It’s that time of the year again when Google releases its core updates, and this time it's the March 2023 Core Update. For business owners and website owners, this can be a nerve-wracking time as it can affect the organic traffic, conversions and revenue of your website. In this post, we’ll discuss why you should care about the Google March 2023 Core Update and what you can do to ensure your website stays on top.

Why Core Updates Matter

Before we dive into the specifics of the Google March 2023 Core Update, let’s first understand why core updates matter. Google’s search algorithms are constantly evolving, and core updates are significant algorithm updates that affect how the search engine ranks websites. These updates can have a significant impact on how your site performs in search results, either positively or negatively.

It’s important to know when these updates happen, so you can understand if it was something you changed on your website or something Google changed with its ranking algorithm. By staying informed about these updates, you can make adjustments to your website and content to improve your chances of ranking well.

The Google March 2023 Core Update

According to Google, the March 2023 Core Update is a significant algorithm update that affects how its systems assess content overall. While there are no specific actions you can take to recover from a negative rankings impact, Google has provided a list of questions to consider if your site is hit by a core update.

Google’s latest advice is to focus on ensuring that you’re offering the best content you can. To evaluate your content, ask yourself the following questions:

1. Does the content provide original information, reporting, research or analysis?

2. Does the content provide a substantial, complete or comprehensive description of the topic?

3. Does the content provide insightful analysis or interesting information that is beyond obvious?

4. If the content draws on other sources, does it avoid simply copying or rewriting those sources and instead provide substantial additional value and originality?

5. Does the headline and/or page title provide a descriptive, helpful summary of the content?

6. Does the headline and/or page title avoid being exaggerating or shocking in nature?

7. Is this the sort of page you’d want to bookmark, share with a friend, or recommend?

8. Would you expect to see this content in or referenced by a printed magazine, encyclopedia or book?

Expertise Questions:

1. Does the content present information in a way that makes you want to trust it, such as clear sourcing, evidence of the expertise involved, background about the author or the site that publishes it, such as through links to an author page or a site’s About page?

2. If you researched the site producing the content, would you come away with an impression that it is well-trusted or widely-recognized as an authority on its topic?

3. Is this content written by an expert or enthusiast who demonstrably knows the topic well?

4. Is the content free from easily-verified factual errors?

5. Would you feel comfortable trusting this content for issues relating to your money or your life?

Presentation and Production Questions:

1. Is the content free from spelling or stylistic issues?

2. Was the content produced well, or does it appear sloppy or hastily produced?

3. Is the content mass-produced by or outsourced to a large number of creators, or spread across a large network of sites, so that individual pages or sites don’t get as much attention or care?

4. Does the content have an excessive amount of ads that distract from or interfere with the main content?

5. Does content display well for mobile devices when viewed on them?

Comparative Questions:

1. Does the content provide substantial value?

2. Does the content provide new or unique insights that aren't available elsewhere?

3. Does the content provide value beyond what is offered by similar pages or websites?

4. Does the content present a fresh perspective on the topic, or is it merely repeating information found elsewhere?

5. Is the content up-to-date and relevant to current trends and developments in the industry or topic?

6. Does the content provide a balanced and fair view of the topic, or does it seem biased or one-sided?

7. Does the content provide a clear and concise answer to the user's query, or does it ramble on without offering a solution?

8. Is the content engaging and easy to read, with appropriate formatting, images, and other media?

9. Does the content provide a clear call-to-action or next steps for the user to take after reading?

What Can You Do To Improve Your Website’s Core Web Vitals?

While it may seem daunting, there are several steps you can take to improve your website’s core web vitals and ensure it’s in the best possible position to weather any upcoming Google algorithm updates. Here are a few key strategies:

1. Optimize your images: One of the biggest culprits for slow loading times is images that are too large or not optimized for web. Make sure to compress your images before uploading them to your site and consider using a content delivery network (CDN) to serve images faster.

2. Minimize server response time: If your server takes too long to respond to requests, it can slow down your entire website. Make sure your server is configured properly and consider upgrading to a faster hosting provider if necessary.

3. Reduce unnecessary code: Unused code, such as CSS or JavaScript, can slow down your website’s load times. Remove any code that isn’t necessary and minimize the amount of code needed to render your pages.

4. Prioritize above-the-fold content: The content that appears above the fold, or the portion of the page that’s visible without scrolling, should load first. This can improve the perceived loading speed of your website and make it feel more responsive.

5. Use a caching plugin: Caching plugins can speed up your website by storing frequently accessed data, such as images and HTML, in a cache. This reduces the number of requests your server has to handle and can improve your website’s performance.

By implementing these strategies, you can improve your website’s core web vitals and ensure it’s in the best possible position to weather any upcoming Google algorithm updates.

Conclusion

Google’s March 2023 broad core update is a reminder of how critical it is to stay on top of changes to the search engine’s algorithm. While Google has stated that there’s often nothing to fix on your website after these updates, it’s important to take steps to improve your website’s core web vitals to ensure it’s in the best possible position to weather any future updates.

By optimizing your images, minimizing server response time, reducing unnecessary code, prioritizing above-the-fold content, and using a caching plugin, you can improve your website’s performance and ensure it’s providing the best possible user experience. So, start working on your website’s core web vitals today and stay ahead of the curve!