Google's latest core update, completed last Friday, raises concerns for publishers about its impact on search visibility and traffic. The unpredictability of such updates, which occur multiple times a year, has led to frustration among publishing executives. Many recall last year's updates, which severely affected news and product review sites. During a recent closed-door session, executives conveyed feelings of helplessness, likening the situation to 'Groundhog Day' due to the recurring nature of Google's changes, leaving them in the dark about how updates affect their sites.
Another Google core update was completed last Friday, the first one this year - but what it will mean for publishers won't be clear for a while, if at all.
Last year's core updates threw publishers for a loop. A core update in March 2024 aimed at cleaning up spam and low-quality content in Google search results hit news publishers hard.
The consensus was clear: there is a sense of Groundhog Day when it comes to Google's updates, and they're yet again in the dark and at the mercy of those changes.
Nobody ever knows anything about core updates, said another publishing exec.
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