Google’s Broad Core Update for May 2022 is now live, and webmasters around the world are scrambling to understand what it means for their sites. While the specifics of the update are not yet known, it is clear that it is designed to further improve the quality of search results. As with all algorithm updates, there is always some uncertainty about how the update will impact individual websites.
As your local SEO specialists, we do the research so you don’t have to! The purpose of this blog post is to help you understand how this update may impact your website and what you can do to ensure your website remains visible on search engine results pages.
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THE GOOGLE CORE UPDATES
Google’s Broad Core updates are some of the most significant algorithm changes that the search engine giant makes. These updates can have a substantial impact on website traffic, and they’re something that all digital marketers need to be aware of. Here are three things to know about Google’s upcoming Broad Core Update:
1. The May 2022 update will be the third Broad Core Update since 2020. The last two Broad Core Updates resulted in significant traffic shifts for many websites. That means that many websites will have seen their rankings change in the intervening months, and the May update could further shake things up.
2. As with all broad core updates, Google says the May 2022 update will be focused on improving the quality of search results. That means we can expect the update to target low-quality websites, fake news sources, and sites that engage in manipulative practices like keyword stuffing.
3. The May update will also likely affect how Google ranks “content farms” – sites that churn out large quantities of low-quality content in an attempt to game the system. These sites have been a thorn in Google’s side for years, and it’s possible that the May update will finally help to bury them once and for all.
By keeping these three things in mind, you can help ensure that your website is prepared for the Google May 2022 Broad Core Update.
WHAT HAS BEEN AFFECTED BY THE GOOGLE MAY 2022 CORE UPDATE SO FAR?
Although Google has not yet commented on what exactly they are trying to target with this most recent core update, here’s what people have been noticing:
Pragmatic/ thin sites
The May 2022 Google core update caused a lot of websites to lose ranking, and pragmatic/thin sites were no exception. This type of site generally has low-quality content and little depth, making it easy for Google to identify as being low-quality. As a result, these sites saw a significant drop in their search engine rankings after the update was rolled out.
Auto-generated content (to an extent)
The Google May 2022 core update also negatively impacted sites that used auto-generated content. This update was designed to penalize these sites in order to provide a better experience for users.
Redirects
One of the factors that appeared to be associated with a decrease in traffic was the number of redirects on a website. A redirect is when a website automatically sends a visitor to another page, often because the original page has been moved or no longer exists. Redirects can be helpful for visitors, but they can also create a lot of extra work for search engines. When a search engine crawls a website, it has to follow each redirect in order to determine where the visitor should be sent. This can slow down the crawling process and make it more difficult for the search engine to index the content on the site. In addition, too many redirects can create a confusing user experience, which can lead to users bouncing from the site. As a result, sites that have a lot of redirects may have been penalized by the Google May 2022 update.
Internal linking
Google’s May 2022 Core Update appears to be focusing on contextual linking, with many sites that depend heavily on internal linking seeing sharp declines in traffic. This has led to speculation that Google is devaluing links that are not placed in the context of the content surrounding them. While this is only speculation at this point, it seems likely that Google is placing more emphasis on contextual linking in order to provide a better user experience. After all, contextual links are more likely to be relevant to the user and offer a better chance of helping them find what they’re looking for. As a result, it makes sense for Google to give more weight to contextual links in its algorithms.
Load time/heavy, rich media assets/ads
Google’s May 2022 core update will focus on delivering a better experience for users by penalizing sites that have slow load times or rely heavily on rich media assets like advertising. This update is designed to improve the overall quality of search results by making sure that users are able to find the most relevant and useful content quickly and easily. While this may mean that some sites will see a decrease in traffic, it is important to remember that Google is always looking to improve the user experience. As such, sites that are able to make the necessary changes to improve their load times and deliver a more user-friendly experience will be rewarded in the long run.
HOW CAN YOU AVOID BEING PENALIZED BY GOOGLE?
Google is the dominant search engine, maintaining over 90% of the search engine market share. As a result, ranking highly on Google is essential for any website that wants to attract visitors. Fortunately, Google has been fairly explicit about what it values when it comes to ranking websites. This includes:
1. Relevance: Google assesses whether a website is relevant to a user’s search query. This evaluation is based on a number of factors, including the contents of a website’s pages, the keywords it uses, and the links it has from other websites.
2. Authority: Google also looks at a website’s authority when determining its rank. Authority is essentially a measure of how trusted and respected a website is. It takes into account factors such as the age of the domain, the quality of the content, and the number of inbound links.
3. User experience: Finally, Google wants to ensure that users have a positive experience when they visit a website. This includes things like page loading speed, mobile-friendliness, and whether or not there are pop-ups and other intrusive ads.
By understanding what Google values, website owners can take steps to improve their ranking and attract more visitors.
YOUR LOCAL SEO MARKETING SPECIALISTS
If you are looking for a marketing partner who can help you grow your business, look no further than Effective Web Solutions. We are a digital marketing agency and a Google Partner with over 13 years of extensive experience helping businesses like yours succeed online. EWS has a broad marketing team of professionals who understand how to read these algorithm updates so you don’t have to. Our team will work with you to create a custom digital marketing strategy that includes SEO, social media, and other marketing efforts that are designed to get results. We know what it takes to get your business noticed online and are dedicated to helping you reach your goals.
Digital marketing services we offer include:
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and more! Contact us today at (360) 256-4095 to learn more about our services and how we can help you grow your business.
Vanessa Zimin is the Blog Manager for Effective Web Solutions (EWS), an Internet Marketing and SEO company. Her main scope of work is writing engaging blogs for clients in order to help attract potential customers and improve their standing on popular search engines such as Google.
Vanessa graduated from Washington State University in 2021 with a major in Integrated Strategic Communications and a Criminal Justice minor. Her previous work experience includes customer service, content creation, writing, and campaign design and development.
When she’s not working, she enjoys traveling, exploring, spending time with family, friends and her french bulldog.