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Google’s March 2024 Core Update was a seismic event for blogs and website owners who rely on organic search traffic. This significant algorithm change targeted low-quality content and AI-generated spam, leading to the de-indexing of hundreds of websites in its early stages. The consequences were that severely affected sites lost valuable organic traffic and advertising revenue overnight.
The update is in line with the findings of an Originality AI study, which revealed a high prevalence of AI-generated content among de-indexed websites. In 50% of affected sites 90-100% of posts were generated by artificial intelligence.
This crackdown demonstrates Google’s commitment to improving the quality of search results and combating manipulative tactics such as AI content spam. But it also raises an important question: How can website owners significantly increase organic traffic in this new reality?
Related: The Rules of SEO Are Changing: Here Are 5 Powerful Strategies to Help You Rank in 2024
Strategies to increase organic traffic in 2024
In the wake of the March 2024 Core Update, website owners must adapt their strategies to recover lost ground and significantly increase organic traffic. Here are some key areas of interest:
1. Perform a comprehensive content audit
The first step is to thoroughly analyze your content. Use tools like Ahrefs or SEMrush to identify:
- Articles that perform well but do not rank high in search results (prioritize these)
- Content that stopped working after updating
- Underperforming content that never ranked well
You can strategically allocate your optimization efforts by understanding which content assets are working and which need improvement.
2. Focus on top-performing content that hasn’t yet ranked #1 in searches
Double down on your strengths to quickly increase organic traffic. Find high-volume, low-competition keywords with a difficulty score of less than 10 and ranking between 2 and 8. These are more likely to get the coveted highlight in the rich snippet position.
Related: The Rules of SEO Are Changing: Here Are 5 Powerful Strategies to Help You Rank in 2024
3. Optimize for featured snippets
Results highlighted in the “zero position” above the primary organic listings are known as featured snippets. There are four main categories:
- Paragraph fragments
- List the fragments
- Table fragments
- Video snippets
4. To improve your website’s ranking and attract more highlighted snippets, it is essential to adhere to current SEO best practices:
- Understand the query intent and match the snippet format.
- Define your topic concisely in two to three sentences for paragraph snippets.
- Use objective, fact-based language and avoid personal pronouns.
- Structure the content logically with appropriate heading tags.
- Write simply and use language that your audience understands.
Above all, prioritize providing a superior user experience over basic keyword optimization.
Google’s position on AI-generated content
While Google has not explicitly banned AI-generated content, the message is clear: quality, originality and user value are key. AI should be leveraged as a support tool, not as a substitute for human skills and creativity.
Matt G. Southern of Search Engine Journal rightly states, “Google isn’t waging a war against artificial intelligence; the battle is against mediocrity.” Responsible use of artificial intelligence as an aid to content creation is acceptable. However, it must be accompanied by human intuition, editing and a commitment to providing truly valuable information to users. AI should be leveraged as a support tool, not as a substitute for human skills and creativity.
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The intelligent use of AI
While the update penalized sites that overly rely on AI content, Google’s emphasis has always been on originality, depth and reader value. Ethical use of AI as a research aid and co-pilot in writing is acceptable as long as human editing ensures unique, high-quality content.
The future is EEAT moving forward: Google’s prioritization of experience, expertise, authority and trustworthiness (EEAT) will be essential. Establish your topical authority:
- Citing reliable sources.
- Highlight the author’s expertise.
- Provide accurate and reliable information.
- Ensuring an optimal user experience through intelligent design.
Websites focused solely on keyword optimization rather than holistic quality signals will increasingly be left behind.
The March 2024 Core Update ushered in a new era of research where quality, originality, and authority reign supreme. You can significantly increase organic traffic in this new landscape by mastering your content, playing to your strengths, and adhering to the EEAT principles. The path ahead requires an ongoing commitment to creating an exceptional user experience through truly valuable content.