Google has announced the completion of its August core update. Website owners and SEO professionals can now fully assess the update’s impact on search performance.
This roll-out is now complete.
— Google Search Central (@googlesearchc) September 3, 2024
The August core update, launched on August 15, is part of Google’s ongoing effort to improve the quality and usefulness of its search engine.
Gradual, Extended Rollout
Unlike typical day-to-day updates, core updates require an extended rollout. For the August update, Google indicated it could take up to a month to finish.
With its completion confirmed, now is the time to analyze the data and identify any significant ranking shifts.
“You’d really need to wait until the core update finishes rolling out to make any call about its effect,” John Mueller, Google’s Senior Search Analyst, stated in a LinkedIn discussion last month. “If you want to compare before vs after, waiting for it to be finished is important.”
Mueller also noted that it’s normal for search rankings to fluctuate during the rollout process, cautioning against drawing conclusions.
Measuring Content Quality
Throughout the rollout period, Google reiterated that core updates are intended to better match search results with content that provides users genuine value and relevance.
The company has maintained that sites focused predominantly on search engine optimization rather than helping users are likelier to experience negative ranking impacts.
To help affected sites, Google recently updated its guidance on core algorithm updates, providing clearer recommendations for pinpointing and addressing significant ranking drops using tools like Search Console.
Refined Advice For Recovery
The revised core update documentation emphasizes substantive content improvements over quick remedies.
It encourages thorough self-auditing against Google’s quality guidelines, stressing meaningful changes aligned with user needs rather than deleting underperforming pages outright.
The updated guidance states
“Things to keep in mind when making changes [include] prioritizing substantive, user-centric improvements rather than quick fixes. Removing content should be a last resort…suggesting it was created for search engines rather than users.”
Additionally, Google’s refreshed advice sets realistic expectations that regaining lost rankings may require waiting for future core updates even after enhancements are implemented.
AI Overviews Also Impacted
In a related development, Mueller confirmed that Google’s AI-generated overviews displayed in some search results are also influenced by core algorithm updates, tying the experimental AI features more directly to the core ranking systems.
“These [AI overviews] are a part of search, and core updates affect search, so yes,” Mueller stated when asked if the overviews are subject to core update changes.
Looking Ahead
While disruptive, Google maintains these core updates are necessary to continually refine how its systems prioritize the most useful information for search queries.
Publishers should focus content strategies on meeting user needs rather than pursuing SEO in isolation. As AI-generated overviews become further intertwined with core ranking systems, demonstrating true value may be more critical than ever.
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