Google would not give a specific date for when we will see independent sites to start surfacing better and higher in Google Search. As a reminder, Google wrote with the March 2025 core update, "We also continue our work to surface more content from creators through a series of improvements throughout this year."
Don't be confused, don't expect all sites to recover and surface higher by December 31, 2025. And the December 31st date, technically is not new, Google said this when they announced the core update on LinkedIn, as I mentioned here. Google said then "We also continue our work to surface more content from creators through a series of improvements throughout this year." So yea, throughout "this year," which means 2025.
But again, do not expect ALL sites impacted by previous core updates (or helpful content updates) to see a boost. That 100% will not happen, despite what you may have read. There are big caveats to that, which I cover below. I also covered it at Search Engine Land late on Friday.
We've been hearing this messaging since the September 2023 helpful content update - yes, 2023, that is not a typo.
Travel blogger, Nate Hank, asked Google's Search Liaison, Danny Sullivan:
By what *specific date* can we expect Google to do better at surfacing independent sites?
Danny Sullivan replied on X:
There's no specific date because there's no one specific thing that the teams are working on to improve. There are multiple things, because search has multiple things that are involved in ranking.
He went on to explain that one change might help one site, whereas another change that is not yet implemented might help another. So he cannot give any specific dates.
He continued to write:
There have been some changes already launched with that goal. Some sites may have benefited from them; others might not, but that's also because the sites themselves are all different. From the group you were with that came out and generously shared your time, not everyone is impacted by exactly the same ranking systems.I certainly hope you and a number of sites that have been impacted despite having good content do see gains as more of these improvements come online. I wish they'd happen faster. I do push for that. But it's not going to be one all-in-one update.
Nate followed up by asking:
Can we take that to mean "December 31, 2025" (if not before)?
Danny Sullivan responded:
Yes. With the important caveat that this doesn't mean all sites will go back up to wherever they were if they are down from a previous peak.Our results have continued to change since 2023, including showing more social content, for example. The results are going to continue to evolve.
In addition, some sites that have been impacted, they should have been impacted (sorry the site that complained about not ranking for the login page of a medical web site you had nothing to do with).
Some sites with great content and hearts in the right place still don't provide a satisfying page experience (which isn't a guarantee of top ranking but it should be considered).
But our systems themselves need to get better; it's not all on creators sites that really do have good, solid content. And possibly, those sites might do better than previous peaks.
So when can you expect to see your site to perform better within Google Search? Especially the ones hit by that helpful content update. Who knows if they will ever recover...
Some may recover, some won't deserve to recover for one reason or another and some may not recover because Google will be slow to adjust its algorithms. Yes, Sullivan said yes to the December 31st date but with some big caveats. Plus, we've seen Google say this messaging for a long time now, so you know.
The first part we already answered last week. It's what I pointed out from what was shared on LinkedIn:
— Google SearchLiaison (@searchliaison) March 21, 2025
“We also continue our work to surface more content from creators through a series of improvements throughout this year. Some have already happened; additional ones will come…
1) Yes. With the important caveat that this doesn't mean all sites will go back up to wherever they were if they are down from a previous peak.
— Google SearchLiaison (@searchliaison) March 21, 2025
Our results have continued to change since 2023, including showing more social content, for example. The results are going to continue…
Another question came up later about advice on how to recover, it read:
Would the guidance for those of us that have seen no recovery still be to 'work on other things' or when things get improved on Google's end, are we going to be regarded as a lower-quality entity because we haven't worked on our site in a while?We made the decision to move on from new content/updates because we can't afford to continue our operations with no traffic, but is that going to be held against us when the systems are improved?
Sullivan replied to that saying:
Thank you for this question. I've seen it similarly come up at two different creator events I was involved with in last October, this concern that "if I don't update, will Google see might some as somehow less?" No. That's not how it works.The systems aren't going to somehow decide your site or existing content is "old" or "stale" and not useful. I end up on older content all the time that's amazing.
Search isn't like social media where you need to post all the time and so on. If you need a break from the site to do other things, you can come back to it.
By the way, one of those October events is the one where we had a number of creators come out to the Google campus. I haven't really commented on that, because the purpose of that was to really just get creator feedback from some of those who have been most impacted directly to people who are involved with Google Search. Like face-to-face, in person. It wasn't meant as some type of PR event to say "Oh look, all the creators issues are solved now!" And part of the reason I've not wanted to say much about that was especially not to give the impression it was that type of PR thing.
But enough time has passed that I feel comfortable making one key point. Those who came were incredible ambassadors for open web creators as a whole. They'd all had personal impacts on their sites, but they approached the event not just for themselves but constantly spoke up for creators generally. I'm deeply appreciative of their time, thoughts and ideas. I'm not alone in that within the search team. I do hope it will indeed lead to us doing better with open web content from small and independent sites.
Thank you for this question. I've seen it similarly come up at two different creator events I was involved with in last October, this concern that "if I don't update, will Google see might some as somehow less?" No. That's not how it works.
— Google SearchLiaison (@searchliaison) March 21, 2025
The systems aren't going to somehow…
Forum discussion at X.
