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In this episode, we discuss Marie’s analysis of the product reviews update, MHC’s guide to understanding Google’s search algorithms, a recent Google blog post on answering searchers’ needs, and some great tips and tools to help you with your SEO efforts.

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The following topics are covered in the premium version of this episode:

• More analysis from Marie of the latest product reviews update
• Using MUM to better understand if a person is in a personal crisis and in need
• Does your site search answer users’ needs?
• Upcoming changes to help diagnose performance issues
• What to include in a semantic SEO audit
• Using this tool for bulk internal linking
• Search traffic monitoring feature in Data Studio
• E-A-T features and examples for eCommerce sites
• New data insights tool for eCommerce – This looks important
• Can’t get new content indexed? Here are some things that may help.
• Our tl;dr summary of some awesome recent SEO articles

⎋ SUBSCRIBE NOW

It has been a fun week at MHC as we dug into the impact that the Product Reviews Update has had on the sites that we monitor. A number of other SEOs who study algorithm impacts have been noticing significant and interesting impacts so far. Lily Ray is reporting some sites seeing dramatic reversals since the last PRU. 

Switchback Travel is seeing a nearly full recovery after the most recent Product Review update

IMO this site has had great product review content all along… I think sometimes it takes Google a few algo updates to get it right. pic.twitter.com/C1SkKuimfS

— Lily Ray 😏 (@lilyraynyc) April 4, 2022

Conversely, Glenn has highlighted an instance where a site has seen a slight improvement, but in the context of the last PRU, it is barely noticeable. 

Nice increase during the March 2022 PRU for this site, but wait… is it really? Not if you look at the impact from the Dec PRU. Wow. Although checking the queries in the niche, a # of the sites ranking don't provide the info I would expect (& def. not first-hand experience…) pic.twitter.com/JajTMlxB2J

— Glenn Gabe (@glenngabe) April 4, 2022

Turning to the sites that MHC monitors, so far we have had several of our clients see nice improvements that we feel are connected to this update. In the next section, Marie has shared some examples of what types of content are performing well.

The ultimate guide to understanding Google’s ranking algorithms

We shared the first part of this guide written by MHC’s Callum Scott. This series is going to cover every aspect of the Google ranking system that we know about. From Penguin to Panda, from Medic to mobile-first indexing. 

Part one focuses on the core ranking system, how it works, and all the algorithms we know have been integrated into it over the years. This is the system that gets updated with Core Updates, so we think it is important for SEOs to know exactly when it is included in it! 

In the coming weeks there will be more released covering the other known aspects of the ranking system such as the PRU, Page Experience Algorithm, and much much more! Be sure to give it a read!

MHC's @mrcallumscott put together this amazing guide on understanding Google's search ranking algorithms.

There is more to come, but for now learn about Panda, Penguin, core updates and everything in between.https://t.co/bMyzrYX38K

— Marie Haynes Consulting (@mhc_inc) April 4, 2022

New “Highly cited” label in Top Stories

We’d like to take a moment to quote Bo Burnham, “Could I interest you in everything? All of the time?” 

The widespread availability of information can make it hard to decipher what is credible. As one of the many steps Google has been taking to help address this, you may start seeing a new “Highly cited” label in the SERPs that appear for Top Stories. This is supposed to help readers identify content that has been cited frequently by other news organizations. “Highly cited” will roll out globally in the coming weeks. In the future, we feel as though we’ll be seeing more and more ways Google is addressing misinformation and ways of educating users to sort out what the best sources are. 

"Highly cited" is a new label that will appear for Top Stories, helping you identify stories that have been frequently cited by other news organizations. The label launches soon on mobile in English for the US & will roll out globally in the coming weeks. https://t.co/GqvjzK6BmC pic.twitter.com/V74CaV6IlO

— Google SearchLiaison (@searchliaison) March 31, 2022

Google teaching how to evaluate online info.

Some hints in here re EAT.

"searching about the author of a piece of content to get a sense of their credibility"

You want your authors to be recognized online as authorities on their topics.https://t.co/NZOmevdv85

And also…

— Dr. Marie Haynes🐧 (@Marie_Haynes) March 31, 2022

Clustering of news:https://t.co/qihbv7GlvE

— Bill Slawski ⚓ 🇺🇦 (@bill_slawski) March 31, 2022

A lot of really interesting insights on Google's new Info Evaluation Resource
(https://t.co/4B1M0CTKrB)

Care to dive in with me a bit? Here are a few things that spoke to me!🧵 pic.twitter.com/fyogq5dABb

— Mordy Oberstein 🇺🇦 (@MordyOberstein) April 4, 2022

Marie’s guide on toxic links and disavowing

Have you used SEO tools to identify toxic links? Can spammy links hurt your rankings in search? Should you be disavowing these links? Does disavowing work? These are questions that the SEO community has debated at length. In case you missed it, Marie published a comprehensive guide to answer all your questions about toxic links and disavows.  

Read the full article on Search Engine Land and tweet us with your questions!

