If your site rankings have slipped over the past few weeks, you’re not alone. Many businesses (including several of our Leeds and UK-wide clients) have seen noticeable changes. Below we outline what’s happened, a timeline of confirmed updates, and practical steps you can take right now.
📅 Timeline of Key Google Changes (Aug–Sept 2025)
| Date Range | Update / Event | Impact Reported |
|---|---|---|
| Aug 21–28 | Spam Update (August 2025) | Targeted thin, duplicated, or manipulative content. Many sites in affiliate niches and local services saw drops. |
| Late Aug – Early Sept | Rolling Volatility / Tests | Google tested search result layouts and AI-overview behaviour. Rankings fluctuated widely across verticals. |
| Sept 5–8 | Refinements to Spam Signals | Smaller follow-up tweaks to the August spam update, continuing to re-rank pages and re-crawl sites. |
| Sept 12 onward | Stabilisation Phase | Some sites recovered partially; others continued to slide if quality issues remained unresolved. |
🔍 What These Updates Target
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Low-effort or duplicate pages (including auto-generated AI text).
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Over-optimised anchor text or paid-link patterns.
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Weak E-E-A-T signals (Expertise, Experience, Authoritativeness, Trust).
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Slow mobile performance or poor Core Web Vitals.
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Sites failing to meet user intent vs. competitors with fresher, richer content.
✅ Action Plan for Deepblue Clients
1. Audit Content Quality
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Identify thin or overlapping pages. Combine or expand them with unique value (stats, case studies, or local expertise).
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Refresh old posts: update dates, screenshots, and examples.
2. Strengthen E-E-A-T Signals
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Add author bios with credentials.
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Include customer reviews, case studies, and outbound citations to authoritative sources.
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Ensure “About” and “Contact” pages show real business details (address, phone, VAT, etc.).
3. Check Backlink Profile
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Use Search Console or Ahrefs to spot spammy links.
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Disavow only if they’re clearly manipulative and cannot be removed.
4. Improve Technical & UX Factors
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Test Core Web Vitals in PageSpeed Insights.
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Compress images, enable caching, and check mobile usability.
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Fix crawl errors or redirect chains caused by recent site edits or migrations.
5. Track Rankings Over Time
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Don’t panic-edit everything: watch rankings for another week or two as the update stabilises.
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Compare with competitors who gained positions — what’s different about their content?
6. Plan for Resilience
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Publish genuinely helpful, original resources regularly.
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Diversify traffic: email lists, social, and local citations reduce reliance on Google alone.
📈 Deepblue Digital’s Support
We’re monitoring these changes daily. If you’ve seen significant drops:
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Contact us for a mini SEO audit tied to the August spam update.
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We can prioritise content refreshes, backlink hygiene, and technical fixes in your next retainer block.
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For urgent cases, we can allocate extra hours or fast-track critical pages.
Get In Touch
Need help recovering lost rankings or making your site update-proof?
👉 Get in touch with the Deepblue team — let’s steady the ship and build stronger visibility going forward.
