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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.

I posted the November 2024 Google webmaster report a bit late this month, sorry about that. Google is testing anchor text based links in the AI Overviews. Google Ads has unpaused the election ads today. Google Ads Editor version 2.8 is out. Google is testing removing the site name and favicons from the search results. Google Maps finder may or may not show the sponsored label on the left side. HARO is being closed next month.

Search Engine Roundtable Stories:

• November 2024 Google Webmaster Report
  While Google has yet to confirm a Google search ranking update, we have seen tremendous volatility in the Google Search results this month. Google did however confirm it can downgrade sections of content that is starkly different from the main content. We also posted an update on the helpful content update. Finally, Google did say a new Google update is coming soon.
• Google AI Overviews Testing Anchor Text Based Hyperlinks
  Google is testing showing real blue anchor text based hyperlinks in the AI Overviews, instead of showing that paperclip icon. This may encourage searchers to click on the links within the AI Overviews more - or maybe not - we have no data to validate this because Google won't give it to us.
• Google Ads Allows US Elections Ads Again Today
  Google has lifted its pause on US election and political ads today, Monday, November 11, 2024. The pause of US based election ads was temporarily instituted after the US election polls closed on Tuesday, November 5, 2024. Google has now lifted the temporary pause and you can begin those ads again, if you so want to.
• Google Tests Dropping Site Name & Favicon From Search Results
  Google is testing removing the favicons and site name from the mobile search results. As you may remember, Google first launched these in the mobile search results back in October 2022 and yes, Google has had its trouble with these favicons and site names over the years.
• Google Map Finder Ads Sponsored Labels Not Always Showing
  Google may be testing displaying sponsored labels in different positions within the local map finder view. Some of the ads have sponsored labels on the left side, where it lists the local listings. While others don't show the sponsored label until you hover over the listing.
• Google Ads Editor Version 2.8 Is Now Out
  Google has released version 2.8 of the Google Ads Editor. This new update brings a number of new features including AI-generatged images, export to Google Sheets, brand guidelines, image cropping, strict age and gender targeting, a new help center and more.
• HARO / Connectively Platform Closing Down December 9
  HARO, Help a Reporter Out, now known as the Connectively Platform is being discontinued, and shut down, on December 9th. For SEOs, it was a way to get attention and potentially links, from journalists and it is a topic we've covered in the past.
• Google Hosts A Plant Party
  This isn't a joke, they have parties centered around plants. Google had a "plant party" at its Kitchener, Ontario office the other week. Googlers sat in a big room and made plants, it was a party.

Other Great Search Threads:

• For those wondering about what @JohnMu answered to my question related to the validity or not of es-419 as language code for Latam Spanish in the #hreflang , here his answer confirming it's still not considered, Gianluca Fiorelli on X
• Nothing has changed, the documentation for this is pretty stable. If we decided to support different code sets, we would make a big deal about it., John Mueller on LinkedIn
• This is great to see, an HCU-affected site (which Google specifically acknowledged as having good content) is now ranking in position 2 organically for a valuable, relevant keyword (above REI & Switchback Travel). Green line in t, Lily Ray on X
• Google is displaying schema prices in bold, Sachin Patel on X
• Heads-up: Looks like there have been some huge surges and drops in the recipe space over the past few weeks. And Oct 26 was a big day for a number of those sites impacted. Some were tied to the August 2024 broad core update... and t, Glenn Gabe on X
• We took a revenue hit in our Moz SEO business, partially due to the MozCon conference moving out of the quarter, but also due to a softening a new customer acquisition" Ziff Davis are usually pretty quiet about their Moz acquisit..., Glen Allsopp on X
• I'm delighted to announce the<< #SEOFOMO News: Your Real-Time Source for SEO and Digital Marketing news. 'SEOFOMO News<< is a news community designed for SEO and digital marketing professionals to stay current with the, Aleyda Solis on X

Search Engine Land Stories:

