Here is the December 2023 Google webmaster report for all of you. Here I recap what happened and changed with Google Search on the organic space over the past month or so. The big items, the November 2023 core and November 2023 reviews updates rolled out. Google also told us the hidden gems algorithm was live. Google Search got more personalized, new follow feature, notes and more.
The 3 pillars of Google search rankings were exposed. Google is testing a simple search version and added follower/like counts to the results. Google is testing ask a Doctor, new small business features and flight prices. Google added support for new organization markup and profile and discussion forum markup with the corresponding Search Console reports, plus learning vide reports were added to Search Console. Oh, Search Console got rid of the page experience reports, as expected and the crawl rate setting is going away.
There was just a lot this past month, so scan the story headlines below. I try hard to just include the most important and useful stories from all the stories I wrote in the past month.
If you missed last month's recap see it over here and here are the top headlines for the past month:
Google Algorithms:
- Google November 2023 Core Update Is Super Volatile & Super Fast
- Google November 2023 Core Update Finished Rolling Out
- Google November 2023 Reviews Update Rolls Out
- Signs The Google November 2023 Reviews Update Hit This Weekend
- Google To Personalize Search Results To Your Previous Searches
- Google Hidden Gems Ranking Algorithm Update
- Google Search Ranking Volatility - Is It The End Of Reviews Update?
- Google Search Algorithm Ranking Update Winter Blast Continues
- Google Expands Search Generative Experience To More Countries & Adds New Features
- Google Bard Can Now Understand YouTube Videos
- Google SGE Gift Ideas, Generate Images For Apparel & Men's Virtual Try On
- Google Patent For SGE: Generative Summaries For Search Results
- Google SGE Tests Search By Image Feature
- Google Search Console Redesigns Page Experience Overview Screen
- Google Crawl Rate Setting Going Away & Googlebot To Lower Minimum Crawl Speed
- Gone: Google Search Console's Mobile Usability Report & Mobile-Friendly Tests
- Google Expands Video Guidelines (Primary Content) Change To Video Mode Results
- Google Search Console Adds Learning Video Rich Results Data To Performance Reports
- Google Search Console Currently Down (Back Up After 50 Minutes)
- Google Search Console Down Again For Many
- Google Investigating Issue With Search Console Experience & Enhancement Report URL Declines
- Google Merchant Center Automatically Creating Promotions Based On Your Site
- Google's 3 Pillars Of Search Ranking Via DOJ Documents
- Google Adds Organization Structured Data With More Business Details Support
- New Google Profile Page & Discussion Forum Structured Data With Search Console Reports
- Google: Follower Count Is Not A Google Search Ranking Factor
- Google: Expect To See Changes In Search Around Third Party Hosted Content
- Google Showing More FAQ Rich Results By Tweaking Which Sites Can Show Them?
- Reminder: Google Search Notes Are Public & Can Show In Google's Search Results
- Google Search Adds Vacation Rental Structured Data, Rich Results & Reporting
- Google Groups Gets Ranking Boost In Google Search?
- Google Search Actively Working On Fixing Obituary Spam Problem
- Google: The SEO Value Of Bringing Back A 404 Page Is Less Than The Effort
- Google Removed The Robots FAQs Document
- Google Won't Detail How It Uses User Interaction Signals In Search
- Danny Sullivan Posts His Google Search Presentation On X
- Buckle Up: Google To Make Major Search Ranking Changes
- Google Safety Crawler Google Help Documentation
- Google Search Adds Follow Feature
- Google Search Labs Adds Notes To Search Results
- Google "Simple Search" - New Search Refinement Option?
- Follower Count Fully Live In Google Search Result Snippets
- Google Search "Ask A Doctor" PAA
- Google Tests New Flight Prices Rich Result?
- Google May Be Testing Removing Cache Link From Search Results
- Google Tests Line Separators Between Sitelinks
- Google Tests Shading Colors Of Favicons - Altering Your Official Favicon
- Google Tests Northeast Arrow By Sitelinks
- Google Tests "Interview" Label For News Results "For Context"
- Google Hanukkah Decorations Are Live For 2023
- Not New: Google Announces Small Business Shopping Filter
- Google Shopping Search Filter Shows For Local Queries
- Google Tests Multiple Local Packs In Search Results As You Scroll
- Google Tests Longer Local Justifications From Third Party Sources
- Google Local Photos Results With Heart & Other Reactions
- New Google Business Profiles Gym Attributes/Amenities
- Google Business Profiles New Activities Section
- Google Search Local Panel Tests New Reviews Layout
- Head Of Google Ads, Jerry Dischler, Steps Down After 15 Years
- Google Sues Over Fraudulent & Weaponized DMCA Takedown Requests
Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.
