In April, Joe Giovannoli, founder and CEO of 9Sail, discussed Google’s algorithm updates and their impact on law firm websites with 9Sail’s two digital strategists, Taylor Tobey and Ryland Alkins. Read on to hear some of their thoughts on understanding Google’s algorithm and making its updates work for you.

Key Takeaways

• Over the course of the last year, Google has been heavily focusing on high-quality content in its algorithm updates, cracking down on thin, unoriginal, and AI-generated pieces. High-quality content should be comprehensive, speak to user intent, and read like it was written by an expert.
• It’s important to track algorithm updates and their impact using tools like Google Search Console, Google Analytics, SEMrush and Ahrefs so you can see any ways in which your law firm’s website has been affected. Don’t panic right away if you see big changes, as SEO is fluid – continue monitoring performance over time in order to establish a clear picture of what has occurred and what changes need to be made.
• While AI can be used sparingly to improve content, in ways like polishing your writing or shortening a piece, it should not replace human-generated content entirely due to the risk of penalties from Google, as well as the decreased quality for your users. Always fact-check AI output.
• Technical SEO factors like website speed and user experience also greatly impact rankings. As algorithm updates may impact the factors that go into core web vitals, keep an eye on the outputs from these technicalities.