Google algorithm updates occur several times a year. Every time it enhances its features to provide a better user experience.
There are several search engines, but most of the searches (around 85% of total searches) happen through Google because of its user experience.
Moreover, Google is a search engine that makes sure users always get what they need, regardless of when they need it.
With the regular updates, Google also ensures that no matter where you are in the world, there’s a way for you to find the information and services right at your fingertips.
Whether you’re looking for answers on how to use your new laptop or if you want to know more about the latest trends in fashion, Google has plenty of options for you.
So, today we’ll discuss the major Google algorithm updates that make this search engine the first choice for people.
4 Google Algorithm Updates
According to statics and research, Google manages over 3.5 billion search queries, i.e., around 20 petabytes of data every day.
In simpler terms, Google’s relevant result-finding process is like looking for a needle in a haystack. But it always comes up with the best for users.
Did you ever wonder how Google is managing this much information and providing the most relevant result to you?
The answer is simple, regular Google algorithm updates. These updates enhance the Google ranking algorithm and help it find the best result.
That said, here are the overview of Google’s major updates so far, including:
#1. Florida Update (November 2003)
Google’s Florida update was introduced on November 16, 2003. This is the first major Google algorithm update that made a significant change in the search results.
This update is the so-called Florida update because it occurs like a disaster for spammy websites which were using Black-hat SEO techniques (as we call it now) to rank a website.
Before this, many websites, especially of local businesses, retailers, hotels, and more, were using keyword stuffing, hidden text, and spammy backlinks to rank.
And when this update occurred, all the websites that were using these tactics lost their rankings and got eliminated from the search engine result pages (SERPs).
Moreover, this update continued significantly affecting many websites to the month of February 2004. After that, the ranking starts stabilizing.
Long answer short, Google’s Florida update eliminates websites with spammy backlinks and keyword stuffing.
#2. Panda (February 2011)
Years after the Florida update, Google again introduced another major algorithm that completely changed the way SERPs look.
In late 2010, Google noticed that the search results were not relevant to the queries users were searching for.
In other words, users were not getting relevant and satisfying results from Google SERPs. There were several reasons behind this, including the following:
- Thin content: Content with not enough information.
- Duplicate/Copied content: Same content published on more than one website.
- Low-quality content: Provides no solution/information/value to users.
- Content farming: A large number of short articles/content on a website that doesn’t deliver any value.
- Low-quality user-generated content (UGC): Too much guest blogging in exchange for money, backlinks, or anything.
- High ad-to-content ratio: Web pages with more ads than content.
Thus, these were the reasons behind the introduction of the Panda update. According to Google, all these reasons were affecting user experience.
That’s why Google started penalizing websites with this type of content and ranking relevant websites on SERPs.
You should also read: Effective Content Writing Tips to Rank Better.
#3. Penguin (April 2012)
Following the back of Panda update, Google again introduced a new and major update that affected websites with unnatural links and keyword stuffing.
This update changes the way to weigh backlink relevancy and web page content. Due to this, many websites notice a sudden drop in search traffic.
That’s because, with this very new Google algorithm update, websites with spammy, irrelevant, and low-quality backlinks diminished from SERPs.
Furthermore, websites with low-quality content that are populated with tons of keywords or repetitions of keywords are also diminished from SERPs.
In short, the Google Penguin update reduces the ranking of websites with spammy backlinks and keyword stuffing and improves the ranking of legit websites.
After its introduction in 2012, Google regularly updated Penguin with more data that helped it rank the most relevant websites on SERPs.
For instance, in 2013, Google introduced Penguin 2.0; in 2014, Penguin 3.0; and in 2016, Penguin 4.0. After that, this becomes part of the Google core update.
If you’re making tons of backlinks for your website without checking the relevancy and quality, you’re more likely to get penalized or not get a higher ranking in SERPs.
So, it’s recommended to make high-quality, relevant backlinks, and for that, you can read: 5 Creative Ways to Create White-Hat SEO Backlinks.
#4. Hummingbird (September 2013)
Google Hummingbird update was the biggest major update after 2001, as said by Google’s officials. It totally rewrites (changes) the core algorithm.
The name is so-called Hummingbird because Google wants the search engine and the core algorithms updates to be more precise and fast.
According to former Google software engineer Matt Cutts, this Google algorithm update is not a new thing but a newer and updated version of existing core updates.
However, many people thought the hummingbird was a part of Google’s core algorithm, but in a video conference with Matt Cutts, everything became clear as he said:
The Hummingbird update is not like any other major Google algorithm updates, such as Panda and Penguin. It’s just a rewrite of the core search algorithm. He continued saying that, after the introduction of this update, more than 90% of searches get affected, but usually just to a small degree.
In contrast, the best SEO agency in Patna says that it’s not just the update that you need to know about, though; it’s also the changes in search engine optimization (SEO) that have come along with it.
Moreover, it’s a machine-learning algorithm that’s been deployed across Google’s search results to improve the quality of content presented to users.
In other words, the goal is to make the search experience more relevant and useful to users by providing them with the best result possible, especially when they search with mobile devices.
So, if you don’t want to stay behind in the race of SEO, you need to improve and update your content regularly and ensure to make them mobile-friendly.
Hence, these are the major Google algorithm updates that you must keep in mind, especially if you’re an SEO.
You may also like: Mobile SEO Techniques for Mobile-Friendly Website
Conclusion
Google is a very powerful and the most used search engine that has been around for over 24 years and provides its services to billions of people around the world.
The number of users is increasing significantly with time, and the reason behind this is Google provides the best and most relevant results in no time.
However, this doesn’t happen overnight! Google keeps improving with time by analyzing the SERPs and introducing regular updates to make them better.
That said, we’ve discussed major Google algorithm updates that have changed the way of ranking (getting a higher position on SERPs) a website.
Go through all these updates and make sure you don’t make those mistakes that can penalize your website.
Hope you find it informative and helpful. If you’ve any queries, you can ask in the comments!
