One more of Google’s algorithm updates arrives: the product reviews update or update that promotes good practices in the valuation of products or services. This will be the fourth product review update on Google: the first time we heard about the product reviews update was on April 8, 2021, the second on December 1, 2021, and the third on March 2022.
In the case of March, the Mountain View giant the product reviews update as an improvement “designed to offer better rewards to product reviews that share in-depth research instead of light content that just summarizes a bunch of products.”
In this way, after the renewal of the product reviews update, reviews that are written in a way that integrates “deep analysis and original research” will be rewarded, especially those content written “by experts or enthusiasts who know the subject well”.
It is foreseeable that, as on previous occasions, Google removes relevance from lower-quality product reviews that they show “sparse content, just summarizing a bunch of products”: your ranking will be positioned below other content with higher qualityand of course it will feel like a ranking penalty.
Promoting quality reviews
As in previous versions, according to Google, the product reviews update aims to promote review content that goes beyond basic information that we can normally find in the product templates found on the web. Thus, these reviews will be promoted in your search result rankings.
In general, the product reviews update should only affect product review content and no other content.
In the case of this update, Google has not given more information than the launch of the process and that it will be deployed during the next two or three weeks. In the case of the March update, Google had explained that this update was based on the work of the previous product reviews update in order to “improve Google’s ability to identify high-quality product reviews. This will make it easier for us to get good buying advice in front of users and reward creators who are serious about helping.”.
The internet giant also listed the following criteria with the most important thing about this update for product reviews:
- Include helpful and insightful details, such as the pros or cons of a certain item, details about how a product performs, or how the product differs from previous versions.
- It includes information from people who have used the products, and shows what the product looks like physically or how it is used.
- Include information beyond what the manufacturer provides, with images, audio, or links to other content detailing the reviewer’s experience.
- Compare with other products, or explain what is the difference with the competition.
The quality of reviews is also relevant to Google
Although this is an independent update from the core updates that Google has accustomed us to, it is not a basic update that you should miss. According to Google, their also have application in this case.
And beyond focusing on the essential points for a good organic positioning in Google, the internet giant also has previously provided additional and specific guidance for the product reviews update, especially for content creators, who will need to create their reviews by answering the following questions:
- Do you express a expert knowledge about the product when it is appropriate?
- do you show how is the product physically or how it is used with unique content beyond what the manufacturer offers?
- do you offer a quantitative description about how a product performs in various categories?
- explain what it is what distinguishes a product of your competitors?
- do you include comparable products to consideror explain which products might be better for certain uses or under certain circumstances?
- do you discuss the benefits and drawbacks of a particular product, based on research on it?
- do you describe how a product has evolved from previous models or versions to offer improvements, address issues, or help users make a purchase decision?
- Do you identify the key factors for decision making for the product category and talk about how the product performs in those areas? An example in a car review can determine if it is safe, if it saves fuel and your driving, and these will be the keys for decision making.
- Do you describe the key options on how the product has been designed and its effect on users beyond what the manufacturer says?
- Do product review updates are relevant for classified listings and comparison reviews? You should not forget that the product reviews update applies to all kinds of content that includes product reviews.
- Are there any recommendations for reviews that recommend the “best products”«? If you recommend a product as the best, be sure to share with readers why this product is the best.
- doHow is your product different from others on the market??Why is the product particularly suitable for the recommended purpose? Be sure to include supporting first-hand evidence to highlight these differences.
So if your website offers product reviews, you’ll need to keep an eye on your rankings to see if your site was affected by this change, as well as to promote improvements and make reviews more valuable to consumers and stand out from the competition in search results.
Stay informed of the most relevant news on our news channel