Just after 2 days of completing the Helpful Content update, Google is now ready with another change. On 12th September, Google announced the release of the September Google Core update; this is the second wide core algorithm upgrade of 2022, following the May 2022 broad core update.
Google began pushing out this Google Core update at about 11:26 AM ET and will notify us when it is available. This update follows the completion of a Helpful Content Update on Friday, September 9, 2022.
The SEO world was a buzz with conjecture about how helpful content change may affect traffic across the web.
In Recent Weeks, Google Has Been Busier Than Usual
When Google announced the September 2022 core upgrade, search experts on Twitter were taken aback by Google’s big, back-to-back improvements.
This may appear to be a frantic surge of Google updates, but it isn’t wholly unexpected. Google’s Search Liaison Danny Sullivan stated earlier this year that the search engine has purposely increased disclosure regarding algorithm adjustments.
Even though we are more aware of what Google is doing than ever before, there are a lot of little adjustments to the search algorithm that we will never learn about. According to Sullivan, Google’s algorithm is altered hundreds of times every year.
Many of these incremental improvements are so minor that users and site owners will not even notice them.
What Exactly Is A Google Core Update?
Google defines core upgrades as “major, wide modifications to its algorithm and processes.”
These upgrades occur multiple times a year, but they always worry publishers and site owners since they might create fluctuations in online traffic. According to Google, fundamental changes are done to improve the overall relevance of its search results.
This upgrade is more extensive than the last one, and it is likely to have an impact on search results in the majority of languages.
“Perhaps the helpful content signal was insufficient to tip the scales and produce a shift in someone’s specific circumstance,” Danny Sullivan observed, “but when we undertake other improvements (core, product assessments), it may build into that and be more important.”
It should be noted that the September core update (HCU) is part of the core update, and he stated that the research community believes updating useful content to be unimportant, but it is expected that it will significantly impact the search results.
Google presents the following example to help you better grasp the nature of core updates:
“…imagine you made a list of the top 100 movies in 2015. A few years later in 2019, you refresh the list. It’s going to change naturally. Some new and wonderful films that never existed will now be candidates for inclusion. You might also reassess some films and realize they deserved a higher place on the list than they had back.
The list will change, and films previously higher on the list that move down aren’t bad. There are simply more deserving films that are coming before them.”
Focusing on your content is the greatest approach to ensure that your site is ready for a core upgrade. Google provides site quality criteria that site owners may use to ensure their material fulfills Google’s high-quality content categories.
How To Recover From Google Core Update?
The rankings of numerous websites across sectors have been influenced by broad core algorithm adjustments. Keep an eye out for any updates in the Search Console.
Google has already provided suggestions on what to consider if you are badly impacted by a core upgrade. While a decline in ranks may not always mean something is wrong with your sites, there are no set procedures to follow to recover.
Google has offered a list of questions to take into account if a fundamental change has an impact on your website. According to Google, there is some recovery between core upgrades, but the major difference will come after another core update.
What Is The Goal Of A Major Core Algorithm Update?
Google has said repeatedly in the years since the first reported large core algorithm change that the primary goal of a core update is to enhance search results. On Twitter, Google indicated that the purpose was to assist pages that were “previously under-rewarded.”
A broad core algorithm upgrade, like other Google algorithms, is not a penalty. Consider it more like Google pushing the reset button on search results based on a new set of ranking “rules.” After the change is complete, your site may have moved up or down in the SERPs, or it may still be in the same place.
Wrapping Up
When Google changes its search ranking algorithms, your site’s performance in the search results may improve or deteriorate. Knowing when Google makes these changes gives us a starting point for determining whether it was anything you changed on your website or something Google changed with its ranking algorithm.
We now know that Google will be issuing a key ranking upgrade soon, so keep a watch on your analytics and rankings in the coming weeks.