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Google’s November 2024 Core Update: The Impact So Far
Google’s algorithm updates often create ripples across the digital landscape, and November 2024 has been no exception. As we approach the third week of the November Google Core Update, there’s been notable movement in search rankings. In this blog we breakdown what’s been happening and what it could mean for your website.
Early Movements: November 13–14
The initial stirrings of the update were observed around November 13 and 14. However, this activity was relatively subdued, with only minor ranking shifts noted across the web. These early movements are typical of Google’s updates, often serving as precursors to more substantial changes.
Significant Volatility: November 16 and Beyond
By November 16, the update appeared to gain momentum. Websites across various industries reported noticeable fluctuations, with some experiencing significant increases or drops in visibility. This period marked a clear spike in Google search ranking volatility, indicating that the algorithm was rolling out changes more aggressively.
The heightened activity lasted a few days, capturing the attention of the SEO community. Many speculated on the nature of these changes, discussing possible impacts on content quality, backlink strategies, and site performance.
Calm in the Second Week
As the update progressed into its second week, the volatility seemed to stabilise. Ranking shifts became less dramatic, and the digital landscape settled into a period of relative calm. This phase is often seen as the algorithm "testing" and adjusting its tweaks, allowing webmasters to assess the initial impact.
Spikes in the Third Week
Just as things seemed to be levelling out, Search Engine Round Table reported a fresh surge in ranking fluctuations during the third week of the update. These spikes suggest that the rollout is ongoing, with Google continuing to fine-tune its algorithm.
What Does This Mean for Your Website?
Core updates often prioritise quality, relevance, and user experience. If your rankings have been affected, here are some key takeaways:
- Focus on Content Quality: Ensure your content is original, well-researched, and provides genuine value to your audience.
- E-E-A-T Compliance: Emphasise Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness (E-E-A-T). Build credibility through accurate information and authoritative sources.
- Technical Optimisation: Check for issues like slow loading times, mobile usability problems, or broken links that could impact your ranking.
- Monitor Analytics: Use tools like Google Search Console to track changes in traffic, impressions, and keyword performance.
Looking Ahead
While core updates can be challenging, they also present opportunities to improve your site and adapt to evolving SEO best practices. The November update is still unfolding, and its long-term impact will become clearer in the coming weeks.
At The Digital Stride, we specialise in helping businesses adapt to algorithm changes and drive consistent growth through tailored SEO strategies. Get in touch and see how our team can support you through a core algorithm update.
Meet The Team - Steve
It’s time to learn a little more about Steve!
Steve's role is split between heading up the SEO team and managing business development for the agency. In terms of SEO, his focus lies in building new and existing strategies for clients and working with the team to implement these strategies effectively.
On the business development side, Steve’s role involves maintaining strong relationships with our existing clients as well as generating new clients to work and build strong relationships with, using digital marketing as a new and/or improved source of leads for their businesses.
Steve's career began as a mechanic in the Army, working on a mix of Land Rovers, Mastiffs, and occasionally tanks. Later, he redirected his career path toward business, pursuing studies at university.
His journey into marketing started with an internship at Stanley Black & Decker in Germany, where he gained extensive knowledge about brand marketing. While working within the Accessories team, he discovered SEO by chance while listing a new product range on Amazon.
After university, Steve continued his marketing career in the UK before travelling to Australia. During his travels, he worked for Royal Caribbean Cruises at their Sydney headquarters, managing websites and promotions.
After returning back to the UK, Steve began working agency side where he delved deeper into PPC and SEO, eventually focusing solely on SEO, and he hasn’t looked back since!
Drawing on the discipline instilled in him by his Army experience and his engineering mindset, Steve quickly achieved impressive results for SEO clients. His efforts have led to improved rankings, increased traffic, and new customers as well as building strong relationships with our clients.
Having proven his capabilities to both clients and the TDS team, Steve stepped into the role of Director. In this capacity, he focuses on business development and agency growth while continuing to work on SEO strategies for new and existing clients.
Outside of work, Steve is a water polo player for Coventry City Water Polo and has been involved in the sport for 25 years. Beyond the pool, he enjoys participating in Parkruns and travelling to explore new destinations.
Google’s November 2024 Core Update: What It Means for Your Website
As of 11th November, Google has officially started rolling out its November 2024 Core Algorithm Update, and as always, it’s causing a stir in the digital marketing world. Whether you’ve already noticed fluctuations in your rankings or are simply curious about what this update means, we’ve got you covered. Here’s everything you need to know about the update and how to navigate its impact.
