As I mentioned in my Friday video, there were some rumblings kicking into gear starting late Thursday, July 23rd, and through Friday, July 24th. It seems like Google kicked some of its search ranking servers, and as a result, we are seeing an unconfirmed Google search ranking update, with a lot of volatility throughout last […]

Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today…

This week…

Google continues to add more AI features to the Google Merchant Center portal. We saw Merchant Advisor added earlier this year, AI performance reports added just the other week, and now we are seeing more AI sprinkled throughout Merchant Center. This includes AI summary insights, search suggestions and previous chats on the Merchant Center dashboard.

Microsoft is testing fading out the related searches in the Bing Search results. When you hover over a related search, that one stands out and the other related searches options then get faded/blurred out.

Last May, Google announced AI Max within Google Ads is rolling out in closed beta globally. Well, more are now seeing AI Max for Shopping campaigns this past week. This also includes text customizations and final URL expansion within AI Max.

Google is doing away with the related search format for Google AdSense auto ads. Google said it will be retired on August 6, 2026. Google sent out an email to those impacted that says starting August 6, 2026, the Related Search format will no longer appear on your site. It will also be removed as […]

Google Ads now uses its AI to make recommendations within the conversion summary dashboard. Google will give you actions to “improve your conversion measurements,” and those recommendations are labeled “Recommended by Google AI.”

Google is updating the Google Ads certification applications and standards for gambling, including gambling jurisdictions, online non-casino games and social casino games on August 26, 2026. All new applicants must use the revised forms when obtaining certification with Google.

Google Ads seems to have replaced Comparison Listing ads with CSS Product Listing ads. It has redirected the old support URL to a new page named About CSS Product Listing ads. They seem very similar, but the help document was mostly changed and was also moved to a new support URL.

Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today…

Google is now sending out notifications when a review is not posted after a user tries to submit a review on a Google local business profile. The notice says “review not posted,” and adds “Our automated systems removed this content because it seems that the content may not follow our Maps content policies.”

Google has released version 25 of the Google Ads API, this is a major release with dozens of updates. This update includes changes to campaigns, planning, reports, conversions, and more. Google now breaks down the change log based on breaking changes, features and updates (that do not break anything) and more.

Google is testing using rounded corners for the stories and cards that show up in the Google Discover feed. Google normally shows the images for the stories as rectangles but now we are seeing Google round out the corners and add white borders to the edges of the images.

Several large publishers are strongly considering blocking Google Search entirely after clicks from Google Search have continued to decline, and the exchange of value in having Google consume its content is no longer translating into enough clicks from Google Search.