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 says site reputation abuse is not about links, it is about content. Google Local Service Ads ranking removed proximity as a ranking signal. Google Shopping may soon tell searchers how many shoppers purchased at your e-commerce site. Google Local panels now can show the owner of the business. Mikhail Parakhin from Microsoft confirmed he is no longer working on Copilot. Plus, I posted the weekly SEO video recap.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
Google: Site Reputation Abuse Isn’t About Linking
Danny Sullivan, Google’s Search Liaison, made it crystal clear that the site reputation abuse policy has zero to do with linking. This means that who you link to and/or who links to you has no impact on this new policy that Google began enforcing with manual actions earlier this week.
Google May Show How Many Shoppers Purchased On Your E-Commerce Site
Google has sent some Google Merchant Center e-commerce site managers notifications that a new annotation may begin to show up in the search results next to their site’s listing that shows how many searchers purchased on your site. It may read, “1K shopped here recently.”
Google: Proximity Not A Relevancy Factor For Local Service Ads
Google has updated its Local Services Ads help document on ad rankings to remove the line around “proximity to potential customers’ locations” is a ranking factor for those ads. Ginny Marvin, the Google Ads Liaison, said the document was updated but there was no recent or “sudden change to ranking considerations” to LSA rankings or positions.
Google Local Panel With Owner Attribute
Google can show the owner of the business in the local panels in the Google search results. I suspect this is not new but I don’t believe I’ve seen this before, where Google will add an “owner” attribute to the local panel.
Mikhail Parakhin No Longer Working On Copilot At Microsoft
Mikhail Parakhin, the former head of Bing Search and Microsoft Advertising at Microsoft, confirmed he is no longer working on the Copilot project. He stepped down as the head of Bing Search and Microsoft Advertising weeks ago after Microsoft hired Mustafa Suleyman as the CEO of AI at Microsoft.
Google Ads Cyclone Money Machine
I found this photo funny. It is one of those cyclone money machines that money flies around in, and a person inside is supposed to try to grab as much money as possible. Well, there is a Google Ads logo on this one. Oh, the irony of this photo…
Google may have had two search ranking algorithm updates, one around May 9th and one around May 3rd. Google began its site reputation abuse policy enforcement this week with manual actions, and it is not about linking. Google said sites may recover from the helpful content update. Sundar Pichai, Google's CEO, responded…
Other Great Search Threads:
Excited to see Google rolling out new updates to their restaurant listings! The “On Critics’ Lists” looks like a new highlight. Plus, the new “On these lists” header makes it so easy to discover top-rated spots., ClaudiaT on X
Seeing a new layout on desktop search. Logo added to the right under photos. Rotating photo banner moved to the bottom under menu highlights, ClaudiaT on X
These SEO course ads are getting worse!, Matthew Marley on X
Search Engine Land Stories:
Meta: Detailed targeting exclusions alert sent to advertisers was an error
Google Search results without SGE jump to 65%, up from 25%
Information gain: Here’s what this new SEO ‘buzzword’ really means
Google CEO on future of links, AI making Search quality worse
Optimization beyond data: Design thinking for SEO
Online reputation management: Top 10 hurdles and how to overcome them
Other Great Search Stories:
Analytics
Hotel Marketing Podcast Episode 258 – Don’t Lose Your Analytics Data on July 1st! Here’s What You Need to Do, Hotel News Resource
Industry & Business
A Baidu executive is doubling down on intense work culture, QZ
Baidu Media Relations Executive Quits After 996 Toxic Work Culture Debate, Bloomberg
Google Parent Alphabet Progressing in Talks to Buy in HubSpot, Sources Say, Bloomberg
Leaked Deck Reveals OpenAI’s Pitch on Publisher Partnerships, AdWeek
OpenAI plans to announce Google search competitor on Monday, sources say, Reuters
Google Lawsuit History: Antitrust Cases, Class-Action Settlements, Business Insider
Links & Content Marketing
Mastering SEO Content Creation: Strategies for Boosting Your Site’s Visibility, SEO Webster
Tech Takes Over Marketing (But Not How You Think), Content Marketing Institute
Local & Maps
Is Google Replacing LSA Reviews with GBP Reviews?, Near Media
A Startling Secret Helps Atly Gain Ground on Google Maps, Inc
How to Get the Most Out of EV Features in Google Maps, Make Use Of
Mobile & Voice
Apple to Power iOS 18 AI Features With In-House Server Mac Chips This Year, Bloomberg
US Smartphone Shipments Decline YoY for Sixth Consecutive Quarter, Counterpoint Research
SEO
What is Content Decay?, Search Off the Record
SEO is dead: What Google Analyst Gary Illyes has to say about it, Bitvero
What Are Zero-Click Searches & How Do They Impact SEO?, Semrush
PPC
8 Ways PPC Services Take Small Business Advertising to the Next Level, BruceClay
Google Shopping: A Beginner’s Guide to Crafting a Compelling Campaign Google Shopping: A Beginner’s Guide to Crafting a Compelling Campaign, PPC Hero
Microsoft Monetize: empowering your revenue in a multi-channel world, Microsoft Advertising
Search Features
5 Important Observations about the Evolution of AI Search in April 2024, BrightEdge
Other Search
OpenAI considers allowing users to create AI-generated pornography, The Guardian
Google helped make an exquisitely detailed map of a tiny piece of the human brain, MIT Technology Review
Meet My A.I. Friends, New York Times
Feedback:
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