The alternative anatomy of a blog post

This graphic breaks down an alternate way to organize your blog post and we love it! Not only does it help to see a visual representation of a post, but there are hidden gems of tips in each section. Key points to consider: use an image that is formatted for social distribution, ensure you have a CTA in your conclusion and have a clear and concise summary of your main points. 

presenting: an alternative version of that "anatomy of a perfect blog post" graphic pic.twitter.com/NEjKam7Kgc

— Ryan Law (@thinking_slow) April 4, 2022

Don’t write fake reviews for medical sites

The title sounds obvious enough, but yes, people still do this. Unfortunately for them, there is a severe price to pay for writing a fake medical review. In this scenario, someone responded as a patient with their confidential medical information. The result? A $50k fine and HIPPA violation. Just don’t go there, folks.  

Resulted in a $50K fine. Helping doctors w/marketing? -> Replying to Google reviews from patients can actually be a HIPAA violation

"In the post, he used the patient’s full name & described, in detail, the specific dental problem he was in for…" https://t.co/fXbGh6QG3D pic.twitter.com/uVFuiX6t2w

— Glenn Gabe (@glenngabe) April 1, 2022

How much do you know about semantic SEO?

Marie recently asked users in a Twitter poll how much they know about semantic SEO. Surprisingly, 41.3% responded indicating they are just learning, and 36% responded that they know little to nothing about the topic. Only 22.7% felt they knew a lot about semantic SEO.

In a nutshell, semantic SEO is used to identify the intent behind a query and answer questions that users might have around said query. We really liked this blog post by Bill Slawski on “What is semantic SEO?” which you might find helpful as well to learn about the topic.

Local search industry insight

BrightLocal has come out with a Local Search Industry Survey for 2022. There are quite a few nuggets of interesting information but here are some of our favourites:

Male local marketers earn 27% more than women in the US, 16% more in the UK, and 32% more in Canada. As Canadians, it’s sad to hear there is a $25,000 difference in median salaries, according to their data. For this data, fewer women were defined as working in “senior” positions, and they questioned whether women in SEO are even getting the opportunities they need to grow to achieve these higher positions.

What to do if your GBP vanishes

In the odd circumstance where your Google Business Profile simply vanishes, Claire walks you through what to do in a detailed post. The main ways are to find the CID number of your GBP and to follow some breadcrumbs from past GBP usage. 

🫢 Let's not talk about the time I got a suspension and 'accidentally' removed my business listing from my dashboard (I was the only manager / user) and didn't have a note of CID or dashboard URL. Read this and don't be a 🍆 (like me) https://t.co/END1UE7g5F

— Claire Carlile🕊️ 🌊 🥑 🦥 (@clairecarlile) March 31, 2022

How to list upcoming courses

For any local businesses that are hosting courses or workshops, here is how you should do it. Event schema is your friend here. Specifically, Tim Capper comes in with a great tip. Listing an event in a post as well as marking it up with schema, can help you get a knowledge panel. 

Anyone know if there’s a good method for local businesses to list upcoming courses / workshops (ideally via GBP) or is Course schema the only option?

— Lily Ray 😏 (@lilyraynyc) April 3, 2022

Free tool for all creators who live stream or record – Melonapp! (Sponsored)

Melon is a browser-based platform that lets you go live for free! Used by thousands of people, lightning fast and extremely useful. 

Melon team is constantly releasing new features, here are the latest:

• Reactions – engage with your audience by adding audio gifs (claps, cheers etc);
• Stream Forwarding – Livestream your Zoom call, go live from Streamlabs Desktop to multiple destinations, and more;
• New themes in theme library to help you customize streams even more;

Start for free and upgrade for $5/month with MELONLOVESYOU code at the checkout!

Importance of Topical Authority: A Semantic SEO Case Study – Koray Tuğberk GÜBÜR
https://www.oncrawl.com/technical-seo/importance-topical-authority-semantic-seo/
February 11, 2021

This is an intriguing set of successful SEO case studies from Koray Tuğberk Gübür with a focus on semantic SEO, including the use of a topic map, entity info from the knowledge graph, and Google trends and Google autocomplete/suggest data.

There is a lot more detail on his strategy provided within the article, but his application of much of the theory around semantic SEO is well laid out, and the impressive results hammer home to us a broader point we’re often making with our clients: establish topical authority and topical completeness within the subjects for which you want to rank.

Announcement.
⁰
It is with a heavy heart I share that A360 is divesting itself of digital marketing. That means our team + I are free agents.
⁰
But their loss is your gain, b/c an incredible crop of marketing talent is about to hit the market.
⁰
These are their stories. 👇

— Jonathan Jacobs (@JonEJacobs) March 31, 2022

Premium members also get the following:

It’s well worth the $18 per month!

The following topics are covered in the premium version of this episode:

• More analysis from Marie of the latest product reviews update
• Using MUM to better understand if a person is in a personal crisis and in need
• Does your site search answer users’ needs?
• Upcoming changes to help diagnose performance issues
• What to include in a semantic SEO audit
• Using this tool for bulk internal linking
• Search traffic monitoring feature in Data Studio
• E-A-T features and examples for eCommerce sites
• New data insights tool for eCommerce – This looks important
• Can’t get new content indexed? Here are some things that may help.
• Our tl;dr summary of some awesome recent SEO articles

⎋ SUBSCRIBE NOW

Note: If you are seeing the light version and you are a premium member, be sure to log in (in the sidebar on desktop or below the post on mobile) and read the full article here.

.@marie_haynes: “She inspires me as the leading expert in EAT and also as a successful business owner. She puts out one of the best and most in-depth SEO newsletters in the industry.”

— Inflow® (@goinflow) March 8, 2021