Google's search ranking has been experiencing unusual volatility since May 3rd, with a significant spike on May 9th. The volatility has continued for an extended period, causing a high level of discussion within SEO communities and on third-party tracking tools.
The cause of this volatility is uncertain. It's unlikely to be due to the AI Overviews or a new web filter. The speculation is that it could be due to ongoing ranking data refreshes or some unconfirmed Google ranking changes.
The March 2024 core update began on March 5th and ended on April 19th, lasting 45 days. There were reports of ranking fluctuations before April 25th, which were initially thought to be a continuation of the core update. However, the fluctuations continued, with more volatility observed on May 3rd and May 9th.
Several Google tracking tools have reported high levels of Google ranking volatility over the past week. These include:
- Semrush
- SimilarWeb
- Advanced Web Rankings
- Mozcast
- SERPmetrics
- Accuranker
- Mangools
- Wincher
- SERPstat
- Cognitive SEO
- Algoroo
The SEO community has been actively discussing these changes, with many reporting significant drops in traffic and average page views per visitor. Some have seen a reversal of gains made from the core update, while others are unsure if the changes are due to the volatility or other factors.
The discussion continues on forums such as WebmasterWorld.
