I’ve finished recording a few new videos for my YouTube channel and my SEO podcast, so stay tuned.
Here is your weekly recap of the most important SEO news, articles, videos, and resources I’ve carefully curated for you so that you can stay updated with what’s currently going on in the world of SEO and AI.
Let’s dive right in because there is really a lot to discuss this week.
The SEO Newsletter by #SEOSLY is sponsored by JetOctopus
JetOctopus is a cloud-based website crawler and SEO log analyzer. The tool allows you to analyze your website structure, check for broken links, detect technical SEO issues, and monitor your website’s ranking in search engines.
JetOctopus is the fastest and most affordable SaaS crawler and logs analyzer without limits.
I would not be able to do my work the way I do it without JetOctopus (seriously).
3 Top Red Flags to Watch Out for in SEO Agencies or SEO Consultants
As an experienced SEO, I want to help you avoid getting ripped off when hiring an agency. Click “Notify me” to know when the video is live.
SEO Cash Flow: We Are Not Humble SEO Consultants (and Neither Should You Be)
This is the newest episode of SEO Cash Flow where Myriam rants about something important.
Subscribe to me on these channels
If you haven’t already, I invite you to follow me across all these channels (to never miss any important SEO news, tip, or article and stay up-to-**** with the world of SEO).
Top SEO news
Here is the most important SEO & AI news from last week.
Learn as you search (and browse) using generative AI
Search is rolling out new generative AI capabilities to help you better learn and make sense of information on the web.
Google Search ranking algorithm update – August 18-19 (unconfirmed)
Barry Schwartz reports seeing signs of an unconfirmed Google Search ranking algo update. I also see this reflected in GSC for many sites I track there.
Google stops testing links in Search Generative Experience snapshot answers
This test began earlier this month and it seems Google has now paused showing links in these AI-generated answer results.
OpenAI may have to wipe ChatGPT and start over
OpenAI, the company behind the popular generative AI tool ChatGPT, could be forced to wipe its chatbot and start over completely, according to a new report from NPR (via Ars Technica). The wipe may come as part of a potential lawsuit which could also see OpenAI fined up to $150,000 for each piece of copyrighted material used to train the language model.
Cora Pro SEO Software 25% OFF (my SEO tool of the year)
Cora SEO Software has been an absolute game-changer for me. I can honestly say that this the the ONLY tool you may need if you want to improve rankings and do it in the most efficient and effective way.
Cora SEO Software is capable of measuring thousands of factors and tells you exactly which ones appear to influence rankings and how much you need of each to compete with higher ranking competitors. More and more we are finding that having a broad diversity of ranking signals is the most important ranking factor and no SEO tool on the market handles factor diversity better than Cora.
You don’t need to believe what I’m saying. Just try for yourself! I have a special lifetime deal 25% OFF (and free training) for my newsletter subscribers.
Check my interview with Ted Kubaitis, the creator of Cora.
Watch my interview with Ted Kubaitis, the creator of Cora, to learn more about how game-changing this tool is.
More AI & SEO news
Here is other SEO news, less breaking but equally important.
Google Lets Businesses Add Social Media Links To Profiles
Google now allows businesses to add social media links to their Business Profiles, helping companies improve visibility across Google products.
Microsoft disputes the data, which shows Bing’s market share is actually lower in 2023 than it was in 2022 – before new Bing launched.
Google Search Showing Six Top Stories In Grid
Google can now show six top stories in a uniform gird format in the top of the desktop Google Search results. We normally see four top stories but if we see more, it is not normally in a uniform grid format.
10 helpful ways to use Bard
You can ask Bard to help generate code, brainstorm creative ideas, compare options and much more.
Search Central Live is coming to India
With three Search Central Live events behind us this year, it’s time to announce the one we get asked about the most: Search Central India!
SEO Interviews
New amazing interviews with SEO stars like Cyrus Shepard, Barry Adams, Kaspar Szymanski, Kristina Azarenko and more are coming! Stay tuned! Get notified when they air.
100 SEOs to follow
☝️ THROWBACK: One of the resources I’m creating is the list of 100+ SEOs to follow. I initially wanted to publish my own version, but that wouldn’t be objective enough, so I want to ask you to suggest SEOs to put on my list.
