Daily Search Forum Recap: January 30, 2025

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 search ranking volatility seems to be spiking once again, have you noticed. Google AI Overviews are testing really deep answers. Google explained why they only allow 100 negative keywords for the new PMax controls. I explained how to find Google Maps SAB access links. Google Business Profiles has new batch pricing and moving features for restaurants. Microsoft announced its earnings reports and search ads are up 21%.

Search Engine Roundtable Stories:

• Google Search Ranking Volatility Heats Up January 29 & 30th
  Google Search ranking volatility spiked and heated again over the past 24-hours or so. I am seeing renewed chatter spike up yesterday, January 29th and continue through today. I am also seeing that some of the tracking tools are showing an increase in ranking volatility within Google Search over the past day.
• Google: Why 100 Negative Keywords For Google Ads PMax Campaigns
  Ginny Marvin, the Google Ads Liaison, explained why Google is only letting you add up to 100 negative keywords to your campaign-level negative keywords within your Performance Max campaigns on Google Ads.
• Google Business Profiles Gains Batch Price Editing & Moving Menu Items
  We recently covered how you can now drag and drop menu items for your restaurant in your Google Business Profiles. But Google also seemed to add the ability to move menu items between sections of your menu and the ability to batch edit pricing of menu items.
• Google AI Overviews Go Deeper With Gemini 2.0?
  In early December, Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Google, said Google is starting to test powering AI Overviews with Gemini 2.0. Well, we may be starting to see some of that in the wild, with much deeper and detailed AI Overviews and citations.
• Google Maps Service Area Business Access Request Link
  Did you know there is a quick way to directly generate an access request for Service Area Businesses in Google Maps? This is apparently not so new but also not widely known.
• Microsoft Bing Advertising Revenue Up 21%
  Microsoft reported its second quarter 2025 earnings and it showed that its search and advertising revenue was up 21%. The previous quarter it was up 18%, then 19% but before than it was 12% and 8% - so things are looking more positive.
• Google Skull Corn Painting Art
  Google has this artwork, this painting, hanging in the lobby at the Google office in Mexico. I am not sure what it is, I suspect it is famous. It looks like a skull with corn.

Other Great Search Threads:

• Google updated the font for reviews and replies, Local Search Forum
• For the first time in my 14 years of experience with Google Ads, I noticed that Google Ads services can now be restricted. The violation policies introduced last year are finally being enforced., Natasha Kaurra on LinkedIn
• I’m excited to share that flight price tracking is now available on Bing Travel. Simply search for your desired flight and enable price tracking for your travel dates. You'll receive notifications of major price drops, helping yo, Jordi Ribas on X
• CNBC This report is misleading. “Sensitive” is simply used in our internal systems for countries that see different official names in Maps (like a different name for a body of water) — that’s all there is to it. This is co, News from Google on X
• I don't think search engines would be able to recognize that as a word given each letter is in a separate DIV. I would either not worry about it (I doubt you're trying to appear in search for "stay in touch"), or find another way to do the, John Mueller on Bluesky
• So, the only reliable search-news-only dedicated website we have is @seroundtable... Or am I missing something?, Pedro Dias on X

Search Engine Land Stories:

• Search ad spending surged in Q4 2024, with retail media leading: report
• How marketing leaders are adjusting Google, AI search strategies
• Is Google testing Gemini 2.0 powered AI Overviews?
• AI optimization: How to optimize your content for AI search and agents
• Exact match keywords in Google Ads: Everything you need to know
• Google opens Meridian, its marketing measurement tool, to all users
• Your guide to SEO forecasting with Google Sheets
• Title tags and SEO: Everything you need to know in 2025

Other Great Search Stories:

Analytics

• Demystifying Google Analytics and Search Console data, Google Search Central YouTube
• Google’s latest Chrome update leaves third-party cookie phase-out as unclear as ever, Digiday

Industry & Business

• Chinese and Iranian Hackers Are Using U.S. AI Products to Bolster Cyberattacks, Wall Street Journal
• Judge says Apple left it too late to defend its $20B+ deal with Google, 9to5Mac
• Microsoft Continues A.I. Spending Growth as Profit Grows 10%, New York Times
• Microsoft's AI revenue run rate reaches $13B annually as tech giant tops earnings expectations, GeekWire

Links & Content Marketing

• Effective Comparison Pages: 6 Steps for Better Conversion Rates, Semrush
• Example-led Content To Fight AI Content [Content Asset Example], Media First Brand
• Google Says "Links Matter Less"—We Looked at 1,000,000 SERPs and Our Data Both Agrees and Disagrees, Ahrefs
• Marketing Toolkit To Improve Your Content Operations, Content Marketing Institute

Local & Maps

• Do We Really Need Another SEO Weather Report?, Local SEO Guide
• Local Consumer Review Survey 2024: Trends, Behaviors, and Platforms Explored, BrightLocal
• Major League Soccer returns to Apple TV on February 22, AppleInsider

Mobile & Voice

• Apple Vision Pro review one year later: time to exit the preview, AppleInsider
• How we kept the Google Play & Android app ecosystems safe in 2024, Google Online Security Blog

SEO

• "Crawled - Currently Not Indexed" Status In Google Search Console (What It Means And How To Fix), SEOSLY
• Are Author Bios A Ranking Factor? Of Course Not., Nikki Pilkington
• Google’s Autocomplete is Shaping Your Brand— Take Control, Search Engine World
• Hey SEOs, here' how to grab your bag (of $), SERP's Up SEO Podcast
• How to make sure you aren't blocking AI crawlers in robots.txt for ecommerce, Search Pilot
• Measuring your visibility and traffic from Google’s AI Overviews, Hallam
• SEO ‘Is on A Dying Path or Not”: What Google Says?, Bitvero
• SEO Myths Debunked - Why Mobile-First Doesn't Mean Mobile-Only, Nikki Pilkington
• The 'Perfect SEO Page' Formula Doesn't Exist, Nikki Pilkington

PPC

• Feed Uploader Updated in GMC, PPC News Feed
• Google Ads: Avoid Duplicating Keywords by Match Type, Jyll Saskin Gales
• Join the Google Ads API Research Group, Google Ads Developer Blog
• Meridian is now available to everyone, Google Blog
• You Can Now Download Filtered Products In Google Merchant Center, FeedArmy

Search Features

• Celebrate the Year of the Snake with Google, Google Blog
• Google Search adds new ‘Block Breaker’ game, 9to5Google

Other Search

• DeepSeek Debuts with 83 Percent ‘Fail Rate’ in NewsGuard’s Chatbot Red Team Audit, News Guard Reality Check

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