What Business Owners Need to Know About Google’s November 2024 Core Update

Google recently wrapped up its November 2024 Core Update, and if you’re running a small or medium-sized business, this could impact your website rankings. These updates might sound technical (and honestly, they can be), but I want to break it down in plain English so you know what’s going on and what—if anything—you might need to do.

1. Quality Content Still Rules

Google wants to show people the best answers to their questions. That means websites with detailed, original, and helpful content are more likely to rank higher.

Example: Let’s say you own a bakery, and you’ve written a blog post about “How to Choose the Best Birthday Cake.” If your article just says, “Pick something fun!” with no helpful details or photos, you might see a drop in search rankings. But if you include tips, unique flavor combos, or even a step-by-step guide, you’re in a much better spot.

What You Can Do: Refresh your content. Make sure it’s detailed, helpful, and directly answers the questions your customers are asking.

2. User Experience is a Big Deal

Google also cares a lot about how easy your website is to use. Slow-loading pages, clunky navigation, or a site that doesn’t work well on mobile? Those things can hurt your rankings.

Example: Imagine someone visiting your landscaping site to look for pricing info, but your site takes 10 seconds to load, and the text is impossible to read on their phone. They’re going to bounce—and Google is going to notice.

What You Can Do: Use tools like Google PageSpeed Insights (it’s free!) to check how fast your site loads. Make sure it’s mobile-friendly and easy to navigate.

3. Trust is Everything (E-E-A-T)

Google is looking for websites that are trustworthy. This means demonstrating Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness.

Example: If you’re a financial planner, a blog titled “How to Save for Retirement” will rank better if it’s written by someone with credentials and references credible sources. Throwing up a generic post without much depth won’t cut it anymore.

What You Can Do: Highlight your expertise. Add bios for your authors, showcase certifications, and include customer testimonials or case studies on your site.

Why This Matters

If your website traffic has dropped recently, this update could be the reason. But the good news is, if you focus on creating valuable content, improving the user experience, and building trust with your audience, you’ll be in a good position to bounce back (or even grow).

By the way, Google isn’t slowing down—another update is already rolling out in December, and I’ll be sharing my thoughts on it in early January.

If you’re unsure how these changes affect your website or need help navigating the ever-changing world of SEO, I’d love to chat. At PSP Compass Solutions, we help businesses just like yours get found online. Let’s figure this out together!