The part 2 of Google’s broad Core Algorithm Update has been fully rolled out and is named as the “July 2021 Core Update.” The July 2021 core update that was supposed to go live in June, was pushed to this month as some technical areas of the update weren’t ready to be applied.
Just like any other core update that affects the search engine results pages with respect to keyword rankings, this two-part update may also do so, and it is rare that Google reveals what the core update is actually about. But they’ve said that a “Core Update” to their algorithm is something that reshuffles the SERPs to better serve their users.
In the months of June-July 2021, apart from the core update, some other algorithm updates also happened, let us take a look at these and what it means for the webmasters and the website owners.
July 2021 Core Update – Part 2 of June 2021 Google Core Update
The second part of the June Core Update 2021 was over by 12th of July 2021, announced by Google’s SearchLiaison, Danny Sullivan on Twitter.
A core update basically means that it is a change in how Google indexes and displays the search results in response to a user’s query, all over the globe! Yes, it is non-specific to any country, language or industry.
A Core Update essentially means that Google has got better at judging the Content quality and deciding on which results to show as per a user’s search term.
Did My Website Get Affected by July 2021 Update? How Do I Fix That?
Don’t panic!
Please don’t go and fix that is not broken yet! It is best to wait until the update is over and SERPs are normalized. Also, Google has explicitly mentioned in their earlier update in June that changes in the keyword rankings or traffic may be reversed in the July 2021 core update.
After Google updates its core, it is normal if you see fluctuations in the keyword rankings or little ups and downs in organic traffic. It usually takes some time for search results to get settled. But if you’re seeing a sharp decline in search traffic, then maybe you should take a hard look at all the things that you’ve been doing.
Perform a comprehensive SEO audit of your website to find out on-page and technical errors, check the amount, quality of the content on your website along with internal linking. Perform keyword research and make changes if required in your strategy. Make sure that you are following search engine guidelines and you should be good to go.
Once everything that needs attention is fixed, keep building backlinks from authority and trustworthy websites in your niche. Yes, link building is hard work, takes time but eventually will be beneficial in the long run.
If you are just starting out and are unsure about how to develop a strategy for your website’s SEO, you may want to check out this SEO strategy for beginners guide.
Who Was Impacted by June/July 2021 Core Update?
Well, it is difficult to say for sure, but websites with poor backlinks, thin content, YMYL (i.e., Your Money Your Life) and those who try to game search engines with shady SEO techniques were affected badly.
Websites that follow search engine guidelines, create quality content and build backlinks saw some fluctuation in their rankings and traffic improved or remained steady.
Page Experience Update – June 2021
Google officially started rolling out this update mid-June, and it is supposed to be fully over by the end of August 2021 as per their announcement on Twitter. Yes, this is one of the slowest core updates by Google.
Essentially “Core Web Vitals” is going to be one of the ranking factors in the search algorithm. And Google has provided detailed information about this update so that the webmasters and website owners can understand and make changes accordingly to provide a better experience to their users.
Anti-Spam Update – June 2021
This was yet another Google update that happened on June 23rd and concluded on the same day. It was a regular work update to improve the SERPs and was termed as “Spam Update”.
How Google keeps fighting with spam, prevents it from reaching their users and what precautions website developers should take, is illustrated in this official article.
SEO Guidelines and Suggestions for Google Algorithm Updates
If you’ve seen a drop in search traffic or lost keyword rankings after the Core updates, and it is consistent, well then, below are a few things you can do:
- Analyze the search traffic in Search Console & Google Analytics during the time period, and keep monitoring the same
- Run a comprehensive site audit to find out SEO errors and fix those at at the earliest
- Improve the quality of the Content you’re creating and make sure to get backlinks from authoritative sources
- Make sure that your website loads faster and provides a great user experience on all devices irrespective of their screen sizes
- Review the search results and understand what has changed after the update
- Do refer to the official guidelines provided by Google and thoroughly check your Content and SEO strategy against them
Overall, we suggest that instead of panicking, wait and analyze what is going wrong. Accordingly get those things fixed, keep publishing great content that provides move value to users, build backlinks and you should be good to go!
If you’re unsure of what needs to be done next, please do not hesitate to book a free call with our SEO Experts, we’ll be happy to help!
