Good morning search marketers, nope, machines aren't perfect.
In an update on the indexing issues it's experienced over the past several months, Google said many sites were inadvertently de-indexed on April 5 because parts of the deployment system broke as it was rolling out planned changes to the index. "More specifically: as we were updating the index over some of our data centers, a small number of documents ended up being dropped from the index accidentally. Hence: we lost part of the index," Vincent Courson of Google search outreach explained.
Going forward, Google says it is looking at ways to share information about indexing issues faster within Search Console and that it will continue to tweet promptly about known issues.
Berlin-based search engine Ecosia, which donates most of its profits to non-profit groups focused on conservation, says it will not participate in Google's "search-choice" auction for Android devices in 2020 in Europe. In the auction — Google's effort to comply with an antitrust ruling — the three highest bidders will appear along with Google as the default search engine options to Android users.
"Instead of giving wide and fair access, Google have chosen to give discrimination a different form and make everyone else but themselves pay, which isn't something we can accept," said Ecosia CEO Christian Kroll. Google says the auction is "fair and objective" and "allows search providers to decide what value they place on appearing in the choice screen and to bid accordingly." We'll see how other search engines react. Applications to participate in the auction are due mid-September.
If you want a shot of motivation and inspiration, take a page from Metric Theory's Andrew Cooper. Looking to build out the agency's Amazon Advertising practice area, he built a Shopify site of his own and began selling products on Amazon — as a side project. "There are a number of things I learned — and outside of marketing," said Cooper. "You really understand how nerves and emotions can change with the flows of their business."
Cooper, a Search Engine Land marketer of the year, also heads up hiring and training in the e-commerce department. My favorite quote from my discussion with him came in talking about what he prioritizes in job candidates: "The industry is always changing, so I'm not looking for someone who can do the work now, because it will soon change. I look for someone who can adapt."
With that, read on for more search marketing news and insights.
Ginny Marvin
Editor-In-Chief
