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When you hear the term “contact page,” you probably think of a simple page containing contact info and maybe a form. I’m here to tell you why that’s a big miss from a local SEO perspective and show you how to build a contact page that builds your prominence with Google and helps you convert more leads. Google pays special attention to your contact page The former head of Google Business Profile Support, Joel Headley, once told me that Google specifically crawls and parses your contact page to gather information about your business. This led me to realize that most businesses have awful contact pages. They list their name, address, and phone number (NAP), embed a contact form, and call it a day. Google is saying, “Give me data about your business,” and you’re saying, “No data for you.” What you need to do instead is give your contact page the same level of care and attention as a multi-location landing page. Here are the must-haves for a contact page that converts site visitors into paying customers: Business identity. Contact information. Trust factors and social proof. Location-specific content. Amenities. Call to action. 1. Business identity Just like every other page on your site, your contact page should reflect your brand. This means you should include: Your business logo (that matches all your other marketing materials and real-world signage). Your slogan (bonus points if you can work some keywords into it for added SEO value). A short introduction that explains what your business does, where it’s located, and what your unique value proposition (UVP) is. Dig deeper: The local SEO gatekeeper: How Google defines your entity 2. Complete contact information You won’t believe how many businesses forget to include their contact information on their contact page. Here’s what you absolutely have to include: Full business name. Contact form and an email address people can write to (I recommend both). Complete address. Phone and text numbers. Social media links. Hours of operation (including any holiday, seasonal, or special hours). Shopping options (e.g., in-store pickup, curbside pickup, delivery, appointment only). Embedded Google Map to your business (not your address). A common mistake businesses make is embedding a map of their business address on Google Maps instead of their actual Google Business Profile. Make sure you embed a map in your business listing on Maps so that whenever someone clicks it, they send engagement signals to your profile. Practically, this means: Search for your business name on Google Maps. Bring up your profile. Click the Share button. Click the Embed a map tab. Copy and paste the code into your contact page. A link to your Google Maps listing. A few years ago, Holly Starks conducted a case study to test whether driving directions affected local rankings. She set up Google Maps driving directions on 100 cell phones, put them in her car, and drove to the business. The results were dramatic. The business’s rankings jumped from the 20s to number 1. In the past, I recommended writing driving and walking directions on your contact page. Now, with Starks’ findings in mind, adding a link to your Google Maps listing with anchor text like “Get driving directions” is even better. It encourages people to use Google Maps driving directions and can increase engagement signals to your Business Profile. Accepted payments. Parking details. Including detailed business information helps customers contact and visit you and signals to traditional search engines and AI search tools that your business is legitimate and credible. Bonus tips for your contact form: Add a compelling call to action (you can use the same CTA throughout your page). Set up form conversion tracking. Avoid spam by including reCAPTCHA, using a plugin, requiring double opt-in, and formatting your email address so bots can’t read it (e.g., hello (at) domain (dot) com). Make sure your contact section matches your Google Business Profile as a signal of legitimacy. Your customers search everywhere. Make sure your brand shows up. The SEO toolkit you know, plus the AI visibility data you need. Start Free Trial Get started with 3. Trust factors and social proof Your contact page shouldn’t just tell people how to reach you. It should prove they’re making the right decision before they ever click or call. Clear expectations Be clear about what a customer can expect once they reach out to you and confirm they’ve made the right choice in contacting you: How long are response times? 24 hours? 2 business days? What are the next steps? What can they expect from your team? Is there any useful information you can give them about your team, your location, or anything else that sets you apart from your competitors? Experience and credentials Reinforce trust and increase your page’s conversion rate by listing any: Industry associations you’re a member of (locally and nationally). Local chamber of commerce groups. Professional groups and associations. Meetup groups. Neighborhood associations. Better Business Bureau rating. Tip: Link each association name to your business’s profile on its website. Dig deeper: Local SEO sprints: A 90-day plan for service businesses in 2026 Awards and accomplishments Include any awards your business has received or mentions in the press, and link each one to the relevant article or website. If you’ve been mentioned frequently in the press, you can create a dedicated media section on the page. Reviews and testimonials Embed reviews from other sites and include testimonials on your contact page to build trust. You can increase reviewers’ credibility by including their photos, names, cities, and a link to their websites or directly to the review platform they used. Be sure to include your overall review rating and total number of reviews. Remember, customers don’t expect your business to have a perfect 5-star rating. A rating around 4.7-4.9 signals you’re a real business, not one that’s purchased all its reviews. Customer reviews not only build trust and increase conversions, they also add unique, locally relevant content to the page, which is great for traditional and AI search performance. Tip: This section is also great for requesting reviews, since repeat customers might visit your contact page. Add a Google review request link with a call to action to generate more reviews for your Google Business Profile. Dig deeper: 7 local SEO wins you get from keyword-rich Google reviews Get the newsletter search marketers rely on. See terms. 4. Location-specific content Create content that references local information and explains exactly what your business does, where it’s located, and why prospects should choose you. Here are some ideas for local content: Include photos and descriptions of your team members. Tell visitors about the customers you serve and your areas of expertise. If you’re located in a popular neighborhood or area, mention that in your content. Highlight any customer satisfaction guarantees or price-match policies. Mention any upcoming events, volunteer efforts, or relevant partnerships. Dig deeper: Top SEO tips for location-specific websites 5. Amenities Start by reviewing your Google Business Profile’s attributes section and consider listing those attributes on your contact page, such as whether the business is family- or women-owned, neurodivergent-friendly, or offers outdoor seating or home delivery. Then list any other attributes your business has that Google doesn’t provide as options. Detailed business attributes help search engines, LLMs, and customers understand that you meet specific needs. This can be especially useful for AI search, where people use more conversational queries, such as “Give me a list of cafes in Seattle that are wheelchair accessible and have free WiFi.” 6. A clear CTA button If you’re going to do all this work to make a killer contact page, don’t forget to put the cherry on top. Sprinkle strategically placed calls to action throughout the page to encourage visitors to contact you. Make them bright, animated, eye-catching, and convincing. Treat your contact page like a local SEO asset If you want a contact page that helps people reach out to you, informs search engines and LLMs about your business, and converts visitors into customers, treat it like a multi-location landing page. Save this list so you remember every section your contact page needs. Do this, and your contact page will outperform 99% of your competitors’ contact pages, because most businesses do a terrible job with them. View the full article

If you’re looking to save on quality tools, Home Depot‘s DeWalt promo codes offer some impressive opportunities. You can save up to 40% on select electric tools and access exclusive bundle deals that can cut costs by 30%. Daily deals might even provide discounts of up to 60%. Plus, Pro Xtra members receive additional perks. Curious about limited-time offers on accessories? There’s more to uncover that could improve your savings even further. Key Takeaways Sign up for email alerts to receive the latest DeWalt promo codes and exclusive offers at Home Depot. Utilize seasonal promotions to stack with existing codes for maximum savings on DeWalt tools. Join Pro Xtra to access exclusive discounts of 5-15% on DeWalt products and bulk pricing. Check daily deals for discounts up to 60% on select DeWalt items and combine with other promotions. Look for limited-time offers on accessories with discounts of up to 30% or more during major sales. Save Up to 40% on Select DeWalt Power Tools Home Depot frequently offers up to 40% off select DeWalt power tools, making it an excellent opportunity for contractors and DIY enthusiasts to improve their tool collection without breaking the bank. These home store deals are particularly appealing as they allow you to save considerably on a variety of energy tools, including drills and saws. You can stack Home Depot DeWalt promo codes with seasonal promotions to maximize your savings, further reducing your total costs. Moreover, keep an eye out for special buys that might include extra discounts or even free tools with qualifying purchases. To stay updated on the latest offers, consider signing up for Home Depot’s email alerts. This way, you’ll gain access to exclusive promo codes and further savings opportunities throughout the year. By taking advantage of these promotions, you can boost your toolkit while maintaining your budget effectively. Exclusive DeWalt Bundle Deals for Maximum Savings For those looking to maximize savings on their tool purchases, exclusive DeWalt bundle deals at Home Depot present a valuable opportunity. These bundles can save you up to 30% when you buy a combination of crucial tools. Typically, you’ll find items like drills, impact drivers, and saws, often accompanied by batteries and chargers, which improve both value and convenience. Furthermore, special promotions may include free tools or accessories with qualifying purchases, further increasing your savings. Seasonal events, like Black Friday, highlight limited-time DeWalt bundle offers, making it an ideal moment to invest in quality tools at reduced prices. Pro Xtra members likewise gain access to exclusive discounts on these bundles, which can greatly benefit contractors and regular shoppers. Bundle Type Potential Savings Basic Tool Set 20% off Advanced Tool Set 30% off Seasonal Promo Free accessory Daily Deals: Get Up to 60% Off DeWalt Items Daily Deals at Home Depot offer you the chance to save up to 60% on select DeWalt items, making it an excellent opportunity to upgrade your tool collection. These promotions are perfect for both professionals and DIY enthusiasts looking for high-quality tools at a fraction of the cost. Make sure to check out the following items often included in the Daily Deals: DeWalt drills DeWalt saws DeWalt tool sets Other crucial DeWalt accessories Discounts on DeWalt items can vary, so visiting the website regularly is a smart move to snag the best offers. The Daily Deals section updates frequently, ensuring you have access to the latest promotions. To maximize your savings, consider combining these deals with other promotions, such as seasonal sales or membership discounts, for even greater discounts on DeWalt tools. Pro Xtra Members Enjoy Additional Discounts on DeWalt If you’re a Pro Xtra member, you’ll find that additional discounts on DeWalt products can greatly improve your savings. Home Depot offers exclusive discounts ranging from 5% to 15% on high-quality DeWalt tools. Plus, you can benefit from special bulk pricing on over 4,000 products, making your purchases even more cost-effective. Here’s a quick overview of the savings you can access: Discount Type Details Exclusive Discounts 5-15% off on DeWalt products Bulk Pricing Special rates on over 4,000 items Price Matching Extra 10% off if you find a lower price Additionally, as a member, you earn rewards points on every purchase, which can be used for future DeWalt buys. Regular promotions and the Pro Special Buy of the Week often feature even more discounted options, ensuring you always get the best deal. Limited-Time Offers on DeWalt Accessories and Equipment Limited-time offers on DeWalt accessories and equipment can provide you with substantial savings, especially when you take advantage of Home Depot’s exclusive promo codes. These promotions often feature significant discounts, making it a great time to stock up on crucial tools. Consider the following benefits of these limited-time offers: Discounts up to 30% on various DeWalt accessories and equipment. Special bundles that include free accessories when you buy select tools. Seasonal promotions with discounts reaching up to 40% during major sales events. Daily deals in the Special Buy of the Day section, sometimes offering savings of 50% or more. To maximize your savings, sign up for Home Depot newsletters for instant access to exclusive promo codes and notifications on these limited-time offers. This way, you’ll stay informed and never miss a chance to save on high-quality DeWalt products. Frequently Asked Questions How to Get Home Depot Promo Codes? To get Home Depot promo codes, start by signing up for their email newsletter, which often offers immediate discounts. Check the “Special Offers” section on their website for current promotions. Follow Home Depot on social media for flash sales and exclusive codes. Consider joining the Pro Xtra program for personalized discounts. Finally, pay attention to seasonal sales events, like Black Friday, where you can find significant discounts and promo codes. Do Professionals Get a Discount at Home Depot? Yes, professionals can get discounts at Home Depot. Through the Pro Xtra loyalty program, registered users receive exclusive savings ranging from 5-15% on bulk purchases and special pricing on thousands of products. If you’re an active-duty service member, veteran, or spouse, you can furthermore access a 10% military discount after verifying your status. In addition, Home Depot offers price matching with an extra 10% off for in-store purchases, enhancing your savings potential greatly. What Discounts Does Home Depot Give? Home Depot offers various discounts, including seasonal sales that can provide up to 40% off on select tools and equipment. You can likewise take advantage of significant savings on energy tool combo kits, with discounts reaching $150. If you join the Pro Xtra program, you might receive 5-15% off bulk purchases. Furthermore, signing up for email newsletters often gives you immediate discounts, like $5 off your first purchase, enhancing your shopping experience. How to Get a Home Depot Contractor Discount? To get a Home Depot contractor discount, you should sign up for the Pro Xtra loyalty program. This program offers volume pricing discounts ranging from 5-15% on eligible purchases. Once registered, you’ll gain access to exclusive mobile coupons, early sales events, and a price match guarantee, which includes an extra 10% off competitor prices. Regularly check the Pro Xtra section for additional offers and discounts available only to members, maximizing your savings. Conclusion In conclusion, taking advantage of Home Depot’s DeWalt promo codes can lead to substantial savings on quality tools. With discounts of up to 40% on select electric tools, exclusive bundle deals, and daily offers reaching 60% off, there are numerous opportunities to save. Pro Xtra members benefit from additional discounts, whereas limited-time accessory deals can improve your toolkit at reduced prices. Staying informed through email alerts can help you never miss a great offer. Image via Google Gemini and ArtSmart This article, "5 Must-Have Home Depot DeWalt Promo Codes" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

