Google’s August 2024 Core Update: What You Need to Know

Google's Latest Update is Here
Google has just started rolling out its August 2024 core update. This update is big and will take about a month to fully roll out. It’s more than just a routine update—it’s meant to make search results better by showing more useful content.

Why This Update is Important
This update is special because it’s based on feedback Google received after their September 2023 helpful content update. That update didn’t go well for many small and independent websites, so Google made some changes this time around.

What Google Says
John Mueller, a Search Advocate at Google, said this update is focused on showing more content that people find genuinely helpful, not just content made to rank well on Google.

“Today, we launched our August 2024 core update to Google Search. This update is designed to continue our work to improve the quality of our search results by showing more content that people find genuinely useful and less content that feels like it was made just to perform well on Search,” he said.

Google wants to promote useful content from small and independent publishers. They’ve listened to feedback and want to connect people with high-quality websites that provide original, helpful content.

What to Do If Your Site is Affected
If your site sees a drop in rankings after this update, don’t panic. Google has shared some advice in the past:

• Focus on creating helpful content for people, not just for search engines.
• There’s no specific action to take if you’re affected. It doesn’t mean your site is bad—it might just need more useful content.
• You might see a bit of recovery between updates, but big changes usually happen after the next core update.

If your rankings drop, Google suggests reading their guide on making helpful, reliable, people-first content. This guide can help you understand what Google is looking for.

A Look at Past Updates
Here’s a quick recap of recent Google core updates:

• March 2024 Core Update: March 5 – April 19
• November 2023 Core Update: November 2 – November 28
• October 2023 Core Update: October 5 – October 19
• August 2023 Core Update: August 22 – September 7
• March 2023 Core Update: March 15 – March 28

In June 2024, there was also a spam update that took seven days to roll out, finishing on June 27.

Why This Matters
Many websites that were hit by past updates are hoping this new update will help them recover. If your site was affected by the September 2023 or March 2024 updates, keep an eye on your rankings in the next few weeks.

At SodaRocket, we're here to help you navigate these changes. If your site is affected, we can work together to make sure your content meets Google’s latest standards.

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