The helpful content update, four years on
The helpful content update hit in 2022 and folded into core ranking in 2024. What it changed permanently is clearer now than any analysis written at the time.
Writing
Notes from inside the data
We spend our days looking at what is actually ranking. Notes on niche research, Google updates, link prospecting and programmatic SEO — no listicles, and no predictions we cannot back with numbers.
Programmatic SEO examples that still rank, and why
The programmatic SEO examples people cite are mostly from 2021. What separates the pages still ranking from the ones deindexed is narrower than it looks.
Niche website examples, and what the good ones have in common
Niche site round-ups name whichever sites the author happens to know. A filter finds current ones in any category, and the pattern across them is consistent.
Low competition affiliate niches, and how to verify one
Every list of low competition affiliate niches is someone's guess. Here is the check that separates a genuinely open niche from one that only looks open.
Google core update winners and losers: how to read one properly
Most core update coverage names a few famous domains and calls it analysis. The winners worth studying are the ones that look like your site, not Wikipedia.
Amazon affiliate website examples worth studying
Most affiliate site round-ups name the same famous publishers. The useful examples are smaller, and what they share is more instructive than their size.
Best ad network for website monetization: how to choose
Ad network comparisons quote RPM figures from someone else's site. The choice is decided by your traffic volume and where that traffic comes from.
Can a website rank without backlinks? What actually works
Ranking without backlinks is realistic for a large share of queries and impossible for the rest. The difference is the SERP you pick, not how hard you try.
How to find high traffic, low competition niches
Published lists of low competition niches go stale within months. Here is the check that does not: look for niches where low-authority sites are already winning.