May 2024 Google Search Observations

[Billy85]

When I checked my site, 90% or so were some Spam links, but I wouldn't disavow them because I've heard that some sites were worse off after disavowing.
Almost every site has to deal with this and from what I understand, Google only regards those that are listed in your search console?

I also think it has also to do with the amount of people that click on it, meaning, if you try to build backlinks and nobody is clicking on it, google disregards them or gives that link less relevance.

[edited by: not2easy at 1:30 pm (utc) on May 2, 2024]
[edit reason] split thread cleanup [/edit]

[Micha]

@Billy85 If they really are spam links, then you can first block the ones that link to you most frequently, but also only a small number of domains to test it out. You won't do any damage, but if it's just one or two links, then I would be careful.

[Conro]

They are links from real sites that have been hacked. First I noticed that some webmasters noticed this and now the page returns a 404. The problem is that these links are not ignored by google. It's too stupid, otherwise they wouldn't show up on search console. For example, links to images with url "k" are really ignored and in fact are not seen on gsc. I just want to see if these links will have a positive effect or if it will be better to disavow them or if they will disappear on their own

[morpheus83]

Not sure if making a file of domains to disavow really helps. Google very much knows such spam farms exist and its the website that you link to that makes a difference. After all the latter is in your control. But you can always try.

[ubound]

Can anyone explain to me why this happens? Negative SEO aside, why would some spammy site link to me?

[Conro]

In some cases it's easy for anyone, so I think also for google, to figure out if they are bought links, but I could do the same thing if I want to penalize the site of someone. Google should ignore both cases, but if I see the links on Google search console it hasn't ignored them. If they get into disavow and the traffic decreases or increases, it's confirmation

[Conro]

@ubound it depends. Sometimes they are junk test sites, other times they want you to be penalized, other times because they have a 301 redirect to other sites like casinos or #*$!, Generally, these are the cases that happen to me most often

[NeapTide]

Submitting a disavow file gives signal to algorithm that you didn't create those crappy backlinks and should be removed.

My website was hit after march anti spam update and I have gathered almost 200 domains and submitted them that are generating spammy and crap backlinks. All of these backlinks are originating from hijacked forum threads, abandoned forums and dead websites.

Last disavow file was submitted on April 18 and still not crawled. In fact google hasn't crawled any disavow files after march anti spam update.

I first submitted disavowed links file in 2021. At that time I had almost 8000 backlinks all originating from just 2 or 3 domains. Now I have downloaded and updated that disavowed links file again with new and fresh dead and spammy links piled up in GSE console.

Disavowing links worked for me before and I am hoping it will work again.

[Micha]

Google has a lot of movement again, a lot of traffic on my site (currently +30 percent) and the store in question finally has customers again. The ranking has also improved significantly. I don't know if Google is still making adjustments, but it would be a relief if it stayed that way.

Has anyone else, especially German users, noticed a change?

[NirthaK]

Maybe because of the holiday today?

[Micha]

Actually, the number of visitors drops drastically on that day, an increase is very unusual

[ichthyous]

USA traffic is clearly waning after all of these "updates". The sheer number of ads now on mobile is mind boggling. My USA traffic is down 30% at 1pm...is drops at 8am sharp every day and doesn't pick up until the evening. Most other traffic seems to be higher except for Canada, which seems to rise and fall in tandem with USA

[Micha]

Can someone explain to me what Google's management is up to, I'm getting a bit lost.

Just ahead of its blowout first-quarter earnings report on April 25, Google laid off at least 200 employees from its “Core” teams, in a reorganization that will include moving some roles to India and Mexico, CNBC has learned.

[cnbc.com ]

[superclown2]

Can someone explain to me what Google's management is up to, I'm getting a bit lost.

I love the way they explained it, making it sound like good news for the employees.

However; Google's priority is profit full stop (or 'period' as the Americans say). Every other consideration, including of course search quality, is far behind.
I wonder when they will reach their Boeing moment?

[ichthyous]

Can someone explain to me what Google's management is up to, I'm getting a bit lost.

The same thing that amazon is doing and meta before it...getting rid of head count. If you watch cnbc or read any financial press they have orgasms from the sheer mention of reducing head count. All of these companies are thinking that AI is going to replace their staff and maybe they are right. I'm actually happy to see that these people will now feel the pain we feel. Ai is going to further concentrate assets in the hands of the few until we all become serfs again. A reckoning is coming as roo many people are being plowed under now to make too few people insanely rich.

[Micha]

I wonder when they will reach their Boeing moment?

don't they already have that? they don't lose parts on airplanes, but the way the search looks and the way gemini works, it looks like it to me

[edited by: not2easy at 8:59 pm (utc) on May 1, 2024]
[edit reason] fixed quote [/edit]

[Whitey]

Can someone explain to me what Google's management is up to, I'm getting a bit lost.

@Micha - I dunno, but, so they say ....

The company has been investing heavily in artificial intelligence, adding generative AI features to search and other services to ensure that consumers continue using Google tools even as the way they seek information online changes.

