Search Engine Roundtable Podcast

The third-party Google Search tracking tools are going through a rough patch right now. Google Search Console was reporting massive impression drops since the 100-parameter results were removed. Google somewhat commented on that Search Console impressions dip. A Google Search bug led to the search results being overwhelmed by search ads. Bing is mixing ads into the organic image search results. Google said searchers want AI summaries over links to publishers. This comes from the Penske Google lawsuit over AI Overviews. Google is testing AI-generated search snippet summaries. Google is testing AI overviews with citation cards at the bottom. Chrome is getting Google AI Mode. Google has this question fringe score. Google Search Console has a new achievements report. Google Discover is officially rolling out the follow feature and more social posts. Google announced new store widgets for your website. Google Merchant Center suspensions may require new video verification. Google Business API Q&A feature will go away. Bing is testing a sticky search header bar. Google Places has a new update coming soon. Google Search posted an anti-scraper job. OpenAI updated ChatGPT search, to make it better. That was the search news this week at the Search Engine Roundtable.

Thank you to our sponsor, Yahoo Search. Yahoo knows the way people are searching is changing – and as one of the top search engines in the US, with hundreds of millions of users, Yahoo Search is constantly evolving to deliver a simplified, innovative, and helpful search experience. Yahoo Search gives you quick, AI-powered summaries, plus AI chat when you want to dive deeper. Whether it's news, finance, sports, shopping or instant answers, get connected to what you need.

0:00 - Introduction

0:55 - PSA: Most Third Party Google Search Tracking Tools Are Broken

2:14 - Google Search Console Reporting Change Since 100 Results Broke

3:18 - Google Kinda Comments On Search Console Impressions Dip

4:31 - Google Search Bug Leads To Search Results Overwhelmed With Ads

5:21 - Bing Image Search With Ads Mixed Into The Organic Results

5:49 - Google: Searchers Want AI Summaries Over Links

6:44 - Rolling Stone Publisher (Penske) Sued Google Over AI Overviews

7:24 - Google Tests AI Generated Search Snippet Summaries

7:46 - Google Tests AI Overviews With Citation Cards At Bottom

8:06 - Google AI Mode Coming To Chrome Address Bar

8:39 - What Is Google Question Fringe Score

9:13 - New (But Old) Google Search Console Achievements

9:29 - Official: Google Discover Rolling Out Follow Feature & Creator Content

9:47 - Google Announces Top Quality & Store Widget Again

10:13 - New Google Merchant Center Suspension Video Verification

10:27 - Google Business API Q&A Feature Going Away November 3 (Changes Coming?)

11:05 - Bing Testing Sticky Search Bar Header

11:18 - Bing Places Update Coming Soon: Navigation, Experience & More

11:39 - Google Search Anti-Scraper Job Now Closed

12:03 - OpenAI Updates Search In ChatGPT: Factuality, Shopping & Formatting

12:17 - Conclusion 

Today we covered how John Mueller responded about the Google Search Console impressions drop. Google doubled down on its AI Max pitch to advertisers.  Google Search has this anti-scraper job but it was closed.  Google added new widgets to the store feature.  Google Discover launched the follow feature and more social posts.

0:00 - Introduction

0:42 - Google somewhat comments on the Search Console impressions dip

4:20 - Google doubles down on AI Max pitch to wary advertisers  

6:11 - Google Search anti-scraper job closed

7:18 - Google website store widgets

8:52 - Google Discover follow feature and more social posts

9:38 - Conclusion

A daily recap video summarizing a few of the top search marketing headlines covered at the Search Engine Roundtable.

This recap is called It's New - A quick, daily dose of the latest in SEO with Anu Adegbola of Search Engine Land and Greg Finn of Cypress North (and Marketing O’Clock) and Barry Schwartz.

Today we covered a Google bug leading to ads overwhelming the search results. A new Google Ads study on match types.  Google says searchers love AI summaries, more than links. Google is testing AI-generated summaries for snippets. ChatGPT Search got an upgrade. 

0:00 - Introduction

0:41 - Google Ads overwhelm search results

2:30 - Google Ads match type study 

6:03 - Google says searchers love AI summaries

9:02 - Google tests AI-generated search result snippet summaries

9:59 - ChatGPT Search improved and updated

10:41 - Conclusion

A daily recap video summarizing a few of the top search marketing headlines covered at the Search Engine Roundtable.

This recap is called It's New - A quick, daily dose of the latest in SEO with Anu Adegbola of Search Engine Land and Greg Finn of Cypress North (and Marketing O’Clock) and Barry Schwartz.

Today we covered how Microsoft is mixing ads within the organic image search results. Google Ads auto-enabled Store Visits conversions, upsetting some advertisers.  Rolling Stone’s publisher sued Google over AI Overviews. Google Search has this question fringe score, but what is it?