If you’re looking to save on quality tools, Home Depot‘s DeWalt promo codes offer some impressive opportunities. You can save up to 40% on select electric tools and access exclusive bundle deals that can cut costs by 30%. Daily deals might even provide discounts of up to 60%. Plus, Pro Xtra members receive additional perks. Curious about limited-time offers on accessories? There’s more to uncover that could improve your savings even further. Key Takeaways Sign up for email alerts to receive the latest DeWalt promo codes and exclusive offers at Home Depot. Utilize seasonal promotions to stack with existing codes for maximum savings on DeWalt tools. Join Pro Xtra to access exclusive discounts of 5-15% on DeWalt products and bulk pricing. Check daily deals for discounts up to 60% on select DeWalt items and combine with other promotions. Look for limited-time offers on accessories with discounts of up to 30% or more during major sales. Save Up to 40% on Select DeWalt Power Tools Home Depot frequently offers up to 40% off select DeWalt power tools, making it an excellent opportunity for contractors and DIY enthusiasts to improve their tool collection without breaking the bank. These home store deals are particularly appealing as they allow you to save considerably on a variety of energy tools, including drills and saws. You can stack Home Depot DeWalt promo codes with seasonal promotions to maximize your savings, further reducing your total costs. Moreover, keep an eye out for special buys that might include extra discounts or even free tools with qualifying purchases. To stay updated on the latest offers, consider signing up for Home Depot’s email alerts. This way, you’ll gain access to exclusive promo codes and further savings opportunities throughout the year. By taking advantage of these promotions, you can boost your toolkit while maintaining your budget effectively. Exclusive DeWalt Bundle Deals for Maximum Savings For those looking to maximize savings on their tool purchases, exclusive DeWalt bundle deals at Home Depot present a valuable opportunity. These bundles can save you up to 30% when you buy a combination of crucial tools. Typically, you’ll find items like drills, impact drivers, and saws, often accompanied by batteries and chargers, which improve both value and convenience. Furthermore, special promotions may include free tools or accessories with qualifying purchases, further increasing your savings. Seasonal events, like Black Friday, highlight limited-time DeWalt bundle offers, making it an ideal moment to invest in quality tools at reduced prices. Pro Xtra members likewise gain access to exclusive discounts on these bundles, which can greatly benefit contractors and regular shoppers. Bundle Type Potential Savings Basic Tool Set 20% off Advanced Tool Set 30% off Seasonal Promo Free accessory Daily Deals: Get Up to 60% Off DeWalt Items Daily Deals at Home Depot offer you the chance to save up to 60% on select DeWalt items, making it an excellent opportunity to upgrade your tool collection. These promotions are perfect for both professionals and DIY enthusiasts looking for high-quality tools at a fraction of the cost. Make sure to check out the following items often included in the Daily Deals: DeWalt drills DeWalt saws DeWalt tool sets Other crucial DeWalt accessories Discounts on DeWalt items can vary, so visiting the website regularly is a smart move to snag the best offers. The Daily Deals section updates frequently, ensuring you have access to the latest promotions. To maximize your savings, consider combining these deals with other promotions, such as seasonal sales or membership discounts, for even greater discounts on DeWalt tools. Pro Xtra Members Enjoy Additional Discounts on DeWalt If you’re a Pro Xtra member, you’ll find that additional discounts on DeWalt products can greatly improve your savings. Home Depot offers exclusive discounts ranging from 5% to 15% on high-quality DeWalt tools. Plus, you can benefit from special bulk pricing on over 4,000 products, making your purchases even more cost-effective. Here’s a quick overview of the savings you can access: Discount Type Details Exclusive Discounts 5-15% off on DeWalt products Bulk Pricing Special rates on over 4,000 items Price Matching Extra 10% off if you find a lower price Additionally, as a member, you earn rewards points on every purchase, which can be used for future DeWalt buys. Regular promotions and the Pro Special Buy of the Week often feature even more discounted options, ensuring you always get the best deal. Limited-Time Offers on DeWalt Accessories and Equipment Limited-time offers on DeWalt accessories and equipment can provide you with substantial savings, especially when you take advantage of Home Depot’s exclusive promo codes. These promotions often feature significant discounts, making it a great time to stock up on crucial tools. Consider the following benefits of these limited-time offers: Discounts up to 30% on various DeWalt accessories and equipment. Special bundles that include free accessories when you buy select tools. Seasonal promotions with discounts reaching up to 40% during major sales events. Daily deals in the Special Buy of the Day section, sometimes offering savings of 50% or more. To maximize your savings, sign up for Home Depot newsletters for instant access to exclusive promo codes and notifications on these limited-time offers. This way, you’ll stay informed and never miss a chance to save on high-quality DeWalt products. Frequently Asked Questions How to Get Home Depot Promo Codes? To get Home Depot promo codes, start by signing up for their email newsletter, which often offers immediate discounts. Check the “Special Offers” section on their website for current promotions. Follow Home Depot on social media for flash sales and exclusive codes. Consider joining the Pro Xtra program for personalized discounts. Finally, pay attention to seasonal sales events, like Black Friday, where you can find significant discounts and promo codes. Do Professionals Get a Discount at Home Depot? Yes, professionals can get discounts at Home Depot. Through the Pro Xtra loyalty program, registered users receive exclusive savings ranging from 5-15% on bulk purchases and special pricing on thousands of products. If you’re an active-duty service member, veteran, or spouse, you can furthermore access a 10% military discount after verifying your status. In addition, Home Depot offers price matching with an extra 10% off for in-store purchases, enhancing your savings potential greatly. What Discounts Does Home Depot Give? Home Depot offers various discounts, including seasonal sales that can provide up to 40% off on select tools and equipment. You can likewise take advantage of significant savings on energy tool combo kits, with discounts reaching $150. If you join the Pro Xtra program, you might receive 5-15% off bulk purchases. Furthermore, signing up for email newsletters often gives you immediate discounts, like $5 off your first purchase, enhancing your shopping experience. How to Get a Home Depot Contractor Discount? To get a Home Depot contractor discount, you should sign up for the Pro Xtra loyalty program. This program offers volume pricing discounts ranging from 5-15% on eligible purchases. Once registered, you’ll gain access to exclusive mobile coupons, early sales events, and a price match guarantee, which includes an extra 10% off competitor prices. Regularly check the Pro Xtra section for additional offers and discounts available only to members, maximizing your savings. Conclusion In conclusion, taking advantage of Home Depot’s DeWalt promo codes can lead to substantial savings on quality tools. With discounts of up to 40% on select electric tools, exclusive bundle deals, and daily offers reaching 60% off, there are numerous opportunities to save. Pro Xtra members benefit from additional discounts, whereas limited-time accessory deals can improve your toolkit at reduced prices. Staying informed through email alerts can help you never miss a great offer. Image via Google Gemini and ArtSmart This article, "5 Must-Have Home Depot DeWalt Promo Codes" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. The Beats Powerbeats Pro 2 were designed with workouts in mind, but their $249.99 list price has made them a harder sell unless you really value a locked-in fit. Right now, however, Grade-A refurbished pairs are $159.99 at Woot. For comparison, new units are listed at around $212 on Amazon, and used pairs are about $168. According to price trackers, the previous low was about $179.95, so this dip is roughly $20 below that mark. All told, that’s a $90 discount if you don’t mind a pre-owned device that has been tested and verified to work as intended. Prime members also get free shipping, while non-Prime customers pay a $6 fee. Beats Powerbeats Pro 2 $159.99 at Woot $249.99 Save $90.00 Get Deal Get Deal $159.99 at Woot $249.99 Save $90.00 The adjustable ear hooks of these earbuds keep them secure during runs, strength training, or high-impact workouts, and the IPX4 rating means sweat and light splashes won’t cause problems. The sound leans bold, with strong bass that keeps pace with hip-hop and electronic playlists. Active noise canceling reduces background noise at the gym, while transparency mode lets you hear traffic and announcements during outdoor runs. They also pair easily with Apple devices and support features similar to AirPods, though in a design that is more secure for exercise. For more on how these stack up in Apple’s ecosystem, see Senior Technology Editor Jake Peterson’s coverage of the Powerbeats Pro 2 fitness features in iOS 26. Setup is simple, though if you need help with it, you can follow Lifehacker’s guide on how to configure every feature of your Powerbeats Pro 2. Battery life runs about eight to 10 hours per charge, and the case stretches total listening time to roughly 45 hours. That said, the built-in heart rate tracking is not flawless. Our Senior Health Editor, Beth Skwarecki, found it did not always sync reliably, especially when an iPhone was juggling workout apps and music at the same time. There is also no companion equalizer app, so you cannot tweak the sound profile beyond what Beats has tuned. Our Best Editor-Vetted Tech Deals Right Now Apple AirPods 4 Active Noise Cancelling Wireless Earbuds — $157.90 (List Price $179.00) Apple iPad 11" 128GB A16 WiFi Tablet (Blue, 2025) — $329.00 (List Price $349.00) Google Pixel 10a 128GB 6.3" Unlocked Smartphone + $100 Gift Card — $499.00 (List Price $599.00) Apple Watch Series 11 [GPS 46mm] Smartwatch with Jet Black Aluminum Case with Black Sport Band - M/L. Sleep Score, Fitness Tracker, Health Monitoring, Always-On Display, Water Resistant — $329.00 (List Price $429.00) Shark AI Ultra Matrix Clean Mapping Voice Control Robot Vacuum with XL Self-Empty Base — $299.99 (List Price $599.00) Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 FE 128GB Wi-Fi Tablet (Gray) — $379.99 (List Price $499.99) Amazon Fire TV Soundbar — $99.99 (List Price $119.99) Deals are selected by our commerce team View the full article

