Google’s new helpful content update is shaking up website rankings

As healthcare marketers and SEO specialists, it’s our job to keep our finger on the pulse of what’s happening in the industry. One of the latest developments in this space is a new Google update. The so-called helpful content update started rolling out in late August. As you might have guessed from its name, its purpose is to target web content that’s not helpful for people.

If you’re like most healthcare providers, you’re wondering what this update means for your website and its Google ranking. The team at Catalyst Healthcare Marketing is here to explain this update, how it might change things and how we’re helping our clients stay ahead of it.

All about the helpful content update from Google

In the world of search engine optimization, a lot of people write website content to appeal to search engines. They hope doing so will get their content to rank at the top of Google search results.

Of course, ranking high on the mighty Google search engine results page is important. However, it’s not the only thing that matters. It’s also vital to create content that helps and informs readers. With the helpful content update, Google’s goal is to “help make sure that unoriginal, low-quality content doesn’t rank highly in search.”

To tackle this type of content, Google will use a machine learning algorithm to look at website content. If the algorithm finds that “relatively high amounts” of content on a website are not helpful, it will affect the SEO ranking of the site as a whole.

What does this Google update mean for your website?

Whenever a new Google update enters our lives, it always takes time to see how it affects website rankings. As a result, the Catalyst team will monitor the situation and make adjustments to our clients’ websites as needed.

However, while Google updates aren’t always predictable, we feel most of our clients should be in a good place with the helpful content update. Our writers have always written content that’s engaging and helpful for humans and appealing to search engines, which is exactly what Google recommends as a way to be successful with this update.

Specifically, Google says, “How can you ensure you’re creating content that will be successful with our new update? By following our long-standing advice and guidelines to create content for people, not for search engines. People-first content creators focus first on creating satisfying content, while also utilizing SEO best practices to bring searchers additional value.”

We plan to keep utilizing a “people-first” approach as well as SEO best practices for our existing clients, while also monitoring the effects of this Google update. The Catalyst team is also here to support new clients who need help with their websites in the face of this change. Contact us to learn more.