Danny Sullivan, Google’s Search Liaison, posted again about the timing around recovering from the helpful content update. He essentially repeated what Google said back when it first was announced, that the classifier is always running to check if content is helpful but it takes time to prove to Google that your efforts are long-term.
The issue came up when a thread on X spoke about how no one has seen a recovery for a site hit by the helpful content update. And to be honest, the September 2023 Google helpful content update was the most serious helpful content update – it adjusted its classifier to make certain “improvements.” Since then, it seems there have been no recoveries for sites hit by that update.
Morgan Overholt wrote on X, claiming that Google’s Search Liaison told her that “a site could recover within 2 weeks of making changes” specific to the helpful content update. In which, the Google Search Liaison said no, he did not say that. He wrote in response on X, “I don’t recall giving a specific timeframe like that. It would be unusual for me to do so, because it’s not what we say in our documentation. It’s not something I’ve also said in posts when people ask about this. Apologies if I misspoke or perhaps confused this with something else.”
He added that the help document says:
Here are those posts:
The document also says:
So then Daniel Hart asked if they needed to wait for the next time the helpful content update ran. The answer is no; as written above and in the original Google communication from 2022, it said that the classifier is always running, but part of that requires you to prove over several months that your content is committed to being helpful in the long run.
Daniel asked, “Does this mean that until the next updates, the classifier may be lifted or applied? Or is there a monthly, bi-monthly check?”
Sullivan replied:
Here are those posts:
As I wrote back in 2022 after interviewing Google about this update:
Again, this last update, the September 2023 helpful content update was big and impactful to many. Those hit, if still in business, are praying for some type of recovery, after making changes to their content and website. But when will those ranking changes come, if ever, is the big question.
Forum discussion at X.
