SEO Tools and Resources

In the early days of SEO, owning an exact match domain (EMD) was like holding a cheat code. If someone searched for “siamese kittens,” you could bet that siamesekittens.com would be sitting pretty at or near the top of the search results. The algorithm heavily weighted the presence of keywords in the domain, and for a while, that simple trick delivered serious ROI. But it’s 2025 now. AI has reshaped search, large language models (LLMs) are rewriting how answers are generated and delivered, and the rules of the game have changed. So, what role – if any – do exact match domains still play? The EMD of yesteryear: Keyword first, brand second In th…

Artificial intelligence (AI) is upending the economic engine of the web, and Google is at the center of the disruption, according to Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince. What Prince said. In a recent interview with the Council on Foreign Relations, Prince said: “AI is going to fundamentally change the business model of the web. The business model of the web for the last 15 years has been search… search drives everything that happens online.” The Google tipping point. Google’s value exchange with content creators has collapsed, Prince said: “Ten years ago… for every two pages of a website that Google scraped, they would send you one visitor. … That was the trad…

Relying solely on Google for search visibility is no longer viable today. Search behavior is diversifying, particularly among younger demographics. Gen Z is increasingly turning to platforms like TikTok, Pinterest, and Reddit for information discovery. This shift highlights the need for brands to embrace a total search strategy – an approach that integrates multiple search and discovery channels to create a more holistic and resilient search presence. The risks of Google dependency Google’s algorithm changes frequently, and core updates can significantly impact website rankings overnight. Over-reliance on a single search engine makes brands vulner…

Bad data = bad strategy. Duplicate conversions are one of the most overlooked – and most damaging – problems in conversion tracking. If your reporting inflates the number of conversions, your performance strategy is based on fiction. You’re not just getting the wrong numbers. You’re optimizing toward the wrong outcomes. This issue impacts everything: Bidding. Budget allocation. Long-term growth. This article breaks down: Why duplicate conversions happen. How to find them. Most importantly, how to eliminate them for good. The cost of inaccurate conversion data Paid search loves precision. Conversion data is your nor…

One of the things you can do to present your local business better in search results is to use structured data for rich snippets. Adding structured data to your site can help search engines understand your business and how it performs. Because of this, you’ll need to add your NAP details, store/location map, reviews, and images. Find out how Schema.org structured data can help your local SEO. Table of contents Local customers use search engines Improve local rankings Why schema structured data Rich search results for businesses Why you should use JSON-LD How to add structured data to a local business listing Required properties for local businesses Recommended prope…

While Google still dominates local search, ChatGPT has made notable strides. Its local results, though not yet on par with Google’s, have improved significantly since we ranked it last among AI search tools less than a year ago. The key change? ChatGPT’s integration with Microsoft Bing’s search index last fall. While it now pulls web content from Bing, it applies its own algorithm to organize results. As a result, the best way to make your business visible in ChatGPT is to ensure it’s included in Bing’s index. However, ChatGPT processes local queries differently than Bing does. Here are several key differences I uncovered by running side-by…

Separate accounts, separate campaigns, or one shared setup? It’s often the first question marketers face when launching Google Ads in multiple countries or languages. The structure you choose lays the groundwork for how well you can: Localize ads. Manage regional budgets. Analyze performance by market. While consolidation simplifies PPC management, it can limit your ability to connect with diverse audiences. Full separation allows for maximum customization but can lead to administrative overhead and missed efficiencies. Striking the right balance is key to aligning effort with impact while maintaining centralized data. Effective loca…

We’re celebrating 15 years of Yoast, and we can’t celebrate without offering some SEO insights. So, here are 15 SEO essentials to focus on in this year and beyond. Whether you are a beginner or an SEO expert, these tips will help you focus on what’s important right now. In collaboration with our Principal SEO, Alex Moss Table of contents 1. Embrace AI-powered SEO tools 2. Optimize for zero-click searches 3. Invest in video content 4. Improve e-commerce SEO 5. Prioritize local SEO 6. Improve user experience (UX) 7. Participate in SEO communities 8. Optimize for AI discovery 9. Focus on content pruning 10. Implement structured data markup 11. Keep focusing on mobi…

