SEO Tools and Resources

A strong Google review strategy is one of the most effective – and accessible – ways to boost your local SEO. Unlike other ranking signals that may feel out of reach, reviews are something business owners can actively influence. And their impact is only growing. Google reviews play a major role in map pack rankings, and yet many businesses still underestimate just how much they matter. By consistently earning new, high-quality reviews and keeping the momentum going, you can dramatically improve your local visibility and stay competitive in your market. Learn how to build and manage a Google review strategy that works in 2025 – helping your business grow,…

Most PPC marketers still default to static landing pages, whether it’s one catch-all page or a growing library of customized versions. You might already have dozens of static pages built for different campaigns, audiences, and offers. This is a proven approach: Create a page. Personalize it. Launch it. Optimize it. Repeat. The question isn’t whether to customize – it’s whether managing 60 static pages is more effective than running 12 dynamic ones that adapt in real time. Dynamic landing pages offer a different solution by adapting headlines, calls to action, visuals, and offers based on signals from the campaign itself. In theory, this…

“Did our organic traffic just drop again – even though our rankings went up?” If that question has come up in your marketing meetings lately, you aren’t alone. AI is reshaping SEO, breaking the traditional link between rankings, clicks, and conversions. We’re all trying to redefine what “good” SEO performance looks like. When Google serves your answer directly in a featured snippet or AI Overview, is that a win – or a lost click? In 2025, measuring SEO success demands a new approach. AI-driven search may boost your content’s visibility, but it also shifts user behavior in ways that make legacy metrics unreliable, if not completely misleading. …

Searchers can now find out who paid for the ads they see, as Google is beginning to roll out its Ads Transparency policy. This update makes ad funding more visible to users. This new label could impact how consumers perceive and trust advertisements. Advertisers now have less ability to obscure financial relationships. What it looks like. Google’s My Ad Center now features a new transparency section labeled Ads funded by. Anthony Higman, CEO of ADSQUIRE, spotted the implementation and shared screenshots on LinkedIn. Why we care. Google’s new Ads funded by labels expose previously hidden agency-client relationships and parent company connection…

No, you can’t just trust AI to do your SEO work for you. Great SEO requires smart humans. But used strategically, it can be an effective accelerant for great organic growth. In other words, as I recently explained to a client, simply using AI to mass-produce content doesn’t work – but a structured AI-driven workflow does. When I say “work”, I mean: It works for the client by delivering results. It works for me because it helps us operate more efficiently and take on more client work with the same number of employees. Before the process I’m about to lay out, I used to have to hire a team of writers for client content initiatives. Now, I …

Google reduced the minimum audience size requirement for customer match lists in Search campaigns from 1,000 to just 100 users — a significant update for small and midsize businesses. The big picture. This update makes precision targeting more accessible to SMBs, who often struggle to meet high list-size minimums. According to Google’s documentation, the new threshold applies only to customer match lists — not to remarketing lists or other audience types. It also mirrors YouTube’s recent customer list minimums, signaling a broader push for consistency across Google’s platforms. Why we care. Previously, advertisers needed at least 1,000 users to qualify a c…

As search engines continue to evolve, so too must our approach to link building. In 2025, the focus has shifted more than ever toward quality over quantity, prioritizing authoritative, relevant backlinks from trustworthy sources. This article outlines 12 essential dos and don’ts for effective link building, covering the most common pitfalls to avoid and the proven strategies that drive SEO success. Fails: Common link building mistakes to avoid 1. Don’t: Prioritize quantity over quality More is not better. Better is better. Earning numerous low-quality backlinks can harm your site’s credibility and rankings. Google values the quality and relevance of…

Google’s YouTube Insights Finder tool, launched to help advertisers understand intent-based audience insights, is now available in over 20 markets worldwide. How it works: Explore interests and trends: Find out what your audience is searching for and interested in. Discover top creators: Identify trending creators by topic, category, or audience segment. Measure engagement: Access detailed metrics on viewer engagement and content preferences. Understand device usage: Analyze how audiences watch across devices, including Connected TV. Why we care. The tool taps into YouTube’s trove of viewing behavior and trending topics, helping you tailor c…

