Google is experimenting with displaying blue badge icons and labels on certain search ads for advertisers who have been verified by Google Ads. The blue label features a blue circle with ridges and a checkmark inside it. This is part of Google’s ongoing advertiser verification program, and it appears that the company is now testing […]
Author Archives: Luke Smith
Google has broken out the merchant listings and product snippet reporting into two unique appearances that you can filter on within the performance reports in Google Search Console. Google also broke these out in the Merchant listings and product snippet reports, that it launched . What is new. Google said, “we are adding the ability […]
can be helpful for many SEO-related functions, including but not limited to , and . Title tags are another area the platform can help you with. Even if , title tags are still a critical on-page SEO element. Even Google’s John Mueller that ChatGPT could be helpful for creating page titles. This article examines how […]
As you build a content marketing strategy for your brand, you may encounter one key area that stumps you – especially if you’re new to content. Budget. How much should you budget for content? That’s a great question with a kind of disappointing answer. It depends. Thankfully, this guide will explain all the various factors […]
Google research: PPC ads drive 50% incremental clicks In 2012, Google released a study, . It looked at whether clicks from organic search results substituted for ad clicks when PPC ads were turned off. Google found that, on average: 81% of ad impressions and 66% of ad clicks occurred in the absence of an associated […]
The 2023 local search ranking factors survey is now out, it is a survey of what local SEO experts rank the most important ranking factors are for both ranking in the Google local pack and also in the Google organic local results. More survey details. This survey was conducted by Whitespark and surveyed 44 different […]
More sites move to Google mobile-first indexing In 2018, Google announced it had enabled mobile-first indexing for more websites. This was the first time Google had confirmed it was moving a large number of sites to this mobile-first indexing process. Google told us in October 2017 that a of sites had been moved over. Websites that were migrated […]
Google Panda patent granted In 2014, a patent () written by Google’s Navneet Panda and Vladimir Ofitserov – possibly describing the , or parts of it – was granted. However, the fact that Google was granted this patent didn’t necessarily mean it was being used by Google at the time, or that it hadn’t been […]
Google search advocate John Mueller has always downplayed the value of HTML sitemaps. Recently, he with HTML sitemaps, saying: “I changed my mind on HTML sitemaps over the years, they should never be needed. Sites small [and] large should always have a clear navigational structure.” This is a slightly stronger stance than what : “When […]
Google’s top 3 search ranking factors In 2016, Google’s Andrey Lipattsev revealed that links, content and RankBrain were the top three ranking signals in Google’s search algorithm. was the third most important ranking factor. Google told us so in 2015. As for the other two? Lipattsev revealed them during a Q&A and said: “I can […]