After Bing announced a series of updates to its search algorithm, it is Google that has made the latest announcement. If your website is not mobile-ready already, you should be concerned about these new algorithm updates. Does your website rely on doorway pages? Does it not have schema data? You should take immediate steps to address these points.
Google Confirms the Algorithm Updates
It is rare for Google to confirm its algorithm updates and this time it has made an exception. Many marketers and publishers have had been experiencing changes in their SERPs over the past week. According to the search giant, the focus has been on improving relevance.
Search marketers have confirmed that the updates have shown connection to websites using doorway pages and keyword permutations.
Pre-Holiday Mobile SERP Changes
The biggest changes were noticed across mobile SERPs. The categories that saw dramatic changes include:
- Automobiles
- Reference
- Law & Government
- Home & Garden
- Hobbies
- Jobs & Education
- Internet
- Science
The significant volatility was seen in the UK, US, European countries, and Australia. This means that the algorithm updates are being rolled out across the world.
Additional Changes
- Initial changes gave indications similar to the Panda update
- The updates didn’t meet the large scale of Panda
- They also showed some signs of Phantom
- Websites without Schema.org integration have fallen dramatically in their search rankings
Updates to Google Search Features
Even before this update was confirmed, Google had released an earlier update to its features. The focus of the update was to ensure that more of its searchers stay on the platform. This update is intended to provide more relevant information to its users.
Some of the more noticeable updates include the following:
- Related searches are offered in ways that users continue clicking
- When someone searches for several terms from the same topic, the search engine will deliver related searches. It will identify the category or relevance of the multiple searches and deliver related results. Earlier, the suggestions were limited to the recent query only.
- Related searches will also extend over to Knowledge Panels and Featured Snippets. There will be more images in Featured Snippets.
At a time when Bing is releasing its AI-based search updates, Google seems to be focusing on its core algorithms. Usually, most search engines avoid releasing new updates during the holiday season. But both the search giants seem to be making exceptions.
If you want to take the right steps to prevent these updates from affecting your search campaigns, visit https://thesearchmarketingshop.com/search-engine-optimisation/ for more information.
