On August 25, 2022, it was that time again: Google started the two-week rollout of another SEO algorithm. With the Helpful Content Update, website operators are encouraged to focus more on user-friendly and valuable website content. This means that content should be designed in such a way that users find first-hand information. If you haven’t followed this strategy in the past anyway, you should urgently review your content and adapt it if necessary. In this article, we explain which factors the Helpful Content Update includes in detail and what administrators should pay more attention to when creating website texts in the future.
Effects on search engine ranking
First things first: The rollout is currently (as of 05.09.2022) only running for English-language websites. Therefore, now is the opportunity to make German-language websites fit for the Google Helpful Content Update. After the full update – the Google Ranking Update page will publish this info – there will be a new signal that will automatically crawl web content to see if it adds real value for users and is not solely for search engine optimization.
Even if there are some helpful pages with relevant content on a website, but among them there are only some less valuable pages, the ranking for the website as a whole could be downgraded. However, this also depends heavily on how many websites in the same category have more content-relevant pages overall.
Quick fix tip: Don’t index pages with weak content in the first place, or optimize existing content to the best of your ability.
If the website has been classified as having weak content, the signal can be applied to the website for several months. This is to ensure that strong content is offered sustainably after a revision.
Optimizing your own website – this is the best way to proceed
We have compiled the essential questions you should ask yourself when checking your web pages. This way, you’ll be protected from unpleasant surprises later on.
Is your website content primarily about one topic? Don’t digress! Write content about your business or your field. Because you are the expert and can give visitors valuable information. For example, if you sell shoes, it doesn’t make much sense to write about mohair wool, even if both are part of the apparel industry. Instead, fire up your blog or news section with topics on shoe production, leather production, alternative materials, production facilities, and more.
Do you have affiliates from related business sectors? Try to get references from related websites that have high authority. Let’s stick to the shoe topic: for example, a reference from a fashion magazine is much more valuable than from a travel page, unless it’s about sneakers.
Are all the questions about a topic answered on the page? Start with the W rule: who, what, when, how, why? Put yourself in a user’s shoes and think carefully: have all doubts been cleared up with this info and does the user now know much more than before? If you can answer yes to this, you have already done a lot right.
Do you keep an eye on all Google updates? SEO is constantly evolving. And many algorithms affect the ranking in parallel, from those of the first hour like Brandy (interaction of keywords) to Pigeon (locally adjusted results), etc. It is therefore advisable to always keep up to date with Google updates in order to be able to adapt the website content accordingly.
Are all websites screened based on Google Helpful Content?
Websites that are implemented and updated with valuable, unique, informative content based on actual expertise will help Google Helpful Content Update rank better. This includes content based on personal experience, etc.
This update is designed to downgrade those websites that are designed for search engine optimization. This means repetitive content or content primarily copied from other sites and little new, unique content.
What is “people first” content in concrete terms?
We’ve said it before: Content-poor articles have actually been out for a long time. Articles that offer exclusive, helpful content that demonstrates expertise and know-how are in. Produce content the way you would like to find it on other websites:
- fresh, clear information;
- not repetitive info;
- not too much of the same words and terms;
- quickly find the information you are looking for (SEO practices);
- Producing people-first content takes a little more time, but it’s not just your users who will respond positively. They will also be rewarded by the Google Helpful Content Update.
Traffic loss – what now?
If you experience lower rankings after implementing the Google Helpful Content Update, you can go through the following questions:
Is my content still new and relevant to my target audience?
Do I need to update my text tonality or style?
Are the texts easy to read?
Can I easily skip parts of text on a page, for example by using jump tags?
If you answer yes to all questions, you’re probably on the safe side and should have your web content reviewed for other factors.
If you do not have the capacity to check your website content yourself, we are the perfect contact as an experienced SEO agency. If you are interested, we offer a free SEO initial assessment. Feel free to send us a request, we will be happy to help you.
Google Helpful Content and UGC – what to consider
User-generated content, or UGC for short, is basically in high demand because it creates a bridge between website operators and users, because it makes a product or service tangible and provides valuable feedback from the user’s perspective. But can UGC also harm a website?
Google provides very clear guidelines on this: Webmasters are responsible for all content published on a website. So if irrelevant UGC goes online, it will also be caught by the Google Helpful Content Signal. Therefore, it is advisable to set pages with UGC to “noindex” by default until the content has been reviewed. In addition, each UGC should be reviewed before it is published. For links in the UGC, the attribute “rel=”ugc” is recommended.
Is ‘noindex’ a solution for weak content pages?
In a first step, the (short-term!) non-indexing of individual pages with weak content could already be a solution, as the search engine crawlers then leave these pages out of their assessment. If there are not too many pages, this is definitely a quick fix. But these non-indexed pages are still presented to users and leave them dissatisfied. Therefore, the quick revision of these pages is inevitable.
In the medium and long term, however, only pages with ‘people first’ content should be produced and launched. The ‘cleaner’ a website is, the more user-friendly it is. Crawlers also generally find it more valuable.
Are the first effects of the Google Helpful Content Update noticeable?
According to an analysis by Sistrix (as of August 31, 2022), there are currently no unusual fluctuations in the SERPs. Thus, the update is currently still in contrast to the Core Web Vitals, where changes in the search results were observed after a short time. Here it is important to keep a close eye on the SERP fluctuations of the English-language domains in the coming weeks.
Conclusion
Despite its scope and the comparisons with the Panda or the Penguin algorithm, the upcoming Google Helpful Content Update can definitely be mastered with a little skill and, if necessary, some content adjustments. The advice to create texts that represent added value, testify to expertise, have something new to say and are actually helpful to users applies all the more. When in doubt, less is more. A short-term deindexing of pages with weak content should rather be seen as an emergency solution. It is more advisable to skillfully adapt the content and focus on user needs when creating new content.
