The Grinch Who Stole Your Rankings? Google Released a New Core Algorithm Update

It’s the middle of December. The office Christmas party is booked, the out-of-office replies are being drafted, and we were all looking forward to a quiet slide into 2026.

But, in true Google fashion, they’ve decided to drop a massive present under the tree that nobody asked for. On December 11, at roughly 09:25 PST, Google officially launched the December 2025 Broad Google Core Update.

We’ve had a few clients ringing us up already, seeing the volatility sensors flashing red and asking if their holiday sales are about to vanish into the ether. It’s fair to be concerned—launching a major update right in the middle of the busiest shopping season of the year feels a bit like a spanner in the works.

So, let’s put the kettle on and have a chat about what’s actually happening, why Google is doing this now, and—crucially—what to do when a Google algorithm update hits.

Mad Fer It? Google is Obsessed with Constant Updates

First, let’s look at the mechanics. This isn’t just a standard refresh. This is the third broad core update of 2025, following the ones in March and June. Google has confirmed the rollout will take about three weeks, meaning we likely won’t see the final state of play until around New Year’s Day.

But here is the kicker: just days before pressing the big red button, Google quietly updated its documentation with a fascinating little detail. They admitted that smaller, unannounced core updates are now happening continuously.

This effectively ends the old “sprint and wait” cycle we’ve been used to. It implies that the volatility we’re seeing isn’t a bug; it’s a feature. The era of static stability between named updates is likely over.

It’s Not Just About Being Right, It’s About Being Sound

What is this update actually targeting? The official line is that it’s designed to “better surface relevant, satisfying content”.

We’ve seen a shift in the language here. “Relevance” (does the page contain the right keywords?) has been the metric for years. But “Satisfaction” is the new frontier. We are seeing data suggesting that sites which are technically perfect and highly relevant are still dropping if they don’t offer a satisfying experience.

Specifically, this update seems to be decoupling “Relevance” from “Satisfaction.”

• The Symptom: You rank #1 for “Best Walking Boots,” but your content is just a generic list of specs.
• The Result: Users click, see nothing new, and bounce back to Google (“pogo-sticking”).
• The Penalty: Google notices the user wasn’t satisfied and demotes you, even if your keywords are perfect.

The “Surgical Strike” on E-Commerce and Affiliates

Let’s address the elephant in the room: E-commerce and Affiliate sites.

Early data suggests this update is performing a bit of a “surgical strike” on thin product and category pages. If your category page is just a list of products with no unique advice, buying guides, or human insight, you might be seeing some turbulence.

We are also seeing what we call “Intent Displacement.” For queries like “best travel insurance,” Google is increasingly bypassing affiliate review sites in favour of direct providers or genuine forum discussions (yes, Reddit is still winning). The algorithm is looking for evidence of experience—photos, specific details, and human opinion—rather than just a summary of specs.

Your Plan of Action

So, the update is rolling out, and the graphs are looking spiky. What do we do? We need to pivot from “Panic” to “Protocol.”

1. Hold Your Horses (For Now)

The most dangerous thing you can do right now is react to daily volatility.

• Don’t Panic: Rankings during a rollout are like a yo-yo. A drop on Tuesday might be a recovery on Friday as the update propagates through the data centers.
• Don’t Delete: Avoid mass-deleting content or disavowing links while the update is live. It muddies the water and makes it impossible to tell if a recovery is due to your changes or the algorithm settling.
• Monitor: Keep an eye on Google Search Console, but take it with a pinch of salt—reporting has been delayed by 50+ hours recently.

2. A Proper Clear Out in the New Year

Once the “Rollout Complete” notification hits the dashboard (likely early Jan), that is when we go to work.

• The “Zombie” Audit: Identify pages that have existed for years but get zero traffic. They are dragging down your site-wide quality score. It’s time to prune or consolidate them.
• Inject “Experience”: Look at your losing pages. Do they prove you’ve actually used the product or service? If not, add original photos, personal anecdotes, or unique data. We need to move from “content about a thing” to “content from someone who knows the thing”.
• The Mobile Gap: Check your rankings on Mobile vs Desktop. We are seeing reports of rankings differing significantly between mobile and desktop, with some sites seeing disproportionate drops in mobile traffic. This suggests Google is weighing mobile experience signals heavily, and sites that lag on mobile UX are being penalised.

In a Nutshell: It’ll Be Reet

Is it annoying that Google dropped this right before the holidays? Absolutely. Does it mean your SEO strategy is broken? Probably not. But successful algorithm recovery takes time.

This update is just another reminder that the “Wild West” of generic, mass-produced content is closing down. The businesses that win in 2026 will be the ones mastering content marketing and building genuine brands with human voices.

If you’re staring at your analytics and feeling a bit overwhelmed, or if you just want a second pair of eyes on your strategy for the New Year, don’t leave it to chance. Let’s have a brew and a chat. We’ll make sure your strategy is bulletproof, no matter what Google throws down the chimney.