It’s been a busy year for Google updates, and the second core update of the year has landed in August 2023.
Following a turbulent time in organic search going back to May this year, the August broad core algorithm update was officially released on August 24th and is expected to take around two weeks to fully roll out.
Source: RankRanger
Increased organic search volatility is becoming the norm thanks to smaller-but-still-noticeable updates, however the most widespread and noticeable impact comes courtesy of broad core updates. The last update, in March 2023 had a significant impact on search results, with positive outcomes from some, and reduced visibility for others. You may see little change at all.
As always, the specifics of the update have not been released, but Google’s key focus with the implementation of algorithm updates is clear:
“Core updates are designed to ensure that overall, we're delivering on our mission to present helpful and reliable results for searchers...
...There's nothing wrong with pages that may not be performing as well as they were before a core update. They haven't violated our spam policies, nor been subjected to a manual or algorithmic action, as can happen to pages that do violate those policies. In fact, 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 in search results.”
What we know about the August 2023 Core Update So Far
- The August Update was released globally, impacting all regions.
- It is not specific to any one type of content - and affects all types of content, all types of sites and in all verticals.
- As opposed to penalising lower quality sites, it promotes great content, which may mean pages deemed of lower value will be pushed down in favour of others.
- Google Discover and featured snippets are impacted.
- Auto suggest is not impacted.
What is the impact of the August 2023 Google Core Update?
Remember that Google algorithm updates can be good news, as well as bad.
Making predictions about the impact of the update before it has completely rolled out is a tricky business. It is best to wait until after the rollout has completed, then gather as much information as you can about which verticals and niches have been affected, and what the impact has been.
Initial impact at time of writing appears to be limited, but highly impactful where it is being seen. Some sites have seen gains and losses of 20%-80% according to comments on a post written by Barry Schwartz.
This unverified site is reporting an increase of over 100% in impressions from the latest Google Core update on X.
Use your Analytics and rank tracker to monitor your site for any sudden increases or decreases in positions and traffic. Remember that fluctuations in traffic are normal and not all changes will be affiliated with the Core Update.
Who has been affected by the August 2023 Update?
It’s too early to say which industries have been affected the most by the August 2023 update. The last broad core update was in March 2023 where arts & entertainment, business & industrial, shopping, and internet and telecommunications were affected most.
Very early chatter suggests impacts in the financial sector, hospitality and leisure, health and medical, and eCommerce, but this is only an early indication and should not be taken as fact just yet.
From Glenn Gabe:
From Marie Haynes:
From Vlad Rappoport:
Lily Rae, Director of SEO and Head of Organic Research of Amsive NYC, reports a good increase in visibility for a number of well-known new sites and products review sites.
She has also noted a strong decline in visibility for a site which may be considered low quality. In this instance, the site appears to be ignoring Google guidelines and not paying attention to EEAT best practice.
How do I know if my site has been affected?
Google Core Updates can cause anxiety and stress amongst site owners as they wait to see if they have been impacted. The first rule of Google Core Updates is not to panic. Decreased performance after a Core Update does not necessarily indicate a problem with your site.
As Google puts it, “One way to think of how a core update operates is to imagine you made a list of the top 100 movies in 2021. A few years later in 2024, you refresh the list. It's going to naturally change. Some new and wonderful movies that never existed before 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 before.
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.”
Take these steps to assess if your site has been impacted by a Core Update
- Wait until the Core Update has finished rolling out.
- Compare organic website and ranking data before/after the rollout, last 30 days, last 90 days, and year on year trends. Taking too small a sample of data can lead to poor decisions and negatively impact well performing pages. Remember to wait until a full three days have elapsed if you are using GA4, as it can take this long for data to be fully processed. As such, use of real time data should be avoided.
- Look for sudden drops and patterns which indicate you and/or your niche have been affected by the Core Update.
- Look in Google Search Console at which search terms led users to your site. Are these terms relevant? Is this your target audience?
- Identify which pages/sections of the site have been hit and why this might be. Is the content old? Poor quality? Out of date? Broken or removed? Is it still relevant?
How do I recover from any negative impacts of the latest Google Core Update?
While decreased performance does not mean there is anything amiss with your site, most of us will endeavour to recover any decreases and improve our site’s performance in search engine rankings. A decrease in position and visibility can heavily impact traffic to your site and, more importantly, conversions.
To regain any lost positions following the August Update, focus on your content. Review the quality, relevance, freshness (where applicable), and authoritativeness of each piece of content you have produced, and ensure it is as useful to users as possible, and that you incorporate all key elements of EEAT: experience, expertise, authoritativeness and trustworthiness.
Consider these questions when reviewing your content for EEAT:
Content and quality questions
- Does the content provide original information, reporting, research, or analysis?
- Does the content provide a substantial, complete, or comprehensive description of the topic?
- Does the content provide insightful analysis or interesting information that is beyond the obvious?
- If the content draws on other sources, does it avoid simply copying or rewriting those sources, and instead provide substantial additional value and originality?
- Does the main heading or page title provide a descriptive, helpful summary of the content?
- Does the main heading or page title avoid exaggerating or being shocking in nature?
- Is this the sort of page you'd want to bookmark, share with a friend, or recommend?
- Would you expect to see this content in or referenced by a printed magazine, encyclopaedia, or book?
- Does the content provide substantial value when compared to other pages in search results?
- Does the content have any spelling or stylistic issues?
- Is the content produced well, or does it appear sloppy or hastily produced?
- Is the content mass-produced by or outsourced to a large number of creators, or spread across a large network of sites, so that individual pages or sites don't get as much attention or care?
Expertise questions
- Does the content present information in a way that makes you want to trust it, such as clear sourcing, evidence of the expertise involved, background about the author or the site that publishes it, such as through links to an author page or a site's About page?
- If someone researched the site producing the content, would they come away with an impression that it is well-trusted or widely-recognised as an authority on its topic?
- Is this content written by an expert or enthusiast who demonstrably knows the topic well?
- Does the content have any easily-verified factual errors?
Stand out for competitors and improve user experience with these hints and tips
Continue to produce helpful, high quality content which exceeds EEAT guidelines, boost your existing content, measure your current positions, and monitor growth moving forwards. Within a few months, you should see a recovery or gains in new areas based on your new and refreshed content.
In some cases, it may take until another update - not necessarily a Core Update - to get you back on your feet.
Unsure if you have been affected by the August 2023 Google Core Update?
Organic search is constantly changing, and it can be hard to keep up with best practice to keep your site performing at its best. Our SEO approach is to follow best practices as they evolve to gain long-term advantages for our clients and reach their goals.
If you think you have been impacted by the latest update, speak to Innovation Visual. Our SEO and content team can identify if you have been affected, and work to provide long lasting, ethical results for our clients, helping to limit the potential negative impact of Core Updates and boost rankings and traffic.
Contact us to learn more about how we can help you build a successful SEO strategy.
