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 Ask for me is a new feature that calls businesses to find out their prices and availability for you. Google is testing a new shopping refinement menu. Google is also testing new product rating shopping refienemnets. Google is also testing review carousels and blocks. Google Ads demographic exclusions apply to shopping campaigns in PMax. And I posted my weekly SEO video recap.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
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Google Ask For Me - Calls Businesses For Costs For You
Google has a new Search Labs feature named Ask for me. Ask for me will have Google call businesses for you, to figure out the cost of the service and when it can be scheduled for you. It is like that Duplex feature we saw years ago, where Google would try to schedule a restaurant reservation for you. -
Google: Demographic Exclusions To Apply To Google Ads Shopping Inventory in PMax
Ginny Marvin, the Google Ads Liaison, has confirmed that demographic exclusions will apply to Shopping inventory in Performance Max campaigns. Marvin added that the reporting on how this is shown to advertisers is still to be determined, but the goal is to let advertisers control which age groups can or cannot see the ads. -
Google Shopping Refinements With & Without Product Ratings
Google Search is now sometimes showing the ability to filter products in its search results by product rating. I am not sure if this is new or not, but I cannot replicate this but some are seeing the product rating filter/refinement option when searching. -
Google Tests New Shopping Search Filter On Mobile
Google is testing a new filter for its shopping results in the mobile search results. Instead of showing a single filter menu, Google is showing a product image carousel line first and then a filter menu for additional search filters. -
Google Tests Review Carousels & Blocks For Product Queries
Google is testing (I think again) review carousels and block units in its search results for product queries. A number of SEOs spotted these coming up over the past week or two, and they basically show product review content in a separate section within Google Search. -
Google Front Page Ad On Indian Newspaper - Googlies on Google
Last November, Google purchased the front page of a popular newspaper in India for its campaign there named Googlies on Google. Here is a photo of the newspaper ad that was shared with me on X. -
Search News Buzz Video Recap: Google Ranking Volatility, Site Reputation Abuse, AI Overviews 2.0, Yahoo Search AI & More
We are seeing more Google search ranking volatility hit both over the weekend and also mid-week. Google expanded its site reputation abuse enforcement to Germany. Google AI Overviews powered by Gemini 2.0 can go insanely deep. Google launched a new labs experiment named Ask for me...
Other Great Search Threads:
- Gemini is now powered by 2.0 Flash, our latest model that is designed for the agentic era, delivering fast responses and stronger performance across a number of key benchmarks for everyday help with tasks like brainstorming,, Google Gemini App on X
- I think one of the challenges you'll run into as you go deeper into the rabbit hole is that a lot of the tools on your site (afaict) are commodity tools that exist in countless variations already. Focusing on your name/brand is an option, b, John Mueller on Bluesky
- Just received this notice for a client Merchant Center account. Auto-AI image generation will begin unless you opt out (it appears to be account specific, so no need to panic, Kirk Williams on X
- Unlikely., John Mueller on Bluesky
- We generally don't comment on specific sites, sorry., John Mueller on Bluesky
- Yahoo has launched a new design and features on mobile. They have also added a banner on their page about this and are seeking feedback., Sachin Patel on X
Search Engine Land Stories:
- Meta streamlines Advantage+ catalog ad targeting, pushes automated options
- Google tests AI-generated backgrounds for Shopping Ads
- Google Search launches Ask for me
- Google expands Demand Gen ad tools ahead of Video Action Campaigns sunset
- Automate SEO analysis with Google Sheets, GSC & ChatGPT API
- How to use SEO to enhance your visibility within a specific geographic area
Other Great Search Stories:
Industry & Business
- Google loses bid to dismiss US states' lawsuit over digital ads, Reuters
- Google owes UK news industry £2.2bn from 2023, claims research, Press Gazette
- OpenAI in Talks for Huge Investment Round Valuing It Up to $340 Billion, Wall Street Journal
- OpenAI’s Altman Urges US to Support AI Investment After DeepSeek, Bloomberg
Links & Content Marketing
- AI Content Creation: My Process for High-Quality, SEO-Friendly Articles, Ahrefs
- How Much Does Content Marketing Cost? Pricing & Examples, Measure Minds Group
- How to Do a Backlink Gap Analysis (With Template), Ahrefs
- How To Tell Stories That the C-Suite Wants To Hear [Video], Content Marketing Institute
- Why One-Pagers Are Dead (And What to Send Instead), SparkToro
Local & Maps
- Apple Maps may have a solution for new Gulf of Mexico name, AppleInsider
- Google Maps adds Now Bar integration for Samsung's One UI 7, 9to5Google
- Weather Report: Local SEO Guide Releases SERP Summary, Localogy
Mobile & Voice
- 3 Winning SEO Strategies for Planning Pages to Optimize, JumpFly
- Google announces ‘voluntary exit program’ for Pixel, Android team, 9to5Google
- Google blocked 2.36 million risky Android apps from Play Store in 2024, Bleeping Computer
- Meta’s Ray-Bans smart glasses sold more than 1 million units last year, The Verge
SEO
- Keyword Cannibalization: What it is and How to Fix it, Moz
- AI-Driven Personalization: The Future of Travel in 2025, WordLift
- How to Build an SEO Topical Map (With Template), Ahrefs
- How to Rank for ‘Near Me’ Searches, RicketyRoo
- Page bloat update: How does ever-increasing page size affect your business and your users?, SpeedCurve
- SEO automation: Tools and tips for SEO success, Yoast
- Some SEOs Sound Like A Bunch Of Cults, Nikki Pilkington
PPC
- Configure European regulations messages on a per country basis in Privacy & messaging, Google AdSense Help
- New ways to help you drive performance with Demand Gen, Google Blog
- The 2025 PPC Landscape: 5 Trends Shaping Digital Advertising, Hopskip Media
Search Features
Other Search
- How to Install DeepSeek AI Locally on Mac, Omi Sido
- The Gemini app is now powered by Gemini 2.0 Flash., Google Blog
Feedback:
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