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.
I posted the big Google webmaster report, so you can catch up on all the big stories for the past month. Google Ads updated some of its ad policies. Google treats hashtags as words in a piece of content. Google spoke more about the lastmod date in XML sitemaps. Google said blocking other crawlers won’t impact Googlebot.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
March 2023 Google Webmaster Report
Here is the big Google webmaster report for March 2023, where I cover all the most important things that happened with Google search over the past month. The highlights include the Google product reviews update and a few unconfirmed updates. Of course, the Google Bard tease and AI content guidelines for Google Search, plus much more.
Google: We Treat Hashtags As Words In Content
Google’s John Mueller said on Twitter, “when it comes to web pages in Google Search, hashtags are just words, they have no special meaning or effect.” So if you are big into hashtagging everything, Google will consume it as just content on the page.
Google On lastmod Tag In XML Sitemap: Update The Date If Your Providing Something New
Google’s John Mueller spoke a bit more about when you should update the date in the lastmod tag in the XML sitemap file. He said on Twitter if you are “providing something new for search engines that you’d like reflected in search,” then update the date, if not, then don’t.
Google Ads Policy Changes For Malicious Software, Compromised Sites & Unwanted Software
Google Ads is updating its Malicious or unwanted software policy on May 9, 2023. The policy will be split into three policies, Malicious software, Compromised sites, and Unwanted software.
Google: Blocking Other Crawlers Does Not Impact Google Search
Google’s John Mueller was asked if Google Search would be impacted if you block other crawlers, like Bing or the ChatGPT crawler. John said no, “Google doesn’t care if you block other crawlers.”
G Bike Parking Spot At The GooglePlex
I’ve seen G-Bike parking spot signs at the Google office before but I don’t remember seeing it printed on a spot in one of the parking spots at the Google office, the GooglePlex. I’ve parked in this s
Other Great Search Threads:
AdSense Earnings and Observations, WebmasterWorld
Question on parent-child canonicals, Reddit
(I don’t see the following tweet, but…) breadcrumb structured data is primarily used for the search results snippet, it’s not something magical that replaces your website’s structure. Structu, John Mueller on Twitter
Windows 11 Update Adds New AI Bing to Taskbar, WebmasterWorld
Search Engine Land Stories:
GA4 ‘auto-migration’: Here’s why you should opt out
Level up your video game ad strategy: A guide to measuring success
How to set up Google Analytics 4 using Google Tag Manager
2 new Google ad network policy updates
ChatGPT for link building: A primer
Optimizing local landing pages for search: 8 best practices
How to transition away from Google Ads similar audience segments
Other Great Search Stories:
Analytics
Norwegian DPA issues preliminary ruling in Google Analytics case, IAPP
Industry & Business
Addressing criticism, OpenAI will no longer use customer data to train its models by default, TechCrunch
The People Who Matter at Microsoft as it Deepens Pact with OpenAI, The Information
Links & Content Marketing
5 Best Practices in Content Marketing That Leave Audiences Behind, Content Marketing Institute
SEOCausal: proving the impact of link building, Builtvisible
Local & Maps
Do Google Posts Need Unique Content?, Sterling Sky Inc
Here’s How a Google Maps Rival Is Reinventing Lane Guidance During Navigation, AutoEvolution
Shelfies: Why and Where Local Businesses Should Publish Them, Moz
Mobile & Voice
Bing Chat vs Google Assistant: Not a fair fight anymore, Android Authority
Google Assistant fixed, can once again control smart home devices, Android Authority
Sample diggers use Google Assistant to reveal the source of previously undiscovered samples in music from Daft Punk, MusicRadar
You’re not imagining it: Google Assistant recently had trouble controlling your smart devices, Chrome Unboxed
SEO
How To Get SEO Clients (My Story & Tips), SEOSLY
Is E-A-T still important for content writers in 2023?, Koozai
Marketplace SEO: 5 Pillars for Long-Term Success, Brodie Clark Consulting
PPC
20 years of Ad Grants, Google Blog
Top 6 Performance Max Campaigns Best Practices, Portent
Search Features
Microsoft’s implementation of Bing Chat AI on Windows 11 is complete trash, Windows Central
Other Search
‘I Worked on Google’s AI. My Fears Are Coming True’, Newsweek
ChatGPT and AI Are All Companies Want to Talk About in Earnings Calls, Bloomberg
GPT Won’t Kill G, Assistants 2.0, National Data Privacy, Near Media
Letter from Neal: Our 2023 Priorities, YouTube Blog
YouTube’s new leader teases AI tools that can virtually swap outfits, The Verge
Lola Cueto’s 126th Birthday, Google Doodles
Feedback:
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