Its been confirmed by Google that they ran a “broad core algorithm update” last week that impacted the appearance and rankings of some websites in the search results.
It was posted on Twitter by Google that it doe these types of updates “several times per year” and that there isn’t anything a site can do specifically to “fix” their rankings after a core update. According to Google, “some sites may note drops or gains,” and if a does page drops, it doesn’t necessarily mean that there’s something wrong with the page. It’s just how Google changed their ranking models that now benefits “pages that were previously under-rewarded.”
Here is Google’s statement on Twitter:
Each day, Google usually releases one or more changes designed to improve our results. Some are focused around specific improvements. Some are broad changes. Last week, we released a broad core algorithm update. We do these routinely several times per year.
As with any update, some sites may note drops or gains. There’s nothing wrong with pages that may now perform less well. Instead, it’s that changes to our systems are benefiting pages that were previously under-rewarded.
There’s no “fix” for pages that may perform less well other than to remain focused on building great content. Over time, it may be that your content may rise relative to other pages.
Over the weekend, there had been some speculation about a Google update, and now we have confirmation on that speculation.