Artificial intelligence is transforming how people search, discover, and act on information. For chief marketing officers and senior leaders, this is not a question of whether SEO is “dead” but of how to adapt to a new era where visibility spans AI-driven assistants, multimodal tools, and fragmented user journeys. Two forces drive this disruption: rapid …
If you’ve never used Perplexity, the first time you run a query, it’ll feel like a more polished version of Google Search. That’s one of the reasons why people end up using Perplexity like Google. In reality, Perplexity is nothing like Google. It has features that let you do a lot more than basic research. …
Branded web mentions had the strongest correlation with AI overview visibility, surpassing links and domain rating (DR). AI overviews favor language-based signals (mentions, branded anchors) over traditional link-based SEO factors. Even small brands saw visibility gains from minimal mentions, suggesting compounding value at early stages. Mentions are an output of brand-building but not the goal; …
Before we jump in: I hate to brag, but I will say I’m extremely proud to have placed 4th in the G50 SEO World Championships this past week. I’m speaking at NESS, the global News & Editorial SEO Summit, on October 22. Growth Memo readers get 20% off when code “kevin2025” Boost your skills with Growth …
A low phone battery always seems to be a problem, whether your phone is a couple of years old or brand new. That’s because, more often than not, the secret battery killers are all the apps running in the background of your phone. But you don’t have to keep struggling with a drained phone battery. …
Google announced that AI Mode now supports visual search, letting you use images and natural language together in the same conversation. The update is rolling out this week in English in the U.S. What’s New Visual Search Gets Conversational Google’s update to AI Mode aims to address the challenge of searching for something that’s hard …
If you’ve ever worked inside an Excel workbook with dozens of tabs and thousands of rows, you know how easy it is to lose your bearings. One minute you’re checking a formula in column AR, and the next you are three sheets over, trying to remember what you were supposed to confirm. For years, I …
Google rolled out AI Overviews to all U.S. users in May 2024. Since then, publishers have reported significant traffic losses, with some seeing click-through rates drop by as much as 89%. The question isn’t whether AI Overviews impact traffic, but how much damage they’re doing to specific content types. Search (including Google Discover and traditional …
Perplexity’s Comet browser can do what other AI tools can’t. It can browse the web like we do. While ChatGPT, Claude, and even Perplexity’s answer engine are stuck with pre-trained data and get blocked by websites, Comet navigates the internet like a real browser. I’ve been using Comet since its launch and quickly made it …
Pinterest has introduced new ad products focused on visual search, highlighted by ‘Top of Search’ ads. Currently in beta across all monetized markets, these ads can appear within the first ten search results and in Related Pins, targeting users as they begin discovering products. Why This Matters For Search Marketers Pinterest is a search platform …
Google Keep has been my go-to to-do app for almost a decade now. However, among the many excellent Google Keep features, I’ve relied on location-based reminders the most. Google has decided to kill this feature in favor of moving reminders from Keep to Google Tasks. Instead of juggling two apps (Keep and Google Tasks), I …
YouTube released a video to clarify how its recent update to advertiser-friendly guidelines affects creators. The company acknowledged communication gaps and outlined what it has already done for previously affected uploads. What Changed? YouTube relaxed its rules about strong language at the beginning of videos, making it easier for creators to monetize their content. The …
I’m not sure what “knowledge worker” really means, but if the job description is cramming new information into your brain and hoping it sticks, then I qualify. ChatGPT has become my right-hand tool for this: quizzes, cloze tests, and flashcards are my bread and butter. They help me remember not just university coursework but anything …
Mike King is the founder of the SEO agency iPullRank and one of the sharpest minds in the SEO world. He has been at the forefront of breaking SEO news, such as the Google leak, and is leading the charge on how SEOs need to adapt their strategies to succeed in the AI era. As such, he’s a busy …
The How AI Search Can Drive Sales & Boost Conversions webinar, presented recently by Bartosz Góralewicz, touched on something that I think every marketer needs to understand about how people actually make decisions today. This isn’t just about Reddit anymore; we’re talking about the future of how brands actually connect with customers when they’re making …
I’ve always known I learn best when I can see information, not just read it. Charts, diagrams, doodles, and even social memes stick in my memory far longer than plain text. But when I tried traditional flashcard apps like Anki or Quizlet, they either came with a steep learning curve, didn’t have free options, or …
Why Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) Matters Now Search is becoming chaotic and untrackable through traditional SEO “800 million people right now actively use ChatGPT every week. It’s massive. And your customers are probably asking AI for recommendations right now. So if you’re not showing up there, your competitors are and you’re probably missing out on …
As much as I’m a morning person, waking up isn’t always easy. Yes, it’s easier most days, especially at the beginning of the week, but some days it’s hard to wake up on time, no matter how many alarms I set. I’d hit snooze half-asleep, swiped away notifications, and promised myself “five more minutes”, only …
Despite years of digital transformation talk, too many CEOs and CFOs still treat the corporate website as a necessary marketing expense, a sunk cost with limited upside. I have far too many CEO’s of billion-dollar companies who view it simply as an expensive interactive brochure, setting the tone for the company and dooming the web …
Three years ago, I downloaded Obsidian, thinking I’d finally found the perfect tool for organizing my thoughts and building a digital brain. What started as excitement quickly turned into frustration as I made one wrong move after another. My approach was all wrong from the beginning, and I wasted months reorganizing and restarting from scratch. …
Here’s what I’m covering this week: How to get the most out of personas in your day-to-day work across SEO, content, and the broader org. Because in the AI-search era, personas built from organic queries and prompts have value for every touchpoint: ad copy, sales scripts, support docs, product messaging. They carry the unfiltered language of …
I won’t say that the easiest way to determine if a photo is a fake is by using our eyes. Deepfakes are inching closer to “reality,” so we have to fall back on AI image detectors. These tools are trained on millions of images, both real and AI-generated, which allows them to recognize the subtle …
For years, the SEO equation appeared to be a fixed and unchanging landscape: optimizing for Googlebot on one side, and creating content for human users on the other. This outdated binary vision is now a thing of the past. In the current business environment, a new generation of actors is causing significant changes to the …
Note-taking apps are everywhere, but many of the most popular ones—like Evernote or Notion—are closed-source. Some of the key benefits of using open-source software are transparency, flexibility, and true ownership of your notes. Additionally, these apps are often free, highly customizable, and backed by passionate communities that continually refine and improve them. They also give …
Google returns to court on Monday for the remedies phase of the Department of Justice’s ad-tech antitrust case, where the government is asking the judge to order a divestiture of Google Ad Manager. The remedies trial follows a ruling that found Google illegally monopolized the publisher ad server and ad exchange markets, while rejecting claims …
When was the last time you actually used your browser bookmarks? If you’re like me, the answer is “not recently.” It’s not because we don’t want to save useful pages—it’s because bookmark systems are clunky, hard to search through, and suffer from usability problems that most people either ignore or work around with various hacks. …
An internal dispute within the WordPress core contributor team spilled into the open, causing major confusion among people outside the organization. The friction began with a post from more than a week ago and culminated in a remarkable outburst, exposing latent tensions within the core contributor community. Mary Hubbard Announcement Triggers Conflict The incident seemingly …
I gave up on carrying bulky textbooks, binders, and an endless supply of pens and pencils almost two years ago. Like many of my friends and countless people online, I made the switch to digital note-taking. I started out typing everything in Apple Notes, but it didn’t take long to realize typed notes just don’t …
The next SEO For Paws will be held on Sept. 25, 2025. The live stream features a stellar speaker list that includes some of the industry’s best SEO professionals and personalities, including Andrey Lipattsev, David Carrasco, Judith Lewis, and Jamie Indigo. SEO for Paws, is a live-streamed fundraiser founded by Anton Shulke, an expert at …
I never thought of my phone as a place to write. It was mostly for quick tasks and looking things up on the go, not for sitting down to write. But that changed when I started using PenCake. The app is simple and free of clutter. It opens to a clean page and keeps other …
Newsjacking has two paths: planned reactive (e.g. budget announcements) and breaking reactive (e.g. heatwaves, celebrity feuds). Think like a journalist: anticipate story evolutions, focus on audience interest, and aim to move the narrative forward. Build case study content: use brand spokespeople or real customers to add credibility and increase media pickup. Evolve with media consumption: …
Before we dig in, some context. What follows is hypothetical. I don’t engage in black-hat tactics, I’m not a hacker, and this isn’t a guide for anyone to try. I’ve spent enough time with search, domain, and legal teams at Microsoft to know bad actors exist and to see how they operate. My goal here isn’t …
Staring at endless text-based lists and bullet points was killing my motivation to track anything consistently in Obsidian. My habit logs looked like boring spreadsheets, my project updates felt like homework, and my personal goals disappeared into walls of text. Then, I discovered how to transform my Obsidian notes into visual progress charts, and everything …
Reddit and Wikipedia dominate ChatGPT visibility across nearly all major datasets analyzed. Forbes, TechRadar, and Business Insider consistently appear, suggesting strong domain authority and topical relevance. OpenAI data partnerships don’t guarantee increased visibility in ChatGPT outputs. Query type and dataset design dramatically influence which sites are surfaced by AI. Sites with a strong presence on …
Brand marketing is often the silent driver behind successful digital campaigns. People are far more likely to read, watch, click, and ultimately buy from a brand they already know and trust. That’s why doing the harder, slower work of building a strong brand pays dividends when it comes to performance marketing efforts like SEO and …
When Google finally rolled out tables in Sheets back in mid-2024, there wasn’t so much buzz. Maybe it was because the feature felt long overdue, or because Excel has long dominated the conversation around serious data handling. Either way, the update slipped largely under the radar, leaving many people convinced that Sheets still can’t hold …
Prioritize topical authority: deep, complete content clusters outperform scattershot posts in AI search and SGE results. Reinforce clusters with intelligent internal linking; anchor text and contextual passages strengthen entity signals that Google’s embedding models trust. Earn authoritative backlinks and brand mentions—traffic-driving links remain a top ranking multiplier despite algorithm turbulence. Prune low-value or off-topic pages; …
Boost your skills with Growth Memo’s weekly expert insights. Subscribe for free! Here’s what I’m covering this week: How to build user personas for SEO from data you already have on hand. You can’t treat personas as a “brand exercise” anymore. In the AI-search era, prompts don’t just tell you what users want; they reveal …
An iPad is a handy tool to have around, but it always played second fiddle to my MacBook Pro for work and creative purposes. Don’t get me wrong; it makes for a useful backup laptop, it’s perfect for travel entertainment, and I love using it with the Apple Pencil for its sheer versatility. However, it …
Over 85% of guest post sites are low-quality, with poor traffic and DR, yet still command premium prices. High-quality guest posts (DR 71+ & 50K+ traffic) make up just 4.6% of the marketplace. Average guest post costs $365—but quality posts range $692–$957 before vendor markup. The average cost of a guest post through a vendor …
