Google’s Helpful Content Update - September 2023

Google's algorithms are becoming more and more focused on providing people with original and helpful content, and this is exactly what Google is trying to achieve with the latest Helpful Content Update. Google started rolling out the Helpful Content Update on 14 September 2023, and said it would likely take two weeks to fully implement.

So what’s new within Google's Helpful Content Update, and what does it mean for your website?

What’s new in Google’s latest Helpful Content Update?

Google is continually refining its algorithms to ensure that users find high-quality, relevant, and helpful content when they search. The Helpful Content Update, announced on Google's developer portal, has introduced several noteworthy changes.

Firstly, Google reiterated its stance on using AI to help produce content. Google replaced the words “written by people” by “helpful content created for people in search results.” So humans do not need to fully write the content to be considered helpful according to Google’s helpful content system.

Besides that, Google added something to the Creating Helpful Content document regarding content that should be written by an expert. It now reads “Is this content written or reviewed by an expert.”  Google added the section “or reviewed” to this line. Google says it is helpful to have your content reviewed by an expert, if you are not an expert on that topic.

A common SEO strategy, which is on Google’s radar, is to make minor adjustments to outdated content, then publish it as new. Same goes for changing the date of the content. They added “Are you changing the date of pages to make them seem fresh when the content has not substantially changed?” Google is aware of this and indicates that actual fresh content is more likely to be seen as helpful.

This aligns with Google's last point about adding or removing content so that it is considered fresh content. Here's what Google has to say about it: ''Are you adding a lot of new content or removing a lot of older content primarily because you believe it will help your search rankings overall by somehow making your site seem "fresh?" (No, it won't)." So be careful when adding or removing content.

What does this mean for your website?

If you're producing helpful content, then you shouldn’t need to do anything!

However, there is always room for improvement. If your organic traffic begins declining after the update has fully rolled out, try assessing your content alongside Google’s guidelines to see if your content is being considered helpful or not.

In Summary:

• DO keep an eye on your website's traffic, so you can anticipate that, if necessary. DO go through Google’s questionnaire, as regardless of the traffic on your website, there is always room for improvement. DO make use of the fact that Google is allowing content that is produced with the help of AI.
• DON’T make adjustments to outdated content if it hasn’t substantially changed, or updated the date of the content.
• DON’T add a lot of new content or remove old content for no reason. DON’T publish AI generated content without editing it with a human eye.