It’s another bad day for Bitcoin. Over the past 24 hours, the digital token has declined nearly 4.5%, putting it just above $63,000 and within range of its 52-week low. But this time, Bitcoin’s fall seems to have nothing to do with the token itself—or the broader cryptocurrency market. Rather, its steep drop seems to be driven by three unrelated factors, to varying degrees. Here’s what you need to know: Bitcoin approaches 2026 and 12-month lows Since Bitcoin hit an all-time high of just over $126,000 per coin in October, the digital token poster child has had a dramatic fall from grace. The coin’s momentum, which seemed unstoppable last fall, has sharply reversed course. At its current price of around $63,192, it is now down 50% from its all-time high. And this isn’t even the worst drop that Bitcoin has suffered recently. Earlier this month, Bitcoin fell to $62,353 before rebounding. Now, Bitcoin is again within touching distance of this February’s low. To be fair to Bitcoin, it isn’t the only major cryptocurrency seeing steep declines over the past 24 hours. Here’s how Bitcoin compares to other major coins as of the time of this writing: Bitcoin: down 4.5% Ethereum: down 4.7% BNB: down 3.2% XRP: down 4.5% Crypto de-risking may be a driving factor Why are all these tokens down so much over the past 24 hours? Interestingly, the fall seems to have little to do with the cryptocurrencies themselves. Instead, today’s crypto decline seems to be spurred by de-risking activity. “De-risking” is when investors take their money out of high-risk, volatile assets, by selling those assets and investing the proceeds of those sales into other assets that are considered lower risk, and thus less volatile. Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in general are high-risk, volatile assets because their prices can swing widely over a short period of time (hello, today’s drops and Bitcoin’s 50% fall over the last six months). Besides cryptocurrencies, other high-risk, volatile assets can include various types of stocks—like those in the tech sector. In contrast, safe-haven, low-volatility assets include things like gold and government bonds. High-risk, volatile assets can see their prices swing wildly in response to external factors unrelated to the assets themselves. These swings occur because external factors can introduce significant uncertainty into markets. Uncertainty can lead to losses, so investors try to mitigate future losses by selling high-risk assets to lock in any gains or prevent further declines from affecting their portfolio. And over the past 24 hours, there has been a hat trick of external uncertainties that is likely leading some crypto investors to derisk. The President’s new tariffs, Iran, and AI are weighing on investors’ minds Over the past 24 hours, three events have occurred that risk injecting significant uncertainty into the economy, and they are likely weighing heavily on the minds of crypto investors. Most significantly of the three is that The President’s new tariffs are now in effect. Last week, the president suffered a dramatic loss when the Supreme Court struck down his signature tariff policy, and thus, the majority of his Liberation Day tariffs could no longer be collected. In response, The President vowed to use other methods to impose tariffs on countries around the world. Those tariffs, of up to 15%, are now in effect. However, in many cases, the new tariffs’ timeframe may be limited to just 150 days without additional approval from Congress, which the legislative body may or may not give. All this is causing great uncertainty for businesses and governments, and ultimately risks impacting the economy and markets—again. Also, in the past 24 hours, America is closer than ever to invading Iran. The President administration officials are due to meet Iranian counterparts in Geneva on Thursday, and if those talks fail, many fear that the president will make good on his threat to attack the country. Many experts say a war with Iran could be a prolonged one, and prolonged wars have habits of negatively impacting the global economy. Finally, yesterday, an announcement from Anthropic spooked investors in legacy SaaS (software-as-a-service) companies. As reported by CNBC, Anthropic announced that its Claude AI could now modernize legacy COBOL systems. COBOL is a computer programming language that has been around since the 1950s and is still the backbone of most corporate systems. After Anthoripic’s announcement, shares in IBM sank, as IBM generates significant revenue from maintaining these legacy COBOL systems. Now Anthoripic says its Claude tools can quickly “Identify [COBOL] risks that would take human analysts months to surface.” As a result, IBM shares dropped 13%. But Anthropic’s news also spooked investors with significant holdings in legacy software companies. Tech stocks can already be volatile, and more proof that AI could have a significant impact on legacy tech companies sent shivers down investors’ spines. Given the triple uncertainties of tariffs, Iran, and AI, it’s no wonder why investors seem to be de-risking from volatile assets like Bitcoin in an attempt to protect their gains or prevent further portfolio losses. View the full article

Technical SEO “best practices” increasingly reflect CMS and plugin defaults, not individual site decisions, according to 2025 HTTP Archive analysis. The post Web Almanac Data Reveals CMS Plugins Are Setting Technical SEO Standards (Not SEOs) appeared first on Search Engine Journal. View the full article