Google appears to have disabled or is testing the removal of the &num=100 URL parameter that shows 100 results per page. Reports of the change began around September 10, and quickly spread through the SEO community as rank-tracking tools showed disruptions. Google hasn’t yet issued a public statement. What’s Happening The &num=100 parameter has long …
When you’re working with data in Excel, certain tasks can feel unnecessarily tedious. Maybe you need to split a column of full names into separate first and last name columns, or combine text from multiple cells with specific separators. These aren’t complex analytical challenges—they’re basic data manipulation tasks that come up regularly. The good news …
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is emerging as the key framework for increasing brand visibility in AI-generated search results. Brand mentions without links are critical for GEO—AI models weigh context-rich mentions in training data, not just backlinks. Context wrapping (ensuring surrounding text reinforces brand expertise) boosts chances of being cited by AI models. AI visibility is …
The Core Web Vitals Technology Report by the open source HTTPArchive community ranks content management systems by how well they perform on Google’s Core Web Vitals (CWV). The July update shows that every major platform has improved since June, but not all gains were equal. Joomla posted the largest month-over-month increase, while Duda ranked first …
When I first unboxed my gaming mouse, I was thinking about headshots, not spreadsheets. The high-precision sensor, programmable buttons, and RGB lighting—it all screams gaming. This is not a mouse you’ll often find at an office desk. But after years of using various gaming mice daily, I’ve discovered something unexpected. I mapped shortcuts to mouse …
I reached out to Shane Dutka of SiteCurve after I realized that both he and I share a passion for deriving strategic insights from competitors. It’s an undervalued skill in the industry, but a glance at Shane’s content reveals that he’s a pro, which is why he built SiteCurve. So, given there was so much …
Google published a new edition of its Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines. The update clarifies that the Your Money Your Life (YMYL) category now covers election and voting information, along with other government and civics topics that affect people’s lives. What’s New The YMYL framework now uses the label “YMYL Government, Civics & Society,” with the …
On my iPhone, I use Apple Mail. On my Nothing Phone, Gmail. On my MacBook, Apple Mail again. They work fine. But most of my emailing happens on my Windows PC—and that’s where I’ve been miserable. I really don’t like Outlook. Windows Mail was okay, but it’s now part of the long list of apps …
You don’t need to post daily — showing up on LinkedIn once a week already makes you more active than 97% of users. Thoughtful engagement is powerful — consistent comments on others’ posts can grow your visibility just as much (if not more) than creating new content. Your personal brand helps your company too — …
One of the strengths of WordPress is its extensibility. You can run everything from e-shops and booking systems to massive WordPress multisites from one instance of WordPress. Another is that it’s a database and robust PHP-based programming language, which means that running a bunch of updates on a site is remarkably straightforward. In this post, …
Creating a work-from-home setup can seem simple at first. All you need is a desk, a couple of monitors, some peripherals, and you’re good to go, right? It gets a bit more complicated than that. There are dozens of options to choose from, and plenty of considerations to make, which can make building your setup …
DR/DA are “vanity metrics” and useful for quick validation, but they can be easily gamed. Spammy link tactics (like DR-boosting and HARO overuse) lead to poor keyword relevance, traffic drops, and risk of manual penalties. Google’s SpamBrain evaluates link context and relevance, not just volume. Engagement-driven links hold more value, especially as AI-powered search increasingly …
Bias in search isn’t always negative. It’s easy to frame it as something sinister, but bias shows up for structural reasons, behavioral reasons, and sometimes as a deliberate choice. The real task for marketers and communicators is recognizing when it’s happening, and what that means for visibility, perception, and control. Two recent pieces got me …
Security is the most crucial aspect of any operating system. It’s the difference between privacy and data breaches. For this reason, many people use antivirus programs or update certain built-in security settings to improve security. However, Windows 11 comes with a set of built-in security features that help ensure your computer is less prone to …
Backlinks and referring domains still strongly correlate with top SERP rankings, per Ahrefs and Backlinko 2025 studies. Digital PR now outperforms traditional link tactics, earning authoritative links and unlinked mentions from trusted publications. Top 10 Google rankings heavily influence AI Overview citations—over 90% include at least one top-ranking page. Unlinked brand mentions outperform backlink quantity …
I’ve been extremely antsy to publish this study. Consider it the AIO Usability study 1.5, with new insights. You also want to stay tuned for our first AI Mode usability study! It’s coming in a few weeks (make sure to subscribe not to miss it). Boost your skills with Growth Memo’s weekly expert insights. Subscribe …
Excel has thousands of functions, but most people stick to the basics, like SUM and AVERAGE. While those work fine for simple tasks, there are three functions that handle more complex scenarios with much less effort. SEQUENCE, LET, and LAMBDA aren’t commonly used, but they solve specific problems that would otherwise require awkward workarounds or …
Figurehead credibility and niche relevance are critical for successful quote placements on HARO-style platforms. Diversify outreach with platforms like Featured, Qwoted, Source of Sources, and direct journalist pitching. Use AI-resistant tactics: human voice, personal anecdotes, and original perspectives to cut through the noise. Aim for broader thought leadership—leverage founder expertise beyond the core business offering. …
The way people find and consume information has shifted. We, as marketers, must think about visibility across AI platforms and Google. The challenge is that we don’t have the same ability to control and measure success as we do with Google and Microsoft, so it feels like we’re flying blind. Earlier this year, Google, Microsoft, …
Walk into almost any café or restaurant, and you’ll immediately see rows of glowing rectangles that all look nearly identical. We spend hundreds, sometimes thousands, on these devices, since cheaper ones can come with some serious privacy risks. Yet, most of us leave them looking exactly the way they did the moment we opened the …
When Judge Amit P. Mehta issued his long-awaited remedies decision in the Google search antitrust case, the industry exhaled a collective sigh of relief. There would be no breakup of Google, no forced divestiture of Chrome or Android, and no user-facing “choice screen” like the one that reshaped Microsoft’s browser market two decades ago. But …
Email stands at the center of my online life and, like most of the world, this has meant Gmail. Of all the options, Gmail is one of the most convenient choices since it integrates with many other services I often use. But since I’ve been seeking ways to de-Google my life, I started searching for …
New research examining 16 million URLs aligns with Google’s predictions that hallucinated links will become an issue across AI platforms. An Ahrefs study shows that AI assistants send users to broken web pages nearly three times more often than Google Search. The data arrives six months after Google’s John Mueller raised awareness about this issue. …
Samsung DeX promises the ability to replace your laptop: plug in a monitor, keyboard, and mouse, and your phone instantly becomes a full desktop computer. On paper, it sounds perfect. Modern smartphones are incredibly powerful, so why shouldn’t they be able to double as laptops? That’s exactly what I was curious about when I switched …
Google’s Search Relations team says generic login pages can confuse indexing and hurt rankings. When many private URLs all show the same bare login form, Google may treat them as duplicates and show the login page in search. In a recent “Search Off the Record” episode, John Mueller and Martin Splitt explained how this happens …
It’s rare that I’m actually blown away by a new laptop, but Acer’s new Swift Air 16 is almost unbelievable. It’s a full-sized 16-inch laptop that somehow weighs less than a 13-inch MacBook Air, and looks absolutely fantastic while doing so. Acer launches a ridiculously lightweight 16-inch laptop Gavin Phillips / MakeUseOf This ultra-lightweight laptop …
There’s a lot that goes into SEO. And, now, more broadly into being found online and online visibility overall, whether we’re talking about an organic result in a search engine, an AI Overview, or through a large language model (LLM). With SEO being a discipline that often takes a long time (compared to ads and …
All of us finish a great book and wish we could ask the author just one question. What did they really mean? How would they apply their advice today? With ChatGPT, I found a way to make that a reality. By uploading a book as a PDF or ePub and setting a few simple prompts, …
Figurehead credibility and niche relevance are critical for successful quote placements on HARO-style platforms. Diversify outreach with platforms like Featured, Qwoted, Source of Sources, and direct journalist pitching. Use AI-resistant tactics: human voice, personal anecdotes, and original perspectives to cut through the noise. Aim for broader thought leadership—leverage founder expertise beyond the core business offering. …
Ask a question in ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, or Copilot, and the answer appears in seconds. It feels effortless. But under the hood, there’s no magic. There’s a fight happening. This is the part of the pipeline where your content is in a knife fight with every other candidate. Every passage in the index wants to …
I love books, but I rarely finish them these days. My attention span is losing out to 300-page nonfiction doorstoppers. So, to keep learning, I snack on book summary apps and websites. They distil the key ideas in minutes. Saikat Basu/MakeUseOf Littler Books is one of the simpler and smaller players. Instead of sprawling libraries, …
Some of the critical questions that are top of mind for both SEOs and CMOs as we head into a multi-search world are: Where is search going to develop? Is ChatGPT a threat or an opportunity? Is optimizing for large language models (LLMs) the same as optimizing for search engines? In this two-part interview series, …
There’s no shortage of third-party apps and tools that can enhance your Windows experience. But among them, a few stand out as absolute essentials for me because they streamline my workflow, save time, and make daily tasks much more efficient. 6 QuickLook One of the first things I install on any PC is QuickLook. If …
Let’s reminisce for a moment. Do you remember how, back in 2020, we all obsessed over “link juice” and PageRank flow as far as internal links are concerned? In 2025, what matters more is how your internal links define the entities and relationships on your site. Internal linking is no longer just about distributing authority. It’s about: …
ChatGPT isn’t perfect, but it has several features that genuinely make it more useful for everyday tasks. Rather than replacing my workflow entirely, these tools complement my existing work process. 4 Study and Learn Makes ChatGPT a friendly tutor I like ChatGPT’s study feature as it doesn’t simply answer but acts more like a tutor. …
“Stop trying to make GEO happen. It’s not going to happen.” With apologies to Gretchen Wieners and the writers of “Mean Girls,” the line feels like the only way to start this conversation about a buzzword making the rounds: GEO (which is now, allegedly, supposed to mean Generative Engine Optimization). This article grew out of …
Deleting images and videos from your overflowing camera roll is never fun. It’s time-consuming and, simply… boring. I used to think that too, until I found a weird app that lets me delete images in Tinder-like fashion. Swipewipe fixes the biggest issue I have with deleting photos I’m the type of person whose camera roll …
A vulnerability in the TablePress WordPress plugin enables attackers to inject malicious scripts that run when someone visits a compromised page. It affects all versions up to and including version 3.2. TablePress WordPress plugin The TablePress plugin is used on more than 700,000 websites. It enables users to create and manage tables with interactive features …
Movie sequels typically have one main goal: to match or surpass the box office performance of the movie that preceded it—and these are the films that did it. 5 Top Gun: Maverick (2022) Stream Top Gun: Maverick on Paramount+ The original Top Gun (1986) was one of the best films of the 1980s, and when …
