🚨 Algorithm Impact Guide

Recover From Algorithm Drops

Lost traffic after an update? Let's diagnose and fix it—together.

Free Algorithm Impact Assessment

It happened overnight.

Monday morning. Check analytics. Something's wrong.

-47%

Traffic

📉

Revenue

Gone

Rankings

No warning. No notification. Just silence.

You Google "Google update" and find one happened last week.

💬Your agency says "wait for the next update."

💬Your dev says "nothing changed on our end."

⏳Three months pass. Then six.

It's not coming back on its own.

What Hit You?

Different updates require different recovery strategies.

Core Update

Symptoms: Broad rank drops across site

Likely Cause: Quality/relevance reassessment

Recovery: 3-6 months (next core update)

Helpful Content Update

Symptoms: Content pages dropped, transactions OK

Likely Cause: Thin, AI, or unhelpful content

Recovery: 3-6 months (requires content overhaul)

Spam Update

Symptoms: Specific pages or whole site hit

Likely Cause: Link profile issues, cloaking, etc.

Recovery: 2-4 weeks after cleanup

Manual Penalty

Symptoms: GSC notification received

Likely Cause: Explicit violation of guidelines

Recovery: 2-8 weeks after reconsideration

Local/Maps Update

Symptoms: GBP rankings changed

Likely Cause: NAP issues, reviews, proximity

Recovery: 1-3 months

Update Type

Symptoms

Likely Cause

Recovery Timeline

Core Update

Broad rank drops across site

Quality/relevance reassessment

3-6 months (next core update)

Helpful Content Update

Content pages dropped, transactions OK

Thin, AI, or unhelpful content

3-6 months (requires content overhaul)

Spam Update

Specific pages or whole site hit

Link profile issues, cloaking, etc.

2-4 weeks after cleanup

Manual Penalty

GSC notification received

Explicit violation of guidelines

2-8 weeks after reconsideration

Local/Maps Update

GBP rankings changed

NAP issues, reviews, proximity

1-3 months

The Recovery Arc

Recovery is a marathon, not a sprint. Here's the realistic timeline.

Week 1

Diagnosis

Identify update type. Analyse affected pages. Compare to competitors.

Week 1

Diagnosis

Identify update type. Analyse affected pages. Compare to competitors.

Week 2

Triage

Prioritise: What pages matter? What can be salvaged? What should go?

Week 2

Triage

Prioritise: What pages matter? What can be salvaged? What should go?

Month 1-2

Content Surgery

Rewrite or remove unhelpful content. Consolidate thin pages. Add depth.

Month 1-2

Content Surgery

Rewrite or remove unhelpful content. Consolidate thin pages. Add depth.

Month 1-2

Technical Cleanup

Link profile audit. Disavow if needed. Fix crawl issues.

Month 1-2

Technical Cleanup

Link profile audit. Disavow if needed. Fix crawl issues.

Month 2-3

E-E-A-T Signals

Author bios. Source citations. Trust signals. Credentials.

Month 2-3

E-E-A-T Signals

Author bios. Source citations. Trust signals. Credentials.

Ongoing

Monitoring

Track recovery. Adjust strategy. Wait for next update window.

Ongoing

Monitoring

Track recovery. Adjust strategy. Wait for next update window.

Self-Diagnosis Guide

Before you panic, run through these steps to understand what happened.

Check Google Status Dashboard

Was there an announced update around your traffic drop date?

Visit Google Search Status Dashboard for confirmed updates.

Review GSC Manual Actions

Do you have any manual penalties?

GSC → Security & Manual Actions → Manual Actions

Compare Timing

Did the drop align with known update rollout dates?

Cross-reference dates with Search Engine Roundtable tracker.

Segment the Data

Which pages/sections dropped? All content or specific types?

Check GSC Performance by page, query type, and landing page group.

Analyse Affected Pages

Are dropped pages thin? Low E-E-A-T? Ad-heavy?

Review content quality against Google's Quality Rater Guidelines.

Check Competitors

Did they rise when you fell? Or did everyone drop?

Use Ahrefs/Semrush to compare visibility trends across competitors.

Need Expert Help?

If you've run through these steps and need a professional diagnosis, we offer free algorithm impact assessments.

Get Free Assessment

Hit by an update?

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