Search Engine Roundtable https://www.seroundtable.com en-us Barry Schwartz Fri, 19 Jun 2026 10:00:00 -0400 Daily Search Forum Recap: June 19, 2026 https://www.seroundtable.com/recap-06-19-2026-41534.html Barry Schwartz Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web.

Google spoke on stage about chunking, AI content, quality content, subscriptions, paywalls, site wide signals, and AI clicks. Google will be turning on conversion-based customer lists for Google Ads advertiser accounts beginning on Jun 17, 2026. Bing is testing a new design for its news box in search. Bing is testing color selectors for its product carousel in search. Google Maps shows time alerts in hot pink. And I posted the weekly SEO Video recap.

Search Engine Roundtable Stories:

  • Google Speaks On Chunking, Site Signals, Content, Paywalls & AI Clicks
    Google held a Search Central Live event in Milan this week and spoke about several topics including chunking, site-wide signals, AI settings in Search Console, commondity versus non-commodity content, paywalled content, subscriptions for news sites, what clicks look like from AI Overviews and much more.
  • Google Ads Turning On Conversion-Based Customer Lists For Advertisers
    Google will be turning on conversion-based customer lists for Google Ads advertiser accounts beginning on Jun 17, 2026, with data processing to begin on August 18, 2026. This will happen to all advertisers who have already adopted both Enhanced Conversions and Customer Match but haven't yet enabled the conversion-based customer lists functionality, Google said.
  • Search News Buzz Video Recap: Google Volatility, Bing AI Reporting Updates, UK Orders Google To Hand Over Its Search Ranking Algorithm & More
    This week, we covered the typical and ongoing Google Search ranking volatility. UK’s CMA ordered Google to share its search ranking algorithm and enable data portability to some third-parties. Google Search rolled out its information...
  • Bing Tests Updated News Design In Search
    Microsoft Bing is testing a new updated design for the news section within Bing Search. The updated news box, honestly, is easier to understand and makes it clearer that these are news sources - so I kind of like it.
  • Bing Tests Color Options In Product Results
    Microsoft Bing is testing a color selector / viewer in the shopping and product results within Bing Search. This will show you what colors the product is available in, without having to click over to the website to see it.
  • Google Maps: Hot Pink Live Time Alerts
    Google is testing using a hot pink font for the live time for when a place is busy or not. This is part of the old popular times feature, but Google is testing or launching a hot pink font to make it really noticeable.
  • Google Elevator Going Up
    Here is a video of the Google elevator going up at the Google London office. But as you all know, what goes up, must go down. Was that a cheesy SEO joke?

Other Great Search Threads:

Search Engine Land Stories:

Other Great Search Stories:

AI & LLMs

Analytics

Industry & Business

Links & Content Marketing

Local & Maps

Other Search

PPC

Search Features

SEO

Feedback:

Have feedback on this daily recap; let me know on Twitter @rustybrick or @seroundtable, on Threads, Mastodon and Bluesky and you can follow us on Facebook and on Google News, add as a preferred source on Google and make sure to subscribe to the YouTube channel, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or just contact us the old fashion way.

]]> Search Forum Recap Barry Schwartz Fri, 19 Jun 2026 10:00:00 -0400 Search News Buzz Video Recap: Google Volatility, Bing AI Reporting Updates, UK Orders Google To Hand Over Its Search Ranking Algorithm & More https://www.seroundtable.com/video-06-19-2026-41532.html Barry Schwartz For the original iTunes version, click here.

This week, we covered the typical and ongoing Google Search ranking volatility. UK's CMA ordered Google to share its search ranking algorithm and enable data portability to some third-parties. Google Search rolled out its information agents in AI Mode to subscribers. Bing Webmaster Tools released updates to its AI performance reports including intents, topics, citation share and a compare feature. Bing Webmaster Tools will also release updates to its country filters in those performance reports. Google Search Console's link report was finally updated. Google updated its documentation around site moves and listing domain variants in the change of address tool. Google said LLMS.txt files won't help or hurt you in Google Search. Google said HTML is the standard for SEO, not markdown files. Google said there is no practical difference with using subfolders structures for US sites. Google Search Central Live took place in Milan this week and they covered tons of important SEO topics. Google is testing 3D model attribution in the product results. Google Image Search does mix ads within organic, and finally some are noticing. Bing is testing a new updated news box design in search. Google Ads changed its bidding target optimization, rolled out promotion mode beta and expanded smart bidding exploration. Google Ads will also limit ad impressions from unqualified advertisers. Google Ads is turning on conversion-based customer lists. And Microsoft Advertising has a new product explorer feature. That was the search news this week at the Search Engine Roundtable.