Google is apparently having trouble identifying paywalled content due to a standard way paywalled content is handled by publishers like news sites. It’s asking that publishers with paywalled content change the way they block content so as to help Google out. Search Related JavaScript Problems Google updated their guidelines with a call for publishers to …
The horror genre tends to get oversaturated due to how cheap movies are to produce and how profitable they are. And a lot of terrifying films fall out of popular conversation quickly, but luckily, streaming services like Netflix are a great place for these films to be rediscovered. Based on Stephen King’s novella of the …
WordPress is still the most popular open-source content management system (CMS) – by far – powering 43.5 % of all websites on the web, and still in my opinion the most adaptable CMS to work with. However, WordPress isn’t just a plug-and-play CMS. If you’re in the marketing team or the CMO, you may find …
I have used too many browsers to count, and among them are several I will never try again. However, there are a few obscure browsers I would not use as a daily driver, but I still keep them handy because I find them interesting and uniquely useful. A browser that doesn’t care about tabs The …
For as long as I’ve been in this industry, there’s been debate about whether SEO is strategic or tactical. Most SEOs would like to believe their work is strategic. Many executives see it as tactical. The truth is somewhere in between, and the arrival of generative AI is forcing a new level of clarity. This …
My Edge browser was a productivity disaster. Twenty tabs, three social media accounts, and endless news feeds all competing for attention. I finally fixed it—and didn’t need a single browser extension to do it. 5 Use a Separate Profile for Work If you’re anything like me, you probably use the same browser profile for everything—work …
Rankings don’t guarantee traffic anymore. Here’s how to optimize for AI visibility and brand mentions in a zero-click world. The post What To Do When the Click Disappears: Surviving SEO In The AI-Driven SERP appeared first on Search Engine Journal. Source link
Many documentaries fail to convey the high-octane drama, tension, and danger involved in motor racing, but some manage to hit the mark perfectly. If you consider yourself to be a true fan of the genre, then the following are essential viewing. 8 TT3D: Closer to the Edge (2011) Watch TT3D: Closer to the Edge on …
Boost your skills with Growth Memo’s weekly expert insights. Subscribe for free! More data shows ChatGPT isn’t taking market share away from Google. Instead, it’s expanding the range of use cases and blurring the line between searching for information and performing tasks. I looked at Similarweb data to understand how this affects four different stages …
Sometimes I just need a free movie to feel alive again, and to cut down on the always-rising cost of streaming services. Luckily for everyone, Tubi actually has a surprising number of quality movies on offer. It may have come out back in 2021, but Godzilla vs. Kong is the kind of big-budget fare that …
Many agencies and marketers believe that success in paid media is primarily down to the quality of your ads or the specificity of your landing pages. While those elements are important, they’re meaningless unless they sit on a foundation of alignment with client needs. The cleanest account structure and flawless creatives may hit every platform …
While browsing my TV’s settings, I realized its microphone was always listening even when I wasn’t talking to it. That didn’t sit right with me, so I switched it off and didn’t look back. Why Smart TVs Have Always-Listening Mics Smart TVs today are built with microphones that are always listening for voice commands. That …
Google just announced a new unifying identity for its Local Services Ads (LSAs) verification badges. Called Google Verified, the badge will replace several different trust signals that advertisers and consumers have been seeing over the years. This includes the Google Guaranteed, Google Screened, License Verified by Google, and the Money Back Guarantee program. Starting in …
Blurry and out-of-focus photos are part and parcel of wildlife photography. Yet the frustration seems the same every time it happens. I enhanced one of my photos with AI and was blown away by the result. The Problem: Soft Focus and Small Resolution Recently, I was on a hike when I stumbled upon a gorgeous …
In a recent episode of Google’s Search Off the Record podcast, Martin Splitt and John Mueller discussed when lazy loading helps and when it can slow pages. Splitt used a real-world example on developers.google.com to illustrate a common pattern: making every image lazy by default can delay Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) if it includes above-the-fold …
If you think of Google Photos as just an app for viewing and backing up media, that’s likely because you haven’t explored all it offers. It’s packed with features that make finding, editing, and sharing your photos and videos more fun. 8 Share Albums in Seconds With a QR Code Creating a shared album in …
Paid search professionals constantly debate the merits of running paid search campaigns bidding on competitor brand names. Questions such as the following may arise: Is bidding on your competitors ethical? Are the high costs-per-click (CPCs) worth spending the budget on? Are you actually reaching people with buying intent? In this article, I’ll talk through answers …
Your wallet doesn’t need to suffer every time you want a good book. I’ve assembled a collection of ten sites that keep my Kindle full without costing me anything. I didn’t even have to dip into piracy or “gray area” sources, as these ten free book sites are perfectly legitimate. Saikat Basu/MakeUseOf Project Gutenberg has …
Backlinks and referring domains still strongly correlate with top SERP rankings, per Ahrefs and Backlinko 2025 studies. Digital PR now outperforms traditional link tactics, earning authoritative links and unlinked mentions from trusted publications. Top 10 Google rankings heavily influence AI Overview citations—over 90% include at least one top-ranking page. Unlinked brand mentions outperform backlink quantity …
Google is adding agentic booking features to AI Mode in Search, beginning with restaurant reservations for U.S. Google AI Ultra subscribers enrolled in Labs. What’s New Booking Reservations AI Mode can interpret a detailed request, check real-time availability across reservation sites, and link you to the booking page to complete the task. For businesses, that …
Spreadsheet data never arrives clean. Between missing values, inconsistent formatting, and merged cells, I used to spend hours wrestling with messy datasets. Then I stumbled into Power Query, and suddenly those boring cleanup tasks felt less like punishment and more like flipping switches. Power Query Makes Data Cleaning Effortless Power Query is Excel’s built-in data …
You don’t need to post daily — showing up on LinkedIn once a week already makes you more active than 97% of users. Thoughtful engagement is powerful — consistent comments on others’ posts can grow your visibility just as much (if not more) than creating new content. Your personal brand helps your company too — …
In B2B SEO, typically, the ultimate goal is to attract high-intent searchers who convert into qualified leads. But, not all high-intent visibility translates to sales-ready traffic, especially in long sales cycles or complex buying journeys. As we get deeper into an era of diminishing importance of keywords that translate directly into attributable clicks, a focus …
I’ve tried more Obsidian themes than I care to count. Every time, I end up switching after a few weeks in search of something better. But this one—this one feels different. I don’t think I’ll be switching away from it. Baseline Is Effortlessly Minimal When I first came across Baseline, its slogan was “effortlessly minimal.” …
Google’s AI-generated results reshape how people search, and Google has said that websites should expect traffic fluctuations and that prior success in organic Search does not guarantee future success in the new ecosystem. This is a big claim, and it’s been debated whether “Hidden Gems” are getting more visibility in modern Search and I’m doing …
With AI-generated and SEO-driven content flooding the internet, people are turning to Reddit to seek authentic, real-world perspectives. Reddit Answers—currently in beta—streamlines this search experience, and in many ways, outdoes Google Search. Finding unfiltered, lived experiences on the internet can be a bit of a hassle. You need to append search operators, such as “reddit” …
If you lead a marketing team, chances are you’ve had this conversation: “How are the campaigns doing?” “Well, our ROAS is 4:1.” The room breathes a collective sigh of relief. The good news: the marketing budget is justified (for the time being). But here’s the problem: that number might not actually tell you anything useful. …
I’ve lost count of the ways my AI chatbot has slipped into my daily life. Some are practical, some are creative, and all of them show just how flexible the technology can be. 6 Brainstorming Partner for Big (and Small) Ideas Sometimes you just need someone to bounce ideas off, but everyone else is busy …
Someone posted details of a novel negative SEO attack that they said appeared to be a Core Web Vitals performance poisoning attack. Google’s John Mueller and Chrome’s Barry Pollard assisted in figuring out what was going on. The person posted on Bluesky, tagging Google’s John Mueller and Rick Viscomi, the latter a DevRel Engineer at …
Your AI is only as good as your prompt. I’ve been using ChatGPT for studying ever since its release, but it wasn’t until I tried this one prompt that it completely changed the way I learn. 1 Give ChatGPT the Right Starting Point I still use NotebookLM, but only for its Audio Overview podcasts and …
A new Yext analysis of 8.7 million Google search results suggests many common local SEO tactics don’t perform the same across industries and regions. The dataset, drawn from the company’s Scout Index, focuses on what correlates with visibility in Google’s Local Pack, not just overall map presence. What Yext Found Review Management Emerges As The …
With AI now, the back-to-school season feels a lot different than it used to, in the best way possible. There are a bunch of free AI tools out there that you should be using for studying smarter, and there’s no better time to start exploring them than right now. 5 NotebookLM My favorite AI tool …
Using outdated and traditional SEO tactics centered around keywords and backlinks is not moving the needle anymore, as Google shifts toward AI-driven answers. Organic clicks are going down as a result of Google AI Overviews and the rise of zero-click searches, where users get answers directly on Google’s search results page without clicking through to …
Staying focused during exam prep felt impossible until I started using these tools. They help me lock in, pace myself, and actually retain what I study without burning out. 5 Notion If you’re a student, I’m pretty sure you already know about Notion. But if you don’t, you’re really missing out. Notion is basically an …
For years, marketers built their strategies around a clear and visible funnel: awareness, consideration, conversion. It worked well in a web where behaviors were traceable, people clicked links, visited pages, signed up, bought a product, or bounced. We were able to track almost all of it, and we had attribution models that helped show return …
Shopping for a laptop for school shouldn’t drain your bank account, but it’s easy to get overwhelmed by flashy specs and sales pitches. Most students don’t need the expensive options—just the right one for their specific needs and budget. 5 Specs That Actually Matter for Students Students buying laptops often focus on the wrong things. …
I reached out to Shane Dutka of SiteCurve after I realized that both he and I share a passion for deriving strategic insights from competitors. It’s an undervalued skill in the industry, but a glance at Shane’s content reveals that he’s a pro, which is why he built SiteCurve. So, given there was so much …
Since the turn of the Millennium, marketers have mastered the science of search engine optimization. We learned the “rules” of ranking, the art of the backlink, and the rhythm of the algorithm. But, the ground has shifted to generative engine optimization (GEO). The era of the 10 blue links is giving way to the age …
Your student laptop should power through packed days, hectic commutes, and those urgent dashes across campus. Forget the marketing hype—choose the laptop specs that let you get things done, hassle-free. 5 Lightweight and Portable A laptop you can actually carry all day makes a big difference. When you add schoolbooks, notepads, water bottles, and chargers, …
This week’s Ask an SEO question comes from Zahara: “What metrics should small businesses actually care about when measuring content strategy success? Everyone talks about different KPIs, but I need to know which ones truly matter for growth.” The metrics to measure for growth with a content strategy change by company and industry, and the …