• Google to unpause political election ads Nov. 11
• The latest jobs in search marketing
• Google shifts Demand Gen audience categorization to 'signals'
• Google sunsets Local Services Ads mobile app, shifts focus to web platform
• Google's srsltid= parameter: What it means for SEO and attribution
• YouTube expands shorts monetization, adds new analytics features
• How to brief a content creator effectively for social search marketing

Other Great Search Stories:

Analytics

• Google Analytics launches data access monitoring tools for security control, PPC Land

Industry & Business

• OpenAI loses another lead safety researcher, Lilian Weng, TechCrunch
• A.I.-Powered Painting of Alan Turing Sells for $1.1 Million, New York Times
• How ChatGPT Brought Down an Online Education Giant - WSJ, Wall Street Journal

Links & Content Marketing

• 100+ Winter Content Ideas to Keep Your Marketing Momentum, WordStream
• 10 Content Optimization Tips From 13 SEO Experts, Surfer SEO
• Optimize Content for Search Engines: From Invisible to Unmissable, Level343

Local & Maps

• Edit your Business Hours on Google Business Profile, Sterling Sky
• Google Maps now lets you pick and paint your own virtual car, Android Police
• Has Google Maps seemed a lot less reliable to you lately?, Android Police
• Siri Finally Gets Local Search, Near Media
• Google Maps Introduces AR For Paris Landmarks With Rock Paper Reality, Forbes

Mobile & Voice

• Gurman: Apple Vision Pro 2 on track for release between Fall 2025 and Spring 2026, 9to5Mac
• Standalone 'Google Gemini' app spotted for iPhone with Live, 9to5Google

SEO

• AI vs. SEO: What does the Future of Search look like?, SISTRIX
• News sites 'don't have genuine choice' over Google AI crawlers, Press Gazette
• SEO Poisoning: Google Search Traps Cat Lovers with Malware in Surprising Bengal Cat Scam, Bill Hartzer
• SERP Features Beyond Google '" Analysing China, Advanced Web Ranking
• What if Schema.org is just'... Labels?, Jono Alderson

PPC

• 9 PPC Metrics to Track & How to Optimize Them, Semrush
• Google Ads Speeds Up Access to Automated Asset Settings, PPC News Feed
• How To Design Effective A/B Tests for PPC, PPCChat
• Video: How to Set Up Attribute Rules in Google Merchant Center Next, ZATO Marketing
• What Is Keyword Advertising? A Guide to How It Works + Tips, Semrush
• Customize Your Communication Preferences with Google Ads Reps, PPC News Feed
• Google AdSense unveils enhanced features for 2024 holiday season monetization, PPC Land
• Performance Max Is transforming Google search results - But at what cost?, PPC Land
• Google Ads RLSA: How to Retarget Your Search Campaigns, Jyll Saskin Gales

Search Features

• The Google app is testing a convenient way to check your search history, Android Police
• How search engines changed with proxies, TechRadar
• Veterans Day 2024 Doodle, Google Doodles

Other Search

• ChatGPT told 2M people to get their election news elsewhere '" and rejected 250K deepfakes, TechCrunch
• AI didn't sway the election, but it's eroding voters' grip on reality, Washington Post
• OpenAI Shifts Strategy as Rate of 'GPT' AI Improvements Slows, The Information
• Researchers at Peking University Introduce A New AI Benchmark for Evaluating Numerical Understanding and Processing in Large Language Models, MarkTechPost

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.

Google is testing placing a second link directly under the main ad headline link, some call the title link, that pull from your Google Ads assets or extensions. It is unusual to see these links right next to each other, sometimes you'd see them as sitelinks under the ad description but not directly under the main headline link.

This was spotted by both Anthony Higman who posted it on LinkedIn and X - here are his screenshots:

And this desktop variation by Jonathan Cottrell on LinkedIn:

This seems weird but it can probably have a huge impact on an ads click through rate, but again, it is just a test right now.

Forum discussion at X and LinkedIn.

Google is showing both seller ratings and product ratings on a single Google Shopping Ad unit. It is a bit weird to see both ratings, and it can potentially be confusing to see different ratings for the same retailer but one is for the rating of the specific product and one is for the rating of the company selling that product, i.e the seller.

