Google makes algorithm changes on a regular basis, but core updates are more significant. These changes are aimed at continually refining search results to provide more relevant, high-quality content.
The broad core update launched on March 15 and completed its rollout on March 28. It targeted all content types across all regions and languages, promoting and rewarding pages that offer helpful information.
1. On-page optimization
When Google scans and assesses a webpage, it looks at many on-page SEO factors to determine its relevance and usefulness to searchers. This means creating valuable content that meets user intent is more important than ever before.
On-page SEO refers to optimizing the elements on a web page that are visible to Google crawlers, such as titles and meta descriptions, as well as HTML elements that aren’t displayed but are used by search engines to understand the content of a page, such as image alt text and internal links. In addition, on-page optimization includes making sure that URLs are descriptive and relevant to the page’s content.
It also involves using keywords in a natural and meaningful way avoiding keyword stuffing and overusing keywords. Finally, on page seo includes improving the user experience of a web page by ensuring that it loads quickly and is easy to navigate.
A key 2023 SEO trend is that Google will continue to favor websites that focus on high-quality content. As such, following best practices for writing helpful and informative content is a good way to prepare your website for any algorithm updates this year. For example, you should aim to create content that answers questions that people might have about a topic or product and include useful resources that direct users to other pages on your website for more information.
2. Backlinks
Backlinks are hyperlinks that point from one website to another, forming the strongest referral network in online search. They’re essential to a successful SEO strategy, and they play a key role in how Google evaluates your site.
However, not all backlinks are created equal. Some are considered spammy and can hurt your SEO rankings, so it’s important to have a link-building strategy in place that prioritizes quality over quantity. Having low-quality or unnatural backlinks can also result in a penalty from the search engine, which can cause a significant drop in your organic search rankings.
Google’s 2023 algorithm updates dropped the hammer on link-building tactics like keyword stuffing and other spammy strategies, redefining SEO techniques. These updates also made it more difficult to rank using purely technical metrics, emphasizing the importance of quality content and user experience.
On August 22nd, Google rolled out the latest version of its core algorithm. This update, along with the previous one in March and the September 2022 core update, is designed to improve the overall quality of search results. While some websites may see a change in their SERP rankings, Google stresses that these changes don’t necessarily mean something is wrong with the website or its content.
3. Schema markup
Schema markup is a simple way to help search engines better understand your webpage. This will not give you a #1 ranking by itself, but it can help your pages stand out in the SERPs. Plus, it can also make them more appealing for users on mobile devices and digital home assistants.
When implemented correctly, schema markup can result in a rich search result – like the one shown below. This is a great way to catch the attention of users and increase your clickthrough rates. In addition, it can even improve your rankings by giving you more real estate in the SERPs.
There are many tools available that can automatically generate schema code for you, which makes the process much easier. You can use them by entering your page’s URL or HTML code. Once you have done this, you can choose the appropriate schema type and add attributes prompted by the tool. We recommend using JSON-LD, as it is more lightweight than RDFa and Microdata and is more reliable against errors.
The March 2023 core update was the second major Google algorithm change this year and it focused on promoting high-quality and valuable content. As such, it caused significant changes in rankings for some websites. While most marketers reported either a dip or boost in their organic traffic, others experienced more drastic ranking fluctuations.
4. Quality content
As technology, users, and search engines evolve, Google constantly adapts its ranking algorithms. While the search giant does not fully disclose how its algorithm works, it does provide best practice guidelines and information to help SEO professionals keep pace with changing trends. These guidelines include promoting mobile-friendly content, avoiding link spam, and providing high-quality, informative content that is relevant to users’ searches.
In August 2023, Google rolled out a broad core update. This type of update can have a significant impact on rankings and may cause considerable ranking fluctuations for some sites. It emphasizes the importance of high-quality content by elevating reviews and other pages with valuable information while lowering low-quality pages.
The September 2023 helpful content update is another step in this direction. This update was designed to prevent content that is primarily written to rank well from having an unfair advantage over content that is truly helpful to users. It also aims to make sure that unoriginal and low-quality content doesn’t secure top rankings.
To avoid being penalized by this update, focus on creating content that is genuinely helpful to your customers. Use keyword research to find out what your target audience is looking for and write relevant, informative articles. Avoid keyword stuffing, which is the act of placing keywords in your content in a way that sounds unnatural and spammy. Vary sentence lengths as well, as content that has a mix of short and longer sentences tends to be more helpful and easy to read.
