August 2023 was marked by the release of the next Google Core Update. This is not the first and probably not the last update to the company’s search algorithms. But it is still quite significant.
Google immediately emphasized several key points:
- The main goal of the update is to improve search results.
- A drop in search results page rankings after an update does not necessarily indicate technical problems. This is most likely about the relevance of the content on this page.
- Recovering lost positions after a core update is not guaranteed and positions may vary. Continuous improvement of content is crucial in this case.
It’s easy to follow a trend that shows that Google has recently been placing special emphasis on the quality of content. The goal is obvious – to ensure that search engine’ users receive the most useful and relevant results.
While major updates do not directly affect specific sites or pages, they may cause previously lower-ranked pages to become visible. Conversely, pages that were once at the top may fall in ranking.
How the Google August Core Update can affect rankings and how to restore them.
Updating the core can affect positions both positively and negatively. And in some cases it may not have any effect at all. A drop in rankings does not indicate that the site has technical errors or shortcomings. Probably, the problems are related specifically to the content, and not to the “technical side” of the web resource.
Accordingly, Google recommends that anyone who has experienced a decrease in ranking should concentrate primarily on improving the content rather than searching for technical problems.
What to do to regain lost positions
It must be noticed that there is no single algorithm of action in this case – everything is too individual. However, Google gives a few basic recommendations:
- Carefully examine the pages that have lost positions.
- Check what queries bring users to these pages.
- Compare your content to Google’s requirements posted on Search Central Help page.
You may have to devote a lot of time to this issue, depending on the number of “problem” pages. But it will probably not be possible to restore positions otherwise.
How quickly can positions be returned?
In most cases, it takes about 1–2 months to return to previous positions after a fall due to an update. However, we should not forget about situations where positions are restored on their own without any intervention after a couple of weeks. Therefore, in some cases, the best option is to just wait and not rush to change anything.
You also need to remember that Google is constantly improving its algorithms and between major updates it regularly releases smaller ones, information about which is not particularly advertised. Therefore, some changes in positions may also take place – both positive and negative.
What to expect next
As we said above, this is probably not the last major update this year. The task of SEO specialists and website owners is not just to wait for the next update and see what happens, but to work right now on improving their content and (if necessary) on internal optimization.
It is obvious that search engine requirements for content quality will only increase, and Google algorithms will improve. It’s time to leave the days of low-quality articles with dozens of keywords and phrases in the past. Today they simply don’t work. And those pages that still manage to stay in the top search results with such content will sooner or later lose their positions. It’s only a matter of time.