This was spotted by Hana Kobzová who posted about it on her PPC News site who wrote, "Google started showing both seller ratings and product ratings can appear together in Shopping ads. This help retailers to be more trustworthy, visible, and competitive."

Here is what it looks like:

There is a lot more detail on this over here but again, I am not sure I like this.

Forum discussion at X.

Google Search has been rolling out this new expandable section in the search results titled "current sales." I guess Google is able to figure out what is a sale and what is not, maybe from structured data or Merchant Center and then have a section in the search results for that...

This was first spotted by Khushal Bherwani on X and then by Sachin Patel on X - here are some screenshots:

Then when you toggle it open it looks like this:

Here are more screenshots:

More finds , noticing this in wild on serp pic.twitter.com/ckiNaxS1Wg

— Khushal Bherwani (@b4k_khushal) November 10, 2024

@rustybrick Google SERP has a current sales section. pic.twitter.com/AkFiIBvIia

— Sachin Patel (@SachuPatel53124) November 7, 2024

Forum discussion at X.

The meanings of words and brands can change over time. The terms can drift to different meanings. Term drift happens, although it is rare amongst words and less rare with rebrands - but still, it happens.

When it comes to SEO, managing term drift on your older content can prove to be an important task.

The phrase "term drift" seems to have been created by Darth Autocrat (Lyndon NA) over here on X and it was in response to a brief case study shared by Glenn Gabe on X that explained and showed the importance of handling term drift within your content.

Glenn showed an example of where the core query for a page changed based on how people are now referencing the main topic. He said, "The original content referenced the old way it was being referenced. It was high quality content, but just didn't reference the correct/current wording anymore."

So what changed was to update the content based on how the world was referencing the new meaning of the word. He said, "the content was updated to reflect the new wording in the title tag, in the on-page title (h1), and then when it was referenced throughout the content. Basically just making sure the content wasn't referencing the old wording."

What was the outcome? The ranking stability of that page of content in Google Search became stable, whereas before it was all over the place. Glenn shared this chart to show the before and after impact of this outcome.

Glenn explained, "Look how stable ranking became for that query as soon as the page was updated. Literally the same day it was updated. Just a reminder to keep an eye on things like this. Quality was totally fine. The page just needed to reference the correct and current wording. Again, simple but powerful."

Then Darth Autocrat (Lyndon NA) replied with the phrase, "term drift."

Here are those posts:

Uncovered this cool example recently. It's so simple and obvious, but powerful. The core query for this page changed based on how people are NOW referencing the main topic covered. The original content referenced the old way it was being referenced. It was high quality content,'... pic.twitter.com/XzkEE492hI

'" Glenn Gabe (@glenngabe) November 8, 2024

"Term drift". I like that. :)

'" Glenn Gabe (@glenngabe) November 8, 2024

Other people have noticed this as well:

100%

'" Glenn Gabe (@glenngabe) November 8, 2024

No, I would never update the url for something like that. Overall, the actual url used isn't really a strong ranking factor at all. Google has explained that many times and it's what I've seen as well. And I wouldn't risk changing urls in case something goes wrong there and'...

'" Glenn Gabe (@glenngabe) November 8, 2024

What would be examples of this for some phrases? I am guessing maybe some of the following:

• Google AdWords to Google Ads
• Google My Business to Google Business Profiles
• Link building to content marketing
• Public relations maybe to Growth marketing

I mean, there are probably hundreds of examples of this over the years.

There is also "query drift":

Believe @darth_na is referring to Query Drift as cited in IR documents like https://t.co/z5noOy16dE

— Pedro Dias (@pedrodias) November 12, 2024

Forum discussion at X.

Google's John Mueller posted some SEO advice on how to handle version history pages, for product releases, specifications, APIs and other version history. This advice is pretty similar to how to handle recurring event pages, like conferences and events. In short, the main page should keep the same URL and then archive the older version history details on an archive page URL.

John wrote on LinkedIn, "If you work on a website with versions (APIs? Specs?) or yearly editions, here's the top SEO improvement you can do: Use a stable URL for the current version."