With YouTube Shorts now reaching 2 billion monthly users and generating approximately 70 billion daily views, this rapidly growing format represents an untapped opportunity for many brands. When used effectively, Shorts unlock multiple benefits that other platforms can’t match: Faster channel growth. Higher engagement rates. New monetization streams. A massive established user base of over 122 million daily viewers. Powerful cross-promotion between short and long-form content. Plus, YouTube’s established reputation provides a level of stability that newer platforms like TikTok can’t guarantee. But despite all this potential, many marketers…

AI Overviews, Google’s AI-generated summaries that sit above organic search results, are already eroding traffic for many publishers and creators. However, publishers are getting “higher-quality clicks,” according to Elizabeth Reid, Head of Google Search, in a new interview. Why we care. Google Search is continuing to evolve in the direction of AI Overviews, where less clicks to websites is the new normal. Clicks. Here are some quotes from Reid’s interview with the Financial Times about the AI Overviews and the impact on clicks and traffic (a.k.a., that necessary evil) to publishers: “We see the clicks are of higher quality, because they’re not clicking on a…

Search has changed – and so has the role of the SEO professional. What began as a technical discipline focused on keywords and rankings is now a multi-faceted role that blends strategy, research, content, and visibility. This article explores: How SEO has evolved. What that means for practitioners. Where we go from here. The early days of SEO: Simpler times, big opportunities I stumbled into SEO by accident sometime around 1999, when the internet was a much simpler place. Dial-up modems were the norm, search engines were still finding their footing, and there were no smartphones, no social media, and certainly no AI in your pocket. To g…

Google is facing a new class action lawsuit in the UK that accuses the search giant of abusing its market power and driving up search ad prices. By the numbers: £5 billion ($6.6 billion U.S.): The potential damages Google faces. 90%: Google’s share of UK search advertising revenue, according to a 2020 CMA study. 13+ years: The period covered by the lawsuit (January 2011 to present). The details. Competition law academic Or Brook filed the lawsuit today in the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal, alleging Google has: Restricted competing search engines. Created a monopolistic position in search advertising. Forced businesses to use its ad services …

If you’ve tried to figure out how your brand shows up in ChatGPT or Gemini, you aren’t alone – and you’ve probably realized there’s no easy answer. With new AI visibility tools hitting the market, knowing which one to trust is half the battle. Vetting AI visibility platforms: Trial, error, and endless demos As AI search becomes a growing part of how consumers find information, brands face a new challenge: understanding and managing their presence in these AI answer engines. Unfortunately for marketers, many tools promising to help are as new as the challenge itself. Information is sparse, comparison is tricky, and reliability with many of these tools…

On April 15th, 2025, ​WordPress 6.8 was released. This release, named Cecil, is aimed at bringing more control when it comes to the design of your website. It also comes with features that improve performance and enhance security for users and developers. Let’s dive into a few of the highlights in this latest release. The Style Book for Classic themes The Style Book, previously exclusive to block-based themes, is now accessible for Classic themes that have editor-styles or a theme.json file. It also comes with a new look and a few new settings to play around with. You can find this feature, or see if you have access to this feature, by going to Appearance > Desi…

You’ve probably been hearing a lot about AI agents lately – whether in your workplace conversations or scrolling through your social feeds (hopefully both). While there’s no shortage of articles discussing their general benefits, there’s surprisingly little coverage on what they mean specifically for SEO – where their impact is not just significant, but amplified. Before we dive into the two key reasons AI agents are so important for SEOs to understand (and yes, you’re probably already using them – even if you don’t realize it), let’s first get clear on what AI agents actually are. What are AI agents? At their core, AI agents are autonomous systems equippe…

A confirmed bug in Google Ads caused New Customer Acquisition (NCA) campaigns to stop spending budgets starting May 15. The issue has affected advertisers relying solely on this bidding strategy to reach new customers. The details: Google acknowledged the problem in an email shared by Google Ads consultant Benoit Legendre. “We are aware of an issue where the campaigns running on New Customer Acquisition only, have stopped spending starting May 15th,” Google said. The company added that its engineering team is actively working on a fix, but initially provided no specific timeline. Why we care. Advertisers using NCA-only bidding have seen campaign per…

If you’re still chasing a flat 10% conversion rate across all campaigns, it’s time for a reset. According to Unbounce’s latest Conversion Benchmark Report , industry medians range from just 3.8% (SaaS) to 12.3% (Legal) — and that variance can reshape how you interpret your landing page performance. This free report doesn’t just give you numbers. It gives you context — by vertical, by strategy, and by conversion event — so you can benchmark smarter, optimize where it matters, and stop second-guessing your results. Download the full report to see where your landing pages really stand. View the full article

