SEO Tools and Resources

Google just made it easier for merchants to manage messy product catalogs. Driving the news. Emmanuel Flossie shared on LinkedIn that Google is rolling out an AI-driven search feature in Google Merchant Center Next that simplifies how retailers find and filter their products. How it works. The new “Search for Products” tool uses AI to translate plain-English queries into powerful filters across your product data. Plain English filters. Merchants can now easily filter by entering plain English searches, which AI would translate to filter headings. So, for example, you could filter by: Manually added products. Out-of-stock items still getting traffic…

Google Merchant Center is rolling out a new Issue Details Page (IDP) to help advertisers more easily diagnose and resolve account or product-level problems. How it works: Located under the “Needs attention” tab, the page provides a consolidated overview of current issues. It surfaces recommended actions, business impact metrics, and sample affected products — giving merchants a clearer sense of what to fix first. Why we care. Until now, identifying and fixing issues in Merchant Center often required navigating multiple sections and reports. The new Issue Details Page (IDP) in Google Merchant Center gives advertisers a single place to view and fix accou…

Google resolved a six-month-long headache for online merchants by restoring filtered product download capabilities in Merchant Center Next, bringing the platform’s functionality back in line with its classic version. The context. In digital commerce, precision matters. Merchants often need to: Troubleshoot specific product listings. Optimize particular product categories. Analyze subsets of their inventory. The previous limitation essentially forced merchants to sift through massive, unwieldy files — like finding a specific book in an entire library by dumping all books on the floor. Why we care. The update allows merchants to export specific produc…

Google updated its conversion terminology in Google Merchant Center, renaming “Conversion settings” to “Key event setup” in the Google Ads UI. The terminology change aligns Google Merchant Center with Google Analytics 4’s shift from “conversions” to “key events,” creating more consistent language across Google’s marketing platforms. The big picture: This change reflects Google’s broader move toward standardizing measurement terms across its suite of marketing tools, which began with Google Analytics 4’s introduction of the “key events” terminology in March 2024. Why we care. The alignment with Google Analytics 4 means you will need to adapt your workflows, rep…

Google Merchant Center click reporting is changing on April 21, 2025, where clicks will be reported in the same manner Google Ads reports clicks. Google said this will align click reporting with Google Ads and thus may impact some current and historical data reported in Merchant Center. What is changing. Google wrote in this email, “As of April 21, 2025, we’re updating Google Merchant Center to align click reporting with Google Ads.” The email goes on to say: “This change reflects new advertising formats that have different types of interactions. While Google Ads reports clicks separately from other interactions, Merchant Center currently reports all intera…

Ecommerce businesses always look for ways to improve their online presence to drive sales. Google Merchant Center (GMC) is an essential tool for achieving this, as it helps businesses showcase their products across Google’s ecosystem. This guide aims to provide retailers with an understanding of GMC. It offers useful insights on optimizing product listings and enhancing visibility on Google Shopping. Table of contents What is Google Merchant Center? Setting up Google Merchant Center Merchant Center product data feeds Strategies for performance improvement All about Google Merchant Center What is Google Merchant Center? Google Merchant Center (GMC) is a fr…

Google will soon fully transition to automatically generated publication pages next month, in March. Back in April 2024, Google told us Publisher Center will soon stop allowing you to add publications and now this is the next step. This means that all publication pages in Google News will be generated automatically by Google. What Google said. Google wrote: Following our announcement in April 2024 last year, Google News will fully transition to automatically generated publication pages in March. This change improves our existing publisher workflow and simplifies our current product experience. Moving forward, all publication pages in Google News will be genera…

Google processes more than 5 trillion searches per year. This is the first time Google has publicly shared such a figure since 2016, when the company confirmed it was handling “more than 2 trillion” queries annually. By the numbers. Google revealed the new figure in a blog post today, saying it is based on internal Google data: “We already see more than 5 trillion searches on Google annually.” Google added another tidbit in the same blog post: that “the volume of commercial queries has increased” since the launch of AI Overviews. However, Google didn’t share any data or a percentage to explain how much commercial queries have increased. Searches per secon…

Google submitted a compliance plan to the European Commission that proposes changes to its ad-tech operations — but rejects calls to break up its business How it works: Google is offering product-level changes — for example, giving publishers the ability to set different minimum prices for different bidders in Google Ad Manager. It’s also proposing greater interoperability between Google’s tools and those of rivals, in order to give publishers and advertisers more flexibility. The company says these tweaks would resolve the European Commission’s concerns without a “disruptive break-up.” Why we care. Google’s proposed “non-disruptive” fixes could pres…

