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 says blocking internal search result pages is no longer a requirement and there won't be a penalty but it can lead to other big issues. Google Ads has this new insights carousel. Microsoft Advertising is moving its Predictive Matching targeting option to Search term matching within AI Max. Google has begun alerting some advertisers that it will soon require D-U-N-S numbers for businesses and users to be verified. Google Business Profiles has a products pending bug, why so many bugs? ChatGPT Ads Manager is testing "Agent" campaignt types. And I posted the weekly SEO video recap, check it out.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
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Blocking Internal Search Results Not In Google Guidelines Anymore But...
In the latest Search Off the Record podcast, John Mueller from Google said that it is no longer in the Google Guidelines, now Google Search Essentials, that you must block Google from accessing your internal search results pages. He added that you likely should continue to do so because it can lead to (a) intense server load and (b) quality issues if abused, which can cause Google search ranking issues as a result. -
Google Ads Insights Carousel
Google Ads may be rolling out a new design for its insights section where it gives you the "Top things to know today." This new interface for this section is in a carousel format, where you can toggle through the various automated insights that Google Ads is providing. -
Microsoft Ads Predictive Matching Moving To Search Term Matching
Microsoft Advertising is moving its Predictive Matching targeting option to Search term matching within AI Max. Microsoft added a note to various help document pages about the change, it says: -
Google Local Service Ads To Require D-U-N-S Numbers For Some
Google has begun alerting some advertisers that it will soon require D-U-N-S numbers for businesses and users to be verified. Verification is required for select verticals and users in the US. And honestly, getting a D-U-N-S numbers for some businesses can be a pain. -
Google Business Profiles Products Are Stuck In Pending Status
Google has yet another bug with the Google Business Profiles platform. This one is with products being placed in "Pending" status, new products and old products, I believe. This started a couple of days ago and the issue still seems to be lingering, or pending, if you will. I have not seen Google respond to the complaints about this issue but it does seem widespread. -
ChatGPT Ads Business Agent Conversation Campaign Type
OpenAI is testing a new campaign type named Agent, which allows you to send ChatGPT searchers and users to a Business Agent conversation. So instead of just going to your website, you send them into a chat experience on your website? -
Search News Buzz Video Recap: Google Platform Properties Live, Google Ads Lead Journey Mapping, Microsoft Ads, ChatGPT Ads & More SEO
This week, yep, we had more ongoing Google Search volatility but a calming period on Wednesday. Google has rolled out the platform properties to track X, YouTube... -
Google France Outdoor Courtyard & Ping Pong Table
Google's office in France has this really nice looking courtyard area, with some grass and an outdoor ping pong table.
Other Great Search Threads:
- It's great to have passionate and locked-in users who work through 3 challenges because they want to buy something from you, but you shouldn't count on everyone being this dedicated. , John Mueller on Bluesky
- Last month, I wrote that Americans tend to be more concerned than excited about AI advances. Today, I’m sharing ideas for what we can do to ease those concerns and build the kind of trust that gets people excited about what’s ahead., Kent Walker on X
- major price cuts today: *80% drop for GPT-5.6 Luna, now $0.20 per million input tokens and $1.20 per million output *20% drop for GPT-5.6 Terra, to $2/$12 *GPT-5.6 Sol gets Fast mode in the API, up to 2.5x the speed for 2x the price, same intelligence, Sam Altman on X
- The Google Terms of Service was just updated today compare it to the old one at nice that Google offers this comparison and the archive, Barry Schwartz on X
Search Engine Land Stories:
- AI is building your digital experience. It’s also making it less accessible.
- AI models favor familiar brands in search: Study
- Google launches Structured Data Files v10.1 for Display & Video 360
- Google tests AI-generated descriptions in Shopping ads
- Selling SEO or AI services? Your sales team needs more than a pitch deck
- How to build a keyword clustering tool with Python
- Multi-location SEO: How to structure geographic pages at scale
- How to turn news articles into assets for AI search
Other Great Search Stories:
AI & LLMs
- How enabling two settings tripled our scores on the ARC-AGI-3 benchmark, OpenAI
- Gemini Robotics ER 2, Google Blog
- OpenAI discounts GPT-5.6 Luna and Terra, but not Luna, Axios
- Apple’s Siri Got an A.I. Brain Transplant. Try These 5 Prompts to Get Acclimated., New York Times
- Investigating three real-world incidents in our cybersecurity evaluations, Anthropic
Analytics
- New diagnostic in Google Analytics for aggregate parameter issues, Google Analytics Help
Industry & Business
- Banks in talks to lend $15 billion for Anthropic data center backed by Google, WSJ reports, Reuters
- EU Opens Call for Creation of Local AI Gigafactories, Wall Street Journal
- Reddit shares sink 7% on ‘choppy’ search referrals even as results blow past estimates, CNBC
- Who deleted Barry Schwartz's Wikipedia article?, David Lovett
- Does Google still have room to run?, Fox Business Video
- Google expands Seattle-area workforce past 8,000, Puget Sound Business Journal
- Google reports record earnings as publishers suffer, regulators dither, The Seattle Times
- Big Tech AI spending spree tops $1tn, Financial Times (Sub)
Links & Content Marketing
- 13 Ways To Solve Your Resource-Strapped Marketing, Content Marketing Institute
- Digital PR for AI visibility: 5 tactics + how to measure, Semrush
- Master Backlink Analysis with Link Density Charts, Majestic
- How to Make Sure Your Digital PR Pitch Gets Read, Koozai
- The easiest SEO links you can get, Product-Led SEO
Local & Maps
- Reimagine the world with Nano Banana in Google Earth, Google Blog
- Why Does Google Maps Struggle In Rural Areas?, BGR
- I tried Android Auto offline while on a road trip, and it beats mobile data in 2 ways, ZDNET
- How Nescaf pairs global creator marketing with local flavor, Google
Other Search
- Gemini Spark: new Chrome browsing integration, Google Blog
- Stronger with every update: How we’re making Chrome and the web safer in the AI Era, Google Blog
PPC
- Google Documents Negative Keyword Impact Prediction in Performance Max, PPC News Feed
- Publisher Release Roundup: Copilot Enhancements, Microsoft Advertising
- Google Ads Allows Text Disclaimer Before First Description, PPC News Feed
- Why Treating Every Product the Same in Google Ads Is Quietly Destroying Ecommerce Profit, PPC Live
- Google Publishes Help Page for YouTube Audio Ads, PPC News Feed
SEO
- SEO Audits Explained: What They Are, What They Include and Why They Matter, Koozai
- AI Invented Zero Changes and Missed 242 Real Ones, Search Engine World
- What 13 Billion Google Searches Reveal About Zero-Click Behavior, iPullRank
- Curing the Consensus: A Master Prompt for SEO Strategy and Information Gain, Advanced Web Ranking
- From SEO to GEO: Why Rankings Alone Won't Get You Visibility in AI Search, Lumar
- Threatening to quit Google’s crawlers is just publishers’ new hope, Digiday
- Enterprise SEO Fixes for AI Search Visibility, Koozai
- Does Schema Markup Impact SERP Rank?, Moz
Feedback:
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