If you haven’t already done it, please fill in this Google form, and I will add you to the list together with a link to your site and your social media profiles. Thank you!
Top SEO Tips
And here are the Google SEO tips for you.
#1: Google: It sounds bad if your site depends on Google Discover traffic
Google’s John Mueller said it might be bad if your site depends on Google Discover for traffic. He said on Mastodon, “If your site depends on Discover traffic, that sounds bad regardless of your specifics.”
#2: Google: Best way to block search traffic is to disable DNS resolution
The best way to block the traffic from search for specific URLs completely is to disable DNS resolution for the URLs.
#3: Server log analysis can really benefit SEO
#4: Top-performing headlines differ in Discover vs Search
Videos to watch this week
Here are the latest videos from other SEOs I find especially interesting and worth watching.
Must-read articles
And you need to allocate some time to read these articles from other SEOs. They are brilliant.
There are more than 4 types of search intent
Explore user motivations, intent categories, and tactics to create SEO content that resonates and converts.
By Corey Morris
Streamline Content Creation and Plan in Quarters Using Screaming Frog
Content has been under a microscope lately. With the influence of AI content and Google’s developing algorithm, it’s no wonder Google searches for content planning are increasing.
By Zoe Ashbridge
7 SEO Conferences to Attend in 2023
Missed out on some SEO conferences in the first half of 2023? We handpicked a few more upcoming ones, sorted in chronological order of conference ****.
By Rebecca Liew
Classifying Search Results – Google Patents SEO
In this series on learning SEO with Google patents, I will cover some of what I have learned reading the Google patent titled “Classifying Search Results” by Tania Bedrax-Weiss and al. This patent is an update to a previous patent named “Classifying search results to determine page elements”
By Jean-Christophe Chouinard
5-Minute Whiteboard: Is Generative AI in Search Results the SEO Apocalypse?
Will this spell the end of SEO? Or the end of the good times in search marketing?… Maybe. But, I think it will also open up an entirely new way to do marketing in the search results.
By Rand Fishkin
How to start SEO testing for your website
Diving into your web analytics can help you get a snapshot of your performance, but it doesn’t always help you understand which of your optimizations are moving the needle, or how well your content could perform in organic search. For that, you’ll need to conduct SEO testing.
By Ryan Jones
Local Search Industry Survey 2023
The information provided by local marketers enables us to compile the current picture of the industry, from salary averages and overall satisfaction at work to a run-down of how agencies and freelancers are offering and billing for their services.
By Sammy Paget
Google Analytics 4 (GA4): Ultimate Guide and Tutorial
In this guide, you will learn everything you need to know about GA4 including how to migrate from UA and how to navigate around the new platform.
By Backlinko
Google’s Search Generative Experience and the future of eCommerce SEO
Here, we’ll explore what Google’s upcoming SGE could mean for large eCommerce and enterprise brands and their SEO efforts moving forward.
By Michael Carden-Edwards
Google Perspectives: A guide for charities and nonprofits
Perspectives is a new search filter which displays user-generated content from social media, video content and forums. Google describes Perspectives as “a way to learn from others’ experiences with more perspectives on Search.”
By Emma Bennett, Kian Jonas
SEO KPIs to track and measure SEO success
What can be measured can be improved. Here’s a look at the most valuable SEO KPIs to help you track, measure and improve your SEO efforts.
By Marcus Miller
Top Local SEO Takeaways from MozCon 2023
While only one talk at MozCon 2023 was specifically local SEO-focused, there were tons of takeaways from multiple presentations that are highly relevant to our space of local SEOs and local business owners!
Don’t miss these events
Here are two upcoming events you don’t want to miss!
Exploring the Art of Rendering with Google’s Martin Splitt [Duda]
Immerse yourself in firsthand insights from the origin itself – there’s simply no comparison to learning about Google from the Google experts themselves. This is a webinar packed with knowledge that agencies simply cannot afford to miss!
Why so SEOrious? #2 [Husky Hamster]
So, grab your tea, coffee, beer, or whatever it is you like to drink and join a unique live broadcasting experience that will help you keep up-to-**** with the latest in SEO.
Thank you for reading my newsletter! I hope you found the information useful. If you enjoyed this issue, be sure to check out the next one next week.
