Google has announced that it is in the process of rolling out the first of two so-called 'core updates'.
In announcing the new updates, Google has stressed that it launches 'thousands' of search updates per year, but in certain cases such as this, it feels the need to announce when updates are coming.
The first update named the June 2021 Core Update is rolling out now. The second update named the July 2021 Core Update will follow next month.
What is changing?
Google has refrained from providing specifics, instead advising website owners that all core updates come with the aim to improve the search experience for all. As part of the announcement, Google linked back to advice is published in 2019 to help website owners understand and deal with core updates.
The advice stresses that for websites negatively impacted by a core update that this does not necessarily confirm that the website is in breach of any guidelines.
Instead, Google's advice remains relatively vague and encourages website owners to continue to focus on content as the main factor in running a successful online presence.
When it comes to successful content, Google proposes focussing on four broad areas:
- The overall quality of your content (ie. how well researched it is)
- How trustworthy the content is
- How well presented the information is
- How well does the content stack up against whatever else exists
What to do next
With no specific details of the update released by Google it's going to be a case of 'wait and see'. As is always the case, monitoring your search traffic is an important part of managing your website. If changes begin to show, work should be carried out to assess why this may have happened.
If negatively impacted, it probably means reassessing strategy.
Strangely, because this core update is rolling out in two parts, Google has said that in some cases a website that suffers this month could well recover in July when that update rolls out.
You can read more about the news on our sister site, The Financial Marketeer.
Over at The Financial Marketeer we've also just launched a share of search brand watch looking at how the banking, insurance, investments and pensions sectors are impacted by this announcement.