I mean, if you like at Google Ads API, they use developers.google.com/google-ads/api/docs/release-notes and show the current version details there and then archive the older API versions on different URLs, like version 17 for example.

John wrote:

Add versioned directories if you like. This makes the current version much more visible in search, reducing guesswork by readers, and making it easier to link to. EASIER TO LINK TO.

Even better? keep the versioned URL for the current version, and use link-rel-canonical to refer to the stable URL. This lets people go directly to the versioned URL if they know it, while focusing search on the stable URL.

John added to explain, for API docs, technical specs, yearly events, etc, go with this format:

• .../spec/live/page < do this for SEO
• .../spec/2.1/page - rel=canonical to /spec/live/page
• .../spec/2.0/page - keep these

Forum discussion at LinkedIn.

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 November 2024 core update, so far, we are not seeing much movement but I have a lot more details in the story below. Have you seen term drift in SEO and Google Search. Google has SEO advice on version history pages. Google Ads is testing subheading links. Google is testing seller and product ratings on the same shopping ad. Google is testing a current sales section in search.

Search Engine Roundtable Stories:

• Google November 2024 Core Update Is Now Rolling Out - What We Know So Far
  Google has begun rolling out the third core update for the year, the November 2024 core update. This update started to roll out on November 11, 2024 at around 3:30 pm and will take about two weeks to complete rolling out. This seems like a typical core update, without any new specifics about what changed or what improved.
• SEO Advice On Version History Pages From Google
  Google's John Mueller posted some SEO advice on how to handle version history pages, for product releases, specifications, APIs and other version history. This advice is pretty similar to how to handle recurring event pages, like conferences and events. In short, the main page should keep the same URL and then archive the older version history details on an archive page URL.
• Term Drift In SEO - Why It Matters
  The meanings of words and brands can change over time. The terms can drift to different meanings. Term drift happens, although it is rare amongst words and less rare with rebrands - but still, it happens.
• New Google Travel Ads Feed Format May Be Rolling Out
  A couple of weeks ago, Google announced the new features for travel search ads through integration with travel feeds. These may now be out in the wild, as we are seeing pricing and other rich markup showing up for hotel ads in Google Search.
• Google Search Current Sales Expandable Section
  Google Search has been rolling out this new expandable section in the search results titled "current sales." I guess Google is able to figure out what is a sale and what is not, maybe from structured data or Merchant Center and then have a section in the search results for that...
• Google Shopping Ads With Both Seller & Product Ratings
  Google is showing both seller ratings and product ratings on a single Google Shopping Ad unit. It is a bit weird to see both ratings, and it can potentially be confusing to see different ratings for the same retailer but one is for the rating of the specific product and one is for the rating of the company selling that product, i.e the seller.
• Google Ads Tests Subheadline Links Under Search Ad Title Links
  Google is testing placing a second link directly under the main ad headline link, some call the title link, that pull from your Google Ads assets or extensions. It is unusual to see these links right next to each other, sometimes you'd see them as sitelinks under the ad description but not directly under the main headline link.
• GooglePlex Sign: Please Refrain From Touching The Androids
  Here is a sign at the GooglePlex that is politely asking visitors to not touch the Androids. It says, "Please refrain from touching the Androids - Thank you." I often see photos of people climbing on them, so maybe that will help?

Other Great Search Threads:

• chatgpt went down for 30 mins today :( we are much, much better at reliability than we used to be, but clearly more work in front of us., Sam Altman on X
• Here are two key takeaways from Google's Search Central Live Taipei 2024., Hope Lui on LinkedIn
• Marigold Magic! From the flavors to the culture, India left us spellbound. That's a wrap on the Gurugram #PESummit24. We loved connecting with PEs in person and virtually!, Google's Product Experts Program on X
• Nothing has changed with the way audiences work in Demand Gen campaigns., Ginny Marvin on LinkedIn
• Several readers are asking me why Search Engine Roundtable won't come up in any Google AI Overviews. I don't have a good explanation but they are right. Even based on third party tools that track them, SER does not show up at all. I assume it is some sort, Barry Schwartz on LinkedIn
• Site reputation abuse reminder: Marketplace Operations Inc & Forbes Marketplace Holdings Inc are responsible for the content on Forbes Advisor, Health, Wheels & Home Improvement. Remember them + Thomas Callahan as we uncover how th, Goog Enough on X
• You can add voiceover to your Pmax videos to increase users attention., Thomas Eccel on X