What Is a Core Update?
Core updates are significant changes to Google’s search algorithm, aimed at improving how the search engine understands and ranks content. These updates happen three or four times a year and don’t target specific websites or pages but focus on rewarding high-quality, relevant, and authoritative content across the board.
If your rankings have dipped following a core update, it’s not necessarily because you’ve been penalised. Rather, it’s a signal that your content might not be as aligned with Google’s latest quality metrics as it could be.
Key Highlights of the November 2024 Core Update
While Google doesn’t disclose the specifics of its algorithm tweaks, early observations from the SEO community reveal a few patterns:
- Focus on Expertise, Authority, and Trust (E-A-T): Websites with strong expertise and authority in their niche are seeing gains, while those lacking depth or credibility may experience declines.
- Content Relevance and Freshness: Outdated or thin content appears to be suffering, as Google prioritises pages offering up-to-date and comprehensive information.
- User Experience Matters: Metrics like site speed, mobile-friendliness, and ease of navigation continue to play a crucial role in determining rankings.
What Should You Do Next?
If your rankings have been impacted, positively or negatively, here’s how to approach the situation:
1. Assess Your Content Quality
Audit your website’s content with a critical eye. Ask yourself:
- Is the information accurate, original, and in-depth?
- Does it reflect a clear understanding of the user’s intent?
- Are you showcasing your expertise and authority in the subject matter?
2. Update and Optimise Existing Content
Focus on:
- Refreshing outdated posts with current data and insights.
- Expanding thin content to provide more value.
- Eliminating duplicate or low-quality pages that don’t serve your audience.
3. Enhance User Experience
Google’s emphasis on usability isn’t going anywhere. Improve your:
- Page load times.
- Mobile responsiveness.
- Site structure to make navigation intuitive.
4. Contact The Digital Stride
Need help navigating the November 2024 Core Update? Our SEO Team have got you covered.
At The Digital Stride, we specialise in helping businesses adapt to algorithm changes and drive consistent growth through tailored SEO strategies. Get in touch and see how our team can support you through a core algorithm update.
Ben’s Third Month at The Digital Stride: Learning and Growth
It’s hard to believe that I’m already wrapping up my third month at The Digital Stride. Time has flown by, and this month has been another exciting chapter full of learning, new challenges and personal growth. From SEO strategies to paid social media campaigns, I’ve had the chance to further hone my skills and take on more responsibilities. Here’s a look at what I’ve been up to.
Search Engine Optimisation
This month, I continued my focus on SEO by helping with content optimisations for one of our clients, a sealant manufacturer. Their diverse range of products made the optimisation process engaging and varied. My primary focus has been on improving the client's performance in search engine results pages (SERPs) for targeted keywords, ensuring that each page I work on is fully optimised to capture the best possible results.
One of the highlights of my SEO work was achieving noticeable results for another client. I managed to boost the rankings of two key terms, both with over 200 monthly searches, now ranking within the top five positions in Google. Seeing the impact of these changes has been incredibly rewarding and a real confidence booster.
Another exciting part of the month was attending Brighton SEO with the team. The experience was invaluable, giving me a deeper understanding of the diverse strategies that SEO professionals employ. The conference offered many insights, from content optimisation to user experience, and I can’t wait to implement what I learned. One talk that was particularly noteworthy was from Mike Weir, who focused on “10 Ways to improve website performance based on behavioural science.” This provided me with insightful strategies into how SEO can enhance user engagement and site efficiency through behavioural science techniques.
I’ve also been diving into keyword research and content planning for a commercial kitchen client. This has involved analysing competitors, understanding search volumes and determining the most relevant keywords to target based on the client’s current rankings.
Paid Social Media Marketing
Paid social media marketing has been another focus this month. I was given the opportunity to build a campaign from scratch for one of our clients, an exciting and educational experience. From creating audiences to drafting ad copy and setting campaign objectives, I had the freedom to design the entire process from the ground up. Crafting compelling ads and designing creatives to capture attention was a challenge I thoroughly enjoyed. This campaign is due to go live shortly, and I will be monitoring the results to ensure everything runs smoothly.
I’ve also been keeping a close eye on another client’s ongoing campaign, focusing on optimising the budget and making sure we get the most out of every pound spent. This includes developing fresh ad creatives to drive more traffic and making strategic adjustments to ensure successful performance throughout the campaign.
