Google is tweaking how sponsored results will appear in Search. Going forward, it will group any text ads on the Search page into a "Sponsored results" section that will appear at the top of the screen. The size of the ads is unchanged and Google says there will never be more than four ads in a grouping. Once you scroll past the section with ads, you can click a button to hide all sponsored results.
Google Search has an ongoing serving issue since late Friday. There is also a bug with events not serving in Google Search. Google is testing the show more button on AI Overviews, it goes directly to Google AI Mode. The new Bing Places is now rolling out. Google is testing AI-generared search snippet descriptions again. Google revealed the dates for when call ads will be sunset. Microsoft will discontinue the Microsoft Advertising ads grant program.
Google is testing another variation to the title links in the Google Search results - a light gray effect. So when you hover your mouse cursor over the snippet, the title link turns grayed and washed out. This was spotted by Sachin Patel who posted some videos of this on X - here is an image from that video: Here is a GIF
Google is testing having the citations stick to the top (of the AI Overview section only) as you scroll down past the AI Overview. This keeps those citations more in view, as you scroll over the AI Overview. This was first spotted by SERPAlerts on X who wrote, "Google is testing out a sticky citations format on desktop for AI overviews, making it so the first citation stays with the user on scroll. Normally, AI overview citations remain stationary and will be scrolled out of view."
Media companies have filed so many lawsuits against AI companies over the past two years that the act has become routine. When I report on these in The Media Copilot newsletter, they're often digest items, adding to the pile of publishers who want fair compensation for the content AI labs have ingested to create large language models (LLMs). There are so many that elaborate infographics are required to keep track of them all.
Google seems to be testing renaming the Shopping tab in Google Search from Shopping to "AI Shopping." Maybe the results in the new AI Shopping tab are more AI-driven? This test was spotted by Sachin Patel who posted some screenshots and a video on X - here are some of his screenshots: Here is a GIF of it in action:
Minimum qualifications: Bachelor's degree or equivalent practical experience 5 years of experience in data analysis, including identifying trends, generating summary statistics, and drawing insights from quantitative and qualitative data. 5 years of experience managing projects and defining project scope, goals, and deliverables. Experience with statistical analysis, data science and data analysis. Preferred qualifications: Master's degree in a quantitative field (e.g., Statistics, Computer Science, Mathematics, Engineering). 5 years of experience in a data-intensive role such as threat intelligence, data science, trust and safety, or fraud analysis.
Over the years, we've seen that people increasingly use Google to search for helpful content on Reddit to find product recommendations, travel advice and much more. We know people find this information useful, so we're developing ways to make it even easier to access across Google products. This partnership will facilitate more content-forward displays of Reddit information that will make our products more helpful for our users and make it easier to participate in Reddit communities and conversations.
A Google Search bug from this morning led to the search results being overwhelmed with just ads. This is obviously a Google Search serving bug where Google had a glitch and was unable to serve the proper amount of organic/free results. In fact, we've had this issue a number of times before - as recently as a couple of years ago.
Earlier this year, Google updated its algorithm. This is nothing new-Google updates its algorithms hundreds of times per year, with anywhere from two to four major "core updates" that result in significant changes. And while it's tricky to determine exactly what changed, publishers and websites large and small noticed significant traffic drops and lower search rankings-even for content that had previously been doing well.
If you are wondering how Mark found this, he did an excellent presentation on that late last year - so check that out. Mark's theory, as he wrote, "I can't find any direct mention of this in Google patents or docs, however my guess would be it is likely a score estimating how far a query (especially a question) sits on the 'fringe' of Google's known entity/knowledge space and how atypical or long‑tail it is."
Google Search seems to be testing dropping the ability to see 100 search results on a single page. When you add the results parameter to the end of your search results URL string, i.e. &num=100, it works about half the time. This was spotted by SEOwner on X and I can replicate it, as can many others. The thing is, sometimes it happens and sometimes it does not. Which leads me to believe it is a test.
Google is testing placing the arrows next to the sitelinks on the left side of the sitelinks. Normally those arrows are on the right side of the sitelinks. We have seen tons of arrow sitelinks tests over the years. This was first spotted by Nishant Gupta on X and then Sachin Patel on X. Here is what the new look looks like: This is what you'd normally see: Here are more screenshots:
Google is testing alternatives to the title "People also search for" at the bottom of the Google Search results. I am seeing "Related your search," "Search for next," and "Also search for." I am sure there are more. I was tipped off to the "Also search for" variation by Sachin Patel on X but I am able to replicate all of these, here are my screenshots.
Google is testing a new top bar interface design for the search results page both in light and dark mode. The new design shades the top bar more, so it is more distinct to the search results section. I spotted a few variations to this afer Punit notified me of one of those variations on X. To be fair, we've seen header bar changes over the years, too many to link to, but here is one and here is another but there were tons.
Google Search is testing a new game in its search results to encourage searchers to search more. It is likely called the Google Search mini-game and it rewards searchers with badges when they "dive deeper into topics." Google describes the game as follows: This Google Search mini-game invites you to dive deeper into topics you think you know with a series of trivia questions. Discover new interests and earn shiny badges as you conquer each challenge.
