Google's search documentation leak, Instagram's "Recent Stories" test, & AI Overviews user feedback
Hello and welcome to a new edition of Unified Digital Digest!
We have a jam-packed newsletter filled with industry news, but before we get into it, we wanted to invite you to an upcoming event we're hosting at the Perrill office.
We still have a few spots available for our panel event next Thursday, June 6th. The event features:
You won't want to miss the panel – get more information and sign up here .
Google Search document leak
At a glance: Over 2,000 internal documents related to Google's search algorithms were leaked earlier this week, giving the SEO community a peek behind the curtain at what Google Search is prioritizing and how the search engine is ranking content.
Similar to the Yandex leak that happened last year, this leak gives users information about Google's ranking systems and algorithm documentation not previously confirmed by Google. Some of the information shared in these documents contradicts what Google has stated in the past, too, leading to people questioning Google's integrity. The SEO community has never gotten this much information about how Google search algorithms operate, so it's a pretty big deal for SEO specialists. Find more specifics about the leak here .
Perrill perspective:
Since Google’s exact ranking algorithms have always been a closely guarded secret, a leak of this type is certainly big news. Perhaps one of the most interesting aspects of this leak is that certain ranking factors in the API documentation appear to conflict with previous statements from Google about which factors are utilized. Of course, just because they’re in the documentation doesn’t necessarily mean that Google uses them to determine rankings. That said, there’s a lot of information in these documents, and SEOs will be analyzing them for weeks and months to come. The big question is, will this have a significant effect on SEO? In the short term, I would say no. Although this leak provides more insight into the ranking factors that Google potentially uses, there aren’t any huge revelations that necessitate a significant change to current strategies. Additionally, no weighting information is included, meaning we may know these ranking factors exist but not how much importance Google places on each one. However, as we have more time to analyze and, more importantly, test these factors, we may gain a better understanding of how Google uses them and adjust our strategies accordingly. Hopefully, this leak will also lead to a little more transparency from Google, although I wouldn’t bet on it. - Andy Heatwole , SEO Manager
AI Overviews feedback + Google's response
At a glance: Google released its AI Overviews search results to the public about two weeks ago now, and the feature has reportedly generated incorrect results that users are frustrated with.
Google responded to this feedback in a blog post , stating that they're seeing lots of fake screenshots of AI Overviews results. And while this is true, there are real examples of AI Overviews generating poor or wrong results. Many of the queries generating incorrect results are extremely rare–like asking how many rocks it's safe to eat.
Google stated "with billions of queries coming in every day, there are bound to be some oddities and errors," and the search engine is now working on making updates to improve AIO.
Perrill perspective:
This topic is pretty difficult to discuss at this point because AI Overviews are so new and there is so much misinformation about them. You may have seen screenshots that claim AI Overviews suggested depressed people jump off bridges, pregnant women should smoke, and it's okay to leave dogs in hot cars. None of these were real AI Overviews. There are people out there trying to gain attention by posting fake AI Overviews, and this has fired up a lot of people about how the AIO rollout has been irresponsible. Here are the facts right now: AI Overviews are only available to logged in, US-based Chrome users who are not in incognito mode, and they are only showing up on a small percentage of queries. Google has been quick to remove bad AIOs (like the ones about eating rocks and putting glue on pizza). Creating fake AIOs for laughs or to try to get Google in trouble or whatever other purpose people have is not productive and only complicates the rollout for users. From an SEO perspective, there's still not much to do at this point. Initial data suggests the clickthrough rate (CTR) might be lower by up to 8% on queries that have AIOs, but the datasets are small at this point. We haven't seen any clients lose organic traffic following the launch, so we aren't sounding any alarms yet. We also aren't being reactionary about ridiculous screenshots. I'm not ready to write off AI Overviews as evil, but I also haven't found them particularly useful for my own searches. I suspect a lot of users will just scroll past them like I have been. - Nate Tower , President
Google Business Profile chat feature is getting phased out
At a glance: On July 31, Google is deprecating call history and chat for its Google Business Profile users . Business owners have the option to download that history prior to the deletion, and starting on July 15, users will no longer be able to initiate chats or calls.
In its announcement, Google stated, "as we continually improve our tools, we occasionally have to make difficult decisions which may impact the businesses and partners we work with." Business owners who utilize these features should start preparing alternative communication methods.
