Don’t miss this roundup if you like to stay competitive. Google has released a slew of updates and new features you’ll need to know about to get ahead. You can get caught up with this month’s top guides, case studies, and news items.
The guides this month will teach you how Google docs can help write your meta descriptions, how to get started in machine learning, and how to make use of new analytics and search features.
Next, you’ll get caught up on the latest SEO studies. You’ll discover how Google’s approach to title rewrites has changed over the long term, today’s top SEO trends, and the SEO benefits of going public.
At the end, you’ll find the news you need to plan your next big moves. You’ll get the latest about the product review update, the new “trust” update, and some interesting new facts about Google’s approach.
Google Docs Can Write Your Meta Descriptions
https://searchengineland.com/google-docs-can-write-your-meta-descriptions-383257
In this short guide, Danny Goodwin shows you an easy way to generate effective meta descriptions using only GDocs. This strategy can help you develop a lot of titles quickly. Using the auto-generated summaries can also give you insights into how Google interprets a page and what it expects to see in your meta descriptions.
To use this method, you’ll need the content summary generator that Google released for business customers beginning in March 2022. Danny teaches you how to get these summaries, spot problems, and use the clues they give you to craft great descriptions.
Taking advantage of Google’s machine-learning tools can help you quickly generate tons of well-targeted descriptions. In the next guide, you’ll learn how to use machine learning to accomplish many other SEO tasks.
Getting Started In Machine Learning With Lazarina Stoy
https://www.rankranger.com/blog/machine-learning-seo
You’ll learn what it means to fully implement machine learning into your SEO in this interview with Lazarina Stoy by The In Search SEO Podcast.
Lazarina starts by helping you get through some roadblocks that can get in the way of adopting machine learning solutions. You’ll be introduced to some of the limiting beliefs that can stop you from adopting these tools, and learn how to evolve your thinking.
Further into the interview, you’ll learn how to identify situations where machine learning can provide the most value. You’ll also get some tips on scrutinizing the output from any new machine learning efforts.
Gaining experience with these new tools now can make you formidable down the road. Of course, even some old and familiar tools can introduce new uses. The following guide will help you use some of the latest tools in Google Analytics 4.
10 Of My Favorite NEW Things You Can Do With Google Analytics 4 (Thread)
https://twitter.com/CharlesFarina/status/1506044840282271745
Charles Farina shows you some exciting new things you can do after the latest GA4 update in this detailed Twitter thread. He takes you through his ten favorite changes, which may include some you’ve missed.
You’ll learn how the tool can now more effectively handle audience conversions, time measurements, funnels, debugging, and other important tasks. Most of the points include image references you can use to find these new functions in your own dashboard.
It’s always nice to have information you can use right away. However, if you like to be ahead of the game, our final guide gives you some analysis of what may happen next with Google Discover.
What Discover’s “More Recommendations”, Journeys In Chrome, And MUM Mean For The Future Of Google Search
https://www.gsqi.com/marketing-blog/google-search-future-discover-journeys-mum/
Glenn Gabe looks at how Google’s capabilities are growing with Discover’s search assistant. You’ll be taken through his analysis of what’s being tested on as many as a billion users right now. Then, you’ll learn what it may mean for your SEO efforts in the future.
The guide gives you a deep introduction to some of the features in testing on Discover. You’ll learn about More Recommendations, a feature that takes searchers to a task dashboard with hundreds of new guiding options.
You’ll also learn how features like Collections and Journeys are speeding searchers through tailored paths to the information they want.
Glenn closes with some insights into where Google might be taking you in the future. He argues that you’ll need to be ready to adapt to these changes by studying the sites currently being promoted for searches in the new features.
That closes the guides for this month. In the first case study below, you’ll learn more about the long-term effects of title tag rewrites.
Title Tag Rewrites: 7 Months Later
https://moz.com/blog/title-tag-rewrites-7-months-later
Dr. Peter J. Meyers brings you this review of Google’s enforced title changes several months later. These changes inspired some backlash from the SEO community and led to Google promising a lighter hand. Dr. Meyers takes you through the data that tells you how their approach changed (and if it did).