Artificial intelligence (AI) plays a central role in how Google determines which ads appear in response to a search and how they are ranked. The company uses a sophisticated machine learning (ML) infrastructure to handle almost every aspect of its Search Ads system — from understanding user queries to ranking ads based on value and engagement. Here’s what we learned from trial exhibits revealed in the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) antitrust case against Google. Two AI pillars: LLMs and LEMs Google’s system relies primarily on two types of AI models: LLMs (Large Language Models) – These are responsible for interpreting user intent and query co…

Google Ads rolled out device targeting options for Performance Max (PMax) campaigns, which gives you granular control that was previously unavailable at the campaign level. The new targeting options appear in PMax campaign settings. You can now include or exclude specific device types You can now gain critical control over which devices see your Performance Max ads, a long-requested feature that allows for more precise campaign management and optimization. Details. The update allows targeting across four distinct device categories: Computers: Desktop or laptop devices with screens larger than 7″ diagonal. Mobile phones: Hand-held devices with phone …

Google search impressions are up 49% year-over-year, but click-through rates (CTR) are down 30%, according to new data from BrightEdge. For that, all credit goes to AI Overviews, Google’s AI-generated summaries that launched one year ago. Why we care. Google’s AI Overviews have impacted SEO in a big way. For so long, the focus has been on rankings, which generally tended to drive traffic that could then be monetized. Today, we’re forced to focus on reach – visibility in AI Overviews – even though there is no guarantee you’ll get a click or that your content will be properly credited if you get cited by AI. By the numbers. Here are some additional findings about ho…

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…

Is there a spam problem in AI Overviews? Yes – and apparently it’s growing. Don’t believe me? Just ask Google and you’ll get the following response: Yes, there is a growing spam problem in Google AI Overviews. A recent LinkedIn post highlighted that AI Overviews are easily manipulated, regurgitating content verbatim or hallucinating incorrect information, and that spammers are exploiting this to promote low-quality content. How AI Overviews are being abused: Hallucination and Incorrect Information: AI Overviews often generate answers that are factually incorrect or hallucinate information, even when contradicting accurate data from Google Business Pr…

Grappling with innovation and changing consumer attitudes is second nature to marketers, who have already lived through many technological shifts over the past two decades. But forecasting where things are going is especially hard when it comes to modern AI, which has such unusual, non-deterministic properties. You can’t just extrapolate from the state of AI today to understand where AI is going to be in five years (or one…); during this sort of a platform shift, you need to take a deeper first-principles look. Some things won’t change. Consumers will always want products, services and experiences that resonate and meet their needs. Marketers will always want easier, …

Even when it ranks in Position 1, Mail Online loses over half its clicks when AI Overviews appear in Google’s search results. Calling the click-through rate (CTR) “pretty shocking” Carly Steven, SEO and editorial ecommerce director for the UK newspaper, told the WAN-IFRA World News Media Congress (as reported by PressGazette): “On desktop, when we are ranking number one in organic search, it [clickthrough] effectively is about 13% on desktop and about 20% on mobile. When we are still ranking number one organically but there is an AI Overview present, that drops to less than 5% on desktop and 7% on mobile, so a pretty profound change in clickthrough.” Why we c…

AI is changing the digital landscape as we know it. An industry that used to run on Google’s 10 blue links is now rapidly transitioning to digital experiences based on personalized prompts and direct answers from AI. Success is expanding beyond tracking rankings, keywords, and organic traffic. To drive future growth, brands need to prioritize visibility and authority across all search experiences and optimize to improve mentions and citations within AI responses. Which begs the question: How do brands measure and maximize their visibility in AI? Let’s dive in. What is AI visibility? AI visibility refers to how often and effectively your brand, products, or…

Google is rolling out a new feature in Google Business Profiles named “What’s Happening.” This feature offers restaurants and bars a new way to highlight events, deals, and specials prominently at the top of your Google Business Profile. Google said, “What’s Happening” puts your timely updates, like “Today’s Special” or “Live Music on Saturday,” front and center!” What it looks like. Here is a screenshot of this feature in action: Eglibility. To be eligible to appear in this new space, share What’s Happening at your business via Google Posts or connect your Facebook, Instagram and/ or X profiles to your Google Business Profiles for automatic syncing. …

