Daily Search Forum Recap: September 11, 2026

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's page indexing report is missing a chunk of data from June, it is likely a reporting bug. Google Ads has a new video campaign group beta. Google Merchant Center added a way to add product videos. Google Ads can segment reporting by Loyalty program members. Google Ads is running a "very early experiment" to show a new attribute in sponsored results in Google Search. Google AdSense has new max message coverage and optimize my consent messages. Google may have a bug with some of its search results formatting, where the sponsored results heading is sometimes not left-aligned. A new easter egg in Google Search for blank searches for Deez Nuts. And I posted my weekly SEO video recap.

Search Engine Roundtable Stories:

• Google Search Console Indexing Report Missing Old June Data
  The Google Search Console page indexing report is now missing a huge chunk of data from June 2026. It seems something is super buggy with this report over the page several months or something weird is happening with indexing in Google Search. I am hoping it is just a reporting thing, but I am seeing a lot of indexing complaints this month.
• Search News Buzz Video Recap: Google Degrades EU Search Quality, Losing Faith In Your Site, AI Mode Match Types & Google Maps Photo Scams
  This week we covered how Google said it launched its biggest reduction in search quality in Europe over the DMA laws. Google also posted a document on the regional differences with the Google Search experiences. Google confirmed there was a temporary indexing reporting bug in Search Console. Google can lose faith in your website when you use programmatic SEO...
• Google Shopping Ads X Days Left Attribute On Sponsored Ads
  Google Ads is running a "very early experiment" to show a new attribute in sponsored results in Google Search. This attribute shows how many days remain in a sale or deal on Shopping Ads.
• Google Ads Reporting Segments For Loyalty Program Members
  Last month, Google Ads added a new customer retention option named Loyalty program members. Now Google Ads can segment reporting by Loyalty program members.
• Google Ads Sponsored Results Label Alignment Is Off (Sometimes)
  Google may have a bug with some of its search results formatting, where the sponsored results heading is sometimes not left-aligned. This does not seem intentional and it seems more like a formatting bug, but who knows.
• Google Ads Video Campaign Group Beta
  Google Ads is beta testing a new option during the campaign creation process for "Video Campaign Group." This option is for video or Demand Gen campaigns, and it features aggregated metrics and controls for reach and frequency across campaigns.
• Google Merchant Center With Add Product Videos
  Google Merchant Center now lets you upload videos of your products through a new Product videos section. "Product videos offer a more engaging and immersive experience to customers," Google wrote on the "Add videos" page within Merchant Center.
• Google AdSense Max Message Coverage & Optimize My Consent Message
  Google AdSense announced two new privacy-focused features it is rolling out or has rolled out in European Economic Area (EEA), the United Kingdom (UK), or Switzerland regions. Google Ads has "Maximize message coverage" and "Optimize my consent message" in Privacy & messaging.
• Google Search Deez Nuts AI Overview Easter Egg
  If you conduct a blank search on Google Search, you will get an AI Overview that says "...nuts? ð¥" It seems like one of those easter eggs dropped by Google within its search results.
• Google Gemini Dinner Napkin
  Here is a photo from an event from the Gemini team and you can see there are custom Gemini branded napkins for the dinner table set up.

Other Great Search Threads:

• Just got our first Apple Maps Ads Campaign Performance report. The platform only launched two weeks ago, so I don't expect it to be perfect, but either they have a load of features they are working…, Andrew Shotland on LinkedIn
• Google Small Business Bulletin - Track your Google Post views, Google Business Profile Community
• Hey @rustybrick. We are still having major issues with recipe card images not updating. We pinged @JohnMu on Bluesky. This issue is a pretty big deal. If we lose control of the image used it dramatically affects our CTRs. Google still isn’t using the right image for this post, Inspired Taste on X
• You can now add supplemental feeds, when your data feed is Google's automatic imports., Emmanuel Flossie on LinkedIn

Search Engine Land Stories:

• Content marketing success falls to 12-year low: Survey
• Amazon pilots ChatGPT Ads through its DSP
• How to use Claude to run a stronger CRO audit
• When SEO best practices become SEO dogma
• OpenAI reportedly blocks rival AI tools from advertising in ChatGPT
• How to use multiple MMMs to make better paid media decisions
• Google expands Data Manager and Meridian measurement tools
• The dehumanization of SEO: Displaced by code, ignored by communication

Other Great Search Stories:

AI & LLMs

• China's DeepSeek launches V4.1-Flash model, Reuters
• Countering misuse of AI: September 2026, Anthropic
• OpenAI ChatGPT for Financial Services targets work of junior bankers, CNBC

Analytics

• New updates to measurement suite in Google Ads, Google Blog

Industry & Business

• Google Says Spirit Data Deal Excludes Consumer Info - Law360 Bankruptcy Authority, Law360
• Smith & Wesson Can’t Toss Consumer Suit Over Google Data Sharing, Bloomberg Law News
• Google Cloud, Accenture Launch Unit to Put AI Engineers On-Site With Customers, Wall Street Journal
• People Inc. CEO on AI-hungry Google: 'They don't share anything with us', Yahoo
• OpenAI Wants to Know if an AI Industry Slowdown Would Even Be Legal, Wired

Links & Content Marketing

• The Business Fundamentals Every Marketer Should Know, Content Marketing Institute
• How to create B2B content that buyers keep using, MarTech

Local & Maps

• EP 273 - Fragmented Discovery, Google's €460M DMA Fine, and Apple's Distribution Bet, Near Media
• New Mexico leaders ask Apple and Google not to use ‘New America’ on their maps, Washington Post
• Yelp and Hatch Advance Voice AI for Restaurants and Service Pros with OpenAI's GPT-Live-1, Yelp
• I spent a week navigating without Google Maps; I discovered why we can't live without it, Android Police

Other Search

• Do Answer Engines customize responses to different personas?, Profound
• Dreambeans is now available across the U.S., Google Blog

PPC

• Amazon pilots ad services in ChatGPT: What marketers need to know, Marketing Dive
• Google Ads Is Tightening Account Security: 5 Things Advertisers Need to Do Now, JumpFly
• Google Ads Now Displays Custom Search Term History, PPC News Feed
• Google Ads Target Bid Strategy Changes: What Changed in August 2026 and What to Do Now, PPC Hero
• OpenAI Restricts Adobe and Other Competitors From Advertising in ChatGPT, The Information
• Stop Wasting Spend: Automate Your Google Ads with Solutions, ZATO Marketing
• Turn Proprietary Assets Into Revenue, Microsoft Advertising
• Your Competitors Are Showing Up in AI Search. Are You?, Koozai
• Google Ads Expands Promotion Mode to Daily Budgets, PPC News Feed
• A new onboarding experience for Google Ads API developers, Google Ads Developer Blog
• iOS 27 code points to ads in Visual Intelligence, Apple Insider
• Unlocking offline sales data for automated bidding, Think with Google
• E-Commerce: How Five CPG Brands Are Winning, Forrester
• Google Ads Tests Product Value Optimization, PPC News Feed

Search Features

• 3 ways runners can prep for race day with Search, Google Blog
• The Gemini app for Windows is here, Google Blog

SEO

• Google DeepMind Develops New AI Search Ranking Model, Search Engine Journal
• Publishers are rebuilding their newsrooms for the post-Google era, Digiday
• How to Build AI Agents for Marketing & Business Automation, Women in Tech SEO
• What is zero-click marketing? How to execute and measure it, Semrush

Feedback:

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