Danny Sullivan

★★ Are Google's technical guidelines really as binary and verifiable as they claim?

Search Essentials contain clear technical guidelines that are verifiable in a binary manner (yes/no). Good technical optimization does not guarantee ranking number one but remains a necessary foundati...

Aug 22, 2023 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Does word count really matter for Google rankings?

Contrary to popular belief, Google never specifies that content must contain a minimum or maximum number of words. Content volume is not a ranking criterion in itself....

Aug 22, 2023 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Should you really display an author on every single page of your website?

Displaying an author is only relevant where it makes sense for the visitor. On a technical product page, no one expects to see an author name. Authorship is useful for editorial content, not systemati...

Aug 22, 2023 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Is authentic content for a real audience truly the SEO game-changer Google claims it is?

The fundamental recommendation is to create authentic content for a real audience you know, people who would come directly to your site. This is the winning strategy against system evolution and gener...

Aug 22, 2023 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Does AI Content Really Need Human Oversight to Avoid Google Penalties?

Danny Sullivan, from Google's Search Liaison team, stated that ensuring human oversight of AI-generated content is important: "right now, there are well-known issues with AI-generated content, so huma...

Aug 15, 2023 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Can AI Really Boost Your Content's Ranking on Google?

In response to Merrill Brown, head of G/O Media, who was celebrating the positive reception of AI-generated content in search engines, Danny Sullivan stated that this was not the case: "at least, not ...

Jul 25, 2023 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Should You Showcase Author Awards to Boost Your SEO Rankings?

Last May, Jennifer Granito from Google Search Central provided an update on the Topic Authority system designed to highlight the most relevant content and experts on Google News and in Search. A few d...

Jul 25, 2023 ⚡ Analysis available

★★ Can Google's Helpful Content System Really Uncover Hidden Quality Content?

In response to Glenn Gabe, Danny Sullivan indicated that the Helpful Content System will not only demote "unhelpful" content, but will also highlight the "hidden gems" of the web. The system will ther...

May 23, 2023 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Why Is Your Evergreen Content Suddenly Losing Rankings to News Articles?

On Twitter, Danny Sullivan responded to a complaint from the Celebrity Net Worth website. They were complaining that their excellent content about Gwyneth Paltrow was being outranked by poor quality c...

Apr 11, 2023 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Does Word Count Really Matter for SEO Content Anymore?

Google has removed errors returned by the Search Console for sites registered in Google News, specifically the "article too short" error. Any mention of text being too short has also disappeared from ...

Sep 26, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Why Did Google's Helpful Content Update Ultimately Disappoint the SEO Community?

Danny Sullivan, Google's spokesperson, discussed on Twitter with Glenn Gabe, a well-known SEO, about the Helpful Content Update, announced as very important by Google but which, in reality, doesn't se...

Sep 12, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Do Age Verification Pop-ups Really Prevent Your Content from Appearing in Google Discover?

Danny Sullivan explained that if a website displays an age verification request (particularly for sites accessible only to adult users via a pop-up) before accessing its content, this can prevent it f...

Aug 01, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Can Nofollow Links Actually Pass PageRank and Boost Your SEO After All?

Danny Sullivan indicated on Twitter that, even though Google changed its method of handling nofollow links in 2019, there's little chance that such a link will transmit "juice" in any significant way,...

Jun 20, 2022 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Should You Still Optimize Your Site for Google Search Result Personalization?

Danny Sullivan reiterated on Twitter that result personalization (i.e., taking into account search history and visited sites, user profile, etc.) was an extremely weak criterion in the algorithm and t...

Aug 30, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Do Google Core Updates Really Impact Image Search and Local SEO?

Danny Sullivan indicated on Twitter that the search engine's "core updates" could sometimes impact Google's image search engine as well as (more rarely) local searches......

Aug 09, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ How Does Google's Knowledge Panel Really Adapt to Your Searches?

Danny Sullivan explained on Twitter that the content of the Knowledge Graph (Knowledge Panel) is not fixed; it primarily depends on the query entered. Depending on whether a query is more or less prec...

Aug 09, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Should You Already Be Optimizing Your Site for Google's MUM Algorithm?

Danny Sullivan explained on Twitter that the MUM algorithm had not yet been integrated into Google's query analysis system, but that when it is, there will be official communication about it......

May 25, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ How Can You Tell Google Core Updates Apart from Daily Algorithm Changes?

Danny Sullivan confirmed on Twitter that Google has not implemented any "core update" (major algorithm update) since the one on December 4th. This does not mean, of course, that there have been no alg...

May 17, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Will Core Web Vitals Really Revolutionize SERP Rankings?

Danny Sullivan explained on Twitter that Core Web Vitals, which will be launched next May, should not fundamentally change the game in the SERPs. He indicated that their impact will likely be very min...

Mar 01, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available

★★★ Is Google's Yellow Highlighting Actually Connected to the Passages Algorithm?

Danny Sullivan explained (once again) on Twitter that Google's feature of directing users directly to a specific part of a page, with the requested text highlighted in yellow (a function sometimes cal...

Feb 22, 2021 ⚡ Analysis available