You’ll get this insight through a measure of more than 10,000 titles that were isolated and tracked to determine how Google’s approach to your titles has changed. The tracked changes are organized into categories to help you understand which of your titles are at risk.
Dr. Meyers also offers an analysis on Google’s promises. The numbers suggest that Google didn’t change much after the initial public outcry. As many as 50% or more of your titles are likely to be changed. You should plan accordingly.
The following data piece may also help you with your future planning. It looks at some of the biggest trends in digital marketing to help you understand where the industry is moving next.
Top Digital Marketing Trends For 2022: Oracle Survey Results
https://www.searchenginejournal.com/digital-marketing-trends-oracle/443718/
Miranda Miller brings you this look at the top trends in SEO. These insights come from a mass survey of nearly 1000 SEOs involved in leadership and management roles.
You’ll learn what these top professionals think about:
The biggest challenges in the industry- The performance metrics that matter the most
- The most in-demand platform features
- Where replacements for lost data are being found
The study closes with various other statistics you can use to get a jump on your future planning. You’ll learn about how tech stacks, data insights, and the mood of the professional overall.
These results could help you align your practices with the best SEO agencies. If you’re already at the front of the pack, you may care more about big next steps like going public. The final case study can reveal how that will affect your SEO.
4 SEO Benefits Of Going Public (A Unique Study)
https://ahrefs.com/blog/seo-benefits-of-going-public/
Michal Pecánek brings you this look at how going public affects your SEO. As he points out, this can be a massive boon for your business. You can often get a flood of linked and unlinked media mentions across high-traffic investment, stock, and business sites.
You’ll learn how Michal thinks you can best take advantage of this event and what the data says about how it played out in the past. In particular, you’ll learn what types of pages get attention, how the knowledge graph changes, and whether going public may be considered a ranking signal on its own.
That concludes the case studies for the month. Next, you’ll get the most notable headlines in SEO, starting with the most recent product review update.
Latest Product Review Update
https://twitter.com/searchliaison/status/1506668262540513283
Google directly provides you with this announcement about their product review updates. They claim that the latest changes are designed to ensure reviews come from people with first-hand knowledge.
Along with this announcement, they provide you with some updated guidance on how you should present the reviews on your site. While you may find these tips helpful, the updates mostly reinforce the existing best practices.
I did my own inspection, and it appears no new criteria were added. You should be fine if you were already following my recommendations from previous updates. Catch up here:
This isn’t the only trust-based change Google was making this month. Next in the news, you’ll be learning about Google’s new highly-cited feature.
Check The Facts With These Google Features (New “Highly Cited” Trust Label)
https://blog.google/products/news/fact-checking-misinformation-google-features/
Google has announced that your content may now be eligible for new “highly-cited” trust labels that are being tested in SERPs.
The label is intended to apply to searches that deal with important factual information. The label may appear when a guide, research paper, or other resource is frequently linked by other authoritative sites covering the same topic.
This feature could have serious consequences if you deal with YMYL certification. Now, searchers will be able to rapidly scan results to see which ones are qualified as credible.
You should only be seeing the effects of this test in English results for the time being. Google has not announced when the changes will begin affecting results.
If you’re hungry for even more Google news, they released some key facts about their operations during a spotlight on Danny Sullivan’s career.
Google: We Reduced Irrelevant Search Results By 50% & Made 5,000 Changes In 2021
Barry Schwartz brings you some interesting tidbits from Google’s look back on Danny Sullivan’s career as their Public Liaison for Search. Their profile on his work for the company included some facts that haven’t been made public elsewhere.
For one, Google claims to have cut irrelevant search results by more than half. If nothing else, this confirms their confidence in the approach they’ve been taking in recent years.
You should also note that Google made over 5000 changes to their algorithm in 2021, compared to 4500 in 2020, and barely over 3,000 in earlier years. The trend suggests they play a more active role in ensuring the algorithm delivers the expected results. This is probably what most SEOs expected, but it’s nice to be able to put the points on a graph.
That’s it for the roundup this month. Join us next month for more guides, studies, and news to power up your SEO.
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