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]]> Search Video Recaps Barry Schwartz Fri, 19 Jun 2026 08:01:00 -0400 Bing Tests Updated News Design In Search https://www.seroundtable.com/bing-updated-news-section-41531.html Barry Schwartz Blue News

Microsoft Bing is testing a new updated design for the news section within Bing Search. The updated news box, honestly, is easier to understand and makes it clearer that these are news sources - so I kind of like it.

This was spotted by Sachin Patel and posted on X but I can replicate it.

Here is the new look:

Bing Search News Section Newish

Sachin's screenshot:

Here is the current look:

Bing Search News Section Current

Like I said above, I do like the newer version.

Forum discussion at X.

]]> Bing Search Barry Schwartz Fri, 19 Jun 2026 07:51:00 -0400 Google Speaks On Chunking, Site Signals, Content, Paywalls & AI Clicks https://www.seroundtable.com/google-search-central-live-milan-41533.html Barry Schwartz Google Search Central Live Milan

Google held a Search Central Live event in Milan this week and spoke about several topics including chunking, site-wide signals, AI settings in Search Console, commondity versus non-commodity content, paywalled content, subscriptions for news sites, branded vs. non-branded filter in Search Console, what clicks look like from AI Overviews and much more.

It is great to see Google cover so many of these important topics at the Search Central Live events around the world.

I almost always get into trouble quoting presentations from tweets from events I did not attend, so I won't be adding my own commentary but rather share other commentary. So here we go mostly with Stefano's tweets but also commentary and more on those tweets from others:

Forum discussion at posts above...

]]> Google Search Engine Optimization Barry Schwartz Fri, 19 Jun 2026 07:41:00 -0400 Bing Tests Color Options In Product Results https://www.seroundtable.com/bing-colors-product-results-41438.html Barry Schwartz Bing Robot Clothing Store

Microsoft Bing is testing a color selector / viewer in the shopping and product results within Bing Search. This will show you what colors the product is available in, without having to click over to the website to see it.

I believe this is a test because when I tried it for numerous queries, I was seeing products but not the color options.

This was spotted by Sachin Patel who posted a screenshot on X:

Bing Product Results Color Options

I do think this is useful for searchers to see in the product search results.

Forum discussion at X.

]]> Bing Search Barry Schwartz Fri, 19 Jun 2026 07:31:00 -0400 Google Ads Turning On Conversion-Based Customer Lists For Advertisers https://www.seroundtable.com/google-ads-conversion-based-customer-lists-41529.html Barry Schwartz Google Ads Lists Hero

Google will be turning on conversion-based customer lists for Google Ads advertiser accounts beginning on Jun 17, 2026, with data processing to begin on August 18, 2026. This will happen to all advertisers who have already adopted both Enhanced Conversions and Customer Match but haven't yet enabled the conversion-based customer lists functionality, Google said.

You can turn off conversion-based customer lists within the account settings before Aug 18, 2026 if you do not want this.

You should have received an email from Google if you were affected, but just in case you missed the email, here is what it says:

To help you maximize the value and performance of your first-party data, Google is turning on the conversion-based customer lists feature for your accounts) beginning on Jun 17, 2026, and data will begin to be processed on Aug 18, 2026.

This update applies to all customers who already have adopted both Enhanced Conversions and Customer Match, but haven't yet turned on the conversion-based customer lists functionality.

No action is required to turn on this feature. Beginning Aug 18, 2026, the conversion-based customer lists will be available in your account. To optimize your campaigns further, you can choose to attach these lists to your campaigns; Learn more about how to Add audience targeting to an ad group or campaign

If you wish to opt out of this update, simply turn off the conversion-based customer lists within the account settings before Aug 18, 2026.

Here is a copy of the email:

Google Ads Conversion Based Customer Lists Email

I spotted this via Menachem Ani on X and Arpan Banerjee on LinkedIn.

]]> Google Ads Barry Schwartz Fri, 19 Jun 2026 07:21:00 -0400 Google Maps: Hot Pink Live Time Alerts https://www.seroundtable.com/google-maps-hot-pink-live-time-alerts-41377.html Barry Schwartz Google Maps Hot Pink

Google is testing using a hot pink font for the live time for when a place is busy or not. This is part of the old popular times feature, but Google is testing or launching a hot pink font to make it really noticeable.

