The HCU Effect In Google Updates

It’s quite common for Google updates to prompt SEOs to raise concerns about useful content updates (HCU). Careful consideration of the known facts reveals that it may be possible to determine whether a site is indeed affected by HCU-related signals.

Black box systems

Black box systems are something that all SEOs should understand because they help prevent misunderstandings about the consequences of Google updates, both core and unwanted updates.

A black box is a system where someone watching from the outside knows what goes in (input) and can see what comes out (output). What the observer cannot do is infer what is happening inside the box based on the inputs or outputs of the black box.

There are literally thousands of processes going on inside Google’s black box algorithm, making it impossible to isolate the influence of a single factor. Identifying the ranking effect of HCU is still impossible because Google has removed it as a standalone system and integrated it into the core algorithm.

On the other hand, the black box nature of Google’s ranking algorithms is why SEO ranking factor research based on millions of search results (output) is unreliable. These studies are good clickbait and will continue to be created until SEOs are aware of the black box principle.

User Content Update (HCU)

The Useful Content System (commonly referred to as HCU) was integrated into Google’s core algorithm in March 2024 and the system no longer exists. It now exists as a ranking algorithm component among other ranking related algorithms.

This means that it is not a stand-alone system that affects sites several times a year. It is now integrated into ranking systems that run all the time.

Previously, when Google updated the useful content system, a drop in page rank could reasonably be attributed to the system. This is no longer the case as it is now part of the ranking algorithm that runs continuously.

When Google announces an update, they no longer mention if the former HCU has been updated because it’s no longer a system, it’s just a bunch of signals in the ranking algorithm running all the time.

This is how Google explained it:

“Announced in 2022 as the “Useful Content Update,” this was a system designed to better ensure that people see original, useful content written by people, for people, in search results, rather than content made primarily to drive search engine traffic. In March 2024, it evolved and became part of our core ranking systems, as our systems use different signals and systems to present useful results to users.”

Here’s an exception to that rule:

If Google’s update announcement mentions that they’re improving “human first” content recognition signals, then it’s pretty reasonable to assume that some component of the former HCU has been updated.

What to understand about HCU

It should be understood that there is literally no way to say with 100% certainty that HCU is the reason any website has lost rankings during an underlying algorithm update. There is no way to isolate the effects of an HCU signal from hundreds or thousands of other signals.

Except when Google’s update announcement specifically mentions one of the components, but even then it’s important to identify the effects on the site instead of shrugging and declaring it HCU. It is an excuse, not a diagnosis.

How to diagnose the effects of HCU

Google recommends reading their documentation on all useful “humans first” content signals to understand the effects of HCU-related issues. People first means content that is not first in the search engine.

Documentation he says:

“Google’s automated ranking systems are designed to present useful, reliable information that is primarily created to benefit people, not to achieve search engine rankings, in the top search results. This site is designed to help creators assess whether they are producing such content.”

Google’s Human First content documentation recommends the following topics for debugging in order:

1. Content and quality
2. Professionalism
3. Site experience
4. Content comes first to people
5. Content in the first place in the search engine

Google’s documentation goes on to say that once relevant web pages are identified, other signals are applied to check whether the content exhibits “aspects” of experience, expertise, authority and trustworthiness (EEAT).

“After identifying relevant content, our systems aim to prioritize those that appear to be most useful. To do this, they identify a combination of factors that can help determine which content exhibits aspects of experience, expertise, authority, and trustworthiness, or what we call EEAT.

Of these aspects, trust is the most important. Others contribute to trust, but content doesn’t necessarily show all of them. For example, some content may be helpful based on the experience they demonstrate, while other content may be helpful because of the expertise they share.”

To take away

The takeaway from Google’s human-centric content documentation is that there are multiple components to what HCU is. People-centric content is extremely important, especially since standard SEO practice is to create search engine-first content starting with top-ranking keywords, organizing site architecture around keywords, and generally optimizing for keywords, not people. For more on that topic, read: An honest assessment of AI search and SEO

Google documentation for people first

Creating useful, reliable content aimed at people

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