Good morning search marketers, it's finally time to bid the old GSC farewell.
Google announced Monday that it has officially shut down the old Google Search Console, which it's been phasing out since the new version came on the scene more than two years ago. There is a new option to get to some of the legacy reports in the new version, but you can no longer access the OG GSC.
Close watchers of Google's Search Quality Rater Guidelines noticed an update last week. Consultant Marie Haynes, who, you may recall, recently sat down with Barry Schwartz for a chat about E-A-T, was among the first to spot the update. We've broken down exactly what's changed in the latest Search Quality Rater Guidelines, which human raters refer to when evaluating search engine results. This latest version places more emphasis on vetting news sources as well as YMYL content and its creators and expands the basis for which a rater might apply the lowest ratings to content that may potentially spread hate. While the raters don't actually affect your rankings, understanding what Google is prioritizing or emphasizing in its search quality guidelines can help ensure you're focusing your SEO efforts in the right places.
If you're working in e-commerce, you're likely already knee-deep in holiday planning. Microsoft Advertising has a new report for Shopping campaigns that you should get familiar with before things start getting nutty. You'll find the product negative keyword conflicts report in the Product ads section under the Reports tab in the UI. It will show you where you have negative keyword conflicts keeping products from showing. If you're managing negatives at the campaign and ad group levels and in lists, it's easy to see how you end up with inadvertent conflicts. You may also discover you're blocking products that are new to your catalog.
App store search rankings can make or break an app's business, and Apple is facing lawsuits and legislative scrutiny for its practices. The New York Times reported yesterday that Apple changed its search algorithm in the iPhone App Store after investigations by the Times and Wall Street Journal found it was heavily favoring its own apps. Sound familiar? Google has long been accused of favoring its own products in search results — and was fined nearly $3 billion by the EU for doing so in shopping search. U.S. investigations into Apple could end up having implications for Google as well, writes Greg Sterling.
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Ginny Marvin
Editor-In-Chief
