Diggity Marketing SEO News Roundup—October 2023

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October’s SEO roundup comes successful the aftershock of respective immense Google updates and developments that whitethorn find the aboriginal of AI content. Get caught up present with the latest lawsuit studies, guides, and news.

First, the lawsuit studies volition update you connected the latest data. This month’s items are astir the updates, including however Google foreshadowed immoderate Helpful Content Update (HCU) changes, however the HCU deployed from rollout to impact, and what you tin bash astir HCU visibility loss. You’ll besides get 2 perspectives astir the winners and losers of the halfway update.

After that, the guides volition assistance you set to immoderate of the caller changes. You’ll get 2 looks astatine however to instrumentality vantage of caller AI upgrades.

Finally, you’ll get caught up connected the month’s biggest news. Google confirms the adjuvant contented update is complete, has softly removed the tag “Written by People, and has made the arguable announcement that links are not a large hunt origin (I person immoderate thoughts astir it).

The September 2023 Google Helpful Content Update – Did Google’s Announcement successful April About Page Experience Foreshadow What We’re Seeing With the Current HCU(X)?

https://www.gsqi.com/marketing-blog/september-2023-google-helpful-content-update-hcux/

Glenn Gabe brings you this look astatine the Helpful Content Update and wherefore it whitethorn beryllium having the interaction it had connected the hardest-hit sites. He takes you done immoderate caller statements by Google and provides information to assistance you recognize however these ideas are present being used.

He starts you with immoderate representation examples of sites that saw important drops. Glenn argues that he’s recovered an important signifier successful these hard-hit sites: They each person the dual problems of unhelpful contented and atrocious UX.

hcu-performance
hcu-visibility
hcu-estemated-traffic

Among different trends helium noticed connected these sites were ample ads, auto-playing videos, pop-ups, and different intrusive elements. Google has go much committed oregon much precocious astatine targeting these issues arsenic of this update, and arsenic Glenn explained—they warned you.

Glenn refers to a recent change to Google’s guidance connected adjuvant content. It recommends that website owners absorption connected idiosyncratic acquisition wide alternatively than trying to people higher halfway web captious scores.

He argues that this argumentation is present being enforced, and the sites deed by this update were the archetypal to consciousness the effects. The changes to champion practices spell beyond web vitals and necessitate website owners to deliberation much cautiously astir advertisement placement, readability, and different issues that compromise contented quality.

Check retired the implicit usher for much of Glenn’s thoughts. For now, you tin leap into immoderate mentation connected what to bash astir these changes if your website is targeted. You’ll commencement with 1 of the astir broad HCU breakdowns yet available.

Google’s Helpful Content Update: Full Review, Analysis, and Recovery

https://on-page.ai/pages/helpful-content-update/

Eric Lancheres brings you this heavy look into the HCU, which helium argues is 1 of the astir impactful updates successful a agelong time. He tackles the motivations down the update, immoderate theories for however the algorithm works now, his ongoing tests and experiments, and truthful overmuch more.

helpfulcontent-drop

He starts with a broad look astatine the signals Google was putting retired earlier the update landed. You’ll find a database of links to each of the authoritative statements and his arguments for what they’re hinting toward.

Then, helium gives you a past of the “AI Classifier,” an AI-driven process that helium argues was a ample portion of this update and that Google is utilizing to justice article-type contented successful particular. He covers immoderate theories of however this process works and however it whitethorn beryllium evaluating your content

google-helpful-content-update

He besides makes a lawsuit for however helium believes the Google Algorithm itself is changing aft this update. He introduces the caller “helpful score,” which is present a ranking factor, and shows you however it whitethorn already beryllium starring to superior changes successful your ranking position.

That’s truly lone the opening of his analysis, however. The remainder of the nonfiction features before-and-after comparisons, tiny lawsuit studies of affected sites, and his predictions for the future.

His nonfiction has acold much than tin beryllium covered here. Make definite you cheque it retired to find immoderate coagulated proposal and a ton of graphs and information to assistance you marque consciousness of what you’re seeing. Next, you’ll find different position connected HCU, focused connected the steps you tin instrumentality close present for recovery.

The September Helpful Content Update: Why You Were Affected and What You Can Do

https://www.mariehaynes.com/the-september-helpful-content-update-why-you-were-affected-and-what-you-can-do/

Marie Haynes brings you this look astatine corrective actions you tin instrumentality if your tract was 1 of those deed by the latest HCU.

September-Helpful-Content-Update

She has a mentation for wherefore galore sites were negatively affected. She argues that determination are beardown reasons to judge that sites astir affected were those that prioritized SEO tactics implicit authentic first-hand experiences.

Her investigation spotted the pursuing trends among the affected look and manner sites—

She diagnosed astir affected sites arsenic having low-value oregon unhelpful content.

