SEO Tools and Resources

In June, Fractl and Search Engine Land surveyed 2,000 consumers and uncovered a startling statistic: 82% find AI-powered search more helpful than traditional search. While the SEO industry panicked, thought leaders and snakeoil salesmen took to LinkedIn to lay claim to this new frontier of AI-driven brand visibility: “It’s called GEO!” “No, it’s AEO!” “Oh, we use AISO! Wait, I meant LLMO now!” …Or, maybe, it’s just effective SEO? Industry banter aside, we’ve entered a world where old-school search and AI-driven discovery coexist – and the terminology isn’t trivial. It’s the roadmap for how brands show up across fast-growing search platform…

Google is quietly updating its Personalized Ads policy on Dec. 12, expanding access to Custom Segments for certain Display campaigns — a shift that could unlock new targeting options for advertisers previously restricted under the policy. Driving the news. Advertisers received a brief, mandatory service email from Google announcing the change but offering no details beyond the policy update. The key clarification: this update applies specifically to campaigns limited by the Personalized Ads policy, not to all Display campaigns. The confusion: Google Ads Coach Jyll Saskin Gales noted that Custom Segments have already been available for most Display campaigns by …

Google will shut down three long-running Google Groups support forums for advertising developers early next year as it consolidates technical support into official channels. Driving the news. Google announced it will stop responding to new posts starting January 28, 2026. The forums will remain visible as read-only archives until later in the year, when Google plans to disable new posts entirely. After Jan. 28: Support agents will no longer reply on Google Groups. Replies to existing threads will trigger a new email thread with Google support instead. Content will stay online for reference — including past discussions and solutions. The shift. Googl…

Link building is the practice of earning links from other websites to your own. These links act as signals of trust and authority for search engines, helping your pages rank higher in search results. Quality matters more than quantity. A few relevant, high-authority links are far more valuable than many low-quality ones. Modern link building focuses on creating genuinely useful content, building genuine relationships, and earning links naturally, rather than manipulating rankings. Table of contents What is link building? What is a link? Why do we build links ? How to earn high-quality links Link building in the era of AI and LLM search Examples of effective link bui…

Microsoft Copilot is transforming search advertising by turning everyday conversations into intent-rich signals advertisers can act on. ROAS increases 13-fold when users engage with Copilot before performing a search, according to Microsoft. Drawing from billions of first-party audience insights across Microsoft’s consumer ecosystem – including Bing, Edge, Xbox, LinkedIn, and Activision – Copilot identifies high-value audiences using deterministic data built from search intent, web activity, and profile information. This allows advertisers to reduce wasted impressions and stretch budgets further. The mechanics of intent-rich search The core propositi…

If you’re planning to build a website or publish a blog post, you’ve probably heard the word permalink pop up. But what is a permalink, really? In simple words, it’s the permanent link to a page on your website, like the official street address of your house. No matter how many times you update your content, this link remains the same and tells people (and Google) exactly where that page is located. In this blog, we’ll break down what a permalink is, why it matters, how to pick the right permalink structure, and how Yoast SEO helps you manage everything easily. Quick note: If your website is already established, changing existing permalinks can cause broken links and …

Google Search’s Danny Sullivan and John Mueller pushed back – yet again – on the idea that brands need a separate AI SEO strategy, during the latest Search Off the Record episode. Sullivan’s take is simple: the acronyms keep multiplying (GEO, AEO, etc.), but the advice stays unchanged: Write for humans, not for ranking systems, whether those systems are traditional search or LLM-powered experiences. Why we care. As AI search grows, a lot of publishers and SEOs are feeling pressured to try something new. Google’s take: chasing AI tricks can actually hurt and distract you from making content people actually like. Google says the north star hasn’t moved. Sullivan…

Generative AI is everywhere right now. It dominates conference agendas, fills LinkedIn feeds, and is reshaping how many businesses think about organic search. Brands are racing to optimize for AI Overviews, build vector embeddings, map semantic clusters, and rework content models around LLMs. What gets far less attention is a basic reality: for most websites, AI platforms still drive a small share of overall traffic. AI search is growing, no question. But in most cases, total referral sessions from all LLM platforms combined amount to only about 2% to 3% of the organic traffic Google alone delivers. Despite that gap, many teams are spending more …

