Did you see a drop in traffic after the Hummingbird Google search update? The newest Google algorithm update includes changes that may directly affect your SEO.
The latest Hummingbird Google search update came around the 15th anniversary of Google. Time flies and technology changes. Any good content marketer knows that keeping up with technology and changes is a key to success.
With a focus on serving the needs of their users, the latest Google search update is designed for a better user experience.
Whereas matching keywords was always emphasized, the Google Hummingbird update places more emphasis on sematic search.
According to Wikipedia, “Semantic search seeks to improve search accuracy by understanding searcher intent and the contextual meaning of terms … , to generate more relevant results.”
Google has made subtle changes to their algorithm previously, but Hummingbird is a completely new algorithm. This latest Google search update takes the focus off mere keywords and puts the emphasis on answering user questions. This is a good thing as the search results will be more relevant to what the user is looking for.
Google Search Update – What to Expect from Hummingbird
There’s been lots of buzz about the Hummingbird Google search update. Creating rich user content is more important than ever, instead of just focusing on keyword phrases.
What I love about this is something I’ve preached for a long time. That is, always provide value to your readers. Google Hummingbird will respond well to your content if you provide answers to satisfy a user’s needs.
I rounded up some great information about the Hummingbird Google search update here:
What ‘(Not Provided)’ & Google Hummingbird Mean for Small Business SEO
Small business owners who once obsessed over their top keyword rankings and traffic from a few money terms now need to adjust their thinking with the rise of “(not provided)” keywords and the arrival of the Google Hummingbird algorithm.
From Amal Rafeeq: Google is implementing new ways to make the search more brilliant, accurate and powerful.
They are trying to move search past simple keywords & links to determine what to show in its search results.
10 Ways Google’s Hummingbird Will Shape Future SEO and Content Marketing
Why Google’s Hummingbird Algorithm Is Perfect for Inbound Marketers
Learn how Google’s new algorithm change, Hummingbird, impacts marketers — and leaves a lot of opportunity for certain business types.
Google Hummingbird Update: What You Need to Know
Joshua Berg put together a detailed article about Google’s latest algorithm update.
We’ve always said, content is king! What are your thoughts about the new Google search update? Is it affecting you and will you change your SEO strategies going forward?
Hey Lisa.
Thanks for the helpful informative post.
We haven’t just had Hummingbird in the past couple of weeks, we’ve also had Penguin 2.1. This got pushed out on Friday 4th (a few days ago) and has made quite an impact. It hasn’t effected me too much – some keywords are up, some are down. There is always a bit of a Google Dance straight after an update though so I’m not too worried.
My prediction: Me and you will ride through the update just fine 🙂
Hey Nick!
Thanks for stopping by and letting us know about Penguin 2.1! Keeping up with Google search updates is a must but I missed that one!
I think the Hummingbird update is a good one and will force content marketers to focus on better quality and value-driven content.
Best,
Lisa
Hey Lisa,
Yeah, Penguin 2.1 was actually a really huge update. The forums are Google forums are flooded with people panicking about the drop in traffic. Thing is though, people always panic after a Google update as you have what is known as the “Google Dance” – some rankings go down for a few days, and then go straight back up again.
I didn’t notice any change from Hummingbird. I also think that’s a nice update, unlike the evil penguin! Thanks for the value that you provide Lisa! 🙂
Lisa, this is amazing info. As an online network marketer and video marketer it is essential to keep up to date on how Google is ranking content. There is a wealth of information here. It’s all about value and you have definitely provided it here. 🙂
Hi Karin! Thanks for stopping by! Keeping up with Google is a must but so worth it!
Regards,
Lisa
Hi Lisa,
I completely agree with you that the sites and blogs offering value to their readers aren’t going to get affected by any of these or future updates.
Google is frequently rolling out updates every now and then with an objective of pulling high quality relevant content from the Internet. I believe that the publishers, who had been writing for readers aren’t going to get much affected and luckily, till date, I haven’t heard any bad news from any of my other blogger friends. It seems, Google has been quite careful this time while designing their new algorithms.
Thanks for collecting and sharing some deep insights from people having an in depth knowledge about the topic.
From the internet marketing’s point of view Google Hummingbird algorithm update has great values and allow them to think about modern and natural ways of optimizing their website. If you are using blackhat techniques then its time to end it up and follow the whitehat method. Your post is pretty good in this regards as you are describing the SEO tactics after Hummingbird update 🙂