If you’re a student, you’re sitting on a goldmine of tech discounts since major brands slash prices just for you. Take full advantage while you can, because most of these perks expire after graduation or are only offered for a limited period. Spotify is one of the best music streaming services around, and it offers …
For decades, the digital world has been defined by hyperlinks, a simple, powerful way to connect documents across a vast, unstructured library. Yet, the foundational vision for the web was always more ambitious. It was a vision of a Semantic Web, a web where the relationships between concepts are as important as the links between …
After 34 long and (mostly) fruitful years, AOL is finally shutting down its dial-up internet service. And while this could leave some users in parts of rural America struggling to connect to the internet, the end of AOL’s dial-up service is probably well overdue. A Dial-Up Explainer for Younger Readers… For the uninitiated (likely, anyone …
Google’s John Mueller says small businesses may be hurting their search visibility by choosing generic keyword domains instead of building distinctive brand names. Speaking on a recent episode of Search Off the Record, Mueller and fellow Search Advocate Martin Splitt discussed common challenges for photography websites. During the conversation, Mueller noted that many small business …
Watching Netflix on your smartphone is convenient since you can even do it offline while on the go. Still, I avoid it for a few good reasons, and once you see them, you might too. 5 It Destroys Your Battery Streaming Netflix on your phone may seem harmless, but it’s one of the fastest ways …
Content marketers’ patience and performance are being tested as AI infiltrates every tech stack, which has been both a blessing and a curse. Creating content has never been simpler, given the rise of AI, upending content creation, distribution, and discovery. At the same time, writing original content has never been more paramount, given the vast …
Although I love adding more of my physical media to my Plex server, sometimes I just want to kick back and watch television. With over a thousand live TV channels on Plex, only a handful come out on top. 10 At the Movies While I hesitate to call myself a film buff, I do watch …
Are your Instagram posts struggling to gain traction? With over 2 billion monthly active users, standing out on the platform requires strategy and content planning. A content plan is an essential blueprint to help you keep your posts aligned with your strategy and your overall marketing goals. Posting without a plan can just be a …
Amazon Prime has a huge selection of movies and shows, but it’s easy to overlook the best options if you’re only browsing what’s trending. These hidden gems might not be mainstream, but they’re absolutely worth your time this weekend. I find movies about space exploration fascinating, so I was immediately drawn to First Man, and …
Over 85% of guest post sites are low-quality, with poor traffic and DR, yet still command premium prices. High-quality guest posts (DR 71+ & 50K+ traffic) make up just 4.6% of the marketplace. Average guest post costs $365—but quality posts range $692–$957 before vendor markup. The average cost of a guest post through a vendor …
There’s nothing worse than watching your own products compete against each other. When your paid media strategy starts pitting your product lines against one another, you’re not just inflating costs; you’re undercutting your own chances at conversion. That’s the question this month’s “Ask A PPC” will tackle: “I work for a company that has three …
Google Calendar is great—until you’re stuck clicking endlessly to get where you need. I didn’t realize a simple shortcut could speed up everything, but now I use it constantly. There’s a Quicker Way to Quick Add Events It takes three clicks to create a new Google Calendar event, and that’s when the website is loaded …
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is emerging as the key framework for increasing brand visibility in AI-generated search results. Brand mentions without links are critical for GEO—AI models weigh context-rich mentions in training data, not just backlinks. Context wrapping (ensuring surrounding text reinforces brand expertise) boosts chances of being cited by AI models. AI visibility is …
Global companies today face a paradox. Search is more important than ever, yet how it’s managed across markets is often inconsistent, inefficient, and misaligned with broader digital goals. Too often, SEO is seen as a localized effort, tactically delegated to regional teams or outsourced agencies. While local knowledge is critical, international SEO success demands structure, …
Nothing ruins a workflow like inserting new data and realizing your Excel table isn’t big enough. I used to drag those edges constantly—until I learned this simple trick that makes my tables expand on their own. Excel’s Dynamic Arrays Are the Right Way to Expand Tables Instead of returning a single value, dynamic arrays spill …
This week’s question comes from Xaris, who asks: “Why, even though I have correctly composed and linked the sitemap to a client’s website, and I have checked everything, am I having indexing problems with some articles, not all of them, even after repeated requests to Google and Google Search Console. What could be the problem? …
I used to love reading. I’d read multiple books in a day, and the library was practically my second home. But somewhere along the way, I just… stopped. I tried to get back into it more times than I can count, but nothing quite stuck. Turns out, all I was missing was an eReader. My …
You’ve probably seen the headlines like: “AI will kill SEO,” “AI will replace marketing roles,” or the latest panic: “Is your digital marketing job safe?” Well, maybe not those exact headlines, but you get the idea, and I’m sure you have seen something similar. Let’s clear something up: AI is not making SEO irrelevant. It’s …
Windows has a built-in Credential Manager, but it’s not what you think—and certainly not a replacement for your password manager. What Windows Credential Manager Actually Does As the name suggests, Credential Manager is a built-in password manager, but one focused on system-level credentials. It stores usernames and passwords for things like network shares, Remote Desktop …
Google’s Gary Illyes answered questions during the recent Search Central Live Deep Dive in Asia about whether or not they use the new Multi‑Vector Retrieval via Fixed‑Dimensional Encodings (MUVERA) retrieval method and also if they’re using Graph Foundation Models. MUVERA Google recently announced MUVERA in a blog post and a research paper: a method that …
Before the advent of streaming services, summer was a quiet time on the TV series front, but not anymore. Today, there are numerous new and returning series seeking viewers. These are the best of the bunch. 8 The Bear (Season 4) Watch The Bear on Hulu and Disney+ FX Season three of The Bear wasn’t …
Google announced that they will continue to support some links created by the deprecated goo.gl URL shortening service, saying that 99% of the shortened URLs receive no traffic. They were previously going to end support entirely, but after receiving feedback, they decided to continue support for a limited group of shortened URLs. Google URL Shortener …
I’ve spent hours tweaking clips in editing apps, but AI video generation promises to skip all that—just describe your idea, and get a finished video. So I tried a premium one to see if it delivers on that promise. I Got a Veed.io Subscription to Make Videos Veed.io is an online video platform where you …
New AI platforms, powered by generative technologies like Google’s Gemini, Microsoft’s Copilot, Grok, and countless specialized chatbots, are rapidly becoming the front door for digital discovery. We’ve entered an era of machine-led discovery, where AI systems aggregate, summarize, and contextualize content across multiple platforms. Users today no longer follow a linear journey from keyword to …
Habit trackers wore me out. I replaced their streak anxiety with a three-step routine that tacks tiny habits onto things I already do, nudged by gentle tech cues. With time, I am reaping the benefits of stress-free consistency. Why Habit Trackers Burned Me Out There are many excellent habit trackers, but they may not work …
Prioritize topical authority: deep, complete content clusters outperform scattershot posts in AI search and SGE results. Reinforce clusters with intelligent internal linking; anchor text and contextual passages strengthen entity signals that Google’s embedding models trust. Earn authoritative backlinks and brand mentions—traffic-driving links remain a top ranking multiplier despite algorithm turbulence. Prune low-value or off-topic pages; …
How users are starting to interact with the internet has changed and soon will be unrecognizable from the internet we’ve grown comfortable with. With Google integrating AI-powered features into Search, and the rise of third-party large language models (LLMs), it’s a different search experience. Over the past few months, many CMOs I’ve spoken with, as …
You can plug more than just Ethernet cables into the back of your router. Most modern routers have a USB port on the back, which can turn them into the ultimate backup hub for your home. You Can Plug USB Storage Into Your Router Depending on your router’s make and model, its USB port likely …
A few weeks ago, I fell down a rabbit hole of cottagecore TikTok and Japanese jazz-funk from the ’70s. I didn’t search for it. I didn’t ask for it. But, somehow, my For You Page and Spotify knew. They knew before I did. That’s the power of what I call B2Me, from broad strokes to …
OLED laptops look gorgeous, but all that visual fidelity comes at a cost. OLED burn-in can hit your laptop hard, so it’s best to take preventive action before your panel kicks the bucket. What Is OLED Burn-In and Why You Should Care Unlike LCD panels that require a backlight, OLED or Organic Light-Emitting Diode panels …
This week’s Ask An SEO question comes from an ecommerce business that followed best practices, but still lost traffic after migrating to a new platform. “We recently migrated our ecommerce store to a new platform, and despite following all the recommended SEO practices, our organic traffic dropped by 30%. What recovery strategies should we prioritize, …
After feeling disconnected from most modern games, I decided to bring back a piece of my childhood. So I built a retro gaming setup on my PC that finally feels like home again I Built a Retro Console With RetroArch I grew up playing the PlayStation 2, PSP, and Game Boy Advance, and I still …
You’ve heard the predictions: AI will replace SEO, generative search will eliminate organic traffic, and marketers should start updating their resumes. With 73% of marketing teams using generative AI, it’s easy to assume we’re witnessing SEO’s funeral. Here’s what’s actually happening: AI isn’t replacing SEO. It’s expanding SEO into new territories with bigger opportunities. While …
Writing means facing creative blocks constantly. I write a lot, so I know the feeling. Obsidian is my go-to for all of it, and with a few tweaks, it actually makes me want to write more. Where You Write Matters I use two Obsidian vaults: one dedicated to university work and another for everything else, …
A new SEO plugin called SureRank, by Brainstorm Force, makers of the popular Astra theme, is rapidly growing in popularity. In beta for a few months, it was announced in July and has amassed over twenty thousand installations. That’s a pretty good start for an SEO plugin that has only been out of beta for …
Most people never venture beyond Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V in Google Docs. But the real time-savers are the shortcuts nobody talks about—especially for navigating long docs or fixing formatting fast. Once you use them, you’ll wonder how you ever managed without. 1 Paste Without Formatting Makes Everything Cleaner This is my favorite shortcut—and for good reason. …
A company founder shared their experience with programmatic SEO, which they credited for initial success until it was deindexed by Google, calling it a big mistake they won’t repeat. The post, shared on LinkedIn, received scores of supportive comments. The website didn’t receive a manual action, Google deindexed the web pages due to poor content …
Spreadsheets are supposed to save time, but sometimes they just make things messier. I hated digging through endless menus until I found a handful of formulas that do the heavy lifting for me. 8 VLOOKUP VLOOKUP searches for a specific value in the first column of a range and returns a corresponding value from another …
Too often in our content and messaging, we default to listing features in a succession of brief, disconnected claims rather than showing readers how those features will make a genuine difference in their lives. As a result, they are left to fill in the gaps themselves, often choosing to skim and move on rather than …
Google Drive is great—but “great” can always be better. If you spend a lot of time saving files to Drive, searching through folders, or transferring files from it, installing the right browser extensions can make your job much easier. While browsing the web, you’re bound to come across a useful article, an interesting image, or …