Google expanded Demand Gen channel controls to include Google Maps, giving advertisers a new way to reach users with intent-driven placements and far more control over where Demand Gen ads appear. What’s new. Advertisers can now select Google Maps as a channel within Demand Gen campaigns. The option can be used alongside other channels in a mixed setup or on its own to create Maps-only campaigns. Why we care. This update unlocks a powerful, location-focused surface inside Demand Gen, allowing advertisers to tailor campaigns to high-intent moments such as local discovery and navigation. It also marks a meaningful step toward finer channel control in what has tra…

Consumers are increasingly using AI tools — not Google — as their first source of information. This is driven by frustration with traditional search and rising expectations that AI will play a much larger role this year, according to a new report from Eight Oh Two, an SEO and PPC marketing agency. Why we care. AI isn’t replacing search, but it’s reshaping where search begins, how people discover brands, and which options they consider. A hybrid journey is emerging: AI delivers the first answer, and traditional search confirms it. Brands now need consistency across both or risk losing credibility when users cross-check. As more consumers turn to AI, visibility, trust, …

Google shows AI Overviews in Search largely based on whether users engage with them — and removes them when they don’t. That’s according to Robby Stein, Google’s VP of product for Search. In a CNN interview, Stein explained how Google tunes AI-driven results as it expands ads, personalization, and visual search across its experiences. Engagement drives AI Overviews. Google tests AI Overviews on specific query types and keeps them only if users find them useful. If users don’t click, interact, or show value, the overview disappears. The system then applies that learning to similar queries, Stein said: “The system will learn — so it’ll try it — and then see if …

Meta tests paid subscriptions across Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp to unlock premium features and AI across its apps. What is happening. Meta is testing new subscriptions that unlock exclusive features across Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp, while keeping the core experiences free. Rather than a single bundle, Meta plans to experiment with different subscription models and feature sets tailored to each app, spanning productivity, creativity and expanded AI capabilities. Subscriptions will introduce premium controls and tools for everyday users, creators and businesses — separate from Meta Verified. On Instagram, early tests could include unlimited audience …

Google is investigating a disruption affecting Google Ad Manager, according to an update posted on the Google Ads Status Dashboard. The incident began at 13:49 UTC on March 4. By 13:54 UTC, Google said it was reviewing reports that some users could access Ad Manager but weren’t seeing the most up-to-date data. What’s happening. The issue appears to impact reporting consistency. Specifically, Ad Exchange match rate and Ad Exchange request values are not aligning between Ad Manager’s interactive reports and the legacy reporting query tool (now deprecated). Why we care. Reporting discrepancies in Google Ad Manager can directly impact how you evaluate performance …

We’re excited to announce the beta release of Yoast AI Brand Insights, available as part of the Yoast SEO AI+ package. This new tool helps you understand how your brand appears in AI-powered answers, and where you can improve your visibility. Ideal for bloggers, marketers, and brand managers, Yoast AI Brand Insights gives you an overview of your brand presence across tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini. For years, Yoast has helped you get found in search engines. Recently though, search is changing. People aren’t just using Google anymore, they’re turning to AI tools like ChatGPT for answers. Those answers often mention brand names as recommendations. So here’s…

Creating effective ad copy has always been a critical skill for PPC marketers, especially in Google Ads. In the past, it meant hours of brainstorming, drafting, and A/B testing. Today, LLMs like Google’s Gemini can produce high-quality ad copy in minutes. But the results don’t come from the tool alone – they depend on the prompts you use to guide it. Google does offer built-in AI features to suggest ad copy ideas and variants, but that’s not the same as generating ads in batch or scaling copy across titles and descriptions. Earlier this year, Google shared a guide on prompt best practices. This article narrows the focus to what matters most fo…

Google is officially retiring Call-Only Ads, with creation ending in February 2026 and full sunset by February 2027. Advertisers relying on phone leads will need to transition to Responsive Search Ads with Call Assets. How to prepare: Switch campaigns to Responsive Search Ads with Call Assets. Enable call reporting and set call conversions as a primary goal. Use smart bidding, like Maximize conversion value, for better ROI. Link your Google Business Profile for location-based relevance. Restrict calls to business hours to avoid wasted leads. Why we care. Call-Only Ads have been a go-to for businesses that rely on direct phone calls, especially in …

Search behavior keeps tilting toward AI answers. People still click classic results, but more are starting with AI summaries and only clicking when they want depth, proof, or tools. Your job as an SEO is now twofold: Rank in traditional search. Get your pages cited or summarized inside AI experiences. How do you do both without doubling your workload? How AI-powered search surfaces and cites content Before diving into tactics, it’s worth grounding in what’s actually confirmed about how AI search experiences pull and cite results. AI-powered search engines ground their answers in indexed, high-quality pages Google AI Overviews and AI M…

