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30,000 Google algorithm updates
19 Plays8 months ago
Dive into the complexities of Google's algorithm updates with Andrew Laws in this insightful episode of SEO Daily. With a rich background spanning over 20 years in the SEO realm, Andrew sheds light on a question that perplexes many: How does one stay ahead of Google's ever-evolving algorithm?
From the early days marked by the Panda and Penguin updates to the latest AI-driven changes, Andrew argues for a balanced approach to SEO - acknowledging updates without being overwhelmed by them. Discover the staggering estimate of 30,000 algorithm modifications since 2009 and understand why maintaining high-quality content and a user-friendly site are paramount.
Tune in to gain valuable knowledge on navigating SEO's dynamic landscape and ensuring your digital presence thrives. Powered by Yeseo at yeseo.io, SEO Daily is your go-to for expert advice and industry insights.
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Transcript
Introduction and Google Algorithm Teasers
00:00:00
Speaker
Hello, welcome back to SEO Daily. I've got an interesting stat for you today and it's going to be about Google algorithm updates.
Handling Frequent Algorithm Updates
00:00:09
Speaker
I've been in SEO for over 20 years now and one of the questions I get asked most frequently at networking events or when I'm giving talks or on phone calls or strangers stopping me in the street is how do you cope with all the Google updates?
00:00:25
Speaker
Now this question started in the days of panda and penguin and other animal-based updates.
Notable Updates and Google's Secretive Past
00:00:32
Speaker
My answer has always been we acknowledge them, keep an eye on any changes but largely ignore them because unless there are big massive sweeping changes
00:00:44
Speaker
then there's not really much work for us to do in SEO. And that might be a controversial thing to say, but I'm going to give you some stats to kind of back this up a little bit. But it's what works in my mind. I'd love to know if your opinion is different, especially if you are in SEO.
00:01:00
Speaker
How many times do you think Google updates the algorithm? There are big ones that people know about. So late last year, we had the Helpful Content Update.
Google's Transparency Shift in 2009
00:01:10
Speaker
And more recently, in March, we had the AI, again, very helpful update, Helpful Content Update. And that's really only the tip of the iceberg.
00:01:22
Speaker
So, pre-2009, Google didn't always let us know when they changed the algorithm. They'd be not all cagey about it, but I think back in the dark ages of SEO,
00:01:36
Speaker
Google's opinion might have still been a bit us and them when it came to people in SEO or website owners and their secret goings on behind closed doors in California or wherever they are, I can't remember. But in 2009, someone called Mapcut
00:01:55
Speaker
at Google decided to start sharing information about updates.
Volume and Impact of Updates
00:01:59
Speaker
And I think it's probably one of the best things Google ever did, because it started to make really clear that they see good practice and high rankings as very much hand in glove, just very much the same thing. So I'm going to pause for a minute and give you a second to have a guess how many Google algorithm updates there has been since they first started announcing them in 2009.
00:02:22
Speaker
I'm going to give you five seconds, and if you're watching a video, you can watch my countdown. Five... Three... What's the figure? How many do you think there's been?
00:02:35
Speaker
Well, it's estimated there has been around 30,000 algorithm updates. Some years, there'll be four or 5,000 updates in one year. You only got to look, well, 365 days in a year. That's quite a lot of updates per day. Well, sometimes it's quite a lot of updates per hour. So why aren't we all flipping out? Why isn't everyone in SEO absolutely freaking out?
SEO Best Practices and Content Quality
00:02:56
Speaker
And it's because a lot of the algorithm updates are
00:03:00
Speaker
They're all based around Google getting a clearer idea of what constitutes good content, authoritative content and useful content, and what makes bad content or spammy rubbish content or sketchy SEO stand out.
00:03:23
Speaker
So generally, this is proof yet again, I've come back to my initial point, that good practice reflects good SEO. They're sort of the two sides of the same coin. If you're creating tons of helpful content, and your website is accessible, it's easy to use, everything's nice and clear, and lots of people are talking about you, then you're gonna rank well.
00:03:48
Speaker
That's it, really.
Casual Monitoring of Updates
00:03:49
Speaker
So yeah, we pay attention to the algorithm update to let you know a little bit sort of behind the scenes here at the SEO. We have converted the emails that, you know, the notices that Google send out about updates into an RSS feed. And in our Slack, we just keep an eye on it. They just go ticking along like a tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick,
00:04:13
Speaker
if you want access to that RSS feed just send me a message DM me or whatever I'm happy to share that with anyone or just google it you know google makes this quite quite clear on their website but in summary there is a lot of google updates and
00:04:33
Speaker
You shouldn't really worry that much about them. I think a lot of the reporting actually from the SEO industry is because we're just geeks about it. We're just entertained. We like it. We go, Ooh, what's changed? What's changed?
Focusing on Quality Content Creation
00:04:44
Speaker
But on the whole, if you're a business owner, just do good stuff. This is why I chose .io as the domain extension for the SEO website, SEO.io, because it means input output. And in SEO, put good stuff in, you'll get good stuff out.
00:05:00
Speaker
I could have just said that at the beginning and made this a 10-second long podcast episode, but I didn't.
Audience Engagement and Future Topics
00:05:06
Speaker
And if you've watched through till now, thank you very much. Please like, share, comment, do all that good social stuff. I am still continuing with my daily podcast updates. Please let me know if there's any topics you want me to talk about, because I don't think the well is going to run dry, but a little bit of input would be appreciated, right? Thanks very much. As ever, I've got to find the end button. Ah, there it is.