Google will release a new algorithm update “fairly soon.” However, many sites negatively affected by previous updates should not expect to regain their lost traffic after the next update is released.

This news follows a Web Creator Summit hosted by Google at the Googleplex for a dozen content creators whose Google search rankings have declined over the past year.

Key points. Here is a summary of the takeaways shared by Web Creator Summit attendees:

• A new Google algorithm update is expected to be released soon.
• Google did not promise participants that they would see recoveries with this next update.
• Google has recognized that there are ways to improve its algorithm to reward content creators.
• The content may not be the problem with their site.
• Google is aware that some larger sites attempt to manipulate its search rankings.
• Some participants think the takeaway is that they need to move on to new or different projects.
• However, some creators are still working on improvements and hope to achieve them.

Who participated. The event brought together content creators and Google employees. There appear to be about a dozen people present.

I know that Danny Sullivan, Pandu Nayak, Elizabeth Tucker and other Google executives and engineers were there for all or part of the day. Mike Hardaker Weekly mountain newsMorgan McBride Made CharlestonRutledge Daugette TechRaptor, William Barton who writes about clothes, Danny Ashton of HomeFees were among the content creators (there were others of which I am not a member) aware of).

What was said. Hardaker posted a recap of the event on his personal blog (I drank the Kool-Aid at Google Web Creator Summit 2024). McBride also posted some comments about the event on.

I summarized a lot of it on the Roundtable on search enginesbut with the caveat that I am quoting from an event that I did not personally attend.

Here are some quotes that caught my attention:

• “According to Danny Sullivan, my ‘content wasn’t the problem’ when referring to the Mountain Weekly News, so don’t let the HCU update automatically make you question your content.” So if it wasn’t the content, then what was the problem? I mean, it was called the useful content update.
• “I also can’t give you any guarantees as to whether it will be cured or not, I don’t think it would be responsible for me to say that.” Nayak cannot promise that a site will recover – now or ever.
• “I don’t see it as wasteful. I can imagine you considering it a waste if you don’t recover within a certain amount of time, but we find it incredibly valuable in guiding the work we do. This was in response to the question of what point the event would be if these sites did not recover.
• “September is not coming back,” Sullivan reportedly said when asked if he could perhaps go back on updating helpful content. Google won’t back down, it will make updates and maybe you will slowly recover. “Recovery is much more likely and, hopefully, will be a gradual process,” Sullivan was quoted as saying.
• On larger sites manipulating Google search, there’s this quote: “At the end of the day, one of the engineers came over and said ‘Hey Mike, what do you think about Forbes?’ I smiled and said that I wasn’t a fan of the way Forbes and other sites were able to manipulate Google’s system, and that it wasn’t healthy for all of us. the web ecosystem of having large sites taking all the voice of smaller, independent content creators The fact that he even took the time to come and talk to me speaks volumes. Turns out Google cares and I guess Forbes will get a penalty or two. Whatever that looks like, who knows.

Actual quotes from Googlers. Hardaker also posted verbatim quotes from Googlers at the event. Here they are:

• “Google probably needs to do better, there’s nothing wrong with your sites.”
• “Google understands previous queries in search.”
• “EEAT isn’t for creators, it’s for your readers.”
• “Does the topic of the page match what the searcher is looking for.”
• “When you think things are broken, send things to Danny.”
• “Unfortunately, we can’t tell you how our signals work.”
• “Please continue to give us your feedback, we really care and we are listening.”
• “People want to hear what people have to say.”
• “To the extent that AI content is trying to drive results, we launched a new policy in March around that kind of thing, we’re very motivated to surface real content.”

More. Here are some articles on Morgan’s X that I thought were interesting: