The Past, Present, and Future of Google's Search Algorithm
In the ever-evolving landscape of search engine optimization (SEO), staying informed about Google’s algorithm updates is crucial for maintaining visibility and ranking in search results. Over the years, Google has introduced several major algorithm changes aimed at refining user experience, tackling spam, and prioritizing quality content. This timeline provides an overview of some of the most significant updates, their impact on the digital marketing world, and the best practices that emerged from each phase. From the early attempts to identify and manage webspam to the era of mobile-first indexing and AI-driven enhancements, understanding these shifts can help marketers and businesses align their strategies for sustained SEO success.
Previous Google Algorithm Updates
Below are some of "not all" of Google's most important updates to their search algorithm:
Florida 2003
While Google never specified or exactly clarified what the Florida update entailed, many SEOs used context clues to make an educated guess at what’s going on behind the scenes. At the time of the update, major companies like Microsoft and Google had been researching statistical analysis links and URLs. Utilizing that with machine learning to analyze spam, and give web-surfers a better experience when searching.
We can make a guess as to what factors and variables Google was considering when implementing the update by reviewing Microsoft’s research paper, Spam, Damn Spam, and Statistics, published in 2004, to give us some clues. The research paper goes on to describe the following as identifying factors of spam, and utilizing machine learning to weed them out
Panda 2011
Panda was implemented in 2011 to tackle the “content farm” business model. This was a concept where businesses and websites would create thousands of low-quality pieces of content to manipulate search results. Some businesses would contract out freelancers to write said content.
Panda was designed to reduce the ranking of low quality sites that provide low value to surfers. While increasing the rankings of higher quality content, that does provide value.
Google’s Amit Singhal gave a list of questions to ask yourself when creating content to avoid getting docked by Panda:
A fun question to ask yourself when writing your content for your website, “Does this sound like it was written by a highschooler?”
As of 2021, Panda has gone through many updates, and is now an integral part of Google’s machine learning algorithm.
Penguin 2012
Originally called the "webspam" algorithm update, the Penguin algorithm targets link spam and manipulative backlink-building practices.
Prior to the Penguin, link volume played a large part in ranking, leading to low quality/value sites and pages ranking higher than they should.
The Penguin algorithm operates by identifying good and bad links, and creating a ratio. Example: 2 good links for every 1 bad link. It’s important to keep this in mind if/when you are hit by the Penguin algorithm. Because it is a ratio of good to bad, your efforts are better spent on increasing the number of good links you have, rather than eliminating the bad.
Another important thing to note about the behavior of the Penguin algorithm, is it doesn’t typically hit your entire site (although it can), and often hits you on a page by page basis. All that said, it’s better to have your whole site in order.
Hummingbird 2013
Is alleged “the biggest algorithm change since 2001,” making google search more “precise and fast”
It was designed with mobile searchers in mind, being able to take query intent prediction to the next level, and enabling conversational search.
The way it works, think about it as the ultimate upgrade to query intent predicting, with Google being able to gain a deeper understanding of queries as structured sentences, matching query intent with keywords on web pages.
The Hummingbird update has given Google the capability to remove keywords it believes ‘unimportant’ from queries, allowing it to provide quality links.
Rankbrain 2015
Built off the same principle as Hummingbird, Rankbrain was designed with the intention of harboring deeper understanding of search intent. This time utilizing a new concept called ‘entities’, putting in a place a new motto for processing: “things instead of strings”
Recommended by LinkedIn
Entities are assigned to each “thing” (keyword), essentially categorizing things across the web. Entities are used to build relationships with each other as increasing the cognitive awareness of Google.
This was implemented to tackle Googe’s ‘unseen’ 15% of queries. These are potential queries that google has never seen before, and with lack of context, would have a difficult time discerning what important or relevant information to provide. Rankbrain’s entities builds relationships so that Google has something to compare them to, almost as a ‘incase of emergency’
Despite such a drastic change to how information is indexed and categorized, there was little effect on ranking post update.
Mobile First Indexing 2018
In 2018, Google launched their Mobile First Indexing update. To show an eye for attention when it comes to their mobile users, Google launched this update, making it so that the mobile compatibility versions of websites are now a much larger factor in ranking.
Best practices for mobile optimization include:
Bert 2019
The Bert update was targeted at search intent, and better understanding of it
Bert is an update that places a large emphasis on understanding natural language and conversational queries. Understanding the nuances of context in searches.
Core Web Vitals 2021
The Core Web Vitals update is similar to the “Mobile First” update, in the sense that it focuses on the user. Specifically, the user experience.
Core Web Vitals added 3 additional factors that Google considers when ranking your website
Catalog of useful SEO tips to keep in mind moving forward based on previous updates:
Google is on the side of the searcher/surfer/viewer. They want to optimize their experience on Google as much as possible. Meaning Google would rather us meet the viewer, than the viewer reach us.
Authority and Trustworthiness is a top priority for Google. Having a strong and trustworthy backlink profile with consistent IP addresses and host names. While it’s unlikely for someone legit to be classified as spam, you want to provide natural sounding, and informational content for your viewers.
Have a strong mobile version of your website that is easily crawlable. With the mobile first update to Google’s algorithm, many websites are getting docked just because of how strong of a factor it is for ranking. It’s something that many will overlook, and Google will punish.
Page speed is crucial thanks to the Core Web Vitals update. Compressing files, and making everything accessible is important not just for ranking, but for your viewers as well.
Where will Google’s Algorithm go next?
Hot take, I think it will disappear.
Okay, not entirely disappear, but while Google will go through routine updates and hotfixes, they will focus more on generative AI, and responses within a search query.
Right now, go on your smartphone, and ask “can you mix Adderall with Robitussin?” (Note that I use this as an example because I had the flu and was curious on what I could take, please do not mix drugs). The first word you will see, is “No”. Not a link to an article or some website snippet. You see “no,” in a bright blue box with some other text explaining why. All of that text was generated by AI. In the short term, it may seem like the use for blogs is going away. “If information can be pulled from an AI that will beat me to the punch every time, why should I write?” On the contrary, that gives you even more reason to write them. If we can become sources of information for the AI to rely on and cite, where we rank organically won’t matter.
Next, you’re going to ask, how do we get AI to rely on us? A lot of it is the basic SEO stuff we do regularly, however with a strong emphasis on other parts. Specifically, domain authority, utilizing concepts from EAT. Of course high-quality, original, factual content in the best interest of the reader, credibility via citations and backlinks, optimized speed/load times. Essentially optimizing your site for ultimate crawlability and authority.
Something to look for, from my perspective, I believe that we are only a few years away from being able to place ads in AI generated content. We’re a capitalist country after all.
It’s official, we’ve gone from us using AI, to AI using us! In the digital marketing sense of course. I have yet to see AI enslave humanity.