Google has finished rolling out the product reviews update that they announced a few weeks ago. This update aims to promote review content that is “above and beyond” much of the templated information often found. Google said it would reward these types of reviews in its search results rankings, favouring reviews that align with their EAT guidelines.
The Google Product Reviews update first launched on April 08, 2021. This update is a new aspect to their algorithm, specifically looking at the quality of reviews content. The update focuses on delivering a better user experience by encouraging customers to share detailed thoughts about what they’re buying with others – which provides valuable insights for other searchers who are researching whether or not to make a purchase themselves.
Google has not directly punished lower quality reviews in this update, but it does reward sites with more insightful review content. While you’re not being directly penalised, your competitors could move above you as a result. If you are experiencing a decline in rankings after this update, look at our previous post for advice on improving your site’s review content and potentially recovering from any damage done. We’re particularly interested in how this update can benefit our SEO strategies and how we can make recommendations to help increase rankings.
As above, if you collect online reviews, this update may have impacted your site’s rankings. In our original post on the subject, Google provided advice for what to do to help content rank well with this update. Check out that article and contact us if you need any further assistance.