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Last year, Google rolled out something called \u201cthe helpful-content update\u201d (HCU). It felt that too many websites were over-optimized for search and not run by real people providing real answers based on firsthand experience. <\/p>\n
Instead, there were too many SEO farms pumping out bad content for search and ad revenue. Hence, the desire to put \u201chelpful content\u201d (such as online forums like Reddit) at the top of the search results. After all, who better to have firsthand experience than a person posting about something on a forum? (Or so the logic went.) <\/p>\n
If you\u2019ve used Google since last October, you\u2019ve likely noticed this change. <\/p>\n
I think it sucks. I mean, I don\u2019t care about a forum thread from 2013. I don\u2019t want to search for answers through years of comments and replies, many of which are very out of date. I think this HCU has made Google results far, far worse. I recently tried to find a gym in Munich and rather than just list gyms in Munich<\/a>, I got Reddit threads that were very outdated. <\/p>\n While I think Google will eventually roll back some<\/em> of these changes (they tend to roll back some changes after seeing how people react) because too many users are complaining about the quality of the results. Still, I think this is the first nail in the coffin for blogs, especially single-destination websites that don\u2019t have a \u201cclear expert\u201d behind them. (These blogs were among the hardest hit in the update.) <\/p>\n We bloggers have always lived and died by the algorithm. Whether social media or search, we are at the mercy of these companies. But these recent Google changes were some of the most extreme I\u2019ve seen in the sixteen years I\u2019ve been working online. Our search traffic is down 50% \u2014 and I feel like I\u2019ve gotten off easy compared to people who have had their websites go to zero. <\/p>\n Many bloggers have just stopped blogging and are now looking for \u201creal\u201d jobs. Only a few seem to have gotten anything from the new changes, most notably Rick Steves, who, because he has a forum, has actually seen his traffic go up. <\/p>\n For the last couple of years, I\u2019ve begun thinking that the Age of Blogging was nearing a close. Google has been making changes that pushes real content down in search results thanks to its ads, embedded widgets, and partnership spam at the top of the search results. People are instead moving toward social platforms to find information; for example, TikTok\u2019s search is really good<\/a>. <\/p>\n And, as I mentioned in another post<\/a>, while AI might not be ready for prime time yet, it\u2019s coming along. Right now, it\u2019s just spitting out terrible generic lists and content. I don\u2019t think that creators have to worry about AI at all at the moment. <\/p>\n The biggest issue for creators is search. <\/p>\n Blogs were like the second iteration of the Internet after web forums and Geocities sites and, now, most users are shifting to short form video. While I don\u2019t think blogs will go away completely, I don\u2019t think they will be the source of information for people they once were. Google\u2019s changes are only confirming this for me because if Google is looking at the future and saying \u201clet\u2019s downgrade this content\u201d then one of the only visibility tools left for blogs is gone. <\/p>\n I think that if you\u2019re a blogger, you need to figure out how to not only<\/em> be a blogger really quick. That means you can still keep your blog, but you\u2019re going to need to diversify not only how you reach people but how you make money. <\/p>\n What else can you do? Podcast? Video? Social media? Run events? Start a forum? (Forums are painful and hard to run though. I wouldn\u2019t do it. I ran one for a bit and I\u2019m glad we stopped.)<\/p>\n To thrive in this new era, you\u2019re going to need to be even more of a brand and personality on social media. You\u2019re not going to be able to have an anonymous destination website. You\u2019re not going to be able to just rely on affiliate and ad revenue. <\/p>\n Even if Google reverses some of the changes, the writing is on the wall.<\/p>\n I think these shifts will see a lot of the older bloggers (i.e., those that have been doing this for 10+ years) shifting to other things. For example, my friend Matt from Expert Vagabond<\/a> is now doing 360\u00b0 video. Bloggers will continue blogging and updating as long as the revenue is there. But as traffic fades, I think a lot of OG bloggers will slowly update less and less as they either pivot to something else or just enter a new phase of life as the Age of Blogs comes to a close. (That\u2019s just my theory at least.)<\/p>\n I don\u2019t really know what that means for Google. If people produce less content because they know it won\u2019t matter as it won\u2019t get seen on search, what search results will Google have to show? What posts will their AI scrape (steal)? <\/p>\n I think people will still produce travel stories and tips<\/a>, but they will scale back as they focus on other types of content and endeavors. Blogs will just be one (smaller) piece of the puzzle.<\/p>\n In the future, I think people will still reference blogs from creators and personalities they know and branded search will be bigger. After all, why comb through a bunch of garbage forum threads when you can just go to that blogger\/creator\u2019s website and see if they have information? <\/p>\n Or maybe you\u2019ll start using Bing and DuckDuckGo more. (We\u2019ve actually seen about a 40% jump in traffic from Bing recently.)<\/p>\n In the end, I don\u2019t think blogs will disappear. They will be around the same way guidebooks will be around<\/a>. Useful, still used, but not as popular as they used to be. <\/p>\n Book Your Flight<\/strong> Book Your Accommodation<\/strong> Don\u2019t Forget Travel Insurance<\/strong> Want to Travel for Free?<\/strong> Need Help Finding Activities for Your Trip?<\/strong> Ready to Book Your Trip?<\/strong>Book Your Trip: Logistical Tips and Tricks<\/h4>\n
Find a cheap flight by using Skyscanner<\/a>. It\u2019s my favorite search engine because it searches websites and airlines around the globe so you always know no stone is being left unturned. <\/p>\n
You can book your hostel with Hostelworld<\/a>. If you want to stay somewhere other than a hostel, use Booking.com<\/a> as it consistently returns the cheapest rates for guesthouses and hotels. <\/p>\n
Travel insurance will protect you against illness, injury, theft, and cancellations. It\u2019s comprehensive protection in case anything goes wrong. I never go on a trip without it as I\u2019ve had to use it many times in the past. My favorite companies that offer the best service and value are:<\/p>\n
Travel credit cards allow you to earn points that can be redeemed for free flights and accommodation \u2014 all without any extra spending. Check out my guide to picking the right card and my current favorites<\/a> to get started and see the latest best deals.<\/p>\n
Get Your Guide<\/a> is a huge online marketplace where you can find cool walking tours, fun excursions, skip-the-line tickets, private guides, and more. <\/p>\n
Check out my resource page<\/a> for the best companies to use when you travel. I list all the ones I use when I travel. They are the best in class and you can\u2019t go wrong using them on your trip.\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n