Google tests visit button
At a glance: Will large blue CTA buttons encourage more users to click on search results? Google is going to find out through its latest test that experiments with adding "visit" buttons under search results listings to test the clickthrough rate.
It's an interesting test, but if all site links end up with blue buttons, will there be any significant change in traffic to websites? It seems unlikely.
Google tests a unique snippet for Reddit results
At a glance: Ever since Google and Reddit partnered up, Reddit threads have shown up in more search results. Now, Google is adding more information to Reddit results to give users additional context to the contents of Reddit threads.
These results show upvotes, top responses, and even related Reddit threads. By enhancing these search results, it seems like Google is giving even more priority to Reddit results. But it could also mean that users are finding value in seeing more Reddit results in the SERPs.
New Google accessibility initiatives
At a glance: Google is adding new accessibility updates to its platforms to make it easier for all individuals to access and use Google's features.
Some of the updates apply specifically to Android users, like new features in the Lookout app, which helps people with blindness and low vision use their cameras to get information about their surroundings. There are also updates within Google Maps to help people with disabilities get to their destinations with features like better walking instructions, more accessibility information, and the inclusion of places that can cast assistive audio to hearing devices
Learn more about these new features and how they work in Google's announcement .
Amazon releases Performance+
At a glance: Amazon's new ad offering, Performance+ , is said to offer lower CPAs while automating campaign management using AI technology.
Performance+ competes with other AI-powered advertising solutions from Google, Microsoft, and Meta, and gives the advertiser more control over their ad spend. Amazon claims this new solution has led to 30-90% lower CPAs compared to its standard demand-side platform advertising.
Google announces new AI ad tools
At a glance: At Marketing Live 2024, Google announced updates to its advertising products that incorporate AI technology to give advertisers more options, streamlined functionality, and enhanced performance in Google Ads.
Updates include:
Reddit + OpenAI deal
At a glance: With a new agreement in place between Reddit and OpenAI , Reddit responses will now get integrated with ChatGPT, using Reddit insights to inform ChatGPT's outputs.
OpenAI will access Reddit's API to conduct this agreement. This could lead to diversified ChatGPT answers that feel more in touch with current events and sentiments as Reddit users cover a wide variety of topics in user-moderated communities. The agreement will also bring more AI features to Reddit.
ChatGPT gets better at data analysis
At a glance: OpenAI is adding new data analysis elements to ChatGPT that can assist users in analyzing and working with data. These features include:
In its announcement, OpenAI expressed that, "[ChatGPT] can handle a range of data tasks, like merging and cleaning large datasets, creating charts, and uncovering insights."
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Perrill perspective:
Just a gentle reminder here not to upload sensitive data to ChatGPT. This includes customer information, financial information, and anything else you wouldn't want to share publicly. Assume if you are loading it to ChatGPT then someone else will be able to see it. - Nate Tower , President
Meta joins AI Safety Collective
At a glance: Meta is joining the Frontier Model Forum (FMF) , a non-profit AI safety collective working on establishing guidelines and regulations around AI. Google, Microsoft, OpenAI, Anthropic, and Amazon are already members of FMF.
FMF's goal is to determine how to safely and legally use AI, and what that looks like in practice. On their website , they state, "FMF is one vehicle for cross-organizational discussions and actions on AI safety and responsibility."
X plans to use Grok as a fact-checker
At a glance: X is working on creating a "Grok, analysis!" feature that fact-checks content posted on the platform.
While this feature isn't ready yet, the idea is that users can click a button and get a Grok analysis to determine whether a post on X is legitimate or not. As of right now, X is still working to ensure Grok doesn't hallucinate and can provide factual information. Factors like language use and sarcasm have made it difficult for the AI to provide accurate reports.
TikTok tests 60-min videos
At a glance: TikTok has increased the maximum video length from 15 seconds to 60 seconds to 10 minutes – and now the platform is testing 60-minute TikToks .
As a platform that prioritizes short-form video content, this update may receive mixed reviews. But TikTok is continuing to create new opportunities for its creators to engage their audiences, and these videos will be useful for the storytelling and vlogging aspects of the platform. Currently, when a creator wants to create a video longer than 10 minutes, they'll post a series of videos, and users have to navigate to the creator's profile to find the rest of the videos. 10-minute videos could streamline the process for both the user and the creator.