Looking Ahead
This month has been a mix of hard work, creativity and learning. I’m proud of the progress I’ve made and the results I’ve achieved, but I know there’s still much more to learn.
This initially started as a three-month trial to help me explore the world of digital marketing, and now, I’m excited to take the next step and look forward to becoming a full-time member of the team as I continue to develop my SEO and paid social skills, ready to take on new challenges.
Ben’s Second Month as a Junior Digital Marketer at The Digital Stride
My second month at The Digital Stride has been just as rewarding as the first, with a particular focus on Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) and Paid Social Media Marketing. The range of projects I’ve been involved in has given me the opportunity to expand my skill set and think more strategically. I’m excited to share my experiences and key takeaways from this past month.
SEO Content Creation and Optimisation
This month, I had the privilege of working on SEO content for a variety of clients. Each project brought a different topic and industry, challenging me to adapt my writing style and optimise the content for each client’s unique goals. The diversity in topics has been a fantastic way to sharpen my ability to think outside the box, ensuring that every piece not only reflects the client’s brand but also performs at its best in terms of SEO. Tailoring content to boost performance has become a skill I’m continuing to refine, and the results have been incredibly satisfying.
Beyond content creation, I’ve delved deeper into SEO optimisations. I spent time conducting competitor research and analysing backlink profiles, which has been a particularly interesting and rewarding aspect of the experience. Gaining insights into what competitors are doing and how our clients can improve their SEO performance has given me a more strategic understanding of the field. In addition, I’ve learned a lot about technical SEO, diving into the intricacies of this field and exploring new ways to enhance our clients’ digital presence.
Something I am particularly proud of is successfully moving a keyword, for one of our clients, from position 100 to position 7 through SEO driven content and optimisations. This highlights the power of keyword research and optimisation in boosting search visibility and driving results.
Organic Social Media Focus
I have also had the opportunity to develop a proposal for an organic social media campaign for a client, which was a valuable learning experience. I focused on key elements such as defining the objectives, target audience and content strategy to drive engagement. A key part of the proposal was demonstrating the potential of organic social media to build long-term brand loyalty and visibility without full reliance on paid ads.
In addition, I created visual templates to show how the client's social media pages would look, ensuring a cohesive brand aesthetic, and developed a detailed content schedule to maintain consistent posting. This experience helped me sharpen my skills in building and presenting effective, strategic social media plans.
Paid Social Media Campaign Management
One of the most hands-on experiences this month has been managing the budget for one of our clients’ paid social media campaigns. This involved analysing the expected budget spend, cost-per-result (CPR), and overall performance metrics to ensure that our client’s marketing spend delivers optimal results. It’s been a challenging yet exciting responsibility, as I’ve had to apply both creativity and analytical thinking to determine the best structure for the budget.
In addition to budgeting, I also worked on new ad creative for these campaigns. Designing ads and tracking their performance has been a valuable experience. I’m particularly proud of the new ad creative, which I believe will enhance the results further by engaging the target audience more effectively.
Learning and Problem Solving
Overall, this month has provided me with valuable experiences. I’ve learned a great deal by actively solving problems and coming up with innovative solutions for our clients. Each challenge has been an opportunity to grow, and I’m excited to continue building my expertise in SEO and Paid Social Media Marketing.
As I move into my third month, I aim to deepen my understanding of both organic and paid social strategies while continuing to improve my SEO skills. I’m grateful for the support and mentorship from the team at The Digital Stride and I am eager to see what the next month brings.
Ben’s journey as a Junior Digital Marketer: One Month at The Digital Stride
My first month as a Junior Digital Marketer at The Digital Stride has been filled with many learning experiences. With a focus on Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) and Social Media Marketing, this first month has laid a strong foundation for my development in the digital marketing space and I am excited to share some of my progress and the lessons I’ve learnt so far.
Firstly, I have immersed myself in a variety of digital marketing courses and certifications. This includes the Google Analytics 4 (GA4) certification in the Google Skillshop. I have also completed Digital Marketer’s mastery courses in Social Media, Content Marketing, Search Marketing and Digital Marketing. These certifications have not only broadened my understanding of the industry but also provided me with knowledge in specific areas where I would like to specialise in the future.
One of my highlights so far at The Digital Stride has been working on many different SEO campaigns. With direction from Steve and Dave, I was able to optimise different pieces of content to fit the unique needs of each client whilst also ensuring optimisation for SEO purposes. Each project brings a new topic to explore and for anyone considering a career in this field, especially within an agency, the diversity of work is something that makes each day more and more exciting.
