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.
FYI - I am offline Monday and Tuesday but here is a pre-scheduled newsletter with pre-scheduled stories I wrote. That is all.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
- Google Local Search Ranking Bug Fix Rolling Out
A couple of weeks ago we reported on a possible Google local search ranking update that turned out to not be an update but rather a bug. Well, that bug seems to be fixed or being fixed now and rankings are beginning to return for these local service area businesses. - Google Search No Results Found Fishing Game Gone Fishing
A year ago, last November, Google started to show this GIF of a fishing bot of some sort when Google returned no results. Well, sometime in the past weeks or so, Google stopped showing this fishing man. - Google Product Review Updates Still Get Periodic Updates That Google May Not Announce
Just a reminder, since I am seeing this question come up often. The Google product reviews update is updated periodically, just like with core updates. Google will run them every now and then as it sees fit, so far, Google confirmed five different product review updates. - Google Updates Animal Sound Button In Search
Back in 2016, Google Search came out with a way to hear animal sounds in the knowledge panel. Google recently updated the play sound icon or button in Google Search to make it an animated GIF of animals coming out of the play button. - Vlog #190: Marguarite Humphrey's Career & Challenges Of Working With Large Franchises In Search Marketing
Marguarite (Maggie) Humphrey worked at Cypress North as an intern back in 2019, then went to DAC for a few years, and then back to Cypress North after I interviewed her. Maggie was born in Rochester and met Greg Finn at an RV and Marine industry and Greg offered her an internship. Maggie credited Greg and Cypress a lot for her career, which is always nice to hear. - Google Dublin Stairs
Look at this mesmerizing photo of the staircases at the Google Dublin office. I also embedded more photos that I found on Instagram. - Programming Note: Rosh Hashanah 5783 - Happy & Healthy Jewish New Year
This is a programming note that Monday and Tuesday are Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year and I will be offline the next two days. I will be offline Monday and Tuesday, September 26th and September 27th.
Other Great Search Threads:
- #LSA "Service Areas" went bonkers this weekend. - I was targeting 3 counties - Google suddenly added every city & zip code in those counties (the 3 counties are still there, but now instead of having 3 "areas" there are 733) New feat, Len on Twitter
- Either works., John Mueller on Twitter
- Now google dedicatedly shows blank "Things to know" for most of the sq on mobile serp., Khushal Bherwani on Twitter
- Google is testing Product KP with Box Layout Design, Shameem Adhikarath on Twitter
- Algorithm changes gave just as many pages going up as going down, lots of folks have been doing a good job and are rewarded. That said if you have a specif, John Mueller on Twitter
Search Engine Land Stories:
- The biggest mystery of Google’s algorithm: Everything ever said about clicks, CTR and bounce rate
- Content API for Shopping and Google Ads API updated for country targeting
Other Great Search Stories:
Analytics
- Denmark latest to say Google Analytics is unlawful, Computing
- How Law Firms Can Set Up Google Analytics for WordPress, JDSupra
- Top 4 Things to Know About GA4 — Whiteboard Friday, Moz
Industry & Business
- DocuSign names former Google executive Allan Thygesen as new CEO, CNBC
- Google hires Booz Allen vet to lead public sector business, Washington Technology
- Google Sees Russia Coordinating With Hackers in Cyberattacks Tied to Ukraine War, Wall Street Journal
Links & Content Marketing
- 5 Content Marketing Ideas for October 2022, Practical Ecommerce
- Why Internal Customers Will Kill Your Content Strategy, Content Marketing Institute
Local & Maps
- Apple Maps’ missing transit link, Six Colors
- Google Maps 11.48.0803 APK Provides Improvements, TechnoStalls
- iOS 16.1 Beta 2 Fixes GPS Issue on iPhone 14 Pro Models, MacRumors
Mobile & Voice
- Google Assistant and Calendar Reminders Merge into Tasks App, Voicebot
- Pixel Watch Design Looks Stunning in Latest Google Teaser, Droid Life
SEO
- How To Create Awesome Meta Descriptions, Search Engine Journal
- Top 6 SEO Mistakes Photographers Make in 2022, SLR Lounge
PPC
Search Features
- How to spot and avoid scams and malware in search results, Washington Post
Other Search
Feedback:
Have feedback on this daily recap; let me know on Twitter @rustybrick or @seroundtable, 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.
Note: This was pre-written and scheduled to be posted today, I am currently offline for Rosh Hashanah.
