Google is the leading search engine in the world with a share of over 65% of the search market. One of the reasons for Google’s popularity with the users is the fact that it keeps improving its search functionality by updating its algorithm in order to make sure that its users find whatever they’re searching for.

Most of the changes Google makes go unnoticed by the average user but they usually make a huge impact on the website rankings. Whenever Google makes a change to its algorithm, there are always winners and losers.

The latest change was made by Google on 3rd November 2011. The update is being referred to as Caffeine algorithm or Google’s Freshness Update. As the name suggests, the update focuses on the freshness of information posted on a website while showing it on Google’s results page. The update represents a significant change in the search engine’s approach. Most SEO experts think that it should be interpreted in the context of the popularity of Web 2.0 websites. This update affects almost 35% of the searches.

This Freshness Update has negatively affected the websites maintained by small businesses since they’re usually the people who have static websites. They usually don’t have the resources to keep their content fresh and consequently, they’re now showing up lower in search results.

In order to take advantage of the Freshness Update, websites operators need to focus on adding content to their websites on a regular basis. Small businesses can also make their blogs a part of the website in order to keep their content fresh. Widgets showing content from their social media profile pages can also be added as dynamic components of their websites. All these changes can go a long way in ensuring that your website benefits from the update and receives a lot of traffic from the search engine.  Like famous internet marketer John Hillage said that freshness update is more like an opportunity than a threat.