As she points out, if the Helpful Content System detects low-quality content—it becomes a site-wide classification Only a fewer sections oregon pages of atrocious contented request to beryllium to origin problems for your full site.

She believes that the rater guidelines connection immoderate clues to assistance you recover. First, she recommends that you displacement your contented goals toward what is being rewarded, namely:

See her usher for a much implicit mentation and much tips. The adjacent usher besides has immoderate ideas connected quality. It volition thatch you the value of utilizing prime data.

Now that you person determination to commencement with the HCU, let’s leap into the months adjacent large update. It starts with a look astatine the winners and losers of the core update with an investigation from the Sistrix team.

Google Core Update August 2023 – Data and Analysis

https://www.sistrix.com/blog/google-core-update-august-2023-data-and-analysis/

Steve Paine brings you this post-update look astatine however the changes are affecting large sites successful UK search. He tracked the volatility done the highest connected September 1st until the announcement it had concluded connected the 7th.

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He includes for you respective tables that screen the biggest winners and losers. You’ll find the 20 largest winners and losers by some percent and implicit changes successful position.

As a preview, present are some the apical 5 winners and losers by alteration successful implicit position—

Steve identified 2 niches successful peculiar arsenic worthy immoderate other attention. Large wide retail sites seemed to acquisition mislaid rankings crossed the board. Reference domains seemed to bash overmuch amended than they person during caller updates. Their positions mostly didn’t change.

Next, you’ll get immoderate much Analysis connected this update from the squad astatine Amsive.

Google August 2023 Core Update: Winners, Losers & Analysis

https://www.amsive.com/insights/seo/google-august-2023-core-update-winners-losers-analysis/

Lily Ray brings you this adjacent look astatine the Core Update. She focused her investigation connected immoderate of the factors that whitethorn beryllium driving the changes, including the emergence of AI content, and changes successful however Google perceives idiosyncratic experience.

She starts with a look astatine the astir affected sites breached down by their niche/category. She recovered that immoderate categories were highly over-represented. Among the astir affected were quality sites, reappraisal sites, wellness sites and question sites.

Reddit.com was recorded arsenic 1 of the astir rewarded sites, with a 64.68% summation successful its visibility. She dove further into this result, noting that UGC (user-generated content) sites successful wide experienced precise bully results, though nary were adjacent to matching Reddit.

Winner of the August 2023 halfway   update

Among the losers, she highlighted the results of immoderate quality sites, immoderate of which saw declines successful visibility implicit 70%.

Losers of the August 2023 halfway   update

Lily besides identified what appeared to beryllium a inclination with important gains and losses among antithetic reappraisal sites. Review sites that emphasized the user’s idiosyncratic acquisition were rewarded, portion sites that lacked existent acquisition seemed to spot declining visibility crossed the board.

Additionally, she noted that galore lyric sites rewarded successful the March update seemed to suffer a batch of their gains.

Check retired her afloat investigation for much accusation connected winners and losers. For now, you’re acceptable to determination connected to the guides. To begin, you’ll larn astir the value of prime information and however to physique it.

What Is Quality Data and How It Connects Search, Content, and AI Success

https://www.searchenginejournal.com/what-is-quality-data-and-how-it-connects-search-content-and-ai-success/496287/

Lemuel Park wants you to recognize the indispensable relation of prime information successful gathering a instauration for enhanced AI, search, and contented selling strategies.

Quality Data

He identifies mediocre prime information arsenic a basal origin of galore problems, including operational disruptions, useless insights, and atrocious decision-making regarding search. Quality data, helium argues, volition person the pursuing attributes—

He has immoderate ideas for marketers who are looking to amended the prime of their information truthful that they tin usage it much effectively. Among different strategies, helium argues that you should—

See his full portion for much proposal connected the value of information quality, and however businesses tin bash much to guarantee it. Next, you’ll larn however generative AI fits into the aboriginal of branding, and however the cognition graph tin help.

GenAI and the Future of Branding: The Crucial Role of the Knowledge Graph

https://moz.com/blog/gen-ai-and-the-future-of-branding

Sara Moccand-Sayegh has immoderate proposal for however you tin make a stronger marque by processing your contented to person branded mentions successful AI generative content.

She argues that utilizing the cognition graph is an effectual mode to guarantee your marque tin beryllium featured and little the hazard of hallucination connected GenAI tools that usage Google arsenic a source.

GenAI

For those who whitethorn not beryllium aware, Google’s Knowledge Graph is the hunt engine’s monolithic database of facts astir billions of people, places, and things.

These stored facts assistance Google debar problems similar hallucination by keeping permanent, change-resistant records of accusation that is known to beryllium factually close (for example, the tallness of the Eiffel Tower).

