What Did We Learn From Google’s Web Creator Summit? Three Key Takeaways

The most significant news from the summit, Google revealed that there’s another Google search ranking update on the way. However, business owners shouldn’t hold their breath, since this update is unlikely to restore their page rankings anytime soon, or directly solve any of the issues brought up at the event. 

According to the write-up from Mike Hardaker, Danny Sullivan was quoted as saying:

“The thing to really watch for is when we do updates. Google will have another update fairly soon, but it probably won’t or won’t have any updates from what we talked about here because we can’t run back and change it that quickly. It kills me because I know that’s going to be depressing[…]”

At the summit, content creators also had the opportunity to interact with various Google staff members, which included some of its engineers. Unfortunately, when attendees asked why Google’s algorithm had negatively impacted certain websites, the engineers present were allegedly unable to give a clear answer – even after attempts to debug and remove these errors from Google’s system.

This is a concerning sign, since it makes you wonder: has Google lost control over its own algorithm?

The main takeaway from the event is a bleak one. There’s no guarantee that business owners who’ve experienced severe search ranking volatility will see signs of recovery soon. In fact, as claimed by Mike Hardaker’s article, Sullivan made it clear that “the whole format of search results has changed” since the September Helpful Content Update, so an uncomplicated or speedy solution to the problem isn’t on the horizon.

If your site has been impacted by Google’s algorithm previously, this probably wasn’t the news that you wanted to hear. However, there are a few actions you can take in the coming months to keep your rankings as secure as possible:

1. Maintain your content’s quality – According to attendees, the topic of “satisfying content” popped up again and again, so continue to ensure that your content puts users first. Though, as the summit has shown us, creating high-quality content won’t necessarily mean that your site will rank highly, but it may work in your favor further down the line if Google does end up changing its act.
2. Stay informed – With the hints of another update on the way, remember to keep your finger on the pulse. The earlier in advance you know about any upcoming changes, the more time you have to prepare.