Google Core, Do You Want More?
Google has really been at it this year, with several Google Core updates. Some would deem this as Google being elusive, whereas others would deem these updates as being more than predictable based on the history of Google algorithms updates and what they are after.
I personally fall in the latter category. These Google Core updates are VERY much predictable, and we have been teaching proper SEO strategies and how to avoid being hit by these updates for many years.
I want to go over some more prominent updates in Google, and what you can come to expect as Google marches forward with their Google Core algorithm updates.
Don't Litter Your Website With Affiliate Links & Ads
One of the latest Google updates has been geared towards "link attribution", and basically letting Google know where your links are going, and the nature of the links that you are linking to. Google wants to have a "tag" associated with your links, and although they have indicated they may or may not use this information. The tags include "rel=sponsored", "rel=ugc", and "rel=nofollow".
No follow has been in use for many years, as a way of telling Google that basically you don't want them to crawl that site you are linking to, as there is no useful association or correlation (typically used for ads, affiliate links, paid placements). Google may use this in helping them to determine the value of an outbound link to another website, that is, back link value.
Although Google's core focus is not back links, this new push helps Google understand with more ease what links on a page are ones that should deserve value, and which ones don't. It also signals to Google how superfluous you are being with outbound links that are ads or promotional in nature.
As a rule of thumb, you should aim to minimize ads within your content. Too many ads harm the overall user experience, and they will also lead to slower loading pages (typically). On the affiliate link side of things,
Website Lag Uncool. Website Speed Cool.
A slow website, is a bad experience. Google knows this, and so do your users. Google has always put emphasis on speed, but in the past 18 months they have made this more and more apparent with several updates pertaining to speed. If your website is not loading fast for your users, Google is going to punish you with lower rankings.
Having a focus on high performance themes, avoid plugins that bloat your website speeds, and focusing on image optimization are things that should be at the forefront of your activities. High Speed hosting also plays a role, and you are in good hands here within our state of the art Managed Wordpress hosting platform.
To keep a pulse on how your website pages are performing, you can leverage the PageSpeed Insights platform provided by Google.
A Focus on User Design & Experience.
Menu design, overall content design, appropriate use of imagery, font types, backgrounds, and making sure your content is within the first fold of the page are things that Google is interested in.
If you are not thinking "design" when you put together your website, and you are using huge images that get in the way of the actual content (which Google is after), this is going to detract from the user experience, and your overall rankings.
Proper website navigation, content flow, and easy to consume content may seem like obvious things to focus on as a website owner, but these are often overlooked even with experienced affiliate/internet marketers.
Comprehensive, Unique, and Useful Content is POWER.
Many years ago, it is actually quite easy to get ranked with thin content and one that simply plug in a high level of "keyword density" throughout your content. Gone are those days of creating 500 word articles.
In all reality, Google has an abundance of content, and a better understanding than ever of the human language and what constitutes quality content, and what low quality content is.
Research your content before you write it, be thorough, and aim to offer a comprehensive response and fulfill your obligation as a writer to the reader about that particular topics. For more information on the criteria Google is after pertaining to content, head over here.
Staying in Tune With Google SEO in 2021...
I have recently done a few Google Core and Google SEO related Ask Me Anythings, with the next one taking place tonight. The purpose of these classes is to offer you MY personal insights into SEO related questions. SEO can be a tricky world, in particular with the amount of misinformation out there, not to mention the confusing signals that Google is constantly sending us through ranking algorithm updates.
The first class took place a few weeks back, and if you want to check that out go here.
And that brings me to tonight's class, it was required because I had so much interest from the first class and I had so many great questions. So I am doing a "part 2" of the class, and if you are either a Premium or Premium Plus+ member you are going to have full access to this live stream that will be taking place tonight, August 5th at 5PM PST.
===> Subscribe Here: Getting Jiggy With Google - Ask Me Anything Part 2
I hope everyone gets a chance to attend tonight's class, and of course if you have any comments or questions pertaining to Google Core, SEO or anything covered within this post, I will be happy to help. Leave the comments below, or tune into tonight's class and live chat and discuss there!
Recent Comments
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Interesting post this Kyle, thanks for sharing. I have adsense on my blog and that pays me, so I like that, but I also put banners in my content, usually the long WA banners, because I figure they look in offensive and that way I can promote WA, without the need for 'selling' it as it were.
