Google Updates: What To Do if They Are Killing Your Blog

Last Updated on April 24, 2025 by Jan Barley

Google Updates – are they killing your blog?

Since the “Helpful” Content update in September 2022, Google began increasing the update frequency.

We all thought it was a blip and, in time, would sort itself out, but it caused many websites to decline to the point that people gave up.

The August (2024) update caused significant volatility 😒

Initially, there were huge spikes, and everyone got excited their website had taken off.

“Order the yacht, Sammy.”

“Yes, sir, shall I book the Bentley, too?”

Then, traffic plunged like a big fat fish off Niagra Falls.

Dismally, we all watched our hard-earned traffic descending faster than the speed of a politician submitting their monthly expenses.

Now, it’s like Google can’t make its mind up.

Even the “experts” are expressing dismay.

Read:  ChatGPT Prompts for SEO: An Effective Way to Rank Content

What the Heck Does Google Want?

The truth is that what Google tells us it wants is often the furthest from what it actually wants.

SEO experts like me can handle that, just about. But if you have limited SEO experience and keep doing the same things, getting your blog content to rank is becoming more challenging.

It’s a hard enough job for bloggers to keep coming up with fresh ideas, researching evergreen topics, keyword research, semantics, images, publishing and updating aged content.

Then Google updates undo your hard work. Google repeatedly twiddles with the algorithms, so everybody gets confused about how to get their bloody content to rank.

I’m an SEO writer. I know the types of content that google loves, regardless of the updates.

My content ranks on featured snippets & page one. Still, from the last few updates, I began thinking Google might not be a reliable source of traffic long-term.

In addition, the new AI feature that gives you an instant answer is not half bad.

I’m ashamed to admit that I use this AI feature for snippets of information I need or to help formulate a paragraph when my brain refuses to cooperate.

And I bet I’m not alone.

I began exploring additional search engines and focused on Pinterest.

I took two courses on Pinterest marketing, SEO & pin design.

Start A Pinterest Marketing Strategy

Pinterest is a search engine – it’s a slow burn but 100% worth the effort.

6-12 months of consistent pinning & you’ll have a solid traffic source.

Many people I talk to on IG Threads make a full-time income from a Pinterest strategy.

It will 100% send traffic to your website if you curate blog posts or YouTube content that address your audience’s problems.

I curate every blog post I write by pinning it on Pinterest.

My enthusiasm for Pinterest, led me to make a couple of simple mistakes in June and lost my first Pinterest account ☹. I was heartbroken when Pinterest deactivated my account. I’d spent months building it up, and I was at 9k monthly views and getting outbound links and saves.

It’s impossible to speak with a human on Pinterest. When you submit appeals, the responses come from a bot. The challenge is you can’t get into your Pinterest account to correct the mistakes.

I made four appeals. Nothing worked. So, I opened a new account.

Before opening a Pinterest account, please read the article about my Pinterest suspension, what I did wrong and what we should do. The post has the link to Pinterest Community Guidelines, which I suggest you read before pinning.

When you’re ready to get started, I have a low-cost offer for 60 Pinterest pin templates. These are based on the training I did on the Pinterest pin design course.

I also recommend a couple of free Pinterest courses.

Make YouTube Your Third Traffic Source

YouTube is another powerful search engine, and it’s entirely possible to succeed with a faceless account.

Curate your blog content to YouTube because Google is big into video.

That’s my intention when I can get over my procrastination hump.

Take your top-performing blog content – page one ranking and snippets – and create video content. Check the top videos on Google and create better content.

Read: Profitable YouTube Niches: 17 Best Income-Earners

If you don’t have articles ranking on page one, check what position they rank and select the ones highest. Open a free Ubersuggest account to check these statistics.

Use SEO keywords in the YouTube descriptions and add your website link so people can read the article if they wish. That acts as a powerful backlink for your website.

Read: Profitable Faceless YouTube Ideas: 7 Amazing Opportunities

Social Media Marketing vs Search Engine Marketing

I’m implementing a social media marketing strategy, working through Catalyst Collective, an Instagram business growth program with an ex-Meta executive.

The training is fantastic for any business that wants to grow from social media marketing. Still, my long-term goal is to focus 85% on search engine marketing.

Search engine marketing is less stressful & time-consuming. Plus, if you use the 3-pronged approach I suggest, you can create a consistent, long-term source of income.

I started social media marketing during April 24. Honestly, it’s been a vertical learning curve. I understand platforms like LinkedIn, but TikTok – a virtual lunatic asylum – and Instagram baffled me, especially Instagram Stories.

The algorithms change so frequently on these platforms that nobody can keep up.

Instagram randomly bans hashtags but doesn’t tell you about it. You suddenly get an account restriction or ban. Check MetaHashTags to find banned tags. For instance, “make money online” is a banned hashtag.

A gazillion people on Instagram are pushing the “make money online” business, so that’s tricky.

Read: Tips for YouTube Growth: How Top YouTubers Succeed

Conclusion

Every business relies on a regular traffic source. If nobody is viewing your website, making a consistent income is tricky.

Google updates will continue to disrupt traffic. That’s a given.

Get your own back on Google by building a Pinterest and YouTube strategy. Both platforms will drive traffic to your website and help push your content higher.

In addition, you can eventually monetise your YouTube channel and promote digital products, courses, memberships, affiliate products and more on top of money from ad revenue.

Start now, build and scale and within 12 months, you’ll wonder why you didn’t start sooner.

I wish I’d started years ago.