This translation has not been editorially reviewed yet. The German version is authoritative. Deutsche Fassung →
Showing currency: dates that are worth something
Answer systems favour content whose currency is recognisable. The check verifies whether a page carries a date — visibly, and in the structured data. What matters is that the date is correct.
- A date that jumps to "today" on every page load isn't a currency signal, it's a false claim. It stands out as soon as the content is recognisably older than the date claimed.
- It makes sense to separate publication date from last-modified date. Both together say more than either alone.
- On these pages, we record the real creation date — a made-up one would be exactly the finding we raise for others.
FAQ
Should we just re-date old pages?
Only if they were actually revised. Changing the date with no change in content is a claim about currency that isn't true.
Does every page need a date?
Timeless pages like a services overview don't need one. For text whose validity depends on the point in time — legal status, measurements, recommendations — it matters.