Hummingbird: How Google’s New Search Algorithm Impacts You

by Reid Akins | October 17, 2013

This blog post was written by Interactive Web Copywriter Reid Akins in collaboration with cj’s Search team.

Google just changed the search game again.

The company’s newest search algorithm, called Hummingbird, was announced on September 26, 2013, to coincide with the company’s 15th anniversary. Hummingbird is designed to give users faster and more relevant search results by changing the way Google interprets search queries and reads website content.

3 Ways Hummingbird is Changing SEO

1.     Conversational searches are more important.

Many Google users—including your prospective clients—search using complete sentences and questions. Hummingbird gives Google the ability to “read” these questions and increases the ranking of pages that directly answer your clients’ search queries.

2.     There’s less emphasis on keywords.

Gone are the days of writing long and awkward keyword strings to attract Google’s attention. The Hummingbird update makes it more important than ever for your website to have content packed with valuable, usable information your potential clients want to read.

3.     Personalized data affects search results.

Hummingbird taps into users’ online activity to make searches more personalized than ever. Everything from location, social network connections, and even past searches is used to refine and enhance search results to help potential clients find your firm.

What Does This Mean for Your Firm?

cj’s Search, Content, and Design strategies won’t need to change to accommodate Hummingbird. In fact, the update means Google prefers websites that follow our philosophy of creating clean, user-friendly designs and high-quality, original content more than ever.

Hummingbird is a win-win for your firm and for cj. The content on your website will make it easier than ever for potential clients to find you, which means more phone calls, more traffic to your website, and more conversions.

If you have questions about Hummingbird, Google, or anything search-related, contact your Client Services team.