In a few words:
Yes, Google can remove your articles from search results if they do not comply with its guidelines, especially regarding quality, originality, and usefulness to the user. Follow Googleās rules and the principles of useful content and E-E-A-T to avoid deindexing:
- AI has changed the game and generates concerns.
- Google had to update to favor authentic and quality content.
- Abusive use of AI to generate content can lead to sanctions.
- Adopting E-E-A-T principles and creating useful content improves visibility.
- You can integrate AI as an assistance tool without sacrificing authenticity.
With the advent of AI and Googleās new SEO rules, writing content becomes complex. I naively believed, like many others, that AI would make my job easier, but itās quite the opposite!
I honestly try to offer value to my readers but face these challenges: innovating while following Googleās strict rules.
I wonder: is my content at risk of deindexing? What dangers do I encounter? How to stay relevant?
This article addresses these questions. It explores the challenges of AI for writers in the face of Googleās rules. How to understand the risks of AI. How to adapt while maintaining quality and authenticity.
How do recent updates to Googleās rules influence online content writing?
With generative AI, Google had to adapt accordingly. Writers are thus faced with new challenges.
Writers are worried. For them, itās a period of uncertainty and upheaval.
Sites disappear, and others rise and fall in rankings.
Writers suddenly realize that their usual methods of content writing and SEO optimization are no longer sufficient. There is an unprecedented increase in cases of websites being deindexed for violating Googleās spam rules. This is a clear reminder that old tactics can lead to severe consequences.
All this creates an intense dynamic between Google, AI tools, and writers. Google continuously adjusts its algorithms to maintain the quality and relevance of its search results; AI tools are becoming increasingly sophisticated; writers, the poor relatives in this situation, are searching for themselves and trying new strategies.
Writers quickly found generative AI to have extraordinary potential to make their work easier. AI promises to quickly find ideas, generate a plan, and write articles at lightning speed. However, using AI exclusively for writing has proven very limiting.
Result: ChatGPT has led to an avalanche of articles, to the detriment of quality and originality.
This untimely proliferation has raised questions about the value of content, its authenticity, and quality. Articles without real value for readers ended up on Googleās first page.
In the current state of affairs, AI is not capable of writing like a human. It struggles to ālimit itselfā and have a personality of its own. It needs a lot of training with prompt engineering and fine-tuning. Online solutions are proliferating like Undetectable AI that have made it a full-fledged service: how to circumvent AI detectors.
AI writes like a human who has all the knowledge in the world and does not know who he is or in what context he is writing. Humans, very intuitively, contextualize without realizing it: they know who they are talking to, how to talk to them, what their limits are, how much time they have to convey information, how important the information is, etc. They know when to focus on the essentials and when to talk about details.
Therefore, before using AI, one must communicate this context to it, which sometimes they do not even realize themselves.
Faced with this unexpected rise in content considered as pollution, Google had to intervene. The platform found itself in a race against time to distinguish and regulate AI-generated content. Despite what one might think of Google, its business model remains to offer informative and relevant search results to its users.
A race against time has ensued between Googleās detection of AI-generated content and writersā use of AI. Writers need to think more deeply about how to integrate AI into their processes without sacrificing the uniqueness and value of their contributions.
See Googleās article: What web creators need to know about the March 2024 core update and new spam rules.
In March 2024, Google introduced a major update and new rules regarding spam.
Its goal: significantly improve the quality of search results, reduce the visibility of content created to generate clicks in favor of content that users find useful.
Here is a detailed overview of the key changes and what they imply for web content creators.
This update is complex. It brings significant changes to Googleās strategies.
To evaluate the usefulness and reliability of content, Google has implemented a multi-system and multi-signal approach. Unlike previous updates, Google no longer relies on a single signal or system but combines various indicators and innovative methods. Its implementation, which will last a month, causes significant fluctuations in rankings.
Google has also announced three new specific rules on SPAM to counter harmful practices.
These rules target:
Abusive use of expired domains
Buying and reusing expired domain names to manipulate rankings is now considered an abusive practice. This practice exploits the reputation of an old domain to get a better ranking with low-quality content.
Abusive large-scale content use (this is where AI comes into play)
Creating large amounts of non-original content, designed to manipulate rankings in Google search rather than help users, is now penalized. This rule extends restrictions on automatically generated content to include all low-quality mass-produced content, whether automated or manual.
Abusive use of a siteās reputation
Publishing content from another authoritative site to manipulate rankings by exploiting its reputation is another penalized practice. This can even include advertising content.
Affected sites are detected automatically, but it is manual actions by Google employees that deindex them. The spammers are notified on their Search Console account, where they can request a review.
