Are You Ready for Google’s August Core Update?

by | Published on Aug 7, 2018 | Medical SEO

Medical SEO, and indeed SEO in all industries, is always competitive. Not only do you need to be ahead of your competitors, but you also need to be prepared for updates released by Google. Professional search engine optimization and digital marketing solutions are essential for improving rankings, maintaining existing competitive rankings, and not suffering significant dips with each algorithmic update Google brings out.

The August Core Update

Google is having an update for August but it is still in the process of being rolled out. That’s not to say the effects haven’t been felt. This is a major update, according to the metrics tracked by Search Engine Land.

So what’s this August core update all about? The goal of the update is to improve the search result quality so that users get the best results. Google isn’t advising any major technical changes for webmasters to adopt in their websites. The only thing Google requires is looking at steps to make your website provide higher quality content and a better experience to visitors.

Google Confirmed the Update at the Beginning of August

Back in August 1, Search Engine Land reported Google confirming a “broad” update to its core algorithm, which was being rolled out. Google said this was part of its routine algorithmic updates that happen at various times of the year. While mild algorithmic changes happen almost every day, the August update is a broad update that happens at various times of the year.

No Drastic Changes to Worry About

There may be some gains experienced by some sites, while other pages might experience drops. Google said that pages that drop are not necessarily those that don’t perform well. It is rather the sites and pages that were not being rewarded earlier, but should have, being benefited as a result of the changes made to Google’s systems.

Google also reports that you can’t really come up with a quick solution for pages that have suffered dips. The only advice given is to focus on churning out great content for these pages and updating them. It could happen that your content eventually helps your page rise in relation to the other pages, when Google eventually recognizes the improvements you have made to the content, enabling your rankings to improve.

Two Other Broad Core Updates Happened this Year

We saw broad updates to the core algorithm even in March and April this year. And Google gave the same advice to webmasters back then. Maintaining content quality is the key aspect here. Ensure that users can find what they’re looking for effortlessly in your website. Make sure it loads well and has a user-friendly interface.

Healthcare websites for example, need efficient medical content writing that is engaging and informative. Video content and infographics help too. People searching for treatments, health conditions and other information related to what your practice offers, must be able to find what they’re looking for in your pages. Along with this, you need user-friendly healthcare website design as well.

The basic principles have not changed in medical SEO. Keep up with the good stuff and the rankings will improve, despite the minor changes and broad core algorithmic updates Google keeps rolling out. An experienced SEO company can help you here.

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