Mihai Aperghis (@mihaiaperghis), an SEO we reference here from time to time, is also a Google Product Expert and attended the EMEA Product Experts Summit a few weeks ago. He has written this blog post and I am posting it here as a super rare guest post on this site. Why? (1) Mihai rocks and (2) this site is about community and Product Experts are the essence of the Google community. I (Barry) personally was unable to attend due to a conflict. Note: Mihai did not ask for a link or a mention, but I added this so it is clear that he wrote this.
Summer's going by rather fast, but one event that's already come and gone has been this year's edition of Google's PE Summit for the EMEA region. It took place on June 20th and 21st in Zürich, Switzerland, and was hosted at Google's own offices as well as in a virtual format, similar to previous years.
As a quick refresher, the PE program is closely tied to Google's Help Community forums, where people outside Google (non-Googlers, if you will) can volunteer their knowledge and experience to answer whatever issues and questions users have about a specific Google product. I've been a PE in the Google Search Central English community for quite a few years now, and as such, I've had the opportunity to attend several of these invitation-based summits.
While, like most such events, this one was not focused on Search, quite a few sessions were dedicated to SEO-related topics, from general web search updates and upcoming features to more specific discussions about Google Shopping or Google Business Profile. Since most of the sessions are under NDA, I won't be able to go into specifics, but I can share some general takeaways and impressions from the event.
The Event
The first day of the summit was mainly for the PEs to get to know each other better and meet some of the Googlers, without any sessions taking place. This was done mainly at one of the 25 Hours hotels in Zürich, which also hosted most of the attendees. It included a lunch where PEs were able to mingle and chat with each other, as well as an afternoon trip to the Google offices for a tour and a welcome dinner.
It was great to see some familiar faces, including Dave, a fellow Search Central PE and contributor to the SEO community in general, as well as meet new PEs and Community Managers from other languages.
The second day was when the actual sessions took place. The day started early directly at the Google offices, with a breakfast and a welcome session that included some information and updates about the program, as well as some updates regarding Gemini, YouTube Shopping, and Google Pixel. After this, the PEs were assigned to breakout rooms, where they could attend their preferred product sessions -- 5 in total throughout the day, with a lunch break in between and a closing session at the end.
The SEO-related Sessions
It was a very pleasant surprise to have had all 5 sessions I attended be SEO-related, even if some of them weren't part of the Search Central track. These included the following topics, of which I can share a few general takeaways:
Search Central: What's New in Search, presented by John Mueller:
John shared some insights into the latest updates and changes in Search, as well as addressed some common questions regarding various SEO aspects. Here are some of the key discussions:
- AI Overviews and its continued development based on user feedback
- Updates to structured data, particularly in e-commerce
- Core and spam updates and their impact
- Balancing the needs of users and webmasters for a healthy Search ecosystem
Google Business Profiles - Merchant Center: Brand Profile, presented by Ahmed Fathalla
This session focused on the new Brand Profile feature in Google Business Profile, announced a few months ago, which allows businesses to create a more detailed and engaging profile that impacts, among other things, their visibility in branded searches. The session covered:
- The current state of GBP
- Features and benefits of the new Brand Profile
- The Brand Profile's integration with Google Merchant Center
- Rollout and future developments
Search Central: Rendering in Search, presented by Martin Splitt
Martin talked about some of the most common issues and misconceptions regarding Google's handling of JavaScript, as well as some best practices to follow with regard to debugging and optimizing JS-heavy websites. Here are some of the topics discussed:
- The importance of the DOM when it comes to Google's rendering process
- The impact of JavaScript rendering on indexing and ranking
- The systems and parsers involved in rendering
- Some of the common rendering challenges and how to address them
- Best practices and general advice for optimizing JavaScript-based websites
Search Central: Updates on Shopping structured data, presented by Matthias Wiesmann
The main topics discussed in this session included:
- Payment, shipping details and certifications structured data
- Tagging AI-generated images for products
- The importance of GTIN numbers
- GS1 and Digital Links
- Dealing with challenges related to variations in product data
Search Central: Search Quality Today, presented by Danny Sullivan
This was purely a Q&A session where PEs could ask Danny anything they wanted, and he would answer to the best of his ability. It was a great opportunity to get some insights into the thought process behind some of Google's decisions, as well as some general advice on how to approach certain issues. We discussed topics such as:
- The value of the official Google forums and social media channels for sharing information and receiving feedback
- The inherent challenges behind Core Updates, their impact and the recovery process
- Content quality and helpfulness toward the target audience
- The degree of personalization in search results
- Google's approach to spam and quality control
All of the sessions were also available live in a virtual format, which allowed PEs who couldn't attend in person (either due to being outside the EMEA region or for other reasons) to participate and ask questions as well.
Closing Ceremony and Afterparty
The closing session featured a recap of the event and a ceremony where some PEs were recognized and awarded for their exceptional contributions to the program.
This was followed by an afterparty back at the hotel, with drinks and snacks, live music, and plenty of opportunities to chat and network with everyone.
Final Thoughts
IMHO, the event was a great success, perhaps one of the best summits I've attended so far. Beyond the high-quality sessions and networking opportunities (it's always fun to meet the people behind the forum user handles and Googlers in person), the organization was really top-notch, and the overall atmosphere was very welcoming and friendly.
I'm already looking forward to next year's edition, hoping it matches or even surpasses this one. If you're a PE and have the chance to attend one of these summits, I would highly recommend it. If this is maybe the first time you're hearing about the program, I would also recommend checking it out and seeing if it's something you'd be interested in joining, if you have a bit of free time and would like to share your knowledge to help others.
Here is a video:
Photos in this post are courtesy of Google's Product Experts Program or taken by me during the event.