Banners can work well too, but if you are going to promote affiliate programs, you should make specific recommendations. You establish trust with your content, and then once you have that you can make product/service recommendations.
I find it ridiculous that even with the fastest themes and optimized images, it can be a struggle to keep Google happy in terms of core web vitals. I spent three days optimizing my site, getting rid of plugins, trying out new themes for speed and functions etc. Even then I had to manually fiddle with caching policy to get into the green on Pagespeed insights.
I appreciate that Google prioritizes user experience but I find that the latest update has the opposite effect: instead of a smooth, modern looking website with animations and stuff I now have one that could have been made 10 years ago, coding the html in Notepad. Yes it's fast, no fuss, but I wouldn't think that's the only thing that readers want.
Especially in the age of super fast internet for most, but certainly for our audience where there is no real difference if a website loads in 0.480ms or 0.980ms, or where a 0.5 mb image downloads in a blink.
As for aff links etc I agree that we should not litter our page with links and ads. But at the heart of it, with our affiliate links we are competing with Google for advertising revenue, so it is easy to see where it's going...
If you are in the 80+ range, you are fine. Of course you don't want totally ruin the quality of your content, the imagery, and the way your theme works simply for Google, but it should be something that you are conscious of.
So don't panic if you are not getting 100/100, that is not a concern and with most great content (even on great hosting) is unachievable.
Hi Kyle,
Thanks for your comment, yes I have managed to sort it eventually without
completely ruining how the website looks.
It is funny though, that, in my experience, with "slower" themes what really slows down the pageload are Google Fonts...so I am on Arial 10 now, which looks a bit oldschool but I don't have to sweat getting in the high 90s.
Yep, and Google just updated their spam links. From reading webmaster central guest posting is still fine as long as there is only one link to your site and has the appropriate tag of Rel=Sponsored - regardless if you paid for it or not.
When you think about it a guest post is a native advertisement. The purpose is to drive traffic from that site to your site both directly (from the link) or indirectly (via and rank benefit, if any).
This, btw means no link in the author bio just the page text.
Is google hitting out at guest posts with this update?
No not really!, just spammy guest posts that exist for the purpose of manipulating rank. Guest posting can be white hat technique is used properly (1 link and with the rel=sponsored tag).
Yeah, but in all reality MOST guest posts are done for the purposes of manipulating rank. Sometimes they are practical mechanisms for branding, and for gaining reach to new audiences, but generally speaking and what is being taught int he backlink circle is that it helps boost rank. I think those day swill be long gone soon.
Google is not a teenager anymore.
As an adult at the age of 23, what does she really want now?
Today link attributes, what is next?
That's what I want to know.
A lady in big britches is an unpleasant sight to behold indeed.
Yes, you've figured it out. I am not a fan anymore and for good reasons too.
I will never forgive Google. Nobody cares anyway!
Bots are not humans. I get it. But they are controlled by humans every single day regrettably.
Thank you for sharing Google updates, Kyle.
Maxine
Yeah, it is easy to get frustrated by Google when they make an update that adversely impacts your rankings (and business). At the end of the day though, Google is looking at WHAT will make their users experience the best.
If you follow what benefits your audience the most in terms of content, design, and experience then Google will come running after you.
Kyle, Google is a beast.
Have you ever been devoured by one?
I have and it's an awful feeling.
You might say I am being dramatic.
If so, please don't because she crushed me.
That beast in big britches will never get me to love her ever again.
To rank or not to rank, that's the big question.
Kyle, you've given me all I need to get a sustainable income. You can do no more.
I have to figure things out for myself.
Thank you for everything.
Maxine
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Great stuff, Kyle! Last year in May, one of my sites got hit by Core update and I lost a lot of rankings. This was due to the fact that my UX was terrible although my content was good. I made some changes to improve the UX (fast loading theme, small size images, etc.) and kept writing content as per instructions from the Online Entrepreneur Certification course and this year, I survived ever single algorithm update. Moreover, my rankings went up and are still climbing in SERP!
For those of you reading this comment, follow Kyle’s advice to the letter and you’ll be fine.
Thanks Ivan sound advice.
Awesome to hear Ivan, Google is after great content, a great user experience, and great design. All the other "information" out there and black hat techniques are just going to lead people astray or through a journey that will lead to constant algorithm hole chasing.
Onwards and upwards!