The Week In Search & SEO: October 5, 2018

Well folks, it was yet another busy week in search and SEO (are you surprised).  There were layout changes, algorithm updates, and so much more. Here are the top stories we were following this week. [su_accordion] [su_spoiler title="Top Global Search News" style="fancy" class="greenfaq" icon="chevron-circle" open="yes"] Recent "Small" Search Ranking Update Confirmed by Google There aren't a lot of details about this update, but Google assures that this is just another of their frequent, small core algorithm updates. Google says that if your rankings suffered a hit, it's not necessarily a problem with your site, rather this update brings up previously under-rewarded sites. Google Feed Changes to Google Discover This new, upgraded successor to Google Feed introduces several changes and additions. Google Pays Apple $9 Billion to Stay as the Default Search Engine on Safari When you click this little slider, you will see a small list of sections you can jump to rather than scrolling manually. Navigation Slider Being Tested in Mobile Results When you click this little slider, you will see a small list of sections you can jump to rather than scrolling manually. Documentation on Implementing Dynamic Rendering Google has released a new documentation on how you should set up your JavaScript-heavy page with dynamic rendering to help Google crawl and index it properly. Google Testing Clustered Refinement Bubbles  The refinement bubbles seem to be grouping together with other related ones. Another Small Core Search Algorithm Update Many tools show that there was an update on the 4th. [/su_spoiler] [su_spoiler title="Top Local Search News" style="fancy" class="greenfaq" icon="chevron-circle"] Google My Business Adds "Family-Led" Attribute A new "family-led" attribute appears, sitting alongside the previous "women-led" and "veteran-led" attributes. Google Posts Have Been Moved to the Bottom of the Local Knowledge Panel This will allow for more prominence to the other sections of the panel. Google Testing Explore Carousel for Local Results This carousel highlights local businesses relevant to your search. Google Testing Minimalist Local Pack Star ratings and images are removed in favor of "call" and "directions" buttons. [/su_spoiler] [su_spoiler title="Top PPC News" style="fancy" class="greenfaq" icon="chevron-circle"] You Can Copy Column Preferences to the New Google Ads A nice quality of life function, easily copy your old preferences over to the new Google Ads. Even works after losing access to the old Google Ads. The Old Google Ads Interface is Officially Shutting Down After a long time in testing, the new Google Ads interface will be finally taking over the old one for good. [/su_spoiler] [su_spoiler title="Top Social Media News" style="fancy" class="greenfaq" icon="chevron-circle"] Pre-Recorded Videos Can Now be Posted as "Live" Broadcasts on Facebook These videos get all the benefits that come with both a regular video post and a live broadcast. Facebook Introduces New AI Features for Faster Selling in the Marketplace The new AI can give you an estimated value of your item just by the image, as well as selecting a category for your item automatically. Additionally, a buyer and seller rating system has been introduced. [/su_spoiler] [su_spoiler title="Internet Marketing-Related Tech" style="fancy" class="greenfaq" icon="chevron-circle"] Google Lens Will be Implemented Right into Google Images Select something in an image to search for related and similar things and products, now provided inside Google Images. Google Maps Adds New Commute Functionality Planning ahead, Mixed commute, and more in this Google Maps update. Google Assistant Gets a Redesign Focused on Smartphones The new design features a more attractive visual interface as well as better touch functionality. Making Quality Links are Against Google's Webmaster Guidelines Natural links are what Google wants to see, so making undeserved links is against guidelines. Search Console Snippet now Visible in Search Results This change helps keep your site's health more easily available, and encourages site owners to pay attention to and use Google Search Console. Google My Business Rolling Out Agency Account Migration Tool Not much is known, but this will help with the process of transferring listings to organization accounts. [/su_spoiler] [su_spoiler title="Best Opinion Pieces" style="fancy" class="greenfaq" icon="chevron-circle"] What to Do When Things Go Wrong in SEO A good write-up on methods to help you find out what went wrong, and what you can do to fix it. Web Security Impact on SEO Having bad security on your website can be detrimental to your SEO. Amazon Has a New $15/hr Wage, But Here's How Much the CEO Makes an Hour $15 and hour is certainly a step forwards, but looking at Jeff Bezos' hourly income really puts things in to perspective. [/su_spoiler] [/su_accordion]