Over the past year, Google Ads has increasingly embraced automation, shifting the account manager’s role in both practice and strategy. The granular control and transparency we once took for granted are rapidly disappearing. As 2026 approaches, it’s time to face reality – five PPC tactics are falling out of favor in the new era of […]
Some advertisers are noticing oddly cropped product images in Google Shopping ads — and it turns out Google Merchant Center’s “Smart Cropping” feature is behind it. Why we care. Smart Cropping, enabled by default, uses automation to zoom in on what Google determines is the most relevant part of a product image. While the goal […]
Generative engine optimization (GEO) platform Lorelight, is shutting it down – not because it failed, but because the problem it solved didn’t need solving, according to its founder Benjamin Houy. “Customers were churning because the product didn’t change what they needed to do. They would pursue the same brand-building fundamentals whether they had the data […]
Organic click-through rates (CTR) for informational queries featuring Google AI Overviews fell 61% since mid-2024, while paid CTRs on those same queries plunged 68%, according to the latest study by marketing agency Seer Interactive. Even on queries without AI Overviews, organic CTRs fell 41%. This suggests users are simply clicking less, everywhere. Why we care. […]
YouTube has removed the “close” button on sidebar panels in some horizontal video ads on mobile, making the ad’s sidebar — often used for shoppable products or sitelinks — permanently visible during playback. Why we care. The change means users can no longer dismiss the sidebar to view the ad full-screen, leaving part of the […]
Google is starting to roll out agentic capabilities in AI Mode as a Search Labs experiment. This update enables AI Mode to find and book restaurant reservations, event tickets, and wellness appointments across multiple websites. Availability is limited, and Google notes this experiment may not be available to everyone yet. Robby Stein, VP of Product […]
Google’s AI Overviews and AI-driven search are reshaping content creation, SEO, and user behavior. As we watch this fascinating evolution of search – and continue to debate what we call this new marketing discipline (HubSpot is opting for AEO, or answer engine optimization) – I interviewed Aja Frost, senior director of global growth and paid media […]
WordPress managed web hosting company Kinsta announced that it is changing how it bills its customers by not charging users for bandwidth related to unwanted bot and scraper traffic. Daniel Pataki, CTO at Kinsta explained: “In the past 12 months we’ve seen bot traffic rise due to the prevalence of both good and bad uses […]
LLM referral traffic has been growing +65% year-to-date. But we should assume 0 in the future. LLM Referral Traffic Is Shrinking LLM referral traffic in B2B grew +65.1% since January – but dropped -42.6% since July. Image Credit: Kevin Indig My December prediction of 50% organic by 2027 is dead: In December 2024, I analyzed six B2B sites […]
AI search isn’t killing SEO. It’s forcing it to evolve into a new, multi-platform discipline called search everywhere optimization, where social and user-generated content (UGC) are the new trust engines driving discoverability. When I presented this concept at brightonSEO San Diego, what stood out wasn’t just the excitement around AI. What stood out was the […]