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.
The Google search volatility tracking tools have finally calmed down but there are still, as always, complaints about ranking changes. A big Google Maps pin exploit has been reportedly fixed after almost a year of complaints. Google updated its manual actions for Google News and Google Discover. Bing is testing new AI copilot answer boxes that are more published friendly. Bing is testing bold sponsored labels in the search results. Google Search is testing related reviews carousels in the search result snippets.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
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Google Search Ranking Volatility Tools Cool Down
For the first time in forever (see what I did there?) the third-party Google Search volatility tools have cooled down to normal volatility levels. The chatter has been somewhat more typical levels over the past week, that is not to say some have not seen decreases or increases in their search visibility, but as a whole, it seems things have calmed down a bit. -
Google Map Pin Attack Exploit Fixed
Google has reportedly fixed the Google Maps pin attack exploit that has been lingering on with Google for several months. The exploit allowed one to move business locations to another location, making them disappear in the rankings and local pack for relevant searches. -
Google Manual Actions For News & Discover Policy Violations Updated
A few months ago, Google quietly updated the manual action policy violations list for News and Discover policy violations. Google removed the adult-theme and artificial freshening sections and then added a slew of deceptive practices sections, while also updating the hateful content section. -
Bing Tests Updated AI Copilot Answer Which Is More Publisher Friendly
Microsoft is testing an updated Bing Search AI answer box powered by Copilot is testing an updated interface, that seems to promote links to publishers more. The links are more publisher-friendly, including showing the full domain name of the publisher and includes the site's favicon, which helps with branding. -
Google Search Result Snippets Related Reviews Carousel
Google Search has these search results snippets that show a related reviews carousel under the snippet. You can swipe through the related reviews and then click on them to reveal a YouTube video or other format of a review. -
Bing Testing Bold Sponsored Labels
Microsoft is testing using bold sponsored labels in the Bing Search results. So instead of the very hard to see sponsored labels in Bing Search, Microsoft is testing bolding those sponsored labels. -
Google Rustic Lumber Arch Doorway
I found this interesting looking door at the Google Colorado office on Instagram. Looks like a cabin door, but more rustic, with an arch, and looks big. I am not sure why there is this door there but there is.
Other Great Search Threads:
- Bing testing product list with AI, Sachin Patel on X
- Great job, @searchliaison. You guys resurrected MarketWatch articles authored by Three Ships writers and started ranking them high on the first page again. I guess Zombie parasite SEO is a thing now., Goog Enough on X
- Have you ever seen a single local ad without a Google Business Panel map at the top of a SERP? Maybe even mixed in with regular Google Ads?, Frank Sandtmann on Mastodon
- Now showing that drop across all three visibility tools. Yes, Reddit still has a ton of visibility, but that's a pretty big drop so far... And like I explained yesterday, that's across organic listings and SERP features like PAA, ima, Glenn Gabe on X
- Well, I have thoughts; but I'll spend some time to draft them lest folks take them out of context & spin up confusing blog posts., John Mueller on Bluesky
- News for #seo minds as Google uses surveys to judge serps results., Andrew Girdwood on Bluesky
- TIL people are blocking a CheeseBot in robots.txt... darkvisitors.com/agents/chees..., John Mueller on Bluesky
Search Engine Land Stories:
- Paid search helps drive record-breaking $241.4 billion holiday season: Report
- The latest jobs in search marketing
- The Getty-Shutterstock merger: A new era for image SEO and licensable content
- Google Ads for SMBs: How to maximize paid search success
- YouTube trends report reveals 7 significant shifts
Other Great Search Stories:
Analytics
- Does Google’s U-Turn On Fingerprinting ‘Open New Opportunities’ Or Is It ‘Irresponsible’?, AdExchanger
Industry & Business
Links & Content Marketing
- What’s Lost When AI-Generated Characters Lie and Misrepresent?, Content Marketing Institute
Local & Maps
- How to Build Local Landing Pages That Drive Traffic, GMBapi
- How to Respond to Google Reviews, Sterling Sky
- iOS 18.4 to Let EU Users Set Google Maps as Default Navigation App, MacRumors
- Waze Is Better Than Google Maps: This Feature Proves Waze Is the Traffic Reporting King, AutoEvolution
Mobile & Voice
- Semantic Keywords For SEO - What Are They And Why Do You Need Them?, Nikki Pilkington
- Apple 2025 Plans: iPhone 17, Smart Home Hub, iOS 19, AI, Apple Watch, iPads, M5, Bloomberg
- Smartphone Market Recovers In 2024 After Two Years Of Decline, Counterpoint Research
SEO
- Finding Striking Distance Keywords — Whiteboard Friday, Moz
- Marketers: stop selling your hours, Product Led SEO
- The most important ranking methods for modern search engines, Kopp Consulting
- How Content Quality Affects Google News Indexing Delays, VProexpert
PPC
- Amazon to Sell Ad Tools to Other E-Commerce Sites, The Information
- Google Ads API v16 sunset reminder, Google Ads Developer Blog
- Are Bid Limits Killing Your Google Ads Performance?, Jyll Saskin Gales
Search Features
- Google search ends in frustration after AI images dominate results: 'The internet is dead', The Cool Down
- How to use Google Deep Research to save hours of time, Popular Science
Other Search
- OpenAI, Google Are Paying Content Creators for Unused Video to Train Algorithms, Bloomberg
- Behold the AI Slop Dominating Google Image Results for "Does Corn Get Digested", Futurism
- Google Cloud announces new AI tools for retailers at NRF 2025, Google Blog
Feedback:
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