This change was spotted by Claudia Tomina who posted about this on LinkedIn - she said, "Hot Pink "Live" Alerts: Busier than usual is designed to immediately catch your eye with the new hot pink color."

Here are those screenshots side-by-side:

Google Maps Hot Pink Live Time

Do you like it?

Forum discussion at LinkedIn.

]]> Google Maps Barry Schwartz Fri, 19 Jun 2026 07:11:00 -0400 Daily Search Forum Recap: June 18, 2026 https://www.seroundtable.com/recap-06-18-2026-41528.html Barry Schwartz Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web.

Google says to add all domain variations to the Change of Address tool when doing a site migration. Bing Webmaster Tools plans to add more country level reporting to the search performance report. Google added an Activites button to the Google Business Profiles dashboard. Google is testing new attribution for 3d images in product results. Google Discover seems to be showing more News Showcase sites.

Search Engine Roundtable Stories:

  • Bing Webmaster Tools May Support More Country Reporting
    Bing may soon support more countries for the countries filter within Bing Webmaster Tools. Fabrice Canel from Microsoft wrote on X, "Well, we are now actively considering expanding this to show more individual countries."
  • Google Business Profiles Dashboard Activities Button
    Google can show an "Activities" button in the Google Business Profiles dashboard within Google Search. I assume this button is reserved for venues that let you book activities including booking tickets or other activities.
  • Google Tests 3D Model From Attribution In Product Results
    Google is testing attributing where the 3D models are from that Google shows within the product detail screen in Google Search. I can't replicate this but the test shows "3D mode from [retailer name]."
  • Google Discover Feed With More Google News Showcase Results
    Google seems to be showing content from publishers in the Google News Showcase more within the Google Discover feed. I don't have direct data to prove this but two people who follow Google Discover closely said this is to be true.
  • Google: For Site Moves, Add All Domain Variants To Change Of Address Tool
    Google has updated its site move and domain migrations help document to note that for domain migrations, you should make sure to submit Change of Address requests for all domain variations. Google said the "domain migrations work best when all variants of a site are migrated properly."
  • Google NYC Intern Swag
    Here is an updated look at the Google swag given to interns. This was posted by an intern working at the Google New York City office. We've seen Google intern caps before, also during COVID, which was interesting.

Other Great Search Threads:

Search Engine Land Stories:

Other Great Search Stories:

AI & LLMs

Industry & Business

Links & Content Marketing

Local & Maps

Other Search

PPC

SEO

Feedback:

Have feedback on this daily recap; let me know on Twitter @rustybrick or @seroundtable, on Threads, Mastodon and Bluesky and you can follow us on Facebook and on Google News, add as a preferred source on Google and make sure to subscribe to the YouTube channel, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or just contact us the old fashion way.

]]> Search Forum Recap Barry Schwartz Thu, 18 Jun 2026 10:00:00 -0400 Bing Webmaster Tools May Support More Country Reporting https://www.seroundtable.com/bing-webmaster-tools-country-reporting-41526.html Barry Schwartz Bing Countries

Bing may soon support more countries for the countries filter within Bing Webmaster Tools. Fabrice Canel from Microsoft wrote on X, "Well, we are now actively considering expanding this to show more individual countries."

If you login to your Bing Webmaster Tools account, go to the Search performance report and list by "country," you will see that Bing only lists up to 11 countries.

Samet Ã-zsüleyman noticed this and posted about it and said, "after checking 50+ accounts, the Country report only shows 11 countries, with data for countries like Türkiye grouped under "Rest of World." Does Bing really report on just 11 countries in the country breakdown of Webmaster Tools?"

He shared this screenshot - and yes, I checked my accounts, I see the same thing - only 11 countries:

Bing Webmaster Tools Country Reporting

So I guess we will soon get more countries in this list by feature?

I asked Fabrice this and he said, "We support all countries and regions worldwide." But he said, "This specific Bing Webmaster report will be extended soon to reflect that."

Forum discussion at X.

]]> Bing SEO Barry Schwartz Thu, 18 Jun 2026 07:51:00 -0400 Google Business Profiles Dashboard Activities Button https://www.seroundtable.com/google-business-profiles-activities-tab-41521.html Barry Schwartz Google Activities Hero

Google can show an "Activities" button in the Google Business Profiles dashboard within Google Search. I assume this button is reserved for venues that let you book activities including booking tickets or other activities.

