Google set a new precedent with its “June 2019 Core Update” by announcing for the first time in Google Updates history the early rollout of a major change to the core algorithm.
Initial impact of the June 2019 Core Update
An analysis of our Research Cloud data can indicate some general trends and tell us where Google is headed with the June 2019 Core Update.
Jordan Koene, CEO of Searchmetrics, also detailed these observations in his podcast Voices of Search.
More video carousels in the SERP
Some updates don’t just change the way website content is evaluated, they also impact the layout of the SERPs. One of those changes, in June 2018, was the deployment of “video rides” for a considerable number of search queries.
This change in the presentation of the SERP increased YouTube’s visibility, increasing its attendance by 25% in the first week of deployment. And with the June 2019 Core Update, we’re seeing something similar, with a second leap forward in the presence of video carousels in 61.1% of desktop searches.
Google targets sites with low-quality content
(as always)
Among the websites affected by this update are press sites, which suggests that Google is always more demanding with the level of quality of news stories.
The way Google evaluates quality is far from transparent, but “it” seems to be targeting sites that it believes offer low-value content for news topics.
Two examples:
- As referred to in Fast Company co.uk (in the United Kingdom), and
- cbs.com (in the United States).
And whenever there are losers in a particular area, someone — often a rival — reaps the rewards. The SEO visibility graph shows how the loss of CBS was reflected by the gain of Newsweek in the week of the update.
Notice the curves that come together at the beginning of June…
“Boosted” trusted aggregator sites
If low-quality or small-sized sites lose points, it seems natural that larger sites with a reputation for quality content will make up for these losses. This is where you may have gained positions
Google has ANNOUNCED this update, it’s a first!
On June 2, 2019, a previously unthinkable event occurred in the world of Google: Google announced — in advance — that a major update modifying the core algorithm was about to be rolled out.
Until now, changes to the core of the algorithm had always been confirmed, acknowledged or announced after they went live.
This update statement was unveiled on Twitter, Google not only revealed the launch date (June 3, 2019), but also provided a name to refer to it.
“June 2019 core update.” Not very sexy, we’ll agree…
The Google Search Liaison Tweeter channel was also used to communicate the status of this rollout on the day of this update
Second Google Core update of 2019
Google’s June 2019 core update is the second major change to the core algorithm for 2019.
Google’s March 2019 core update (Florida 2) significantly disrupted the search results of search queries covered by the acronym E.A.T (Expertise, Authoratitveness, Trust) and it was healthcare websites that were among the main winners and losers of this update.
What is a Core Update?
these types of my updates don’t clearly emphasize a certain type of search query or certain features of a website. They make more subtle changes “under the hood”.
While some reputable Google updates, such as Panda or Penguin, specifically target things like content quality or backlinks, the main updates are aimed at impacting websites in many areas.
These updates to Google’s main algorithm are published several times a year on Google’s website
What should I do if my positions collapse after a Google update?
In late 2018, Google provided explanations for its core updates, stating that they were not about specific errors or questionable practices and that webmasters could not “fix” anything to recover lost positions after this type of core update.
Google recommends providing users with the best content possible — this is the best way to improve rankings.
To do this, Google’s recommended first step is to review the Google Search Quality Rating Guidelines. This document is designed to help quality evaluators understand, in significant detail, how to classify and evaluate content. The article suggested in the link above provides a good update on the evolution of these recommendations.
A great summary would say this
- Updates to the Google search algorithm are now about the overall quality of the site. and not the hunt for fraudulent practices ( panda for the text, penguin for the links and many others. The generic name is Core Update.
- A website must be responsive and 100% mobile-friendly , otherwise your positions on mobile-first indexing will be bad.
- Avoid intrusive pop-ups that take up the majority of a phone’s screen
- Play the speed of display whatever the navigation medium.
- Write structured , quality, well-composed content that provides useful information.
- Don’t hunt for low-end links.
- Specify your url to HTTPS .
- Forget about doorway page strategies, build a major site that covers all aspects of your topic.
Finally
“Don’t panic when your positions fall, an algorithm that is deployed all over the planet returns results that will “wobble” for a while and then stall
.The absolute priority is to be cold in these transitions with Google and take back its copy by hunting down useless pages and poor or redundant content.
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