For content creators, this means an increased need to prioritize originality, relevance, and added value in their work.
To effectively meet Googleās requirements and avoid being identified as SPAM, one must understand these two concepts that summarize Googleās recommendations:
Creating āuseful contentā, according to Google, focuses on content that directly addresses usersā needs and questions. The goal is to provide users with valuable information, answers to their questions, or solutions to their problems in a clear and accessible way.
Content is considered useful when it enriches the user experience, offers a unique perspective, or helps the user better understand a topic. It should be designed for humans, emphasizing relevance, usefulness, and engagement, rather than manipulating search engine rankings.
Ultimately, whether the content is generated by AI or a human is not the most important. As long as it helps the reader answer their questions, Google is satisfied.
Google uses E-E-A-T criteria to assess content quality on the Internet.
These criteria are:
contentās ability to demonstrate practical or lived knowledge, offering an enriched perspective based on personal or professional experiences.
Integrating the concept of useful content with E-E-A-T principles means creating content that meets specific standards while being directly useful, engaging, and enriching for the user: itās reasonable.
This implies a holistic ā and letās face it, human ā approach to content creation that values quality and relevance while ensuring that each piece of content serves the needs of the target audience.
Google intensifies its anti-spam policy by specifically targeting:
The recommendations for useful content and E-E-A-T principles are not just challenges to overcome; they are also significant opportunities for content creators.
Hereās how these opportunities can be exploited:
Googleās guidelines provide a valuable framework for creating content.
By doing your work authentically and prioritizing quality, sites using manipulation techniques will be weakened.
Aligning your content with E-E-A-T principles and creating useful content not only improves user experience but also strengthens your credibility. This, in turn, will build audience loyalty and enhance your reputation.
Using these principles allows you to strategically optimize your SEO.
This way, you can improve your pagesā rankings in search results, leading to greater visibility and enhanced user engagement. This will increase organic traffic to your site.
The use of artificial intelligence in content creation should not be dismissed, on the contrary!
But it requires a strategic approach.
As writers, we are still in the learning phase. It will take time to fully master AIās capabilities and determine the most effective techniques to integrate it into our processes. But we will eventually get the best out of it.
Adhering to the principles of useful content and E-E-A-T does not oppose the use of artificial intelligence.
And the opportunity is there: in a crisis environment, those who succeed in combining Googleās guidelines and AI will be the ones who stand out. They will simply understand the importance of prioritizing content quality over mass production. Prioritize quality over quantity.
I have changed my way of working with AI and ChatGPT in particular. Finally, by seeing it as an assistant, to whom everything must be explained precisely and not as a writer who does the work for me, I developed a method that is effective for me.
Discover my writing process using ChatGPT >
As AI becomes sophisticated, capable of generating human-like text, one might wonder how far this technology will influence traditional writing. Writers will have to juggle more between originality and AI use to stay competitive.
On Googleās side and its search engine, continuous adaptation to AI advancements is a major challenge. Google is forced to improve its algorithms to maintain the quality and relevance of its search results. Itās a race that could lead search engines to develop new criteria.
Google remains dependent on writers. Its bet is that they will continue to do their work so that advertisers trust them and trust Google.
For me, the future is still uncertain, but Google has made the right move. Despite everything.
Adopting AI while respecting Googleās strict guidelines requires a thoughtful and strategic approach. Recent updates show that Google prioritizes quality and authenticity. It penalizes abusive practices while opening new opportunities for those ready to adapt.
Personally, and contrary to my expectations, I learned that AI does not necessarily simplify content creation. I had to adapt.
What do you think? AI or no AI?
Yes, if the generated content violates Googleās guidelines, particularly in terms of quality and originality. It is crucial to use AI in a way that complements a value-centered writing approach, following the principles of useful content and E-E-A-T.
No, as long as the content is authentic, adds value to readers, and complies with Googleās guidelines on quality and originality. AI should be used as an assistance tool rather than replacing human effort entirely.
Yes, AI can help brainstorm ideas, generate plans, and provide content drafts. However, revision and personalization are necessary to ensure quality and originality.
Google penalizes the abusive use of expired domains to manipulate rankings. This can lead to deindexing or reduced visibility of your site in search results.
By focusing your efforts on creating content that directly meets usersā needs, respecting the principles of useful content and E-E-A-T, and strategically using AI to complement your expertise and creativity.
By using AI as an assistance tool for idea generation or plan development, while ensuring that the final content is refined, personalized, and adds real value. Following the guidelines of useful content and E-E-A-T criteria is essential.
