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 released the October 2023 spam update, and this one seems to go after a lot of the spam complaints in languages outside of English - I dig into this in more detail in my story. (Note: Google also released a core update, I'll cover that tomorrow - confused?) Google teased Google Assistant with Bard, I don't think anyone was surprised. Google said it does not delete queries and replace them with better-monetized queries. Google's obituary spam is out of control. Google Search is testing a new hotel snippet carousel design.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
- New Google October 2023 Spam Update Targets Spam In More Languages
Google has released a new spam update, the October 2023 spam update. This update goes after cloaking, hacked, auto-generated, and scraped spam. But those sites written in Turkish, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Hindi, Chinese, and other languages should see this more than maybe those in English languages. - Google Assistant With Bard (As Expected)
Google Assistant will live on with a little help from its friend - Bard. Assistant With Bard is coming in the next few months after Google tests it with a limited number of trusted testers over those months. - Google: We Do Not Delete Queries & Replace Them With Better Monetized Ones
Wired had a piece named How Google Alters Search Queries to Get at Your Wallet. That piece wrote, "Google just flat out deletes queries and replaces them with ones that monetize better." Danny Sullivan, the Google Search Liaison, responded to that on X, saying, "we don't." - Obituary Spam On Google Too Fast & Out Of Control
For years and years now, spammers have been creating fake obituaries using automated methods. In fact, Danny Goodwin covered the issue Google Search has with obituary spam a couple of years ago when Bill Slawski passed. But it is still an issue and it is getting worse. - Google Search Tests New Hotel Snippet Carousel Design
Google seems to be testing a new hotel search result snippet. The search result snippet shows a carousel of hotel cards under the main snippet. These cards can be swiped through to see various hotel options listed on the website. - Android 14 Statue - Android Upside Down Cake - At GooglePlex
Google announced its Android 14 OS and its new Pixel devices yesterday and with tradition of Android OS released, Google puts up a new Android statue at the GooglePlex, the Google headquarters in Moun
Other Great Search Threads:
- I'm hijacking this comment section to ask you if you know something about some bug in recipe rich results. A lot of people are complaing since June that they are disapearing and apearing again., fernando alves on X
- One of our forum members is reporting Google doing a mass update to attributes: Putting "cash-only" to "no" if any alternative payment option has been set to "yes" & Removing the covid testing center attribute setting entirely, Joy Hawkins on X
- And as documented in the article, Venturebeat was the only publisher to block Google-Extended so far. I'm sure that will grow, but I think publishers are a bit scared to do that yet (not knowing the impact overall search-wise). Just my opinion, but most a, Glenn Gabe on X
- If you're curious about these topics, I'd go through the quality rater's guidelines - there's a lot of information there., John Mueller on X
- New feature release in GA4: data redaction! I strongly recommend turning this on for your GA4 properties right away. It will be turned on by default in any new properties, so you only need to do this in your already-created proper, Dana DiTomaso on X
- Started seeing "book online" buttons this week for several businesses utilizing Service Titan., Joy Hawkins on X
- I am thrilled to share that Microsoft Advertising won AdExchanger's “Best Seller-Focused Technology” award this year. Congratulations to all of the incredibly talented team members across the business and engineering functions who have invested tirel, Kya Sainsbury-Carter on LinkedIn
- I do: There's no issue with indexing nor with crawling. So far you are the only one reporting this., Martin Splitt on X
- Maybe try looking at the data for the most important countries separately? Or filter out branded queries? Or look at different sections of the website separately? Depending on the website, these things can neutralize th, Daniel Waisberg on X
Search Engine Land Stories:
- Google bringing Bard to Google Assistant
- Amazon planning major AI revamp that will change the search experience
- Analysis: FAQ rich results show on 17% of Google SERPs, down from 54%
- Google unleashes October 2023 spam update
- Testing Meta’s AI-powered Advantage+ targeting: What we learned and what to expect
- LinkedIn unveils AI-powered tool that can create optimized ads in minutes
- Your SEO guide to finding and fixing broken internal links
- How to survive and thrive in a Google helpful content world
- Meta’s first generative AI-powered tools for advertisers are here
- Top 5 ways to stay up to date on paid search trends
Other Great Search Stories:
Analytics
Industry & Business
- Apple Considered Switch Search Engine From Google to DuckDuckGo, Bloomberg
- EU lawmakers take aim at ‘arbitrary’ decisions by Big Tech in Media Freedom Act vote, TechCrunch
- Google Antitrust Trial Isn't Hurting Alphabet Stock, Outshines Apple, Bloomberg
- How Google Alters Search Queries to Get at Your Wallet, Wired
- Yahoo spins out Vespa, its search tech, into an independent company, TechCrunch
- Google in Ireland: ‘There’s a whole force of Irish in the US who’ve come from the Dublin office’, The Irish Times
Links & Content Marketing
- Here's The BIG Problem I Have With Yearly Blogging Trend Reports, SuccessWorks
- 3 Questions To Help You Evolve Your Content and Marketing, Content Marketing Institute
Local & Maps
- 12 Local Search Developments You Need to Know About from Q3 2023, Moz
- How Will Generative AI Impact Local SEO?, SiteVisibility
- Local SEO 2.0- Navigating the Dynamics of Online Reviews and Engagement, SEO Arcade
Mobile & Voice
- 4 new Google Photos features on Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro, Google Blog
- Android 14: Official news, new OS features and updates, Google Blog
- Google might have a great idea for smart home automation—if it sticks to it, Ars Technica
- Google Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro: Features, specs, price, Google Blog
- Google releases Android 14 for Pixel phones, The Verge
- How Google's Bard and New Pixel hardware will change your daily life, search habits and health monitoring, Marie Haynes
- Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro to get 7 years of software updates, Google Blog
SEO
- 10 Best SEO Audit Tools for Higher Rankings and More Traffic, Semrush
- 6 Common Product Rich Result Mistakes You Might Be Making, Schema App Solutions
- Orphan Pages: How They Affect SEO (And How to Fix Them), Semrush
- Why Articles Should Be Optimised Before Publishing, SEO for Google News
PPC
- Amazon To Shutter Ad Server In Q4 2024, MediaPost
- Microsoft Advertising Partner Sweepstakes, Microsoft Advertising
Search Features
- How Does ChatGPT Work? (Simple & Technical Explanations), Semrush
- Study: Google Update Decreases Search Result FAQs By 37%, Portent
Other Search
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