Daily Search Forum Recap: May 20, 2025

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 is testing link icon boxes with anchors in the search results. Google is testing removing the site name from the search results. Google is also testing light blue links. IndexNow now works with product schema and Shopify and Amazon will use it. Google Ads has new performance explanations within its graphs. Google AdSense deprecated its account level controls for non personalized ads. Microsoft is hiring creators to promote Copilot Search in Bing.

Search Engine Roundtable Stories:

• Google Search Tests Link Icon Box With Anchor Feature
  Google is testing a new link feature in the search results, it is in the form of a link box, in the search result snippet, that when you click on it, it anchors you down on the page to a specific portion of that text.
• Google Tests Removing Site Names From Search Results
  Google is testing removing the site names from the search result snippets and just showing the site's URL at the top - title link - position of the snippet.
• Google Tests Search Results Links In Light Blue Cyan Again
  Google is once again testing a light blue color, cyan, for its title links in the search results. Google tested this on and off quite a lot over the years, but Google is testing it again.
• IndexNow Works With Product Schema; Shopify & Soon Amazon
  Microsoft Bing announced some interesting updates for IndexNow including how it works now with product schema and that Shopify now supports it and soon Amazon will. This will help Bing and search engines that use IndexNow have more accurate and up-to-date products for their shopping results and shopping ads.
• Google Ads Graphs Gain Embedded Performance Explanations
  Google Ads has added explanations for your performance changes directly in the charts and graphs in your Google Ads console. You can click the highlighed section of the graph to see explanations for your performance changes, like cost increases or decreases.
• Google AdSense Drops Account Level Control For Non Personalized Ads
  Google announced it has deprecated the Account level control for non personalized ads within Google AdSense's settings in privacy and messaging. Instead, Google said "use the IAB TCF framework for collecting and communicating users' consent decisions in the EEA, UK, and Switzerland."
• Microsoft Partners With Creators To Promote Copilot Search in Bing
  Microsoft's Jordi Ribas announced they are partnering with creators to showcase how they use Copilot Search in Bing. Copilot Search in Bing was launched in early April, as its new AI powered search feature.
• Google France I'm Feeling Lucky Door Sign
  Outside the Google France office, by the door, is a sign with the number of the address plus it says "I'm Feeling Lucky." Yes, it is in the Google colors.

Other Great Search Threads:

• Positioning this as "Google is lying to you" is a big stretch., John Mueller on LinkedIn
• The SEO Community came out in numbers to sign-up this year, nice work! But contributors are still needed for the project, really worth taking a look at if you're passionate about all things web!, Chris Green SEO on Bluesky
• We're back in Warsaw on June 16th for a Search Central Live event and I'm super excited to have Daniel Waisberg join me as well - wanna join us?, Martin Splitt on LinkedIn

Search Engine Land Stories:

• IndexNow helps with faster indexing of product updates and shopping ads
• Work hard, play hard: See the networking calendar for SMX Advanced
• Google Ads bug stalls spending for New Customer Acquisition
• Google Discover on desktop now available in some countries
• How to blend AI and human input in your content approach
• How AI changes how we respond to negative reviews and comments

Other Great Search Stories:

Industry & Business

• Danny Goodwin of Search Engine Land to Keynote Pubcon Austin, Pubcon Pro
• For Google Challenger Perplexity, Growth Comes at a High Cost, The Information
• Google CEO Sundar Pichai says there won’t be just one winner in the AI race, Fortune
• Google inks another massive solar power deal to electrify its data centers, TechCrunch
• Microsoft CTO Kevin Scott on the birth of the agentic web, The Verge
• Reddit Stock Falls as Analyst Says Google Search Issues Are Likely ‘Permanent.’, Barron's
• Sex toy vendor complains to EU about Google search rules, POLITICO

Links & Content Marketing

• 74% of New Webpages Include AI Content (Study of 900k Pages), Ahrefs
• SEO Myths Debunked: 301 Redirects Lose Link Juice!, Nikki Pilkington
• Why Your Content Is Ranking But Not Converting, Nikki Pilkington

Local & Maps

• Google Maps' alternate route suggestions are borked, with no fix in sight, Android Authority
• Apple Releases Another Big Maps Update As It's Finally Catching Up With Google Maps, AutoEvolution
• The 5 best map and transit apps for travel outside the U.S., Fast Company

Mobile & Voice

• Gemini colors come to Nest Audio testing Google Assistant upgrade, 9to5Google
• Here’s what you’ll need to file a claim in the Apple Siri lawsuit, NBC Chicago
• How Apple Intelligence and Siri AI Went So Wrong, Bloomberg
• Why We're Not Getting That AI-Powered Siri Anytime Soon, Lifehacker

SEO

• Accelerate Growth with AI Search Optimization, Amsive
• Google made video indexing more challenging, but you can still get indexed with these tips, Coywolf
• Long-Tail Keyword Optimization for AI, BrightEdge
• 5 Super Simple SEO Testing Examples (EP60), Compass Digital Strategies
• Is SEO Still Relevant in the Age of AI?, Analytics Insight
• Reddit Is Dead, Unseen by SEOs: Google Translate’s Proxy Pages Pull 606M Visits Monthly, Metehan
• Zero Clicks Does Not Mean Zero Sales, SparkToro

PPC

• 2025 Partner Awards: Nominations are open, Microsoft Advertising
• Google Ads Benchmarks 2025: Competitive Data & Insights for Every Industry, WordStream
• Google Marketing Live 2025 Bingo Card, PPCChat
• How much time can Adalysis really save your PPC team?, Adalysis
• PPC Management Best Practices: How to Avoid Losing Money, SEO dot co
• Real Amazon PPC Automation Tips from Optmyzr Users, Optmyzr
• Scarcity in Marketing: Why “Not Enough” Works So Well, Level343

Search Features

• AI's Impact on Global Search: The Next Era of International SEO | Michael Bonfils, Advanced Web Ranking
• Google Decided Against Offering Publishers Options in AI Search, Bloomberg
• Google Translate can now be set as default on iOS, 9to5Mac
• How Miami Schools Are Leading 100,000 Students Into the A.I. Future, New York Times
• Insights From 55.8M AI Overviews Across 590M Searches—A Study by Ahrefs, Ahrefs
• New portal calls out AI content with Google’s watermark, Ars Technica
• Google Chrome for Android to Get Desktop-Style Address Bar, MSPoweruser

Other Search

• How to use Custom Bing Search with Azure AI Agent Service, Microsoft Learn
• Google brings "Search History" to the Gemini app, Yahoo

Feedback:

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