0:00 - Introduction

0:40 - Bing image search mixing ads with organic results

2:47 - Google Ads auto-enables store visits conversions

6:40 - Rolling Stone publishers sued Google over AI Overviews

9:55 - Google’s question fringe score

11:05 - Conclusion

A daily recap video summarizing a few of the top search marketing headlines covered at the Search Engine Roundtable.

This recap is called It's New - A quick, daily dose of the latest in SEO with Anu Adegbola of Search Engine Land and Greg Finn of Cypress North (and Marketing O’Clock) and Barry Schwartz.

Today we covered  the mess going on now with Google Search organic rank tracking now.  Google dropped 100 results per page, the third party tracking tools are broken, Google Search Console performance reports may be impacted too and no, AI Overviews reporting is not coming.  Google Merchant Center pricing policies were updated. The FTC is investigating Google over pricing and terms for ads on websites.  What’s up with structured data and AI search visibility.

0:00 - Introduction

0:49 - Google dropped 100 search results per page

1:35 - Google rank tracking tools borked

2:53 - Google Search Console performance report changes too

4:11 - No, AI Overviews filters not coming

6:35 - Google Merchant Center pricing policies update

8:25 - FTC investigates Google over pricing and terms for websites.

10:09 - Structured data and AI visibility

11:51 - Conclusion

A daily recap video summarizing a few of the top search marketing headlines covered at the Search Engine Roundtable.

This recap is called It's New - A quick, daily dose of the latest in SEO with Anu Adegbola of Search Engine Land and Greg Finn of Cypress North (and Marketing O’Clock) and Barry Schwartz.

This week, I covered the ongoing Google August 2025 spam update and how it heated up this week. Google got into hot water over saying the web is rapidly declining. Google AI Mode also said AI Mode would be the default, and then backtracked on that statement as well. Google AI Mode expanded beyond the English language. Google is showing AI Mode in the search suggestions autocomplete. Google released an update to the search quality raters guidelines. Google Search Console dropped reporting on six structured data types. Google's John Mueller recommends using a traditional TLD, even if it includes hyphens. Google Ads rolls out AI Max to all, adds new ad features, Merchant Center updates, and asset studio AI improvements. Google Ads tests promotion mode, campaign total b budget and more. Google Ads has new AI Max metrics. Google Ads connects your website and app together for better reporting. Google is testing sponsored ads with multiple search refinements. Google Search is testing alternatives for people also search for. Google is testing replacing hotel reviews with the hotel’s phone number and website URL. A new report says almost all ChatGPT users also use Google, but not the other way around. Google was fined by the EU for $3.5 billion and said it needed to divest its ad tech business. That was the search news this week at the Search Engine Roundtable.

Sponsored by Similarweb, the all-in-one- strategic SEO software. Step into the light and own the Gen AI Search Frontier. To learn more, check out Similarweb's new Gen-AI Intelligence tool and watch the video.

0:00 - Introduction

1:28 - Google August 2025 Spam Update Heats Up Again

2:23 - New Google Court Doc: Open Web Is In Rapid Decline

4:00 - Google AI Mode To Become Default For Google Search Soon (Maybe Not...)

4:46 - Google AI Mode Now Supports Hindi, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese & English

5:12 - Google Showing AI Mode In Autocomplete Search Suggestions

5:26 - Google Search Quality Raters Guidelines Gains AI Overview & YMYL Definitions

5:55 - Google Search Console Drops Support For 6 Deprecated Structured Data Types

6:38 - Google: Go With Traditional TLD Even If You Need A Hyphen In Domain Name

6:57 - Google Ads AI Max For Search Campaigns Globally Available & More

7:44 - Google Ads Tests Promotion Mode, Campaign Total Budgets & More

8:21 - Google Ads AI MAX Metrics: Expanded Matches & Expanded Landing Pages

8:57 - Google Ads Connection To Your Web & App Advertising

9:10 - Google Tests Sponsored Ads With Search Refinement Options

9:28 - Google Search Tests Alternatives To People Also Search For

9:46 - Google Tests Replacing Hotel Review Stars For Website & Phone Number

10:05 - Report: Almost All ChatGPT Users Also Use Google

10:29 - EU Fines Google $3.5 Billion; Must Divest Part Of Ad-Tech Business

10:51 - Conclusion

Today we covered the new Google Ads updates, including AI Max rolling out to all advertisers. Google Ads tests promotion mode, campaign total budget and more. The Google August spam update heating up again.  Bing is testing sitelinks with link icons. Google tests removing the review stars from the hotel knowledge panel.

0:00 - Introduction

0:48 - Google Ads AI Max now available to all plus more

2:20 - Google Ads promotion mode, campaign total budget and more.

5:36 - Google spam update heats up again

7:19 - Bing Ads test sitelinks with link icon

8:04 - Google tests removing star reviews on hotel panels

9:16 - Conclusion

A daily recap video summarizing a few of the top search marketing headlines covered at the Search Engine Roundtable.

