August is here! And we survived (another) month of algorithm updates. Luckily, we got a warning for the July Update – as part of Part 2 of the June Core Update. However, we were not aware of the Link Spam update that came out at the end of the month – surprise! If you’ve lost track of everything that happened to research this month, don’t worry, here’s everything you need to catch up for the month of July!

July Main Update Released: 1^st – 12^e July

As a continuation of the first part of Google’s Core Algorithm Update that rolled out in June, the July Core Algorithm Update began rolling out on 1^st of July and finished on 12^e. As the June / July update was the first big update to the core algorithm since December 2020, all eyes were on it.

According to data providers, Semrush, Rankranger and Sistrix, the July update was smaller and had less impact than the main June update. All the upheaval felt by the SEO community was mostly felt on July 2 and 9, depending on what Search engine were following.

Has your site been affected by these updates? As we reiterated last month, it’s important that you don’t make any rash and reactive decisions when it comes to Core Algorithm updates. If you find that your website is being negatively affected, it’s best to go back to basics and carefully consider what you can do to improve a user’s content and experience. Google’s advice is always to go back and ask yourself the following questions.

The main update for July 2021 has started. More here: https://t.co/ZIwl5lsLan

– Google SearchLiaison (@searchliaison) July 1, 2021

Suppress Link Spam – New Update Deployment: 26^e July

A new link spam update has been rolled out from the 26th^e July and should end two weeks after that date.

“In our continued efforts to improve the quality of search results, today we are launching a new change in the fight against link spam, which we call ‘updating link spam’. This algorithm update, which will be rolled out over the next two weeks, is even more effective at identifying and canceling link spam more broadly, in multiple languages. « 

Google has reported that this algorithm update targets spam links « more broadly » and « in multiple languages. » We can see that the word ‘cancel’ confirms that this update will continue to focus on ignore spammy links. However, that doesn’t mean you won’t incur algorithmic penalties.

Google also used this update as a reminder that if you link to other external sites they must be qualified appropriately. That is, if it is a sponsored link or an affiliate link, rel = « sponsored » should be used. If sponsored or invited posts are not properly tagged and repeated infractions occur, there is a risk that a manual sanction will be imposed on your website. So be sure to remember best practices.

If you are monetizing your sites and blogs with affiliate links or sponsored and guest articles, qualifying those links is very important 🔗. Learn more about commercial links and link spam → https://t.co/piENjy5azO pic.twitter.com/joqIvPFXlE

– Google Search Center (@googlesearchc) July 26, 2021

CONFIRMED: Google will send permanent signals with redirect after 1 year

How long should you leave redirects in place for SEO purposes? It’s fair to say that many have thought about it and discussed it over the years, and this is a question we ask Google many. However, since July, we now know. Gary Illyes gave a concrete answer to this:

raise your hand if you’ve recently asked us how long you should keep redirects in place!

I have a concrete answer now: at least 1 year.

(but try to keep them indefinitely if you can for your users).

– Gary Illyes (@methode) July 21, 2021

So why a year? The justification for this delay is described by Google below:

“Keep redirects for as long as possible, usually at least 1 year. This delay allows Google to forward all signals to the new URLs, including re-crawling and reassigning links on other sites that point to your old URLs.

From a user perspective, consider keeping redirects indefinitely. However, redirects are slow for users, so try updating your own links and all high volume links from other websites to point to the new URLs.

So if you know your website has a backlog of redirects, this is your sign to audit redirects that have been in place for over a year. If you’ve implemented a lot of historic redirects that are over a year old, this is the perfect opportunity to streamline long-term maintenance and reduce code overhead!

Keep an eye out for a new blog post coming soon. who will study this subject in greater depth. Our reason? We have a few questions – particularly regarding offsite links. What exactly happens when you remove the redirect? Watch this place.

Google Removes AMP Tag From Mobile Search Results: 20^e July

Now that Google’s Page Experience update has been released and is being rolled out, the 20^e In July, it was noted that Google had stopped displaying the AMP label for AMP pages on mobile.

Looks like Google removed the AMP flash icon pic.twitter.com/Rurv2LEwqR

– Valentin Pletzer (@VorticonCmdr) July 20, 2021

There has been some discussion in the community around a page experience tag being used instead, but this has yet to be seen in search results.

So, is it serious? Well, some users are concerned that by removing the tag, searchers will be less likely to click on the result on mobile. Time will tell, and those with AMP pages should monitor their mobile traffic to see if it has had an impact.

Have you felt the impact of any of these updates?

If you’ve been impacted by any of this year’s algorithm updates, or just think your organic visibility needs a boost, talk to one of our SEO experts today. hui.