Google sheds some new light on secretive core updates

Whether you design websites for a living or run a website for your business, you are almost certain to have found yourself totally exasperated with a Google algorithm update and its impact on your rankings at one point or another.
The search engine is notoriously tight lipped, not just about what it actually considers as ranking factors and how they are weighted but about when and what its algorithm updates focus on. What we do now is that every so often, the search engine performs an update to its ‘core’ algorithm. While it makes changes daily – many of which you won’t ever know about – these larger core updates often cause waves and set the cat amongst the ranking pigeons. Google calls them significant, broad changes.

Sometimes Google will give advance warning of the update but more often than not, that isn’t the case. Typically, Google will confirm a major update after the fact, in the face of widespread changes and questions. It says, “We confirm broad core updates because they typically produce some widely notable effects. Some sites may note drops or gains during them. We know those with sites that experience drops will be looking for a fix, and we want to ensure they don’t try to fix the wrong things. Moreover, there might not be anything to fix at all.”Google recently completed a core algorithm update, leading many sites to question what they needed to do to regain their lost ranking spots. In the face of many queries and consternation, the search engine has took the unusual step of shedding a little more light on its updates and offering some helpful advice on which course of action to take after an update – it had previously said there was nothing you can do but has taken to its blog to be a little more helpful. Here’s what it now advises… 1. Don’t assume there is something wrong When Google performs major updates, it’s essentially trying to even further refine how it sorts the web’s information. It says that changes to your site’s rankings after a core update don’t necessarily indicate that something is wrong. The search engine’s advice is don’t assume you have messed up, violated a guideline or been hit with a penalty. It says, “…there’s nothing in a core update that targets specific pages or sites. Instead, the changes are about improving how our systems assess content overall. These changes may cause some pages that were previously under-rewarded to do better.”
2. Keep your focus on content Google’s all about seeking the best content for its users so if you feel that you do want to make changes if your site has suffered a ranking drop, it says to focus you or efforts on making your content the best it can be.You’ll need to ensure your content:·Is original·Provides useful information·Is insight and interesting and goes beyond staying the obvious·Draws on other sources·Has a descriptive, helpful title and meta description·Is well presented with clear source attribution, evidence of authority, free of factual errors and created by someone who is familiar and comfortable with the topic at hand
3. Don’t expect an immediate change Finally, Google says you shouldn’t expect any changes you make to have an immediate effect on your search position. If you were hit during a core algorithm update, you may not recover until the next one in a few months time. You may notice earlier improvements when other smaller day-to-day algorithm changes are made but often, the impact of those changes isn’t noticeable.