Industry News

Catch up on interesting new discussion and industry news.

    Apple brings Siri to Mac, new exposure for non-Google search engines

    dannysullivan
    by dannysullivan
    Jun 13, 2016
    Hadrian / Shutterstock.com

    As expected, Apple has announced that its Siri digital assistant is coming to the Mac. The change means for the first time, people will have easy access to search from the macOS operating system — and search that isn’t Google.

    Today during its Worldwide Developers Conference, Apple demonstrated how Siri will come to the next version of macOS — formerly OS X — the operating system that runs on Mac computers.

    People running macOS “Sierra” that comes out...

    How Google May Map a Query to an Entity for Suggestions

    by Bill Slawski
    Jun 10, 2016
    Search predictions come from:

    – The terms you’re typing.

    – What other people are searching for, including trending searches. Trending searches are popular stories in your area that change throughout the day. Trending searches aren’t related...

    Google Zombies Or Likely Buyers? Does Google Show Them Different Results?

    rustybrick
    by rustybrick
    Jun 10, 2016
    We've been covering the Google zombie phenomenon for some time now. There is actually a spike in discussion around it in the ongoing WebmasterWorld thread right now...

    RankBrain Survival Guide

    by AJ Kohn
    Jun 9, 2016
    This is a guide to surviving RankBrain. I created it, in part, because there’s an amazing amount of misinformation about RankBrain. And the truth is there is nothing you can do to optimize for RankBrain.

    I’m not saying RankBrain isn’t interesting or important. I love learning about how search works whether it helps me in my work or not. What I am saying is that there are no tactics to employ based on our understanding of RankBrain.

    So if you’re looking for optimization strategies you...

    Apple App Store To Get Search Ads

    rustybrick
    by rustybrick
    Jun 9, 2016
    Apple is bringing search ads to their App Store. Apple announced it last night saying, "starting this summer, you'll be able to participate in the Search Ads beta and see the ads in action...

    Best board games for young kids (that are fun for adults as well)

    by Rian van der Merwe
    Jun 7, 2016
    Over the weekend my 6-year old daughter was playing with a pretend wand, doing what every 6-year old is supposed to do to her dad: make him do silly things. She would touch me with the wand and go, “Jump like a frog!” or “Walk around in circles!” And of course, I performed these actions in a crowded park without shame or reservations, because these are the things we do for our kids, isn’t it.

    I even added a twist to the game. After performing each action (and once her laughter died down)...

    Google: Migrating To A Keyword-TLD Won't Improve Rankings

    rustybrick
    by rustybrick
    Jun 7, 2016
    Search Engine Land, a site I am proud of, posted a sponsored piece of content named Can moving to a new TLD boost search rankings...

    June 2016 Google Webmaster Report

    rustybrick
    by rustybrick
    Jun 6, 2016
    It is that time of the month again for me to post the monthly Google Webmaster report. There was a lot covered but not anything really that major, at least on the algorithmic side...

    Google says it’s not deliberately filtering “Crooked Hillary” suggested search to favor Clinton

    dannysullivan
    by dannysullivan
    Jun 3, 2016
    Type “lying” into Google, and it will suggest “Lying Ted,” the moniker US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump placed on his once-rival Ted Cruz. But type “crooked” into Google, and it doesn’t bring up the “Crooked Hillary” label that Trump has attached to his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton. What’s going on?

    It’s not because Google has done anything deliberate to favor Clinton, either through automated or manual means, the company told Search Engine Land. It sent this...

    Google Status Update On Penguin: It's Closer & Hopeful Not Too Far Off

    rustybrick
    by rustybrick
    Jun 3, 2016
    After Google going radio silent on the status of Google's Penguin update, as we are waiting on version 4.0 - John Mueller volunteered information on this mornings...