How often do you review your PPC ad copy? Not just analyzing the performance of each asset within the ad platform, but also reviewing your ads in the context of how they appear next to competitor ads? Are you using the exact same messaging as your competitors? Does your offer stand out from theirs? Which ads are bland and generic, and which provide concrete calls to action and compelling selling points? Let’s walk through several tips for writing paid search copy that stands out in search results and converts customers for your brand. 1. Think about how assets will appear together, not just individually When you’re writing Responsive Search Ads, it’s easy to fall into the trap of simply filling in all 15 headline options and all four descriptions. However, if each headline essentially says the same thing with slightly different wording, your ad copy will appear bland and repetitive in the SERP when two or three headlines are shown together. For instance, if this example ad showed the following, it would be less helpful: “Project Management Software – Project Management Solution – Project Management” Instead, it says: “Project Management Software – Trusted by 3 Million Users” If you want to test multiple headlines with slightly different wording, pin them to the same position so the ad platform can rotate between them, but not show both at the same time. Zoho appears to be doing this by using both “Preferred by 3 Million Users” and “Trusted by 3 Million Users” as options. Dig deeper: The anatomy of compelling search ad copy 2. Don’t obsess over ad strength The visibility of the ad strength rating looms over every Google Ads account. Don’t let chasing an Excellent score consume your focus. Focus more on making sure each headline and description speaks accurately to your benefit points than on including the maximum number of each. Pinning may negatively impact ad strength, but as discussed above, it can help make your messaging cleaner. 3. Use AI as a partner, but don’t blindly outsource all your copy to AI Google and Microsoft make ad writing easy, generating text for all your ad assets with a single click. Your LLM of choice can also spin out halfway acceptable copy with the right prompt. These tools can provide a helpful starting point, but they shouldn’t be the final result you use without careful review. Don’t skip the human touch when reviewing the copy you get back. Problems can range from copy that doesn’t reflect your brand voice to flat-out inaccuracies. In industries such as finance and healthcare, where legal guidelines matter, AI-generated copy may not be compliance-friendly. Dig deeper: How to write high-performing Google Ads copy with generative AI Get the newsletter search marketers rely on. See terms. 4. Include value propositions, and back them up It’s not enough to claim that you’re the “Best Local Contractor” in your area. Think of concrete ways to reinforce superlative statements like this. For instance, “Voted Best Local Contractor by [News Outlet]” provides a tangible source for the claim. Mention awards or rankings from organizations your prospective customers are likely to recognize. Incorporating numbers, where possible, also helps bring credibility to your messaging claims. Years in business. If you’ve been around a long time, stating this positions you well against newer players in the market. Number of customers served. Number of locations for physical businesses. Number of connectors for a software product. Number of active users. Number of trips booked. Number of properties managed. One word of caution: If you include numbers that are likely to change over time, such as how many customers you serve, revisit them periodically and update them for accuracy. Ranges are fine, too, for example, “Over 500 Locations.” 5. Highlight ease of effort In today’s busy culture, saving time and hassle can be one of your biggest selling points. Think about where the product or service you’re promoting can reduce effort for your target audience. Open an account in 10 minutes. Complete your application online. Schedule a same-day appointment. Conduct your consultation remotely. Repairs done while you wait. Make sure you can back up what you promise here, and consider whether current customer reviews reflect the experience your claims describe. Dig deeper: How to assemble captivating Google Ads copy Your customers search everywhere. Make sure your brand shows up. The SEO toolkit you know, plus the AI visibility data you need. Start Free Trial Get started with 6. Offer a ‘free’ hook Just like free samples at Trader Joe’s, mentions of “free” in ad copy immediately draw a user’s attention. What can you offer as a free entry point for potential customers? Free demo. Free trial. Bonus for new customers. Free college application. Free quote. Free content, such as ebooks, whitepapers, or webinars. Whether it’s a trial of a software product or a free visit to your home to assess what’s needed for pest control, this type of offer can be what convinces prospects to fill out a form and enter your sales funnel. For instance, Strayer University highlights, “Pass 3 Bachelor’s Courses, Earn 1 Tuition Free.” In an age of skyrocketing college costs, that’s an attractive reason to click and learn more. 7. Turn off automated assets If you’re not careful with your account settings, Google and Microsoft can automatically generate assets, from ad copy to sitelinks, without your review. That can create concerns for compliance and for overall messaging accuracy. Make sure you turn off this option at the account level to avoid issues with unwanted copy or unexpected links to irrelevant pages. Dig deeper: When to trust Google Ads AI and when you shouldn’t 8. Highlight pricing where it makes sense for your brand When people are comparison shopping, they usually want quick visibility into cost. Of course, providing pricing may be more or less straightforward depending on your business, and price isn’t always a primary selling point for every brand. If you’re in an industry where showing a cost is simple, including it in your ad copy can help. When your pricing is competitive, mentioning it helps you stand out. If your pricing is higher than most competitors, showing that cost may help filter out people you don’t want clicking your ads. For example, lower-priced competitors may cater to small businesses, while your company serves enterprise-level organizations that need more robust solutions. If you offer multiple price tiers or clearly defined costs for different services, consider using price assets to highlight them. For example, you might break out cost by number of users for a SaaS product. 9. Mention locations in regional campaigns If your business serves a particular region, mention locations in your ad copy to create a local connection. For example, if you just opened a new store in Buckwheat County, including “Now Open in Buckwheat County” can help appeal to users in that area. Your ad will likely stand out against national brands running generic messaging. You can set up ad groups based on regional keywords and tweak your headlines to reference those locations. Also consider using location insertion to dynamically include regions in your copy. Dig deeper: Localization in Google Ads: How to structure multi-market campaigns 10. Review and revise your ad copy Now that we’ve covered ways to improve your paid search copy, take a moment to review your current ads. Where can you better think through how assets combine? What value propositions aren’t you mentioning yet? How can you tailor your wording more directly to customers’ concerns, such as by highlighting pricing or regions? Start creating new copy variants and testing them to improve your PPC performance. Your ad doesn’t compete in isolation — it competes in the SERP Paid search success isn’t about filling every field or chasing an Excellent ad strength score. It’s about how your messaging appears next to competitors in the SERP. Review your ads in context. Look at how assets combine. Strengthen value propositions, highlight what makes you different, and test new variations. If your ad sounds like everyone else’s, it won’t stand out. Make sure it does. View the full article

Neuroscientists have found birding is actually a brain hack. A new study published in JNeurosci, the Journal of Neuroscience found birdwatching may actually alter the structure and function of your brain—what is known as neuroplasticity—effectively helping to boost cognitive abilities, especially in more seasoned bird watchers. “Our brains are very malleable,” lead researcher Erik Wing, a research associate at York University in Toronto, explained. Wait, what exactly is neuroplasticity? Neuroplasticity is basically the process or way your brain learns, creates memory, and adapts to experiences and trauma, according to Psychology Today. Research shows that while the brain changes and develops the most in childhood, it continues to do so throughout your life. Today, neuroscientists see the brain as a dynamic and flexible organ, one that can “reorganize connections” through “wiring” and “rewiring.” How bird watching helps your brain The new study of 58 adults compared the brains of 29 expert birders (ages 24 to 75), and 29 beginners around the same age. It found something interesting: The MRIs of the expert birders’ brains had more density when it came to areas governing perception and attention, than those of the novices. Again, they didn’t divide the two groups based on a person’s age—but based on their birding knowledge and expertise. Birding, which involves deep concentration and the ability to identify different birds, alters brain activity and structure in the same way becoming an expert musician or athlete does. That’s because they all require extensive brain training. So, what did the study conclude? In short, it found the process of becoming an expert birder boosted brain cognition. And while it doesn’t stop brain aging, it does suggest that it could help minimize age-related declines in the future. View the full article

Microsoft has implemented and continues to deploy mitigations against prompt injection attacks in Copilot, the company announced last week. Spammers were using the "Summarize with AI" type of buttons to trick AI engines into believing or trusting a specific company or response.View the full article

One of the many constitutional duties of the president is giving a State of the Union address to Congress. Article II, Section 3 only mandates that this act happen “from time to time,” but it has become an annual event. Tuesday, February 24, will technically mark President The President’s first State of the Union address of his second term—even though he lectured Congress in 2025. That speech was labeled an “address to a joint session of Congress,” so The President could speak on his goals for his second term. Here’s everything you need to know about tonight’s SOTU address. What topics could The President speak about? Most pundits agree, the economy will be front and center. President The President even teased this himself last Wednesday, February 18, at the White House. “Watch the State of the Union. We’re going to be talking about the economy. We inherited a mess,” he stated. This could mean he will spend some time blaming his predecessor President Joe Biden for the country’s ills. Vice President JD Vance also confirmed that economics will take precedence. “You’re going to hear a lot about the importance of bringing jobs back into our country, of reshoring manufacturing, of all these great factories that are being built,” he explained in a Fox News interview. Recent polling shows the need for The President to tackle this important issue ahead of the midterm elections. According to a recent Associated Press NORC Center for Public Affairs Research survey, only 39% of American adults approve of his economic leadership. He loses a percentage point for immigration. Add these low numbers predate Friday’s Supreme Court ruling, which declared that some of The President’s tariffs exceeded executive powers. Either way, The President is going into the State of the Union with low poll numbers. Are Democrats boycotting the SOTU? The Democratic party is expected to display varying acts of dissent during The President’s State of the Union Address. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries plans to attend, but outlined his expectations for his fellow party members. “Either attend with silent defiance” or “not attend,” he instructed. He doesn’t want a repeat of last year’s ejection of Texas Representative Al Green. Many are taking the second option, including Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut; and representatives Greg Casar of Texas and Pramila Jayapal of Washington. These lawmakers are instead attending another event, the “People’s State of the Union,” organized by MoveOn and MeidasTouch. This will take place on the National Mall. Another counter-programming event will be held at the National Press Club: It’s is being called the “State of the Swamp.” Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon is scheduled to appear. Additionally, Senator Patty Murray of Washington is planning on meeting with constituents instead. Who is giving the Democratic response? After President The President has his say, the Democrats have their turn to speak. This year, they have elected Governor Abigail Spanberger of Virginia to represent their interests. She is a vocal The President critic and is not expected to hold back. Senator Alex Padilla of California will give the Democratic Spanish-language response. Who is giving the Progressive response? Democrat Representative Summer Lee of Pennsylvania will also speak. She will give the Working Families Party’s response. Since American politics is dominated by a two-party system, this progressive group allows members to be a part of another party while also closely aligning with Democrats. How to stream the SOTU live The State of the Union 2026 speech is scheduled to begin tonight (Tuesday, February 24) 9 p.m. ET. Most major networks such as NBC, CBS, and ABC will cover the speech, as will major cable networks including C-SPAN. If you have an over-the-air antenna, you can watch it for free on a broadcast network or PBS. Traditional cable subscribers are also covered. You can also find SOTU 2026 on live-TV streaming services such as Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, and FuboTV. Last but not least, you can easily live-stream the State of the Union speech for free on the YouTube channel of PBS News. We’ve embedded that video below. View the full article

Google reportedly updated its Google Ads support contact form to add a disclaimer and checkbox to say you authorize "Google Ads specialist on behalf of your company to make the changes above directly to your company's Google Ads account to reproduce and troubleshoot the issue."View the full article

Microsoft Advertising is testing an update to the shopping ads carousel that can show multiple images in a single card. Essentially, you are seeing a carousel within a carousel for Bing shopping ads.View the full article

Apparent network of energy companies’ vast reach revealed by FTView the full article

A cabinet of sycophants makes an already erratic US president a greater threatView the full article

Google is testing removing the dates from the articles shown in the Google Discover feed. This is a limited test, Google confirmed, to see the impact of removing the date value.View the full article

Microsoft Advertising seems to be testing a new design for the Bing shopping ads carousel. The new design fills the screen more from left to right than the old design and is just wider in general.View the full article

Shares in US chipmaker surge as deal paves way for social media giant to take a stake in the groupView the full article