Google AI Mode is now available to all U.S. searchers without having to opt into it within Search Labs. When Google announced AI Mode in March, it was only available to U.S. users to opt into via Search Labs, now you no longer need to opt into it. A new tab for AI Mode will appear under the search bar on Google.com and in the Google Search apps for US searches this week. Google did say recently they have begun testing AI Mode in the wild, without opting into it. But starting today, as announced at Google I/O, AI Mode in the US no longer needs you to opt in to see it. AI Mode has “graduated” Search Labs. Google’s CEO, Sundar Pichai, said at Google I/O that AI…

Google is crediting its AI advancement, such as Gemini, to help detect and remove fake reviews and listings within Google Maps. “AI has been a pivotal tool in helping us stop scammers in their tracks, and we’re now using it to scale our protections even more,” Google wrote. The metrics. Google shared these metrics for its battle over Google Maps spam: Google blocked or removed more than 240 million policy-violating removed more than 240 million policy-violating reviews from 2024. Google added that “the vast majority of which were removed before they were seen.” Google blocked or removed more than 70 million policy-violating edits to places on Google Maps. …

Google is rolling out Smart Bidding Exploration, as announced today at Google Marketing Live 2025. This major update is designed to give advertisers more flexibility – and more conversions – by tapping into previously overlooked search queries. What’s new: Flexible ROAS targets. Advertisers (e.g., mortgage lenders) can now broaden their reach beyond narrow, high-intent searches (e.g., “mortgage rates”) to more exploratory ones (e.g., “how to buy a home”). Smarter AI. Built on existing AI-powered tools like AI Max, Smart Bidding Exploration helps campaigns capture high-performing searches from new, unique categories. Why we care. Digital marketers have l…

Bring your Shopify products to life in Google searches. Highlight product variants that shoppers care about—color, size, pattern, material and audience demography—and watch your clicks and sales soar. Why you and your customers will love it Attract more shoppers Make it easier for Google to show exactly what customers are searching for. Stand apart Richer product details and search snippets help you outshine competitors. Confidence and clarity Easily check your structured data in the Schema tab—no more confusion. No extra cost Available immediately for all Yoast SEO for Shopify users. Here’s how to try it: To access the Yoast …

Google is rolling out a suite of updates aimed at giving marketers sharper insight into what works, and why, across campaigns and platforms, as announced today at Google Marketing Live 2025. What’s new: Easier incrementality testing: You can now test what’s truly driving value across all campaign types, with lower spend thresholds and better testing methods. Smarter cross-channel insights: Google Analytics now offers improved measurement of the full customer journey and ROI, with deeper impression-level data coming soon across Google and beyond. New Data Manager tools: A centralized hub helps marketers gather, store, and activate first-party data from …

Ad headlines are one of the foundational building blocks of your campaign. These tiny bits of text create a first impression for your target customer, and play a real role in convincing them to click (or scroll right past). And yet, if you’re honest with yourself, does writing headlines usually come as an afterthought? In this article, we’ll cover everything you need to know about crafting Google Ads headlines across campaign types, including: How many headlines do you need in Google Ads? What is a long headline in Google Ads? Will my search ad headlines always show up? How to get Excellent Ad Strength with your headlines How to craft ad hea…

Fueled by “impressive YoY growth,” paid search advertising revenues hit a new high in 2024, according to a new report. In total, search accounted for $102.9 billion of a record $258.6 billion in U.S. digital advertising revenues, according to the IAB Internet Advertising Revenue Report: Full Year 2024, conducted by PwC. That is a $14.1 billion increase compared to 2023. Why we care. Paid search becomes more expensive and challenging every year, with less transparency. But advertisers continue to pour money into paid search because it drives results for brands and businesses. Paid search is still king. Search continues to own the largest market share of adverti…

Google started placing ads inside chat conversations with some third-party AI assistants, according to a Bloomberg report, marking another step in its push to monetize AI-powered search alternatives. Driving the news. Google’s AdSense network — traditionally used for placing ads in search results and across websites — is now running ads within chatbot interactions, according to people familiar with the rollout. The company reportedly began testing the feature earlier this year with conversational AI search startups iAsk and Liner. A Google spokesperson confirmed that AdSense is available “for websites that want to show relevant ads in their conversational AI e…