The recent local update, known as the diversity update, affects how URLs are displayed in Google search results when they also appear in local packs. If a URL ranks in the local pack, it might be excluded from the first page of organic results. This change is believed to have started in August 2024, well before the January 2025 update. Joy Hawkins has noted this behavior, suggesting adjustments to Google Business Profile URLs could mitigate the impact. The full implications of this update remain under observation.
I tested it with my local listings and like Joy said, it does not work 100% of the time: But I mean, she said she tested this on tons of clients.
In short, if you already are ranking that URL in the local pack, then Google may remove that URL from ranking on the first page of the organic core web results.
Joy Hawkins is calling this the diversity update - and while Google has not confirmed this, she believes this is what is happening.
This particular update started before January. We tracked it back to likely originating around August 2024.
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