San Francisco restaurant Mister Jiu’s is kicking off its 10th anniversary celebration next month with a three-part dinner series in its Chinatown kitchen. The restaurant will host 10 celebrated Chinese chefs from around the world, including Dan Hong from Sydney, Australia’s Mr Wong, and ArChan Chan from Ho Lee Fook in Hong Kong. Guests, seated in tables of four or eight, pay $285 each for 16 dishes from four chefs, all inspired by classic banquet-style dining. The even is nearly sold out, and, according to executive chef and owner Brandon Jew, an exciting creative collaboration that the restaurant couldn’t afford to produce on its own. The extravaganza is sponsored by Resy, the reservations provider used at Mister Jiu’s and one of two reservations platforms owned by American Express. The payments company acquired Resy in 2019 and competing service Tock in 2024 to help its card members access both tables and special events at top restaurants, like the dinner collabs at Mister Jiu’s. (Amex card members were able to secure bookings to the event 48 hours before everyone else.) The series is among hundreds of events that Resy will put on this year to try to coax more diners into restaurants—and more restaurants onto Resy. That platform is about to get a shot in the arm. This summer, Amex will merge Tock’s restaurant inventory with Resy’s, adding roughly 8,000 bookable venues—including 1,200 wineries, a handful of tattoo parlors, and at least one goat farm—to Resy’s app and website. The move boosts Resy’s venue count to 25,000, but will sunset the Tock brand, formally uniting two onetime startups against reservations market leader OpenTable, the incumbent provider they each hoped to disrupt. Crucially, it also bolsters Amex’s position amid increased competition: Delivery company DoorDash spent $1.2 billion to acquire reservations platform SevenRooms last year and offers diners delivery credit for booking tables, and Chase Sapphire linked up with OpenTable last spring as part of its larger Visa partnership to offer exclusive restaurant bookings. Chase also has a longstanding partnership with DoorDash, offering Sapphire holders credit. “Resy will be the singular app for the best culinary experiences used by the hospitality world’s most ambitious operators, with a membership benefit for card members,” says Pablo Rivero, CEO of Resy and Tock and SVP and head of American Express global dining. “And all of that will come together under the umbrella of a new era for the Resy ecosystem.” Behind the Resy-Tock merger The merger follows efforts by American Express to link its cards to reservations services that provide valuable access to restaurants. When the card issuer raised its Platinum card fee by $200 last September, it added a $400 annual credit for diners to use in Resy restaurants. This summer, Tock restaurants will start to become eligible for the credit, with the majority eligible by the end of 2027. Brandon Jew It was a powerful move; in the three weeks following the announcement, there was a 36% increase in Resy reservations made by users with a U.S. Platinum card linked to their account—and a five times increase in the daily average number of accounts being linked. People using the Resy credit are spending, on average, 25% more, according to Rivero. Resy wants its restaurants to notice; in January, it sent partner restaurants a Spotify Wrapped-style digest that included the value of Resy credits earned by Amex users at their business. “Look out for more of these card members in your seats in 2026,” it promised in its note to restaurants. Amex is already seeing results: In the fourth quarter of 2025, global restaurant spend by American Express card members was up 9% overall, but spending by American Express card members at Resy restaurants was up more than 20%. Both Resy and Tock launched in 2014 with new approaches to restaurant reservations. Resy challenged OpenTable’s longtime model of charging restaurants per reservation. Instead, it offered a monthly subscription to its reservations and table management software. Around the same time, Tock pioneered a new model, prepaid ticketing, with the thesis that diners should book and pay for dinner the same way they’d buy tickets to a Broadway play or a football game. Founder and CEO Nick Kokonas, a former derivatives trader, launched the tech inside Alinea, the Chicago fine dining restaurant that he cofounded. One platform, two systems Tock’s structure immediately attracted fine dining restaurants drawn to a fresh idea. Kokonas, meanwhile, seemed to relish antagonizing chief competitor OpenTable, which he accused of peddling outdated technology and a stale business model. In one memorable marketing stunt, he planned to distribute 5,000 plastic dinosaurs at an industry trade show, each branded with the URL OpenTableSaurus.com, which then led to Tock’s homepage. A cease-and-desist letter from OpenTable thwarted the plan, and Tock eventually gave them the domain. But Kokonas, refusing to accept defeat, pointed a second URL, DinosaurTable.com, at Tock’s homepage to underscore his position. (Both URLs still work.) Kokonas wanted the restaurant industry to embrace the prepaid model that eliminated nearly all of the dreaded and expensive no-shows at its restaurants. Eventually, Tock’s competitors added prepaid ticketing to their platforms, and Tock started offering free reservations. By the time American Express acquired Tock from website-building platform Squarespace for $400 million in 2024 (Squarespace paid the same amount to acquire the business in 2021), its diner-facing products—free reservations, deposits, tickets—had become standard across providers. But Tock maintained an impressive roster of high-end restaurants, which bought into the platform’s adaptable technology and the company’s reputation for serving them well, something that Tock’s restaurant customers hope won’t vanish when the brand does. “It’s so clear [Tock] was built by restaurant people that understand service,” says Anya Abrams, managing director at Blue Hill in upstate New York. Blue Hill operates the two-Michelin-starred restaurant Blue Hill at Stone Barns, alongside the more casual Cafeteria, which serves lunch and communal-style dinner. It uses prepaid ticketing on Tock for both. It also uses the platform to facilitate experiences like farm tours and cocktail demonstrations. Abrams says that at her request, Tock has added product features and changes that fit the company’s complex needs. Once bookings at Tock restaurants are moved to Resy, Rivero says that diners will see and be able to book the exact same tables and experiences that they would on Tock, cocktail tastings and farm visits included. Restaurants using Tock’s software to manage their venues won’t notice any tech changes on their end besides a switch to Resy’s logo. Restaurants already using Resy won’t see any changes—though if they prefer to switch to Tock’s operating system, which many say offers better tech, they can. “Tock has built an incredible product that so many restaurants have come to use and love, and we don’t want to mess with that,” Rivero says. Eventually, Rivero says, Amex will combine Resy and Tock’s restaurant-facing tech, made up of “the best of both, along with new features and integrations.” He didn’t share a timeline, but restaurants have been told to expect the change in 2027. A battle for restaurants Amid this heightened competition between platforms and credit cards, restaurants have gained more negotiating power. Over the last year or so, reports and rumors have surfaced of restaurants receiving five-, six-, or even seven-figure payments to switch between booking platforms including Resy, Tock, OpenTable, and SevenRooms. The services and their deep-pocketed owners and partners are hoping that the cash infusions, along with promises to fill dining rooms with people eager to spend, will net them the most desirable restaurants. In San Francisco’s Chinatown, Brandon Jew is happy the platforms, including Resy, see the value in restaurants like his, which work to create great experiences for diners. “Restaurants have a very natural way of being able to storytell and provide experiences, entertainment, and food and beverage that contribute to memorable events,” he says. “I think that’s what the reservation systems are interested in providing, especially for their elite users.” “It’s such a weird era,” he adds. “I feel like we’re so used to paying for their products.” For now, at least, the tables have turned. View the full article

In the past, women’s work bags were designed to assert power. Women marched into the boardroom with hyper-structured “girlboss” totes or aggressively minimalist tech clutches. But there’s a shift taking place. Many work–life bags today are softer, both visually and physically. They’re lighter. They collapse. They transition seamlessly from the office to the many other things that fill your life: The mid-day grocery run, a coffee meeting that turns into school pickup, dinner with friends straight from the office. Every year, I test dozens of bags in search of the ones that best capture how we’re actually living and working right now. It’s clear that work bags are slowly shedding their armor. Rigidity and structure have given way to something more fluid. And perhaps they say something about our identity as working women. We’re not longer looking for a bag that assert power and competence, but rather one that reflects how work is just one part of our lives. This year’s standout bags share a clear through line: They’re soft without being sloppy. Structured enough to carry a laptop securely—but relaxed enough to collapse into something chic and compact once the tech is removed. They’re built for a hybrid life. After months of testing, here are the five bags that rose to the top. Barra Tote Strathberry, $895 At first glance, the Barra Tote—made by the fast-growing Scottish startup Strathberry—looks like a classic, polished work bag. It’s made with 100% grain calf leather in a family-owned factory in Spain. The clean lines and signature gold bar detail give it a distinctly elevated feel—one that would be perfectly at home in a boardroom. But once you start carrying it, you realize it’s more versatile than it appears. The leather has structure but isn’t stiff. With my 14-inch laptop inside, the bag feels balanced and intentional—not boxy or overstuffed. There’s enough organization to keep everything upright and easy to access, but not so much that it feels over-engineered. What surprised me most is how the bag transforms when you remove the laptop. It relaxes slightly, softening into a sleek everyday tote. Add the crossbody strap and it becomes commuter-friendly, freeing up your hands for coffee, phone, or a child’s hand on a busy sidewalk. It’s the rare bag that signals professionalism without locking you into it. Forma Satchel Cuyana, $698 Cuyana has built its reputation on the idea of “fewer, better things,” and the Forma Satchel embodies that philosophy. This bag has two distinct silhouettes, an architectural hexagonal satchel that transforms thanks to hidden magnetic side panels into a spacious tote bag. With it’s rounded edges, it feels refined rather than rigid. The pebbled Italian leather—which has been environmentally certified by the Leather Working Group—feels substantial but not heavy, and the bag holds its shape beautifully when a laptop is inside. Thanks to metal feet at the base, my computer sits upright, making it easy to slide in and out during meetings. Yet once the laptop is removed, the Forma doesn’t collapse awkwardly or gape open. It simply becomes a polished everyday satchel—sleek enough for work, understated enough for weekend errands. It pairs just as well with tailored trousers as it does with denim and sneakers. It doesn’t demand attention, but it quietly pulls an outfit together. This is the bag for someone who wants versatility without visual clutter. Bella 2-in-1 Convertible Backpack Tote Vestirsi, $679 If any bag on this list fully embraces the fluidity of modern life, it’s this one. The Bella can be worn as a tote or converted into a backpack—a feature that genuinely changes how you move through your day. In tote mode, it reads polished and office-ready. In backpack mode, it becomes a practical companion for commuting, travel, or long days on your feet. The bag is made by the Australian startup Vestirsi, which makes all of its products in Italian factories. The leather, now in a chic woven design, gives the bag visual softness and texture, which helps it avoid the overly technical look of many laptop backpacks. Even with my computer inside, it doesn’t scream “tech bag.” Instead, it feels artisanal and thoughtfully designed. When worn as a backpack, the weight distribution is noticeably more comfortable, especially during longer walks. And when the laptop comes out, the bag slouches just enough to feel relaxed and lifestyle-oriented. It’s a reminder that functionality doesn’t have to sacrifice aesthetics. Medium Park Satchel MZ Wallace, $325 MZ Wallace has long mastered the art of the ultra-lightweight bag, and the Medium Park Satchel is a standout example. Before you put anything inside, it feels almost featherlight. Even with a laptop, charger, and daily essentials, it never crosses into shoulder-aching territory. The quilted nylon construction makes it durable and practical, but the shape remains feminine and refined. It’s the little details that made it feel refined: The Italian leather trim, the gold hardware, the straps that come down the front, adding visual interest. The color options this year—especially the bold apple pink—signal a shift away from the traditional black-and-brown work bag palette. Work bags don’t have to be neutral to be professional. When I remove my laptop, the Park Satchel instantly feels like a playful everyday carryall. The crossbody strap makes it easy to navigate crowded sidewalks or public transportation without feeling weighed down. It’s the most “low-maintenance” bag of the group—and that’s precisely its appeal. Jorja Puffy Tote Jorja, $625 The Puffy Tote represents perhaps the clearest aesthetic shift of all: toward softness. Made by Jorja, a startup that uses the same nylon and factories as luxury brands like Prada, the padded body feels almost cloud-like against the shoulder. It’s protective without appearing corporate, and there’s something inherently comforting about carrying it. With a laptop inside, the cushioning adds a sense of security. Without one, the bag gently slouches into a fashion-forward tote. Unlike traditional structured work bags, this one feels casual—but not careless. It works with tailored outfits and athleisure alike, making it especially well-suited for days that move between multiple settings. It doesn’t look like a laptop bag. And that’s the point. View the full article

