Google Core Search Algorithm Update 

Google has confirmed last week that on March 7th they rolled out a “broad core algorithm update” which has impacted the appearance and rankings of websites in the search results. Google performs several algorithm updates everyday that has little impact to website rankings in search results. However, Google only performs several Broad Core Algorithm Updates per year, which in effect creates a large impact for website rankings on search results pages.

Google posted on Twitter that they perform these types of updates “several times per year” and there is nothing a website can do specifically to “fix” their ranking after the core update runs. “Some sites may note drops or gains,” Google explained and said if a page drops, it doesn’t necessarily mean there is something wrong with that page, it is just how Google changed their ranking models that now benefits “pages that were previously under-rewarded.”

Nobody knows exactly what the formula is for these Algorithm Updates, which makes it really tough to determine what changes need to SEO strategy to prevent decrease in site rankings in search results page. Though this Algorithm Update is supposedly directed at Rich Content on Website Pages, there is speculation that there may be a few more factors that are going into Algorithm that may have caused shifts in site rankings.

Let's take a look at some Factors that may have been the cause in your site ranking changes.

Meta descriptions

Well-crafted meta descriptions can have a dramatic, positive effect on click-through rates from organic search. Unfortunately, once a meta description is written for a page, most people never pay attention to it again. That is a huge mistake.

In the case of websites that are actively promoted, new content is often added and existing content edited on a regular basis, which means the perfect meta description today may no longer be ideal next year, or even sooner. For Example, Google increased the maximum length of search results snippets from 160 characters to 320 characters.

"HTTPS" Secure Websites

HTTPS provides a secure, encrypted channel for a website to transfer data to a browser, and vice versa. It uses digital certificates to verify that each party is who they say they are—and that no third-party is intercepting the data. Not having HTTPS on your site can now hurt your marketing efforts in two big ways: search engine visibility and customer trust.

Responsive Website Design (Mobile First Index Update)

Google has been vocal for the past 2 years on the importance of mobile friendly websites, because of the large boost in Mobile Searches compared to Desktop Searches. While it provides a clear advantage in mobile search, responsive design also helps to create a positive user experience and plays a role in converting visitors into leads and customers, so its value goes far beyond SEO.

Internal Page Linking

As content is added to, modified and removed from your website, internal links can end up pointing to missing and/or irrelevant pages, the same way that outbound links can. While this normally won’t cause a problem on the same level as broken and irrelevant outbound links, it can still cause significant problems for both search engines and visitors. As with outbound links, search engines expect inbound links to point to a relevant page, without multiple steps.

Website Page Speed

Most websites load abysmally slowly, especially on mobile devices, and that’s a huge problem. Page Speed already plays a role in user experience, and user experience is already a ranking factor. In other words, it matters now, and it will matter even more very soon.