Hitchhiker's Guide to the Google Algorithm Updates of 2021
Many times Google’s update changed how Google understands what queries and web pages mean. This results in different sites moving up, sites that conflict with the algorithm’s new understanding of what a user is looking for when they make a particular search query.
For SEO professionals 2021 is competitive. More businesses are coming online due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the digital war for ranking on the first page of SERP is getting higher & higher.
Google is no exception here. 9 algorithm updates so far and we have only reached half of the year. Google Liaisons has stopped giving fair warnings. Updates in 2021 are happening almost immediately.
1. February 10th: Passage Ranking
This change does not mean Google is indexing individual passages independent of pages. It’s still indexing pages and considering info about entire pages for ranking. But now we can also consider passages from pages as an additional ranking factor.
For example, let’s assume a website had one single, in-depth page with instructions for making different varieties of pasta: Italian, Mexican, vegan, chicken, and penne pasta – all recipes on one page. Google would have concluded that this page is on the general topic of “pasta recipes.”
Compare that with another website that has multiple pages with instructions for each type of pasta recipe. Google would decide that the site has content on specific topics like “Italian pasta recipe,” “penne recipe”, and so on. These pages will have a higher ranking signal in Google’s SERPs because the above-mentioned page on “coffee recipes” is a general one and would appear less specific and relevant to someone who searches for a single recipe.
If there is an anchor text link that is going to your site. Google is looking at what’s going on in that sentence. target keywords in the anchor text. How is it in the passage or paragraph? So they are waiting for the contextual basis around these links and not just the links
2. April 8th: Product Reviews update
It was designed to reward product reviews that share in-depth research rather than thin content that simply summarizes a bunch of products.
Google 9 guidelines to consider while creating and publishing product reviews
- Express expert knowledge about products where appropriate?
- Show what the product is like physically, or how it is used, with unique content beyond what’s provided by the manufacturer?
- Provide quantitative measurements about how a product measures up in various categories of performance?
- Explain what sets a product apart from its competitors?
- Cover comparable products to consider, or explain which products might be best for certain uses or circumstances?
- Discuss the benefits and drawbacks of a particular product, based on research into it?
- Describe how a product has evolved from previous models or releases to provide improvements, address issues, or otherwise help users in making a purchase decision?
- Identify key decision-making factors for the product’s category and how the product performs in those areas? For example, a car review might determine that fuel economy, safety, and handling are key decision-making factors and rate performance in those areas.
- Describe key choices in how a product has been designed and their effect on the users beyond what the manufacturer says?
Source: Google Search Central
3. June 2nd: Broad Core Algorithm update
As usual, Core updates are designed to filter out low-quality, irrelevant content from high-ranking positions and reward websites that prioritize producing relevant to search intent & informative content.
If the June core update causes your website to lose rankings, it means that crawlers have found other pages they believe to be more relevant based on the updates that are intended to improve their algorithm.
Here are some detailed reads on how to optimize your site based on Google’s quality guidelines
4. June 10: Non-Victims Protection Update
Mainly focuses on Google’s work towards improving the Algorithm to demote sites that employ exploitative removal practices or predatory practices. Google has provided a link to report such harassment activities happening online.
5. June 15th: Page Experience Update
The long-awaited page experience update is now live. Any sudden rank drops or spikes should be mitigated by the gradual rollout process. Google will stop using AMP for top stories eligibility and mainly covers core web vital factors like page speed.
From now on Google will consider page experience signals for the eligibility to rank in the top stories carousel and featured snippet sections.
Look into:
Core Web Vitals
The page provides a good user experience, focusing on the aspects of loading, interactivity, and visual stability:
Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) - Loading Speed Metric:
Measures the render time of the largest visible block (text or image) within the viewport, relative to when the page first started loading. To provide a good user experience, LCP should occur within the first 2.5 seconds of the initial page load.
First Input Delay (FID) - Website Responsiveness Metric:
A metric to measure how the delay in loading your site’s critical resources affects site responsiveness. To achieve a good user experience, the Website should have an FID of less than 100 milliseconds.
Image Source: Onely
Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)- Tracks Visual Stability:
If unexpected changes happen to the visible elements in the site during a user session this change in the layout is measured using CLS score.
To provide a better user experience, Websites should have a CLS score of less than 0.1.
Image Source: web.dev
Mobile-friendly
Google’s Mobile-first Index ranks the page in SERP based only on the mobile version of the URL. So it’s important to optimize your site for mobile versions.
You can check if your page is mobile-friendly with Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test Tool.
HTTPS
Always make sure if your site’s connection is secure. If the page does not have any security certificate, learn how to secure your site with HTTPS.
You could try a free HTTPS provider like Letsencrypt
No intrusive interstitials
The content on the page should be easily accessible to the user. Especially on mobile devices try to avoid unnecessary pop-ups.
6. June 23rd: Spam Update
The long-awaited page experience update is now live. Any sudden rank drops or spikes should be mitigated by the gradual rollout process. Google will stop using AMP for top stories eligibility and mainly covers core web vital factors like page speed.
From now on Google will consider page experience signals for the eligibility to rank in the top stories carousel and featured snippet sections.
Look into:
- Look For High-Quality Links with Good E.A.T Profile
- Referral Domains with High DA
- Authorship of Content Matters (Discourages fake profiles)
- Google also looks for what happens before someone clicks a particular link coming from an external site.
- Make sure the link is useful for your business or your particular area.
- Link Relevancy and Quality > Number of Links
Google warned that any sites participating in the link spam tactic could see the rankings changed. Sponsored, Guest & Affiliated content will get impacted.
7. July 12th & July 26th
Part 2 of June Core Update rollouts were completed on these dates.
Image Source: SEO Round Table
Conclusion: It’s a PIA for SEO Professionals
It’s hard to triangulate what’s happening to the ranking. We have to look at multiple factors to decide results. How the AI & Google view the search intent is changed.
Some sites may lose position because of not something they did badly. But due to algorithms judgment of what is relevant has changed. Many times Google’s update changed how Google understands what queries and web pages mean. That can result in different sites moving up, sites that conflict with the algorithm’s new understanding of what a user is looking for when they make a particular search query.
The consumer’s utilization of the search you are targeting has shifted dramatically.
So What to Do Here?
Google’s Experimenting on Intent Shift
They sense covid user intent change. For example, People are now looking for home office furniture, used office furniture, over corporate office furniture. That’s a big shift in buyer behavior and search intent.
It’s all About Content:
With the BERT update, the machine learning of natural language processing is the base connector of what’s happening now. Provide value to the Google user to get higher rankings.
- Go after long-tail keyphrase
- Go after high intent key phrases, not just general topics.
- If you are a local business take steps to connect with the local community.
- Google’s looking for brands that people talk about, people share and all these different associations are looked upon because social media or web 2.0 represents what’s happening in the physical world and it needs to mirror that.
About Me
Hi, I’m Frizel, a professional Digital Marketing Executive & Content Strategist with a passion for business, innovation, and web technologies and my ultimate aim is to be a Full Stack Marketer.