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SEO: GOOGLE PAGE EXPERIENCE SIGNALS ROLL OUT MID-JUNE

a person tapping a graphic of a search bar in front of a laptop

Google is introducing a new ranking signal, which combines Core Web Vitals with existing user experience signals, to improve the way it evaluates the overall experience provided by an individual landing page. The update was initially announced in November 2020 and is anticipated to launch in 2021. Google now expects a gradual roll-out beginning in June and to be completed by August.

Google’s Webmaster blog explains, “Through both internal studies and industry research, users show they prefer sites with a great page experience. In recent years, Search has added a variety of user experience criteria, such as how quickly pages load and mobile-friendliness, as factors for ranking results. Earlier this month, the Chrome team announced Core Web Vitals, a set of metrics related to speed, responsiveness and visual stability, to help site owners measure user experience on the web.”

“We’ll begin using page experience as part of our ranking systems beginning in mid-June 2021. However, page experience won’t play its full role as part of those systems until the end of August. You can think of it as if you’re adding a flavoring to a food you’re preparing. Rather than add the flavor all at once into the mix, we’ll be slowly adding it all over this time period.”

— google.developers.com blog

TECHNICALLY SPEAKING

The upcoming ranking signal will be known as Page Experience Signals and will consist of Core Web Vitals, Page Experience Metrics and an updated Page Experience Report in the Google Search Console.

Core Web Vitals (Page Speed/Page Load Elements):

  • Largest Contentful Paint: measures perceived load speed and marks the point in the page load timeline when the page’s main content has likely loaded.
  • First Input Delay: measures responsiveness and quantifies the experience users feel when trying to first interact with the page.
  • Cumulative Layout Shift: measures visual stability and quantifies the amount of unexpected layout shift of visible page content.

Page Experience Metrics:

  • Mobile-friendly: measures whether the mobile experience is user-friendly. For example, does your site incorporate a responsive design?
  • Safe-browsing: Does your site contain malicious (for example, malware) or deceptive (for example, social engineering) content.
  • HTTPS-security: Is your site served over a secure server?
  • User experience: Is the content on your pages easily accessible to the user?

Page Experience Report:

  • The Page Experience report offers valuable metrics, such as the percentage of URLs with good page experience and search impressions over time, enabling you to quickly evaluate performance. You can also dig into the components of page experience signal to gain additional insights on opportunities for improvement.

WHAT’S NEXT?

Google’s vision for page experience is to build a web ecosystem that users love—together. Google is hard at work to make sure that you have the right tools and resources available before the ranking rollout starting in mid-June 2021 and so are we!

Although Core Web Vitals and Page Experience Metrics are newer terms and will become official ranking signals, Advance 360 Education’s comprehensive SEO audits, comprehensive SEO campaigns and website development strategies already consider these elements as critical factors in improving overall web page visibility, engagement, and conversion.