Google’s August 2023 Core Update is a significant event in the SEO world that changed the search algorithm, and companies of all sectors and sizes are considering how it will affect their search rankings. Unlike the occasional updates tailored to punish or reward certain websites, core updates are general and aimed at making Google better judge the quality of the content. This article goes further and explains what this update involves and some useful tips for website owners to ensure their site‘s performance stays the same or even improves. 

What Is Google’s August 2023 Core Update? 

Meet the August 2023 core update that is part of Google’s continued work on refining the relevance of the search outcomes. Like in all other updates, this is focused on providing the users with helpful, relevant, and credible information. The update also causes fluctuations in the site ranking, with those applicable to these goals experiencing positive changes and those not so relevant, negative changes in their ranking results in Google. 

It is also important to note that Google brings out its so-called ‘core updates’ several times a year with regards to the updating process of how content is ranked which sometimes leads to changes in the ranking scores. For instance, Google advises website owners to consider more user experience than worrying about any of the twists in the algorithm. 

Some of the Major Focus Areas of the Update 

1. Content Quality: Google still carries on with its concern about quality content. Websites that post less or add information that may probably be stale may be negatively affected while others that continue to provide extensive and fresh information will enjoy enhanced visibility. Questions to consider include: 

• Is your content created worthy for the people to use, do you deliver the value that will benefit users? 
• Does it contain the information required and is the information from reliable sources or an authoritative person? 

2. User Experience: Mobile-friendly sites could therefore stand a better chance of recording improved results when people are accessing these sites. By the way, Google’s mobile-first indexing focuses on the behavior of mobile ranking and how people use the site on their mobile devices. 

3. Relevance: The first goal, according to Seed, is to capture as many items as possible that will be of interest to users. This update can be said to be an enhancement of Google’s algorithm in a bid to recognize the users’ intent and direct them to the requisite Web page. 

4. E-A-T (Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness): It is becoming more significant especially for the website that offers information regarding various aspects in life such as health, finance, and laws among others. It is always important for the content you post to be written by experts, and must contain source information as you post your content, and it is always important to be neat and concise while presenting your content.

Impact on Website Rankings 

 Again, as was observed with other core updates, this one is expected to cause shifts in the appearing rankings of different sectors. Some of the websites that have been negatively affected by the new algorithm by Google include those that have not developed relevancy and quality content as required by the search engine. But, those that are focused on content quality and those that are targeted at users could see improvements.

What is critical for the next few weeks is to keep a close eye on the performance be patient and wait as the volumes stabilize they call it the Google Dance effect. When you experience a decrease, then, it is high time you examine your content strategy.

The quick and easy guide to preparation and recovery 

Here are key steps you can take if you’ve been impacted by the August update or want to safeguard your rankings: 

 1. Content Audit 

 Ensure that the content on your website is good quality and posted often and that it is relevant. 

 As with most optimizations, make sure the keywords used are realistic and relate to what people are likely to search. 

2. Enhance User Experience 

Optimization on how fast the page loads, how it looks on mobile devices, and the website’s general appearance. 

That is why mobile-friendly sites occupy the top positions – due to Google's mobile-first indexing. 

3. E-A-T Implementation

Edit the content to make it as much as possible written by authority. But if you are getting guest posts or any other kind of contribution, it is good to make sure that they are professionals in the area. 

4. Diversify Content Types 

Other forms of content that can be incorporated include videos, infographics, and user-generated content such as reviews to captivate the users and make the site more relevant.

5. Internal and External Links 

Make high-quality backlinks and focus on internal linking too. Referring to other sources in the context of your niche can help establish credibility. 

Case Study: Experience Shows That Updated  Websites Rank Better Than They Do Before The Update 

A great example of how you can respond to a core update hit is seen through companies that specialize in content refreshes. For instance, companies who currently audit old blogs and their content with more up-to-date information case studies, and more recent data can record increased search engine standing. This strategy also increases the frequency of relevance but at the same time ensures that the user is most engaged. 

Local businesses changed gears with Possum Update in 2016. By improving how Google handled local keywords in a query, sites that provided a true representation of directory business information soon benefited from a much higher level of publicity. In the same manner in the August 2023 update, there can be a good impact on fine-tuning the local SEO and business listings. 

Key Takeaways 

 It’s important to note that the Core Updates Google releases are always about enhancing the user experience and presenting higher-quality content. 

• Focus on Content Quality: Ensure every page has value, has a good structure, and is credible. 
• Be Patient: movement from a core update takes time to stabilize, and there is no telling when one is going to recover. This involves long-term strategies for SEO. 
•  Utilize Backlinks: Internal and external links are important for improving the credibility of the site and reading in detail proves it; Sources such as Google Algorithm Updates would suffice. 

Conclusion 

August 2023 Core Update like any other core update is Google’s way of saying that the focus should be made on the quality of the content created as well as its relevance to the users. Overall, the update underlines such factors as relevancy, authority, and user experience as the critical aspects to stay the same or increase rankings. Therefore it is possible to seize the opportunities within this constantly changing field and succeed if the SEO strategies are regularly modified. 

The main goal of this blog post is to give an overview of Google’s August 2023 Core Update. Adhering to these procedures can thus assist you in managing any change and enhancing your site KPIs.