While the headline might look a little click-baity, the reason youâre reading this is because youâve had enough of something Google has done. And⌠Youâre not alone.
Google has been slowly making a mess of the internet for a few years now. Maybe not quite as much as the shit show that is Facebook or Meta or whatever the hell theyâre called at the moment.
But actually, while Zuckâs platforms might be responsible for sucking our attention and damaging our mental health (and also proliferating hate speech and genocide, among other things) - Google sucks for a slightly different and more tangible reason.
Theyâve basically made all the things that weâve gotten used to for free online into crappy shadows of what they once were.
Sitting comfortably? Let me explainâŚ
The Slow Decline of the Search Engine
Iâm a SEO professional, which means I spend a lot of time looking at and analyzing Googleâs search results. Iâve created countless articles for a huge variety of websites, from tech unicorns to niche blogs.
And one thing that must be said is that the world's favorite search engine has not been making it easy for either the end-user or those looking to build their platform.
To clarify: Around ten years ago, everyone sussed out that keyword stuffing (basically putting their focus keyword tens of times into a blog post) got you onto page one. Cue loads of low-quality content on page one, all of it packed full of obvious keywords.
Google decided to fix this, and suddenly there was a strong(er) focus on domain authority. This basically meant stronger domains with lots of backlinks tended to do well. Not always though, and good content was still important, but the backlinks meant you could game the system.
Now the SERPs were packed full of crappy websites made to host backlinks with very thin or regurgitated content that didnât answer the usersâ intent.
Enter the AI revolution in late 2022. Everyone and their gran is into using ChatGPT to write their shopping list, and also, oh hey⌠There are blogs packed full of AI content popping up everywhere.
Now, Iâm not against AI content at all; I think itâs great (if done right). Check my previous article on here: why AI content isnât a bad thing.
But it seems that at Google at least, something clicked.
Googleâs Helpful Content Update 2023
If youâre in search engine marketing, or you spend any time on Linkedin, you probably noticed everyone was up in arms about the late 2023 Google algorithm update.
Now, Google releases probably 3 or 4 big algorithm updates every year. Most result in some ranking changes, usually a little turbulence, and then back to business as usual.
Not this puppy.
The 2023 edition seems to have royally f**ked a number of quite big publishers, not to mention niche bloggers and site owners. It has also rewarded a number of fairly safe bet forums and magazine sites such as Reddit, Tripadvisor, Forbes, and other big publishers.
Whatâs the reason, many are asking?
Well, the general juice is that Google saw that AI content was starting to become a big deal and was starting to dominate the SERPs. So, to combat this, they switched the focus to the âsafeâ publishers, to the huge detriment of many smaller site owners.
OK, you might say. Fair enough. Maybe.
Except, if you ask me, much of the time the actual query isnât being answered - itâs just the trusted (aka big domain authority) sites that have done well from this. Not entirely, I might add. I am currently running a niche blog that has done very well since the helpful update, highlighting that you can still rank well if you do your SEO right.
But a quick look at the SERPs shows some more mess. The same algorithm update seems to have placed a bunch of links to Google Books in the search results.
Check out this search result below, which is on about page three.
Now, you might say that page 3 is irrelevant because, as the old joke goes, you could hide a dead body on page 2 of Google, and no one would spot it.
Not so true these days as the first page of Google now scrolls seamlessly into pages two through to pretty much forever. This is one good Google update by the way.
But the addition of the bookâs link totally messes up the flow and is one of the really sucky things that Google has added in this recent algorithm update.
The Hot Mess That Is YouTube
Alright, now we come to the exhibit B - which has been a mess for a while now.
If youâre old like me, you might remember how YouTube was free and cool, and you could spend hours on there going down cute cat rabbit holes. Google bought them out, and soon enough, ads were popping up every so often. Fine at the time, in moderation.
But now it seems that YouTube is basically American TV. Ads pop up halfway through content at inopportune moments, and some of the ad placements are horrible. Iâve seen ads for horror movies during kidsâ content - yes, seriouslyâŚ
On top of this, the algorithm that recommends stuff is just⌠I donât really know where to start. Itâs a mess. I get recommended weird alt-right stuff because I might have watched a click-bait video about the state of the Middle East. And now, Iâm being shilled vids about how Jews are responsible for whatever or Muslims are evil. OK.
And the search. WT-actual-F? Say you search for a specific music artist on YouTube - maybe the first three to five results will be them (if youâre lucky), and the rest of the content will be random AF.
If you ask me, YouTube is barely fit for purpose. But, itâs pretty much the only choice, despite some limp competition from sites like Vimeo and DailyMotion, it seems that YouTube is going to remain the dominant video platform for the foreseeable.
Which might be why the youth are turning to TikTok in droves.
And Another ThingâŚ
Itâs not just YouTube; the Google search engine and its algorithms are kinda sucky too by the way.
Their paid search platform is a mess and is also a hotbed of ad fraud and click fraud. A subject Iâve written about extensively. Yes, they have done some work to try and close this practice down but itâs the gift that keeps giving.
Basically, ad fraud works for Google, so while theyâll be seen to be doing something to fix it, why stop it completely? They make money from it, so hey.
So⌠Whatâs the Alternative?
The thing is, there are alternatives - of course. But by and large, weâre all very stuck in Googleâs eco-system. The Google SERPs are still massively important and are far and away the most used method of searching online. Despite reports that TikTok overtook Google a few years back, the fact is, they didnât.
People do tend to use the internet differently now though. We ask Alexa or Siri for local or timely information, we check Instagram or TikTok for some stuff, and we check forums like Reddit for info when we donât want to sift through the shitty SERPs on Google.
Even AI and the rise of Chat GPT have become an alternative for some of us. And while you can search using AI on a number of search engines and browsers, itâs still in its infancy.
Until the mainstream susses that AI or social media offer better results, donât expect things to change any time soon.
And while there is always Bing, Google is still going to remain the big dog for a while. Bingâs foray into AI search results has so far not shifted the market much in their favor and probably wonât any time soon.
For search engine pros and business managers? Itâs time to start looking at strategy, beyond simple search engine rankings.
As a content strategist, I focus heavily on SEO and hitting those search engine rankings (e.g., Google). But Iâm also very aware of the fact that one algorithm change can wipe out all your organic hard work.
Use Google, but be aware: theyâre using you too. And make sure to spread your net beyond their eco-system when it comes to marketing.