New August Google Update

On August 15th, Google initiated a core update aimed at promoting valuable content from smaller and independent websites. This update is expected to take a full month to implement. Unlike typical core updates, the August 2024 update incorporates feedback that Google has received since the September 2023 helpful content update, which adversely affected many smaller publishers.

A key aspect of this update is Google’s renewed commitment to recognising and rewarding independent creators who produce original and useful content. The company understands the crucial role these sites play in the online landscape and is actively working to enhance their visibility. Furthermore, the August 2024 update is intended to better acknowledge and reflect the positive changes that websites implement.

If you’ve been diligently improving your content quality or enhancing the overall user experience on your site, you may see those efforts recognised as Google continues to refine its algorithm. This update marks an ongoing journey, with future iterations likely to expand on these foundational ideas.  

What Google is saying. John Mueller, Search Advocate at Google, wrote.  

• “Today, we launched our August 2024 core update to Google Search. This update is designed to continue our work to improve the quality of our search results by showing more content that people find genuinely useful and less content that feels like it was made just to perform well on search.”  

Google said this update aims to promote useful content from small and independent publishers after it listened to feedback it received since the release of the March 2024 core update. Mueller added:  

• “This latest update takes into account the feedback we’ve heard from some creators and others over the past few months. As always, we aim to connect people with a range of high-quality sites, including’small’ or ‘“’independent’ sites that are creating useful, original content for relevant searches. This is an area we’ll continue to address in future updates.”  

This August 2024 core update “aims to better capture improvements that sites may have made, so we can continue to surface the best of the web,” Mueller added.  

Guidance updated. Google posted several updates to its help page about core updates, including more in-depth guidance for those who may see changes after an update.  

More details. Google told us we should expect a core update soon, after many publishers have become concerned and anxious about the next update.  

Since that time, we’ve experienced significant fluctuations in Google search rankings, yet Google hasn’t officially acknowledged any core updates or similar changes.  

If you find yourself affected by a core update, it’s important to take certain steps. In the past, Google has shared guidance on how to respond to such situations, but there hasn’t been any significant new information provided recently.  

• There aren’t specific actions to take to recover. A negative ranking impact may not signal anything is wrong with your pages.  

• Google has offered a list of questions to consider if your site is hit by a core update.  

• Google said you can see a bit of a recovery between core updates, but the biggest change would be after another core update.  

In short, write helpful content for people, not to rank in search engines.  

• “There’s nothing new or special that creators need to do for this update as long as they’ve been making satisfying content meant for people. For those that might not be ranking as well, we strongly encourage reading our helpful, reliable, people-first content help page,” Google said previously.  

The update so far  

In short, most are seeing nothing. This is common.  

However, we’re starting to notice some positive developments for sites that were adversely affected by the September 2023 helpful content update.  

It’s important to clarify that these sites haven’t fully bounced back and are still far from their previous status before the update. Nonetheless, some are beginning to see improvements in their Google search rankings and overall visibility.  

In conclusion, the August Google update marks a significant shift in the search engine’s approach, focussing on elevating the voices of smaller and independent publishers. By responding to feedback from the community and recognising the importance of original and valuable content, Google is not only enhancing the diversity of the online landscape but also encouraging creators to invest in quality.

As the update rolls out over the coming month, it serves as both a challenge and an opportunity for website owners. Those who have made genuine efforts to improve their content and user experience may find their hard work rewarded. As we move forward, it will be crucial for creators to stay adaptable and continue prioritising quality to align with Google’s evolving standards.