AI-generated content is reshaping digital PR, making brand mentions, expert commentary, and sentiment critical for LLM visibility. Brand mentions now outperform backlinks in AI Overviews, according to studies by Ahrefs and other industry tools. Relevance and positive sentiment directly impact visibility, both in traditional search (Google) and AI-generated results (like ChatGPT). Diversify PR beyond backlinks—use …
If you spend time in SEO circles lately, you’ve probably heard query fan-out used in the same breath as semantic SEO, AI content, and vector-based retrieval. It sounds new, but it’s really an evolution of an old idea: a structured way to expand a root topic into the many angles your audience (and an AI) might explore. …
We toss photos into group chats all the time without thinking twice—yet none of us would ever post our full address for everyone to see. After all, what harm could a random photo really do? But what if sharing an innocent snapshot was basically the same as handing out your live location? Could ChatGPT really …
LinkedIn surpassed Twitter/X as the top social platform for journalists, making it a key platform for PR relationship-building in 2025. Email remains the dominant marketing method (96% preference), despite a slight increase in DM-based outreach. Journalists now prefer exclusives over original research, signaling a shift in what drives coverage. Providing access to credible sources is …
In a recent SEO Office Hours video, Google addressed whether businesses can show different product prices to users in different U.S. states, and what that means for search visibility. The key point: Google only indexes one version of a product page, even if users in different locations see different prices. Google Search Advocate John Mueller …
Open-source PDF tools give you powerful features without subscription traps or licensing headaches. While proprietary options exist, these free alternatives handle everything from basic edits to advanced workflows. 6 LibreOffice Draw While LibreOffice is an excellent Office 365 alternative, it also doubles as a nifty PDF editor with Draw. It’s part of the LibreOffice suite, …
ListIQ builds targeted media lists directly from Google News using AI-powered journalist research. Avoids outdated databases and unreliable email finders with vetted, publication-specific contacts. Filters out low-value sources automatically, saving time and improving list quality. Activity Check” ensures journalists are still active at listed publications. New Sheets™ enrichment updates old lists or turns URL exports …
WP Engine announced the release of its AI Toolkit, a way to easily integrate advanced AI search and product recommendations into WordPress websites, plus a Managed Vector Database that enables developers to easily integrate AI features directly into websites. Smart Search AI WP Engine’s AI Toolkit helps WordPress site owners improve search and content visibility …
Windows File Explorer does the job, but just barely. No quick previews, clunky cloud access, and tedious bulk operations mean daily file management is harder than it needs to be. These free add-ons fix that. 6 Listary I have tried numerous File Explorer search hacks over the past decade, but they’ve still been disappointing for …
There was a post on social media about so-called hustle bros, and one on Reddit about an SEO who lost a prospective client to a digital marketer whose pitch included a song and dance about AI search visibility. Both discussions highlight a trend in which potential customers want to be assured of positive outcomes and …
Short URLs are handy for cleaning up long links, but they also hide the true destination. If you want to avoid malware or a phishing scam, blindly clicking that link isn’t your best bet—there are better and safer options! Why Short URLs Are a Security Nightmare The biggest problem with short URLs is simple: you …
There are many businesses relatively new to SEO that eventually face the decision to build or buy links because they are told that links are important, which, of course, links are important. But the need to buy links presupposes that buying them is the only way to acquire them. Links are important, but less important …
Habit tracking felt like a chore until I tried a simple paper-based system that breaks goals into two-week cycles. Now, slip-ups feel normal instead of fatal, and for once, I’m actually sticking with it. My Failed Attempts With Habit Apps I find that installing every shiny new habit app is in itself a bad habit. …
Google’s John Mueller and Martin Splitt discussed making changes to a web page, observing the SEO effect, and the importance of tracking those changes. There has been long-standing hesitation around making too many SEO changes because of a patent filed years ago about monitoring frequent SEO updates to catch attempts to manipulate search results, so …
Google Sheets can do a lot—but with Apps Script, it does everything. I’d been using Sheets for years without touching this feature. Once I did, I started automating the chores I didn’t even realize were slowing me down. Automating Boring Tasks If you’re tired of repeating the same task over and over again in Google …
Qwoted dominates for volume and quality, offering the most media requests and the highest share of DR 80+ opportunities. Twitter/X and LinkedIn have 82% outlet overlap, making it redundant to monitor both for journalist requests. HARO has the highest cross-platform overlap, underscoring its influence despite a decline in request quality in the past. Home & Lifestyle …
Google’s June 2025 Core Update just finished. What’s notable is that while some say it was a big update, it didn’t feel disruptive, indicating that the changes may have been more subtle than game changing. Here are some clues that may explain what happened with this update. Two Search Ranking Related Breakthroughs Although a lot …
I always used to think that goal-tracking apps were a no-go for me because they caused more confusion than clarity. However, I changed my mind after I started using Griply. Of the countless tools I have tried, this is the only one in which I have seen tangible progress. Setting Up Griply Griply was very …
AI Overviews are reshaping search, reducing traffic to news sites, and favoring well-known brands in both visibility and citations. Brand mentions now matter more than backlinks in AI-generated content, shifting PR strategy toward brand visibility and authority. News publishers must diversify traffic and revenue, prioritizing direct audience relationships via newsletters, apps, and communities. Google Discover …
Average position has been a cornerstone metric in SEO reporting for years. It provides a simple, at-a-glance sense of where a site typically ranks in Google’s search results. That sense is growing increasingly misleading as Google layers generative AI features, such as AI Overviews and AI Mode, on top of traditional blue link results. Search …
Your phone’s battery is one of the first components to show its age, but it doesn’t have to wear out so quickly. While there’s no magic fix, small changes in how you charge, use, and care for your device can make a big difference in slowing down battery degradation. 6 Ignoring Battery Protection Features Primakov/Shutterstock …
I was asked recently to take a closer look at the data for a website in Google Analytics 4 (GA4). This was for “Measurement Queen” Katie Delahaye Paine, a pioneer with over 30 years of experience in communications research and measurement, who now feels like she is flying blind. From looking at her data in …
You’ve probably used SUM a thousand times. Everyone has. SUM is fine for school assignments and tiny tables, but in the real world, it’s a blunt instrument. If you want totals you can actually trust, there’s a better way—one that I wish I’d found years (and headaches) ago. What’s Wrong With SUM? SUM adds everything, …
Google’s John Mueller and Martin Splitt discussed the question of whether AI will replace the need for SEO. Mueller expressed a common-sense opinion about the reality of the web ecosystem and AI chatbots as they exist today. Context Of Discussion The context of the discussion was about SEO basics that a business needs to know. …
Need an extra monitor but don’t want to buy one? Your phone or tablet is already the perfect second screen—you just need the right app to make the most out of it. Meet GlideX and Set It Up GlideX is a cross-device utility that lets you connect your Android device, iPhone, or iPad to a …
WordPress security company Patchstack published an advisory about a serious vulnerability in Gravity Forms caused by a supply chain attack. Gravity Forms responded immediately and released an update to fix the issue. Supply Chain Attack Patchstack has been monitoring an attack on a WordPress plugin in which the attackers uploaded an infected version of the …
I have Microsoft 365 Basic and a full desktop license, so I get all the relevant PowerPoint features. It’s clearly the better tool. Yet every time I need to make a presentation, I find myself opening Google Slides. 5 My Brain Doesn’t Stall When I Open Google Slides Google Slides gives me fewer than 30 …
WordPress is the most popular content management system in the world, arguably because of its ability to become virtually any kind of website users want it to be. This flexibility is made possible by thousands of third-party plugins that add the features needed to turn ideas into functioning businesses and platforms. The WordPress plugin community …
My smart TV has plenty of streaming apps for my entertainment, but did you know there are heaps of apps you can install that aren’t about watching movies and shows? You can get so much more out of your smart TV with these apps. 6 Capsule Podcasts I listen to podcasts on my smart TV …
Google’s Search Off The Record podcast discussed when a business should hire an SEO consultant and what metrics of success should look like. They also talked about a red flag to watch for when considering a search marketer. Hire An SEO When It Becomes Time Consuming Martin Splitt started the conversation off by asking at …
Digital calendars can be an amazing way to keep work and personal lives organized, but more often than not, they’re also easy to overcomplicate. After years of refining systems and experimenting with various approaches, I finally discovered a way to leverage these tools to my advantage. 6 Having Separate Personal and Professional Calendars I like …
Google’s martin Splitt and John Mueller discussed how long it takes for SEO to have an effect. Google’s John Mueller explained that there are different levels of optimization and that some have a more immediate effect than other more complex changes. Visible Changes From SEO Some SEOs like to make blanket statements that SEO is …
Making slides can eat up way too much time, especially if you’re only using the basics. PowerPoint is so feature-rich that it’s easy to overlook the most useful ones. Once you know them, you’ll wonder how you ever did slides the hard way. Slide creation would be quicker if you had easy access to your …
Credible rumors are circulating that OpenAI is developing a browser. However, the timing of the anonymous tip is curious, because Perplexity coincidentally announced they are releasing a browser named Comet. It’s a longstanding tradition in Silicon Valley for competitors to try to overshadow competitor announcements with competing announcements of their own, and the timing of …
AI-generated artists are gaining popularity on streaming services, to the point that you’re probably listening to AI artists without even realizing it. Thankfully, however, there are ways to spot AI artists. AI Bands Such as The Velvet Sundown Are Increasing in Popularity In case you missed it, a band called The Velvet Sundown has been …
Traditional SEO isn’t dead. But Google is layering new signals, such as brand and business model, on top of existing ones. Successful affiliate sites now require original research, testing, and in-depth topical authority, rather than generic review content. Branded anchor text and unlinked brand mentions strongly correlate with post-HCU SEO winners. Link-building efforts should prioritize …
For all the noise around keywords, content strategy, and AI-generated summaries, technical SEO still determines whether your content gets seen in the first place. You can have the most brilliant blog post or perfectly phrased product page, but if your site architecture looks like an episode of “Hoarders” or your crawl budget is wasted on …
Even the simplest spreadsheets—budgets, lists, trackers, and the like—can benefit from the powerful features in Excel that you’d typically avoid because they seem too complicated. They’re actually easier than you think, and they can save you hours. 6 Quick Analysis Let’s say you have a spreadsheet containing records of your sales. When you highlight some …
A large-scale analysis by Ahrefs of 600,000 webpages finds that Google neither rewards nor penalizes AI-generated content. The report, authored by Si Quan Ong and Xibeijia Guan, provides a data-driven examination of AI’s role in search visibility. It challenges ongoing speculation that using generative tools could hurt rankings. How the Study Was Conducted Ahrefs pulled …
