Google SEO
Search Engine Land is your source for Google SEO news and content. You’ll find a variety of up-to-date and authoritative resources, including the latest news, tactic-rich tutorials, and the latest data to help you work smarter and make better decisions.
What you read here is written by our experienced in-house team, and subject matter experts from leading brands and agencies.
Don’t miss out! Get the Search Engine Land newsletter delivered daily to your inbox. Subscribe for free!
Google no longer recommends canonical tags for syndicated content
Instead, Google says block your syndicated content from being indexed.
Google: Page experience is not a ranking system, but it is a ranking signal
Google's core ranking systems look to reward content that provides a good page experience.
Google’s April 2023 reviews update was more volatile than the previous product reviews update, data providers say
This update was more widespread than previous updates because it targets more than just product reviews.
Google updates site names in search results after numerous complaints
The fix is rolling out and while it does fix a number of inappropriate site names, it does not resolve all the reported issues.
Google now supports 25 more countries with new return policy structured data
Plus, some are now noting more return and shipping details in the Google search results.
Google April 2023 reviews update is finished rolling out
As a reminder, this reviews update started on April 12 and goes well beyond just product reviews.
Google explains the use cases for its different crawler types
There is Googlebot, special-case crawlers and user-triggered fetchers.
Google removes several search ranking algorithm updates from its ranking systems page
Page experience is important for your users and usability, but it never seemed all that important for rankings.
Google launches a new crawler named GoogleOther
This crawler is similar to Googlebot, but it will be used internally by Google teams to crawl the public web.
Google says helpful content should have good page experience
Google does add that when it comes to page experience evaluation, it is not just page specific but can also be site-wide.
Google Search Console page experience report going away
The Core Web Vitals and HTTPS report is staying but the mobile-friendly test is going away.
Google Search Console adds new rich results report for “Subscribed content”
Reader Revenue Manager publishers can now measure traffic from Google Search queries and fix structured data.
8 ways to maximize brand awareness through paid and organic search
Ranking highly on Google is the best way to build brand awareness, increase revenue, and provide genuine value to your customers.
Google adds new return policy structured data support for merchant listing
These changes come with the new shipping and return information in the Google search results.
Google shows shipping and return information in the search results
Google Search Console added a report to monitor and fix the structured data required to enable this display.
Google webspam report: SpamBrain caught 5x more spam
Because Google said it can detect spam faster, the company claimed that 99% of visits in Google Search were "spam-free."
A tale of two recoveries
A look at two very different paths taken to recover from a Google algorithm update.
Google Bard adds more search topics to “Google it” button
Google also now has a release notes document to track updates to Bard.
What ChatGPT means for your search campaigns
Why next-generation AI is essential to a competitive search strategy.
Google updates Bard to improve math, logic responses
Google said Bard can better understand and respond to prompts for multi-step word and math problems. Coding is coming soon.
ChatGPT vs. Google Bard vs. Bing Chat: Which generative AI solution is best?
Which generative AI tool is the best? Here's a comparison of ChatGPT, Bard, Bing Chat Balanced and Bing Chat Creative based on four metrics.
How the March 2023 Google core update compared to previous core updates
We asked some of the Google tracking data providers for data on the latest Google algorithm update.
Google launches Perspectives, About this author and more ways to verify information
Google's new features should give searchers more reason to trust your site, your authors and the content on your pages.
Google March 2023 broad core update done rolling out
This March 2023 core update took 13 days to roll out. This was a fairly impactful update compared to previous core updates.
Core Web Vitals report within Google Search Console updated
You may see a change in the number of URLs reported in the Core Web Vitals report in Google Search Console
Google Search Console breaks out Merchant listings and Product snippets appearances
This is an update to previously launched reports from last September.
2023 Survey: Local search ranking factors
Whitespark has surveyed dozens of local SEO experts to compile what they believe are the most important ranking factors for local search.
Google explains why Bard rarely lists citations and links to content creators
Google said it will link to citations when Bard directly quote at length from a webpage.
Google adds ranking update history to Search Status Dashboard
Google said the new Ranking section of the Search Status dashboard will show active updates as well as history up to 2020.
Google Bard waitlist opens: How to get access to the AI chatbot
You can sign up for the waitlist if you are based in the US or UK.
Google February 2023 product reviews update more volatile than previous updates, say data providers
Semrush compared the sixth release against the July 2022 version, while Rank Ranger compared it against September 2022 data.
Google rolled out new site names, favicon and sponsored label on desktop search
After launching this design for the mobile search results last October, this is now officially live for desktop search.
Google February 2023 product reviews update is finished rolling out
This update took 14 days to fully roll out and is now complete.
Google featured snippets gain blue highlighted text
Not all featured snippets will see text highlighted in blue, but many now do.
SEO opportunities in 2023: Helpful content, E-E-A-T, People also ask
Want to advance your SEO game and get ahead of the competition? Here are three sustainable opportunities worth investing in this year.
Google local map pack goes missing in search results (now fixed)
The local pack that Google generally shows for queries with local intent has gone missing.
Google limits access to news content in Canada
Google confirmed this test will impact 4% of Canadians. It's similar to what Google did in Australia in 2021.
How to update content and dates for SEO in 2023
Google says that only significant content changes should lead to updated article dates. Here are a few ways you can approach this.
Google helpful content system can now impact Google Discover visibility
Google core updates and other algorithm updates impacted Discover, but now Google says the helpful content system does as well.
Google Search Console users and permissions management updated
Make sure to review user permissions and levels of access with this update.