Dec 2024 Google Core Update – What You Need to Know
Dec 2024 Google Core Update – If you noticed your site traffic dropped, or specific page rankings dropped from mid December 2024 till now, you are not alone. Google performed a major core update in mid December and then right before Christmas ran a spam update.
What has been the result on the business side of this – volatility in SERP’s. Volatility like many of us in the SEO space haven’t seen since the Panda update many years ago.
The difference today is that the volatility in search engine results is all over the place. We have clients who went up in the SERP’s and we have clients who went from the top spot on the first page of Google Search Results to the bottom of page three almost overnight with no change in the content of that website.
What to Do If Your Website Ranking is Impacted by The Google Dec 2024 Core Update
The first thing to do is not panic. I have seen our own ranking in the SERPs suddenly decline too many times to mention. What we tend to see is two fold – one, often after a couple of weeks, our content rises quickly back toward the top. Two – we have never lost major position in the SERPs and not been able to recover.
So don’t panic if your website traffic suddenly dropped. It happens. It has happened before and it will happen again.
Next – take action. Start writing new content that is really good, and get it up on your web pages, blog, and Youtube channel. We have found that nothing helps reverse a SERP correction better than rapidly adding really good (and helpful) content to your website or social media channels.
Be Judicious In Publishing A.I. Written Content
One thing I can tell you from a personal perspective is that A.I. generated content is not going to be your friend even in the short term. Yes, A.I. written content is helpful, and man is it fast, but our experience is, it isn’t good.
It is getting better – we own A.I. tools and we make good use of them. But for us, we use our A.I. tools to “flesh out” content. It is great at doing research to figure out what people on the web are writing about given a specific topic.
What it is not great at is writing articles that are “helpful.”
Also remember, Google has their own A.I. tool and they can use that A.I. tool to spot content that is completely written by A.I. – not only that, but if you run your A.I. content through an A.I. content checker, even after multiple revisions, A.I. can still spot A.I. written content.
What does this mean? It means, write your own stuff. Write content that has your insights, experiences, and helpful tidbits of information in it. If you have special access to someone within a domain of experience who has a well respected voice within that community – maybe interview them and put their thoughts into your content.
But however you do it – make sure to add your own personal and special insights or flare. Otherwise, it is only regurgitation and adds very little value to the conversation around a topic.
PRO TIP – Don’t have a radically alternative view than what you find on the rest of the internet. This is a strange one, and probably not going to lead to an outcome that is good for internet health, but a serious player in the SEO space said that they noticed if they offered a new insight on a topic that was highly variant from what the rest of the internet was saying – that it didn’t rank well in the SERPs.
Use Youtube to Boost Your Search Rankings
O.K., I know you have a ton of work to do, but here is a pro tip: Make use of Youtube and connect that content back to your website. This will help boost your search ranking and credibility score.
Maybe your mom told you that you’ve got a face that was made for radio – it doesn’t matter. I personally feel that if you care at all about your search engine rankings, then you need to start making videos.
Even if that video isn’t good – start making video.
I find that the easiest way to start making videos for Youtube is through Canva.
Canva has a great video feature that allows you to basically take a video of what you are doing on your computer screen and simultaneously allows you to talk either as a voiceover, or as a talking head in a little circle.
Either one is great because the “you in a circle” is so small, it doesn’t matter how you look.
PRO TIP FOR CREATING YOUTUBE CONTENT
If you are new to creating Youtube content, focus on showing people how to do something, how to find something, or how to fix something. This is the content that most people search Youtube for – short tutorials that are helpful in accomplishing some small task. You don’t need to make two hour movie – show someone in three minutes or less how to use the SEO feature of Yoast in WordPress. Simple. Fast. Easy. Helpful.
Summary – Dec 2024 Google Core and Spam Update
Google changes things, and sometimes those changes mess up your search engine rankings. If you care at all about your SEO, then this isn’t news to you. It has probably already happened multiple times.
The main thing you need to do – is not panic. The second thing you need to do is get to work writing great content.
Don’t rely heavily on articles that are ONLY written by A.I. – be warned!
Add Youtube content – use Canva. It makes things a lot easier.
Know that this is not the first time this has happened, and it won’t be the last. There are areas of the country where volatility in the SERPs shifts hourly. Your content can be number one in the morning and at the bottom of page one by the afternoon and off of page one entirely the next day and then back on it the following day. Be grateful if you do not live in an area where you live with that kind of search engine volatility.
About The Authors
Stay Wild Digital Marketing is an SEO Company in Salt Lake City Utah with offices in Tampa Florida. If your search engine rankings have been impacted by the latest Google Core Update and you need help getting your content ranking high in the SERPs again, please visit our SEO Page or email tim@staywilddigital.com
