Daily Search Forum Recap: July 24, 2024

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.

We spotted another Google search ranking volatility again around July 23rd. An SEO poll says 54% of SEOs saw positive effects from Google updates. Google Local Service Ads adds new budget options. Google Search is outlining videos in the search results. Google announced earnings and their ad revenue is up again, this time 11%.

Search Engine Roundtable Stories:

• Google Search Ranking Algorithm Volatility - July 23rd
  I probably should have covered this yesterday but I have been seeing more ranking volatility starting late on Monday, July 22nd, through yesterday, July 23rd and into today July 24th. This may be a continuation from what we saw last week or maybe something new - it is hard to tell.
• Google Ad Revenue Up 11% - $64.62 Billion In Ad Revenue
  Google / Alphabet reported its Q2 2024 earnings last night, where its ad revenue hit $64.62 billion, up 11% from last year's quarter of $58.14 billion. Clearly, Google's advertising business continues to grow despite any economic downturn we may have seen.
• SEO Poll: 54% Of SEOs Saw Positive Effects From Google Updates
  Aleyda Solis posted the results of a poll she ran, which showed 54% say their sites have seen mostly a positive effect from Google Updates in the last couple of years. John Mueller from Google replied to that poll saying, "While there are exceptions, life as an SEO or when working on the web is not about doom & gloom."
• New Google Local Service Ads Budget Options
  Google has added new ad budget options and features to Local Service Ads. You can now set a maximum monthly ad spend limit for the month for some accounts.
• Google Outlines Videos In Search Results
  Google seems to have changed how it shows large videos in the search results. I am now seeing them show these gray lines, outlining the video box, in the Google Search results.
• Google Receptionist - The Seattle Seahawks Blitz Mascot
  Here is an old photo I recently found at the Google Kirkland, Seattle office. You can see the Seattle Seahawks mascot, aka the Blitz, sitting at the front desk at the Google office there.

Other Great Search Threads:

• It can make sense to temporarily keep a sitemap with the old URLs, but that sitemap file doesn't need to be hosted on the old site. It's not critical, I wouldn't lose any sleep if you can't do it., John Mueller on LinkedIn
• Ok I've never seen this before?! @rustybrick is this new? An organic link pointing to a Google search page... is this a new sticky tactic to keep users on Google? @dejanseo, nikrangerseo on X
• Shopify now supports ProductGroup Schema generation for variant products via the structured_data Liquid filter., Kyle Risley on X
• This is only for a small segment of advertisers. Impacted customers are notified directly by Google along with instructions and deadline information., AdsLiaison on X
• Would you consider buying a car that does NOT have Android Auto or Apple CarPlay?, Marques Brownlee on X

Search Engine Land Stories:

• Advertisers react to Google keeping cookies on Chrome
• Google offers enhanced conversions consultations
• Could AI eventually make SEO obsolete?
• Digital marketing primer: Understanding strategies and measuring success
• Survey: User satisfaction with Google grows in 2024
• Yelp expands ad offerings for national brands and advertisers

Other Great Search Stories:

Analytics

• Customize GA4 reports to inform clients & get buy-in, Wix SEO Hub
• GA4 to Piwik PRO Using Server-side Google Tag Manager, Simo Ahava's blog

Industry & Business

• Google Q2 earnings: Search is still thriving despite a shift to AI, Fast Company
• Google’s Aborted Deals for Wiz, HubSpot Show Antitrust’s Shadow Over Tech, Bloomberg
• OpenAI Removes AI Safety Leader Mądry, a Onetime Ally of CEO Altman, The Information
• Alphabet moves past stumbles in AI to deliver positive story to investors, CNBC
• Alphabet's Investors Want Data on AI Returns but No One Has Answers, Business Insider
• Google’s $23 Billion Snub From Wiz Will Sting Both Tech Companies, Bloomberg

Links & Content Marketing

• Creative People Aren’t Wicked Problems To Solve, Content Marketing Institute
• How to use internal linking for SEO, Google Search Central YouTube
• Using NLP to improve content relevance, Oncrawl

Local & Maps

• Apple Maps in iOS 18: This Is Either the Worst Change Ever or a Brilliant Feature, AutoEvolution
• Google Maps adds hazard reports to its CarPlay app — but Android Auto users are left out, iMore
• One new change to Apple Maps in iOS 18 is panned by some users, PhoneArena
• Use Apple Maps topographic hiking trails on iPhone, 9to5Mac

Mobile & Voice

• Alexa Is in Millions of Households—and Amazon Is Losing Billions, Wall Street Journal
• Apple Moves Forward With Foldable iPhone, The Information
• Future Apple Vision Pro may let users create their own gestures, AppleInsider
• Google TV on televisions, Android app can no longer buy TV shows, 9to5Google
• Lake Vrangla environment appears for all Apple Vision Pro users, AppleInsider
• Meta's AI assistant is coming to Quest headsets in the US and Canada, Engadget

SEO

• A High-Level Overview of How Social Media and SEO Can Work Together, BruceClay
• Irrelevant Keywords: What They Are & How to Avoid Them, Semrush
• Programmatic SEO With Zapier’s Former Lead SEO, Siege Media
• Ranking factors vs. Conversion factors, SearchLab Digital
• Search traffic declines — and what to do, SEO For Journalism
• 7 Technical Issues that Kill SEO and How to Spot Them, JumpFly
• The success & failures of an SEO agency, SERP's Up SEO Podcast

PPC

• 5 Low-Cost Google Marketing Strategies to Grow Your Business, WordStream
• Celebrating our partner: Full Stack Experts, Microsoft Advertising
• Google’s cookie reversal causes uncertainty—ad execs and insiders react, Ad Age
• Leveraging Customer Match for Enhanced Paid Search Campaigns: A Guide for Experienced Advertisers, PPC Hero

Search Features

• Data for A.I. Training Is Disappearing Fast, Study Shows, New York Times
• Google Lens history gets a photo grid UI , 9to5Google
• Microsoft Partners With Publishers to Power Coupons in Bing SERPs, Hello Partner
• 8 ways Google can help you keep up with the Olympic Games Paris 2024, Google Blog
• Google Earning Call - Here is Everything What was said about AI Overviews, Gagan Ghotra

Other Search

• Fast, accurate climate modeling with NeuralGCM, Google Research Blog
• Google's AI weather and climate forecasting model makes advances, Axios
• Meta AI Is Now Multilingual, More Creative and Smarter, Meta

Feedback:

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