Google Algorithm Update May 2020: How to Recover and Thrive

The Google Algorithm Update May 2020 was a significant change that affected many websites. It was a broad core algorithm update that aimed to improve search results by reducing low-quality content.

Many websites saw a drop in traffic and rankings after the update, which can be frustrating and costly. But there is hope for recovery and even thriving in the new landscape.

To recover from the update, it's essential to review your content and assess its quality. This means evaluating your articles, blog posts, and other written content for accuracy, relevance, and engagement.

The update also highlighted the importance of user experience, so make sure your website is mobile-friendly and easy to navigate. A good user experience can improve your rankings and keep visitors engaged.

Google's May 2020 Core Algorithm Update focused on robust, relevant, and quality content. This update reinforces Google's long-held goal of providing the best possible search results.

Directories and aggregators are seeing a significant boost in rankings, which is likely due to their ability to provide timely and relevant information. This shift in rankings is a notable change in the way Google's algorithm evaluates websites.

Local rankings are also a major hit, with Google prioritizing local searches during the COVID-19 pandemic. This makes sense, given the increased demand for local services and products.

Thin content referred to by external websites is being affected by the update, which is a good thing for websites that prioritize quality over quantity. This change will help reduce the spread of low-quality content.

Google's SERP features may go away as a result of this update, which could have a significant impact on websites that rely heavily on these features.

Google's latest update has made it clear that comprehensive content is the way to go. Thin content, in particular, has taken a beating.

Websites that provide in-depth explanations and nuanced answers to complex questions are now more likely to rank well. This is especially true for topics like legal and medical content, where searchers are seeking detailed information.

Google has been emphasizing the importance of quality content since the Panda update of 2011. Websites that have been providing lip-service to complex topics may have seen their visibility plummet.

Crafting long-form articles is key to creating comprehensive content. This can be a challenge, but it's essential for ranking well in search results.

Websites that incorporate jargon and technical language effectively can also benefit from this update. However, it's essential to ensure that these explanations don't go over the reader's head.

The Google algorithm update in May 2020 had a significant impact on various industries. The update focused on local search and content quality, particularly for complex professional industries, which means that the legal and medical industries are positioned to potentially be affected significantly.

Professional sites that have been neglecting robust and relevant content or under-optimized local profiles and reviews may have seen their site visibility and traffic drop as a result of this update.

The update affected almost all content verticals, with a bigger impact on YMYL (your money, your life) websites, which can directly impact users' health, happiness, safety, well-being, or financial security. These industries include fitness, news, drugs, financial advisory, and history.

Some of the biggest losers by overall visibility decreases include YMYL websites, which saw a significant drop in traffic. On the other hand, professional sites with high-quality content and optimized local profiles saw a 15% increase in organic traffic and conversions.

Here are some example industries that were impacted by the May update:

If your site has been affected by the Google May 2020 update, you may notice a significant drop in organic traffic. This is one of the key tells of a site being affected.

The Google algorithm core update has affected every category across the internet, with deviations in keyword volatility showing which categories and clients were relatively more unstable on a given day.

If you're seeing a significant drop in organic traffic after May 4, 2020, the recent Google update can be the reason. This is according to experts who have been tracking the update's effects.

The initial data shows that some larger publishers have experienced drastic changes to certain landing pages' traffic and rankings. For example, one publisher's impressions dropped to zero after the core update for the query "haptic touch."

Google is conducting massive amounts of tests on their SERPs during this core update, showing different results for the same query in the same browser, at the same time, to different users querying in the same location.

A significant drop in leads coming in through your website is one sign that something may have changed. Utilize Google Analytics to investigate your leads and conversions from organic sources in particular.

Mobile has seen 22% more volatility in the SERPs in the last few days, compared to desktop SERPs. This doesn't always mean things are moving in the wrong direction, though. In fact, some clients have seen a net positive movement for the SERPs of 2.57% since Google changed its core algorithm.

Here are some notable Mobile SERP feature changes we've seen so far:

For those top 20 SERPs, an average of 14.39% of the pages on the SERPs contain AMP pages, showing that Google is rewarding pages with better page speed for this part of the Google algorithm.

If the May 2020 core algorithm update affects your search ranking negatively, don't panic. Many SEO experts recommend doing nothing, but if you've lost more than 50% of your site's organic traffic, it's time to act.

You can start by identifying which pages have seen the losses and looking for ways to optimize existing pages or create new ones with excellent content that addresses a user's search intent.

Here are some key areas to focus on:

Remember, there isn't a hard and fast rule to fix impacts once an update starts rolling out, but following these SEO tactics can help you get back on track.

Google's testing of search results is likely due to changing search behaviors caused by Coronavirus trends, which are affecting long-time publishers with high authority.

Established publishers are experiencing massive drops in impressions during this core update, with some seeing traffic and rankings fluctuate greatly.

The query "truth or fiction" in a search results page has truthorfiction.com as the number two spot, yet plato.standford.edu's result for a scholarly article defining the term "fiction" is the number one spot.

Google's results pages shouldn't vary this much between the same browsers at the same time, especially since they use a mobile-first index.

Even on mobile, with two queries just 1 minute apart, truthorfiction.com had the knowledge graph in the first and didn't have it in the second.

These differences are concerning and might be why established publishers have seen massive drops in impressions throughout this core update.

The same query in the same browser returns a SERP with truthorfiction.com being the top result, and the "fiction" definition entry by Stanford is the 7th result, just moments after showing the opposite.

If your website's organic traffic has taken a hit since the May 2020 core algorithm update, don't panic. A significant drop in leads and organic traffic can be a sign that your website's visibility has been affected. Utilize Google Analytics to investigate your leads and conversions from organic sources, and compare them to the same time period last year and the year before.

If you see a precipitous drop, you may have lost visibility from the update. To get back on track, focus on optimizing existing pages or creating new pages with excellent content that addresses a user's search intent. Make sure that all foundational and technical corrections are done on your website, and don't cut corners in this area, as it is the foundation your site's SEO is built on.

Here are some top tactics to consider:

To improve your website's content, identify the quality of your content using matrices such as bounce rate, avg. Session duration, and conversation rate. Use these metrics to identify low-performing landing pages and create strategies to improve them.