Keeping up to date with search: Google Hummingbird Update
In September, Google formally announced an update to their algorithms which coincided with their 15th birthday celebrations. The Hummingbird update is one of the biggest changes to search for a long time, affecting 90% of all searches.
Google updates its search algorithm regularly. Recent updates have changed how Google index websites and detects spam or scraped content.
This latest update is user-focused, making Google better at answering questions by understanding what users really want to know. The update takes the Knowledge Graph and utilises the information to better deliver results to users.
What is Knowledge Graph?
Knowledge Graph is detailed graph which works by intuiting search queries based on previous searches, identifying the connections between people, places and things. This information is then used to deliver better results, finding the specific information that people are looking for when they type terms or questions into Google.
Who will be affected by the changes?
The change affects users who use more conversational queries. Previously, when users would type out search queries in the form of a question, Google would break these down into keywords and find content that matched those keywords. In the era of desktop searches, this worked quite well.
Why have Google rolled out the Hummingbird update?
The advent of mobile browsing and voice search has led to an increase in the longer search queries, with a more conversational tone. Google has updated the algorithm to try and make sense not just of the words that the user puts into the search engine, but also the context of that query.
The update means that Google is now more capable of dealing with complex and continuous queries, where users ask one question and then another related to the previous answer. For example, a user may ask a question such as, ‘Where is the Taj Mahal?’, followed by, ‘How old is it?’. The Hummingbird update means that Google knows that these search queries are linked and answers appropriately.
The end of SEO?
As per usual, there has been a flurry of posts of late announcing the death of SEO yet again. However, as this update provides users with more intelligent response to their search queries, it actually means that website owners and marketers who are putting in the time and effort to create high-quality content that people need are being rewarded for their efforts.
The driving force behind the update is Google’s understanding that the web is changing as more and more users use devices such as phones and tablets to access the internet, and with that comes a different way of searching. As we move steadily towards the era of wearable tech such as Google Glass, the search engine giants have said that, ‘Having a ‘conversation’ with Google should also be more natural.’
How will this affect me?
This update is all about the end-user and if you are continuously posting great content which is well written, shared by lots of people, and provides real value to the user, it’s great. Link building to good content with low bounce rates will help websites, whereas linking to less-than-great content will be penalised.
Like the previous updates, Panda and Penguin, this update is Google cracking down on poor quality content and bad link building practises. If you want your business to do well in the rankings, you must be creating good content on a regular basis, share that with relevant communities and earn the majority of your links naturally.
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