HouseFresh, a small, independent product review website that called out Google after being consistently outbid by larger publishers, has lost 91% of its traffic from Google after its March 2024 core update.
In a new blog post, HouseFresh has practically disappeared from Google Search results. now what?Gisele Navarro highlighted the current issues with Google’s product search results favoring “affiliate-focused SEO content” from major media brands, what they’ve learned and what’s next for the site.
Why we care There’s been a lot of anger over Google killing websites and industries in the wake of the March 2024 core update, and more is on the way in the form of Google’s new reputation abuse policy, which will take effect after of May 5.
Eixample of keywords. Big media brands (eg Dotdash Meredith, Forbes) are using a tactic called “keyword crowding” and are flooding the web with inferior content while dominating Google’s search results.
Meanwhile, the empty shells of legacy brands (e.g. DeadSpin and Money) churn out commercial content (sometimes AI-generated), all designed to generate affiliate income while extracting every ounce of brand value that remains.
Loss of traffic. HouseFresh also revealed how much traffic it has lost since October:
“Since October 2023, we’ve gone from hosting 4,000 people from Google Search every day to only getting 200. And of those 200, most add ‘HouseFresh’ to their searches to specifically find us” .
Google does not owe traffic to HouseFresh. Navarro acknowledged that “Google does not owe us anything. We don’t deserve to receive search traffic simply because we exist or because we say we should.”
He also hit back at people for “making us think our content isn’t useful enough for readers.” (However, from what I saw, this was an honest review, not a gas).
History repeats itself (again). SEO pioneer Mike Grehan talked about a similar experience that occurred at a search conference right after Google’s big Florida update in 2003:
“Many attendees … felt that Google was putting them out of business.
A guy… explained loudly to the packed room that he had been the number one Google result in his niche for two years and his business was booming. Then after the update, there was no sign of him in the SERP.
I suggested that he, perhaps, should not have “bet the farm” on this one source of income to sustain his business. I also suggested that, yes, we should go to Mountain View and visit Google. And when we see it neither [Larry] Page or Sergey Brin walk through the front desk, I should walk up to whoever it was, get down on one knee and kiss their ass “because I’ve been sending you free clients for two years!”.
Florida Google Update: 20 Years Since SEO ‘Volcanic Eruption’,
None of this is new. People have been complaining about Google putting them out of business for over 20 years. This won’t make HouseFresh feel any better, but the reality is that Google doesn’t owe you traffic, rankings, or a living.
What’s next for HouseFresh. Navarro promises to be “relentless” on all platforms where it makes sense. Sounds a bit like diversification, doesn’t it?