With every Android update, Google adds a host of new features and optimizations to the platform. And while Android 16 hasn’t introduced any major changes (yet), it does bundle several important new security features that you should take a look at ASAP. What Is Advanced Protection in Android 16? Sanuj Bhatia / MakeUseOf With Android …
The Movement For An Open Web and other organizations filed a legal challenge against Google, alleging harm to UK news publishers. The crux of the legal filing is the allegation that Google’s AI Overviews product is using news content as part of its summaries and for grounding AI answers, but not allowing publishers to opt …
The truth is finally out: everyone’s favorite new Spotify band is absolute generative AI, just as most of us had suspected all along. Who or What Are The Velvet Sundown? If you’ve still not heard about The Velvet Sundown, they’re a new musical group taking Spotify by storm, racking up a truly astonishing one million …
No ranking data. No impression data. So, how do you measure success when AI-generated answers appear and disappear, prompt by prompt? With these significant changes to how we optimize for search, many brands are seeking to understand how to achieve SEO success. Some Brands Are Winning in Search. Others? Invisible. If your content isn’t appearing …
I was a longtime fan of the Google Chromecast, having owned one since the first iteration in 2013. However, its 2024 discontinuation forced me to move over to Amazon’s Fire TV Stick 4K—and it’s been a surprisingly great upgrade! 6 An Intuitive and Feature-Rich Interface Jack Mitchell/MakeUseOf Having not owned an Amazon streaming device since …
Paid media is often treated like a checklist item in a marketing plan: launch a few search ads, run a Meta campaign, maybe test YouTube if there’s budget left. But not all paid media is created equal, and treating every channel the same is a fast way to burn through budget with little to show …
Chrome on Android is a great browser out of the box, but you can make it so much better. These tips and features will supercharge how you browse. 11 Unlock Experimental Features With Chrome Flags While you may already be familiar with many of Chrome’s great features, there are plenty of lesser-known ones hidden under …
An SEO shared on social media that his SEO tests proved that not using a meta description resulted in a lift in traffic. Coincidentally, another well-known SEO published an article that claims that SEO tests misunderstand how Google and the internet actually work and lead to the deprioritization of meaningful changes. Who is right? SEO …
Your 5GB of free iCloud storage probably didn’t last long; even with a paid iCloud plan, you can find your storage filling up faster than you expected. As it turns out, some of your iPhone’s default settings are to blame for this. 6 Backups From Messages While keeping your old conversations backed up is a …
WordPress is the most popular content management system in the world, arguably because of its ability to become virtually any kind of website users want it to be. This flexibility is made possible by thousands of third-party plugins that add the features needed to turn ideas into functioning businesses and platforms. The WordPress plugin community …
Windows 11 may look pretty, but Microsoft’s design choices often frustrate rather than make your life easier. These free mods address those shortcomings, turning a barely functional system into a productive powerhouse. 8 Fences Stardock A cluttered desktop can slow you down and make your computer feel overwhelming to use. While organizing files into folders …
A discussion on LinkedIn about LLM visibility and the tools for tracking it explored how SEOs are approaching optimization for LLM-based search. The answers provided suggest that tools for LLM-focused SEO are gaining maturity, though there is some disagreement about what exactly should be tracked. Joe Hall (LinkedIn profile) raised a series of questions on …
On top of Android, Samsung’s One UI adds its own layer of software and services, each with separate settings, permissions, and default data-sharing options. So even if you’ve already tightened the Android’s core privacy controls on your Samsung phone, there’s still more to do. 6 Turn Off Samsung’s Diagnostic Data Collection By default, Google collects …
Google long ago filed a patent for ranking search results by trust. The groundbreaking idea behind the patent is that user behavior can be used as a starting point for developing a ranking signal. The big idea behind the patent is that the Internet is full of websites all linking to and commenting about each …
If you still think a powerful PC means a giant tower under your desk, think again. Modern mini PCs are nothing like their older counterparts, which means it’s time to say goodbye to those big, old tower PCs. 4 Mini PCs Are Powerful Enough for Most Tasks Don’t let their small size fool you; modern …
YouTube is rolling out two AI-driven features designed to enhance content discovery and deepen user engagement. The experimental tools include an AI-powered search results carousel for Premium users and a conversational AI assistant now expanding to some non-Premium accounts in the U.S. AI Search Results Carousel (Premium Only) Premium subscribers in the U.S. can now …
When your PC encounters a problem, seeing how everything is running can help you troubleshoot the issue. And when all is well, this information can also help you optimize your system. It’s all available in the Task Manager’s Performance tab—as well as a more advanced option. What Is the Performance Tab in Task Manager? The …
Paid media offers one of the fastest ways to promote a business event and get the right people to take action. Event campaigns are not just regular ads with a date added. They need a dedicated strategy, setup, budget, and audience targeting to succeed. From webinars and product launches to open houses and local promotions, …
Sometimes, it can feel like ChatGPT is trying to be your biggest cheerleader rather than offering balanced opinions. While sometimes nice, this can cause problems when trying to plan something or trying to get an unbiased response. To combat this, I made ChatGPT as brutally honest as possible. 6 Speaking to ChatGPT Like I Would …
Google announced a new multi-vector retrieval algorithm called MUVERA that speeds up retrieval and ranking, and improves accuracy. The algorithm can be used for search, recommender systems (like YouTube), and for natural language processing (NLP). Although the announcement did not explicitly say that it is being used in search, the research paper makes it clear …
I’m sure I’m not alone in often struggling to make decisions. It’s not just the big decisions, such as whether to move house or change jobs, but also everyday minutiae, like what to eat for dinner or what to watch on TV. Our lives are all punctuated by a never-ending succession of decisions, both big …
Google is testing a new feature that allows you to customize the Top Stories section in search results by selecting preferred news sources. Currently available through Search Labs in the U.S. and India, the experiment gives people more influence over which publishers appear in their news-related queries. How It Works Those who opt into the …
Lately, I’ve caught myself looking at my current smartphone and realizing how far we’ve come from what was once my favorite device, back in 2009. I used to rely on a BlackBerry Bold 9700, and the contrast between that focused, utilitarian experience and today’s everything-in-one devices has become hard to ignore. I Miss the Tactile …
A journey into innovative design awaits, where your creative ideas can flourish—discover the secrets to transforming visions into reality. What will you create next?
To my fellow marketers, I first wrote this title in the summer of 2020, back when I thought, “Wow, surely things couldn’t get worse.” Needless to say, I was wrong. Here’s the actual quote I started with last time: “If you’re reading this, then it is early July, you’ve made it this far in the …
WhatsApp just got a shiny new trick: Meta AI will now peek at your unread messages and spit out a quick summary. Meta is pitching it as an optional feature that lives in the cloud but somehow stays private thanks to “Private Processing.” Sounds neat, but it also means Meta AI is technically reading your …
AI is being rapidly implemented, but that doesn’t mean it’s being used effectively. The current lack of clear benchmarks and data about AI usage has meant that everyone has been operating in the dark. This led us to create our first State Of AI In Marketing report, so that chief marketing officers and marketing decision-makers …
Google Earth now lets you step back in time at street level, thanks to the launch of historical Street View imagery. The feature arrives for the platform’s 20th anniversary and brings new AI-powered tools for professional users (like urban planners) in the U.S. Explore the Past in Google Earth Google Earth has always helped everyone …
As publications continue to cut staff and more SEOs flock to digital PR, the competition for journalists’ attention is fierce. Even if you are newsjacking a trending topic, chances are several PR teams are doing the same. To put yourself in the best position to succeed, you need data to inform your decisions. To get to …
This post was sponsored by InMotion Hosting. The opinions expressed in this article are the sponsor’s own. We’ve all felt it, that sinking feeling in your stomach when your site starts crawling instead of sprinting. Page speed reports start flashing red. Search Console is flooding your inbox with errors. You know it’s time for better …
Windows Security does more than just basic virus protection. It guards against phishing, blocks ransomware, and prevents malicious apps from running. However, these features aren’t easy to spot—they’re hidden behind layers of menus. Protect Sensitive Files from Ransomware Downloading files or opening unknown attachments always carries some risk, especially if one turns out to be …
Marketers and business owners are spoiled for choice when it comes to the many social media platforms available for growing an online audience. From BlueSky to TikTok, LinkedIn to Patreon, social media marketing has never been more robust, or, arguably, time-consuming. But it doesn’t have to be. Fortunately, you don’t have to be everywhere at …
Testing your internet speed is a smart way to check you’re getting what you pay for. But if the results seem slower than expected, don’t rush to blame your ISP—testing mistakes could be skewing your numbers. 1 Running Other Apps or Devices Simultaneously One of the most common mistakes when testing internet speed is leaving …
If your brand doesn’t resonate on a deep level with your target audience, then pouring time and energy into aesthetics and clever messaging is a waste of resources. Real brand power is based on your brand’s identity: knowing who you are as a company, and how your ideal customer experiences life in relation to your offering. …
If you’re spending way too long on repetitive data tasks in Google Sheets, you’re not alone. I used to lose hours every week to the same old steps—until I stumbled on a single function that did the heavy lifting for me. Let me introduce you to the QUERY function. 5 Automated Sorting That Updates Itself …
Google’s Martin Splitt and Gary Illyes recently addressed a common question in search marketing: how technical do SEO professionals need to be? In a Search Off the Record podcast, they offered guidance on which technical skills are helpful in SEO and discussed the long-standing friction between developers and SEO professionals. Splitt noted: “I think in …
I’m a big fan of Apple and its software. I have an iPhone and a MacBook, and use Apple’s huge range of excellent apps because, let’s face it, why wouldn’t you? But there is one issue among Apple’s fantastic hardware and software: Safari. 1 Extensions Not Working as They Should Perhaps my biggest gripe with …
TikTok will remain operational in the U.S. through September 17, as negotiations over a potential ownership deal continue. President Donald Trump issued a third executive order delaying enforcement of the TikTok ban, giving the Chinese-owned platform another 90 days to operate in the U.S. The move was confirmed in a White House briefing and TikTok’s …
Most modern apps often track your activity, location, and even habits. The best way to stop this is to switch to privacy-first alternatives that don’t harvest your data. User tracking and data collection have become the standard for most modern apps, even if you don’t always agree to it. 6 Tor Browser Tor Browser is …
Digital PR in the U.S. is still evolving: Unlike the U.K., where digital PR is saturated and well-defined, the U.S. market offers untapped opportunities and diverse terminology. Story-first approach drives results: Strong, relevant stories outperform tactics; success hinges on cultural relevance and newsworthiness over media connections. AI and SERP changes demand strategic PR shifts: Brands …
Keeping up-to-date on industry Google Ads benchmarks is crucial to help answer questions you might get from clients or exec such as: “Is this a good CTR?” “Why is our CPA so high?” “What’s a good conversion rate, anyway?” Questions like these come up all the time, especially when budgets are tight and performance dips …
