Google’s March 2025 Update: What Freelancers Need To Know

Remember Blockbuster? Who even remembers them anymore? No one talks about them because we now have an all-too familiar app on our TV home screen and mobile devices: Netflix.

But what happened to the video rental franchise anyway? In a nutshell, they stayed behind and didn’t adapt to the evolving needs of the market. As a result, Blockbuster was overtaken by Netflix, a competitor who saw potential in the digitization of movies and films, and leveraged this to build a media empire. Now, there’s only one remaining Blockbuster store in the whole world, in Bend, Oregon, a monument to what could have been.

In the same way, your career success as a freelancer hinges on your ability to adapt fast and stay relevant. The most successful freelance professionals are those who remain keenly aware of industry changes, market shifts, and anything that could have a ripple affect or pose a threat to their freelance business, and they then leverage this intelligence to adjust their approach. This way, you’re always on top of things and won’t be left behind, invisible, or out of touch with your clients’ needs.

One of the things you need to stay on toes about as a freelancer is Google’s core updates and algorithm changes. Google tends to roll these out several times throughout the year in an effort to ensure that what’s recommended in search results is reliable, best quality, and fit for search intent.

If you’re a freelance writer, digital marketing manager, or SEO consultant, you’ve probably noticed some weird shifts in Google’s algorithm lately, and wondered why you’re experiencing a drop in ranking and a dip in visibility and site traffic.

As a freelancer in the creative space, SEO (search engine optimization) means everything because this is the basis of your success and profitability, and that of your clients’ as well. If you’ve noticed that your site traffic has undergone a sudden decline, it’s time to re-evaluate and pivot.

Google’s March 2025 Core Update

The March 2025 core update started on March 13 and ended March 27, 2025, lasting a total of two weeks. This has resulted in some sites, even those that previously had strong domain authority and ranked highly, experiencing a significant decline in visits and search rankings have plummeted. The criteria to rank well on Google is getting even tougher.

While Google generally cautions against making any changes if there has been minimal decline for a short while, it does highlight the importance of being self-aware and evaluating what might need fixing if there is a major drop that is sustained for several weeks.

On Google Search Central, it outlines guidance on how to ensure your content ranks well for SEO purposes. It poses several honest questions for you to ask yourself so you can undertake a deep audit of your website if you’re a blogger or producing content for your own freelance business, or for your clients if you’re working on their content or SEO. You can check out the guidance and full list of audit questions here.

However, what’s critical to note is that throughout the guidance, it emphasizes one very crucial factor: You must write for people, not for algorithms.

Who Is Affected By Google’s Core Updates?

Here are some freelancers who will be/have been affected and experience the greatest implications:

• Freelance content writers
• Freelance copywriters
• Freelance brand strategists
• Freelance SEO consultants
• Freelancers of other categories who have websites
• Freelancers who are completely new to writing for online audiences

What’s alarming is that there are many freelancers, especially those who are new to the space and are seeking to make quick cash online with minimal effort, who try to cheat the system and expect to reap significant results. This is what Google’s core updates are directly against.

Mundane and redundant AI-generated content is all over the internet. You’ll go to a website and see blogs that are essentially copy-paste from someone else, or lack depth and original insight. This hurts your credibility, and that of your clients if you’re creating content for them, and since you’re no longer producing results, you’ll pretty soon begin to lose business.

As mentioned earlier, what might have worked before is no longer working. Sticking to the same methods and expecting Google to continue to favor you and bring visibility is only going to do you harm.

Google’s core updates are wake-up calls: Freelancing or launching your own consultancy/agency isn’t a get-rich-quick scheme. You can’t expect to profit from delivering low quality, thin content. Write for your audience. Study them. Truly get to know what they need and why. Immerse yourself in the language of your market so you can stand out in the competition and provide them with exactly what they need.

Anyone can throw some random copy together, or generate an entire copy from ChatGPT. Only a skilled professional with integrity, strong niche expertise, and creative communication skills can effectively reach audiences and convert them into clients.