Google's Revised SEO Starter Guide Is Out - Here's What SEOs Think

As expected, Google has finally released its updated Google SEO starter guide and it was cut down in a big way. Google said this update aimed to make it work for someone first getting into SEO and less for an advanced SEO professional.

Google made maybe four updates to this SEO starter guide, one update in 2010 and then updated in 2017 and now today, not including the first version in 2008. Here is the old version of the starter guide, if you want to compare the changes.

Google wrote this updated guide is "more pocket-sized version of the SEO Starter Guide with a better focus on a starter audience and the topics we think a person who's just dipping their toes in SEO should focus on and why."

Google removed a lot of content, compressed and shortened a lot of other content and added only a bit of new content. Google documented what was changed over here.

Gary Illyes posted about it also on LinkedIn and wrote:

We have a refreshed SEO Starter Guide and it's... short. This makes me not unhappy.

If you're an SEO professional it probably bores you to read about the basics, but there are tons of people out there who are still just thinking about dipping their toesies in the scary waters of SEO. This guide is for them and now it's compact enough that you don't need to have a bottle of Bunnahabhain next to you to be able to read it. Yet, it still touches on the things that we think are important when it comes to search engine optimization.

I don't wanna tell you how to live your life, but check out the blog post for more info on this refresh.

Here is what SEOs have been saying about it:

Remember when this was a PDF and a lot of SEOs stole the ended up ranking for it instead of Google? https://t.co/4NsQ4jTphb pic.twitter.com/VNas48yIbG

— Patrick Stox (@patrickstox) February 2, 2024

Google just put the “is E-E-A-T a ranking factor?” question to bed in its new SEO guidance. Plus some other goodies 🍿

(Meanwhile I am sitting here bracing for those who lack critical thinking skills to come at me about how E-E-A-T doesn’t matter) https://t.co/cImmJdPIKX pic.twitter.com/hp9kRd9t0U

— Lily Ray 😏 (@lilyraynyc) February 2, 2024

New SEO Starter Guide!
Boy have I seen this resource grow since its inception as 22 page PDF https://t.co/3graa1srWG pic.twitter.com/smQQBtmxEJ

— Pedro Dias (@pedrodias) February 2, 2024

Newly added content: "new section about common SEO theories and ideas" https://t.co/tczByUyXHe

— Orhan KURULAN (@orhankurulan) February 2, 2024

But at the same time, in this post-HCU world, don’t write for search if you want to rank. 🤷 https://t.co/F3fQHME4GC

— Keith (Minted Empire) ⏳ (@MintedEmpire) February 2, 2024

The duplicate content line is going to be taken out of context by someone somewhere & an SEO will have to spend an hour explaining why you shouldn’t have 2 pages that are exactly the same. https://t.co/tvlxNFsPXf pic.twitter.com/6Uu5WDTxWY

— Harpreet (@harpreetchatha_) February 2, 2024

SEO's prepare yourselves.

Note that systems work in cycles/loops, some are virtuous while others are vicious.

To avoid falling into a vicious cycle trap where SERPs become a cesspool, focus on people. https://t.co/C0hcGMvYEO

— Victor Pan 🇹🇼🇺🇲 (@victorpan) February 2, 2024

There's a good shift in focus below. Some clear updates:

- Specific reference to "Search essentials" and their importance for visibility in Search
- Refutes any notion of quick fixes
- Specific advice on helping Google find and understand a site's content (CSS, JS etc.) https://t.co/Asc3weZimW

— Sunny Matharu 💬 (@s_matharu) February 2, 2024

I missed this accompanying post but saw it in Discover. It’s imo equally as useful as the guide itself. Removing the glossary rationale is interesting (many sites rehash content in FAQs etc). Reminded me of this little content restructure case study I had: https://t.co/moprOffXcs https://t.co/UcwUujtmS0 pic.twitter.com/wwtvTrxrz9

— Ethan Lazuk 🪬 (@EthanLazuk) February 3, 2024

This is rich…LOL. Do people internally at Google not get served all the ads above the fold when they use their own product? https://t.co/Qt7cDlLF8y pic.twitter.com/u65efwZB4H

— Ștefan Negrițoiu (@stefann42) February 3, 2024

Google updated their Stater Guide, speaking at a level that’s right for folks just beginning their SEO journey, and that’s great

Getting technical & complex appeals to lots of SEOs (me)

But it’s terrible for folks starting out

Glad they’re squashing common misconceptions too https://t.co/MySly6TcBw

— Ethan Hays (@ethanhays) February 2, 2024

Forum discussion at X.