My role at The Digital Stride has also involved managing social media campaigns across platforms such as Meta. Initially, the complexity of tools like Meta Business Manager felt overwhelming. However, with the support and guidance of Simon, I quickly got up to speed. His mentorship, along with the collaborative environment at The Digital Stride, has been key in helping me navigate the challenges of social media marketing, particularly in optimising campaigns to achieve the lowest cost-per-result (CPR).
In addition to practical experiences, I’ve gained proficiency in essential digital marketing tools such as SEMrush. This tool has proven very useful, aiding in content creation, keyword research and position tracking, enabling me to deliver more accurate and optimised content and SEO strategies.
I’ve also been entrusted with working on the The Digital Stride Instagram account, which is currently undergoing a rebranding process. This responsibility has allowed me to plan and implement strategies that will shape the brand’s future presence on social media.
Reflecting on my first month at The Digital Stride, I’m proud of the progress I’ve made and excited for the journey ahead. The combination of structured learning, real world application and the supportive team environment has made this experience both enriching and educational.
Over the next month I hope to hone in on what I have learnt in this first month and become a more complete digital marketer, helping the team with SEO campaigns, social media management and providing insight on new ideas where possible.
The Top 5 Benefits of SEO: Why Your Business Needs It.
In the digital age, where the internet is the primary source of information for millions, ensuring your business has a strong online presence is crucial. Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is a powerful tool that can significantly boost your visibility, credibility, and overall success. Here are the top five benefits of SEO and why it's essential for your business.
1. Enhanced Visibility and Higher Rankings
One of the primary benefits of SEO is improved visibility in search engine results pages (SERPs). When potential customers search for products or services related to your business, you want to appear as high as possible in the results. A high ranking increases the likelihood that users will visit your website over a competitor's.
SEO involves optimising your website's content, structure, and performance to make it more appealing to search engines like Google. By using targeted keywords, creating high-quality content, and ensuring your site is user-friendly, you can improve your ranking and increase your visibility to potential customers.
2. Increased Web Traffic
Higher visibility and better rankings naturally lead to increased web traffic. When your site appears on the first page of search results, it is more likely to receive clicks. This influx of visitors can significantly boost your business, leading to more inquiries, sales, or other desired actions.
SEO is not just about attracting any traffic; it focuses on bringing in quality traffic that is more likely to convert into customers. By targeting specific keywords and optimising your site for relevant searches, you attract users who are actively looking for what you offer, increasing the chances of conversion.
3. Cost-Effective Marketing
Compared to traditional marketing methods, SEO is incredibly cost-effective. While there is an initial investment in optimising your website and creating content, the long-term benefits far outweigh these costs. Unlike paid advertising, where visibility ends as soon as you stop paying, SEO provides ongoing results.
Investing in SEO is like planting a tree: it requires time and effort upfront, but once it starts growing, it continues to yield benefits with minimal ongoing costs. This makes SEO an excellent long-term marketing strategy, particularly for small and medium-sized businesses with limited budgets.
4. Improved User Experience
A significant part of SEO involves enhancing the user experience on your website. Search engines favour sites that offer a seamless, engaging experience, so optimising for SEO often means improving your site's speed, navigation, and mobile-friendliness.
A well-optimised website is easy to navigate, loads quickly, and is accessible on all devices. This not only pleases search engines but also provides a better experience for your visitors. A positive user experience encourages visitors to stay longer, explore more pages, and ultimately take the desired action, whether it's making a purchase, filling out a form, or signing up for a newsletter.
5. Building Credibility and Trust
Appearing on the first page of search results conveys credibility and trust to users. Most users trust search engines to provide them with the best results, and if your site appears among the top results, it signals that you are a reputable and reliable source.
SEO also involves creating high-quality, authoritative content that provides real value to your audience. By consistently offering useful information, answering questions, and addressing the needs of your customers, you build trust and establish your brand as an authority in your industry.
In conclusion, SEO offers numerous benefits that can transform your business's online presence. From enhanced visibility and increased web traffic to cost-effective marketing, improved user experience, and building credibility and trust, SEO is an essential strategy for any business looking to thrive in the digital age. By investing in SEO, you are investing in the long-term success and growth of your business. Don't miss out on the opportunities that SEO can bring—start optimising your website today and reap the rewards for years to come.