What is Google Hummingbird?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Although it\u2019s technically accurate to call Google Hummingbird an algorithm update, this is kind of a misnomer. This is because Hummingbird was essentially an entirely revamped version of Google\u2019s search algorithm, not just a patch or minor update.<\/p>\n

Google Hummingbird and Semantic Search<\/strong><\/h4>\n

At the heart of the Hummingbird lies the all-important concept of semantics, or meaning. Even the fanciest computers are still pretty stupid. This is because although it\u2019s easy for humans to distinguish between two different yet similar concepts (by virtue of context), computers can\u2019t do this unless they\u2019re explicitly told. Stupid computers.<\/p>\n

Semantic search is the concept of improving search results by focusing on user intent and how the subject of a search relates to other information in a wider sense, or its\u00a0contextual relevance<\/em>. Essentially, semantic search focuses on determining what a user really means, rather than a string of keywords, and then serving relevant results.<\/p>\n

Of course, Google\u2019s algorithm cannot be absolutely sure of what I want, so just to be safe, it provides me with a range of results. Google serves up a local forecast (even though this search was performed in an Incognito window, it still tracks my location), a link to the Weather Channel, a Wikipedia page for the term \u201cweather\u201d and some other information. Still, the prominence of the local forecast data in the Knowledge Graph speaks volumes about Google\u2019s confidence in its results.<\/p>\n

Google Hummingbird and the Knowledge Graph<\/strong><\/h4>\n

When researching this post, I wanted to know how many Google searches are performed every day. Prior to the rollout of Google Hummingbird, I would have been presented with a SERP containing links to numerous pages, through which I could have probably learned the answer.<\/p>\n

Google realized that this was a slow and often irritating process, even for users who were presented with relevant results. Google Hummingbird makes search quicker, easier and more intuitive.<\/p>\n

Google Hummingbird and SEO<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Optimizing pages and sites for Google Hummingbird is really simple. Like, so simple that even a stupid computer could do it. Okay, maybe not\u00a0that<\/em>\u00a0simple, but it really is pretty straightforward. All you have to do is create\u00a0great content\u00a0that your audience wants and finds useful, and enriches their overall experience. Easy, right?<\/p>\n

Diversify the Length of Your Content<\/strong><\/h4>\n

We know that\u00a0long-form content\u00a0can work exceptionally well as part of a wider content strategy, but if every single post you publish is a 3,000-word monster, you may not be meeting all of your readers\u2019 needs. For this reason (and to get something done other than write mammoth blog posts), mix up the length of your content. Intersperse shorter articles among longer ones, and don\u2019t be too pedantic when it comes to word count \u2013 remember, there\u2019s no \u201cperfect\u201d post length, only the length an article\u00a0needs<\/em>\u00a0to be.<\/p>\n

Produce Visual Content<\/strong><\/h4>\n

In-depth long-form articles are an excellent way to explore complex topics and a range of ideas in a single post, but sometimes, people don\u2019t want to read the marketing. In fact, sometimes they don\u2019t want to read an article, of any length, at all. This is when visual content shines.<\/p>\n

Use Topic-Appropriate Language<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Something that some sites fail to take advantage of is using industry-appropriate language in their content. This is sometimes done out of a fear of alienating potential readers who may not be familiar with a certain topic or area. However, writing content that includes appropriate terminology can demonstrate to Google that your site is authoritative and valuable.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What is Google Hummingbird? Although it\u2019s technically accurate to call Google Hummingbird an algorithm update, this is kind of a misnomer. This is because Hummingbird was essentially an entirely revamped version of Google\u2019s search algorithm, not just a patch or minor update. Google Hummingbird and Semantic Search At the heart of the Hummingbird lies the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[19,13,17,31,18],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.webigg.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/664"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.webigg.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.webigg.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.webigg.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.webigg.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=664"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.webigg.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/664\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":667,"href":"https:\/\/www.webigg.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/664\/revisions\/667"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.webigg.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=664"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.webigg.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=664"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.webigg.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=664"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}