When looking for an apartment in San Francisco today, artificial intelligence can seem inescapable; and that’s not just because every rental building seems to have an AI bot answering calls. In San Francisco, the technology’s ascendency—and the subsequent skyrocketing job growth— has helped make the apartment market one of the tightest in the nation, with the fastest growing rent in the U.S. Lisa McCarrel, Managing Partner of Move Bay Area, a relocation and rental housing service, has seen the rental market become frenzied in recent months due in part to the increase in AI and AI-adjacent jobs. With units harder to come by, she’s seen some potential tenants offer a year’s rent in cash upfront. “I just had a meeting with my team because spring time is typically when the rental market here starts to get crazy,” says McCarrel. “But it’s already crazy. I’ve been running this business for 11 years, and this is the first time I’ve had to hold a meeting to prepare staff for what will be a hyper-competitive market.” Between 2024 and 2025, job postings for AI roles in the Bay Area, many extremely high-paying, grew 72%, from roughly 57,000 to 99,000, according to an analysis by the Bay Area Council Economic Institute. That influx of new, highly paid workers—who may be renting until a post-IPO windfall—has helped rents in the city of San Francisco jump 13% year-over-year, according to data from Apartment List. The market currently has a 3.5% vacancy rate, roughly half the national average (nearly even with the city’s pre-Covid 2019 vacancy rate of 3.4%). Jackie Tom, founder and broker of the agency Rentals in SF, said the market is now very busy and well past pre-pandemic pricing. A different kind of tech boom But not all tech booms are created equal. AI’s outsized impact on San Francisco differs today significantly from the impact of the 2010s tech expansion, when it felt like tech hiring had a wider impact on other economic sectors. In part, that’s because of both where AI firms are located and their workforce cultures, as well as the overall state of the economy. That same job posting analysis found non-AI jobs in the region declined 1% over the same period. “Ten years ago, you had tech workers flocking to San Francisco, but a lot of them moved to the South Bay or the Peninsula, or lived across the city and took buses to Menlo Park, Mountain View or Cupertino,” says Apartment List economist Chris Salviati, referencing the Silicon Valley HQs of Meta, Alphabet, and Apple, respectively. “Right now, the neighborhoods where AI companies are based are seeing an influx of apartment demand.” San Francisco neighborhoods such as SoMa, where Anthropic recently took over a 430,000 square-foot office, and Mission Bay, where OpenAI expanded its office footprint to encompass more than 1 million square feet, have seen skyrocketing demand for rental units, says Salviati. RentCafe data shows one-bedroom units in these neighborhoods at $4,700 and $3,800. Anna Squires Levine, president of coworking firm Industrious, said demand for their San Francisco locations has been “off the charts” due to AI. AI firms have embraced “9-9-6” culture, a concept pushing workers to grind from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. six days a week. With that kind of schedule, and offices and startups clustered in a handful of neighborhoods, the new AI workforce wants to live as close as possible, ideally walking distance, to eliminate long commutes. One firm, Cluey, even gives its employees rental subsidies. That’s a sea change from the 2010s boom that reshaped San Francisco, where many workers either lived in the city, as well as Oakland, and commuted to Silicon Valley offices. In fact, whereas Oakland was seen as a battleground against gentrification during the last tech wave a decade ago, dealing with dramatic rent increases, today, its apartment market has flatlined, as a lack of demand and a surplus of new apartment supply has pushed rents down 20% compared to 2020. AI’s growth, in terms of its office leasing footprint, remains ravenous, says Colin Yasukochi, executive director of the Tech Insights Center at CBRE, a massive international real estate brokerage and services firm. Last year, nearly a third of the 10.5 million square feet of office leases were for AI companies. Yasukochi says that if you add up all the total space requirements for AI firms looking for new offices right now, it would total 3.3 million square feet. McCarrel of Move Bay Area says she’s seeing industry growth move in phases; last year, she was helping AI startup founders find places to live, and now she’s working with more of the employees they’re starting to hire. For AI firms, says Yasukochi, the most important factor is time, as they race each other to deliver the newest model or breakthrough; leases have mostly been for massive blocks of move-in ready space they can immediately occupy and get to work (typically, high-end office tenants would spend lots of time and money refurbishing their trophy offices). Keeping pressure on a crowded rental market The influx of thousands of new tech jobs doesn’t offset area job losses in other sectors, as well as the tech industry at large, says Abby Raisz, Vice President of Research at the Bay Area Council Economic Institute. But it is concentrating pressure on the high end of the rental market. The city’s long-time shortage of new housing, as well as stubbornly high interest rates pushing more high-income renters into the rental market instead of buying, has made that segment of the market especially crowded in 2026. McCarrel says that it’s a full-time job for someone seeking a place to have to continuously call leads and monitor what is and isn’t available; she doubts even an AI program made by some of these new arrivals would help someone figure out a new living arrangement. “There’s too many barriers,” she says. “You have to be very careful the way you communicate with brokers and owners; there’s a lot of competition.” Most forecasts see AI companies continuing to expand, which will bring more jobs, and increase competition among San Francisco apartment seekers. Enrico Moretti, an economist at UC Berkeley, says as firms start commercializing AI, there will be an explosion in hiring as investment in training leads to more monetization. But the contours of this boom remain uncertain; if AI tools can make workers more efficient and therefore shrink office space and headcount, the companies most impacted by this effect will be those creating the AI in the first place. “We have to throw out the ideas about the way companies grow right now,” says Raisz. “AI companies will be the best at using their tech to be efficient, and they’ll be really good about being efficient and not overhiring. Is AI a new job creator or destroyer? It’s still a question mark.” McCarrel says the market is so tough, she’ll probably be handing out copies of articles like this one to potential renters she works with; the process of finding an apartment can “be like a marathon,” so best to set expectations right away. View the full article

Ambassador ignored summons to appear at foreign ministry View the full article

U.S. Army personnel may be training for cyberwar, but their own web browsing is quietly feeding the surveillance economy. According to a recent study by the Army Cyber Institute at West Point, corporate surveillance has deeply infiltrated the U.S. Army’s unclassified IT infrastructure in the continental United States. The researchers—who declined an interview request, citing increased scrutiny of external engagements by the Department of Defense—analyzed the 1,000 most frequently requested internet resources on Army networks over a two-month period and found that 21.2% were “tracker domains.” Those domains exist solely to harvest user data and analytics. A follow-up dataset showed that while trackers made up roughly 19% of the top domains, they accounted for nearly 42% of actual web requests. Another 10.4% of the original sample consisted of standard websites embedded with tracking code. “For several years there have been concerns about the use of the open internet from military locations and by military and government personnel,” says Alan Woodward, professor of cybersecurity at the University of Surrey in the U.K. (who was not involved in the research). “This paper makes the alarming point that many domains commonly visited from those using military or government networks are tracking domains.” The companies operating those domains include Adobe, Microsoft, and Akamai—but also TikTok, which was ostensibly banned on federal devices due to its Chinese ownership, as well as Google China and a defunct gambling site. Those three were singled out by the authors as domains that warrant further investigation. The data hoovered up by these adtech trackers—including geolocation, email addresses, and browsing preferences—is routinely aggregated and sold by data brokers as commercially available information (CAI). From there, adversaries could potentially purchase that data and use it to identify and analyze how servicemen and women interact online. Woodward said the findings suggest lessons still haven’t been learned from past incidents involving commercial products exposing sensitive military data, such as when fitness app Strava’s public “heat map” revealed the locations and patrol routes of military bases around the world in 2018. “It sounds like simple operational security,” Woodward says, “but still many systems administrators haven’t learned that old lesson that on the internet, if you’re not a paying customer you are the product.” View the full article