Search Engine Land Stories:

• Google November 2024 core update rolling out now
• Data: PMax performance stable, but Search CPCs increasing
• Google debuts Sale Event promotion type in Merchant Center
• Google integrates seller and product ratings in Shopping Ads
• Google Ads Editor 2.8 launches with AI image generation
• Server access logs and SEO: Everything you need to know in 2025
• Knowledge graphs: An introduction
• How to gain visibility in generative AI answers: GEO for Perplexity and ChatGPT

Other Great Search Stories:

Analytics

• How to use Google Analytics 4 to track social media performance, Hootsuite

Industry & Business

• Google Executive Picked to Supercharge News Efforts Has Resigned, Wall Street Journal
• Acodie Interview Series: Barry Schwartz, Founder of the Search Engine Roundtable, Acodez

Links & Content Marketing

• NEW: Topics, Interests, and Content Ideas Now Live in SparkToro V2, SparkToro

Local & Maps

• Coming Soon: An All-New Moz Local, Moz
• Goodbye, Google Maps? Apple Maps Envisions Revolutionary Traffic Light Navigation Feature, AutoEvolution
• Google Maps moves the weather for a cleaner map on Android, 9to5Google

Mobile & Voice

• ChatGPT is currently down; Siri integration in iOS 18.2 affected, 9to5Mac
• Google Gemini tests an overlay that looks like you're texting your assistant from any screen, Android Police
• Google's Android-exclusive Gemini Live could be about to launch on iPhone, TechRadar
• Why 'Type to Siri' Is My Favorite New iOS 18.1 Feature, Lifehacker

SEO

• Introducing our Bing Webmaster Tools API Python Client, Merj
• Technically Wrong, But Worth Fixing?, Chris Green
• What we learned at NESS 2024 (pt. 2), SEO For Journalism
• Screaming Frog SEO Spider Update '" Version 21.0, Screaming Frog

PPC

• 5 Ways to Maximize Your Ad Performance with AdCreative.ai, Semrush
• CMA demands changes to Google Privacy Sandbox after cookie deprecation reversal, PPC Land
• Google Lifts the Lid (a Little) on AI Buying Tool Pmax, Giving Buyers More Ways to Test, AdWeek
• Taboola reports Q3 Growth and raises 2024 targets amid AI expansion, PPC Land
• Unpacking the Data Behind Trump and Harris' Presidential Election Ad Spending, PPC Hero
• Updated PMAX Table View Now Displays Ad Strength, PPC News Feed
• What Digital Marketing Agencies Are Saying Behind Your Back, DAGMAR
• Image Asset Gallery Combines Square & Horizontal Images, PPC News Feed

Other Search

• Ecosia, Qwant partner on search engine tech to counter Google's power, CNBC
• LLMO: 10 Ways to Work Your Brand Into AI Answers, Ahrefs
• OpenAI and others seek new path to smarter AI as current methods hit limitations, Reuters
• Two Upstart Search Engines Are Teaming Up to Take on Google, Wired

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.

A couple of months ago, we reported how Google Search will label if an image was AI-generated, edited by photo editing software or taken with a camera by working with Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA) as a technical standard. Well, now Google officially supports C2PA metadata in the about this image feature.

Google wrote this morning, Google Search now supports this [C2PA] metadata in the "About this image" feature."

Google updated its image meta data documentation to add a new section for "How C2PA metadata can appear in Google Search results."

The new section reads:

If an image contains C2PA metadata, Google can extract those details and may show information in the "About this image" feature, such as how the image was created or if it was edited with AI tools. This metadata comes from a signer, which is usually an app, device, or service (for example, photo editing software, the camera itself, or other services that modify or create images) that meets the following conditions:

• The app, device, or service has adopted C2PA version 2.1 or later.
• The image's manifest must be signed by a certificate from a Certification Authority on the C2PA Trust List.