Vinay Toshniwal spotted this and posted some screenshots of this on X - I am not sure if this is new but here is his screenshot:

Google Business Profiles Activities Dash Button

Then when you click on Activities, you can add information such as activity name, description, price, booking URL and more:

Google Business Profiles Activities Edit

Here is the help document associated with managing activities and tickets on Google Business Profiles.

Forum discussion at X.

Update: This is not new, covered a few years ago over here by the Bright Local folks.

]]> Google Maps Barry Schwartz Thu, 18 Jun 2026 07:41:00 -0400 Google Tests 3D Model From Attribution In Product Results https://www.seroundtable.com/google-3d-model-from-41515.html Barry Schwartz Google 3d Glasses

Google is testing attributing where the 3D models are from that Google shows within the product detail screen in Google Search. I can't replicate this but the test shows "3D mode from [retailer name]."

This was spotted by Khushal Bherwani who posted the following two screenshots on X:

Google Product Detail 3d Model From Attribute

Again, I cannot replicate this but I do like how it shows the attribution with the link to the retailer. The other method does not do this at all, and you really can't tell who the 3D or 360 image is from.

For more on 3D/AR images, see the archives.

Forum discussion at X.

]]> Google Barry Schwartz Thu, 18 Jun 2026 07:31:00 -0400 Google Discover Feed With More Google News Showcase Results https://www.seroundtable.com/google-discover-feed-google-news-showcase-41439.html Barry Schwartz Google Robot Astronaut Newspaper

Google seems to be showing content from publishers in the Google News Showcase more within the Google Discover feed. I don't have direct data to prove this but two people who follow Google Discover closely said this is to be true.

Radu Oncescu said on X, "Google is widely rolling out a new 'Google News Showcase' badge in the Google Discover feed." Damien said he thinks this is rolling out to more people because "I'm seeing it everywhere now, not just on certain accounts, but on all of them," he said on X.

I was able to trigger it, which is rare for me, because I am in the US:

click for full size

The last I know about the Google News Showcase is that it is in 22 countries and most recently, Google added Finland, Bulgaria, and Greece but I have not seen news of its expansion since 2024.

In 2023, Google began showing News Showcase in Discover and last month added new Google Showcase labels in Google Discover.

I am not a big Google Discover user, but are you seeing Google Showcase labels more often in the Discover feed?

Forum discussion at X.

]]> Google Barry Schwartz Thu, 18 Jun 2026 07:21:00 -0400 Google: For Site Moves, Add All Domain Variants To Change Of Address Tool https://www.seroundtable.com/google-domain-variants-site-moves-41527.html Barry Schwartz Google Moving

Google has updated its site move and domain migrations help document to note that for domain migrations, you should make sure to submit Change of Address requests for all domain variations. Google said the "domain migrations work best when all variants of a site are migrated properly."

Google added a new blue box that reads:

For domain migrations: If you're moving your site from one domain to another, make sure to submit Change of Address requests for all subdomains and the www and non-www variants of the old domain name (for example, from en.example.com, www.example.com, and example.com to new-example.net), even if you're not actively using these variants. Ensure that you have all of these variants verified in Search Console.

"The site move guide now includes information on using the Change of Address tool for all subdomain variants (including www and non-www) during domain migrations," Google explained.

I don't think this is something new, technically in how the Change of Address tool works, but rather Google clarified this in the document. But I am not sure.

Here is a screenshot of what was added:

Change Of Address Google Domain Variants

Forum discussion at X.

]]> Google Search Engine Optimization Barry Schwartz Thu, 18 Jun 2026 07:11:00 -0400 Daily Search Forum Recap: June 17, 2026 https://www.seroundtable.com/recap-06-17-2026-41524.html Barry Schwartz Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web.

We are seeing heated Google Search ranking volatility continue into this week, spiking a bit today. Bing Webmaster Tools released new AI reporting features. UK's CMA is requiring Google to share how its search ranking algorithm works and to enable data portability to third-party services. Google Ads updates its campaign status indicators. Google Ads has a new security summary screen to encourage better security.

