Google Algorithm Updates: What Do They Mean for Brands and Marketers?
Google changes its search algorithms at least once daily to provide increasingly accurate results for every search query.
This rapid pace of change can cause marketers concern, and it’s easy to understand why. Organic search generates over 50% of all website traffic, so if Google changed the rules, it could significantly impact the quantity and quality of online traffic any business receives.
Likewise, there are those in the SEO industry who closely monitor these updates in the hope that they can “hack the algorithm.” After all, knowing how Google ranks websites can be a very lucrative competitive advantage!
The 2024 Google Documentation Leak provided rare insights into Google’s algorithm, but marketers still need to prepare for constant change. This is especially true in the age of artificial intelligence, where Google is making rapid changes to try to defend itself from new competition. For example, Google’s rush to introduce AI-powered reviews into search results has led to headlines like “Google Tells Users to Run with Scissors, Cook with Glue, and Eat Rocks.”
Among the small changes invisible to the naked eye, the search giant has also launched a small number of what it calls “core algorithm updates” since 2018. They are announced through the Search Liaison X account, a role held by renowned SEO expert Danny Sullivan. The making of this role at Google is a positive step towards transparency in the channel which is very important for many online businesses.
Overall, Google’s current developments seek to reward these sites that provide a good user experience, rather than penalizing those who take shortcuts to get to the top of the search engine results page (SERP trends).
To understand how we got here, it’s worth briefly reviewing Google’s most notable historical updates. The remainder of this article will assess the fundamentally different era of algorithm updates we live in today, with an emphasis on the “big fundamental changes” that have become commonplace in the industry.
CreativeClick being a digital marketing agency has to be updated on the important algorithm updates by Google to improve and change digital strategy for our brand’s best performance.
Google’s Major Algorithm Updates: A Brief History
Panda
Initial Launch: 2011
In a Sentence: Panda was a major algorithm update (with numerous iterations since its inception) that targeted content farms and sites with low-quality content.
Who had/has all this effect? The initial Panda update affected about 12% of all queries and caused ranking drops for sites with poor content or high ad-to-text ratios. Panda has been continually updated since 2011 to include new data signals, including user engagement metrics (like bounce rates and time on site), content richness, authority, and site architecture. Its data is processed outside Google’s main index, just like the Penguin algorithm data.
Penguin
Initial launch: 2012
In a sentence: Originally known as the “Webspam Update,” Penguin targeted anti-spam techniques that helped sites rank higher. These methods included keyword stuffing and buying backlinks.
Who had/has all this effect? At launch, this measure targeted 3.1% of English-language queries, but it quickly expanded to a larger data set. Penguin created enough excitement in the industry to rival any other set of updates and now works in real-time (rather than on a rolling basis) to optimize search results.
Hummingbird
Initial launch: 2013
In a sentence: Perhaps one of the biggest core algorithm updates of all time, Hummingbird ushered in a new era of “semantic search” based on a deeper understanding of user intent and Google’s vast Knowledge Graph.
Who had/has all this effect? Hummingbird has had an impact on how all queries are interpreted, but it has especially helped companies working to develop conversational search. Google called this update “Hummingbird” because it is “precise and fast.”
RankBrain
Initial launch: 2015
In October 2015, Google revealed that it had started using machine learning as an essential part of its algorithm, by the use of a technology called “RankBrain.”
Who had/has this much effect? It affected almost
Who did/does it affect? This affected pretty much everyone! RankBrain was said to be the third-most important aspect of the core algorithm, and its importance has been cemented over time. This means Google’s algorithms can adjust their assumptions based on user feedback in real time to provide increasingly accurate results.
Possum
Initial launch: 2016
In a sentence: Possum was an update that focused on improving the quality of local results, based on the exact location of the searcher and the quality of available results.
Who did/does it affect? Many businesses that sit just outside of a city’s geographical limits saw an increase in their visibility, as Google relaxed the fixed rules it previously had in place. Users also saw more variety in the Search Engine Optimization (SEO) results, based on specific modifiers or the order of words in their search query.
The Mobile-First Index
Initial launch: 2018
In a sentence: Google starts using the mobile version of content for its Search Engine Optimization (SEO) index, rather than the desktop version. This seismic shift marked the move to a mobile-first world.
Who had/has all this effect? It affected almost everyone! RankBrain was considered the third most important aspect of the core algorithm, and its importance has grown over time. This means that Google’s algorithms can adjust their assumptions based on real-time user feedback, to provide increasingly accurate results.
Major Updates of 2018
MozCast, which measures the level of volatility in Search Engine Optimization (SEO) results, saw very high levels of activity between August 1 and 2, 2018, suggesting that Google is making big changes. This was confirmed in a tweet from Google Search Liaison.
At first glance, this seems to offer little benefit. The update was represented as a “wide-ranging” change, and the webmasters were advised to “create quality content.”