Sam Altman’s once said advertising was a “last resort” for ChatGPT. Now he seems to think that “maybe ads don’t always suck.” What Altman is saying. In a new Stratechery interview, Altman admitted Instagram changed his mind about ads: “I love Instagram ads, they’ve added value to me, I found stuff I never would’ve found, I bought a bunch of stuff, I actively like Instagram ads. I think there’s many things I respect about Meta, but getting that so right was a surprisingly cool thing for me. Other than that, I viewed ads on the Internet as sort of like a tax.” “I believe there probably is some cool ad product we can do that is a net win to the user and a sort of…

Google will roll out ads within AI Overviews beyond the U.S. to select English-speaking markets by the end of 2025, the company confirmed during its Google Access event last week. Why we care. As AI-generated answers become a central part of Search, this expansion could reshape how advertisers reach users – with ads appearing directly alongside AI summaries rather than traditional text results. Catch up. Ads in AI Overviews were first unveiled at Google Marketing Live 2025, allowing brands to appear within generative responses when users ask complex, multi-part queries. What’s next. Google’s gradual rollout will give advertisers and users time to adapt to …

If you’re running Performance Max, or planning to launch a new campaign, I want to clear up one of the most misunderstood parts of Google Ads: audience signals and search themes. Understanding how to use (and not misuse) signals can strongly impact your PMax success. Why Performance Max is different than other Google Ads campaign types If you stop reading here and take nothing else away from this article, remember this: You do not get to pick your audience or keyword targeting in PMax. This is where a lot of advertisers get tripped up. Unlike traditional Search campaigns where you build a keyword list, or Demand Gen where you choose specific demographics …

We’ve spent years as an industry obsessed with what people search for. Now, it’s time to be just as focused on where they search. Generative engine optimization (GEO) isn’t just another tactic – it’s a new lens, a new mindset that’s reshaping how we think about search, content, and customer discovery. This article will help you: Plan financially and strategically for GEO in 2026. Understand what it means for your team, your content, your data, and, most importantly, your audience. Follow the user: From what to where Search isn’t a single destination anymore. It’s a journey made up of moments, typed, spoken, tapped, prompted. Over the p…

Martech debt builds up through manual reporting, fragile integrations, and silos. These issues fragment customer data, break campaign attribution, and force teams to rely on shadow spreadsheets to fill gaps between platforms. Current maturity models focus on technology adoption (hello AI!) rather than business outcomes. This misses the structural shift required to escape this cycle.​ Semrush Enterprise evaluates maturity across five interconnected pillars: Search Traffic Behavior Social Brand Progress means moving from patchwork operations to a unified engine where insight, execution, and impact connect and scale together for strategic effect.…

Building authority when no one’s heard of you can feel like trying to join a conversation that’s already halfway done. You’ve got something worth saying, but no one’s listening yet. In SEO terms, that’s tough – you need visibility to earn trust, but you need trust to gain visibility. The good news: you don’t need fame or a huge LinkedIn following to be credible. You just need to be clear, consistent, and trustworthy. Authority today isn’t about being loud – it’s about being legible to both people and search systems. This article demonstrates how to establish authority during the “unknown but capable” stage. It’s written from an SEO perspective,…

Google is launching a suite of updates across Ad Manager, AdSense, and AdMob to help publishers save time, strengthen advertiser relationships, and better monetize content — with major additions powered by AI and real-time technology. AI-driven automation: Smarter brand safety: A new AI tool learns a publisher’s specific brand standards and will soon automatically block unwanted ads, reducing time spent in manual ad reviews. Generative AI reporting: Publishers can now ask questions like “Which ad units had the highest CPM last week?” and instantly generate tailored performance reports in Ad Manager. AI Help guide: Rolling out in Ad Manager, AdMob, and AdSen…

Google rolled out AI-powered ad carousels in the Images tab on mobile, now appearing across all categories — not just shopping-related ones. Why we care. Ads are now showing directly within image search results, giving brands a new, highly visual placement to grab attention where users are actively browsing and comparing visuals. With users often browsing images to explore ideas or compare options, these AI-powered carousels give brands a chance to influence discovery earlier in the journey. The details: The new format features horizontally scrollable carousels with images, headlines, and links. These carousels are powered by AI-driven ad matching, pul…