Automated SERP tracking tools have picked up signals of fluctuations, and it seems to be another possible search ranking update from Google. The high volatility started on August 6, 2021, and went on to settle down during the weekend.
Google has not confirmed any search ranking update on their part. But worth noting, the link spam update is still in the rollout and most likely could be the reason for the fluctuations.
What Are People Saying?
Several webmasters have reported search traffic fluctuations (both positive and negative changes) in forums and Twitter discussions. Glenn Gabe took to Twitter as he noticed some reversals in traffic from the June/July core update starting from the beginning of August 2021. It is evident that there is a solid fluctuation in search traffic on websites across various niches.
Here is another site that dropped heavily w/the June core update, more w/July, & just surged back starting on 8/1 (when I saw a lot of volatility across other sites). This site is in a niche that saw a boatload of movement w/both core updates (including corrections by Google). pic.twitter.com/FHm41ToQmY
— Glenn Gabe (@glenngabe) August 7, 2021
Google’s Official Response
Google has not confirmed rolling out any new update on this day, but the link spam update started rolling out on July 26, 2021 and is due to complete in two weeks of time.
When asked if the rolling out of the link spam update was complete, Google’s Danny Sullivan has responded on Twitter that the update is still not done (as of August 9, 2021).
Not yet done.
— Danny Sullivan (@dannysullivan) August 9, 2021
Since the link spam update is still in the rollout, the fluctuations seen in SERP can be related to it, but we don’t have an official confirmation from Google yet. Hence, if you’ve noticed a dip in your traffic starting from August 6th, then you’ll need to wait to see if the changes are being reversed.