NVMe SSDs offer blazing-fast performance that makes the computing experience faster, but sometimes, we don’t tap their full potential. With a few tweaks and adjustments to settings, your SSD can deliver improved performance and a longer lifespan—so, don’t settle for less than what your hardware can deliver. 6 Update the Drivers and NVMe Firmware Outdated …
Use Google News to assess site fit, focusing on original content and DA/DR 70+ for credible media coverage. Confirm article originality by checking syndication status, press release formatting, and whether the author is in-house. Evaluate journalist fit by verifying recent activity, topic relevance, and history of writing true news stories. Prioritize outlets that include external, …
Yoast announced the addition of llms.txt capability to both the premium and free versions of their SEO plugin. Users can now add llms.txt files to their sites to future-proof them for AI search engines. LLMS.Txt llms.txt is a proposal for a new standard that will enable large language models (LLMs) to access a publisher’s content …
Ancestry services can tell you a lot, but you also have to hand over some very sensitive personal data to them. Your genetic data being sold on the dark web is no joke, and thanks to this ancestry service’s data breach, that’s exactly what’s happening. Your Genetic Data Is Being Sold Online DNA testing firm …
Google has updated its Search Console documentation, confirming it includes AI Mode data in Performance reports. This is a change to note when reviewing your metrics, as it may impact traffic reporting patterns. Understanding AI Mode and What’s Changed AI Mode is Google’s interactive AI-powered search experience, which builds on AI Overviews to provide more …
Curious about online anonymity, I ditched my usual browser and spent a week exclusively using the Tor Browser. While its privacy protections are impressive, I didn’t expect how much it would change my perception of the internet itself. What Tor Changed About My Browsing Tor is easy to set up and use, just like Chrome …
Keywords that contain recipe intent are triggering Google AI Overviews; however, keyword phrases that expressly ask for recipes are triggering the normal recipe rich results. SEOs on social media are reporting that recipe-related queries are triggering AI Overviews, so it may very well be that these are now officially rolled out. Tom Critchlow (LinkedIn profile) …
Asking ChatGPT general questions works well for basic queries, but I got tired of being left in the dark when I needed something more complex. That’s where ChatGPT’s special tools for image creation, web search, research, and coding are super useful—and I know just when to use them. Creating an Image ChatGPT’s ability to create …
Marketers and business owners are spoiled for choice when it comes to the many social media platforms available for growing an online audience. From BlueSky to TikTok, LinkedIn to Patreon, social media marketing has never been more robust, or, arguably, time-consuming. But it doesn’t have to be. Fortunately, you don’t have to be everywhere at …
If you only use burner emails for spam, you’re missing out. They’re surprisingly useful for testing apps, managing free trials, protecting your identity on public Wi-Fi, and keeping your inbox focused on what actually matters. 6 One-Time Account Verification Writing software reviews means I’m constantly downloading and testing new tools, sometimes even 10 or 15 …
Google has launched Audio Overviews, a new test feature in Search Labs. It creates audio summaries of search results using Google’s latest Gemini AI models. How Audio Overviews Work Audio Overviews turn Google Search results into audio content. When Google thinks an audio overview might help, you’ll see an option to create a short audio …
Hotel Wi-Fi often limits the number of devices, shared networks are insecure, and the signal can be weak or come with bandwidth restrictions. If you travel with several gadgets or work on the go, these solutions could save you a major headache. Use a Travel Router to Create a Secure Network Gavin Phillips/MakeUseOf A travel …
Google retires seven structured data features including Book Actions, Course Info, and Claim Review to streamline search results. Rankings unaffected. Google is removing seven structured data features from search results. This change will not affecting rankings. There’s no immediate action needed. Source link
Apple’s upcoming iOS 26 update promises more than just a visual refresh with its sleek new Liquid Glass look. It’s also playing catch-up, finally adding some of the best features Android users have had for years. 6 Call Screening If you’ve ever been caught off guard by a call from an unknown number, only to …
Freelancer emails have low open rates but the highest reply rates, especially Gmail, at 4.88%. National news outlets dominate outreach but have lower engagement due to inbox saturation. Australian and UK journalists reply more often – local relevance and exclusivity increase success. US journalists open more PR emails, but UK journalists may source stories more creatively …
This post was sponsored by Cloudways. The opinions expressed in this article are the sponsor’s own. Have you ever woken up to a 3 AM client website panic? Did your client’s ecommerce site crash during a flash sale? Has another client asked why their site is slow, “even though we’re paying for premium hosting.” This …
Android 16 is finally here, and it’s a few months early. The update has only arrived on Pixel devices and isn’t very significant, but it does lay the groundwork for some big changes Google has planned in the future. Small Tweaks Over Big Features This initial update seems to be focusing more on adding smaller, …
Google is offering voluntary buyouts to employees across several of its core U.S.-based teams, including Search, Ads, engineering, marketing, and research. The offer provides eligible employees with at least 14 weeks of severance and is available through July 1, according to reporting from The Verge and The Information. The buyouts are limited to employees in …
This week, my Mum messaged me asking if a message she’d received from a delivery service was real or not. Now, I’m lucky that she’s pretty savvy when it comes to spotting scams and knows what to look for. It’s just useful to have a son who’s the Security Editor for a leading tech website …
Affiliate SEO is essentially dead following the Helpful Content Update, as the focus has shifted to AI-driven and brand-focused strategies. Passive link building using original survey data and “statistics” pages remains a top ROI tactic. AI-powered coding now enables cost-effective creation of interactive content for digital PR campaigns. Full-funnel link building can be automated using …
Google’s John Mueller answered a question about a site that received millions of Googlebot requests for pages that don’t exist, with one non-existent URL receiving over two million hits, essentially DDoS-level page requests. The publisher’s concerns about crawl budget and rankings seemingly were realized, as the site subsequently experienced a drop in search visibility. NoIndex …
Fake Android apps aren’t just found on shady, third-party app stores. Sometimes, they manage to find their way to the Play Store as well. And if you’ve got any of these apps installed, your crypto wallet is at risk. Fake Wallet Apps Are Stealing Your Crypto Researchers at Cyble Research and Intelligence Labs (CRIL) have …
Every tweet, direct message, and comment holds weight. Social media has long been a connectivity platform, where users engage with friends, colleagues, and family. In recent years, it’s also evolved to become a feedback mechanism for businesses. In many industries, customers are communicating with a business on social media. It’s a key customer service channel, …
The dark web is rammed full of illegal and dangerous content—but chances are you won’t encounter it unless you go looking. However, even if you’re not actively looking for trouble, there are still plenty of risks you need to avoid. 7 Accidental Exposure to Disturbing or Illegal Content insta_photos/valterdesign/Shutterstock Exploring the dark web with good …
If you’ve followed my writing lately, you’ll know that I think the US digital PR space still has lots of untapped potential in local news. So, I contacted Collin Czarnecki, a former local journalist who now owns Noble, a digital PR and content strategy agency based in the US. Collin graciously shared his tips and tricks for …
BrightEdge Enterprise SEO platform released new data showing distinctive patterns across major AI search and chatbot platforms and also called attention to potential disruption from Apple if it breaks with Google as the default search engine in Safari. Desktop AI Traffic Dominance One of the key findings in the BrightEdge data is that traffic to …
You don’t need a fancy app or pro camera to make your photos stand out—just a setting buried in your phone’s menus. Most people never touch it, but it’s the quickest way I’ve found to go from bland to eye-catching in seconds. What Spot Color Actually Does and Why It Works Spot Color is a …
Unsubscribe links are legally required in most unsolicited commercial emails, including for link building and digital PR outreach. Reply rates drop slightly in small campaigns with unsubscribe links, but volume—not the link—is the bigger factor. Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft mandate unsubscribe links for senders exceeding 5,000+ daily emails to consumer inboxes. One-click unsubscribe is required …
Google updated the Recipe Schema.org structured data documentation to reflect more precise guidance on what the image structured data property affects and where to find additional information about ranking recipe images in the regular organic search results. Schema.org Structured Data And Rich Results The SEO and publisher community refers to the text results as the …
After 17 years of service, Pocket, the beloved popular read-it-later service, will cease operations on July 8, 2025. As such, you must migrate your data to another read-it-later or bookmarking service. While there are plenty of apps to choose from, these are your five best Pocket alternatives. 5 Instapaper Instapaper is one of the best …
Most replies come fast: 57% of link-building replies and 69.4% of digital PR replies happen within 6 hours. Average response times are 12.85 hours for link builders, 11.4 hours for digital PRs. Education, Fashion & Beauty had the fastest link building reply times. Fashion & Beauty, Home & Lifestyle were the quickest for digital PR. Travel-related pitches are the slowest to get replies for link building …
Google has started rolling out interactive charts in AI Mode through Labs. You can now ask complex financial questions and get both visual charts and detailed explanations. The system builds these responses specifically for each user’s question. Visual Analytics Come AI Mode Soufi Esmaeilzadeh, Director of Product Management for Search at Google, explained that you …
One of the primary reasons not to pirate software is that hackers often upload legitimate software with malicious malware attached. There is a similar malware circulating, targeting video games this time. Your Pirated Game Comes With a Side of Malware GamesBeat reports that security researchers have discovered a new infostealer malware called Myth Stealer. This …
Emails under 300 words get the highest open and reply rates—brevity significantly boosts engagement. Including full press releases or long intros may lower pitch effectiveness; link out to details instead. Focus on journalist relevance—tailor pitches to their beat, not just broad verticals. Authentic personalization beats generic flattery—avoid space-wasting compliments. Use Dropbox or Google Drive links …
Microsoft Clarity announced their new Model Context Protocol (MCP) server which enables developers, AI users and SEOs to query Clarity Analytics data with natural language prompts via AI. The announcement listed the following ways users can access and interact with the data using MCP: Query analytics data with natural prompts Filter by dimensions like Browser, …
Samsung is looking to clean up the list of inactive accounts under its belt. The company recently sent out a notice to customers with a Samsung account that hasn’t been used in 24 months, noting that any inactive accounts will be deleted come July 31,2025. 8 Weeks Left to Save Your Samsung Account There was …
It’s been an exciting time here at BuzzStream since we’ve launched our new media list building tool, ListIQ. So, I thought it would be helpful to get the full story from our CEO, Paul May on why we built the tool, what problems it solves for digital PRs today, and what the future holds for …
Is AI Changing How Local Customers Find You? If your clients rely on local search to drive business, the landscape is shifting faster than ever. AI-driven updates are changing how users see results, how trust is built online, and how businesses get chosen in 2025. The real question is, will your local SEO strategy keep …
Android security updates are important, and you should install them as soon as they’re available. If you’re using a Samsung phone, even the government is asking you not to ignore this latest update. Google has consistently been hard at work improving Android with new security features every now and then. Samsung is doing its best …
