Last month, chatter abounded among SEO experts regarding an unconfirmed update to Google’s ranking algorithm, which has been tentatively titled “Fred”.
Key Takeaways
- Targeting Low-Quality Content: The unconfirmed Google Fred update appears to focus on demoting low-quality, blog-style sites that publish diverse, non-expert content primarily for ranking purposes, often interspersed with ads or affiliate links. This shift aims to improve the user experience by prioritizing more authoritative and valuable resources.
- Significant Impact on Clickbait Sites: Sites with inferior, ad-heavy content have seen dramatic drops in organic search traffic, ranging from 50% to 90%. The worst-hit sites often had content indistinguishable from advertisements, highlighting the update’s emphasis on content quality and user value.
- Broad Algorithm Changes: While Fred’s specific impact targets low-value content, Google likely implemented other algorithm changes simultaneously. Not all recent declines in search rankings are due to Fred alone, but sites with the most severe penalties were likely identified for offering minimal meaningful content to users.
Google Fred Update: What Just Happened?
As is par for the course, Google has refused to confirm or deny Fred’s existence when pressed for comment – those who remember the rollout of a number of unnamed major updates towards the end of 2016 will be familiar with this sort of radio silence from the search engine giant.
Improving The User Experience
A cursory review of over 100 different websites helps us to outline what Fred is here to do: demote low-quality blog-style sites which offer content on a variety of different topics; much of which have been published for ranking purposes and more often than not interspersed with adverts or affiliate links.
Such sites don’t particularly offer industry expertise on a given subject and as such don’t provide much worth in comparison to more authoritative resources on the web.
A Sharp Decline For Click-baiters
Out of the sites surveyed, low-value content hives had been hit the hardest, with most suffering declines in organic search traffic of between 50 and 90%.
In many cases, inferior quality content was wrapped around ads in an ambiguous manner. Some of the worst-affected sites featured a model where the actual content was indistinguishable from the advertisements.
Google Fred: In Conclusion
Of course, Google will have implemented several other factors into their algorithm at about the same time as Fred was rolled out – therefore, not all sites hit by a dip in search engine ranking over the past couple of weeks will have been penalised for the reasons outlined above.
However, those suffering the most severe penalties almost certainly will have been identified by Fred as having little to offer users in terms of meaningful content.
Want to know more about previous Google algorithm updates, see our post on the recent real time update, Google Penguin 4.0.
If you wish to learn more about link building and various techniques you can use, why not also check out our link building for SEO ultimate guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the purpose of the Google Fred update?
The Google Fred update aims to demote low-quality, blog-style sites that publish non-expert content primarily for ranking purposes. These sites often contain ads or affiliate links interspersed within the content. The update prioritizes more authoritative and valuable resources to improve the user experience.
How has the Fred update affected sites with clickbait content?
Sites with clickbait content and heavy ad presence have seen significant drops in organic search traffic, with declines ranging from 50% to 90%. These sites often feature content that is indistinguishable from advertisements, highlighting Fred’s emphasis on content quality and user value.
Are all recent drops in search rankings due to the Fred update?
Not necessarily. While Fred specifically targets low-value content, Google likely implemented other algorithm changes at the same time. Therefore, not all recent drops in search rankings can be attributed solely to Fred, though the most severe penalties are usually linked to sites offering minimal meaningful content.
