Google’s New Algorithm Update: The Internet Revolution Begins

• Facebook
• X
• Instagram

In the past two years, Google Search has changed a lot due to several major updates, including a powerful new AI feature. These changes could either help improve the internet or cause problems for it.

Google Update Hits Independent Publishers

If you’ve ever searched for “air purifier reviews” on Google, chances are you were looking for the type of information found on HouseFresh.com. Started in 2020 by Gisele Navarro and her husband, the website drew on their years of experience testing indoor air quality products. They meticulously tested purifiers in their basement, using scientific methods, and wrote articles to help people navigate through marketing claims.

HouseFresh exemplified a growing trend of independent publishers creating original content, just what Google claimed to support. Shortly after its launch, Google began ranking HouseFresh at the top of search results, leading to its rapid growth and employment of 15 people. Navarro had ambitious expansion plans.

However, in September 2023, Google implemented a major update to its search algorithm, which had a devastating impact on independent publishers like HouseFresh. Navarro lamented, “It decimated us.” Suddenly, search terms that previously led to HouseFresh were directing users to large lifestyle magazines with questionable product testing and inaccurate information.

Google’s Tough Hit on HouseFresh

In March, Google introduced another update to its search algorithm, dealing another heavy blow to HouseFresh. The website’s daily visitors dropped significantly, leaving Navarro feeling devastated. In the following weeks, HouseFresh had to let go of most of its team. Without changes, Navarro believes the future of the website is bleak.

A Google spokesperson that the company thoroughly tests changes to its search system to ensure they benefit users. They also mentioned that Google offers support, resources, and opportunities for feedback to website owners about their search rankings.

Google remains confident that these changes will improve the internet. Recently, Google’s CEO, Sundar Pichai, announced a major development at the company’s annual developer conference. In the future, Google Search will use its AI to generate answers to many questions, a feature known as “AI Overviews,” already available to users in the United States.

Pichai described it as a tool that does the work for users, positioning Google Search as a powerful tool driven by human curiosity at a massive scale.

Google’s work is about to have a profound impact on what many of us see when we go online

Google’s Search Evolution: Blessing or Curse?

In the past couple of years, Google has made big changes to how its main tool works. They believe these changes will bring in a new era of technology and help fix some problems with the internet. But some people worry that it might do the opposite.

As Google switches from just a search engine to one that gives answers too, some fear it could be really bad for the businesses that create a lot of the content you enjoy. One thing is for sure: what you see online is about to change a lot because of Google’s work.

Google made these changes because they saw a problem with the internet. You might have noticed it yourself when you’ve searched for something online. The problem is called “search engine optimization” or SEO. It’s about tweaking articles and web pages so that Google picks them up better in searches. Google even gives tips and tools for people who own websites to do this. For many businesses, using SEO is like playing a game they can’t avoid.

However, the problem is that SEO can be misused. Some website owners realize they can make more money by creating content that’s just made to please Google’s algorithms, instead of being helpful to real people.

Google’s Battle Against Spammy Search Results

If you’ve ever felt annoyed by what pops up when you search for something like “Best Sneakers for Women,” you’re not alone. Often, the search results for popular topics are full of websites with more ads and links to stores than useful information. What’s missing is the helpful insights from people who know and care about the topic.

To tackle this problem, Google has been working hard. In 2022, they rolled out a “Helpful Content Update” to their search system, aiming to filter out content made just to rank higher on Google. Then, they made more updates in September 2023 and again in March this year. Google claims these changes have led to a 45% reduction in low-quality, unoriginal content in search results.

According to a Google spokesperson, these updates are about connecting people with useful, original content from different websites. They want to send traffic to websites that offer valuable information and support a healthy internet.

Unintended Consequences of Google’s Updates

But these updates also had some unexpected results. For instance, data from the analytics tool SEMrush shows that the website for New York Magazine lost 32% of its traffic from Google Search in the last six months. GQ.com saw a drop of 26%, while Urban Dictionary, a popular slang dictionary, lost around 18 million page views, which is more than half of its Google Search traffic. OprahDaily.com suffered a significant decline of nearly 58%.

It’s important to note that SEMrush’s numbers are just estimates, and this data only focuses on traffic from Google Search. A spokesperson from New York Magazine stated that these findings were not complete and didn’t match their analysis. Representatives from GQ, Oprah Daily, and Urban Dictionary did not provide comments when approached for a response.

Despite this, experts several media executives, and website owners have confirmed that the general trends in the data seem accurate.

The increase in traffic Reddit is seeing is unprecedented on the Internet – Lily Ray

Google’s Algorithm Shift Boosts Reddit and Others

In the place of these websites, one platform you’ll be seeing much more of is Reddit. According to SEMrush, Reddit’s traffic from Google Search shot up by 126%. The company is already seeing the benefits, as shown by its recent financial report. Reddit’s revenue for the quarter totals $243 million, a whopping 48% increase from the previous year.

Lily Ray, a vice president at the marketing agency Amsive and an SEO expert, says that Reddit’s traffic surge is unprecedented. “From cooking to video games, fashion to gardening, Reddit has it all,” she says. Reddit declined to comment on this growth.

But Reddit isn’t the only winner here. SEMrush data indicates that other user-generated sites like Quora and Instagram also experienced significant traffic increases. Even LinkedIn and Wikipedia saw impressive spikes.

