June 2024 Spam Update and Serving Issues

It felt like we’d been riding a veritable tsunami of SERP volatility for about a month that ended after a short few days of normality. Now, we know that week was just the calm before the storm as the June 2024 spam update rolls out, rather lovingly, at the same time as major serving and indexing issues on Google SERPs. 

The update has been rolled out aiming at combating spam across its search engine. We have already seen a notable impact on the way search results are currently being generated and served. More than likely drastically impacted by the serving and indexing issues. Here’s a short look into how this can affect your website. 

The June 2024 Spam Update

As I’m sure you’re aware, Google updates its algorithm quite frequently to ensure quality and relevance in its search results. This latest effort from Google should take only a week to roll out, but the impact is already being felt internationally. 

The June 2024 spam update is another in line with ongoing changes to help target spammy practices that attempt to manipulate search engine rankings. Let’s have a look at the key elements of this update:

Smarter Algorithms

The wizards over at Google are constantly making their algorithms smarter, with the overall goal of making them better at identifying and devaluing websites that use spammy tactics. 

Strong Focus on the User

By bringing the hammer down on harmful and spammy sites, Google is showing us their commitment to providing more accurate results and a more trustworthy search experience. 

Helpful, Quality Content

Standing as the opposite of spammy and dangerous websites, those with helpful and quality content that adheres to Google’s Search Essentials will more than likely benefit from this update. 

More Volatility and Penalties

If you have engaged in any behaviour that Google would define as spam, you may face harsher penalties. We’ve seen some websites removed entirely from Google search after a Google update. 

Have you been hit by the recent spam updates? Contact ROAR, we’re specialists in helping revive SEO after Google penalty. 

Recent Google Search Serving Issues

We saw a quite drastic impact on serving search results almost immediately after announcing the update. When we say serving, we mean Google’s ability to actually present websites to users after they search for something. 

These issues appear to have been temporarily resolved, but the impact this has had on current search results is largely unknown right now. We’re in the process of assessing the impact now. 

Here’s roughly what happened:

• Outages: Some users reported intermittent outages during which search results were not being served correctly. This caused obvious frustration from both website owners and Google’s users. 
• Delays: Websites received a significant delay in indexing new content. This means that all new content is not being crawled or shown to users in Google search results. 
• Votalitliy: Drastic fluctuations in keyword positions were observed by a number of people. An obvious concern to SEOs and website owners about the stability of positions in search results. 

So, while the June 2024 update is a leap forward in the right direction in the battle against spam, concurrent issues with serving and indexing have caused major instability for many websites. Stay updated, and informed, and adhere to best practices to help you navigate these changes in the best way possible. 

Conclusion

• A new spam focussed algorithm update was rolled out on 20th June 2024
• There has been significant keyword position turbulence
• Along with the update, Google has also experienced issues with serving and indexing content. 
• The update and serving issues have created instability, stay updated and adhere to best practices. 

Is your website struggling with the recent June 2024 Spam Update and serving issues on Google? Don’t let your rankings and traffic suffer! Reach out now for a consultation and take the first step towards reclaiming your online presence.