It does seem like Adobe products, like Photoshop, Illustrated, and others, do support this metadata.

I just wonder how it handles the image above, which I generate using Midjourney AI and then edit later in Photoshop.

Forum discussion at X.

Google will be changing how it handles the first-party cookie controls on AdSense sites. Google said, "We're making some changes to how first-party cookies are managed in your AdSense account to simplify controls and improve your access to third-party demand."

Google has combined the controls for enabling "first-party cookies" and "first-party cookies for personalization" into a single control.

Turning on the new control will enable first-party cookies for the publisher, share it with demand sources, and enable all usages including personalization, Google explained.

The new control will be set to your existing personalization setting to aid the transition, Google added.

Google added:

Currently, first-party cookies are shared with Google demand sources (Google Ads, Display & Video 360). Starting no earlier than December 4th, 2024, your first-party cookies will also be shared with Authorized Buyers. However, for the time being, this sharing will not include users in the EEA, Switzerland, UK, California, and some US states.

If you're already using first-party cookies for personalization, sharing with Authorized Buyers will be turned on by default. If you're only using first-party cookies without personalization, sharing will remain off.

Choose whether or not you want to allow first-party cookies from Google on your site, and allow sharing of first-party cookies for personalization with eligible advertising platforms (Google Ads, Display & Video 360, and Authorized Buyers). Allowing first-party cookies from Google may increase your revenue because it enables features like frequency capping on ads and allows ads with a frequency cap to serve on your site. First party cookies for personalization help to show personalized ads to your users when third-party cookies aren't available, which may also increase your revenue.

Cookies are small text files downloaded to a user's browser that can be used to store user information and preferences. Cookies are either first-party (associated with the domain the user is visiting) or third party (associated with a domain that's different from the domain the user is visiting). Google may use first-party cookies when third-party cookies are not available.

Forum discussion at X.

This week, Google sent an email to some Google Ads advertisers warning that they may lose access to use Customer Match with their ads cause harm to users or create a poor user experience. Google said they are updating their customer match policy effective January 13, 2025, to enforce this. Google also posted this over here.

Navah Hopkins posted about this notice on LinkedIn after she received an email from Google about this update. The email says:

On January 13, 2025, Google will update its Customer Match policy to state that customers may lose Customer Match access if their ads have the potential to cause harm to users or create a poor user experience. We may take the following considerations, among others, into account when making this determination.

What are those considerations? Google wrote:

• User feedback
• Prevalence or severity of abuse
• Repeated violations of the Customer Match policy

Google added that "violations of this policy will not lead to immediate account suspension without prior warning. A warning will be issued, at least seven days, prior to any suspension of your account."

Here is the email:

Navah Hopkins added, "Google customer match allows advertisers to take customer lists and apply them for targeting and seed purposes in Google Ads. This is a great way to ensure folks get exactly the right messaging as well as giving us an option to exclude our existing customers from prospecting campaigns."

She explained what harm might be:

The first and most important consideration is using someone's email without their consent. I would take this signal from Google that gambling with privacy rules is getting harder.

Second, ad creative needs to pass the "not a creep" check. This means:
1. You're not targeting kids.
2. You're not making it seem like the ad is for any one specific user.
3. You're not including people in a target list who outright told you they didn't want to see your ads.

Third, and most importantly, violating customer match rules will get your account suspended. Don't mess around with it.

Forum discussion at LinkedIn.

Google's John Mueller said that some SEOs over focus on URL structure and that if your context from your pages aren't clear, then no URL structure can fix that.

John wrote on LinkedIn:

Often SEOs over-focus on URL structure (imo) -- if the context of your pages isn't clear from the ... text on the page, then the URL structure isn't really going to fix that.

What advice did he give for URL structure for SEO?

• Avoid making unnecessary URL structure changes (because changes will affect SEO at least temporarily, it takes time for search engines to recrawl & reprocess all affected pages), pick something that can last for a long time
• Primarily think about users & about how you want to track performance (URL structures are great for grouping URLs for analytics, conversion rates, etc. -- not directly SEO, but for monitoring how well SEO is working for you).

