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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 September 2023 helpful content update completed rolling out and it seemed to hit SEO-first content in a big way. Microsoft Advertising is testing not labeled search ads in Bing Search. Google said it will keep providing SEO help and documentation despite some trying to use it to manipulate Google Search. ChatGPT's browse with Bing is back after being disabled for 12 weeks. Google Ads tests expiration dates for email alerts. Google Ads updated its prescription drug services policy.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
- Google September 2023 Helpful Content Completed Rolling Out - Targeting SEO-First Content
Google, at around 3 am ET this morning, announced that the September 2023 Google helpful content update has finished rolling out. It took about 14 days, starting on September 14, 2023, and completing today on September 28, 2023. This update really went after SEO-first content, which is why the SEO community is so heated about this specific update. - Microsoft Advertising Hiding Search Ads On Bing Search Again?
A few months ago we reported how it was nearly impossible for a trained SEM to spot the ad label on these Microsoft Advertising search ads on Bing Search. Well, now, Bing is testing not showing an ad label at all on these ads in Bing Search. - Google Ads Gains Share Alerts With Expiration Dates
Google Ads seems to have added a new feature to the account alerts section that lets you set up alerts to go to email addresses but now lets you define when those alerts may expire. So if you want to share alerts for a short or defined period of time, you can now do that. - Google: We Won't Stop Giving Advice To SEOs Despite Some Creating Made For Google Sites
Google's John Mueller defends Google's position of helping SEOs by providing documentation, video content, and responses to questions on multiple channels. This comes after some are upset that Google is targeting content and websites that are overly SEOed based on that feedback. - Google Ads Prescription Drug Services Medicines Policy Updated
Google will update the Google Ads Healthcare and Medicines policy from Prescription drug sale policy to Prescription drug services. "The Healthcare and medicines policy page will be updated to reflect the new language on October 10, 2023," Google said. - ChatGPT Relaunches Browse With Bing Respecting Robots.txt Protocols
OpenAI has relaunched the browse with Bing feature in ChatGPT which lets users use ChatGPT leveraging the index of Bing Search. This was after Open AI turned off the feature after it was caught accessing content behind paywalls. - Google Search Central Swag - Water Bottle, Hat, T-Shirt, Notepads, etc
It is rare to see swag from the Google Search Central team but at one of the latest Google Search Central Live events Google gave out swag to attendees. The swag included water bottles, cups, hats, t-
Other Great Search Threads:
- It wasn't a placebo, and I think especially in the early days of link manual actions, it was useful to clean things up. Sites didn't realize what they were doing. To the best of my knowledge, I don't think it was ever used as a way of self-declaring as a , John Mueller on Mastodon
- I myself find that often I need something quickly - time in Tokyo right now or navigate to Netflix - and Search is better in those situations. But for anything serious, any real research it’s all Chat by default for m, Mikhail Parakhin on X
- No plans to change the current approach., Mikhail Parakhin on X
- "I’m excited to share that @Meta is integrating Bing web search into the Meta AIs available within WhatsApp, Messenger and Instagram. If a request requires fresh information, Meta AI will automatically ask Bing to get the chat answ, Jordi Ribas on X
- New category in GBP for "hotel Attributes", called popular services. Google is encouraging you to complete these fields with a warning: "Your hotel is appearing in fewer searches because you are missing these services. Add, Lluc B. Penycate on X
- There is no fixed time. It just gets less-frequent over time, especially if all the references are removed. It doesn't cause issues with crawl rate, we just want to make sure not to miss anything good., John Mueller on X
Search Engine Land Stories:
- Google September 2023 helpful content is now done rolling out
- Meta AI assistant uses Microsoft Bing Search results
- ChatGPT Browse with Bing returns after being disabled 3 months ago
- Google search antitrust trial updates: Everything you need to know (so far)
- Reminder – Google Optimize sunsets this weekend
- YouTube relaxes controversial topic guidelines to boost ad revenue opportunities
- 26% of the top 100 websites are now blocking GPTBot
- 5 SEO content strategy considerations for 2024 and beyond
- How to create a perfect location page for SEO and visitors
Other Great Search Stories:
Industry & Business
- 25 surprising Google facts to celebrate our 25th birthday, Google Blog
- Apple profits more from Bing existing than Bing does, claims Microsoft exec, 9to5Mac
- Expanding Our AI Partnership with Meta, Bing Search Blog
- Google 25th birthday quiz: How well do you know Google?, Google Blog
- Google Antitrust Trial: Microsoft Says Apple Used Bing Offer as Bargaining Chip, Bloomberg
- Google Antitrust Judge Told Android Contracts Blocked Startup Search App, Bloomberg
- What Google’s (deleted) chats mean for its DOJ antitrust showdown, Fast Company
Links & Content Marketing
- How To Get Buy-In by Setting Strategic Content Marketing Goals, Moz
- Did producing "great content" just get harder?, Chris Green
Local & Maps
- Apple Car isn't coming any time soon, says Ming-Chi Kuo, AppleInsider
- Business Hours and Local SEO: 17 Ways to Use Your Hours for Maximum Boom, Local Visibility System
- Google User Data Is Police’s Top Shortcut for Solving Crimes, Bloomberg
- How to Add Keywords to a Google My Business Profile, semr
Mobile & Voice
- Amazon and Google collaborate on the first multi-assistant smart speaker, The Verge
- I demoed the $299 Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses and they're way better than I expected, ZDNET
- Introducing the New Ray-Ban | Meta Smart Glasses, Meta
- iOS 17 Siri can read Safari articles for you: 5 other new things it can do, Mashable
- Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses hands-on: in pursuit of content, The Verge
SEO
- Affordable SEO: 8 Services Any Small Business Can Afford, semr
- How to Find and Track Featured Snippets? [Free & Paid Methods], Keyword Insights
- How to Measure the Impact of your SEO Changes with Causal Impact, Women in Tech SEO
- SEO Automation: 17 Tasks Streamlined for Enhanced Efficiency, Backlinko
- Social Signals & SEO: Do Shares + Likes Help You Rank Higher?, semr
- The Dynamic Interplay of SEO and Digital PR for Maximum Impact, Go Fish Digital
- The September 2023 Google Helpful Content Update – Did Google’s Announcement in April About Page Experience Foreshadow What We’re Seeing With The Current HCU(X)?, GSQI
- What Is Silo SEO and Is There a Better Option?, Semrush
PPC
- How to Run Microsoft Professional Services Ads (+How They Compare to Google Local Services Ads), WordStream
- Introducing Microsoft Advertising Network for retail: a Game-Changer in Retail Media Revenue Growth, Microsoft Advertising
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