Google Search Traffic to Pirate Sites Down After Algorithm Updates
Google’s recent algorithm updates are reportedly reducing traffic to piracy websites, according to an analysis of year-over-year data.
About
Matt G. Southern, Senior News Writer, has been with Search Engine Journal since 2013. With a bachelor’s degree in communications, Matt specializes in gathering details, checking facts, and making complex subjects easy to understand. In addition to writing articles, Matt oversees strategy development for SEJ’s news department.
Articles
3 Myths About YouTube Trending Debunked
YouTube addresses 3 common myths about how it features content and explains what it takes for a video to appear in the coveted ‘Trending’ section.
Google: Sites With Any Adult Content Won’t Show Rich Results
Google’s John Mueller says websites containing any adult content, regardless of the amount, are not eligible to serve rich results.
Google’s John Mueller on Proper Use of Paywall Markup
Paywall structured data markup doesn’t need to be visible to users, but it does need to be visible to web crawlers, says Google’s John Mueller.
Google Structured Data Testing Tool Lives On At New Domain
Google is not shutting down the Structured Data Testing Tool after all, as per an announcement stating the tool will be migrated to another domain.
Google: Keyword-Heavy Titles Not Against Our Guidelines
Google’s John Mueller clears up a misunderstanding about keyword-heavy titles and descriptions, saying it’s a common practice that’s not against webmaster guidelines.
Google on How it Handles Sites With Too Many Ads
Google’s John Mueller weighs in on how sites with lots of ads are handled when it comes to ranking in search results.
Bing Webmaster Tools Gains Features From Microsoft Clarity
Following a successful launch of Microsoft Clarity, features from the free-to-use tool are being added to Bing Webmaster Tools.
Pinterest Boards Upgraded With 3 New Features
Pinterest is launching three new features for boards that allow users to make more productive use of their time on the platform.
Twitter Lets Users Share Tweets to Snapchat
Snapchat users can now share tweets from Twitter directly in their Snapchat story. This eliminates the need to take screenshots of tweets.
Google’s John Mueller: No Black Hat SEO on Adult Websites
Google’s John Mueller suggests not using black hat techniques, even on websites with 18+ content. This debunks any idea that adult content gets a pass.
Google Reveals Top Searches of 2020
Google’s annual list of top trending search terms shows what the world turned to Google for during one of the most historic years on record.
Facebook Sued by FTC for Anticompetitive Conduct
Facebook is being sued by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for allegedly maintaining its position as market leader with years of anticompetitive conduct.
Google: Noindexed Pages Can Impact Core Web Vitals
Google affirms that noindexed pages can still be used to evaluate a site’s Core Web Vitals, which will soon become search ranking factors.
YouTube Has More Ways to Build Hype For a New Video
YouTube is expanding the capabilities of its Premieres feature with 4 new ways to drum up hype for a video.
Google Doesn’t Read Unsupported Structured Data
Google gets all the information it needs about a page from the page itself, and rarely learns anything unique from structured data, says John Mueller
Google Data: Top Holiday Shopping Searches
Google’s latest guide to holiday shopping trends is now available with insights into top searches and most popular products.
Google Explains How it Organizes Information in Search
Google goes over how its search index is organized, and how it makes SERPs useful, in a new explainer published to the company’s blog.
Google Confirms Rollout of Core Algorithm Update
Google confirms a core algorithm update, the December 2020 Core Update, is rolling out today.
Google Explains Discovery & Refresh Data in Crawl Stats Report
Google’s John Mueller offers more detail about new data in Search Console’s updated Crawl Stats report – the ‘discovery’ and ‘refresh metrics.
Google Combines Hreflang Signals from HTML & Sitemaps
Google’s John Mueller discusses how hreflang signals are handled when directives appear in a sitemap as well as on-page HTML.
YouTube Algorithm: 6 Questions Answered
YouTube is sharing more details about how its search and recommendation algorithms work in a new video where the company answers questions from users.
Google’s John Mueller: Long Anchor Text Gives Us More Context
There is one key difference between using many words in anchor text compared to using fewer words, according to Google’s John Mueller.
Instagram is Letting Advertisers Create Posts With Users’ Accounts
Instagram is giving advertisers the ability to publish sponsored posts from users’ accounts through an update to branded content ads.
Twitter is Bringing Back Account Verifications
Twitter is bringing back verifications after shutting down public applications three years ago. The program is relaunching with a few changes made to the process.
YouTube is Showing Ads On Non-Monetized Channels
YouTube creators are fuming over a change to the site’s terms of service stating ads will be shown on channels that haven’t opted into monetization.
Snapchat is Paying Users $1 Million a Day to Use a New Feature
Snapchat is investing heavily in promoting its new Spotlight feature, to the tune of $1 million per day to users who submit the best content.
YouTube Analytics Now Reports on Traffic Sources
YouTube Analytics is getting updated with a new report that will show creators how viewers are finding their videos.
LinkedIn Lists the Top Marketing Professionals of 2020
LinkedIn is unveiling its annual ‘Top Voices’ report which includes lists of the most influential professionals across different verticals.
YouTube Launches Audio Ads to Reach Music & Podcast Listeners
YouTube is launching a new type of audio-based ad unit to reach people who use the platform as their music and podcast player.