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.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
Google Search Console Metric Drops For Google My Business UTM Usage
Over the past couple of weeks some local SEOs are reporting weird drops in their Google Search Console Search Analytics reports for Google My Business profiles that use UTM code tracking. Joy Hawkins said for some of her clients, they are noticing “huge drops in impressions & clicks for the URL we use in GMB that uses UTM codes.”
Google Jobs For Veterans Promo Box In Search Results
Google is showing a promotion box when you search for many types of job related queries in search that promotes jobs for veterans. The box that comes up reads “New! Job search for military veterans. Now you can search for jobs by entering a military occupation code.”
Google: Development/Test Sites Can Be Added To Google Search Console
Google’s John Mueller said it is okay to add your test or development site to Google Search Console, even if it is noindexed and disallowed by search engines. There are still some useful tools you can run on your site before you launch it that may help you.
Lunar New Year Logos From Google, Bing, Baidu & Sogou 2019
Today is the Lunar New Year, also known as the Chinese New Year and to celebrate Google, Bing, Baidu, Sogou and others have special logos for the day. All of them are animated except for the Bing home page theme, which is pretty red like the other logos.
Google Slide Has Posted Warning For Static Electrical Shock
The slides at some of the Google offices have a warning about removing your electrical devices from your person before going down the slide, as the slide may cause static charges and ruin your devices
Other Great Search Forum Threads:
There is no fixed timeframe, and it’s usually not a matter of hours, therefore it’s “number of weeks”.… https://t.co/bjLhcOIr3u, John Mueller on Twitter
Is @Google testing extra space in between Title and URL on SERP Overview. @methode @dannysullivan @rustybrick screenshot is from https://t.co/wyYOUV9SU3… https://t.co/mJMGBdV8V3, Randhir on Twitter
Not able to block sexually suggestive advertisement, WebmasterWorld
Closing website for 9-12 months. How do I retain adsense account?, WebmasterWorld
February 2019 AdSense Earnings & Observations, WebmasterWorld
If you can’t get enough log files, someone posted a cool hack that uses CloudFlare to collect Googlebot requests. https://t.co/LlAr5ir6M3… https://t.co/xiXvi7lUwP, John Mueller on Twitter
Sure, that’s possible.…, John
Search Engine Land Stories:
Moz upgrades controversial ‘domain authority’ metric
SMX Advanced registration is open!
How to keep PPC accounts healthy when using automation
Survey: Local SEO an ‘artisanal’ discipline dominated by small agencies
Other Great Search Stories:
Analytics
3 video campaign tips from the Adidas marketing team, Think with Google
Micro Conversions: What They Are, Why They Matter & How to Track Them, HubSpot
Reach customers via additional marketing channels with Analytics 360 + Salesforce Marketing Cloud, Google Blog
Industry & Business
Alphabet Q4: revenue of $39.3B, up 22% YoY, net income of $8.9B, CPC down 29%, and paid clicks on Google properties up 66% YoY; stock down 3% (Alphabet), Techmeme
Alphabet’s investment-fueled earnings beat overshadowed by concerns about Google’s spending, MarketWatch
Links & Promotion Building
How to Set Up Metrics to Optimize Your Digital PR Team’s Press Coverage, Moz
The Most Common Internal Link Building Mistakes: A SEMrush Study, SEM Rush
Local & Maps
School labelled ‘Hell on Earth’ on Google Maps, BBC News
Mobile & Voice
Google’s Nest Secure alarm system update adds voice assistant functionality, The Verge
SEO
Wix Promotes SEO in Super Bowl LIII Ad, But Fails, Bill Hartzer
Feed Google Lots of E-A-T to Build Your Website’s Credibility, Vertical Measures
In Search SEO Podcast 13: Keyword Research & Content Strategy: What Works for Small Brands?, RankRanger
Recovering your Organic Traffic after a Web Migration Gone Wrong – #CrawlingMondays 6th Episode, Aleyda Solis
PPC
Update on issue reporting changes in the Content API for Shopping, Google Ads Developer Blog
Search Features
Making audio more accessible with two new apps, Google Blog
Teaming up with partners to make the internet safer for kids, Google Blog
Other Search
Meet the teams keeping our corner of the internet safer, Google Blog
