Google Changes, 2018 Trends & More
Google now wants larger images for AMP articles
Google has updated its article schema document for AMP articles to require larger images in your markup. Previously, the minimum requirement for your image sizes was 696 pixels wide and 300,000 pixels in total, but now it is 1,200 pixels wide and 800,000 pixels in total.
Google Search Console request indexing limit removed from interface
Within the Google Search Console, there is the ability to Fetch as Google and then submit the URL you fetched to the Google index for possible inclusion. In that submit feature, Google used to show how many URL submissions remained from a monthly quota. That limit notification no longer appears in the Search Console interface, but it remains in the help documentation on Google’s own site.
Is Google Showing Fewer Featured Snippets In Search Results?
Just a few months ago, we reported that Google may have started showing more featured snippets recently but the data between the tool providers seemed off. It might be how each tool provider tracks those features.
Google begins enforcing certification process for event ticket resellers on AdWords
In an effort to ensure users don’t get misled or scammed in buying event tickets through third-party resellers advertising through AdWords, Google is instituting a certification process before these businesses can advertise through AdWords.
Quora adds more contextual & behavioral ad-targeting options
Quora launched its ad platform in 2017 with topic targeting. Now, the question-and-answer network is expanding its ad targeting offerings.
Web searching died the day they invented SEO
Something for the Weekend, Sir? You can find anything on the internet apart from the specific thing you’re looking for.
In the past couple of years, the internet has seen massive growth in the streaming and downloading of high-quality digital media. This is especially true for legitimately licensed (not pirated), legal, on-demand content including music, podcasts, audiobooks, video, animation and games. There is a lot of money to be made in this part of the Internet, and the potential is only growing, as people continue to abandon static media and cut cables and transition to online subscription services and on-demand options instead. According to a study by SensorTower last year, the U.S. consumer spending in the top 10 subscription video-on-demand apps (SVOD) surged 77% y/y to $781 million on iOS and Android. The final quarter of the year was even stronger with an 88% jump to $242 million for the same group.
Tutorials, Analysis & SEO Budgeting
Optimizing for quality score is a best practice, except when it’s not. Here’s why.
Contributor Amy Bishop explains that improving quality score shouldn’t be a goal in itself, but solely a means to achieve your business goals. How to tell when it’s worth focusing on and when it’s not.
Winning Mobile with Smart Content and AMP
Mobile continues to gain momentum. In our 2017 mobile study, we found that 57% of all online traffic occurred on smartphone and tablet devices. Consumers and, to a lesser degree, business buyers have been selecting mobile as their platform of choice when interacting with brands and sites.
SEO Localization Roles and Support Systems
Everything starts with planning and setting expectations and goals. I covered initial phase of website Localization in How to Plan Website Globalization & Localization post. By now, you should know your organization’s globalization mission and have a plan to support it. Armed with goals to support the mission and metrics to benchmark against competitors, you will measure your team’s contribution to the success of the company.
How to identify, analyze, and fix an infinite spaces problem using a powerful SEO software stack
If you are working on a large-scale site, you need to be very careful that you don’t create infinite spaces. That’s when a site generates a near-endless list of urls that Google can end up crawling. Google does not want to churn through endless urls and it can cause problems on several levels SEO-wise. That’s why they detail infinite spaces in the search console help center and they also wrote a blog post specifically about the problem.
Technical SEO in the age of semantic search and Google
Contributor Ryan Shelley explains that technical SEO is more important than ever — but for long-term ranking success, understanding how Google processes data is key.
Here’s Why Links Remain The #1 Ranking Factor in 2018
If you’re at all interested in link building, you probably believe that links still matter in 2018. I hold that belief very strongly– and I’d better, since I run a link building agency! Links are Google’s most powerful ranking signal, and we’ll discuss why that is (along with some strong proof) in just a moment.
Most Important SEO Metrics to Consider in 2018
Search engine optimization and reporting go hand in hand. Clients need proper reports which help them understand the ROI achieved from SEO. In the past, a metric like keyword rankings was enough to make a client happy, but things have changed, and most importantly they have changed for the better.
The Key to the Future of SEO / AEO – Understanding and Credibility
When someone searches on Google (or Bing), they are expressing a problem they are seeking to solve, or a question they need the correct answer to. The “raison d’être” of Google and Bing has always been to guide their users quickly and simply to the best available result.
Social Media Marketing
10 Steps to Launch a Successful Social Media Marketing Campaign
It’s a common mistake for brands and other businesses to think that social media marketing is going to be easy. There are 14-year-olds on YouTube going viral, we’ve all thought at some point, so how hard can it really be?
What Tide’s Super Bowl Success Can Teach Brands About Social Media Strategy
Five years after 360i’s real-time tweet heard ’round the world, brands are reassessing the value of maintaining an always-on social media presence, responding to competitors and desperately seeking the next Super Bowl “Oreo moment.”
12,000 Social Media Influencers, Mostly Women, Exposed by Marketing Firm Data Breach
More than 12,000 prominent social media influencers from YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, and the gaming platform Twitch were exposed last month by a data breach at a marketing firm that pairs online stars with top brands seeking product reviews and endorsements, according to researchers at the security firm UpGuard.
How to Use Video Content to Sell
Wondering how video can support your sales process? Looking for tips on how to use video in your marketing funnel? To explore how video can turn leads into customers, I interview Marcus Sheridan.
How to Use the YouTube Community Tab to Engage Subscribers
In this article, you’ll find out how to use the YouTube channel Community tab to engage with subscribers, inspire new content, and promote your business.
6 Blogger Tools for Sharing and Promoting New Content
Do you want more people to find your blog posts? Looking for tools to help? In this article, you’ll discover six tools that will help boost the visibility of your blog posts.
7 Twitter Hashtag Research Tools for Marketers
Do you use hashtags for marketing campaigns on Twitter? Looking for hashtag tools to help improve your use of hashtags? In this article, you’ll find seven hashtag tools for researching and reporting on Twitter hashtags.
How to Use the Facebook Audience Overlap Tool to Prevent Ad Fatigue
Do you need to improve your Facebook ad performance? Wondering how to avoid serving the same ad to the same people too many times? In this article, you’ll discover the common causes of ad fatigue and how to solve audience overlap.
