Near Media·Nov 27, 2023Shoppers Go Wild, Google Map Colors, Fake Reviews NewsBlack Friday: Consumers Go Wild — Fears about soft consumer spending on Black Friday proved unfounded. Driven by discounts, US shoppers opened their wallets and generated a record $9.8 billion in online sales on Friday. (Thanksgiving saw $5.6 billion.) E-commerce growth on Black Friday was 7.5% year over year, according to Adobe Analytics. Mobile drove $5.3…5 min read5 min read
Near Media·Nov 22, 2023OpenAI WTF, Green Black Friday, AI for SEOOpenAI: WTF Just Happened? — No doubt many of you have followed the chaotic soap opera surrounding OpenAI’s ouster of CEO Sam Altman and his reinstatement only days later. To recap, in a stunning, self-destructive move, the OpenAI board fired Altman last Friday. What followed over the weekend was a bizarre negotiation about immediately bringing…5 min read5 min read
Near Media·Nov 20, 2023Google AI Goes Veg, Apple Maps Ranking Tool, ChatGPT Review InsightsGoogle Local Goes Vegetarian — Google is now highlighting vegetarian dishes at restaurants that don’t necessarily identify as vegan or vegetarian. Obviously Google is attempting to help non-meat eaters understand the lay of the vegetarian landscape in restaurants they’re not familiar with. This would be particularly helpful in rural environments where vegetarian restaurants are less…6 min read6 min read
Near Media·Nov 17, 2023Ep 135: Google’s newest search features, Whitespark: Reviews by category, Fake review enforcement failuresPart 1 starts 00:13 — Google’s Newest Search Features: “Whipped cream on S.H. I. .T”.? While Google’s new features aim to enhance user interaction and personalize the search experience, they may not address broader user concerns about search result quality and privacy. And in fact may, as David points…2 min read2 min read
Near Media·Nov 17, 2023Local Review Landscape: Insights from Whitespark’s GBP AnalysisIn the world of local businesses, customer reviews play a pivotal role in search visibility, shaping public perceptions and influencing consumer decisions. Darren Shaw and Whitespark’s analysis of a million local Google Business Profiles offers valuable insights into the distribution of reviews across local business categories. …2 min read2 min read
Near Media·Nov 17, 2023New Yahoo Search, Google SGE Shopping, BOPIS Car SalesAwaiting the New Yahoo Search — At the recent SMX Next event Senior VP and General Manager of Yahoo Search Brian Provost said that the site’s new search experience will launch early next year. Yahoo currently has a 2.6% share of the search market in the US and 1.2% globally. It will be interesting to see…4 min read4 min read
Near Media·Nov 15, 2023Personalized Google Rankings, Fake Reviews Thriving, AI Trust GrowingGoogle to Personalize Rankings — At the recent BrightonSEO conference in San Diego, Google spokesperson Danny Sullivan said there were major changes coming to search — beyond the volatility of the past year or so. This morning Google at least partly delivered on that promise. First reported by Barry Schwartz, Google announced three new features…5 min read5 min read
Near Media·Nov 15, 2023Personalized Google Rankings, Fake Reviews Thriving, AI Trust GrowingGoogle to Personalize Rankings — At the recent BrightonSEO conference in San Diego, Google spokesperson Danny Sullivan said there were major changes coming to search — beyond the volatility of the past year or so. This morning Google at least partly delivered on that promise. First reported by Barry Schwartz, Google announced three new features…5 min read5 min read
Near Media·Nov 13, 2023Why Citations Ain’t What They Used to BeIn the past, citations from directories were crucial for local businesses, especially those without a significant inbound link footprint or a website. So much so, that in 2014 citations/NAP consistency was considered to be the number one local ranking factor by some local SEOs. In fact, citations were one of…2 min read2 min read
Near Media·Nov 13, 2023Why Citations Ain’t What They Used to BeIn the past, citations from directories were crucial for local businesses, especially those without a significant inbound link footprint or a website. So much so, that in 2014 citations/NAP consistency was considered to be the number one local ranking factor by some local SEOs. In fact, citations were one of…2 min read2 min read