Google hosts first Web Creator Event as publishers report 70-100% traffic losses

Google hosted its first Web Creator Conversation Event on October 29, 2024, bringing together 20 independent web publishers and Google Search team members to discuss the impact of recent algorithm updates on content creators. The unprecedented meeting, held at Google's Mountain View campus, came in response to widespread concerns about traffic losses following the September 2023 Helpful Content Update (HCU).

According to Danny Sullivan, Google Search Liaison who organized the event, the publishers were selected from over 13,000 submissions after filtering for unique domains, legitimacy of cases, and thoughtfulness of feedback. The attendees represented various content verticals including travel, entertainment, reviews, and general publishing.

Many publishers reported severe traffic declines ranging from 70% to 100% following the September 2023 update. William Tang, a travel blogger invited to the event, reported his site experienced a 78% drop in traffic after the update, with previously top-ranking content being pushed to pages 4-7 in search results.

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Elizabeth Tucker, Director of Product Management at Google Search, acknowledged the financial and emotional impacts of recent updates while emphasizing Google's commitment to surfacing "helpful and satisfying content." According to Tucker, the HCU was implemented primarily to reduce low-quality content, particularly in response to the rise of AI-generated material.

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Key discussions during the event focused on:

• Verification methods for identifying authentic human-created content
• Improved metrics and feedback through Google Search Console
• Potential features to highlight independent publishers
• The challenge of distinguishing original content from AI-generated material
• The impact of site-wide ranking changes on legitimate publishers

Pandu Nayak, Chief Scientist of Search at Google, explained the company's process for evaluating search changes, including live experiments and testing with Search Quality Raters. He emphasized that search rankings are determined primarily at the page level rather than the site level.

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While no immediate solutions were promised, Google representatives indicated several areas for potential improvement:

• Better signals to publishers through Search Console
• Alternative ways to surface content creators, such as dedicated carousels
• Verification systems for human creators
• Methods to identify and highlight original imagery

Danny Sullivan confirmed the Search team is investigating specific cases where legitimate sites appear to be unfairly impacted, though no timeline for resolution was provided. He suggested publishers may need to diversify their traffic sources while waiting for potential improvements.

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The event marked a departure from Google's typical approach of engaging primarily with SEO professionals. According to multiple attendees, Google engineers demonstrated limited familiarity with the business realities of web publishing, with one product manager admitting they had only recently learned what "HCU" meant.

While no immediate changes were announced, the event represented Google's first formal acknowledgment of widespread concerns from independent publishers about recent algorithm updates. Danny Sullivan indicated this may be the start of more regular dialogue between Google Search and content creators, though the format and frequency of future engagement remains undefined.

Food bloggers were notably absent from the event, with Sullivan indicating that a separate session would be held for this group due to their unique needs and concerns.

Key Facts

• Date: October 29, 2024
• Location: Google Mountain View campus
• Attendees: 20 publishers, ~20 in-person Googlers, up to 29 streaming
• Selection: From 13,000+ submissions
• Verticals: Travel, Entertainment, Reviews, General Publishing
• Traffic Impact: 70-100% declines reported by multiple publishers
• Timeline: No specific recovery timeline provided
• Status: First of potential ongoing creator conversations