Google rolled out a new update this month and many websites have been impacted by it. Danny Sullivan, Google’s Public Liaison for Search, shared some insights on the recent update through a Linkedin Post and we are going to summarise it for you to understand.
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Google is continuously making algorithm improvements
Danny Sullivan emphasised that Google’s ranking algorithm system is still evolving. The search giant (Google) is continuously learning and refining the way it showcases the content, with a particular focus on highlighting independent websites that offer high-quality and original content.
“…the work to connect people with ‘a range of high quality sites, including small or independent sites that are creating useful, original content’ is not done with this latest update. We’re continuing to look at this area and how to improve further with future updates,” he said.
Sullivan says that this effort is a part of Google’s broader mission to connect users with diverse content creators and not just big brands.
What to do if you website has not recovered from the Latest update
Sullivan even acknowledged that some high-quality websites might have been impacted by this new update and might have seen a drop in ranking. So he urged these site owner’s to stay on course and don’t change what they have been doing earlier. Such as producing high-quality content.
“…if you’re feeling confused about what to do in terms of rankings…if you know you’re producing great content for your readers…If you know you’re producing it, keep doing that…it’s to us to keep working on our systems to better reward it,” he said.
Do not over optimise your website
While sharing the advice to the impacted site owners. Danny Sullivan cautioned everyone about over-optimizing their sites that are already performing well. He said that it may be tempting to make changes in the hope of climbing a few more spots in search rankings. But it could backfire.
“If you’re showing in the top results for queries, that’s generally a sign that we really view your content well. Sometimes people then wonder how to move up a place or two. Rankings can and do change naturally over time. We recommend against making radical changes to try and move up a spot or two,” he said.
By this message he has made it clear for the website owners to be careful when making adjustments.
How does Google handles feedback from site owners
Sullivan even mentioned that all the feedback from the site owners are collected, summarised, and then passed on to Google search engineers for review. This feedback helps them in making future algorithm adjustments, particularly in areas where independent or smaller websites may have a disadvantage.
“I went through it all, by hand, to ensure all the sites who submitted were indeed heard. You were, and you continue to be. …I summarised all that feedback, pulling out some of the compelling examples of where our systems could do a better job, especially in terms of rewarding open web creators,” he said.
