An Important Lesson We Should Learn About Google’s Core Updates

Google Updates Nov 19

I am sure you have noticed all the buzz going around the recent Google updates (2019) and how the search engine positions are affected.

After all the speculations and assumptions, Google confirms it:

You can read the official announcement here. And for all the panic folks they have said this:

Interestingly:

Once you read the announcement, Google has highlighted over and over the importance of high-quality content.

we have updates that happen all the time in Google Search. If we don’t share about them, there is no particular actionable guidance to follow nor changes to make other than to keep focused on great content as we’ve advised generally Source – Google

For some reason, most of us overcomplicate things and forget about the fundamentals. If you look at every update, they are working on fixing algorithms to address manipulations and spammers.

If you are a person who creates quality content, you will never have to worry about the search engine updates. Of course, there may be ranking drops or spikes, but these are part of the internet and Google is an ever-evolving platform.

The logic is simple:

Just like we learn a thing two everyday, so does Google. So, the key thing to notice and learn from all these updates is the importance of quality content and the value it offers.

You can use the below questions as a guide to enhance the quality of your contents, it can be in the form of text, video, image or infographic.

Content Assessment Questions

Here are some key content and quality questions to help you deliver better contents:

  1. Does the content provide original information, reporting, research or analysis?
  2. Does the content provide a substantial, complete or comprehensive description of the topic?
  3. Does the content provide insightful analysis or interesting information that is beyond obvious?
  4. If the content draws on other sources, does it avoid simply copying or rewriting those sources and instead provide substantial additional value and originality?
  5. Does the headline and/or page title provide a descriptive, helpful summary of the content?
  6. Does the headline and/or page title avoid being exaggerating or shocking in nature?
  7. Is this the sort of page you’d want to bookmark, share with a friend, or recommend?
  8. Would you expect to see this content in or referenced by a printed magazine, encyclopedia or book?
  9. If you researched the site producing the content, would you come away with an impression that it is well-trusted or widely-recognized as an authority on its topic?
  10. Is this content written by an expert or enthusiast who demonstrably knows the topic well?
  11. Is the content free from easily-verified factual errors?
  12. Would you feel comfortable trusting this content for issues relating to your money or your life?
  13. Is the content free from spelling or stylistic issues?
  14. Was the content produced well, or does it appear sloppy or hastily produced?
  15. 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?
  16. Does the content have an excessive amount of ads that distract from or interfere with the main content?
  17. Does content display well for mobile devices when viewed on them?
  18. Does the content provide substantial value when compared to other pages in search results?
  19. Does the content seem to be serving the genuine interests of visitors to the site or does it seem to exist solely by someone attempting to guess what might rank well in search engines?

Source – Link

The Value

In the above announcement, Google has also linked it back to an article published way back in 2011 which emphasises the importance of building high-quality websites. You can read the announcement here.

If you follow the SEO best practises, read tons of blogs or articles on how to rank your article effectively, they all narrow down to the same thing ‘content’.

Content must offer value.

You have two options:

Option 1 – You can use all the SEO tools, do massive keyword research, build all the backlinks, create PBN’s, trick the Google algorithm and pray that Google never patches it.

Option 2 – Create quality content which offers values, use the keyword research tools as a guide to better your content. You do not need a PBN nor build backlinks as good contents naturally attract links.

At EasySocio, we always advocate going with Option 2 and suggest you avoid ranking shortcuts.

Google is massive, they are intelligent enough to identify and patch any blackhat techniques the ‘gurus’ brag about.

Look:

Creating quality content and optimising it for search engines is not as hard as you think:

  • Content – Write about the topic and make sure if offers ‘value’.
  • Keyword Research Tool – Use any Keyword research tool – even Google’s free keyword planner is more than enough to give you an idea.
  • Title – Give it a good title, sometimes simple titles attract more audience.
  • Meta Description – Write a good meta description which gives the reader a quick idea about the article.
  • Consistent – Remember to use your keyword on the Title and Meta Description
  • Spellings – make sure they are correct. Use free tools like Grammarly to fix your grammar and spelling.
  • Share – finally share the article in your social media accounts.

Each day, there are tons of content published online. Less stress and focus more on creating high-quality contents which search engines will rank.

The lesson to learn is clear. Focus on what matters more, offer value and let the rankings and backlinks follow.