Google August 2024 Core Update: Early Winners & Losers

Google August 2024 Core Update: What We’re Seeing Early On

Google began rolling out the August 2024 core update on August 22nd. As with all core updates, this update is expected to take a couple of weeks to fully roll out.

Early chatter within the SEO community suggests that this update may be more volatile than recent core updates. Some sites are reporting significant ranking fluctuations, both positive and negative.

Disclaimer: It’s still very early days. It’s important to avoid drawing firm conclusions about the update’s impact until it has fully rolled out.

What to Expect

Core updates are designed to improve the overall relevance and quality of search results. Google’s guidance for core updates remains consistent: focus on building high-quality, helpful content that demonstrates expertise, experience, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness (E-E-A-T).

Here are some of the areas where we’re seeing early movement:

Content Quality: As always, content quality seems to be a major focus of this update. Sites with thin, low-quality, or outdated content appear to be hit the hardest.

E-E-A-T: Google continues to emphasize E-E-A-T as a ranking factor. Sites that lack clear author credentials or demonstrate expertise in their niche may be negatively impacted.

Technical SEO: While less prominent in early discussions, technical SEO issues like slow loading times, broken links, and poor mobile optimization could also contribute to ranking drops.

What to Do If You’re Impacted

If you see your rankings fluctuate during this core update, don’t panic. Here’s what you should do:

• Monitor your rankings: Keep a close eye on your rankings over the coming days and weeks. Use a rank tracking tool to get a clear picture of any changes.
• Analyze your content: Review your content to identify any potential areas for improvement. Focus on creating high-quality, informative, and engaging content that provides real value to users.
• Review your technical SEO: Make sure your website is technically sound. Fix any broken links, improve your site speed, and ensure your site is mobile-friendly.
• Don’t make drastic changes: Avoid making major changes to your website during a core update. Focus on making incremental improvements to your content and technical SEO.

Remember, core updates are a normal part of the SEO landscape. By focusing on creating high-quality content and providing a great user experience, you can weather the storm and come out stronger on the other side.