Google updates can make business owners nervous.
Rankings move. Traffic fluctuates. Competitors suddenly appear above you. SEO forums fill up with theories about what Google changed and what everyone should immediately fix.
After more than 20 years working in SEO, one of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is this:
The worst time to panic is during a Google update.
Strong SEO should not depend on guessing the latest algorithm trick.
It should be built on a website that is useful, technically sound, clearly organized, trustworthy, and genuinely helpful to the people searching for what you offer.
That does not mean a good website will never experience ranking changes.
It means you are building something much more durable than an SEO strategy based on shortcuts.
Quick Answer: What Should You Do During a Google Update?
If your rankings move during a Google update, I recommend starting with diagnosis rather than immediately changing everything.
Look at:
- which pages gained or lost visibility
- which queries changed
- whether competitors moved too
- whether the change affects the whole site or only certain sections
- content quality
- search intent alignment
- internal linking
- technical health
- crawlability and indexation
- authority and reputation signals
- whether you recently made major site changes
Then make targeted improvements based on what the data shows.
I would not automatically rewrite every page, remove large sections of content, buy links, redesign the website, or chase whatever SEO theory happens to be trending that week.
Google Updates Are Not a Reason to Rebuild Your Entire Website
One of the biggest mistakes I see is assuming that every ranking decline requires a dramatic response.
Sometimes it does not.
Rankings can fluctuate for many reasons:
- Google is reassessing results.
- Competitors improved.
- Search intent shifted.
- Your page became outdated.
- Another URL on your site may now be competing with it.
- Google may be testing different results.
- Your website may have a technical problem.
- A major site change may have affected crawlability or relevance.
That is why I prefer to diagnose first.
I use the same philosophy when performing an SEO audit before investing in major changes.
Diagnosis before treatment.
What Makes an SEO Strategy Fragile?
Some websites are much more vulnerable to changes because their SEO was built around tactics rather than a strong foundation.
Common examples include:
Thin or Repetitive Content
Publishing more pages does not automatically create more authority.
If several URLs answer essentially the same question, Google may have difficulty determining which page should represent the topic.
This is one reason I have been deliberately consolidating overlapping content on my own website.
I would rather have one excellent page clearly owning a search intent than several mediocre pages competing with each other.
Keyword Stuffing
Repeating a keyword over and over does not make a page more helpful.
Modern SEO is much more about understanding:
- the topic
- the search intent
- the entity
- the relationship between pages
- the information the searcher actually needs
Manipulative Link Building
Links still matter, but I would not build an SEO strategy around shortcuts, private link networks, irrelevant placements, or anything I would be uncomfortable showing a client.
Relevant links, legitimate mentions, partnerships, citations, and digital PR are much more aligned with how I approach authority building.
I explain that process further in my digital PR and link building guide.
Weak Site Architecture
A website can have excellent individual articles and still struggle if the overall structure is confusing.
Important pages should be easy to find.
Related pages should connect logically.
Service pages should have supporting content.
Location pages should have a clear purpose.
Search engines should not have to guess which page you consider most important for a topic.
Chasing Every Algorithm Rumor
SEO changes constantly.
That does not mean your entire strategy needs to change every time someone posts a new ranking theory.
There is a difference between adapting to meaningful changes and reacting to noise.
I wrote more about that in The SEO Changes I Ignore.
What Makes SEO More Durable?
SEO that holds up better over time tends to have several characteristics.
Clear Search Intent
Every important page should have a job.
Ask:
What question is this page answering?
Who is this page for?
What should someone be able to do after reading it?
This sounds simple, but it solves a surprising number of SEO problems.
I go deeper into this in my guide to search intent.
Strong Website Structure
A well-organized website helps visitors and search engines understand:
- your primary services
- your expertise
- your service areas
- supporting topics
- which pages are most important
Your content should work as a connected system rather than hundreds of unrelated posts.
Useful Internal Linking
Internal links are one of the most underused SEO tools.
They help establish relationships between:
- service pages
- supporting articles
- location pages
- case studies
- related resources
They also help prevent important pages from becoming buried.
You can read my full guide on the benefits of internal linking for SEO.
Real Experience and Expertise
AI has made generic content extraordinarily easy to create.
Real experience is harder to reproduce.
If you have firsthand knowledge, show it.
Depending on the business, that might include:
- case studies
- original examples
- professional experience
- author bios
- credentials
- real photographs
- customer questions
- before-and-after examples
- explanations based on actual work
- insights competitors cannot simply generate from a prompt
Google’s broader E-E-A-T framework emphasizes experience, expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness.
I cover that separately in my E-E-A-T SEO guide.
What More Than 20 Years in SEO Has Taught Me About Google Updates
I have worked in SEO long enough to see countless changes that were supposed to completely reinvent search.
The details change.
The fundamentals are remarkably persistent.
Websites still benefit from being:
- useful
- accessible
- organized
- relevant
- authoritative
- trustworthy
- technically healthy
- easy for people to use
The tactics around those principles evolve.
The principles themselves are much more durable.
Content That Holds Up Better Over Time
I do not believe in creating content merely because a keyword tool shows search volume.
