In a Google Webmaster Hangout, a publisher inquired about recovery strategies following the so-called Medic Update. A representative from Google provided a comprehensive response, contrasting the impact of minor adjustments with a more substantial overhaul of the content, to determine where it might lack relevance.
This particular Google Webmaster Hangout was conducted in both English and Telugu.
## How to Recover From Medic Update
To recover from the “Medic” update, it is recommended to initially take a step back to assess the content across the entire site. The Googler noted that while making small changes can be advantageous, if the site was affected by Medic, more significant measures might be necessary.
He emphasized that there is no universal solution, as the approach depends specifically on the individual website.
“So, regarding the Medic Update question, I would say it depends upon your websites.”
He provided examples of various strategies:
“For example, if you feel like there are a lot of pages on your website where you can improve content, then I would look at say an overhaul of the website, not just trying to change or tweak.”
In my view, large changes should be approached cautiously. Initially, it is essential to ensure there are no technical problems that might exacerbate other on-page issues. Then, conduct an unbiased review to pinpoint where the pages are lacking. Developing a solid plan and having confidence in that plan is crucial.
The Googler continued:
“You can try and tweak things a little bit here and there… titles or making better snippets or adding structured data and so on.
But if that doesn’t change anything I would say actually go for like… take a bigger step and see what are the queries going forward, this year, next year… and how can I make… overall holistic changes to my website that can help me rank better instead of trying to just make smaller tweaks.”
In this context, the Googler remarked on the nature of a site being impacted by an algorithmic update, highlighting that it concerns the content.
“If you’re hit with an update that means Google doesn’t feel your site is relevant.
Because if you feel like you’ve been hit by an algorithm, then that probably means Google doesn’t feel like a lot of content on your website, is not very relevant.”
## Didn’t Danny Sullivan Say Nothing to Fix?
On August 1, 2018, Danny Sullivan, through the Google Search Liaison Twitter account, announced a broad core update, reiterating that the guidance remained unchanged from his proclamation in March 2018. The March 2018 guidance asserted:
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.
This Googler’s advice to review the content may sound contradictory to Danny Sullivan’s announcement that there is nothing to fix, but it is not. Danny’s statement was in the context of a history of SEOs attempting to determine what Google was “targeting” in an update.
The belief that Google updates are targeting something is why some referred to the August 2018 update as the Medic Update, assuming it was aimed at medical sites. Moreover, the SEO industry insisted Google was targeting “quality” issues like thin content, slow pages, title tags, and poor user experience that needed fixing.
Danny’s statement might have been designed to preempt speculation leading to unnecessary fixes of low-quality issues.
This Googler’s advice aligns with Danny’s encouragement to focus on producing high-quality content.
He noted that if you attempt minor edits and notice no improvements, it may indicate there’s nothing to correct. His conclusion suggests the main issue might be the relevancy of your web pages, rather than something inherently negative about them.
Here’s what the Googler stated:
“So making smaller tweaks may not really push the needle all that much. So you probably have to make larger changes across the website for a lot more pages, where you know… you can try and see.
Like in the question you mentioned looking for search console queries. So you can actually look at the bigger theme of those queries and try to create content in that aspect. So that you can then actually push the needle instead of making it smaller.”
### Takeaways on Medic Update Recovery
From analyzing numerous websites impacted by the Medic Update, I’ve found that the issue can sometimes be subtle and difficult to detect. The answer is sometimes found in the websites that are ranking effectively. As the Googler suggested, while some issues may be resolved with minor adjustments, others might necessitate making difficult decisions about the content. As emphasized, it is contingent upon the specific website.
Watch the Webmaster Hangout for more insights.
### More Resources
_Images by Shutterstock, Modified by Author_
_Screenshots by Author, Modified by Author_
