Google Business Profiles Now With Add Address Autocomplete
Google added a new option to the Google Business Profile screen in web search for “add address autocomplete.” This is not really a search feature but a promotion to use the Google Maps Cloud Platform to help users check out with the correct address on …
Google Manual Actions & Penalties Are Not Just For English Sites
Google’s John Mueller confirmed something that many of you probably already know, Google can penalize a site irrespective of the language it is written in. John said on X, “Manual actions and algorithm changes are independent of the native language of…
Does Google Use The Meta Keywords Tag For Rankings? No
It has been a while since I covered the keyword meta tag and for some reason the topic has come up recently, so I decided to cover it again. In short, Google Search still does not use the keyword meta tag for ranking purposes.
The Google Ads Sandbox: New Limited Ad Serving Policy
Google Ads has a new policy named limited ad serving where Google needs to “get to know you”,” the advertiser, before letting those ads serve at full scale. This reminds me of the Google Sandbox in organic from two decades ago but for Google Ads.
Daily Search Forum Recap: August 31, 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.
Google Search Generative Experience now really launched links in its AI-powered answers…
Official: Google Search Generative Experience Gets Links
After testing three different formats for links within the Google Search Generative Experience and then pausing that test a few weeks later, Google has officially decided to go with the arrow-down buttons that reveal links to web pages as cards.
Google Shares Early Feedback On SGE, Expands To Japan & India
Google has shared some early feedback on how searchers and consumers use the new Search Generative Experience while expanding access to SGE in Japan and India. Google also officially launched link cards in SGE after weeks of testing.
Google: Illegal Content Is Not Always Spam
Google’s John Mueller said that “illegal content” is not always considered spammy content. He said on Twitter, “Illegal content isn’t always spam.”
Google: Using A Different Email Domain From Web Domain Has No Impact On SEO/Ranking
Google’s John Mueller said that using a different domain name for your web site and your company email has no impact on your SEO. In fact, I believe those who work at Yahoo do not use Yahoo.com emails but rather yahoo-inc.com emails, or at least they …
Google Search Visual Results Section
Google is testing a “visual results” section in its search results. I am not 100% sure if this is new because we have seen very visual results similar to this before but the title “visual results” does seem new to me.
Google Tests Google Shopping Label On Search Result Snippets
Google seems to be testing showing a Google Shopping logo or label on some search results that may be considered a Top Quality Store in Google’s Merchant Center program. This label is added to the top right section of the site name, above the URL.
Google Search Snippet “Mentioned In” Carousel Feature
Google seems to be testing a new Google Search snippet carousel titled “mentioned in.” Under the main search result snippet, you can expand a new section called “mentioned in” that loads a carousel of snippets that show you what other websites this web…
Google: If A Page Is Indexed Then It Was Rendered By Google (Even Refreshes)
Martin Splitt from the Google Search Relations team said on Twitter that if a page is indexed that means it was rendered. He added that page refreshes are also fully rendered by Google when indexed.
Reminder: Stop Emailing Google With Your Undetectable Links You Buy & Sell
I’ve posted countless reminders about not sending your link buy and sale requests to Google or Googlers but some really fearless link sellers and buyers keep on doing it. This time they emailed Danny Sullivan, Google’s Search Liaison, with several exam…
Google Ads One-Click Target ROAS Shopping Campaigns Setting
Google Ads is deprecating Shopping campaigns using Enhanced CPC starting in early October 2023. Google said any Shopping campaigns using Enhanced CPC should consider trying the one-click Target ROAS experiments for Shopping you can find in your campai…
Don’t Slow Your Website Down To Increase Time on Website – It’s Not A Google Ranking Factor
I spotted Google’s John Mueller laughing at a LinkedIn post that is telling SEOs to slow down webpage load time so that people spend more time on your page. The advice says that Google uses time on website as a ranking factor, which Google had denied …
Google: Core Updates Do Not Impact Autocomplete Search Predictions
Google said that core updates have no impact on what Google shows in the autocomplete search predictions or suggestions. Danny Sullivan, Google’s Search Liaison was asked about this and he said no, there is no impact.
Bing Chat Third-Party Plugins In The Wild
We are all expecting to see Bing Chat support third-party plugins really soon, and for now, Bing is testing it. We now see some screenshots of plugin support in Bing Chat in the wild.
Bing: We Release Search Features Globally (We Don’t Discriminate)
Bing’s CEO, Mikhail Parakhin, said that Bing does not release some features slower or delayed in some countries. He said they release “All countries at the same time,” adding that they “don’t discriminate.”
Google Explains How 304 (Not Modified) HTTP Status Codes Can Go Very Wrong
Gary Illyes from Google posted how serving a 304 HTTP server status code can “backfire spectacularly,” even though the 304 can be a super useful signal for search engines.