Google Business Profiles has added a new QR code you can use to make it easier to get reviews on your Google local listing within Google Maps and Google Search. The QR code, when accessed, jumps the user directly to the add review form, so there is little distraction to read other reviews or difficulty finding the form. How to access it. You can access the new QR code on desktop by searching for your business, then clicking on “Ask for reviews” or by going to your reviews and clicking on “Get more reviews.” This can be found in your Google Business Profile within Google Search on desktop. What it looks like. Here is an example of my QR code for my business that I …

Google is rolling out one-on-one appointments with technical experts to help advertisers properly implement conversion tracking tags on their websites. Why we care. Accurate conversion tracking is essential for optimizing digital ad campaigns and understanding return on investment (ROI). Google offering appointments with experts to help advertisers implement Google tagging on their websites addresses a common pain point for advertisers who struggle with technical implementation of tracking tools, which can lead to unreliable performance data and wasted ad spend. What tagging does: ROI insights. Track valuable actions on your site to gauge ad effectiveness. …

A few weeks ago, we caught Google linking text within its AI Overviews to its own search results. Well, today that has become a new official feature within AI Overviews. “To help people more easily explore topics and discover relevant websites, we’ve added links to some terms within AI Overviews when our systems determine it might be useful,” a Google spokesperson told Search Engine Land. What it looks like. Here is a screenshot we posted of this back then: Clicking on those underlined links in the text of the AI Overview, both at the top and in the middle section, will take you back to a new Google Search. The smaller link icons take you to the side panel lin…

After years of delays and scaled-back ambitions, Google officially killed its Privacy Sandbox, the once-flagship initiative aimed at replacing third-party cookies with privacy-preserving ad technologies. Driving the news. In a blog post Friday, Anthony Chavez, VP of Privacy Sandbox, confirmed that Google is retiring 10 remaining Sandbox APIs, including Attribution Reporting, Topics, and Protected Audience for both Chrome and Android. The move comes over a year after Google abandoned plans to phase out third-party cookies in Chrome altogether. Why we care. The Privacy Sandbox was Google’s answer to growing privacy regulation and industry backlash against cross-site…

The MCP Server for Google Ads is now publicly available on GitHub, Google announced. This marks a major milestone in bringing AI agents closer to real-world marketing workflows. How it works. The Model Context Protocol (MCP) is an open standard that allows large language models to interact with external applications through natural language. The initial version of the MCP Server is read-only, designed for diagnostics and analytics. Developers can integrate it into any MCP-compatible AI system to retrieve insights from Google Ads accounts securely. Why we care. The release of the open-source Google Ads API Model Context Protocol (MCP) Server makes it easier…

Google officially launched Meridian, its open-source marketing mix model designed to help marketers allocate budgets more effectively in a dynamic digital landscape. After rigorous testing with hundreds of brands worldwide, Meridian is now available to everyone, offering advanced customization and actionable insights, Google said. The move gives marketers and data scientists an open-source tool that could help them better understand how their marketing spending affects business outcomes, especially in today’s complex digital landscape. The big picture. Marketing mix models (MMMs) help companies measure marketing performance across channels, but traditional ve…

Live sports advertising is getting more programmatic — and more measurable. Driving the news. Google is rolling out new biddable live sports capabilities in Display & Video 360, including programmatic access to NBCUniversal’s Olympic Winter Games inventory, ahead of a packed 2026 global sports calendar. Why we care. Live sports remain one of the few media environments that consistently deliver massive, attentive audiences. By bringing premium sports inventory into biddable CTV, Google is giving advertisers more control, better measurement, and easier activation — without sacrificing reach. What’s new. Advertisers can now combine Google audience signals wit…

Google is expanding ecommerce options in the U.S. by allowing merchants to sell physical goods through subscription models directly in Shopping ads. This move aims to boost convenience for shoppers and flexibility for sellers. What’s new. Starting this month, eligible U.S. Shopping ad merchants can offer physical goods on a recurring basis. The policy formally opens subscriptions in categories like apparel, coffee, healthcare (excluding prescription drugs), home and garden, personal care, pet supplies, prepared foods, and toys. To participate, merchants must update their product feeds with the subscription_cost attribute, including subattributes for the billi…

