Google’s September 2023 helpful content update started rolling out Sept. 14 and completed rolling out 14 days later, on Sept. 28. The impact of this update was significant – many websites were devastated.
X (formerly Twitter), forums, and Facebook groups were inundated with thousands of publishers reporting traffic drops from 10% to 70%. The update was so dire that companies even publicly commented they would have to lay off dozens of employees.
Google says that the point of helpful content updates is to promote helpful, reliable, people-first content, and has directed affected site owners to review their help page for information on how to self-assess content if they feel negatively impacted.
Google was also clear that this update would not be rolled back, and as of publication of this article, we have not seen that happen. That’s a sign that Google is confident that the update did what it was intended to do, which is no salve or comfort for affected site owners.
So what happened?
What did this update target, and what is really the difference between helpful and non-helpful content?
First, some great analysis of this update has already been done by several of my colleagues. I would urge any who have not already done so to review:
- The analysis that Glenn Gabe has put up.
- This note from Marie Haynes.
- This constantly updated resource maintained by Joe Youngblood.
These resources provide a great overview of the update, good commentary on what has changed compared to 2022...
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