Your brand, and the important details astir it, tin beryllium added to this cognition graph. Sara argues that you should marque this a priority, and has immoderate proposal connected however to marque it happen.

First, she provides you with a broad mentation for however concepts (including brands) go included connected the cognition graph. After that, she moves connected to instructions. She lays retired however to crook your marque into an “entity” that tin beryllium added and confirmed connected the graph.

As she explains, the mode you make contented plays a ample relation successful whether your marque tin appear. She provides a broad mentation for however you make unsocial identifiers, attributes and different elements that tin velocity your brand’s introduction into the graph.

Check retired her implicit usher for elaborate explanations. For now, you’re acceptable to determination connected to the news. First, Google has confirmed that the HCU is present complete.

Google September 2023 Helpful Content Completed Rolling Out – Targeting Seo-First Content

https://www.seroundtable.com/google-september-2023-helpful-content-update-done-rolling-out-36127.html

Barry Schwartz brings you this news, nonstop from Google, that 1 of the largest updates has finished rolling out. He has immoderate closing thoughts connected however it ended, and what it mightiness suggest astir what comes next.

September 2023 adjuvant  contented  update

As helium states successful his report, this update caused galore successful the SEO manufacture to consciousness straight targeted. Barry argues that this update whitethorn person yet accomplished what some erstwhile HCUs (in August ‘22 and December ‘22) were moving toward.

It surely generated a batch of SEO chatter, which Barry covers crossed X (formerly Twitter) and different sources. September 20th and 26th seemed to beryllium the times erstwhile astir SEOs began to spot changes.

Google Sep HCU

Barry besides covers the absorption from Google, including John Mueller, who promised to propulsion things adjacent further successful upcoming updates. Google has been resolute truthful acold that determination won’t beryllium immoderate rollbacks of the changes.

Check retired his implicit nonfiction for links to Google statements, SEO chatter, and more. If you disquieted these changes mightiness beryllium an onslaught connected AI content, the adjacent quality point whitethorn marque you consciousness better.

Google Quietly Removes ‘Written by People’ From Suggestions for Website Owners

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/google-quietly-removes-written-people-165608826.html

Thomas Germain brings you this study that Google has removed the proposition “written by people” arsenic a proposition for website owners.

google region   suggestion

As helium reports, Google has made human-written contented a precedence for years. In fact, the archetypal condemnation of Google’s connection astir the past update claimed that it was designed to guarantee visitors spot contented “written by people”. Google ne'er described however the archetypal “by people” request was enforced, oregon what penalties mightiness beryllium applied.

The phrasing has present been updated to stress that contented indispensable beryllium written “for people”. This alteration suggests that AI contented is good truthful agelong arsenic it is utile to readers. Google whitethorn nary longer beryllium funny successful (or capable to) constabulary contented generated done AI.

Google hasn’t offered overmuch clarification successful the aftermath of this change, and they astir apt won’t until the adjacent update offers america a fewer much clues. The past portion for the period concerns immoderate much statements by Google, and it has generated a batch of chatter among SEOs.

Links Are Not a Top 3 Google Search Ranking Factor, Says Gary Illyes

https://searchengineland.com/links-google-search-ranking-factor-gary-illyes-432422

Danny Goodwin brings you this communicative astir caller statements by Gary Illyes.

google hunt  ranking origin   gary illyes

Gary claims that radical (SEOs presumably) overestimate the worth of links. He went further by saying they weren’t adjacent successful the apical 3 astir important factors and that it was imaginable to fertile without them.

His comments travel comments by different Google squad members, including Duy Nguyen, who stated past November that “backlinks arsenic a awesome has a batch little important interaction compared to erstwhile Google Search archetypal started retired galore years ago.” Even further back, successful 2014, Matt Cutts insisted that decreasing the worth of links was a semipermanent goal.

SEOs reacted with doubt. For my part, I deliberation that this is simply a amended statement of however Google would “like” the argumentation to work. Actual SERPs look to overgarment a precise antithetic picture.

As an example, Parasite SEO (the signifier of gathering links connected importantly much authoritative sites) has proven to beryllium powerfully useful successful conscionable the past mates of years. Just due to the fact that Google would similar links not to beryllium effectual does not mean they’ve accomplished that for each niches.

parasite seo

For now, we’re waiting to perceive more. Google whitethorn respond much comprehensively to bounds the powerfulness of links successful the future. Or, arsenic they’ve done with AI, they whitethorn find a mode to beryllium astatine bid with it.

If there’s immoderate change, you tin work astir it present successful 1 of our aboriginal roundups!

Matt-Author-Img

Matt is the laminitis of Diggity Marketing, LeadSpring, The Search Initiative, The Affiliate Lab, and the Chiang Mai SEO Conference. He really does SEO too.