Before publishing a new page, I ask whether the website actually needs it.
Build Around Topics, Not Random Keywords
A strong business website usually has primary topics connected to its services.
For example, my Local SEO topic includes resources about:
- Google Maps
- Google Business Profiles
- proximity
- local keyword research
- service-area businesses
- neighborhood SEO
- citations
- reviews
Those pages support one another.
That is different from publishing hundreds of disconnected articles.
If you want to understand the structure behind this, read my guide to content clusters and SEO.
Update Strong Content Instead of Constantly Replacing It
Older pages are not automatically bad pages.
Sometimes they simply need:
- updated information
- better internal links
- a clearer introduction
- improved examples
- outdated claims removed
- a more useful FAQ
- a better connection to the rest of the website
Refreshing a page that already has history can be more useful than creating another competing URL.
I explain this further in why updating old website content can help SEO.
Technical SEO Still Matters During Every Algorithm Era
Great content cannot perform well if search engines have difficulty accessing or understanding it.
Some of the technical fundamentals I continue to watch include:
- crawlability
- indexation
- canonical URLs
- redirects
- broken internal links
- duplicate URLs
- unnecessary indexed pages
- XML sitemaps
- mobile usability
- Core Web Vitals
- page performance
- structured data where appropriate
Technical SEO is not glamorous, but it can quietly undermine everything else if ignored.
This is also why I regularly review old pages and redirects rather than allowing years of outdated URLs to accumulate.
Content Pruning Can Be Part of a Healthy SEO Strategy
One lesson I have become even more convinced of over time is that more content is not always better.
Sometimes SEO improves by removing unnecessary content.
That might mean:
- merging overlapping articles
- redirecting outdated posts
- removing obsolete utility pages from the index
- consolidating near-duplicate topics
- strengthening one clear authority page
The goal is not to make the website smaller for the sake of being smaller.
The goal is clarity.
A search engine should be able to determine which page you want representing a topic.
This is also why I do not believe publishing more blog posts automatically improves SEO.
Link Building That Ages Better
Backlinks remain an important part of SEO, but how you earn them matters.
I tend to favor links and mentions that make sense in the real world.
Examples include:
- industry publications
- chambers of commerce
- local organizations
- business associations
- media coverage
- reputable directories
- professional partnerships
- original research
- useful resources people genuinely want to reference
I care much more about relevance and legitimacy than accumulating a large number of questionable links.
A smaller number of meaningful mentions can be more valuable than chasing hundreds of low-quality placements.
Local SEO During Google Updates
Local businesses have additional factors to consider.
Your organic website rankings and your Google Maps visibility are related parts of your search presence, but they are not identical.
For Local SEO, I continue paying attention to:
- Google Business Profile accuracy
- business categories
- services
- reviews
- local reputation
- location relevance
- service-area clarity
- local backlinks and mentions
- neighborhood and city relevance
- strong service pages
If Maps visibility matters to your business, my guide on how to rank higher in Google Maps covers this in more detail.
I also have a broader Local SEO guide for San Diego businesses.
Google Updates and AI Search
Google Search itself is also changing.
AI Overviews can now change how information appears and how people interact with certain searches.
That does not mean the SEO fundamentals above suddenly stop mattering.
Businesses still benefit when search systems can clearly understand:
- who they are
- what they offer
- where they operate
- which topics they know
- how their pages relate
- why their information should be trusted
I cover Google’s AI-generated search experience separately in my guide to Google AI Overviews and San Diego SEO.
For businesses specifically trying to improve how their pages are structured for that experience, I also have a guide on optimizing for Google AI Overviews.
How I Diagnose a Ranking Drop
When a client loses visibility, I do not immediately assume Google “penalized” the website.
I start investigating.
1. Determine What Actually Dropped
Was it:
- one query?
- one URL?
- one topic cluster?
- Google Maps?
- organic search?
- impressions?
- clicks?
- conversions?
- the entire site?
Those are very different problems.
2. Compare the Timeframe
I look at when the change started.
Did it coincide with:
- a known Google update?
- a site redesign?
- a migration?
- new redirects?
- deleted pages?
- new content?
- a plugin change?
- a major competitor improvement?
Timing can provide useful clues.
3. Look at the Winning Pages
If a competitor replaced you, study what Google is currently rewarding.
Ask:
- Does their page satisfy the intent better?
- Is it more focused?
- Is it fresher?
- Is the website more authoritative?
- Is the page better internally linked?
- Does it contain stronger firsthand information?
- Did Google begin favoring a different type of result?
You can learn a lot from what replaced you.
4. Check for Cannibalization
Sometimes the problem is inside your own website.
If two or three pages target substantially the same search intent, Google may alternate between them or struggle to identify the strongest candidate.
Consolidation can sometimes make the site’s structure much clearer.
5. Review Technical Health
I check whether the page:
- is indexable
- has the correct canonical
- returns the right status code
- appears in the sitemap
- is internally linked
- loads correctly
- has accidental redirects
- has rendering problems
Do not rewrite 2,000 words of content before confirming the page can actually be crawled and indexed correctly.
