March 2025 Core Update: Everything You Need to Know

Types of Websites Affected:

The March 2025 Core Update has brought significant changes to search rankings, primarily impacting websites that:

• Depend too much on SEO tactics rather than offering true value to users.
• Feature low-quality, thin, or outdated content that lacks originality or depth.
• Have not made necessary improvements in content quality, user experience, or expertise signals.

What to Expect:

Websites affected by this update may experience:

• Noticeable ranking shifts—both positive and negative—depending on content quality and adherence to Google’s evolving standards.
• Increased volatility, especially for sites already impacted by previous core updates.
• Fluctuations in search visibility as Google refines its ranking systems over the coming weeks.

What to Address / How to Approach:

To stay competitive after this update, website owners should:

• Improve content depth, Quality and originality: Focus on unique insights, expert-driven content, and real user value.
• Avoid excessive optimization: Content should feel natural and user-centric, not just keyword-stuffed for rankings.
• Monitor search performance: Track traffic and ranking trends to determine the update’s impact.
• Stay patient and strategic: Recovery from core updates often takes time, requiring long-term content and technical SEO improvements.

Interesting Fact 💡: 

Unlike past core updates, which focused on broad quality signals, Google hinted that this update includes adjustments designed to amplify content from trusted individual creators—potentially giving independent publishers an edge over larger, corporate-driven sites.

SEO Community Observations: Ranking Fluctuations and Pre-Launch Signals

SEO experts, including Glenn Gabe and Barry Schwartz, had already reported significant ranking fluctuations in search results over the past week. This suggests that Google may have been testing the update before its official launch. As seen with previous core updates, algorithm tracking tools are expected to show volatility over the coming days.