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 ongoing efforts to improve its lously support features for advertisers. Google Discover will be coming to desktop. Google Knowledge Panels has AI Overviews that now include link references. Google Business Profiles performance reports now show messaging clicks. Google Business Profiles API for some reason shows driving direction requests for SABs, where there is no way to drive there. Google updated some of its Merchant Center product specifications. Google AdSense launched a beta rewarded ads feature.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
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Google Discover Coming To Desktop After Years Of Testing
We've seen Google test showing Google Discover on the desktop home page for years now but Google has now confirmed it will be bringing Discover to its desktop Google.com home page in the future. When that will happen exactly, I don't know, but Google did announce it at the Search Central Live event in Madrid this morning. -
Google Business Profiles API Showing Driving Request For SABs?
I am hearing reports that Google is showing driving direction request data on the Google Business Profile API for Service Area Businesses (SABs). SABs do not get a directions button, because those addresses are hidden in Google Search and Google Maps - so how does anyone trigger driving directions to that business? -
Google Business Profiles Performance Messaging Clicks Report
Google seems to be rolling out a new metric in the Google Business Profiles performance report for "messaging clicks." This was a feature we had in the old Google My Business reports in 2020 but it went away. But now it seems to be returning. -
Google Knowledge Panel AI Overview With Reference Links
Google has been using AI to write parts of the knowledge panels for some time now. But now it seems, when Google does that, it will show references and link cards, like it does in the AI Overviews. -
Google Ads: Ongoing Efforts To Improve Support Experiences
Ginny Marvin, Google's Ads Liaison, said that the Google Ads team is working on improvement the advertiser support experiences and some improvements have been rolling out. "There are ongoing efforts to improve experiences and outcomes for the millions of businesses and agencies around the globe that use Google Ads," Ginny Marvin wrote on X. -
Google AdSense New Rewarded Ads Beta
Google AdSense has a new version of rewarded ads - not the Rewarded Ad Gate beta program that we covered in 2022 but the AdSense rewarded ad units beta program. -
Google Updates Some Merchant Center Product Specs
Google has made a number of updates to its Merchant Center product data specifications, including some that went into effect on April 8th and some that will go into effect on July 1, 2025. -
Google Tie Dye Team Building Event
Google held a team building event for one of the many Google teams. This event consisted of Googlers making tie dye clothing and art at the office.
Other Great Search Threads:
- So on the wild side of Search, we put together a fun little hunt for you. Search for various Pokémon and see how many you can catch! Here's a head start.., Rajan Patel on X
- The 202503 Chrome User Experience (CrUX) release is now live on BigQuery! Check out the announcement post for the full info: groups.google.com/a/chromium.o... Highlights below, Barry Pollard on Bluesky
- You'll need real links if you want to be sure. Sometimes things that look like URLs are picked up, but real links are real links., John Mueller on Bluesky
- Checking in at Google Search Central Madrid - see you all soon!, John Mueller on Bluesky
- I don't have any insight into that particular particular behavior, but some queries make sense to refine more (perhaps not that one), we make a lot of live experiments that don't make the cut in the end, and also I don't see any ads there., John Mueller on Bluesky
Search Engine Land Stories:
- Google vision match vs. traditional search: Early insights on AI shopping tool
- Join Google, Chewy, and Amazon at SMX Advanced!
- Your 2025 playbook for AI-powered cross-channel brand visibility
- Google Search Console updates its Merchant opportunities report
Other Great Search Stories:
Analytics
- How to Track your Search vs AI vs Social Disruption in Looker Studio & what to do..., Seer Interactive
Industry & Business
- Democratic US senators question Google and Microsoft's AI deals, Reuters
- The History of Search Engines: From Infoseek to AI, SuccessWorks
- Google Accused Of Secretly Harvesting Student School Data, Law360
Links & Content Marketing
- Cultural Marketing: Dialing in on Regional Markets, Level343
- Key Considerations for Choosing an AI Content Creator, BruceClay
- When Links Go Wrong: Why News and Media Publishers Need To Embrace Earned Links And Ditch Nofollow [Publisher FAQs], GSQI
Local & Maps
- Astonishing moment driver shoots off a 40ft unfinished bridge after getting confused by Google Maps - with a miraculous landing, Daily Mail Online
- How to Find (Not Guess) Your Target Audience: A Data-Driven Approach, SparkToro
Mobile & Voice
- Exclusive: Google says all upcoming Google TV remotes will have a 'Free TV' button, Android Authority
- Gemini Live’s screensharing feature is rolling out to Pixel 9 and Galaxy S25 devices, The Verge
- In focus: the random Google News audio downloads, Podcast
SEO
- How to Close the Gap Between SEO Recommendation and Execution, Moz
- How to Rank Product Pages in Google’s New Product SERPs, Sitebulb
- Is LLM optimization the same as SEO? — According to SEO Week experts, Wix Studio
- Navigating AI Chatbots and AIOs: Key Observations & Strategies, Schema App Solutions
- Revolutionizing online shopping: AI search meets agentic intelligence, Oncrawl
- SEO Data Study: How Often Google Changes Title Tags and Why | Google Will Probably Change This Title, John Mcalpin
PPC
- 5 Smart Ways to Spy On Your Competitors’ Ads, Ahrefs
- Finding the Sweet Spot: Automated Ad Creation vs Control in Google Ads 2025, Hopskip Media
- Tag Diagnostics Gets Smarter With 3 New Alerts, PPC News Feed
- Work Smarter, Not Harder: Mastering Automated Rules in Google & Microsoft Ads, JumpFly
- Generative AI Copy Cats; Time To Take Down Google Search Partners?, AdExchanger
- Google Ads PMax vs. Demand Gen: Which is Best for B2B?, Jyll Saskin Gales
Search Features
Other Search
- Can Perplexity's AI-driven search tool beat Google?, Boston Globe
- Deep Research is now available on Gemini 2.5 Pro Experimental., Google Blog
- Geospatial Reasoning: Unlocking insights with generative AI and multiple foundation models, Google Research Blog
Feedback:
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