“Our leadership in AI research and infrastructure, and our global product footprint, position us well for the next wave of AI innovation,” CEO Sundar Pichai said in the earnings release.

[cnbc.com...]

[Whitey]

I notice that the site: tool has dropped the no of indexed urls for a domain site: search. Not sure if it was ever accurate, when this was done or the reason for the removal.

[superclown2]

All of these companies are thinking that AI is going to replace their staff and maybe they are right

They may have a point. Flutter and Dart are both open source platforms and it's difficult to see how Google could make money by maintaining Python. And as we know, the top people who tried to make Google the most useful knowledge resource possible have now been replaced by bean counters.

Other layoffs? If I need a script writing I can get it done by ChatGTP so I can see the demand for programmers reducing.

Replacing staff with others from low wage countries? Fine if you are content with second best. If I was a Google employee I'd be making plans for a move before I got pushed.

[Micha]

Wow, I just checked Search Console and see a massive drop in impressions (-43%), this drop after the update was completed surprises me. I'm lucky that Google is at least showing my site's articles regularly in Discover again, as Crap seems to be much more important in normal searches now.

Incidentally, this is in line with six other pages that I have access to in Search Console. So it doesn't look like "natural" fluctuations to me, because all these pages have exactly the same percentage drop in impressions.

@Whitey The Search Console also shows me that many pages are no longer indexed. Very strange.

[Billy85]

@Micha
My traffic and impressions also dropped further since the update ended.

However, in my niche traffic always keeps decreasing the warmer it gets, so it also might have something to do with the warmer temperatures. (I'm also from Germany)

The only scary part is that my traffic is already lower than last years summer traffic (June, July, August) and I'm preparing mentally for a very slow summer.

I also stopped checking my analytics and I only check my Search Console once a day as it's pointless anyway.

[Fluff_Nutz]

Google fall to 86% market share. -4% over previous month. But will their continuous decrease actually change anything?

[gs.statcounter.com ]

[Conro]

It's normal for google to lose users, it sucks, and people don't want to use something that sucks

[Micha]

@fluff_nutz Let's hope so, I mean the user is not stupid. If they only find nonsense all the time, they'll just go somewhere else.

[RedBar]

Just had a look through my global site's April traffic stats:

April 2024 v March 2024 was 88.1% - This was expeceted since March is always my busiest month.

April 2024 v April 2023 was 103.1% - With all the disruption we've been seeing that was a surprise.

[ichthyous]

Not sure if making a file of domains to disavow really helps. Google very much knows such spam farms exist and its the website that you link to that makes a difference. After all the latter is in your control. But you can always try

I have a massive amount of spammy links and I submit disavow files. In the past I think it may have helped, but in the last 6 months or so ignored by Google it seems. I have ALL links from sites in Indonesia disavowed across the board, as most of the spam links seem to come from .id and .info sites. I don't see the disavow file hurting me, and I think it can only help if you have that many spammy links coming in.

[Conro]

@Fluff_Nutz That statcounter graph I think is real for 2 reasons: 1 people have noticed that google no longer finds results for keywords but for something that could have to do with the keyword, also too many distractions like advertisements, people have also asked, related searches where they are not needed. 2 in Europe when you now buy a new smartphone, Tablet you are asked at the first configuration which search engine to use and they are shown in random mode The most used search engines, so google is no longer the search engine that everyone is ready to use

[MrSnuts]

Re:Statcounter -
as others have pointed out, one needs to take their graph with a bit of salt.
To my understanding they evaluate data of sites which are using statcounter as a monitoring tool.
If they don't have reddit and quora among their users (I'd be surprised), then that might as well explain why their "view" on market share looks like it does -
without revealing anything about the real market share situation.

No impression/indexed pages changes in my GSC this time @Micha. My April was up 30% compared to last years, let's see what's next.

[Conro]

@MrSnuts

So if google is up is, it's true, but if it's down, it's a lie?There is also the increase in the use of other search engines, which goes upward and coincides with the decline of Google. As I wrote above, in Europe, since March, with the Digital Market Act, you have to select the search engine in a random list at the first configuration of a smartphone or tablet, both Android and iPhone. As google has gone up, it can also go down, and for users there are many reasons to stop using google during this period

[ichthyous]

Just checked GSC - The last 28 days YOY comparison showed a 25.5% decrease in impressions compared to last year. Clicks were minimally higher by half a percent. Considering how much more content I have on the site this is not an accomplishment, it's a huge deterioration in reality. Impressions are far lower than they used to be, despite clicks being essentially the same. All of the new content is basically replacing the clicks that have dropped off a cliff since the end of 2023, so six months now.

My USA traffic is -35% today at 2:45pm. This is an everyday occurance now. However...i compared to last year this time and it was about the same level of traffic. The difference being, again, that there should be much more traffic coming in due to more new content...there isn't. USA traffic is lower and the most converting parts of the site are basically vanishing every other day or so.

The result is zero sales...six months of minimal sales. It isn't coming back. Google wants all the converting USA traffic...kiss it goodbye forever I'm afraid.