John added, "Anyway, Google generally (*) wouldn't care. Make a useful structure. Make it easy for you to monitor. Make it helpful for users, if you want (do people even look at URLs? I assume most users don't nowadays.)"

When does structure of your URLs matter? When you have adult content on portions of your site (we covered this before). John said on LinkedIn, "(*) the "generally" ... an exception that I can think of is if an affected part of the site is treated significantly different than the rest of the site. For example, if that folder is where all of the safe-search filtered content is located, then moving it around can make it harder for the safe-search system to understand your new site structure. I don't think that's something most sites need to consider, but it's helpful if you're looking for an "it depends"."

Google has often recommended not to change URLs for SEO purposes, here is our past coverage:

• Google Really Wants You To Avoid Changing URLs Just For SEO Reasons
• Google: Avoid Change URLs Unless You Really Have To
• Google: Don't Change Your URLs For SEO Purposes
• Google: Don't Change URLs When Replacing Old Content With New Content

Forum discussion at LinkedIn.

A team of engineers from UNSW Sydney have successfully converted a standard diesel engine to run as a hybrid diesel hydrogen engine. The resulting hybrid reduces CO2 emissions by 85%, and increases output efficiency by around 26%.  The team, led by Professor Shawn Kook, spent some 18 months developing the direct injection dual fuel system. The retrofitted engine runs using 90% hydrogen. Professors Kook believe that the new tech could significantly reduce the emissions from the trucking industry and the...

The post Hydrogen Retrofit Reduces Diesel Engine Emissions By 85% appeared first on The Red Ferret Journal.

Scientists at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have discovered an ingenious new way to recycle Lithium Ion batteries, and it’s so simple that even your mum could do it. Maybe. The problem with battery recycling has always been that it’s rather cumbersome. Traditional methods involve breaking down batteries into their constituent parts, then extracting the valuable materials such as lithium, cobalt, and nickel. The process works, but it’s not exactly what you’d call efficient, and it can be quite costly....

The post Quick-Release Binder – Recycling Lithium Ion Batteries Just Got Super Easy appeared first on The Red Ferret Journal.

Google has just announced a new virtual shopping experience for search which lets you try on apparel virtually using some AI cleverness. Users in the US (only, at first) will be able to try out an item of clothing from a catalog if it has a ‘Try On’ badge on it in search. The service is starting with a limited number of brands including Anthropologie, Everlane, H&M and LOFT, and a limited repertoire of AI generated lady’s tops.  Virtual shopping...

The post Google Introduces AI Based Virtual Try-On Apparel appeared first on The Red Ferret Journal.

The Honda Motocompacto has to be one of the weirdest e-bikes we’ve ever seen. It’s not just the strange skinny shape, it’s also the fact that it doesn’t appear to offer any real advantage over an electric scooter except a rudimentary seat. Just 3.7 inches wide, it’s made out of aluminum and plastic, and boasts a max speed of 12 mph and a range of 15 miles per 3 hour charge. While we may scoff at the quirky design, there’s...

The post Honda Motocompacto – The e-Bike That Thinks It’s A Suitcase appeared first on The Red Ferret Journal.

Seventeen long years ago I wrote a piece here called The Gadget Manifesto. It was a rant borne out of frustration with the relentless increase in junk technology. The problem was basically too much Far Eastern manufacturing capacity chasing too few consumers. Result…price plummeting, quality plummeting, consumers suffering. I’m revisiting this subject only because it looks like we’re clearly not going to reverse course any time soon. Nearly 2 decades on, we’re still buying this junk, and throwing it away...

The post The Gadget Manifesto Revisited – plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose? appeared first on The Red Ferret Journal.

EMO: Sensational Deepfake Tech From China Shows Just How Insane Things Are Right Now in the world of deepfake and A.I.

The post EMO: Sensational Deepfake Tech From China Shows Just How Insane Things Are Right Now appeared first on The Red Ferret Journal.