6. Evaluate Conversion Alongside Rankings
Rankings are not the final business goal.
I also want to know:
- Are qualified visitors arriving?
- Are phone calls increasing?
- Are forms being submitted?
- Are people viewing important service pages?
- Are leads becoming customers?
A ranking decline matters differently if revenue and qualified leads are still growing.
Should You Wait Before Making Changes?
Sometimes.
If rankings are moving dramatically during a major update, I generally avoid making a dozen unrelated changes at once unless there is an obvious technical problem.
I want enough information to understand what changed.
There is no universal number of days you must wait.
The right timing depends on:
- how severe the issue is
- whether Google is still rolling out changes
- whether the problem is technical
- how much historical data you have
- whether the page was already weak before the update
The important principle is:
Do not make panic changes that make diagnosis harder.
What I Would Not Do After a Ranking Drop
Unless the data clearly supports it, I would not immediately:
- delete half the website
- rewrite every article
- change every title tag
- switch domains
- redesign the entire site
- buy a pile of backlinks
- create dozens of new pages
- stuff more keywords into existing content
- blame AI
- assume SEO is dead
Large changes should have a reason.
What I Would Do Instead
Start with the highest-confidence improvements.
That may include:
- fixing technical errors
- consolidating duplicate content
- strengthening internal links
- refreshing an outdated page
- improving the answer to the searcher’s actual question
- adding genuine firsthand expertise
- improving a weak service page
- clarifying the site’s structure
- earning better links and mentions
- improving local signals
- fixing conversion issues
This is how small SEO improvements can create significant growth over time.
Google Updates Are Also Opportunities
An update can expose weak websites.
But it can also create opportunities.
If competitors built their visibility on:
- shallow content
- weak site architecture
- outdated information
- poor user experience
- manipulative links
- vague expertise
then changes in Google’s systems can create space for stronger businesses to move up.
That is why I do not think the goal should be to make a website “algorithm-proof.”
Nothing is algorithm-proof.
The better goal is to build a website that deserves to remain useful as search evolves.
My Approach to Durable SEO
The way I approach SEO today is based on a few principles.
Strategy before activity.
Do not publish or optimize something simply because you can.
One clear intent per important page.
Avoid unnecessary competition within your own website.
Build authority over time.
Content, links, reputation, experience, and consistency compound.
Keep the website technically clean.
Do not allow years of redirects, broken pages, duplicate URLs, and abandoned content to accumulate.
Use data before making major changes.
Search Console, analytics, rankings, conversions, crawl data, and actual customer behavior are more useful than guessing.
Optimize for people first.
Search engines are trying to connect people with useful information and businesses.
Helping the person is still one of the most durable SEO strategies available.
Final Thoughts
After more than 20 years in SEO, I have watched Google change countless times.
Search results look different.
Ranking systems have become more sophisticated.
Local search has expanded.
AI now plays a larger role in how information is presented.
But the websites I want to build still have the same basic qualities.
They are useful.
They are clear.
They are trustworthy.
They demonstrate real expertise.
They have logical structure.
They answer the right questions.
They are technically accessible.
And they improve over time.
That is the kind of SEO I would rather build than spend every Google update chasing another temporary trick.
If your rankings have dropped—or you are unsure whether your website is built strongly enough to handle future search changes—I can review it and show you what I would prioritize first.
Or call/text me directly at (619) 719-1315.
— Jen Ruhman
San Diego SEO Expert
Frequently Asked Questions About Google Updates
Can SEO survive Google updates?
Yes, although no website is guaranteed to maintain the same rankings forever. Websites built around useful content, clear search intent, strong technical foundations, legitimate authority, and good user experience are generally better positioned to adapt as search changes.
How do I know if a ranking drop came from a Google update?
Compare the timing of the decline with your own website changes and Google’s known update periods. Also examine which pages and queries changed. A decline occurring near an update does not automatically prove the update caused it.
Should I rewrite all my content after a Google core update?
Usually not. Start by identifying which pages actually lost visibility and why. Targeted improvements are generally more useful than rewriting the entire website without diagnosis.
Should I delete old content after an update?
Not simply because it is old. Update valuable pages when appropriate. Merge or remove content when it is obsolete, redundant, low-value, or competing unnecessarily with stronger pages.
Do backlinks still matter?
Links and online mentions can still contribute to authority and discovery. I focus on legitimate, relevant links rather than manipulative link-building tactics.
Can duplicate or overlapping pages hurt SEO?
They can create unnecessary competition or make it less clear which URL should represent a particular search intent. That is why I periodically consolidate overlapping content on my own website.
Does Local SEO change during Google updates?
Local visibility can change as Google’s systems evolve, but fundamentals such as relevance, proximity, reputation, Google Business Profile accuracy, reviews, website quality, and local authority remain important.
How quickly should I react to a ranking drop?
Fix obvious technical problems immediately. For broader ranking volatility, gather enough data to understand what changed before making numerous major edits at once.
Is there such a thing as algorithm-proof SEO?
No. Search will continue changing. The goal is not to make a website immune to algorithms but to build a strong, useful website that can adapt as search evolves.