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 might not show your site name if it doesn't have confidence in the name and site. Google has not updated Bard in 5 weeks. Google is testing a share and save swipe feature for search result snippets. Google Explore section now has ads. Google said if you weren't buying links, then don't disavow.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
- Google Might Not Showing Your Site Name Over A Confidence Issue
Google introduced the site name feature last October for mobile and last March for desktop search. Did you know that sometimes Google might not show a site's site name in search if it doesn't have enough confidence in the name? - Google Search Explore Section Gains Ads
Google's explore section, which we first found a year ago and is now live for all, now seems to be showing Google Ads or sponsored listings. I have not seen ads in the Explore section before, maybe I missed it, but now they are showing for some people. - Google Bard Goes Without Updates For 5 Weeks
Google has not published a new update for Google Bard for five weeks now. The last update published was on June 7, 2023 and since then it has been quiet. - Google Tests Swipe To Share & Save A Search Results
Google is testing a feature to swipe over a specific search result snippet so you can save or share it. When you swipe over the snippet, you are presented with two icons, one to save and one to share. - Google John Mueller: If You Weren't Buying Links, Don't Disavow
John Mueller, a Search Advocate at Google, was asked when you should use the link disavow too. He said on Twitter, "Essentially -- if you weren't buying links, don't disavow." - YouTube Shopping Cart At Google's Office
Did you know Google makes their own YouTube branded shopping carts? Here is a photo I found of one on Instagram. This is from the Google Hong Kong office.
Other Great Search Threads:
- I'm not really a fan, you're basically a subdomain on someone else's site. If you want a domain of your own (and imo you should, if the web is part of your business), then get a real domain name. Even if they're super cheap, a real domain name isn't that , John Mueller on Twitter
- New documentation for setting traffic sources for GA4 Measurement Protocol has been provided. You set them by attaching them to a new event: campaign_details. Tested this with a client-side tag, and it's working, Charles Farina on Twitter
- Sorry. I don't try to be defensive, or sound that way. My goal is to explain things. And Twitter, it's not a great medium like any text medium, in expressing tone. Which is ... OMG, being defensive! But I will work on it., Google SearchLiaison on Twitter
- You're not alone with these worries. I obviously can't predict the future, but I know the folks in Google Search care deeply about all parts of the 'web journey'., John Mueller on Twitter
- Back to Bing traffic to @seroundtable since Bing Chat launched... it went from 1.78% to 3.38% share of my search traffic. Google went down from 97.61% to 96.02% (green slice is Bing), Barry Schwartz on Twitter
- I love quote-tweets that take things out of context and post screenshots. Well done., John Mueller on Twitter
- Non-pro tip: if you're running a photography business, don't use other people's photos. It's embarassing. (And also, asking Google why your site isn't ranking well in those cases is a bit awkward.) Right-click on an image, Search image with Google., John Mueller on Twitter
- SEO is not a set of magical incantations where you have to dance properly to make them take effect -- most of it is either based on technical specifics, or focused on what users want., John Mueller on Twitter
Search Engine Land Stories:
- Threads FAQ: Everything marketers need to know
- 10 ways to revolutionize your PPC game with GPT
- Microsoft rolls out AI-generated ad headlines and descriptions
- Ecommerce PPC: 4 optimizations to do before the holiday season
- How to win SEO allies and influence the brand guardians
- How market types shape marketing and SEO success
Other Great Search Stories:
Analytics
- GA4 is in full effect: Connect your analytics data to Oncrawl, Oncrawl
- 5 GA4 issues and why they’re a good thing, MarTech
- Marketers are having problems with the GA4 user interface, MarTech
Industry & Business
- AI Researcher Who Helped Write Landmark Paper Is Leaving Google, Bloomberg
- Google hit with lawsuit alleging it stole data from millions of users to train its AI tools, CNN Business
- Google's Searchbot Could Put Me Out of a Job, The Atlantic
- Google cloud shakeup: Urs Holzle to step down from executive management, CNBC
Links & Content Marketing
- 27 Real Life and Ethical Use Cases for AI in Digital PR, Screaming Frog
- How To Build a Sustainable Content Practice, Content Marketing Institute
Local & Maps
- Executing Local SEO Across Hundreds of Locations, BrightLocal
- Looking for a Google Maps Alternative? This Android Auto App Will Soon Get New Features, AutoEvolution
Mobile & Voice
- Fossil finally gets Google Assistant on its Wear OS 3 smartwatches, Engadget
- Meet Raj Reddy, farmer’s son who is brain behind Apple Siri, Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, Microsoft Cortana, DNA India
SEO
- AI vs Humans - The SEO Content Experiment, Reboot Online
- English Google SEO office-hours from July 2023, Google Search Central YouTube
- Evergreen SEO for SMBs: From setup to maintenance, Wix SEO Hub
- I Worked As An Offical Google Search Quality Rater (You Can Too), Zyppy SEO
- The 4 Critical Things Companies Need for SEO Success, BruceClay
- Advanced SEO Audit Techniques: Excel, Search Engine Journal
- Does page experience still matter?, SERP's Up SEO Podcast
- Optimising YouTube Videos: Mastering SEO for Maximum Visibility, Koozai
PPC
- Deprecating outcome-based buying in Display & Video 360 API and Structured Data Files on August 1, 2023, Google Ads Developer Blog
- Celebrating our partners, Microsoft Advertising
- Yandex introduces Telegram channel monetisation through its own advertising network, Yandex
Search Features
- ChatGPT vs. Google: A Comparative Study of Search Performance and User Experience, Arxiv
- You'll soon be able to control Edge from Bing chat pane, MSPoweruser
Feedback:
Have feedback on this daily recap; let me know on Twitter @rustybrick or @seroundtable, on Threads, Mastodon and Bluesky and you can follow us on Facebook and make sure to subscribe to the YouTube channel, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or just contact us the old fashion way.
