Google’s New Broad Core Algorithm Update Is Here

Want to know what you’ll never catch any of the catalysts at Cobalt Digital Marketing say?

“You know, it’s been a minute since Google has had any sort of update.”

Why? Because there simply is no such thing. Google is always updating something. This new one, in particular, wasn’t a major core update like Possum, but we aren’t talkin’ a small-potatoes-minor-adjustment-to-the-core-algorithm-twice-a-day kind of update, either.

Google recently announced an update that has affected local and organic rankings, and, of course, being the SEO enthusiasts that we are, we are taking a look into how this will affect the Google ranking of your business.

What was the update about?

It’s no secret that Google has been on a search engine optimization crusade of sorts, continuing to highlight websites that offer clear, easy-to-digest content that is bursting with quality and information. This update is meant to perpetuate that.

How?

Google holds websites that offer a healthy balance of expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness - otherwise known to those at Google as E-A-T - in high ranking. Any site that has questionable usage of any of the above three will be smitten by the righteous hand of an angry search engine.

That’s not all, though. Google is also focusing its gaze on websites coined by the digital marketing industry as “Your Money or Your Life.” But more on that later.

[bctt tweet="@Google recent #update embraces expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness. Make sure your website makes the cut. #CobaltDigitalMarketing" username=""]

How will Google issue out these changes?

How exactly Google intends to make this happen, however, is still left to speculation. While some tweets by Google offer something to soothe our curiosities, specific details have not been released.

Most of what we have to go by is to just “continue making great content,” but even that isn’t truly defined by Google. This can prove to be a bit of head scratcher as what works in one particular niche or industry won’t in another. What Google recommends, however, is that we stick to their Search Quality Guidelines.

SEO experts are analyzing this update’s effects on multi-location businesses, as in rare occasions, reports have shown a slight dip in rankings.

E-A-T? Your Money or Your Life? What Does This All Mean?

Let’s analyze what exactly these two terms mean. First, we’ll start with E-A-T.

As stated above, E-A-T stands for “expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness.” These three parameters are defined in Google’s Search Quality Guidelines mentioned above. To paraphrase what the guidelines suggest, E-A-T is a method that Google uses to prevent a negative impact on people’s lives.

So that means…?

Well, what a lot of SEO experts are noticing is that the majority of websites that were affected by this change were websites that offered content pertaining to health, future happiness, safety, and financial stability. Since expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness are all necessary to write this kind of content, these kind of websites are often categorized as “Your Money or Your Life” (YMYL).

YMYL sites actually affect readers significantly, and because they do, Google wants to make sure that the content they are offering meets those three parameters, ensuring that readers are digesting content that won’t, essentially, ruin their lives.

In theory, if a website is selling a product and the site’s content offers little value and info on how the product actually works, Google will find out and make ranking adjustments accordingly. The same goes if the content wasn’t the best in its industry or if the product was sold under false pretenses.

In essence, if you have a low expertise, authoritativeness, or trustworthiness in your business website content, you’re going to lose rank.

[bctt tweet="Improve how #Google sees your expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness by clearly stating it out on your website. #ItsNotBragging #MaybeALittle" username=""]

I did lose ranking. How can I fix it?

If your site is considered a YMYL website, and you saw your rankings drop, it would be in your best interest to:

1. Help Google Clearly Understand Your E-A-T – This means fully fleshing out your “About” page,  as well as explaining how and why you are an expert in the particular niche your business is in. This would be a good time to mention your years of experience, any accolades or awards won, and press recognition received.
2. Show Off Your Writers – If you really want to dive deep into improving your E-A-T, include the names of your writers in your articles. Don’t forget to link to an author biography that showcases their expertise and so forth.
3. Improve Your Business Reputation and That of Your Writers – Foster as many user reviews as you can, get as many testimonials listed on your site, and help get your writers published in authoritative places outside of your website to help build their credibility (and as well as yours).
4. Take an Honest Look at Your Product – Look at the low products reviews you have and take what feedback your customers have to heart. Products that could be considered sketchy can bring down your rank, and if it is due to a simple miscommunication, analyzing the bad reviews can help you rectify it.
5. Build Up Your Product E-A-T – Just like you would for your website, you can do the same to improve E-A-T for your products. Gather as many reviews and testimonies for your products as you can, and get some talk going on about how good it is.

Still worried about how this update will affect your business. Let the content catalysts at Cobalt Digital Marketing E-A-T away all of your worries.

If you’re new to our blog and would like to check out our custom Cobalt Formula™s, or gather any other information about who we are and what we do, don’t hesitate to contact us today at 956-303-6555.