MozCast Google Algorithm Review – January 2018

“What IS MozCast?” you might be asking yourself. Well, it’s a handy metric put together by our friends over at Moz. Every 24 hours, a set of hand-picked keywords are tracked and notated to determine how volatile Google search results are from one day to the next. Moz then assigns a “temperature” to reflect how much fluctuation is taking place within Google search results.

How “hot” was it in January 2018, according to MozCast?

January was a scorcher! Even hotter than last month’s average of 88.32° (which is considered sweltering), January’s average temperature was 93.89° and showed clear evidence of a heat wave! For the first week of the month, the MozCast range pretty much stayed in the 80s, but had a severe spike of 93° on the 8th, and a jump all the way to 106° and “stormy” on the 11th. The entire rest of January endured “stormy” weather after the 11th, and stayed in the 90s or above. There was even another intense spike of 108° on 25th, ensuring a volatile end to the month. MozCast definitely picked up on some major algorithm changes and updates that went into effect during that time. Since Google isn’t airing out its laundry anymore, it’s important to stay up-to-date in 2018.

Other Google algorithm rank trackers: AccuRanker and Algoroo

AccuRanker is a site that uses a range of emotions to depict Google’s algorithm changes with a self-explanatory scale of “chilled” to “furious” (anything under a 10 is considered relaxed, while anything above signals agitation). This rank tracker also spotted BIG changes on Google’s horizon. The AccuRanker tiger was “grumpy” to “furious” all month long! There were a total of 17 “furious” days, while the other 14 days remained “grumpy” across the board. The largest span of heightened activity was seen from January 11th to January 19th, with all days surging over 15 and “furious” during that peak. AccuRanker also saw the same spike MozCast noted on the 25th, with an 18.91 rating on the scale. The eye of the tiger was certainly on January!

The Algoroo rank tracker also saw changes this January in Google’s algorithm. By using a numeric scale to indicate fluctuations, Algoroo designates anything over a 2.50 to be a “high roo,” showing high volatility for Google’s search results. January had its Roo above the 2.50 (or yellow) mark for the majority of the month, seeing that it found only 11 days under—and four days over 2.76! The highest activity was seen from January 5th to the 15th, topping off at 2.76 on the 6th and the 8th. Even though the spread differed a little from MozCast and AccuRanker, Algoroo found pretty much the same results…a very volatile second week of the month, meaning something must have transpired in Google’s algorithm world during that time.

Conclusion: February and beyond

January saw a HUGE spike in activity across the board for all of the major algorithm trackers during the end of the first week, carrying through until the beginning of the third week this month. While Google continually hides its cards during play, it’s up to us to stay on top of the game by observing Google’s tells with the help of rank trackers. While there were signs of a slowdown by the end of the month, all sites that show an increase in momentum may settle down…or gain even more traction.

One thing is certain: these fluctuations are keeping the world of SEO on its toes, so you better pay attention, because February can either be true love or heartbreak for your keywords!