Hiring well is one of a leader’s most important jobs. Having talented employees is a strong competitive advantage and allows your organization to produce results and create a productive and positive culture. It’s hard to do well, especially at senior levels where judgment and character become increasingly important, and there’s a high cost of recruiting or replacing someone. Substantive questions help assess a candidate’s skills and readiness for a job, and behavioral questions provide the opportunity to understand how they think and handle themselves. But ultimately, once you’ve established their competency, it’s time to decide whether a candidate’s character is the right fit for your team and company cultural. I asked several experienced hiring managers from different fields what “secret weapon” questions help them evaluate key intangible qualities that indicate a trustworthy team member’s character. They all have one thing in common. Though each interviewer approaches their inquiry from a different angle, they all ask questions that invite vulnerability and connection. 1. What’s a time in your life or work when someone helped you? An executive director of a nonprofit organization that works with inner-city kids swears by this question. His team needs to work together under stressful conditions, so anyone who works there needs to be able to offer and ask for help when necessary. “I go first—I share my own story of a time when I hit my limit caring for two special needs children as a single parent and finally told my friends that I was at a breaking point and needed help. This opens them up to share their own vulnerable stories, and I learn so much about them. Only once did someone tell me that they had never needed help. I didn’t hire them.” This person’s team has enviable retention in a field with high turnover. He credits hiring team players, rather than heroes. 2. Tell me about a mistake you made—what happened, how did you react, and what did you do differently after that? A CFO I spoke to says her team members need to have a high baseline of skills. However, she also knows that no one is perfect. She employs this question to assess a candidate’s willingness to take accountability, apologize (she usually asks this directly if they don’t volunteer it), and change their behavior. “I appreciate working with people who are smart but also humble, who know the value of saying ‘I’m sorry’ in an authentic way—and who know there’s always room to grow.” 3. When have you changed your mind on a difference of opinion with a colleague? A CTO I spoke to prides himself on building engineering teams with both a positive culture and a high-quality standard. He likes this question because it gives him insight into “how a candidate handles a conflict and whether they can be flexible and get out of the ‘I’m-right-you’re-wrong’ mindset to collaborate and solve problems.” Having an open mind and being willing to change your view of an issue promotes cooperation and innovation on a team, and is key to building trusting relationships. Each of these questions gets at the interdependent nature of working on a team and invites the candidate to demonstrate humility versus ego, flexibility versus rigidity, and team orientation versus self-orientation. Other hiring managers I talked to have used a different approach. One deliberately has pictures of his children, a travel photo, and a guitar displayed behind him, hoping the candidate asks him about himself, his family, or his hobbies. One exec who has interviewed hundreds of candidates scours the often-ignored “Interests” section of the résumé or picks out a project from their portfolio. “It takes a little preparation, but asking them about their experience as a competitive swimmer or their record collection, or showing interest in a piece of work that they are proud of gives me a chance to see their enthusiasm sparkle,” she says. The importance of going deeper Whatever approach you take, remember that the best questions lead to a conversation that goes beyond the surface level. As the interviewer, don’t just accept an answer and move on to the next question. Instead, dial up your curiosity to ask follow-up questions. You’ll want to probe what they learned from the experience, how it changed their relationships or perspective, and how they balanced trade-offs in a decision. Questions that ask a candidate to go a layer deeper often reveal more about their values and motives, beyond their specific behavior. Ultimately, this helps you predict how they would respond and fit in your environment. View the full article

In 2001, Antoni was working at a business that was underperforming and facing layoffs. People didn’t know who would be cut or when. You could tell by people’s behavior that anxiety was at an all-time high. Managers were “networking” in the right corridors, colleagues started to crowd meetings to look indispensable, and teams were slowing down because nobody wanted to make the wrong move. One leader chose a different tactic. Every day, at the same time, he stood in the same spot where anyone could walk up to him. He shared what he actually knew (not what he guessed), answered questions without theater, and ended with a concrete direction for “today.” People still didn’t like the situation, but the atmosphere changed. Not because he shared more information than everyone else. Because he paired transparency with clarity. That pairing is the point. Leaders talk about “being transparent” as if it’s the whole job, but it isn’t. Transparency and clarity are different muscles. Transparency builds trust, while clarity builds focus. When you confuse them, you end up paying twice in lost time and diminished credibility. The myth: more transparency automatically creates clarity Transparency in a company setting typically means more dashboards, more all-hands, and more context. It feels responsible—especially in uncertain moments—because it signals you aren’t hiding anything. But facts don’t organize themselves. People still have to decide what matters, what they need to ignore, and what to do next. When leaders don’t provide that structure, they leave teams confused, and teams will fill in the blanks with rumor and gossip. In the end, this leads to more insecurity and more internal politics. How transparency can coexist with confusion This is why “radical transparency” can coexist with mass confusion. You can be open and still leave people directionless. In some instances, transparency can even backfire. David De Cremer summarizes research showing that “complete transparency” can trigger predictable side effects: blame cultures (because you see who erred without understanding why), distrust (because being constantly monitored feels like suspicion), and even resistance and reduced creativity in highly exposed environments. In our decades of experience working with leaders and organizations, this oversharing is one of two extreme communication modes that companies can slip into. It’s worth taking a closer look at these two and their costs before we examine how leaders can avoid them. The following are two traps that many leaders often fall into (but should stop doing). 1. Transparent but unclear: the ‘information dump’ organization This is the leader who shares everything: forecasts, board slides, Slack threads, meeting notes. They hide nothing, but execution continues to drift. That’s because you highlight nothing when you share everything. People don’t know which metrics are “heads up” versus “background.” They don’t know which risks are actionable. The natural response among workers in this scenario is to hedge and wait. Worse yet, when incoming data exceeds what people can process, information overload is the inevitable result. And according to research, this overload can lead to worse decision-making, higher stress, and lower productivity. Yet productivity isn’t the only area that suffers. Ambiguity has measurable psychological and performance costs. Meta-analytic research on role ambiguity—a close cousin of organizational “unclear-ness”—finds it too is associated with worse outcomes, including strain and reduced performance. Transparent-but-unclear leaders often misread the feedback from their workers. They hear, “We’re confused,” and respond by adding more information. But in doing so, they’re trying to fix traffic jam by pouring more cars onto the road. 2. Clear but opaque: the ‘because-I-said-so’ organization The second mistake looks better on paper but is just as costly. Leaders succinctly present things, set firm deadlines, and outline who’s accountable for what. As a result, everyone knows what to do. But (and this is the critical bit) the “why” is missing. This is important. As Nancy Duarte points out in a Harvard Business Review article, when you ask people to change behavior, their first question is rarely “how.” It’s “why.” If people don’t recognize the why, they can become suspicious of a leader’s motives. What leaders should do instead So how do you know if you’re missing transparency or clarity? Start by listening to the reactions you already get. If people say, “What are we supposed to do with this?”, “Why are we doing these tasks?” or “What’s the point?” you are not being clear. If people say, “We feel out of the loop,” or “Decisions come out of nowhere,” you are not being transparent. By paying attention and listening to what they express, you don’t even need a survey to detect the gap. Your people are already telling you what your company needs to do. From there, we recommend a three-step process that we’ve seen numerous successful leaders intuitively adapt, as a way of ensuring the proper balance of transparency and clarity: Start with transparency. This is what we know, and what information we still miss. Add clarity. This is why you need to know. End with direction. These are the short-term goals we pursue, the reasons for them, and how we follow up. This is a simple yet impactful framework that brings transparency and clarity together. It eliminates unnecessary confusion and frustration, so that your people can be more productive and generate better results. And that’s exactly what Antoni’s boss in the hallway was doing. View the full article

