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.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
- Google: Geolocation Redirects Are Okay
This is not a new topic, we've been saying this for probably over a decade and even Matt Cutts posted a video answer on it in 2013. But hey - John Mueller from Google answered it again. You are allowed to do geolocation based redirects, directing US users to your US site, German users to your German site, as long as you don't treat Googlebot differently than a user. - Google's New Design For Lyrics In Search Results On Mobile
I don't follow the lyrics search results too closely but back in 2014 Google added full lyrics to their search results. Since they added translation features to it last year. Now, according to Glenn Gabe they redesigned the mobile interface for the lyrics to be in this panel like UI. - Google AJAX Crawling Scheme Workarounds?
I spotted John Mueller of Google giving a Reddit user advice on how to handle helping Google index content that still uses some of the old AJAX crawling scheme that Google deprecated long ago. I don't fully understand the advice but here it is. - Google Local Listings Tests Your Match Scores
Google is testing a feature in the local listings, the local pack, that shows how closely the listings match you. It is a feature Google announced but did not launch back in May 2018 called "your match." Through machine learning Google shows "a number that suggests how likely you are to enjoy a place and reasons explaining why." - Google My Business: Reconfirm Location Vs Verify Now
I am not sure what this is about but one local SEO is being asked to verify their business by clicking verify now or reconfirm location. I am not sure what the difference is and neither are any of the local SEOs in the Local Search Forums. - Facebook Vinyl Record Player With Records Swag
Here is a photo of a holiday swag pile sent to Pedro Dias and team from Facebook. It included a vinyl record player with vinyl records to play. Here is a photo of it from his post on Twitter. Below a
Other Great Search Forum Threads:
- This is odd. Search query 'Liverpool One' and 'Bristol One' at 11:40am. Any thoughts on this @JohnMu @rustybrick ?…, Chris Lever on Twitter
- @rustybrick Analytics now showing hours of the day, as default for the daily view?…, Jonathan Hatton on Twitter
- Hey, folks! @markemunroe is asking y'all for experience with migrating to/from dynamic rendering: https://t.co/2Dm2iyvkoa - I'm interested in those stories, too so please share and respond if you did some prerende, Martin Splitt @ on Twitter
- I'd post in the webmaster help forum for questions like these -- it seems to be something specific to your site, so having the URL & more background information would be useful for the folks there to help rule things out, or h, John Mueller on Twitter
- Is citation quality getting worse?, Local Search Forum
- Negative Review Attack, Local Search Forum
- Twitter to Test Conversation Tweets Feature, WebmasterWorld
- View the freshest satellite imagery in Google Earth with the new 3D toggle!, Google Maps Help
Search Engine Land Stories:
- In-depth with Bing Webmaster Tools — the definitive guide
- Google lets user see their related search history with new card
- 10 reasons you need to attend SMX West
- Google Assistant updates: Airline check-ins, hotel bookings, language translation and Maps
Other Great Search Stories:
Analytics
- Free Local Marketing Dashboards For Small Business, Helpfullee
- Lotte Hotel boosts booking rates by 49% with Google Optimize, Google
Industry & Business
- Google Clash Over Global Right to Be Forgotten Returns to Court, Bloomberg
- Google Signs Lease At Once Bustling Westside Pavilion Shopping Center, Deadline
Links & Promotion Building
- Backlinks: The Most Important Google Ranking Factor, The Upper Ranks
Local & Maps
- Google Assistant is coming to Google Maps, TechRadar
- Google Maps driver performed wheel spins to try and stop fatal stabbing, Metro News
Mobile & Voice
- Everything Google Assistant at CES: new features, new devices, and a Trojan horse, The Verge
- Here’s all the Google Assistant news from CES 2019, Fast Company
- How to enable Continued Conversations for Google Assistant speakers, Android Central
SEO
- A Small Business Owner's Guide to SEO, Search Engine Journal
- How to Convince Clients to Buy Your SEO Services - Common Questions + Best Answers, Cognitive SEO
- How to Do a Content Audit and Boost Your Organic Traffic [Template Included], ahrefs.com
- The marketer's 2019 SEO checklist, Vertical Leap
PPC
- Reimagine the Commercial Break in 2019, Google Blog
- The Evolution of Google Exact Match & What It Means for PPC Advertisers, Metric Theory
- What an API is and How it can Enhance PPC, PPC Hero
Search Features
- Building a Better World Wide Web, Chromium Blog
Other Search
- Google Public DNS now supports DNS-over-TLS, Google Online Security Blog
