Daily Search Forum Recap: October 4, 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.

Bing is testing a Bing button in the search results. Google Ads send message on WhatsApp tests colors. Google is testing Local Service Ads without attorney photos. Google Search tests from the web carousel cards. Google is testing videos in the image carousel in knowledge panels. You can watch the SEO video recap as well. Again, I am offline today, this was pre-written and scheduled.

Search Engine Roundtable Stories:

• Google AI Overview Ads, New Link Format, AI Organized Search Results & More
  Google announced a bunch of new AI Search features including search ads finally rolling out to AI Overviews, the new link format rolling out, AI-organized search results, new AI shopping features, Google Lens and more.
• Google Ranking Volatility Record, Forbes Advisor Slapped, Bing Generative Search Experience & More
  We had more of the same Google ranking volatility but this time, we broke a record of the longest period of heated search ranking volatility ever. Google may have slapped Forbes Advisor with some sort of penalty. Bing generative search experience is now rolling out. I posted the big...
• Bing Testing Bing Button
  Microsoft is testing placing a Bing button on the Bing Search home page. This is both under the search box and then as you start to type, it is in the bottom of the expanded autocomplete drop-down box.
• Google Ads Send Message On WhatsApp Tests
  Google Ads is testing variations of its Click-To WhatsApp Messages feature. This feature is only available in select regions, but it allows you to enable searchers to click on a "send message on WhatsApp" button. Google is testing various styles of that button.
• Google Tests Local Services Ads Without Attorney Photos
  Google is reportedly testing showing Local Service Ads (LSAs) without a photo of an attorney or attornies. Instead, Google can show a photo from its business profile or law firm and not of its attorneys.
• Google Search From The Web Carousel Cards
  Google is testing another variation of "from the web" sections in its search results. This one is more for local queries, where Google shows a carousel of cards snippets titled "From the web." They can come up for [near me] types of queries but I am not able to replicate this.
• Google Tests Videos In Knowledge Panel Image Carousels
  Google seems to be testing showing videos, videos from YouTube, in the image carousels within the knowledge panels. Generally, Google will only show images in this carousel but now Google is showing playable videos from YouTube.
• Doogler On Google NYC Desk
  Many of you like photos of dogs, so here is another one. A Doogler, Google dog, in the Google New York City office, sitting on a desk, all dressed up for work.
• Programming Note: Rosh Hashanah 5785 - Happy & Healthy Jewish New Year
  This is a programming note that Thursday and Wednesday are Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year and I will be offline the next two days. I will be offline on Thursday and Wednesday, October 3rd and October 4th.

Other Great Search Threads:

• Case study: August 2024 Google core update and a recovery plan
• Goole testing Trending Movies section to mobile serp, Khushal Bherwani on X
• This is exactly how I imagined my career as a child and I feel good about the decisions that led me here, Mike Ryan on X
• I understand and it's something we're aiming to improve. I appreciate your feedback., AdsLiaison on X
• I watched Cindy Krum's presentation! And it was lots of fun. Thanks, Cindy! I respect Cindy a lot, and I've been following her content since the early days of SEO. Nevertheless, I have some questions that popped during her presentation., Pedro Dias on LinkedIn
• Just an update on that HCU(X) site that surged back with the August core update *beyond* where it was. Although some HCU(X) sites have unfortunately dropped back down a bit with the latest volatility, this site continues to rise... W, Glenn Gabe on X

Search Engine Land Stories:

• 19 keyword mining tools and strategies for PPC campaign growth
• Amazon Advertising guide: How to reach customers and sell more

Other Great Search Stories:

Analytics

• Misconfigured deep links recommendation, Google Analytics Help

Industry & Business

• Ex-OpenAI VP Zoph Plans New Startup, The Information
• Google Is Working on Reasoning AI, Chasing OpenAI’s Efforts, Bloomberg

Links & Content Marketing

• Award-Winning Content for TMRW, Content Marketing Institute
• GenAI's Impact on Content Creation: Key Insights for 2025, Skyword

Local & Maps

• Google Maps on Android Auto Gets a Feature You Might Not Even Notice, AutoEvolution
• Pranksters rename New Zealand schools on Google maps, The Press

Mobile & Voice

• New Siri with Apple Intelligence: Here’s what’s coming in iOS 18.1 and more, 9to5Mac
• Apple’s A.I. Is Landing Soon on iPhones. Here’s What It’s Like., New York Times

SEO

• How Social Signals Affect SEO: Strategies for Improving SEO (2024), Shopify
• How to tell if Google loves you, SERP's Up SEO Podcast
• Improve your Shopify store's visibility with AI in Yoast SEO, Yoast
• The SEO Framework: Crawling & Indexing, Oncrawl

PPC

• Google Ads Introduces New Consent Settings Tab in Data Manager, Receptional
• Google Ads Performance Max Updates, Receptional
• Google Ads Remarketing: The Ultimate Guide to Retargeting, Jyll Saskin Gales
• IAS Verification Now Available for All Microsoft Ad Campaigns, PPC News Feed

Search Features

• 2024 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Doodle, Google Doodles

Other Search

• DeepMind and BioNTech build AI lab assistants for scientific research, Financial Times (Sub)
• Google Is a Monopoly. Should You Use Another Search Engine?, Scientific American
• Google's declining search quality drove me to Perplexity, but is the grass greener?, Android Authority

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.

Note: This was pre-written and scheduled to be posted today, I am currently offline for Rosh Hashanah.