SEO Tools and Resources

Google announced plans to update how Google Tag Manager (GTM) interacts with Google Ads to streamline data collection and improve tracking reliability. This change is scheduled for April 10. Key changes: Google tag loads first. GTM containers with Google Ads and Floodlight tags will automatically load a Google tag before firing events. Easier feature access. Users can turn on Enhanced Conversions, Cross-domain tracking, and Autoevents directly from Google tag settings. Smoother data collection. If Customer Data Terms of Service are accepted, User Provided Data collection will be enabled automatically across events. Why we care. This update aims to en…

There has been a striking drop in remote SEO role listings — down to just 34% — as well as SEO content job listings – down 28%. That’s according to The 2025 Previsible State of SEO Jobs Report, released today. Meanwhile, SEO job listings for leadership positions (e.g., vice president of SEO) grew by 50% in 2024, while SEO manager positions increased 58%. Why we care. It may be too early to know whether this is a blip or a trend, but this data indicates that companies are looking to hire SEOs skilled in strategy, technical, and AI. Although content-focused roles are being squeezed by generative AI, leadership and technical skills remain as valuable as ever. Job…

Google is rolling out new conversion tracking columns for Demand Gen campaigns, giving advertisers a more nuanced view of social-style performance tracking. Details. 100% attribution to last Demand Gen touchpoint. Available at campaign and ad group levels. Specifically designed for platform-to-platform comparisons. Why we care. Advertisers can now directly compare Demand Gen campaign performance with paid social platforms, using view-through conversion data that provides a more comprehensive attribution model. The big picture. The new Platform Comparable conversion columns offer a specialized tracking method that: Isolates only Demand Gen inte…

Shopify is one of the most impressive internet success stories. According to BuiltWith, the Canadian ecommerce giant now powers almost five million stores worldwide. Merchants choose Shopify for its ease of use, robust features, scalability, and cost-effectiveness. Let’s go over the main reasons for choosing Shopify. Table of contents What is Shopify and what does it do? How does Shopify work? 7 Key benefits of choosing Shopify Unique selling points of Shopify Considerations before choosing Shopify These are the main reasons to choose Shopify What is Shopify and what does it do? Shopify is an ecommerce platform that has everything under one roof. It’s a c…

As generative AI continues to shape website performance, much of the conversation has focused on its negative impact. Factors like AI Overviews, increased zero-click searches, and a growing demographic that turns to ChatGPT instead of traditional research methods may all play a role. While these shifts raise concerns, it’s equally important to examine the traffic these AI engines are driving to websites. To better understand this, we analyzed traffic data from 391 SMB websites, breaking them down by industry and AI search engine referrals. Our goal was to see exactly how much traffic these companies were getting – and whether it was significant enough y…

The SEO industry is undergoing a profound transformation in 2025. As large language models (LLMs) increasingly power search experiences, success now depends on withstanding traditional algorithm fluctuations and strategically positioning brands within AI knowledge systems. This article explores key insights and practical implementation steps to navigate this evolving landscape. Withstanding algorithm updates in 2025 Traditional algorithm updates remain a reality, but our approach to handling them must evolve beyond reactive tactics. The typical SEO response to traffic fluctuations follows a familiar pattern: Identify the drop date. Cross-chec…

Google has added multimodal capabilities to its new AI Mode feature, letting you ask your questions with the assistance of uploading an image. Plus, Google announced it is rolling out AI Mode to millions of more Labs users in the U.S. AI mode with images. Google AI Mode now lets you upload an image via upload or your camera to ask AI Mode questions with images. Google calls this multimodal capabilities, which is launched years ago in other areas of Search. “With AI Mode’s new multimodal understanding, you can snap a photo or upload an image, ask a question about it and get a rich, comprehensive response with links to dive deeper,” Robby Stein, VP of Product, Googl…

Google will begin redirecting its country code top-level domain names (ccTLD) versions of its Google domain to Google.com. That means if you frequent google.fr (in France), google.ng (in Nigeria) and so on, you will be redirected to Google.com. Why the change. Google said, “Over the years, our ability to provide a local experience has improved. In 2017, we began providing the same experience with local results for everyone using Search, whether they were using google.com or their country’s ccTLD.” “Because of this improvement, country-level domains are no longer necessary,” Google added. Google said, “we’ll begin redirecting traffic from these ccTLDs to google.com…

