Search engine optimization (SEO) is constantly evolving—and 2025 has already brought major changes, thanks to Google’s core algorithm updates. These updates, rolled out between March and May, are shifting how content is ranked, how websites are evaluated, and how businesses need to approach SEO moving forward.

At Cloud Zappy, we’ve tracked these changes closely to help our clients adapt their strategies and protect their rankings.

Key Highlights from Google’s 2025 Core Updates

1. Tightened Focus on Content Quality

Google is getting better at spotting content that is thin, unoriginal, or of poor quality. In contrast to SEO-manipulated content, the 2025 updates prioritise rewarding useful, user-centric content. Significant ranking declines have been observed for websites that use AI-generated or duplicated content that lacks substance.

2. Deindexing of Unhelpful Content

These days, Google actively eliminates from its index any content it determines to be useless.  This includes pages that exist solely for affiliate purposes, doorway pages, or content with little user engagement. This move has affected thousands of websites, even those with decent authority.

3. Strengthened E-E-A-T Signals

E-E-A-T (experience, expertise, authority, and trustworthiness) are still crucial components.  In 2025, Google has improved how it assesses author credentials, source attribution, and topical authority—especially in YMYL (Your Money or Your Life) niches.

4. Improved Spam Detection & Policy Enforcement

With this update, Google enforced stricter policies on:

• Expired domains used for manipulation

• Scaled content abuse (e.g., mass AI content without editing)

• Site reputation abuse (e.g., publishing 3rd-party content without oversight)

Many niche publishers, directories, and blogs relying on these tactics have lost visibility.

Impact on SEO Strategies

These updates have caused noticeable ranking volatility across industries, especially for:

• Affiliate marketers

• Low-content blogs

• Sites with excessive AI-written material

What works in 2025:

• Content written for users, not bots

• Clear author bylines and experience credentials

• Unique, in-depth articles that solve real problems

• Site structure and page experience optimization

Action Plan for 2025 SEO Success

• Audit old content for quality and relevance

• Remove or merge underperforming pages

• Improve author bios and source credibility

• Focus on original insights and topic authority

• Stay updated—Google now rolls out updates more frequently

Conclusion

The 2025 Google core algorithm updates reinforce a simple truth: great content, built for humans, wins. If your rankings have dropped or traffic has dipped, it’s time to rethink your strategy.

At Cloud Zappy, we’re already helping brands stay ahead of these updates—and we can help you too.