This shift isn’t entirely surprising. In recent years, many internet users have been adding “Reddit” to their searches to find genuine opinions from real people, rather than content tailored to rank high on Google. This trend has been observed by Danny Sullivan, Google’s public liaison for search.

Google’s Impact on Website Rankings

“We’ve noticed that people often prefer learning from others’ experiences, so we feature content from various forums and communities online,” explains a Google spokesperson. “Our agreement with Reddit didn’t involve giving its content priority in Search rankings.”

However, when Google sends more traffic to one website, it means less for others. The losers in this situation feel the effects strongly. Lily Ray comments, “Google seems to be attacking smaller publisher websites. It’s like the algorithm update was designed to target small bloggers. Many people I’ve talked to have seen their websites completely wiped out.”

Numerous website owners and search experts agree that Google’s search results are favoring established brands over smaller, independent sites. This shift seems unrelated to the quality of the content.

Google’s Impact on Ready Steady Cut and Others

The changes hit Daniel Hart, editor-in-chief of the UK entertainment news site Ready Steady Cut, hard. “Right after Google’s September update, our website traffic dropped by half, and it’s only gotten worse,” he explains. “We’ve been hit hard by Reddit’s rise, but we’re also losing out to spam websites that steal our content. It doesn’t make sense.”

In the months that followed, the loss of income forced Ready Steady Cut to reduce its team from 20 writers and editors to just four, Hart reveals.

A Google spokesperson acknowledged that their recent updates aimed to combat spammy and unoriginal content. They assured that Google keeps an eye on evolving abusive practices that lead to low-quality information in Search. After the updates, Google offered advice to website owners and promised a way for them to recover.

Hart says his site followed Google’s recommendations, hiring consultants and working tirelessly to update the site, but it didn’t help. “I wasted eight months of my life trying to follow Google’s advice,” he laments. “Google says they want content from people with firsthand experience and helpful context, and we’re a prime example of that. It’s just heartbreaking.”

According to website owners and content creators, the biggest issue is the AI-generated responses.

Debate Over Google’s AI Search Results

Google claims that its AI-generated overviews in search results will benefit websites. Liz Reid, Google’s search head, mentioned in a blog post that these AI results increase the traffic directed to websites. “AI Overviews get more clicks than traditional web listings for the same search,” Reid stated. “As we continue to develop this feature, we’ll focus on sending valuable traffic to publishers and creators.”

However, the company hasn’t provided any data to support this claim. Many website owners and experts in the industry worry that the opposite effect is just as likely.

Katie Berry, owner of the cleaning advice website Housewife How-Tos, believes that users might stop searching if Google’s AI provides answers directly. She argues that the AI results often give shallow or incorrect answers, discouraging people from visiting her site.

According to Berry, her website’s traffic dropped by 70% after the 2022 Google update, and it decreased even more after Google began testing its new AI. “My website had more traffic when it first started, even though its rankings haven’t changed much,” she explains.

Controversy Surrounding Google’s AI and Content

Some people, like travel writer David Leiter, are upset because they think Google’s AI is stealing their content.

For instance, Leiter used to have an article about “Best Slot Canyons Near Las Vegas” on his website, World Travel Guy. But when he searched for it recently, Google showed an AI-generated response at the top of the page instead.

“Google replaced my article with this big AI Overview box, and the answer it gives is mostly wrong,” Leiter explains. “The first four places it mentions aren’t even slot canyons. A slot canyon is a specific type of canyon with a narrow passageway, but the AI doesn’t seem to understand that. It’s just listing random canyons and even a walking trail instead.”

While the AI Overview did include a link to Leiter’s article, it was hidden behind a small arrow at the bottom of the result. Leiter doesn’t think he’ll get as much traffic as he used to when his article was the top search result. In any case, it’s not much of a consolation. Leiter says that Google’s recent algorithm updates caused his website’s traffic to drop by 95%.

Google’s Response to AI-generated Content Concerns

Google admits that sometimes its AI tools might give wrong information, but they say they’re always trying to make it better. A spokesperson for Google explains that AI Overviews usually come from many web pages, not just one, and they’re meant to show relevant links.

They add that website owners can use a special tag to choose whether or not AI Overviews include a link to their site. However, once an AI model gathers information from your content, it might be hard to get rid of that data.

It’s not just media executives who are worried about Google’s control over the internet.

Explore the Future Of the Internet As Global Infrastructure

Google is also facing several antitrust lawsuits, accusing different parts of its massive $2.2 trillion business of unfair practices. Right now, the company is waiting for a decision in a lawsuit filed by the US Department of Justice, which claims Google is illegally dominating the search engine industry. If Google loses the case, it could face huge fines or even be forced to split up.

Google’s Dominance and Its Impact

Google, which pretty much runs more than 90% of all searches worldwide, says its success is because it offers really good products. A spokesperson for Google adds that there’s a lot of competition out there, and people can choose how they search for stuff online.

Gisele Navarro, from HouseFresh, understands that Google doesn’t have to send traffic to them or anyone else. But she thinks Google has too much power. “Imagine if Google decides one day that a whole town doesn’t get any roads. That town would just disappear,” she explains. “It’s too much power for Google to just say, ‘Oh well, that’s how the free market works.'”

Navarro is feeling frustrated. She’s even thinking about leaving the online world and opening a shop somewhere. “Maybe it was a mistake to think we could succeed just by making really good original content that people want to read,” she says.