SEO News This Week

• Google helpful content update (source)

• Google Completely Removes How-To Rich Results (source)

Consider These Items

_{Based on the Google Helpful Content Update}

Audit Third-Party Content on Subdomains and Subdirectories: Given Google's updated stance on third-party content, it's essential to review any content hosted on your site's subdomains or subdirectories that you do not control.

Google's algorithms are getting better at identifying such content as separate from the main site, which could negatively affect your site's ranking. Consider blocking third-party content from being indexed by Google if it is not closely supervised or aligned with your main site's goals.

Reassess AI-Generated Content Strategies: Google has removed the phrase "written by people" from its documentation, indicating a more accepting stance towards AI-generated content.

SEO professionals should consider exploring AI tools for creating content while ensuring it meets the standard for being "helpful" according to Google's guidelines.

But remember, the quality should not be compromised; it should still provide genuine value to the reader.

Content Freshness and Review by Experts: Google is now paying closer attention to how dates are changed on content and whether content is reviewed by experts.

Make it a practice to avoid superficially updating the dates on old content without making substantive changes. Also, if you're not an expert on a topic, consider having your content reviewed by one, as Google is now explicitly acknowledging the value of expert-reviewed content in its rankings.

Consider These Items

_{Based on Google Completely Removes How-To Rich Results}

Remove or Repurpose How-To Schema Markup: If your site heavily relies on How-To rich results for visibility in Google search, it's time to remove or repurpose this specific schema markup.

Since Google has announced that the How-To schema will no longer benefit your search results, continued usage could be a waste of resources.

Analyze Impact on Traffic and Revise Strategy: The removal of How-To rich results can affect your site's click-through rates and overall search visibility. Perform a detailed analysis to understand the impact of this change on your website's performance metrics, such as impressions and clicks.

You may need to revise your content and SEO strategy to make up for the loss in visibility.

Monitor and Update Search Console Settings: Google mentioned that the How-to search appearance, rich result report, and support in the Rich results test will be dropped in 30 days and from the Search Console API in 180 days.

Make sure to adjust your API calls and reporting methods accordingly. Keep an eye on announcements related to this for any additional changes or recommendations from Google.

Podcasts & Resources

• Local SEO & Digital Marketing Podcast - Listen Now

• Paid Search Podcast - Listen Now

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