Organic and paid click-through rates (CTRs) are down – and Google AI Overviews are partially to blame. However, paid CTR declined regardless of whether AI Overviews were present. The new analysis of ~10,000 informational intent keywords ranking in the top 20 positions was conducted by digital marketing agency Seer Interactive. Organic CTR drop. For queries where AI Overviews appeared, organic CTR fell sharply – from 1.41% to 0.64% – year over year. But when AI Overviews were not present, organic CTR actually increased: Paid CTR drop. Paid CTR was down year over year regardless of whether AI Overviews were present: But. Paid and organic CTR a…

Roblox unveiled a new immersive video advertising format on its platform and announced a strategic partnership with Google to expand its advertising business reach. Google will roll out these ads across AdMob and Ad Manager, creating significant new revenue opportunities for publishers while giving advertisers contextually relevant ways to reach engaged audiences. Big picture. The gaming giant is introducing rewarded video ads up to 30 seconds long that offer in-game benefits, marking a significant evolution of its business model beyond traditional gaming revenue. These ad formats are designed to blend seamlessly into virtual environments – appearing as billbo…

Google’s Performance Max (PMax) campaigns now support vertical 9:16 image ads, bringing the popular mobile-friendly format to the platform’s most automated campaign type. What’s new. Google Ads specialist Thomas Eccel spotted the update, noting that vertical “Story Image Ads” – first seen in Demand Gen campaigns earlier this year – are now available in PMax. Specs at a glance: Minimum size: 600×1067 (recommended: 1080×1920) Maximum file size: 5MB Google hasn’t officially confirmed where these will serve, though in Demand Gen, they appear in YouTube Shorts Image placements. Why we care. Vertical 9:16 images let PMax campaigns fit naturally into mo…

Google Ads is upgrading Performance Max campaigns with new reporting tools that offer deeper visibility into channel performance, search terms, and creative assets. What’s new. Three new insight reports are coming soon: Channel-level reporting: This will give detailed breakdowns of how each Google platform (including Search, YouTube, Display, Discover, Gmail, Maps, and partners) contributes to campaign success. (Tests were spotted last month.) Full search terms reporting. This addition offers the same keyword-level visibility in Search and Shopping campaigns. Asset reporting. This expansion will include impressions, clicks, and cost data, so you can…

Google is quietly rolling out a new Performance Max feature that lets advertisers upload video files directly inside the “Edit assets” panel — no YouTube channel or Shared Library required. Driving the news. The feature, spotted in the Google Ads UI, adds a simple “Upload” tab during asset creation in PMax campaigns. A highlighted upload box now appears in the YouTube ad setup workflow, guiding users to drop in a video file and move on — significantly reducing friction for new video advertisers. How it works. Uploaded videos are stored in a Google-managed house channel, not the advertiser’s YouTube account. That means the assets can be used in ads, bu…

Google Ads introduced customer lifecycle features in Performance Max, which will let you bid more aggressively for lapsed customers and track acquisition costs more precisely. PMax is also getting new image tools to boost creative flexibility. Customer Lifecycle management expands. Retention goals are now widely available, giving you the power to bid more strategically for lapsed users. For former customers: You can identify high-value former customers and prioritize who sees your ads and when. For new customer acquisition: In “new customer only” and “new customer value” modes, you will see a dedicated column in campaign reporting that displays customer acquis…

Even the most old-school PPC managers can’t deny it anymore: Performance Max is capable of amazing things. It does require a certain level of setup (like good-quality data inputs) and a different mindset than Search and Shopping, but it’s no longer the struggling tech we knew from the beta four years ago. Let me give you an example. Years ago, when working with retailers selling products from many different brands, you’d typically make a separate Shopping campaign for each one. Try that with Performance Max, and you’ll force it into doing something it’s not built for. And performance certainly won’t be at max. Consolidation is the name of the ga…

Google now lets you use AI to generate backgrounds for the images you add within Google Posts in your Google Business Profiles. “When creating a post for your customers in the Maps app, you can create an engaging AI-generated background for the photos you plan to use in the post,” Victoria Kroll from Google wrote. This is similar to the AI-generation image features Google has for shopping ads, product studio, even in products in Business Profiles and more. How it works. To add an AI-generated background, tap “Transform with AI” when adding a photo to your post in Maps on iPhone, select a theme, and generate. To create a post with an AI-generated background …