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Relevance Importance

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Division of the factors into main groups.

4.2 The algorithms

Google uses mathematical formulas to calculate the SERP position of a web page on the basis
of 200 factors. These formulas are called the "Google algorithms".

Algorithm updates
Google is continuously working on improving the factors and the algorithms. There are about
500 algorithm changes per year. When an algorithm is changed, this always has consequences
for the ranking position of web pages. But because not every algorithm change concerns fac-
tors that are important for your website, you do not always notice these changes. Some algo-
rithm changes only affect certain countries. If the ranking positions of your web pages suddenly
change, it could be because of an algorithm change. However, this does not have to be the case.
It could also be that your competitors have changed their webpages and ranked better. In that
situation you have to try to find the cause of the changed ranking and that is difficult. Google
usually gives little or no information about the changes in the algorithms. Information is only
provided in the case of major updates.

Major updates
A major update is an update that has a major impact on the ranking position of web pages.
Often it concerns new factors and/or strongly changed algorithms. These updates are usually
given a name. Below is an overview of the most well-known updates.

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