BERT Update
Initial launch: October 2019
In a sentence: An update to BERT (Bidirectional Encoder Representation from Transformers) helped Google better understand natural language and context in search queries.
Who has this impacted? This update impacted about 10% of all search queries and was especially helpful in understanding longer conversational queries. This has given marketers new opportunities to create quality content without having to rely too heavily on using exact-match keywords in their text. BERT has also been a major step toward the more conversational Google experience we know today.
MUM (Unified Multitasking Model)
Initial launch: May 2021
In a sentence: MUM is a transformative AI-powered update that enables Google to better understand and process complex search queries using multimodal data (text, images, and video) across multiple languages.
Who has/had this impact? MUM expands Google’s ability to answer complex search queries that previously required multiple Search Engine Optimization (SEO) results. For example, it can compare and synthesize data from different formats and languages to answer complex queries like planning trips or comparing products. This is an important update for industries that handle complex, multi-step queries, such as travel, healthcare, and e-commerce.
Major Google Updates till 2025
Major Google algorithm updates for the year 2024 were its Spam updates and Core Updates.
These updates are for the websites that violate’ google’s spam policies and core updates emphasize bringing quality search results by giving priority to original and useful content.
Google algorithm updates have become a regular feature, with new versions coming out multiple times a year. They are big enough and regular enough to deserve their section in our guide to Google algorithm changes.
These updates are designed to improve the way Google evaluates content and determines rankings. Unlike smaller, targeted updates, major updates affect a wide range of search queries, industries, and languages, which means they can cause big swings in your web rankings.
Conclusion: Tips to adjust your SEO strategy based on Google algorithm updates
Although you cannot completely control your site’s performance during Google algorithm updates, you can take the following measures to minimize its volatility and enjoy stable growth:
1. Build a brand:
If you had the choice to buy a product from a well-established brand or an unknown brand, you would probably choose the first option — and Google thinks the same way. Proven sites are generally considered reliable, which is why their positions in search engines and their overall effectiveness in SEO remain relatively unchanged after Google algorithm updates. That’s because Google always wants to ensure that users find reliable information as quickly as possible, so respected pages generally do not experience a drop (at least not significant).
To take advantage of this privileged status, you must become the primary source of information in your niche. More technically, you need to send the right trust signals to Google’s algorithm. The best ways to do this include: Use brand search queries — Brand keywords (for example, JBL wireless headphones) signal to Google that users are specifically searching for your brand. This can increase your authority and help improve your rankings for non-brand-related search queries. Acquire quality backlinks — If respected sites link to you, Google will consider your site and brand authoritative enough to rank higher.
Be active on social media — although social media activity is not a direct SEO ranking factor, it increases mentions of your brand on the internet, which conveys information about your relevance to Google. Some trust signals, such as domain age, are beyond your control, so older websites may have a default advantage. However, you can compensate for this by creating a reliable brand that engages users.
2. Show E-E-A-T:
E-E-A-T is an acronym that refers to four elements that Google wants to see on a site: Experience Expertise Authority Trust Trust is the foundation of this concept, which is why the remaining three elements are intended to establish it, as shown in the following diagram from the Google Quality Rater’s Guide: The link between E-E-A-T and Google’s algorithm updates is simple: if you are considered an authority, you are less likely to suffer negative consequences. You can demonstrate E-E-A-T by consistently publishing quality content that provides valuable information.
Demonstration of the depth of expertise by presenting your qualifications and any form of authority in the field. Creation of authoritative backlinks Although it may take some time to achieve similar indicators and effectively demonstrate E-E-A-T, all long-term efforts are well worth it. You will not only strengthen your protection against the pitfalls of Google’s algorithm updates, but you will also be able to climb much more quickly in the SERP trends and reach a high position.
3. Ensure a positive user experience:
All the countless updates from Google serve a single purpose: to improve the user experience. Google wants users to find what they’re looking for quickly and effortlessly while enjoying the process. To stay on the good side of the search engine, you need to adjust your SEO strategies accordingly and ensure that your site contributes to Google’s overall goal. Besides the quality of the content, the structure of your site also plays an important role in this regard. Your users must have the ability to navigate your pages easily and find answers to their questions without obstacles. The best way to show what this looks like is to explain what not to do, and the following page is a good example: As you can see, the screen displays five advertisements, and as you scroll, many more appear. This makes the page incredibly distracting and irritating to scroll through, which harms the user experience. Another thing to avoid is heavy visual elements. Although images and videos make the page more attractive, they can also slow down its loading, which increases the bounce rate. Here is the exact breakdown of loading times and bounce rates according to Google’s data: New industry benchmarks for mobile page loading speed 01 21 If you want to keep your visual elements without compromising loading time, make sure to compress them using tools like TinyPNG. Google recommends using the WebP format, so use it to ensure optimal site speed.