Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web.

Google has started to roll out Bard, its AI chat feature, it is super different from both Bing Chat and Google Search. Bing Chat can now make images with Bing Image creator. Google Search launched a “ranking” section in the search status dashboard. Microsoft is working to relax the chat limits first with “balanced” mode. Google does not remove URLs in robots.txt until the specific URL is processed, not when Google crawls the robots.txt file.

Search Engine Roundtable Stories:

Google Bard Begins To Slowly Rollout – Citations, Limitations & Early Access
Yesterday, Google began to slowly roll out Google Bard to some initial reporters and also Google opened up a waitlist to users in the US and UK. I personally do not have access just yet, but I have a feeling I might have access soon.
Google Ranking Updates Added To Google Search Status Dashboard
Google has added a new section to the Google Search Status Dashboard – Ranking. The Ranking section will show the confirmed Google ranking updates that Google already posts on its Google updates page.
Bing Chat Can Make Images With Image Creator
Microsoft has announced that Bing Chat in “creative” mode can now create images based on you inputting a description of what you want it to create or referencing another image. Jordi Ribas from Microsoft said on Twitter, “now you can create an image by simply using your own words to describe the picture you want to see.”
Microsoft To Relax Bing Chat Limits On Balanced Mode Before Other Modes
Microsoft is planning first to work on relaxing the Bing Chat limits and chat caps for the balanced mode before working on relaxing those limits on other modes, said Mikhail Parakhin, CEO of Bing.
Google: URLs Excluded By Robots.txt Aren’t Removed Until URLs Are Individually Reprocessed
Google’s John Mueller posted a clarification on how and when Google processes the removal requests, or exclusion requests, you make in your robots.txt. The action is not taken when Google discovers the change in your robots.txt, but rather after first the robots.txt is processed and then the specific URLs that are impacted are individually reprocessed by Google Search.
Google Cow
Here is a photo from the Google Madison, Wisconsin office of a cow. Well, a fake statue cow, colored in Googley spotted colors. I mean, all offices need fake life-size cows, am I right?

Daily Search Forum Recap: March 21, 2023
Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web.

Other Great Search Threads:

Missed this! Would be a nice feature. Also, Assets are no longer just Extensions, right?, Greg Finn on Twitter
No. Using noindex for any page (or many pages) that you don’t want indexed is fine — that’s what it’s for., John Mueller on Twitter
Being indexed doesn’t necessarily mean it’ll appear prominently in the search results., John Mueller on Twitter

Search Engine Land Stories:

Google Search Status Dashboard to gain ranking update history
PPC salaries 2023: How much do in-house, self-employed, and agency search marketers make
Google Bard early look: What we’re seeing so far
Google begins to open Bard to a limited number of users
What is quality score and how to use it in PPC
Bing Image Creator added to Bing Chat
What Google’s new guidelines for AI-produced content mean for SEO
News SEO and generative AI: Inside a ‘parasitical relationship’

Other Great Search Stories:

Analytics

How to Migrate to Google Analytics 4, Rank Ranger

Industry & Business

DeSantis Privately Called for Google to Be “Broken Up”, ProPublica
Google asks London court to throw out lawsuit over medical records, Reuters
NetChoice launches litigation hub as regulation battle moves to courts, Washington Post
OpenAI and Microsoft Are Partners, Until They Vie for the Same Customers, The Information
Yandex submitted a delisting appeal, Yandex
Here’s how to participate in Monday’s oral arguments, Internet Archive Blogs
Supporting the next generation of European journalists, Google Blog

Links & Content Marketing

7 Biggest Challenges in Influencer Campaign Management, Semrush
Technology Content Marketing Research 2023, Content Marketing Institute

Local & Maps

Waze brings back Android Auto ‘Coolwalk’ support, 9to5Google
Apple Maps vs Google Maps, Android Authority
Google Maps Has 15-Year-Old Pictures of Your Home (and You Can See Them), CNET

Mobile & Voice

Google has tasked the Assistant team to work on Bard, 9to5Google
Google Pixel bug lets you “uncrop” the last four years of screenshots, Ars Technica

SEO

The elements of advanced site migrations for SEO, Wix SEO Hub
Training GPT on Google Quality Rater Guidelines and Why You Shouldn’t Do It, Local SEO Guide

PPC

7 Automated Bidding Strategies In Google Ads, Go Fish Digital
Experiment changes in Google Ads scripts, Google Ads Developer Blog
How to manage your marketing budget and encourage growth with SEO and PPC, Pure Visibility

Search Features

Chrome will let you pin Side Panel tools like Bookmarks, Notes, and more for quick access, Chrome Unboxed

Other Search

GPT-4 and professional benchmarks: the wrong answer to the wrong question, AI Snake Oil
No, Google Bard is not trained on Gmail data, AppleInsider

Feedback:

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