Search engine optimization (SEO) is a fast-paced area of digital marketing. Staying on top of the latest news and developments in the industry is a critical part of success. With more information and less time than ever, it can be helpful to lean on the expertise and specialization of digital marketing professionals.
Since we spend a lot of time navigating the SEO world, we’re happy to share the most important SEO news items we come across. This week, we’ll cover Google’s stance on spam reports and changes it’s making to Shopping ads. We’ll also highlight some changes to Bing’s Webmaster Guidelines.
Spam reports are not for manual actions, according to Google
Google has complex algorithms that are responsible for detecting and reporting spam. However, users can take initiative to report spam themselves, which can be a nuisance if anyone can do it anytime without restriction. For example, a competitor that plays dirty tricks might report you for spam even though it’s not true.
Fortunately, Google doesn’t penalize your site for a spam report, according to a recent announcement by webmaster Gary Illyes. Instead, it uses spam reports to review how its spam detection algorithms are working and whether they need to be adjusted.
Google is changing its ad labeling for Shopping ads
In November, Google removed the label “Sponsored” from ad content in mobile search results in Google Shopping and replaced it with “Ads.” Soon, it will be making this change on desktop as well. This is an important update because Google Shopping will now feature free listings as well as sponsored listings, so labeling all of them as sponsored is no longer appropriate. How to get included in the free listings? Make sure your product is represented online by a reputable website, rich content, good reviews and user-friendly images.
Bing is updating its Webmaster Guidelines
Google is the big dog in the search engine game, but you should never forget about Bing and its millions of monthly users. Recently, Bing has updated its Webmaster Guidelines, which includes how it indexes your site, categorizes your content and ranks your content. Anyone involved in creating content or managing your SEO needs to take a moment to review the updates to understand how Bing views your site.
Burg & Co. is here to help you improve your SEO and attract new leads
Are you trying to improve your digital presence but keep running into walls? It’s hard to optimize your site for improved SEO performance when you have so much else on your plate already. That’s why you need a partner you can rely on, which is who we are at Burg & Co.
Our team has years of experience in helping businesses improve their digital presence to attract new leads and retain existing ones. If you’re looking to perform better in search engine results and attract more visitors to your site, we’re ready to talk to you to see how we can help. Contact our team today for more information about SEO or to schedule a complimentary consultation.