By now, you’ve surely noticed it. Jean waistlines, sky-high not so long ago, are going lower. Low enough that you might need to think of underwear as outerwear. Across the fashion industry, experts agree that in 2026, ultra-low-rise will be a key business driver in the denim sector, with some brands saying that their low-rise styles have replaced the eternally popular high-rise as their best selling cut. “What we’re going to see in this next decade is [it’ll be] really dominated by the low-rise,” says Amy Williams, CEO of Citizens of Humanity group, which also owns the premium denim brand Agolde. “Right now, you’re sort of at that early stage where people are just now getting a feel for it.” If you pay attention to the runways or street style, you might have already picked up on this shift, as celebrities, models, and on-trend normies started trading in high-waisted jeans for pairs that sit low on the hips in the past couple of years. But the real tell is that low-rise jeans finally hit mass market. In 2025, global brands with slower–to-adopt consumers like Gap found their large customer base was finally ready for the navel-gazing silhouette. “We’ve been kind of waiting for this moment,” Noelle Rogers, senior vice president and general manager of Gap Specialty, told me last August. “We tested a few times on low-rise and it wasn’t until the last 9, 10 months that the customer was ready.” Now denim designers are pushing low-rise further. We’ll definitely see more ultra-rises coming through in 2026,” says Susie Draffan, senior denim strategist at WGSN who began tracking low-rise in 2019 when macro trends like a resurgent interest in ’90s and Y2K aesthetics put the style on her radar. Mass-market brand Lucky launched an ultra-low-rise flare style (that’s an itty-bitty, two-button, 7.25-inch rise) with Addison Rae last August, after the company first spotted her wearing the vintage version in the wild. “Fashion is going to be pushing those extremes,” Tamara Reynolds, vice president of the Denim Center of Excellence at Catalyst, the parent company of Lucky Brand. “We are really excited about low-rise still, and we’re even more excited about super low-rise.” This style was bound to happen. High-rise is a silhouette “that’s really held people’s attention for almost 15 years,” says Citizens of Humanity’s Williams. “So, as with anything in fashion, that pendulum swings backward, but when it goes back, it evolves into something new.” Part of that evolution is today’s range of equally acceptable pant silhouettes: wide-leg baggy, straight, bootcut, flare, and, dare I say, increasingly skinny. “What’s most fun about this moment is that while we’re seeing some strong micro-trends within denim—slimmer, straighter, lower-rise cuts are undoubtedly dominating the conversation—we’re still seeing brands across the market sell nearly every kind of denim shape and style,” says Alexandra Avdey, vice president of merchandising at Reformation. “In the past, there has almost always been a single must-have style. Right now, there’s something for everyone.” So pick your poison. The result is sure to be toxic (1. adj., pejorative, a negative association due to the ultra-low-rise’s inherent ties to an era that correlated beauty with thinness; or 2., adj., complimentary, origin: Britney Spears song; a nostalgic association with naughties cultural icons that brings new and interesting approaches to dress in the current context.) Ultra-low-rise is polarizing. But whether or not you want to hang, it’s going to be here for a while. Britney Spears Slow burn, hot stats Data from a cross-section of denim brands is indicating that low-rise is a big business driver. At Citizens of Humanity, its low-slung baggy represents 35% of its business. Four of its top 10 styles are low-rise, according to the company. Agolde since introduced a low-rise bootcut for Spring, which the website describes as “a true nod to the early 2000s.” Though the company doesn’t plan to release any ultra-low-rise styles, this bootcut is now the company’s lowest rise (8 inches) and sits low on the hips. The numbers are even more striking at Reformation. Sales of low-rise denim grew 500% in 2025 compared to 2024. Like Citizens, 4 of Ref’s top 10 jeans SKUs year to date are low-rise. Its top-selling denim style is its Cary low-rise slouchy wide-leg jean, which overtook its high-rise counterpart. (Hitting about an inch below the navel, Cary feels a bit more like a mid-rise.) And the style isn’t just for the youngest consumers. The company says that low-rise is performing across generations, with 38% of low-rise e-comm sales driven by Gen Z and 30% by millennials. If anything, going low has more to do with a willingness to experiment rather than age. At Lucky, whose customers are predominantly women in their twenties, low-rise sales increased 763% in August 2025 compared to the previous year, and contributed 43% to full price denim sales, compared to 8% the previous year. Gap didn’t share specific data, but following a test period that resulted in high sales volumes, the company went all in on low-rise with its long and lean launch with girl group Katseye last August. “We’ve seen a huge uptrend that is more U.S. and North American-based starting in basically like August of this year,” Citizens CEO Williams told me in late 2025, noting the upswing is all coming from either low-rise or straight leg shapes. Of course, runways are one of the best signals for what brands will launch down the road, and waistlines are jostling for share. Over the last two seasons, designer labels like Diesel (see its nearly-bumster styles) and Alexander McQueen (revival of its actual ’90s bumster styles) have shown off ultra-low-rise styles. Low and natural or high-rise styles held equal share of the denim mix at the A/W 25/26 shows, at 17.8%, with low-rise styles increasing 11.8 percentage points year over year, according to WGSN catwalks data provided to Fast Company. Katseye Cultural emergence Last fall I was scrolling through Instagram and a paparazzi photo of actress Zoë Kravitz—my personal style chimera—in baggy low-rise jeans crossed my feed. Kravitz, 37, wore them low on the hip, without a waistband or pockets so they’re flat across the pelvis. They also had an adjustable toggle closure at the ankle. The design felt new. After some recon I learned it was the $325 Still Here’s Sport jean that fashion acolytes have been ravenously scooping up. Head of Brand Eliza Rolfs told me when I visited the Williamsburg, Brooklyn, store that the connection happened organically, after Kravitz’s stylist, Danielle Goldberg, reached out and pulled some styles. Kravitz kept three pairs of the Sport, which Rolfs describes as a more classic approach to low-rise. She’s not the only fan: The brand’s Pear wash sold out in 25 minutes after its first release, which led to 10,000 people joining a waitlist. The original Sport Jean, which launched in July 2025, sold out four times within its first six months on the market. As with previous trends, many denim designers I spoke with cited street and celebrity style as their early ultra-low-rise indicators, and name-checked Bella and Gigi Hadid as two examples. The members of Katseye are always in hip-bone, thong-strap, or belly-chain-bearing pants. (Thong straps, functionally designed to hide a visible panty line, have now become lucrative new real estate for charms and bedazzling.) So are other Gen Z pop stars like Tate McCray, Addison Rae, or more recently, fellow millennial Charli XCX, 33, who wore a thong-bearing jean to promo her new movie, The Moment. In the beginning of February, stylist Andrew Mukamal dressed Margo Robbie, 35, in super-low leather pants for a look during her Wuthering Heights press tour. That’s because many current cultural icons are looking to the irreverence and confidence of early 2000s stars like Paris Hilton and Britney Spears, according to Reynolds. “Really low-rise denim was a key piece in the outfitting and the entire look. That’s how the Y2K kind of revival came across and it caught like wildfire,” she says. Reformation plans to lean even more into Y2K this year, with components like exposed buttons, rivets, seaming details and low-rise boot-cut styles, for instance. Christina Aguilera “Nostalgia is a big driver,” says Draffan. Interest in that period revived a range of low-rise styles, with ’90s-inspired baggy and straight legs as well as bootcut styles from the noughties “driving the revival,” she adds. But don’t just peg ultra-low-rise’s comeback to a long-simmering cultural fixation on Xtina at the 2001 VMAs. The low-rise revival has a co-dependency with other shifting denim trends like baggy pants. “As those baggier fits got lower and lower slung, and they’re belted and they’re hanging off the hips, it gave rise to the midriff, right?” asks Reynolds. “So that’s where I feel like the rumblings from a design point of view first came.” Can design fixes mend cultural flaws? Like anything you wear, denim has direct ties to material and tech innovations as well as the broader sociocultural climate. “Back in the day when skinny jeans became a thing, it was primarily because stretch products had evolved to a point where there was so much stretch in the product that you could wear a skin tight jean all day long and be really comfortable,” says Williams. Stretch materials remained as waistlines shifted to high-rise in the early to mid-2010s (I was a Citizens of Humanity Rocket devotee), and it made for a skin-tight fit like leggings, which people also couldn’t wait to peel off and replace with sweats or actual Lululemon leggings when they got home. When the pandemic hit, so did the wide-legged pants. “It’s super comfortable and you can wear it all day long,” says Williams. “I think that’s what got people out of their sweatpants from COVID and into wide leg jeans.” The most common rise was still around 9 inches (considered high-rise), though. Williams says high-rise jeans have been telling the same fashion story for a long time, and consumers are simply ready for styling that has something fresh to say. “You can tell when you lose your attention span and the customer changes gears,” she says. “I do think there’s just an element that is absolutely cyclical.” Kate Moss When I delivered the news to friends that ultra-low-rise is back, the reaction wasn’t very different from what it’d be like to share that you got back together with a boyfriend they all secretly hated: healthy skepticism. “You have to be hot to wear low-rise,” an aggravated friend told me at a party (in this context: hot = 2000s model thin). Cynicism from those of us who’ve been through the first go-around is fair, because the ultra-low-rise revival calls back to the era we came of age in: dominated by fatphobia and capped by Kate Moss telling WWD one of her mottos is “Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels.” And while contemporary low-rise is in reality more of a wearable mid-rise (Reformation, for instance, dropped the crotch so the wearer could adjust where it sits by sizing up or down), ultra-low-rise, which sits low on the hip bone and creates a more square rather than hourglass shape, is less universally flattering. “While they’re trending right now with Gen Z, there is obviously a huge swath of the market for whom a low-rise will just not appeal,” says Draffan, the WGSN strategist. “It’s a tricky rise to pull off, not to mention that anyone over 30 already did the low-rise at some point in their lives, and isn’t keen to go back there, especially Millennials and the mature market.” She describes mid and high-rises as more flattering with “broader consumer appeal.” The good news for the low-rise-averse is that wearable high and mid rises are still in the mix, so those with an aversion to navel exposure can keep a safe distance in the comfortable rise of their choice. “For low-rise, the cool thing about denim trends is when a silhouette does come back in style is that it lingers a little bit, rather than fast fashion, [which is] a voracious trend cycle,” says Rolfs of Still Here Sport. “Denim tends to stick for a couple of years and that has ripple effects in the rest of the garments as well.” The leg opening of denim is tapering toward straight, which in turn looks nice with a pair of loafers, which are becoming more popular too, thanks to a prep revival. “The customer’s purchasing a lot more than they have,” says Williams, who calls straight legs and loafers the new wide leg and Sambas. And it’ll keep evolving: a stovepipe skinny jean is one of WGSN’s key fashion items for 2026. Anatomy of the new low-rise Denim designers I spoke with insist the style is more inclusive this time around, and brands like Gap are showing the style on a variety of body types. The fit of Y2K-era low-rise jeans were a painted-on, tightly fitting second skin. “When it comes to today’s aesthetics, it feels much more sophisticated and cool to wear something that sits a little bit away from the body,” says Williams. “So you’ll see a low-rise iterated, in a way, that has like a bit of ease, maybe bagginess to it so it still looks refined and it has a little bit more of what you would imagine today’s model off duty to have evolved to.” Williams says the new cuts are easier to wear and have more balance proportions, allowing for a different visual anchor. “Now you’re anchoring the jean at that low hip, so the top part is the anchor rather than the legs and the booty as the anchor,” she says. “That solves the whole host of problems that we’ve all witnessed.” Designers make lots of micro adjustments to make a low-rise jean look more flattering and proportional. “You’re going from a proportion that’s hourglass-shaped to one that sits low and is a little bit more square, and you’re shrinking down all of the proportions,” McDonald says of the difference between a high-rise fit and low. To accommodate for this shift in proportions, ultra-low-rise jeans have different pocket scoops, smaller, shorter back pockets, and adjusted spacing between pockets. Whereas the waistband of many skin-tight 2000s era ultra-low-rise was a V-shape in two pieces to be ultra form-fitting, today’s typically have a slightly curved waistband for a sense of cheeky “boyishness,” says McDonald. (Lucky’s ultra-low-rise does have a V waistband.) “One of the things that’s most exciting about a low-rise jean is just how appealing your bum looks,” she says. “It creates the cutest boyish, bum shape.” The curved waistband is meant to prevent gapping, but also helps keep the pant up even though it generally sits at the widest part of the hipbone. “I see all of the women that are adopting this that were afraid of it at first and we’re like, oh, actually it’s great it looks good on them,” says Reynolds. “It’s all ages, all body types, and all attitudes, and so I’m really proud and impressed with the outcome and the adoption that’s happening across the board.” She adds, “It’s one of those things you sort of have to get out of your mind and just put it on, right? For anything new, there can be a resistance and you’re like, ‘Oh wait, I love this.’” I tested a several pairs in my usual size. One of the best was the Gap long and lean ’90s loose, which had a touch of stretch and contour waistband which didn’t, well, gap. Neither did Still Here’s Sport or Reformation’s 100% cotton low-rise Cary, although it had the most mid-rise fit in my usual size. It’s not foolproof though. Agolde’s low-rise loose epitomized the cool sort of ease you want with low-rise denim: a perfectly stiff, nonchalant straight leg silhouette, balanced with a just-low-enough waistband that had a touch of looseness at the hip—though it did gap to reveal my underwear while seated at the bar. A charm opportunity, if I’m brave. View the full article