Mastering the Changes: Google’s Core Update and ChatGPT’s New Power
Published 4 months ago • 2 min read
The Growth Digest
Your biweekly dose of content marketing news and advice to help you grow your audience, level up your content game, and get your site to the top results in Google.
Hey Reader,
Have you been staying in the know?
In this edition, we’ll dive into Google’s clarified site reputation abuse policy and what it means for content strategy, unpack the impact of the November 2024 core update, and explore the game-changing potential of ChatGPT’s enhanced web search for SEO professionals.
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What's The Buzz?
Google has updated its site reputation abuse policy, reinforcing its commitment to combating spam and ensuring fair ranking practices. The policy now explicitly states that publishing third-party content on a site to exploit its ranking signals violates Google’s guidelines—even if the host site has some level of involvement, such as through licensing or partial ownership agreements. A lot of SEOs are sharing their thoughts on this update:
Additionally, Google is refining its systems to treat independent or starkly different sections of a site as standalone entities, preventing these subsections from unfairly benefiting from the reputation of the main site. This change aims to create a level playing field and ensure search results reflect content quality rather than manipulative tactics.
Takeaway: Focus on building high-quality, original content that serves users, not search engines. This update underscores Google’s efforts to surface the most relevant and valuable information for users across the web.
NOVEMBER UPDATE: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW -- Google has rolled out its November 2024 core algorithm update, designed to refine how content is evaluated and ranked across search results globally. These broad core updates happen several times a year and can cause notable changes in rankings, though many websites may see little to no impact. Google advises site owners to hold off on analyzing traffic shifts until the rollout is complete, as fluctuations are common during this time.
For those experiencing ranking drops, recovery can take several months and isn’t guaranteed. Google recommends focusing on sustainable improvements by evaluating content against its quality guidelines and monitoring major position changes through Search Console. As this is Google’s final core update for the year, its long-term effects will shape search strategies heading into 2025. Stay tuned for more updates as the rollout progresses!
CHATGPT'S ENHANCED SEARCH -- ChatGPT has introduced a powerful new search feature that brings real-time information directly into conversations. This update combines the intuitive experience of a natural language interface with timely web-based answers, including up-to-date sports scores, stock quotes, and news. Users can now access accurate, linked responses without navigating through traditional search engines.
A “Sources” button provides linked references, ensuring transparency and deeper exploration of the information. What are your thoughts on this new feature?
Search engines like Google rely on information gain scores, which is a fancy way of saying “originality,” to determine how valuable your website is. Learn what information gain is and how you can apply it to your search engine optimization (SEO) strategy.
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