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 Search Ranking Update On July 23rd & 24th
I am seeing some early chatter and signals that there may be another, currently unconfirmed, Google search ranking algorithm update happening. It seems to have started yesterday, July 23rd and continuing throughout today, July 24th. - Search Buzz Video Recap: Google Algorithm Update, Mobile-First Indexing Deadline, Twitter Is Back, Google Breaks Again & Apple Ranking Factors
It looks like you all need some relaxation, so this week I took you to the beach - not that I ever go to beaches but hey, it is a green screen. In the search news, it seems like we have a Google search ranking update yesterday and today... - Google: Multiple Fact Checks Rich Results May Not Show In Search
Google has updated its developer documentation to clarify that if you use multiple fact checks on a page it may not show up in the search results as rich results. - WordPress 5.5 With Google Sitemaps Integration In Its Core
For over a year, Google said it is working with the WordPress team to build in to the core of WordPress the ability to generate XML Sitemaps. Well, now with WordPress 5.5 it is now out. Pascal Birchler from Google announced on WordPress.org "in WordPress 5.5, a new feature is being introduced that adds basic, extensible XML sitemaps functionality into WordPress core." - Buy on Google Now Commission Free & Adds PayPal and Shopify Options
Google announced that it is making Buy on Google commission free. This comes after Google has made Google Shopping free both in Google Shopping and Google Search. Also, Google said retailers can use either PayPal and Shopify for payments and will support more in the future. - Google: Split Things Up When Revamping Your Web Site
If you are tearing down your web site and rebuilding it completely from the ground up, you should expect a lot of search ranking fluctuations. If you want to control and track as much as you can on the SEO side, it is recommended you do it in stages and split the process up. - Google Search Displays Flight & Hotel COVID-19 Impact
Google seems to be testing a new feature that shows the travel trends in a specific city. Google is showing the percentage of flights operating in that area and the percentage of hotels with availability. I am not sure if this is a COVID-19 feature or just a generic Google Travel feature. - Google Search Console Adds Share Report Feature
Google Search Console has a new (I think it is new) button to let you share a report with someone else through a secure link. The share button is next to the export button on many of the reports. At the time I am writing this, I do not see the button but David Iwanow shared a screen shot on Twitter. - Photos Of Google Chicago Fire Pit
We've covered a number of fire pits at Google offices including one inside the Google Chicago office. Here are numerous photos from different times from the rooftop fire pit at the Google Chicago offi
Other Great Search Forum Threads:
- I don't feel comfortable saying things about Wikipedia in general (since I really don't know the details), but Wikipedia has been at the receiving end of the worst of SEO for an extremely long, John Mueller on Twitter
- EBay Sells Classified Ads Business to Adevinta for $9.2 billion, WebmasterWorld
- Just to be clear, Google doesn't use Domain Authority *at all* when it comes to Search crawling, indexing, or ranking. This is pretty clear on their site. We do, however, index twe, John Mueller on Twitter
- Testing content and page rendering for new website, WebmasterWorld
- These seem like pretty reasonable recommendations though -- especially government sites struggle with the basics sometimes. There's a feedback link too, for specifics. Also, I doubt those writing these docs can fix, John Mueller on Twitter
Search Engine Land Stories:
- Next on Live with Search Engine Land: What’s New With The Bing Webmaster Guidelines
- The importance of valuing latent orders to successful Amazon Sponsored Products management
- Common Shopify SEO pitfalls and how to avoid them
- COVID-19 is the asteroid that struck American small business
- Product feed optimization: Here’s more reason to use those attributes
- Buy on Google goes commission-free, will enable checkout via PayPal, Shopify
- Why SEOs are going to miss the Structured Data Testing Tool
Other Great Search Stories:
Analytics
- 15 Ways to Reduce Direct Traffic in Google Analytics, Analytics Mania
- how to measure button events with Google Tag Manager and Analytics, PitchGround
- Serving Strategic Reports to Internal Stakeholders, Bounteous
- Sitecore Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager Integration, In Marketing We Trust
Industry & Business
- EU demands major concessions from Google over Fitbit deal, Ars Technica
- Steve Wozniak sues Google over YouTube bitcoin scam, CNET
- What emergency funding means for publishers around the world, Google Blog
Links & Content Marketing
- The Campaign Comeback: What to Do When Content Fails — Best of Whiteboard Friday, Moz
- Why Readability Is Important For Content, Koozai
Local & Maps
Mobile & Voice
SEO
- 7 Questions to Ask Before Working with an SEO Agency, iPullRank
- Changes in Technical SEO, Searchmetrics
- Core Web Vitals - Google's Benchmark for Page Experience, SISTRIX
- Social Media SEO: 7 Easy Ways to Use Social Media to Improve Your SEO, SEM Rush
PPC
Search Features
- Buy on Google is now open and commission-free, Google Blog
Other Search
