How to Stay Ahead of Google Algorithm Changes & Search Engine Rankings

Why Did Google Drop My Site?

The answer to this common question almost always has something to do with Google’s latest algorithm update. Google’s updates are infamous for lighting a fire under companies who’ve felt ho-hum about their website and digital presence. They’re not trying to BULLY business owners; Google just genuinely works to benefit their SEARCHERS.

Want to Know How to Stay Ahead of Google Algorithm Changes?

How can you keep your website on “friendly terms” with Google and avoid falling further down their search engine results page (SERP)? Waiting for Google to announce their own algorithm updates often leads to chaos. By the time you’re able to fix what Google sees as a problem, it may already be too late. Playing catchup with Google doesn’t work; the answer is to stay ahead of the game. Moz tries its best to keep us up-to-date with its own announcements.  But how do we stay ahead of Google?

3 Ways to Stay Ahead of Google Algorithm Changes

An obsession with Google is healthy for your website and digital marketing efforts. Here are 3 questions that can help predict future algorithm changes:

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1. What Is Google Thinking About?: Individuals

According to their mission statement, “Google’s mission is to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.” That means Google is constantly thinking about how it can better serve people looking for information. Every algorithm change Google makes is intended to accomplish this goal. Be a part of that. Continue to focus on publishing quality content and improving the user experience. This is the best way to ensure your search engine optimization and content marketing campaigns are ready for Google’s curve ball. How can your website better serve the PEOPLE searching for you?

2. Where Is Google’s Attention?: Culture Trends

If Google’s updates depend on people, we also need to keep up with culture trends. People are always changing. It’s remarkable how Google is even capturing the way we talk so that search queries don’t have to be rigid or robotic. Study people like Google does. Does your website share the interests of your contemporary customers? Does it reflect today’s culture trends? One example of this is Google’s update on May 12, 2016: the second algorithm change that benefits websites that are mobile-friendly. This change shows how Google recognizes the cultural shift to mobile devices.

3. What Tools Can Help Me Stay Ahead of Google?: RankBrain

RankBrain, an artificial intelligence system, is used to deliver more relevant organic search results. It is part of the algorithm with links and content to inform Google how to interpret and understand these types of signals. “RankBrain uses mathematical processes and language semantics to understand complex search queries.” As RankBrain investigates what causes users to click certain pages in the search results. It will continue to change how Google interprets websites and determines a site’s search rank. RankBrain moves Google’s algorithm away from exact keyword or phrase match. It helps find web pages that enable Google to return higher quality results for long-tail search queries.

Stop Risking Rankings Playing Catchup with Google

We’ve been using these practices with all of our clients. In fact, when smartphones first came out, building mobile-friendly websites was already on our minds. We’ve been incorporating mobile-friendly technology in websites for a long time. Want to stay ahead of Google?