This recap is called It's New - A quick, daily dose of the latest in SEO with Anu Adegbola of Search Engine Land and Greg Finn of Cypress North (and Marketing O’Clock) and Barry Schwartz.

Today we covered a new report from Similarweb showing the overlap of ChatGPT and Google users.  Google said the web is now not declining, just the web-ad market.  Google Ads has new reporting for AI Max campaigns. Google can now connect your ads better across web and apps. 

0:00 - Introduction

0:38 - Google and ChatGPT user overlap

2:23 - Google says now the open web is not declining

4:52 - Google Ads had new AI Max reporting

5:52 - Google Advertising connecting web and apps

8:00 - Conclusion

A daily recap video summarizing a few of the top search marketing headlines covered at the Search Engine Roundtable.

This recap is called It's New - A quick, daily dose of the latest in SEO with Anu Adegbola of Search Engine Land and Greg Finn of Cypress North (and Marketing O’Clock) and Barry Schwartz.

Today we covered how Google’s lawyers said the open web is declining, going against what Google’s executives have said. Google was fined $3.5 billion in the EU over anti-competitive ad practices and then told to divest.  Google AI Mode may be the default, but maybe not too soon.  A report says Apple will launch Apple World Knowledge Answers in 2026.   

0:00 - Introduction

1:01 - Google says open web is declining

3:19 - Google fined $3.5 billion in EU over anti-competitive ad tech

5:04 - Google AI Mode to be the default, maybe not

6:43 - Apple World Knowledge Answers coming

8:51 - Conclusion

A daily recap video summarizing a few of the top search marketing headlines covered at the Search Engine Roundtable.

This recap is called It's New - A quick, daily dose of the latest in SEO with Anu Adegbola of Search Engine Land and Greg Finn of Cypress North (and Marketing O’Clock) and Barry Schwartz.

This week, we covered the big Google Monopoly remedy ruling that will not end up breaking up the company and was more like a slap on the wrist. Google also has FastSearch, a faster search technology used for grounding. Google court docs also note search use of user interactions, user data, Chrome data, and also discuss the search index, spam scores, PageRank, Glue, and more. Google said crawling changes are independent of big Google updates. Google’s Danny Sullivan spoke at WordCamp. I posted the Google webmaster report for September. Apple may be releasing a massive upgrade to Apple Search, Siri, and Apple Intelligence, code-named World Knowledge Answers. Google’s AI Mode model was updated for school. Google tests AI Overviews that look like knowledge panels. Google AI Mode has this compare mode, which is cool. Google Business Profiles updated its link policies and guidelines. Google Hotel Center will crack down on inaccurate hotel pricing. Google Ads adds checkboxes to filter your campaigns. Google Ads AI Max is not designed to push the Search Partner Network, said Google. Google Ads now lets you search Google Maps for location assets. Bing is testing a floating Copilot search bar with keyword suggestions. Bing is testing an expandable related searches section. And industry vet and legend, Alan Bleiweiss, has passed away. That was the search news this week at the Search Engine Roundtable.

Sponsor: BruceClay one of the founding fathers of the SEO space, doing search marketing optimization since 1996. Bruce Clay is big into SEO training, check out seotraining.com to learn more and check them out at bruceclay.com. Also, check out their new product, Prewriter.ai - this tool empowers writers to write better and more efficiently, so check it out.

0:00 - Introduction

0:48 - Google Won't Be Broken Up In Monopoly Case But Required To Share Search Data

2:13 - Google FastSearch Is Faster Than Google Search

2:59 - New Court Docs: Google Search User Interactions, User Data & Chrome Data

3:18 - New Court Docs: Google Search Index, Spam Score, PageRank & Glue

3:32 - Google: Crawl Changes Are Independent Of Big Google Updates

3:56 - Danny Sullivan At WordCamp On How Google Search Keeps Evolving

4:43 - September 2025 Google Webmaster Report

5:03 - Apple Intelligence & Siri Revamp In 2026: World Knowledge Answers

5:36 - Google AI Mode Model Updated - Improvements For STEM Queries

6:00 - Google Tests AI Overview With Knowledge Panel

6:21 - Google AI Mode Compare Checkboxes For Products & Local Business Listings

6:37 - Google Business Profiles Links Policies & Guidelines Updated

7:12 - Google Hotel Center To Crack Down On Pricing Accuracy

7:56 - New Google Ads Checkboxes To Filter Campaigns

8:17 - Google Ads AI Max Not Designed To Go More Aggressively After SPN Inventory

8:58 - Google Ads Search Google Maps For Location Assets

9:26 - Google Ads API Releases Monthly In 2026

9:54 - Bing Search Floating Copilot Search Box With Keyword Suggestions

10:08 - Bing Tests Related Searches That Expand To More

10:23 - The Industry Mourns The Loss Of Alan Bleiweiss - Caring & Giving SEO

10:54 - Conclusion