The latest Google algorithm update did not come as a shock. Although, algorithm update is a regular practice since the very beginning, but the years 2011 and 2012 are worth mentioning. These were the years when Panda and Penguin updates came into the limelight, which changed the perception about SEO process. With the passage of time, a number of updates were launched by Google. Several business units, whose rankings dropped, complained, but as a matter of the fact, Google did it in order to provide the better user experiences.

In the year 2018 also, two new updates were released by Google. But, first it would be better to understand how algorithm works for the ranking of a website.

What Is Algorithm and How It Works

An algorithm is a weighted metrics to determine the order to rank a page in terms of Google. As a simple metaphor, we can say that algorithm provides marks to the websites on distinct bases. Algorithm comprises of set of rules, and each rule renders the score to your website on the basis of some specific aspects of the site. Some of the deciding factors that raise your ranking are the quality of website design & development, quality of content, popularity of website over web, the traffic over website and more. In order to improve this experience, Google has released a plethora of updates time to time.

Google Updates in 2018

The latest Google algorithm update was launched on August 1, 2018, with official statement on Twitter. But, before the August update, an official statement was made in March by Google explaining a broad algorithm update, which puts the impact on entire algorithm. As a result of this update, the rankings of several websites went down. But, a follow-up tweet said that there is nothing to fix in the websites, which lost their rankings.

The tweet said “There’s nothing wrong with pages that may now perform less well. Instead, it’s that changes to our systems are benefiting pages that were previously under-rewarded….”

Further tweets stated that there is no fix to this issue. The ranking will be raised itself with the rise of content relative to other websites. The tweet also stated that focusing on building great content is the only way to raise the ranking over the time.

This statement shows that there is no short-cut to increase website ranking. You need to focus on the long-term process. According to some experts, you are no more needed to fulfill the requirement of the search engines. Instead, you need to focus on what users of your websites want, which will be further mentioned in detail in this blog post.

One more update was announced under Google broad core updates on August 1, as mentioned above. According to the tweet, “Our guidance about such updates remains the same as in March.” So, the focus again is on the content. Still, the change can be witnessed in the rankings. Many of the websites got the benefit of this update. On the contrary, there are several other websites, whose rankings were dropped.

Some More Impact of the Latest Algorithm Update by Google

Just a few days have gone, so it needs some more time to fully analyze the complete impact of the Google’s latest algorithm update. But, some impacts could be witnessed during these days. According to some surveys, the major focus of Google seems to be on medical and health-related websites. This is why this update is being termed as Google Medic Update. Some entertainment and gaming niches are also facing the impact of this update.

Some of the websites, which were at the top of SERP suddenly found the flak from the website. According to the metric, 7.5% plunge can be witnessed in the baseline match of some of the first match medic pages. The next data is more threatening for the healthcare sector. This data is regarding the exact match search. As per some reports, there is a decrease of 39.0% in three exact matches for some top healthcare websites. On the other hand, the nosediving position of 64% and 94% have been seen in the top five and top ten exact matches.

August 3 was the date when a maximum negative impact of broad core update took place. The fluctuation in the search ranking for healthcare and medical website reached at the score of 9.4 of 10. Websites from some other industries were also impacted from this update. Tour and Travel sector is one more perfect example in this regard.

YMYL stands for Your Money Your Life are the other examples of the drop. These websites ask the Personal Identifiable Information of the users. The information includes license details, personal identification numbers, bank account number, medical history, health information and more. But, it doesn’t mean that every website asking for these details have been affected. The authentic and super trustworthy are immune to this plunge. As a matter of the fact, these types of high authority websites are preferred by the search engines, especially Google.

The reason behind this is the appreciation of the users also. This is why it is highly recommended to the webmasters and the SEO experts to work according to the requirements of users instead of focusing on the algorithms. The Google’s standard for the website is E A T, which stands for Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. A number of metrics Google has in order to give signals about the EAT quality of a website.

In the case of health and wellness websites also, there are some websites that possess EAT quality. First, the content written on these websites by the experts of the subjects provides this quality. Secondly, the website should have the proper pages such as about, disclaimer, contact and customer support pages. The overall structure of the website and the page description also matter a lot for the EAT quality.

Now, the question about ranking is again in the front of webmasters. Here are some of the ideas that can be used. But remember, you need to make a long-term plan.

What to Do After The Latest Google Algorithm Update

Focus on Building Great Content:

As mentioned in a Google’s tweet also, the only fix to the drop of the ranking is to focus on building great content. That is not something wrong, which dropped the ranking of your website. The only problem is that there are some other websites, which have a great content as compared to your website. So, as a matter of the fact, it is the competition that has taken the websites to high or low ranks. This is why the focus should be given to build the excellent content that may take your website to the high ranking again.

Focus on Users’ Requirements Instead of Search Engines:

A few years ago, a lot of webmasters used to add the content keeping Google algorithms in mind. By manipulating the algorithms, some incompetent websites also would come on top rankings. In order to improve the users’ experience, Google had to go for accomplishing the major changes in the algorithms. In the present scenario, the Google algorithm updates take place to keep the users’ requirements in mind. Therefore, the safe game for the website owners is to work keeping the requirements of users in mind. Besides, the updates take place several times in a year, among which the major updates are announced. So, working on each and every update will make it a difficult game. You are required to ask users what they want and that is the best way to get an idea to increase the website ranking.

Remove Irrelevant Pages Periodically:

This is also a way to update the website. The irrelevant content may be the trouble in building the great content. So, you need to remove that and redirect the links to other pages. Sometimes, the website ranking drops at the moment, but as already mentioned you need to be focused on the long-term goals. In the long term, you can get more traffic and improvement in ranking.

Merge the Similar Pages:

If your website has the identical pages, you require merging them. Suppose, you have two blog posts with the same content, you need to merge the less popular one to the more popular.

Check and Maintain EAT Quality:

As mentioned above also, The Google algorithm does not touch the websites, which fulfill the criteria of EAT quality. So, if you maintain this quality, your website can be immune from drop due to update in future. If a website has been perfectly developed, it has ideal structure, and the content has been written by the experts of the subject, then your website will have no adverse impact of the update in the coming days, plus the current ranking may also get improved.

Follow the SEO Rules Genuinely:

If the SEO rules are followed genuinely along while maintaining the quality of website then it may be a boon for your website.

Just Wait:

Waiting can also be an ideal option. If your website’s ranking has faced a drop, it may eventually get a rise also.