The Local Memo

In this week’s update, learn about the full rollout of the Page Experience update; Facebook’s tools for personalized experiences; how Google and Yelp fight fake reviews; a spike in GMB cleanup actions; a guide to Google’s star ratings; and the rise of “localism” in marketing.

In this week’s update, learn about Apple Maps ratings in the U.S.; Facebook’s widely-viewed content report; recent GMB changes, including the sunsetting of site managers; a successful defamation suit related to online reviews; data loss in Search Console; and Google’s confirmation of a change to title tag handling in SERPs.

In this week’s update, learn about a new guide to local justifications; a spike in Maps alerts for GMB owners; tactics for scoring well on Core Web Vitals standards; SnapChat’s local strategy; Google rewriting title tags in search results; and the non-relationship between review flagging and response.

This week, learn about the response of marketers to consumers’ Delta concerns; Google’s callout of “reviews from independent sites”; an “updated today” justification in local packs; a deep dive into Core Web Vitals; Foursquare’s new rewards app; and changes to Facebook Ads.

This week, learn about the surge in popularity of local results in search; disabled categories for service-area businesses; John Mueller’s clarifications on Page Experience and the June and July Core Updates; new Google Maps features for iOS; variable content in Knowledge Panels; and Yelp’s new vaccination attributes.

In this week’s news, learn about Brandify’s new chapter as we join forces with SOCi; Apple’s updated Places on Maps interface; Snapchat’s My Places; consolidated food ordering options for restaurants on Google; continued support for multi-location GMB Posts; and a broad rollout of sustainability attributes for hotels.

In this week’s update, learn about Google’s new explanation of search rankings; more detailed restaurant reviews; what really works when using Google Posts (and what doesn’t); how to get the most out of GMB Products and Services; another Local Pack test; and free promotions for merchants in Google Shopping.

In this week’s update, learn about signs of pandemic-based long-term changes in shopping; how the Local Finder differs from Google Maps; more about hiding your GMB phone number; Google numbers in GMB profiles; a mapless Local Pack; new tools for travel marketers; and the demise of Posts … but not in GMB.

In this week’s update, learn about a new antitrust action against Google; the local impact of the June and July Core Updates; a new callout in GMB of Q&A content; identifying messages linked to Google posts; the link between events and GMB profiles; and a study examining the common traits of spam listings.

In this week’s update, learn about Yelp’s report on economic recovery; Instagram’s claim that it is “no longer a photo sharing app”; Google’s July 2021 Core Update; how to respond to Yelp reviews; the hyperlocal potential of Nextdoor; and a guide to branded search optimization.