Using transition words in your writing can help you enhance the readability of your content. They help your text flow and show readers the relationship between phrases and paragraphs. That’s why the readability checks in Yoast SEO provide feedback on your use of transition words. But what are transition words, and why are they so important? And how should you use them? Table of contents What are transition words? Why you should use transition words Types of transition words Why are they important for SEO? What does the transition word check in Yoast SEO do? How to improve your usage Conclusion What are transition words? Transition words like ‘and’, ‘but’,…

Google released a new help page detailing Asset testing for retailers, a specialized experiment type for Performance Max campaigns that lets you measure the effectiveness of your creative assets. What’s new. The new experimental feature tests asset impact within a single PMax campaign: A control group (feed-only) is compared against a treatment group (with added assets). The results are viewable in the Experiment report. Split testing without duplicate campaigns. Unlike traditional A/B testing that requires running parallel campaigns, this new feature splits traffic within a single Performance Max campaign: Control group: Shows product feed-only ads. …

Your online presence is a crucial part of your professional identity, and how you manage it can make all the difference. Personal branding helps build trust with colleagues, clients, and recruiters – and it all starts with personal SEO. While many focus on polishing their resume or LinkedIn profile, your digital footprint extends far beyond these platforms. This article will guide you through proven strategies to optimize your online visibility and ensure you stand out. What is personal SEO and why does it matter? Personal SEO involves optimizing your online presence so that your name appears at the top of search results for relevant queries. This…

Google today announced Search Live, a new feature that lets users have real-time conversations with Search using their smartphone camera. The tool builds on Google’s work in visual search and AI, combining the capabilities of Google Lens and Project Astra. How it works. Users can tap a new Live icon in either Lens or AI Mode. After pointing their camera at an object, they can ask questions about it. Search Live responds in real time with explanations, suggestions, and links to relevant websites, videos, and forums. What it looks like. Here’s a video showing how Search Live works: Why we care. Search Live highlights Google’s ongoing push toward multimo…

Have you been hit by a 5xx server error in Google Search Console? 500 errors are an HTTP status code that indicates you messed up something and need to start a late-night debugging session. 500 errors are offensive. I can only compare it to eating fermented shark in Iceland – something you’ll want to spit out almost immediately. 500 server errors create a poor user experience and can reduce your crawl budget. If they persist, Google may start ignoring your site altogether. Your website should be commitment-worthy. If you’re an SEO professional, you’ve likely stayed up until 3 a.m. with coffee and your DevOps team trying to fix a 500 error. You’ll want t…

A new profile of Elizabeth Reid, the head of Google Search, confirms that Google is moving away from its longstanding model of sending its users to websites. As one former unnamed senior executive put it: “Giving traffic to publisher sites is kind of a necessary evil.” As for the iconic Google Search bar? It will slowly lose prominence in the Google Search experience, due to the continuing growth of voice and visual search, Reid said. Necessary evil. Google has been increasingly focused on keeping users inside Google properties, reducing the need to click through to external sites. A former Google senior executive told Bloomberg that supporting publishers was inci…

Yelp announced 15 new features and updates to make it faster and easier for users to hire service professionals and for restaurants to manage their front-of-house operations. Many of these upgrades are powered by AI. Details. Yelp Assistant, launched in 2024, now uses AI-powered photo recognition to identify project needs. Users can simply upload a photo (e.g., a leaking pipe, car damage) and Yelp will quickly match them with the right service pro. Alongside smarter matching, Yelp is debuting AI-driven “response quality badges” to spotlight service providers who give clear, helpful replies. Businesses are rated based on whether they quote pricing, …

Advertisers are receiving step-by-step guidance emails from Google Ads aimed at improving campaign performance over a three-month period. The details. Google Ads is sending emails with the subject line “Personalised action plan for growth” to business advertisers, according to an X post from Govind Singh Panwar. The email contains: A three-month structured improvement plan delivered through weekly emails. A progress tracker showing completed and pending actions. Clear calls to action focused on ad strength improvements. Claims that improving ad strength from “Poor” to “Excellent” results in an average 12% increase in conversions. AI suggestion…

Microsoft has confirmed it uses schema markup to help its LLMs (large language models) understand your content. There has been a debate around if AI models and LLMs use schema or structured data, and at least Microsoft has confirmed they do. Source. Fabrice Canel from Microsoft’s Bing confirmed this while on stage at SMX Munich the other day. David wrote, “Fabrice Canel confirms that schema markup helps Microsoft’s LLMs understand your content in his excellent SMX – Search Marketing Expo in Munich presentation.” David Mihm posted on LinkedIn these details, which later Fabrice Canel confirmed in the comments area. Fabrice added, “Gen AIs value fresh content in…

