Google's February 2023 product reviews update has been released and is expected to roll out over the next two weeks. This marks the sixth iteration of the product reviews update, officially released on February 21 at 5 pm ET. The announcement of this update was made on Twitter by Google.

Google's February 2023 product reviews update has been released and is expected to roll out over the next two weeks. The update includes support for new languages, such as English, Spanish, German, French, Italian, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Russian, Dutch, Portuguese, and Polish. This marks the sixth iteration of the product reviews update, which was officially released on February 21 at 5 pm ET. The announcement of this update was made on Twitter by Google.

 

Today we released the February 2023 product reviews update, which applies to these languages globally: English, Spanish, German, French, Italian, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Russian, Dutch, Portuguese, Polish. It'll take ~2 weeks to fully roll out. More here: https://t.co/YpNnK97G3O

— Google Search Central (@googlesearchc) February 21, 2023

Google Products Review Update

Google's product reviews update is designed to give higher visibility to reviews beyond generic, templated content commonly found on the web. According to Google, these types of reviews will boost search result rankings.

While Google is not penalizing lower-quality product reviews that contain thin content summarizing a group of products, sites with more insightful reviews will be rewarded with higher rankings. If your content ranks lower, it may feel like a penalty, but Google insists it's not a direct penalty. It's just that more informative content is being prioritized.

This update should only affect product review content, not other types of content.

Additional Language Support

This latest version of the update includes support for additional languages beyond English. Spanish, German, French, Italian, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Russian, Dutch, Portuguese, and Polish are now included.

Product Reviews Advice

Google's product reviews update prioritizes insightful analysis and original research from experts or enthusiasts who deeply understand the topic. Along with the core update recommendations, Google has listed questions that should be addressed in product reviews. These questions are intended to help users make informed purchasing decisions.

These are some of the questions that Google recommends product reviews should answer:

• Does the review demonstrate expert knowledge about the product when appropriate?
• Does it provide unique content beyond what the manufacturer provides, such as physical or practical usage examples?
• Does it offer quantitative measurements of the product's performance in various categories?
• Does it explain what distinguishes the product from competitors?
• Does it compare the product to similar products, indicating which ones are best for specific uses or circumstances?
• Does it highlight the advantages and disadvantages of a specific product based on research?
• Does it detail how the product has improved over previous models or releases?
• Does it identify key decision-making factors in the product's category and how it performs in those areas?
• Does it describe the impact of key design choices on users beyond what the manufacturer states?
• Does it provide evidence, such as visuals, audio, or links, to support the reviewer's expertise and validate the authenticity of the review?
• Does it include links to multiple sellers so readers can purchase from their preferred merchant?”

Google also provided a link to its blog post from earlier this year titled 'Providing Better Product Information for Shoppers.'

For this third release of the product reviews update, Google has added three new points of advice:

• Do product review updates apply to ranked lists and comparison reviews? Yes, the product review update applies to all types of review content, and the best practices that Google has shared still hold. However, since ranked lists tend to be shorter, conveying expertise and authenticity more concisely is essential. Citing relevant results and including original images from tests you conducted with the product can effectively achieve this.
• Are there any recommendations for reviews that recommend the 'best' products? If you recommend a product as the best overall or for a particular purpose, explain why you believe the product is the best. What distinguishes the product from others in the market, and why is it particularly suitable for the recommended purpose? Make sure to include supporting first-hand evidence.
• Should reviews still be created for each product individually if a review covers multiple products? Writing a high-quality ranked list of related products and in-depth, single-product reviews for each recommended product can be effective. If you choose to do both, ensure the ranked list contains enough useful content to stand independently.

This marks the sixth release of the product reviews update, which became available on February 21, 2023, at approximately 5 pm ET. The first product reviews update was introduced on April 8, 2021, followed by the second on December 1, 2021, the third on March 23, 2022, the fourth on July 27, 2022, and the fifth on September 20, 2022.

Google Core Update? No

According to Google, product reviews updates are distinct from core updates. This particular update, the product reviews update, is separate from the company's regular core updates. However, Google recommends initially following the guidance for core updates, which involves generating high-quality content. In addition to this advice, Google has offered further instructions specific to this update.

Why You Should Care

Monitoring your website's rankings and Google organic traffic is essential if you offer product review content. Did your website's ranking improve, decline, or remain unchanged?

In the long run, you should concentrate on generating unique product review content that stands out from the competition on the web.