August 2023 Google Core Algorithm Update

Google released their second core search update of 2023.

Google began rolling out a core update on August 22, 2023. The update was completed on September 7th, 2023.

Why Do We Care? Google regularly releases core updates to the algorithm. Any of these updates may have an impact on your search rankings, whether positive or negative, though some may have no impact on your site depending on the focus of the update. This could affect how your website is optimized to remain competitive in search.

What Does This Mean? The core update made significant broad changes to the search algorithm and system, focusing on content relevancy. What does this mean for page ranking? Depending on the relevancy, your page ranking could rise or fall. The two key factors Google’s latest update emphasizes are relevancy and age.When looking at the relevancy of content, a key aspect will always be relevancy to the search query, which is why optimizing around frequently searched keywords is always important. Another key aspect of relevance is age. If content is 5 years old it may be seen as less relevant than content 2 years old or published within the year, as there may be new information on the focus topic. Knowledge is always evolving. 

With this latest update comes an increased emphasis on quality and up-to-date, fresh content. Technical fixes will not be the solution for content that has slipped down the rankings. 

How Long Does it Take to Recover? There is no guaranteed timeline for how long it will take to recover if there is a drop in rankings. With this core update, some content may take several months to recover if improvements are made, or potentially may never recover. So, adding new content that addresses current search trends may be more effective than trying to bring back rankings for older content that has lost ranking. Though revisiting and updating old will not hurt, it may not bring back the rankings. Google recommends taking a look at content that is not performing well and assessing what may not be working, evaluate the search terms that are bringing individuals to different pages on the site and the popularity of those queries. 

What’s Next? We will see the impact of the core update on rankings over the next couple of months, and recovery will unfold over the next several months. Google is encouraging businesses and SEO professionals to have patience, as there are no quick fixes that will make an impact for this core algorithm update. Stick to the fundamentals, focus on improving website quality and regular posting of new quality content.