Well, 2020 is over - phew, right? December was a wild wild month in terms of what SEOs and webmasters need to be concerned with around Google Search. We had the December 2020 core update and some unconfirmed updates. We learned more about the page experience update, passage indexing and more. So let me give you a quick recap on what happened in the past 30-days, in case you took the month off.
The December 2020 core update started to roll out on December 3rd but we really did not notice it until December 4th. The second wave of that update was around December 10th. There was debate on if Google should have released an update when it did. But hey, those that got hit with the May core update and recovered, like us, were happy.
We also saw a couple unconfirmed updates on December 17th and Christmas weekend.
Passage indexing and the core updates are unrelated and so are core updates and BERT. But passage indexing was not rolled out before the end of the year, we are expecting it soon. But when it does go live, it won't look different. Google also tested the page experience visual icon in the search results.
Google Search Console got some upgrades including fresh data in the API, a news filter and more, also a news showcase filter. Google launched the question hub in the US, which is awesome. Google fixed the request indexing tool after 69 days and decided not to kill the structured data testing tool.
Google has been busy testing UI changes including practice problems in the search results, dynamic expandable images and expandable descriptions. Google also launched short video carousels and 3D cars and so much more.
If you want to catch up on the prior month, check our the December Google webmaster report.
Here is a break down of the more important stories you may want to catch up on:
Google Algorithm Updates
- Google December 2020 Core Update Is Live - Here Is What We See Now
- Should Google Have Not Released The December 2020 Core Update When It Did?
- Google: The December 2020 Core Update Is Still Rolling Out
- Google December 2020 Core Update Second Wave
- Google December 2020 Core Update Is Complete
- We Recovered With The Google December 2020 Core Update
- We're Not Done Yet: Another Google Search Ranking Update - 8th Day
- Christmas Weekend Google Algorithm Update? Doubtful.
- Google On Why It Won't Reverse The December 2020 Core Update
- Google Page Experience Update Ranking Factor Will Apply To Mobile Search Only
- Not All Google Search Algorithms Are Suitable For Machine Learning
- Google: Passage Indexing & The December Core Update Are Not Bundled
- Google: Passage Indexing Has Not Rolled Out Yet
- Google: Passage Indexing Won't Look Different From Normal Search Result Snippets
- Google: Nosnippet Tag Won't Prevent Passage Indexing From Ranking
- Google: Passage Indexing & Page Experience Updates Unrelated
- Does Google Ignore Portions Of Your Site For Assessing Quality? It's More About Indexing.
- Google: Core Updates & BERT Are Unrelated & Different
- Google's John Mueller 2021 Google SEO Advice
- How Long Do Stories Last On Google Discover
- Google: Avoid Blocking Pages That Are Important Enough To Have Links To Them
- Google Search Console API Gets Fresher Data, News Filter & More
- Google Question Hub Is Open & It's A Great Way To Find Content Ideas
- Google News Showcase Search Console Filters & More Features
- Google Request Indexing Tool Back After 69 Day Outage
- Google Structured Data Testing Tool Moving To Schema.org; SEOs Now Happy
- Google Search Console Issue Validation May Be Working
- Google Has Plans For Regex Filters In Search Console
- Google Search Console Team Breaks Down Structure & Development
- Google My Business Phone Support Returns
- Google Guaranteed Testing New Badge Design
- Google Guaranteed Offering Discounted Pricing
- Google My Business Video Maker Is Okay But Not Great
- Google Tests Displaying Services In Local Pack
- Google Tests Dynamic Customized Tabs In Local Panel
- Google Local Panel Ad For Lawyers Test
- Google Tests New Local Pack User Interface Buttons
- Google Local Meshed Throughout Web Search Results
- Google Maps Local Listings Adds Web Search Results
- Google My Business Call History Report Shows Answered & Missed Calls
- Google Maps Landmark Icons & Pins
- Google Local Reviews Tests "New" Label
- Google Page Experience & Core Web Vitals Icon In Search Results
- Google Search Results Show Practice Problems For Studying
- Google Tests Displaying Images Within Snippets On Mouse Hover
- Google Tests Expandable Descriptions / Snippets In Search
- Google Short Videos Carousel Displays TikTok & Instagram Videos
- Google Search Streamed 3D Content Including Cars
- Google Knowledge Panel Types Option Leads To Featured Snippets
- Google People Also Ask Tests Question Mark Icons
- Google Testing New People Also Search For Location
- Google Tests Square & Multicolored Search Result Category Buttons
- Google Search Popular Products Review Slider
- Google Search Lets You Try On Makeup Like Lipstick & Eyeshadow
- Google Search Testing Thinner Knowledge Panels
- Google Search New Look For Question & Answers Carousel, Combines Multiple Sites
- Google Search "Learn More About" Within People Also Ask
- Google Mobile Search Sharable GIFs Carousel
Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.
