Google's search algorithm is constantly evolving to provide the best user experience and the most relevant results. As a copywriter, you need to keep up with the latest changes and adapt your content accordingly. In this article, we will cover some of the recent updates that affect copywriting and how you can optimize your content for them.
One of the major updates that Google announced in 2020 was the introduction of Core Web Vitals, a set of metrics that measure the speed, responsiveness, and visual stability of web pages. These metrics are part of the Page Experience signal, which also includes mobile-friendliness, HTTPS, safe browsing, and no intrusive interstitials. Google plans to use Page Experience as a ranking factor from May 2021, so you need to ensure that your content meets the Core Web Vitals standards. To do that, you can use tools like Google Search Console, PageSpeed Insights, and Lighthouse to measure and improve your site's performance.
Well, Core Web Vitals is an important thing but it is very technical, and it is not a signal itself, more like a concept. You have a special part in Google Search Console for this but, at the end of the day, the point is to keep your website really fast and with a fantastic UX experience.
To optimize copywriting for Google's latest updates: Prioritize Core Web Vitals for faster loading and readability. Embrace BERT by using natural language and avoiding keyword stuffing. Ensure E-A-T: Write content by experts with credible sources. Maximize passage indexing with well-written, keyword-rich passages. Optimize for mobile with clear language, short paragraphs, and jargon-free content. Focus on user intent by creating informative, engaging, and relevant copy. Follow digital marketing expert tips for high-quality, user-centric content.
Another update that has a significant impact on copywriting is BERT, which stands for Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers. BERT is a natural language processing (NLP) technique that helps Google understand the context and intent of search queries better. BERT can handle complex and conversational queries, as well as synonyms, prepositions, and modifiers. BERT also affects the way Google displays featured snippets, which are the short answers that appear at the top of the search results. To optimize your content for BERT, you need to write in a clear, natural, and engaging way, focusing on the user's intent and answering their questions. You also need to use relevant keywords, headings, and structured data to help Google identify and display your content as a featured snippet.
BERT in just another part of all the idiomatic algorithms from Google, as well as MUM (Multitask Unified Model). All of them (and many more) have an unique objective: To understand better the content of your website and the relation between that concept and the search intention of the user. The good part, if you write more naturally and keep in mind the user, the job is 80% done.
E-A-T, which stands for Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness, is another concept that Google uses to evaluate the quality and credibility of web content. E-A-T is especially important for topics that affect the user's health, safety, or finances, also known as Your Money or Your Life (YMYL) topics. E-A-T is not a direct ranking factor, but it influences how Google applies its quality guidelines and algorithms. To improve your E-A-T, you need to demonstrate your expertise and authority on the topic, provide accurate and reliable information, cite reputable sources, and display your credentials and contact details. You also need to avoid misleading, outdated, or harmful content, and maintain a positive online reputation.
A few months ago, Google has added another E to the acronym EAt, making it EEAT. E-Experience: The newest element of the acronym demonstrates that the content creator has first-hand experience in a subject. E-Expertise: This demonstrates the knowledge and expertise of the creator. A-Authoritativeness: Authority is all about the creator's reputation, especially among other experts and influencers. T-Trustworthiness: Google values trust as the most important factor as untrustworthy webpages will have a low E-E-A-T, no matter how experienced and authoritative they may seem. The E-E-A-T guideline becomes especially important for Your Money Your Life topics. So, focus on E-E-A-T in your copywriting to improve the quality of the content.
EAT is probably the most important part of Google algorithm (with links, maybe). Some months ago, Google has added another E to the acronym, now is EEAT: - E = Experience. - E = Expertise. - A= Authoritativeness. - T = Trustworthiness. So, to rank better, you need to be an expert in your niche. That's all, easy to write, hard to achieve.
In October 2020, Google announced that it was testing a new feature called passage indexing, which allows it to index and rank individual passages within a web page, rather than the whole page. This means that Google can surface relevant content from long-form articles, even if the page title or URL does not match the query exactly. Passage indexing is not a separate algorithm, but rather an enhancement of the existing one. To benefit from passage indexing, you need to create long-form content that covers a topic in depth, using subheadings, bullets, and images to break it into readable sections. You also need to use descriptive and relevant titles and URLs, and avoid keyword stuffing or duplication.
This is a nice point because sometimes in Google SERP (Search Engine Result Page) does not show the whole piece of content of your website but a highlighted paragraph. It's ok but now the challenge is more on AI, because Google is going really hard to implement some AI technology inside Google SERP, and it's going to change the game forever.
Mobile-first indexing is a process that Google uses to crawl and index the mobile version of a web page, rather than the desktop version. Google has been rolling out mobile-first indexing since 2016, and it plans to make it the default for all websites by March 2021. This means that you need to ensure that your content is optimized for mobile devices, as well as desktops. To do that, you need to use a responsive design that adapts to different screen sizes and orientations, and avoid elements that can slow down or disrupt the mobile experience, such as flash, pop-ups, or large images. You also need to use the same content, metadata, and structured data on both versions of your site, and verify your mobile site in Google Search Console.
You know, in 2023 everything has to be mobile first and responsive, because most of the Internet traffic is mobile. Yes, there are B2B projects with tons of laptop traffic, but it does not matter because, for Google, the main crawler is the mobile one, so you have to design everything for mobile, and then, make it bigger.