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 are seeing more explosive Google search ranking volatility again and still no confirmed Google update - yet. Google is testing over 10+ shopping ads as a way to promote more discovery Google said.Google is testing showing AI Overviews in incognito mode. Google may be showing fewer top stories for political figures. We have a recap of Google's EMEA Product Experts Summit 2024.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
-
Google Search Ranking Volatility Combusting Around August 14th
Google is still at it, maybe it is angry again about the possibility of it being broken up by the DOJ after being ruled a monopoly. But in all seriousness, the search ranking volatility is super heating, almost combusting. The chatter is still super heated and many of the tools are showing extreme volatility. -
Google Tests AI Overviews In Incognito Mode (Not Signed In)
Google is testing showing AI Overviews for users not signed in to their Google account. Some users are seeing AI Overviews for searches when using Chrome in Incognito mode (i.e. private mode, not signed in). -
Google Confirms Tests Over 10 Shopping Ads In Mobile Search Interface
Google has confirmed it is testing more than 10 ads (some 18) in the Google Shopping ad box. Ginny Marvin, Google's Ads Liaison, said "This is a small experiment exploring different configurations for shopping ads to promote greater discovery." -
Google Top Stories Showing Fewer Top Stories For Political Figures?
Google Search changed how many stories it shows for political figures recently. Now Google shows the two by two top stories grid in search for searches on Harris, Trump and other political figures. Google use to show 7 top stories formats for these figures. -
Google EMEA Product Experts Summit 2024 Recap
Summer's going by rather fast, but one event that's already come and gone has been this year's edition of Google's PE Summit for the EMEA region. It took place on June 20th and 21st in Zürich, Switzerland, and was hosted at Google's own offices as well as in a virtual format, similar to previous years. -
Google's Sundar Pichai Gets Honorary Doctorate From IIT Kharagpur
Here is a photo from a few weeks ago from Sundar Pichai's Instagram channel of him receiving an honorary doctorate from his alma mater IIT Kharagpur.
Other Great Search Threads:
- Google is showing view counts on map edits, Jason Brown on X
- Attention PEs! Registration for the Gurugram Product Experts Summit has now opened for eligible PEs in APAC, Africa and the Middle East. Virtual registration will open next month. Check your inboxes and the KB, Google's Product Experts Program on X
- Google is now testing different card UI (looks like cards in AI Overviews) for horizontal slider lists which shows up sometimes while interacting with different filter bubbles in the Knowledge Panels in Mobile Search Results, Gagan Ghotra on X
- How does @Google measure developer productivity internally? If you're curious to learn more, the DevIntel team has released many publications on our internal methodology - including the excellent "Developer Product, Paige Bailey on X
- I'm so excited and honored to take the next step on that path, taking the baton from the incomparable Lynne Kjolso and partnering with Mike Davidson to co-lead the Microsoft AI D&I Council. Lynne and team have left a legacy of fearless conviction, courage, Kya Sainsbury-Carter on LinkedIn
Search Engine Land Stories:
- FTC finalizes rule to combat fake reviews, testimonials
- Hot take: Why SEO’s oldest tactic must evolve now
- 8 questions to ask your new PPC clients
- Lead gen advertising in the automation era: How any brand can succeed
Other Great Search Stories:
Analytics
- Google Trends walkthrough, Google Search Central YouTube
- Navigating GA4 Attribution Shifts and Elevating Paid Search Performance, Brainlabs
- How Venezuela May Be Using Google Analytics to Track Political Dissidents, Atlas News
- TikTok ‘most under reported major channel on Google Analytics’, Campaign Asia
Industry & Business
- Eric Schmidt Walks Back Claim Google Is Behind on AI Because of Remote Work, Wall Street Journal
- Google says Iranian efforts to hack US presidential campaigns are ongoing and wide-ranging, CNN Politics
- Google’s ex-CEO Eric Schmidt blames remote working on the company’s AI woes, Fortune
- Iranian backed group steps up phishing campaigns against Israel, U.S., Google Blog
- Reddit's increased reliance on Google traffic has Wall Street anxious, CNBC
- The Contradictions in the DOJ’s Google Breakup Idea, The Information
- Epic judge says he’ll ‘tear the barriers down’ on Google’s app store monopoly, The Verge
- GitHub Actions artifacts found leaking auth tokens in popular projects, Bleeping Computer
- Google Has Unleashed Its Legal Fury on Hackers and Scammers, WIRED
- Podcast: Google Official Urges Greater Online Scrutiny After UK Riots, Bloomberg
Links & Content Marketing
- 21 Great Ideas To Get Your Content Audience To Take Action, Content Marketing Institute
- Why taming content chaos is not a technology story, Diginomica
Local & Maps
- Does having an address on your website impact your ranking on Google?, Sterling Sky Inc
- Federal Trade Commission Announces Final Rule Banning Fake Reviews and Testimonials, Federal Trade Commission
Mobile & Voice
- Apple Pushes Ahead with Tabletop Home Device in Shift to Robotics, Bloomberg
- Gemini can finally start Google Assistant Routines, 9to5Google
SEO
- 3 Powerful, Easy, and Free Tactics To Boost Your Site Speed!, Hall Analysis
- Common misconfigurations websites hit by updates have, I Love SEO
- The Top Domains and Content for Watches, SISTRIX
PPC
- Google Releases New Videos for Performance Max, PPC News Feed
- The Kamala Harris Google ad controversy, explained, Fast Company
- Trump hits Kamala Harris over Google ads that rewrite news headlines, Axios
Search Features
Other Search
Feedback:
Have feedback on this daily recap; let me know on Twitter @rustybrick or @seroundtable, on Threads, Mastodon and Bluesky and you can follow us on Facebook and on Google News and make sure to subscribe to the YouTube channel, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or just contact us the old fashion way.