When Adam Rosen founded his first tech startup, he learned a lot of important skills before he eventually sold it. One of those skills was using cold email as a sales technique. Fast forward to today, Adam has his own…

The post How Adam Rosen Makes 7-figures/Year From Cold Email Outreach   appeared first on Niche Pursuits.

When dreaming up new business ideas, some of the most boring businesses are often overlooked. However, it’s the boring business ideas that can often be the most sustainable and profitable. The Best Boring Businesses to Start This Year All of…

The post 20 Boring Businesses That Can Make You Rich! appeared first on Niche Pursuits.

This week, SEO expert Brie Moreau doesn’t share his business results but, rather, the results of an incredibly in-depth study he did analyzing 260k search results to find an answer to a major question: what does Google want exactly? Using…

The post How Brie Moreau Studied 260k Search Results to Understand How Google Views Content appeared first on Niche Pursuits.

Welcome back, everyone, to a new episode of the Niche Pursuits News Podcast! Like every week, we’re here to talk about the latest SEO news for publishers, inspire you with some stories about our side hustles, and shock you with…

The post Runaway Parasite SEO! Google Penalizes Forbes! appeared first on Niche Pursuits.

After close to 2000 podcast episodes, Joe Saul-Sehy knows a thing or two about growing an audience.  In fact, his finance podcast, Stacking Benjamins, has amassed a massive following of 180k listeners, with shows averaging around 40k listens/episode. Joe’s no…

The post How Joe Saul-Sehy Grew His Financial Podcast to 180k Listeners appeared first on Niche Pursuits.

Spencer is back with Jared to host this week’s episode of the Niche Pursuits News Podcast.  Like they always do, they discuss the major happenings related to SEO, small publishers, Google, and beyond, and it has been a very eventful…

The post DOJ Tries to Break Up Google Chrome, Android, and Search Monopoly appeared first on Niche Pursuits.

Jared and guest host Morgan Overholt are back together this week to cover the latest news in SEO and beyond, to talk about progress with their respective side hustles, and to share some weird niche sites and discuss their strategies.…

The post Semrush Buys Search Engine Land! Google Search Falls Apart? appeared first on Niche Pursuits.

Jared and guest host Thomas Smith are here this week to offer an overview of the main news affecting Google, small publishers, and SEOs. They also share some interesting side hustles and a few very weird niche sites. They kick…

The post Fixing Google Search? Site Reputation Abuse Crackdown! appeared first on Niche Pursuits.

This week Jared Bauman sits down with Jake Cain, a long-time blogger with a portfolio of sites, a former Niche Pursuits employee, and an attendee at Google’s recent Creator Summit. In this interview, Jake shares his experience at the event,…

The post Jake Cain Was Inside Google’s “Secret” Meeting with 20 HCU Crushed Bloggers. Here’s What Happened appeared first on Niche Pursuits.

Welcome back to another episode of the Niche Pursuits News Podcast! This week Spencer and Jared break down the latest news affecting SEOs and small publishers, they share their side hustle progress, and they talk about some weird niche sites…

The post This 8 Letter Tweet Just Changed Search Forever appeared first on Niche Pursuits.

Learn how YouTube's ban on ad blockers will affect advertisers. Users aren't happy, but smart advertisers can use the change to their advantage.

The post How YouTube’s Crack Down on Ad Blockers Impacts Advertisers appeared first on Portent.

There is a growing trend of businesses bringing their digital marketing in-house. Discover what not to do when transitioning to an in-house digital marketing team.

The post What Not to Do When Bringing Your Digital Marketing In-House appeared first on Portent.

Gen Z is well known for being social media savvy. But not all platforms are created equal, and with new trends emerging it can be hard to keep track of where Gen Z is spending its time. In this blog, we’ll walk through the apps where you’re most likely to find this cohort scrolling, liking, and viewing, covering the following topics: 

• What social media app has the highest reach among Gen Z? 
• What social media app has grown the fastest among Gen Z?
• How does Gen Z’s social media usage compare to the general population? 
• How does Gen Z’s social media usage compare to other age groups? 

Fr. Stephen explores the importance of holy places both in the temple and in the heart.