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.
We're seeing signs of a Google search ranking update brewing over the past day or so. Google Ads has now widely rolled out its conversation AI tools for English users. Google Business Profiles performance reports to show fewer driving directions. Google is again testing "chat with a live agent" buttons in the search results. Bing is testing bubble filter buttons and bullets for sitelinks.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
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A Google Search Ranking Update Brewing Around January 23rd & 24th?
I see signs of another unconfirmed Google Search ranking algorithm update. Right now, there is only one tool showing volatility, and that would be Semrush. The other tools are all relatively calm right now, but that can change later today and tomorrow. But I am also seeing a significant amount of chatter in the past 24- hours. -
Google Ads AI Conversational Experience Now Available To Globally In English
Google has officially and fully launched the Google Ads AI conversational experience to all advertisers globally in English. Plus, it is now using Gemini, Google's latest multimodal generative AI model. -
Google Business Profiles Performance Driving Directions Report To Show Less Data
Google has posted a notice within the Google Business Profiles performance report that it will stop sharing as much data under the driving directions report. Google said, "Starting in January 2024, you might see fewer direction requests." -
Google Search Snippet "Chat With A Live Agent"
Google is testing a "Chat with a live agent" button in the search result snippets. We have seen Google place the "Chat with a live agent" button in the local pack and local panels before but I don't believe we have seen it in a search result snippet. -
Bing Tests Bubble Style Search Bar Menu & Bullets For Sitelinks
Microsoft is testing two new changes to the Bing Search interface. One is a bubble style for the search bar menu and the other is using bullets for the sitelinks in the search result snippets. -
Google Sip & Paint Holiday Event
Here is photo from a month or so ago during the holiday times. This Google team had a holiday event named Sip and Paint. I guess while they painted, they drank sips of liquids of various kinds.
Other Great Search Threads:
- Ever wondered what the best practices are for accessing the DOM with Angular SSR? @devknoll just wrote a detailed blog post about the newest techniques, Kara Erickson on X
- I think if you use SGE, they don't show. They also don't show on mobile (that's not new)., Google SearchLiaison on Bluesky
- Not only are forums appearing in the SERPs more frequently, Google is directing people to the Google Business Profile forum more often to get help. Here's a before and after screenshot of a GBP help center article. I don't blame, Colan Nielsen on X
- Quote searching should work. If you have an example where you find it doesn't, and you're comfortable sharing, happy to look into it. It very much is intended to work. We did a blog post about this too blog.google/products/sea..., Google SearchLiaison on Bluesky
Search Engine Land Stories:
- Google advertisers are confused between support and sales – we asked for clarification
- Google conversational experience rolls out to all UK and US advertisers
- Google issuing suspension threats for non-compliant GDPR consent banners
- Content not ranking? 5 questions to ask ASAP
- How to make PPC work for SMBs
Other Great Search Stories:
Analytics
- GA4 Search Terms - Track & Analyze On-Site Searches, Data Driven U
- How to add expert commentary annotations for GA4 data in Looker Studio dashboards, Lazarina Stoy
Industry & Business
- Google's Plan to Shrink Korean Workforce Stumbles, Workers Won't Leave, Business Insider
- Google’s search tweaks draw fire as EU self-preferencing ban looms, TechCrunch
- Google parent Alphabet will cut 2% of its jobs in New York starting in April, Crain's New York Business
Links & Content Marketing
- 9 of the Best Content Writing Tools for SEO to Increase Traffic in 2024, SEO Testing
- Improving the way you can store URLs and domains in your Majestic account, Majestic
- Why is Content Marketing Important? A Guide + Case Studies, Keyword Insights
- Key Link Building Trends, Koozai
Local & Maps
- Apple Car EV Set to Debut in 2028 With Limited Autonomous Driving, Bloomberg
- How to get a suspended Google Business Profile reinstated, Search Lab Digital
- What Belongs on Your Local Business' About Page?, Moz
Mobile & Voice
- Apple Vision Pro demo now available in the Apple Store app, AppleInsider
- First Apple Vision Pro operating system update already available, AppleInsider
- Pixel 9 Pro 5K Renders and 360 Degree Video Provide First Look At Google's Flagship Ahead of Launch, MySmartPrice
- Apple boosts plans to bring generative AI to iPhones, Financial Times (Sub)
SEO
- Can my entire site be re-indexed at my request?, Google Search Central YouTube
- Enterprise SEO Metrics & How to Report On Your Successes, Ahrefs
- Mastering Keyword Research: A Comprehensive Guide for Dominating SEO in 2024, SEO Testing
- Quickly gauge your site's health: What technical SEO elements should you look at?, Oncrawl
- What is keyphrase density and why is it important?, Yoast
- When to use 404s for SEO, Wix SEO Hub
- Yoast SEO 21.9: Maintenance and more optimizations, Yoast
- Does Google use user behavior metrics for ranking?, SERP's Up SEO Podcast
- The Ecommerce Product Page SEO GPT Validator and Sheet Checklist, Aleyda Solis
PPC
- ‘There is movement now’: Advertisers cautiously step into Google’s Chrome's cookieless era with the Privacy Sandbox, Digiday
- Microsoft’s Bing, Edge to Avoid EU’s Digital Dominance Crackdown, Bloomberg
Search Features
- 3 new generative AI features coming to Google Chrome, Google Blog
- News Showcase is launching in Bulgaria, Google Blog
Other Search
- Art Selfie is back, this time with generative AI, Google Blog
Feedback:
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