Google Algorithm Update for May 2021

[Honeybadger]

Google said yesterday on Webmaster Blog that Core Web Vitals (CWV) page experience signals will become part of ranking algorithm in May 2021, and "We encourage you to get started on evaluating your sites using the tools and documentation detailed on this page"

This is what action to take this week

1. Loading (CWV) --> Check every day page load speed is under 2.5 seconds, because this is Google's Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) recommendation
2. Interactivity (CWV) --> Reduce First Input Delay (FID) to under 100 milliseconds
3. Visual Stability (CWV) --> Fix Cumultative Shift Layout (CSL) errors (desktop & smart phone) in Core Web Vital Report on Google Search Console
4. Mobile Friendly --> Test all pages work on smart phone with Site Wide Mobile Usability Report on Google Search Console
5. Safe Browsing --> Check for security issues in Search Console, comply with Google News content policies
   
6. HTTPS --> No action, using SSL cert
   
7. No Intrusive Interstitials --> ALL ad pop ups (not legal or cookie) can f*ck off, move main content to customer can see it above the fold (desktop & smart phone), only use banners very relevant to content & customer

It also says "The intent of the search query is still a very strong signal, so a page may still rank highly if it has great, relevant content" --> I am reading US patent US8868548B2 'Determining user intent from query patterns' invented by Yair Kurzion at Google

 

[T J Tutor]

I always look forward to these because it's like having a professor tell me "get a jump on next semester if you want that 4.0 again!"

5 and 7 have actually been around for some time. Their just cranking down on them a little more each year. I've always made sure my content sites adhere to those two because they build a great deal of weight with G and benefit the consumers. WIN/WIN