updates aim to improve the quality of results on the major search engine. Typically, Google releases two to three per year, and some have bigger impacts on the search landscape than others.
This update is unique because it supposedly addresses feedback Google received from content creators in the wake of the September 2023 helpful content update, which had a negative impact on many small and independent publishers.
But the findings from this update go beyond recoveries from last year’s helpful content update. Here’s what you need to know.
How Big Was the August 2024 Core Update?
Though not as big as the core update in March 2024, this was still significant. Most industry analysis of this update is focused on the performance of sites that saw declines after Google updated its helpful content system back in September 2023.
That helpful content update impacted some sites dramatically and, prior to this update, very few, if any, sites have recovered their traffic losses. However, this appears to have changed with August’s update.
Search Engine Land’s Barry Schwartz reported that most sites previously impacted by the September 2023 helpful content update have seen changes in rankings in the wake of the August update, with 44% of those previously affected by the helpful content update seeing decreases and another 27% seeing increases.
The Trends We’re Monitoring
Our SEO team is keeping an eye on some of the interesting findings from the August 2024 core update, including:
- Quality Is More Than Words on the Page: Google appears to be looking beyond just content to determine the quality of a site. For example, Google’s systems now more heavily factor in user experience, ads, and sources cited, among other attributes.
- Mass-Produced AI Content Takes a Hit: Many sites that rely too heavily on AI-generated content saw significant drops because of this core update. We’ve talked a lot about strategic ways to leverage AI in the content creation process, and we strongly recommend that you do not thoughtlessly generate vast amounts of AI content at scale. Remember, it’s a helpful assistant, not a replacement for human content writers and editors.
- Authoritative Links Won’t Spare a Site from Ranking Drops: Many sites with large amounts of authoritative links saw significant drops. It’s important to note that it’s highly unlikely these drops happened because of those links, but rather that authoritative links alone won’t save your site if it has other quality issues.
- User-Focused Content Beats “SEO Content”: Content written for search engines (instead of users) were also impacted by this recent update. One example of this are sites that blindly include all “People Also Ask” (PAA) questions as sections on their webpages. PAA questions are valuable for coming up with new topics and for fleshing out existing content, but they are often repetitive and stray off topic, so be selective when using this strategy.
What Does All of This Mean for Your Firm?
In some cases, we’ve noticed bumps in traffic in the days following the Google core update that were temporary. These spikes were because of a ranking bug that was eventually addressed by Google. Another surge occurred on August 24 that was also temporary, which some industry experts theorize was due to algorithmic changes as the system learns and is tweaked by user engagement.
Determining the full impact of any core update can take time, especially when the rollout coincides with a holiday weekend like it did this time with Labor Day. We’ll be monitoring data closely throughout September to gauge the effects of this latest update as they continue to appear.
Core updates are a part of life in the SEO world, and they generally don’t radically affect performance on search engines, though occasionally they can be disruptive.
As long as you’re following best practices and staying the course—consistently publishing helpful content, building brand awareness, and prioritizing user experience—you’re focusing on the right things and positioning yourself to be competitive on search engines.
Step Up Your Content Game Today
To learn more about how to create more effective, user-focused content, contact cj Advertising today. We can help you better connect with your audience, refine your voice, and optimize your content to maximize your performance online.
