# Helpful Content Update

> Update targeting content created primarily for search engines rather than users.

Source: https://anotherseoguru.com/en/glossary/helpful-content-update

The Helpful Content Update targets sites with content that feels written for search engines rather than humans. It's a site-wide signal - having lots of unhelpful content can drag down rankings for your entire domain.

## Example

Sites with auto-generated content, thin affiliate pages, or content that doesn't satisfy user intent were hit. 'How tall is Eiffel Tower?' articles with 2000 words of filler.

## How to apply it

Remove or substantially improve unhelpful content, ensure every page provides unique value, write for humans first, answer queries directly without excessive fluff.

> **Pro tip:** The HCU classifier is site-wide. Even if 80% of your content is great, 20% unhelpful content can hurt everything. Audit and prune aggressively.

## Related terms

- [Thin Content](https://anotherseoguru.com/en/glossary/thin-content)
- [Algorithm Update](https://anotherseoguru.com/en/glossary/algorithm-update)