Google started rolling out new image optimization tools for Performance Max (PMax) campaigns. The feature, first announced last month, gives Google’s AI more control over how images appear in your ads. The shift to default-on image enhancements signals deeper AI involvement in creative decisions, potentially affecting ad look, feel, and performance without advertiser awareness. What’s new: Image Enhancements: Google’s AI can now automatically reformat uploaded images, adjusting layout and style to drive better results. Landing Page Images: PMax may pull visuals directly from your website to dynamically populate ad creatives. Between the lines. If y…

For years, marketers measured digital success through impressions, backlinks and clicks. If you ranked high in search results and won the click, you had visibility and control of the funnel. But that landscape is already shifting. Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Perplexity are rapidly becoming the first place decision-makers go for answers. These systems don’t return a page of links; they generate a synthesized response. Whether your brand is included, or ignored, in that answer increasingly determines your relevance in the buying journey. This changes the marketer’s playbook. Visibility is no longer only about ranking on Google. It’s…

Google is facing a legal reckoning across Europe, with at least €12 billion ($12.9B) in damages sought by price comparison sites who say the tech giant abused its dominance in search to siphon traffic and revenue. The civil suits stem from the EU’s landmark 2017 decision to fine Google €2.4B for antitrust violations related to its shopping service. With that ruling upheld, plaintiffs now only need to prove financial harm – not the legal wrongdoing itself – opening the door to massive payouts. Driving the news. A Bloomberg review identified 12 active civil suits in seven EU countries. Nine of the cases have disclosed claims totaling more than €12B. The lawsuits com…

If your loyalty strategy still revolves around points and perks, it’s time for an update. Consumer allegiance is no longer built on convenience alone—it’s driven by alignment. Shoppers are scrutinizing your brand’s ethics, your data practices, and your follow-through. And younger audiences aren’t shy about walking away if you miss the mark. AtData’s white paper, Beyond the Purchase: The Future of Consumer Behavior in 2025, outlines the real drivers of brand trust and retention in a post-personalization landscape. Based on emerging data and behavioral trends, it shows how to evolve from transaction-first to values-led—and still deliver measurable growth. Inside you’ll …

Google has a number of announcements around Al Mode, including dropping the waitlist, adding products and place cards to the answers, a new history panel, and that they are doing a limited test without having to opt in to Al Mode within Search Labs. Testing Al Mode in the wild. Google is now testing Al Mode within Google Search without you having to opt in to Al Mode within Search Labs. That means that you might see the tab for Al Mode without specifically opting into the feature. Soufi Esmailzadeh, Director, Product Management, at Google Search wrote, “Because our power users are finding it so helpful, we’re starting a limited test outside of Labs. In the coming …

The newly released Dotdigital Global Benchmark Report 2025 reveals a surprising trend: email volumes rose 23.9% year-over-year, and engagement metrics improved alongside them. Click-through rates doubled. Click-to-open rates jumped by 50%. Unsubscribes remained low at just 0.13%. The report analyzes billions of cross-channel interactions across industries, offering marketing teams rare insight into how leading brands are outperforming. With smarter segmentation, deeper personalization, and multi-channel orchestration, the data suggests that more can indeed mean better—when it’s done right. Why It Matters For digital marketers, ops leads, and marketing direc…

The platform behind your site plays a bigger role than you might think. From site speed and mobile responsiveness to content scalability and technical SEO, the foundation you choose can make or break your organic performance. If your goal is seamless, secure, and engaging digital experiences that also support strong search visibility, it’s time to re-evaluate your CMS. Join MarTech’s Future-Proof Your Content Strategy with the Right CMS, and discover exactly what marketers need to consider when evaluating content management systems. You’ll learn: Must-have CMS features for delivering top-notch digital experiences. How to tackle security, compliance, an…

In the first quarter of 2025, I ran a data study to understand how often Google changes title tags – and why. While it’s well known that Google frequently rewrites titles, I wanted to dig deeper: What factors trigger these changes? Are some pages more prone to rewrites than others? Most SEO professionals develop their own title tag strategies based on a mix of Google’s guidance, industry advice, and personal experience. Yet, when I searched for actual data on how and why Google modifies title tags, I found only one notable case study – by Cyrus Shepard in 2023. That left me with more questions: Does search volume play a role? What abo…