On May 25th, Google began rolling out its first broad core algorithm update of the year, the May 2022 Core Update. The impact of this update was felt so quickly, within 24 hours of the announcement, that he feels safe to report on the impact of this May 2022 core update.
Historically, we’ve waited a long time to report on the impact of these core updates. But after writing some stories about the impact of these core updates, the majority of impact is usually realized within the first few days of the update (although there are always exceptions).
Data Providers for May 2022 Core Update
In general, the data providers (which were consistently Semrush and RankRanger in these reports) agree on how flaky these updates are. However, with this update, they seem to disagree. At least until you dig into the data.
sem rush. Semrush data shows that the May 2022 Core Update was a hit soon after it was announced. As for the volatility tracker, as shown below (or you can view it live with the Semrush Sensor tool).
Regarding the rollout speed of these core updates, “This is already the third consecutive core update we’ve seen in very short bursts of first rank volatility in the first rollout,” says Mordy, Communications Advisor at Semrush. says Oberstein. He added that “this seems to be the new pattern” as these core updates roll out.
Comparing the May 2022 Core Update with the November 2021 Core Update, at first glance, the May Update appears to be less unstable than the November Update. This is what the company shared, with the exception of the real estate niche that “seems to have undergone a major change.”
This chart compares the May 2022 Core Update to the November 2021 Core Update by vertical.
The problem is that the average level of volatility before the May 2022 Core Update was higher than the level of volatility seen before the November 2021 Core Update, Semrush explained. In fact, according to Semrush, the overall increase in rank volatility compared to the baseline level before the Core Update was more pronounced on desktop than with the November 2021 Core Update, compared to the first release of the May 2022 Update. decreased by 19% on mobile and decreased by 24% on mobile. .
So plotting the peak volatility gives us a different perspective.
Does this mean that even with the Semrush data, May 2022 could have been more volatile than the November 2021 core update? It’s all about how you interpret it.
The chart below shows that 17% of the new Top 20 ranked results on Google after the May 2022 Core Update came from 20th or higher. This isn’t too far from his last November 2021 core update.
rank ranger. The RankRanger team will also be analyzing Google search results after the rollout of this May 2022 Core Update to see how quickly the tool is fetching search results (this is also live in the Rank Risk Index tool). In can be confirmed). RankRanger said the May 2022 core update was “significant”.
A RankRanger representative compared the May 2022 Core Update to the November 2021 Core Update. RankRanger found in that data that the average rank change for the May 2022 update was higher than his November 2021 update.
If you dive in and compare position by position, the volatility looks more similar across positions.
As you can see from the chart below, according to RankRanger data, retail appears to be the most affected.
systrixSISTRIX, another data provider that tracks changes in Google search results, has submitted the top 20 winners and losers for the May 2022 Core Update. These are US-based sites from the Sistrix data set.
Sistrix added:
May 2022 Core Update Details
SEO communityThe May 2022 Core Update seems to be far more important than the November 2021 Core Update. Unlike the November 2021 Core Update, the timing of that update wasn’t optimal. So it was the busiest online shopping season. This update has been better scheduled for retailers. Early on, I covered the community reaction in one of his blog posts on the Search Engine Roundtable. This includes some of his early chatter from SEO, ranking charts, and social shares.
On Twitter you can find many examples of SEO sharing charts from clients. This update mostly shows the winners, but also the losers.
What to do if you get hit Google has provided advice on what to consider if you’ve been adversely affected by core updates in the past. No specific action to recover. In fact, a negative ranking impact does not indicate that there is a problem with the page. However, Google has provided a list of questions to consider when your site hits a core update. Google said it sees a bit of a recovery between core updates, but the biggest change will be after the next core update.
why you care. It’s often difficult to pinpoint what needs to be done to undo an algorithm hit that may have occurred on the site. am. What this data and our experience and advice to date has shown is that these core updates are broad and cover a lot of overall quality issues. The data above confirms this to be true. So when your site hits a core update, it’s a good idea to step away from it all and take a broader look at your website to see what you can do to improve your site as a whole.
Hopefully your company and your clients have done well with this update.
Google update details
You can read more about our coverage at Google Algorithm Updates history on Search Engine Land.
What’s New in Search Engine Land
About the author
Barry Schwartz is a contributing editor for Search Engine Land and a member of the programming team for SMX events. He owns his RustyBrick, his New York-based web consulting firm. He also runs the Search Engine Roundtable, a popular search blog on highly advanced He SEM topics.You can follow Barry Twitter is here.
