Google is the most popular search engine in the world. To keep delivering the best search results, Google regularly updates its algorithms, which are the rules and processes that determine how websites are ranked in search results. These updates can have a big impact on how websites perform in search rankings. Over the last five years, there have been several important updates that have shaped the way websites are ranked today. In this article, we’ll explore these major updates in simple English so you can understand how they might affect your website.
1. Google BERT Update (October 2019)
The BERT update, which stands for Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers, was one of the most significant changes in how Google understands search queries. Before BERT, Google had a harder time understanding the context of words in a search query, especially with longer or more complex searches. BERT helps Google understand the meaning behind the words by looking at the context of each word in a sentence. This means that Google can now better understand the intent behind a search, leading to more accurate and relevant search results.
Impact on Websites:
Websites with well-written content that naturally answers users’ questions saw a boost in rankings. On the other hand, websites with poorly written content that didn’t provide clear answers might have seen a drop in their rankings.
2. Google Core Updates (2019-2023)
Google releases core updates several times a year, and these are broad changes to its algorithm. Core updates don’t target specific issues like some other updates; instead, they improve the overall search experience. Each core update can affect websites differently, depending on the quality and relevance of their content.
Notable Core Updates:
- March 2019 Core Update: This update focused on content quality, rewarding websites with high-quality content and penalizing those with low-quality or outdated content.
- May 2020 Core Update: Released during the COVID-19 pandemic, this update had a significant impact on search rankings, as it placed more emphasis on trustworthy and reliable content.
- December 2020 Core Update: This update further emphasized the importance of E-A-T (Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) in content.
- June 2021 Core Update: Google continued to refine its understanding of user intent, focusing on delivering results that best match what users are looking for.
Impact on Websites:
Websites that consistently produce high-quality, relevant, and trustworthy content tend to perform well after core updates. Conversely, sites with thin, poorly researched, or outdated content might see a decline in rankings.
3. Google Page Experience Update (June 2021)
The Page Experience Update introduced a new set of ranking signals based on how users perceive the experience of interacting with a web page. This update included metrics known as Core Web Vitals, which measure loading performance, interactivity, and visual stability of a page. Essentially, Google wants to ensure that websites not only provide good content but also a good user experience.
Core Web Vitals Metrics:
- Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): Measures loading performance. Google wants the main content of a page to load quickly, ideally within 2.5 seconds.
- First Input Delay (FID): Measures interactivity. Google expects pages to respond quickly to user interactions, like clicks or taps.
- Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): Measures visual stability. Google prefers pages that don’t have unexpected shifts in layout that can lead to a poor user experience.
Impact on Websites:
Websites that provide a fast, responsive, and stable user experience saw improvements in their rankings. Those with slow, unresponsive, or visually unstable pages needed to make technical improvements to avoid ranking drops.
4. Google Passage Ranking (February 2021)
Passage Ranking is a feature that allows Google to rank not just entire web pages but also specific passages within those pages. This means that even if a particular passage within a page is highly relevant to a user’s query, Google can bring it to the top of the search results.
Impact on Websites:
This update benefited websites with long-form content, such as articles and blog posts, where specific sections might be particularly relevant to certain queries. It encouraged content creators to ensure that each section of their content was well-written and valuable on its own.
5. Google MUM Update (May 2021)
MUM, or Multitask Unified Model, is a new technology that makes Google 1,000 times more powerful than BERT. MUM can understand and generate language, and it can handle multiple tasks at once, like understanding information in different languages or formats (e.g., text, images, videos). MUM aims to provide more comprehensive and accurate answers to complex search queries.
Impact on Websites:
MUM’s ability to process and understand content in multiple languages and formats means that websites with rich, diverse content (including multimedia) can benefit. It also highlights the importance of creating content that addresses users’ complex needs in a comprehensive manner.
6. Google Product Reviews Updates (April 2021 – February 2023)
Google’s Product Reviews Updates are designed to reward high-quality product reviews. These updates target websites that publish product reviews, with a focus on promoting in-depth, well-researched, and original reviews over shallow, rehashed content.
Key Factors for Product Reviews:
- Depth of Content: Reviews should provide detailed and specific information about the product.
- Expertise: Reviews written by experts or individuals with real experience using the product are favored.
- Comparisons: Reviews that compare the product to its competitors and discuss its strengths and weaknesses tend to perform better.
Impact on Websites:
Websites with detailed, expert, and original product reviews have seen improvements in rankings. Sites that publish generic, thin, or low-quality reviews have been negatively impacted.
7. Google Helpful Content Update (August 2022)
The Helpful Content Update introduced a new site-wide signal that targets websites with a high amount of unhelpful or low-quality content. Google’s goal with this update is to ensure that users find content that is genuinely useful and written for people, not just for search engines.
Impact on Websites:
Websites with content that is written primarily to rank on search engines rather than to help users may see a decline in their rankings. The update encourages content creators to focus on producing high-quality, helpful content that answers users’ questions and meets their needs.
8. Google Spam Updates (2020-2023)
Google regularly rolls out spam updates to fight against websites that use deceptive or manipulative practices to rank higher in search results. These updates target things like link schemes, cloaking, and other black-hat SEO techniques.
Impact on Websites:
Websites that engage in spammy practices, such as buying links or hiding content to manipulate rankings, are penalized. On the other hand, websites that follow best practices and maintain clean, ethical SEO strategies continue to perform well.
Conclusion
The past five years have seen significant changes in how Google ranks websites. From understanding the context of search queries with BERT and MUM, to focusing on user experience with the Page Experience Update, Google’s algorithms have become more sophisticated and user-focused. To keep up with these changes, it’s essential for website owners to prioritize high-quality, relevant, and user-friendly content. By staying informed about these updates and adjusting your website accordingly, you can ensure that your site remains competitive in Google’s search results.