How Do You Adapt Your SEO Strategy After a Major Algorithm Update?
Digital Marketing Interviews
How Do You Adapt Your SEO Strategy After a Major Algorithm Update?
In the ever-evolving world of search engine optimization, staying ahead means adapting quickly to changes. We've gathered insights from Digital Marketers and CEOs, among others, on how they've shifted their SEO strategies after a major algorithm update. From increasing blog post frequency to doing a strategic post-algorithm update, discover the diverse tactics these eight professionals employed and the outcomes they achieved.
- Increase Blog Post Frequency
- Shift to Link Earning
- Implement Google Concierge Strategy
- Enhance Content E-E-A-T
- Prioritize Mobile Optimization
- Focus on User Experience
- Craft User-Focused Content
- Do a Strategic Post-Algorithm Update
Increase Blog Post Frequency
One significant change I've made to become a better blogger is that I consistently produce blog entries to ensure that the information is interesting and new. I try to maintain my website up-to-date and active by following a regular schedule, which is something that search engines like.
What was the outcome? Well, I've seen that the site's organic traffic has increased. It appears that the search engines are taking notice of my work, as evidenced by my increased visibility and rankings. It all comes down to remaining adaptable and responsive to shifts in the digital environment, and so far, this strategy has served me fairly well.
Shift to Link Earning
We've redirected our efforts away from traditional link-building to a strategy centered on link earning. Our primary focus now revolves around crafting valuable guides, videos, and listicle articles that naturally attract backlinks. Additionally, we're actively leveraging Featured, one of the top digital PR networks, to earn high-quality links naturally and position ourselves as thought leaders. We recognize the risks associated with link-building strategies that could potentially lead to penalties, nullifying all our content and link-building efforts. Ultimately, we've come to appreciate the potency of adding value through informative and helpful content.
Implement Google Concierge Strategy
In response to major Google algorithm updates that increasingly emphasize the quality, relevance, and user experience of content, we've implemented what we call the "Google Concierge Strategy." This strategy involves a detailed, methodical approach to ensure our content meets Google's evolving criteria, which favors content that effectively serves user intent and offers a satisfying user experience.
We began by conducting a thorough audit of our existing website and content to identify and rectify any technical SEO issues that could impede our site's performance. This included optimizing page speeds, resolving canonical issues, and fixing broken links. This audit was crucial for laying a solid foundation for further SEO enhancements.
Recognizing the importance of high-value content, we then focused on creating comprehensive resources that not only answered common questions but also provided deep insights into the subject matter. This involved expanding our articles to cover related topics extensively and incorporating various media types such as videos, infographics, and interactive tools to enrich the user experience and engagement.
We also improved the navigational structure of our website and streamlined the user interface to make it more intuitive and engaging for visitors. This included making our site fully responsive and ensuring that the content layout was optimized for readability on all devices.
The adoption of the Google Concierge Strategy led to remarkable improvements in our SEO performance. Post-implementation, we observed a significant increase in organic traffic, higher rankings for key search terms, and improved engagement metrics such as lower bounce rates and longer session durations. Our content started to rank not just for direct queries but also for a broader range of related terms, increasing our visibility and authority in the niche.
By aligning our SEO strategy more closely with the demands of recent Google algorithm updates, we ensured that our content was both discoverable and valuable to our audience, directly addressing their needs and questions with well-researched, thoroughly developed content. This holistic approach not only satisfied the technical requirements of the latest SEO practices but also greatly enhanced the user experience, leading to sustained organic growth.
Enhance Content E-E-A-T
In response to Google's March 2024 core update, I quickly adapted our SEO strategies at Dental SEO Expert. The update emphasized quality content and penalized sites for unoriginal, low-quality material. Recognizing the increased importance of content authenticity and depth, I shifted our focus toward enhancing the E-E-A-T of client websites. This involved an in-depth audit of all existing content, upgrading information accuracy, and ensuring all written material demonstrated expert knowledge.
The results of these changes were profoundly positive. We observed a notable increase in most websites' traffic, but 30% of the websites are still without significant traffic changes. Our engagement metrics improved as visitors recognized the value and reliability of the information we provided.
Prioritize Mobile Optimization
In my capacity as an SEO expert and software developer, adapting to major algorithm updates has been a critical part of maintaining and improving our online visibility. A specific instance of this was when Google rolled out a significant update focused on mobile-first indexing and page experience factors, including the Core Web Vitals.
Recognizing the potential impact of these changes, we swiftly adapted our SEO strategy. First, we conducted a comprehensive audit of our websites to assess mobile responsiveness and loading speeds. This audit helped us identify key areas where our sites were not fully optimized for mobile devices, and where page load speeds could be improved.
Based on the findings, we implemented several technical optimizations, including enhancing server response times, optimizing images, and adjusting the design to be more mobile-friendly. We also focused on improving the user experience by simplifying navigation, making buttons and links easier to interact with on touchscreens, and ensuring that the content was easily readable on smaller screens.
Additionally, we invested in better understanding and optimizing for the Core Web Vitals, which are specific factors that Google considers important in a webpage's overall user experience. We used tools like Google's PageSpeed Insights and the Web Vitals Chrome extension to monitor these metrics and make necessary adjustments.
The results of these adaptations were quite positive. Post-update, we observed a significant improvement in our search engine rankings and mobile traffic. The bounce rate decreased, the average session duration increased, and overall, the user engagement on our mobile site improved.
This experience underscored the importance of agility in SEO strategy and the need to prioritize user experience in line with Google's evolving algorithms. It also highlighted the benefits of a proactive approach to SEO, where anticipating changes and acting swiftly can mitigate risks and leverage opportunities for better search visibility.
Focus on User Experience
We shifted to enhancing user experience. For smoother navigation, we optimized the site's code and compressed images to improve load times, ensuring fast navigation across all devices. We tailored our website's design and content to cater specifically to mobile users, which significantly boosted our site's usability and search performance.
Craft User-Focused Content
After a major algorithm update, we shifted our focus towards creating more high-quality, user-focused content rather than relying heavily on keywords alone. This meant investing more time in understanding our audience's needs and crafting content that provided real value, answered questions, and solved problems.
We also increased our efforts in improving website user experience, making sure our site was mobile-friendly, had faster loading times, and offered an intuitive navigation structure. This wasn't just to make search engines happy, but to make our site better for everyone who visits.
The result was a significant improvement in our organic search rankings and user engagement metrics. By aligning our strategy more closely with the intent behind the algorithm changes—prioritizing the user experience—we were able to recover from the initial disruption and even see better performance than before the update.
Do a Strategic Post-Algorithm Update
Following a recent major algorithm update, our PanTerra Networks marketing team implemented a strategic SEO adaptation process. This involved first understanding the update's core focus, whether it prioritized content quality, technical aspects, user experience, or a combination. Industry resources and official Google announcements were crucial in this analysis.
Next, a comprehensive content audit identified areas for improvement. Existing content was analyzed for keyword relevance, user engagement metrics, and overall value proposition. Based on these findings, content was optimized or revamped to better align with the update's focus. This could involve enriching content for users, improving readability, or incorporating relevant keywords naturally.
The team also reviewed technical SEO aspects to ensure optimal website crawling, indexing, and user experience. Backlink profiles were assessed, with potential disavowal of spammy links and efforts to acquire high-quality backlinks from reputable sources. Finally, the team closely monitored website traffic, keyword rankings, and other relevant metrics to gauge the effectiveness of the adaptation and refine the strategy further.
