Google's Core August Update: Major Changes and How to Adapt

Google's Core August Update: Vital Changes and Steps to Take

Waves are always made in the SEO community every time Google rolls out a core update and,August Core Update, was no exception. SEO professionals and website owners noticed ranking shifts, traffic changes, and overall site performance changes - what happened in August was the real problem, but more importantly, the business and website managers' response to those changes to protect their ranking and visibility.

In this article, we will cover everything we have learned so far about the August Core Update and provide actionable insights to help your business find its way through these stormy waters of SEO .

What Happened with the August Core Update?

The Google August Core Update occurred during late August 2024, affecting several sectors depending on the quality, relevance, and authority of the websites. This update, like others of its kind, was an attempt to adjust how Google ranks websites by their use and relevance towards a user's queries.

The trends show that this update is going to cause a shift in the ranking of various niches, such as websites resorting to low-quality content or even obsolete ones. Even though Google does not provide specific details on what changes the update made, it is apparent that this update favors pages with depth and accuracy and new material rather than thin, redundant, or keyword-packed content.

August Core Update How Affects Websites?

If you have found significant changes in the ranking or traffic of your website, then you are one of the many affected. The August Core Update showed multiple industry-wide changes across the board, but the changes landed more in relatively specific niches like e-commerce, health, finance, and lifestyle.

Websites with strong E-E-A-T—Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness—are seemingly the biggest losers. Sites that rely almost exclusively on outdated or shallow content have lost organic positions.

The most significant effects reported are:

• - Rank drops for pages containing poor-quality or obsolete content.
• - Ranks gained by websites with deep-rich resources on subjects.
• - Fluctuations in traffic for websites with content that fails the increasingly user-focused approach of Google.

In regards to the August Core Update, what is Google saying?

Google hasn't released a deep explanation for changes within the algorithm as they do with every core update rolled out. However, just like each of their previous instructions, Google still says the same thing: focus on creating quality content that's helpful and pertinent to users.

John Mueller, Google's Webmaster Trends Analyst, emphasized the importance of quality content and fulfilling user requirements. While targeted updates aimed at bringing the search results more in line with user intent seem to be rewarding sites that offer depth, value, and authenticity, here are some recommendations to help you review your content and ensure compliance with Google's guidelines on content quality:

• Is the content original, insightful, and trustworthy?
• Does it cover the topic comprehensively?
• Is there spelling, stylistic, or factual inaccuracy?

These principles align with Google's new user-first content approach, part of a wider Helpful Content initiative the company announced in earlier updates.

What Does the August Core Update Really Mean for Your Business?

The August Core Update offers a window of great importance for businesses to review their SEO practices critically. If you have experienced ranking drops on your site, you should realize that the update emphasizes meaningful content and topical authority. Businesses that do not meet these standards risk further losses in visibility and traffic.

However, if you have seen improvements in your rankings, congratulations! You are likely producing the kind of content valued by Google: well-written, authoritative, and user-focused. Now's the time to leverage these gains by continuing to refine your SEO strategy.

How Do You Respond?

Here's what you can do to respond well to the August Core Update:

1. Do a Deep Content Audit

Review your old content according to E-E-A-T principles. Eliminate outdated or duplicated content and update any data that will most likely be irrelevant to current searchers. The auditing process enables you to identify weak points on your site, which may send your overall ranking plummeting.

To audit in further detail, refer to Coding Clave's guide on content optimization.

2. User Intent

Because Google is moving more and more into intent-based searches, your content needs to fulfill actual users' needs. You have to make sure that you are answering the most commonly asked questions that the audience has through your posts. Adding FAQs in your articles may help you gain snippets and zero positions.

3. Content Depth and Topical Authority

Instead of looking at single, standalone pages, aim to create content clusters for each aspect of a topic. You can show Google and your visitors that your site is authoritative on the topic by building topical authority. For example, if your blog is on tech, ensure that your website covers any subtopics such as coding tutorials, software reviews, and best practices in web development.

For more ideas on how to create authority content, check out the guide by Coding Clave on topical authority.

4. Technical SEO

Content quality has now become the basis of modern SEO; however, never forget the technicalities in the background. Make sure your website loads fast, is responsive, and is crawlable. Technical issues like slow page speed or broken links can be catastrophic for your ranking.

Refer to Coding Clave's technical SEO checklist to outline how to maintain an optimized site structure.

5. Monitor Performance

It will not do to watch and wait for a couple of weeks regarding your performance. Keep yourself alert and make use of Google Analytics and Google Search Console while spotting changes in traffic, rankings, and user behavior to note trends and then make appropriate adjustments.

Final Thoughts

The Google August Core Update reminds us that search engine optimization is always evolving and that we should be on our toes, adapting to changing scenarios. Thus, focusing on quality content, user intent, and technical optimization ensures you are well-armed to conquer the storms of updates and come out stronger. The trick lies in flexibility, constant learning, and refinement as required by Google's best practices.

For more best practices on how to stay ahead of the curve in the rapidly changing world of SEO, check out Coding Clave's SEO insights.