Generative AI (GenAI) has undeniably transformed the marketing function, from automated customer interactions to content creation. But while everyone has been focused on chatbots and creating new blog posts, a quiet revolution has been brewing in Digital Asset Management (DAM). It began with addressing long-standing challenges related to asset findability and reuse but today we are seeing a number of exciting new, high-value use cases that will take us well beyond asset tagging and unlock the true creative potential of your DAM solution. Asset tagging and retrieval One of the core tenants of DAM is asset reuse. Why invest time, resource and cost in reproducing an a…

Google has released the March 2025 core update today, Google said this core update “rollout may take up to 2 weeks to complete.” Core updates happen multiple times per year. Core updates can have significant, broad changes to Google’s search algorithms and systems, which is why Google announces them. This is the first core update of the 2025 year. This core update happened a few months since the last core update, the December 2024 core update. What to do if you are hit. Google has given advice on what to consider if you are negatively impacted by a core update in the past. Google has not really given much new advice here but here is the past advice the company…

Advances in AI search are opening a new chapter, with consumers exploring Google alternatives. ChatGPT has hit a new milestone of 300 million weekly active users. Perplexity has grown to serve 100 million queries per week. Google’s global market share trended below 90% for the first time since 2015. The rapid rise of AI search platforms brings significant opportunities and growing challenges. On one hand, brands can boost visibility and drive demand like never before. On the other hand, they face new hurdles, such as copyright concerns, increasing infrastructure costs, and the ongoing challenge of measuring ROI. Despite shifts in search interf…

If users don’t interact with your page in Google’s search results, Google may remove that page from its results – or possibly even its index. That’s according to a recent short video Google’s Martin Splitt posted on the Google Search Central YouTube channel. This information confirms what Google said in their recent (since 2019) communication and once again with the Navboost details from the DOJ trails, and the data leak. What Google said. Here is a partial quote from the video, which I will embed below: “If they are not showing up so it’s either that the query is a bit weird or that the query hasn’t actually been asked that much or that we have other pag…

SEO is widely recognized as a long-term investment, which creates pressure for businesses to translate performance into measurable revenue. Early on – or even over time – disconnects can emerge between expectations and actual ROI. One major disconnect lies in understanding what SEO truly means in terms of strategy and tactics. Another, often magnified if left unaddressed, is the time it takes to see meaningful results. If the goal of SEO (or any digital marketing effort) is to drive return on investment (ROI), then identifying and addressing the root causes of the SEO-to-ROI gap is critical. Failing to do so can lead to compounding issues, making it h…

You’ve probably played around with Demographics in your Google Ads campaigns, but have you experimented with Detailed Demographics? This audience targeting technique is a powerful tool for reaching your ideal customers – and excluding your not-ideal customers. This article will cover: Basic vs. Detailed Demographics: What’s the difference? What type of Detailed Demographics are available in Google Ads? How to use Detailed Demographics in your campaigns Sample use cases for Detailed Demographics Basic vs. Detailed Demographics: What’s the difference? Your basic demographic options in Google Ads are age, gender, parental status, and household i…

Reddit’s presence in Google Search has surged over the last year, largely thanks to the Google-Reddit content licensing deal. As a result, Reddit threads are claiming prime real estate in search results, often outranking brand websites and even original content sources. While Reddit isn’t new, its growing influence has put it back in the spotlight. Yet many marketers either overlook Reddit entirely or mishandle it – resulting in missed opportunities or even backlash from its notoriously protective community. This guide covers everything you need to know about leveraging Reddit for SEO – finding ranking opportunities, engaging authentically, and boosting …

From automating review responses to suppressing negative search results, AI is making online reputation management (ORM) faster, smarter, and more effective. But while AI offers powerful tools, businesses must use them strategically to maintain authenticity and trust. Here’s how AI is reshaping ORM – and what brands need to do to keep up. Online reputation management in the age of AI In today’s digital-first world, a brand’s online reputation is more than just a reflection of its customer service. It’s a key driver of success or failure. A single negative news story, an influx of bad reviews, or even an outdated piece of content ranking high on Googl…