60-minute videos lean into the idea of social media as a source of entertainment. YouTube has prioritized short-form video to compete with Reels and TikTok, and now TikTok is playing an Uno reverse card by encouraging long-form content.
Threads user interface update
At a glance: Meta is releasing a new Tweetdeck-style interface for Threads that will be available on desktop.
Users will be able to organize their feeds by topics they're interested in and follow along as the feeds are updated. By pinning columns by searches, tags, accounts, saved posts, and notifications, users can create a very Twitter-like experience that resembles TweetDeck, which is now called X Pro and is only available to paying X subscribers.
Respond to individual DMs using Instagram's new mobile long-press feature
At a glance: LinkedIn is enabling users to long-press individual DMs to respond to specific messages.
This update reflects other popular direct messaging platforms and makes it easier to reply to specific messages, follow up about topics, and clarify messages.
LinkedIn adds labels to AI-generated content
At a glance: LinkedIn joins other social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok in adding labels to AI-generated content on the app to help distinguish content created by humans from content created by AI tools.
LinkedIn is partnering with the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity, which uses data tagging to identify and automatically tag AI-generated images, to provide this update. With the spread of misinformation and fake content on the rise, updates like this are important. But as AI gets smarter, it's important for users to fact-check and think critically when consuming content online.
Twitter moves its domain to X.com
At a glance: X fully moved over to the domain X.com , leaving the Twitter platform behind for good.
While no other major changes took place with the domain change, it marks a final step in transitioning from Twitter to X, fulfilling part of Elon Musk's project that's been in the works for 25 years.
Instagram "recent stories" profile feature
At a glance: Instagram is continuing to experiment with features that increase engagement on the platform and is now testing a recent activity feature called "lately" .
Lately captures recent Stories that a user has posted so followers can get caught up with content they might've missed in the 24-hour Story window. As users increasingly post Stories and send DMs rather than sharing content directly to their feeds, it's an important update that could create more engagement opportunities while increasing the lifespan of stories.
Perrill perspective:
As a user, I like this. As a social media marketer, I think it poses a question to businesses using Instagram. With the emphasis on ephemeral content, brands should reassess their social media strategies. Are you posting on your Instagram grid out of habit, or because it aligns with your audience's current preferences? As users increasingly curate their feeds, the risk of becoming background noise or even being unfollowed grows. Now more than ever, ensuring that the social platforms you invest in are the right fit for your target audience is vital. Adaptability and understanding user behavior are key to maintaining meaningful engagement. - Bailey Mutschler , Copywriter and Social Media Specialist
Instagram early access
At a glance: Instagram is releasing an early access option that would allow users who opt-in to experiment with new features before they're released on a wider scale.
The option to sign up for beta tests will likely be part of a Meta Verified subscription rather than being available to all users. There is minimal information about this right now, but for creators and brands that rely heavily on Instagram, this could be an important update to keep an eye on.
Google Analytics adds a Sheets export option
At a glance: In a highly-anticipated update, Google Analytics 4 now allows users to export data from analytics reports directly into Google Sheets .
This integration was previously available in Universal Analytics and is a feature that Analytics users have been missing from GA4. Now, users can export data quickly and easily into their Google Sheets account, making data sharing and collaboration seamless.
GA4 now has real-time data in the last 5 minutes
At a glance: GA4 now shows real-time users in the last 5 minutes . Previously, real-time data was limited to the last 30 minutes.
By getting more granular with this metric, GA4 users can get a better idea of who is viewing their site content. This is another feature that was available in UA and is now being brought to GA4.
Upcoming Universal Analytics data deletion
At a glance: On July 1st, Universal Analytics account owners will lose access to their accounts and all data will get deleted as part of the final phase in the transition from UA to GA4.
This will have no impact on your Google Analytics 4 data, and since UA accounts haven't processed data since last July, all data in your UA account is at least 11 months old at this point. But for businesses that like to compare year-over-year data, it might make sense to store that data for future use. If you're interested in preserving your historical data, make sure you have a data backup plan in place prior to July 1st. And if you could use assistance with backing up your UA data, feel free to reach out . We are performing UA data backups but have limited spaces available.
Thank you for tuning in to this week's newsletter! We hope you learned something new. Before you go, make sure to save your spot at our panel event next week. We'd love to see you there!