Search Engine Roundtable Stories:

  • Bing Webmaster Tools AI Reporting Adds Intents, Topics, Citation Share & Compare
    Bing Webmaster Tools is rolling out a preview release of those new AI reporting features demonstrated at SEO Week in late April. These include Intents, Topics, Citation Share, and Compare within the AI reporting section.
  • Google Search Ranking Volatility Continues Into This Week
    I've been watching the chatter in the SEO industry, and honestly, it hasn't calmed down much since my last report for the period of June 8-12. The Google search results seem more heated today, and there appears to be an unconfirmed Google search ranking update underway.
  • CMA: Google Must Share How Search Results Are Ranked & Data Portability
    The Competition and Markets Authority in the UK has told Google it must be transparent on how it ranks search results in Google and it must enable users to port its data to other third-party search services. I can't imagine Google will ever share its full secret sauce on how it ranks its search results, and it is not the first time some political body has asked Google to do so, and it won't be the last.
  • Google Ads Updates Its Campaign Status Interface
    Google is rolling out a new look and feel for the Google Ads campaign status notifications and icons. The new statuses are no longer highlighted fully, instead they are just outlined in various colors. It makes it a bit less extreme to look at, and I am not sure if that is a good or bad change.
  • Google Ads New Security Tasks Summary Tab
    Google added a new summary tab to the access and security section that shows the security tasks you completed and what tasks you have not completed. Google continues to add more and more security features to the Google Ads advertiser platform in the wake of more and more security threats, including hijacking Google Ads accounts.
  • Google NYC Rooftop Knicks & Spurs Watch Party
    The other night, Googlers and friends, went up to the rooftop of the Google Pier 57 building to have a watch party of the Knicks vs Spurs finals game.

Other Great Search Threads:

Search Engine Land Stories:

Other Great Search Stories:

AI & LLMs

Analytics

Industry & Business

Links & Content Marketing

Local & Maps

Other Search

PPC

Search Features

SEO

Feedback:

Have feedback on this daily recap; let me know on Twitter @rustybrick or @seroundtable, on Threads, Mastodon and Bluesky and you can follow us on Facebook and on Google News, add as a preferred source on Google and make sure to subscribe to the YouTube channel, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or just contact us the old fashion way.

]]> Search Forum Recap Barry Schwartz Wed, 17 Jun 2026 10:00:00 -0400 Bing Webmaster Tools AI Reporting Adds Intents, Topics, Citation Share & Compare https://www.seroundtable.com/bing-intents-topics-citation-share-compare-ai-reporting-41513.html Barry Schwartz Bing Ai Reporting Hero

Bing Webmaster Tools is rolling out a preview release of those new AI reporting features demonstrated at SEO Week in late April. These include Intents, Topics, Citation Share, and Compare within the AI reporting section.

The new features and reporting are beginning to roll out in preview within Bing Webmaster Tools globally as of yesterday, Krishna Madhavan of Microsoft announced. Fabrice Canel from Microsoft said it was coming soon and it sure was...

  • Intent: The intent feature will group grounding queries into buckets such as Informational, Commercial, Navigational, Learn and Solve, Research, Creation, Local, and more
  • Topics: The topics feature will group related grounding queries into broader thematic clusters. This should help you "understand visibility in the same thematic structure that modern AI systems use to organize information," Microsoft said.
  • Citation Share: Citation Share shows how much of the citation space your site receives for a specific grounding query. It is calculated as the percentage of citations attributed to your site out of all citations shown across all sites for that same grounding query.
  • Compare: You can compare different time periods to each other. "This makes it easier to visually understand how citation activity is changing over time and observe shifts that may correlate with content updates, seasonality, changing demand, or broader ecosystem changes," Microsoft said.

Here is a screenshot of the intents, topics and citation share:

Bing Ai Reporting Intent Topic Citations

Here is the compare feature:

Bing Ai Reporting Compare

And here is the report for this site:

Bwt Ai Performance Report New

Krishna Madhavan from Microsoft wrote on LinkedIn:

These features are designed to help the community gain a deeper understanding of where their content is cited in AI-generated answers, along with the context behind those citations. Users will be able to explore:
- The intent behind citations
- The topics associated with their content
- The relative citation presence
- How visibility changes over time

This represents another significant step towards providing the community with greater transparency regarding how their content is represented across the AI web.

Bing also vastly updated its help document on this report to reflect these new features.

Google - your turn.

Forum discussion at LinkedIn.

]]> Bing SEO Barry Schwartz Wed, 17 Jun 2026 07:51:00 -0400