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 Ads has this new "used since" column in its PMax reports. Google said merging content is more challenging than site moves for Google Search. A URL is known to Google in Search Console has no priority for Google Search. You can bulk manage special hours in Google Business Profiles. Google frequently saved labels now are showing on some local results.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
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Google Ads New Used Since Column For PMax
Google Ads is testing adding a new column to its Performance Max reports named "Used Since." This column is visible on the asset level and it shows the date an asset was added. -
Google: Merging Content More Challenging Than Site Moves For SEO
John Mueller from Google said that merging content is always more challenging than a basic site move. Meaning, when you take a look at your content on your site and decide to merge a bunch of the content into fewer URLs, that takes longer for Google to handle than moving a site from domain A to domain B with no other changes. -
URL Is Unknown To Google In Search Console Means URL Has No Priority
Gary Illyes from Google said that if a URL has a status within Google Search Console as "URL is unknown to Google" that means that URL is really unknown to Google and has zero priority within Google Search systems. -
Google Business Profiles Now Allows Bulk Managing Special Hours
Google has added a method to bulk manage the special hours for all the businesses you manage in Google Business Profiles. You can easily copy special hours from one business listing to others. -
Google Search Tests Frequently Saved Label On Local Results
Google Search is testing the frequently saved label not just in the main search results but also on the local results, the places section, of the Google Search results. -
Google Nike Shoe Hack
Here is a Googler hacking a Nike shoe, a Nike Air Max 1. You can see it light up and dim after the hack. This was worked on Google NYC office and Ben Wiley who posted this on Instagram wrote, "one of my favorite semi-failed shoe hacks was making an IRL light up air max 1 inspired by the original launch poster (last photo). basically adult light up shoes that are smart and don't just light up when you stomp, but they can do that too."
Other Great Search Threads:
- More like grow your site's spam, right?, John Mueller on Bluesky
- Search patent of the week: Systems and methods for improving the…, Olaf Kopp on LinkedIn
- ChatGPT just told me to reach out to an SEO professional. I guess our jobs are safe!, Jacqui Reed on X
- Gonna write an SEO thinkpiece about how NVIDIA is down 17% because of what I discovered after I dug through 24 of their title tags., Dr. Pete Meyers on Bluesky
- Happy Monday, everyone! #robots.txt, John Mueller on Bluesky
- Local SEO Tips For Car Dealerships, Local Search Forum
- We’ve received a few questions about naming within Google Maps. We have a longstanding practice of applying name changes when they have been updated in official government sources., News from Google on X
Search Engine Land Stories:
- Microsoft Performance Max testing LinkedIn targeting, measurement tools
- YouTube testing cost-per-hour masthead
- Ex-Hubspotters reveal 5 SEO insights about HubSpot’s traffic woes
- Top Google Ads recommendations you should always ignore, use, or evaluate
- Yahoo testing new AI Search features
- Why branding matters for in-house SEO teams
Other Great Search Stories:
Analytics
Industry & Business
- Perplexity Tiktok revised merger proposal, CNBC
- Google Rages Over ‘Grave’ EU Errors in €4.3 Billion Android Fine, Bloomberg
- Google to Fight $4.33 Billion EU Antitrust Fine Over Android, Wall Street Journal
Links & Content Marketing
- Uncover Your Competitor‘s Organic Content Strategy with the Semrush Topics Report, Semrush
- Why AI Makes Content Planning Out Loud More Important Than Ever, Content Marketing Institute
Local & Maps
- Google Maps to show Gulf of America after government updates, CNBC
- Google Maps update makes Android Auto look a little worse, 9to5Google
Mobile & Voice
- Apple turns its AI on by default in latest software update, CNBC
- Building Toward a Smarter, More Personalized Assistant, Meta
- China’s DeepSeek Tops iPhone Downloads and Spurs AI Selloff, Yahoo Finance
- iOS 18.3 updates Visual Intelligence, notification summaries, AppleInsider
- iPadOS 18.3 is here with bug fixes & Apple Intelligence changes, AppleInsider
- visionOS 2.3 arrives with bug fixes and little else, AppleInsider
- watchOS 11.3 is now available for the Apple Watch, AppleInsider
SEO
- 2025 News SEO Trends & Predictions: Insights from 16 Global Experts on What’s Next, NewzDash
- Enterprise SEO: Don't Walk Before You Can Crawl, Screaming Frog
- Google Loves It, Users Trust It: The UGC Revolution Explained, Search Engine World
- How Insanely Long Title Tags Help You Rank Better on Google, Sterling Sky
- Technical concepts every news SEO needs to know, SEO For Journalism
- Traffic Is Down; Revenue Is... Up?, SparkToro
- 25 Experts Share Their Local SEO Predictions for 2025, BrightLocal
- How To Audit Crawl Depth & Improve Crawl Efficiency, Sitebulb
- SEO Query Answer Classifier Tool, Sara Taher
PPC
- Bidding on Branded Terms Increases Clicks by 18.3%, Ahrefs
- Control ads identifier usage with IMA DAI SDK by setting your network code, Google Ads Developer Blog
- Google Limits PMax Negative Keywords: How to Adjust Your Strategy, Cypress North
- Why Microsoft Ads is the Secret Agent of PPC, PPC Live
- Google Ads Recommends Specific Location Targeting, PPC News Feed
Search Features
- Google Begins New Testing of Search-Results Display in EU, MarketWatch
- Is Google Stealing Higher Ed SEO with AI Overviews, too?, Will Scott On LinkedIn
Other Search
- DeepSeek vs. ChatGPT: Hands On With DeepSeek's R1 Chatbot, Wired
- Google market share countries 2025, Statista
- The YouTube Algorithms in 2025 — Explained!, YouTube Creator Insider
- Sam Altman Praises DeepSeek R1 and Promises More From OpenAI, Bloomberg
- The leading AI models are now good historians, Benjamin Breen
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