We’re still reeling from the Panda Update, and now Google has decided to roll out yet another update.
And according to Google, this algorithm is even bigger* than the Panda Update – one out of every three searches is affected by the new update.
*The Panda Update affected approximately 15% of search queries.
The philosophy is simple: Google wants to provide searchers with fresh content.
This has always been a minor problem with Google’s algorithm. You want information on a new topic, search for it and all you can find is older articles based loosely on what you were searching on.
Now?
When you search for a recent event, Google shows you websites that are just minutes old. Depending on your search queries, Google will attempt to display the most relevant and freshest results possible. This gives you the most up-to-date information instantly.
This new algorithmic change means a lot to SEOs and online business owners. Like all major updates, we now have new factors to keep in mind when trying to rank our websites. So let’s break it down and speculate how we can use the new fresh content update to help our websites reach page #1.
Fresh Content for News and Events
When searching for news and events, Google users will begin to see big changes. Instead of getting news related to what you’re searching for (especially if it recently happened), you’ll get exact results based on the news.
So if an earthquake happens somewhere, you could search for it 30 minutes later and get relevant and fresh results.
The same holds true with events. Before the update, if you wanted to find up-to-date info on an event you were going to be attending, you had to do a bit of digging. With this latest algorithm update, when you search for an upcoming event, Google will show you content that’s new and relevant to what you’re looking for.
Fresh Content for E-Commerce Stores
When you’re looking to buy a product online, you probably look up information on it before you decide to buy it. Before the update, when looking up information on a product (say a specific car), you’d get a wide variety of information based on that type of product. So if I was looking for a car, instead of listing the most recent models, I’d have to dig through several listings before I found exactly what I was looking for.
Google understands that the majority of product queries require recent and accurate information. For this reason, they’ve set their new algorithm to look at updated product descriptions and information relating to the latest models and details.
What the Update Means for SEOs
Whenever a new Google algorithm rolls out, you have two groups of people:
1) People who hate change and don’t like the idea of changing their SEO strategies to fit the new algorithm.
2) People who realize that just like the Panda Update, with a new algorithm comes a wealth of new opportunities.
So let’s look at what Google wants here. They want the most relevant and detailed information as quickly as possible.
Therefore, if you’d like to start ranking well in the search engine rankings, it’s time to start producing fresh content as soon as news, events, or product descriptions become available.
A great way to do this is to set a Google Alert for your niche. Then, whenever news happens in your niche, you’ll know immediately. You can then craft unique content based on whatever event or news is occurring. The faster you get it out, the more likely it’ll rank #1 on Google.
Remember – for this update, Google’s looking to provide updated content within minutes of an event occurring. If you can get your content out the quickest, you’ll have a high chance of ranking – even if your site isn’t necessarily at the “authority site” level yet.
What will Google do next?
First, we had the Mayday Update. Then we had the Panda Update. Now we have the fresh content update. Each update was clearly designed with one goal in mind: to provide Google users with the most relevant and up-to-date information possible.
This is the direction Google’s going in. This is the direction Google will likely continue moving in. For this reason, although it’s nice to understand the algorithm to know what kinds of techniques will work for ranking, understanding Google’s philosophy is the first step to a successful SEO campaign.
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