Google's major March update to its algorithms caused a huge downturn in traffic for a lot of serious publishers globally

[Celerity]

The March 2024 Spam & Core Updates on Google

https://www.amsive.com/insights/seo/the-march-2024-spam-core-updates-on-google/

On Tuesday, March 5, 2024, Google announced a major combination update to its algorithms: the March Core Update & March Spam Updates. The spam update was completed on March 20, 2024, while the core update roll-out was completed 45 days later on April 19, 2024. Although the March Core Update is documented to have officially ended on April 19, Google did not disclose this information until April 26, 52 days after the rollout began. This dual update involved changes to multiple core systems and marks an evolution in how Google identifies helpful content and spam content. In an article by Google titled ‘New ways we’re tackling spammy, low-quality content on Search’, they said: “We’re enhancing Search so you see more useful information, and fewer results that feel made for search engines.” The key changes Google announced that they plan to make to improve the quality of Search and the helpfulness of results were:

On completing the rollout on April 19th, Google said users will now see 45% less low-quality, unoriginal content in search results versus the 40% improvement they initially expected.

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Which Sites & Categories Were Impacted by the March Core and Spam Updates?

Many well-known publishers appeared in the list of both percentage and absolute losers this time. In fact, The New York Times appeared on the greatest absolute loser list, largely stemming from losses related to its /wirecutter product review subfolder. The Wirecutter is well known for being one of the most comprehensive product review site sections on the internet, focusing on robust testing of products and producing high-quality, informative articles. It has also been the website section generating the most evergreen SEO visibility for the New York Times over the past few years. But even The Wirecutter was not spared with the March Core Update.

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a lot more at the link, if you are interested in SEO

[jls4561]

1. MoreAmazon, less Wikipedia. Just what the world needs.

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