Google launched a Discover-only core update to shuffle the results based on its updated guidelines to get on Discover.
The update was released on Feb 5th for English language users in the US, with plans to expand across other countries and languages.
This first-of-its-kind Discover core update has unleashed some confusion and speculation across the search community. Let’s learn more about what has changed so far and what to expect moving forward.
The Three Target Areas of this Update
The objective of the update in Google documentation is threefold:
- To prioritize local websites producing relevant content for users within a specified region.
- Demotivate clickbait and highly sensational content in Discover.
- Show websites consistently producing detailed, original, and timely content while demonstrating expertise in a specific area.
In the testing phase, Google noted that people found the new Discover experience “more useful and worthwhile with this update.” As a result, the changes were rolled out across the United States, allowing everyone to benefit from the more user-friendly improvements introduced in the Discover core update.
Expected Impact of Discover Core Update
While the impact of this update cannot be fully gauged at the moment, some aspects are quite clear in the officially released documents. Based on that, we can expect to see shifts across the following areas:
Change in Traffic
There will be fluctuations in traffic as the algorithm reshuffles pages and recalibrates the visibility metrics. Think of it this way: if you’ve lost 50% of Discover traffic, your site probably fell under the radar.
Google pointed out that “Some sites might see increases or decreases; many sites may see no change at all…”
To review if your site was hit, run an audit to uncover possible causes, such as:
- Lack of authoritative content that helps establish expertise in a specific topic.
- Use of headlines leveraging outrage and morbid curiosity as clickbait.
- Too many ads or pop-ups.
- Non-localized targeting.
- Bad page experience
Local Content will be prioritized
It’s clearly implied in the update that the Discover feed will now feature locally relevant content. This means that the audience in the US will see content from US websites, whereas non-US websites producing content for the US audiences will not be prioritized.
As the update expands to other regions, there’s speculation that this impact may lessen or disappear completely.
Focus on Topic Expertise
It’s possible for one website to demonstrate expertise across a range of subjects. Google says that Discover visibility is affected on a topic-by-topic basis. For example, a fitness website with a long-running nutrition category and regular contributions from dietitians could reasonably be seen as knowledgeable about healthy eating. By contrast, a tech blog that publishes a one-off article about nutrition would not carry the same level of credibility.
How is topic expertise examined?
Google has a system to analyze and identify which topics a site has expertise in. Based on that, websites can be prioritized to show up in the Discover section.
Important! Websites can appear in Discover even for topics that are unrelated to their primary niche. This is possible only if they have expertise in the given topic, according to the “system’s understanding of a website’s content.”
Personalized Visibility
The Discover core update highlights that it will continue to personalize feeds based on user preferences. For example, if a user frequently visits the BBC, they’re likely to see more from their website in their custom feed.
Global Release
While the changes apply only to English language users across the US at the moment, Google has reaffirmed the update will be released globally. The rollout across all languages and countries can be expected in the months ahead.
How To Get On Discover?
Google guidelines have always been pretty clear about how to get higher visibility on Discover, but the recent update has prompted a few minor modifications. Building on the existing framework, the guidelines introduced one new point into the official document after the update. The remaining points were, more or less the same, with the exception of a few terms like “sensationalism” or “clickbait.”
Here’s a summary of the latest guidelines, as defined in the updated doc.
- Clear and well-defined page titles and headlines that precisely outline the content of a page.
- Use of relevant and high-quality images. The preferred image size is 1200 pixels, enabled by max-image-preview:large setting or using AMP.
- Address current topics in a timely manner, and ensure the content is enriched with compelling storytelling and unique insights.
- Avoid artificial engagement-inflation tactics like clickbait or exaggerated content previews in titles and images.
- Do not withhold important information for the sole purpose of making content appealing to the audience.
- Refrain from sensationalism tactics or strategies that seek to attract attention by exploiting morbid curiosity, titillation, or outrage.
- Deliver a great page experience, constituting good CWVs, mobile friendliness, secure navigation, and minimal pop-ups.
What This Means Moving Forward
Even though this was a unique update dedicated only to the Discover section, it may have an impact on the overall search results as well. The shifts in traffic tides suggest the same, which is why it’s best to keep a check on traffic driving both from Discover and organic search to track trends across the update.
The existing Google guidelines on core updates still apply to this Discover core update, but improvisations post-update are essential to retain visibility. As we wait for the update to kick off in other regions, it’s best to make sure any content on your website intended for Discover fits into the updated guidelines.