Want to rank in local search? Start thinking like a brand, not just an SEO. I brought in Chris Brencans, CEO/founder of OntheMap.com, a local search digital marketing agency specializing in local SEO for industries like legal, medical, and home services. In this episode, Chris explains how smaller businesses can use digital PR to punch …
WordPress announced the formation of an AI Team that will focus on coordinating the development and integration of AI within the WordPress core. The team is to function similarly to the Performance Team, focusing on developing canonical plugins that users can install to test new functionality before a decision is made about whether or how …
In September 2024, Google took manual action against Forbes Advisor for site reputation abuse, rocking the SEO world. This drop led to rampant theories and posts about their actions, why, and how. Unfortunately, around 25 great digital PRs on the Forbes Advisor team who were doing great work were also let go (as were many …
Out of the box, your Android phone leaves way too many doors open for data collection. The good news is it only takes a few minutes to change that and start protecting your privacy without affecting how your phone works. 7 Hide Notifications on Lock Screen You probably don’t think twice when a notification pops …
Reddit Karma has evolved far beyond a simple upvote tally. It plays a central role in how content spreads, how trust is earned, and how visibility is gained, especially for brands. With Reddit’s monetization programs and algorithmic surfacing now tightly tied to karma, it has become a built-in vetting system that shapes who gets seen, …
Redirects are essential to every website’s maintenance, and managing redirects becomes really challenging when SEO pros deal with websites containing millions of pages. Examples of situations where you may need to implement redirects at scale: An ecommerce site has a large number of products that are no longer sold. Outdated pages of news publications are …
WordPress has dominated the content management system (CMS) space since launching in 2003, and while it’s still the leader, the market is shifting in ways worth paying attention to. As of May 2025, WordPress powers 43.5% of websites surveyed and holds a 61.2% share among sites that use a CMS, according to W3Techs. That’s still …
When I think about the people shaping the future of PR and marketing, Gini Dietrich is always at the top of the list. She’s the founder of Spin Sucks, creator of the PESO Model, and one of the most consistent voices advocating for an integrated, outcome-driven communication strategy within marketing. And yet, I’ve noticed a …
What’s one thing that will keep your campaigns successful? Relevance. In this podcast, I speak with Olivia Bence, Head of Digital PR with Bring Digital. I met during a panel at BrightonSEO in 2024 where she dropped some tips on the subject. Since then, relevance continues to be a buzzword in the industry. So I …
BuzzStream email data tells us that follow-ups are effective, but only a point. Email follow-ups are almost universally used in PR campaigns. When we polled PRs about their use of follow-up emails in our 2025 State of Digital PR Report, only 2 out of 100 said they don’t use follow-ups. Muck Rack’s State of Journalism found …
I hate typing “procrastination” or even “productivity” repeatedly. Then, I often misspell “accommodate.” If you’re tired of tedious typing or other typing misadventures, Text Blaze for Chrome can save you hours every week. Use this text expansion tool to mow down your everyday annoyances. What Is Text Blaze and How Does It Work in Chrome? …
An International Driving Permit (IDP) is vital for accessing the adventure of driving in Spain. It translates a driver’s license and is recognized in 180 countries, easing communication with local authorities. With important driving regulations, like speed limits and parking rules, knowing how to obtain an IDP guarantees a smoother experience. This permission not only …
Cinco de Mayo, (Spanish: “Fifth of May”) also called Anniversary of the Battle of Puebla, holiday is celebrated in parts of Mexico and the United States in honour of a military victory in 1862 over the French forces of Napoleon III. Cinco de Mayo is celebrated on Wednesday, May 5, 2021. When in 1861 Mexico …
Ultimate Guide: Importing From China to UK Importing from China to the UK involves several critical steps. First, collaborate with a reliable import agent and conduct thorough market analysis. Ensure that suppliers have valid certifications such as ISO or CE, and conduct on-site inspections to verify quality. Products must comply with UK standards and regulations. …
Discover a unique celebration where kids aged 6+ become street artists for the day, guided by a private artist who introduces them to the world of urban art. The party begins with a design phase, where young creatives express themselves on paper, before transforming their ideas into vibrant graffiti panels. Unleash Creativity at Graffiti Kids …
I can’t wait to introduce you to a world of unique dreadlocks and accessories that’ll transform your style. At Dreadshop, I found stunning premium dreadlock extensions that look natural and feel amazing. Plus, they offer various colors, so I could customize them just for me. I also discovered essential care products that are perfect for …
With prices from $1.49 per unit, EazyDTF offers top-tier DTF transfers without the hefty price tag. Our affordable customization and bulk order discounts deliver quality without guarantee. Custom sizes starting at $1.49 and gang sheets from $14.00 cater to all needs. Rapid turnaround times and same-day printing guarantee efficiency. Our commitment to quality and affordability …
Adrian Everett and Ben Becton, the duo behind the ultra-exclusive London House, have revised their initial modek to be a private, members-only club, choosing to transition to a hybrid model with restaurants accessible to the public. The venue will inaugurate a new experimental fine dining restaurant Immersion and cocktail lounge on Friday, May 20 at …
Christner’s Prime Steak and Lobster is preparing to host a special wine dinner on May 20 at 7 PM. The dinner will showcase Frank Family Vineyards. The dinner comes with Carneros Pinot Noir, a Henning Cheese Plate, a Caesar Salad, Napa Valley Merlot, USDA Prime Filet Mignon, Fried Shrimp, Creamed Corn and Asparagus, RHF Cabernet …
The Land of Hope and Glory may lie some 4,000 miles away from Orlando, but that didn’t stop London House owners Adrian Everett and Ben Becton from bringing all the bits and bobs of high society Britain to life in their newly rechristened club– now open to the public in Dr. Phillips’ Dellagio. Once ushered …
Christner’s Prime Steak and Lobster passed a major milestone yesterday, celebrating 29 years of service to the community in the restaurant business. An official celebration will take place on June 24th of this year. he winner of The Orlando Local News Best Steakhouse Award, Christner’s 1800 degree furnace cooks your steak to sizzling and delectable …
At UCF’s new Collegiate housing students enjoy a wide array of dining and activities but none perhaps more savory than the development’s latest newcomer: Fat Shack. The Fat Shack was created in February of 2010 by Tom Armenti. After graduating with a degree in Marketing from The College of New Jersey, Tom set out to …
Dexter’s, the former aught-era chain once thriving in Dr. Phillips and Winter Park will reopen as Fredster’s thanks to the work of Fred Badalli (leader and drummer of local band Soul Funktion) and Adrian Mann, who, along with Dexter Richardson, owned Dexter’s of Winter Park. While a number of Fredster’s dishes will come from Dexter’s …
A new “Bacon Bitch” restaurant will soon be coming to UCF at Collegiate Village leased by Demetree Global. First opened in 2017 on South Beach, Bacon Bitch has been serving classic American breakfast items with an innovative, bacon infused twist since 2017. The humorously named restaurant offers an equally jovial experience inside, with each patron …
A Mochinut restaurant is coming to Demtree Global’s Collegiate Village at the entrance of UCF, and mouths are already watering. But for those who don’t know already: what the heck is a mochinut? A Mochinut is a donut that originated from Hawaii combining American doughnuts and Japanese mochi. Mochi Donuts are made with rice flour …
Sizzle Korean BBQ will be opening at Semoran Shopping Center on the intersection of Aloma and Semoran Blvd, and the savory taste of Hyunwook Lee’s cuisine is already abuzz with anticipation in Central Florida’s foodie community. The restaurant originally hails from Arizona with two locations in the state. Founder Hyunwook Lee was born with a …
Florida Guide > Travelling Tallinn: Old Town in Depth – Part 15 Patkuli Viewpoint After you have spent time just looking at the view you will want to identify what you can see. On the far left is the neoclassical facade of the executive branch of Estonia’s government enjoys. Below you, a bit of the …
Florida Guide > Travelling Florida Trip 2017 Day 9, Part 1 We had already decided yesterday that we would visit Islands of Adventure today so we were up pretty early for a holiday day and had some breakfast at the villa, some nice croissant and jam followed by lovely fresh fruit. The weather was once …
Florida Guide > Travelling Florida Trip 2017 Day 9, Part 2 After the Spiderman ride, Will and Karlie headed off to the Hulk roller coaster as this seems to be their number one favourite roller coaster and once again there was a long wait for it but it was getting pretty hot by now so …
Florida Guide > Travelling Florida Trip 2017 Day 10 Yesterday had been a very long day in the parks the weather was very hot and humid so once we were all up and had had a few coffees and breakfast we all sat around discussing what we were going to do today. It didn’t take …
Divina Carne, a Brazilian steakhouse based in Cancun, Mexico, will be opening doors in Orlando this year. The steak joint is upscale and will rival many of Central Florida’s finest dining establishments, both in terms of quality and service. Despite opening their original location in Cancun during the 2020 pandemic, the restaurant has experienced great …
Florida Guide > Travelling Florida Trip 2017 Day 11 I woke up this morning feeling a little unwell, earlier in the week Will had had a stomach bug and it lasted for a few days and now it was my turn I had a little toast for breakfast but felt quite queasy and need frequents …
Florida Guide > Travelling Florida Trip 2017 Day 12, Part 1 Now today was to be a Marathon day we had found we had a few days left on our old Disney tickets and so we decided to make our first and only visit to Disney as we had bought 2 week tickets to Universal …
Florida Guide > Travelling Florida Trip 2017 Day 12, Part 2 After we had finished our visit to Italy we came to the halfway point on the world showcase America, there was lots of work going on the American Adventure and so we didn’t really visit as it is being remodelled. Next along is Japan …
Florida Guide > Travelling Florida Trip 2017 Day 13 We got home pretty late the previous night as we had to catch the monorail back from the Magic Kingdom and then catch the other monorail back to Epcot to pick up the car and then drive home in the traffic, there was a problem with …
Winter Park residents can’t stop flocking to Hannibal Square’s latest addition. Café-Boutique PIANO opened on July 28th and brings the sound of jazz, classic rock and even classical music to the popular district. Polina Kaz, director of operations and the daughter of Café-Boutique PIANO’s owners, said Winter Park fit perfectly with the European character the …
Florida Guide > Travelling Florida Trip 2017 Day 14 So after the chill out day yesterday today we had decided to visit the parks Karlie and will have made a list of rides they wanted to vast one last time before we had to fly home to the UK, the list was extensive and covered …
Florida Guide > Travelling A1A Scenic & Historical Coastal Routes Byway If you are heading towards the northeast of Florida, St Augustine, Jacksonville or Amelia Island, from the Orlando area, the quickest way is via I4 and I95, which will take about 2 and a half hours to get to St Augustine. However, it is …
Florida Guide > Travelling St Augustine Lighthouse & Jail If you have a couple of days spare on your Orlando holiday, we can thoroughly recommend a trip to St Augustine; Florida’ s oldest continuously settled town. Start off in the holiday mood by heading up to Daytona Beach and taking the A1A route up the …
Florida Guide > Planning your Trip The Healthy Travel Checklist – Part 1 After the excitement of booking a trip or even bore your thoughts should turn to your health your health. Here are some handy pointers on how to prepare for an adventure to a different country. MAKE A PLAN It always pays to …
La Hacienda means “the ranch” in Spanish, and you’ll feel right at home on the Mexican range with their economical prices and delicious traditional food. Located at the Cimmaron shopping center on the corner of Aloma and State Road 436, the restaurant is perfect for family gatherings, a special date, a night with friends, or …
Florida Guide > Planning your Trip The Healthy Travel Checklist – Part 2 REGULAR MEDS If you often have a need to take prescription medicines, such as a course of antibiotics for an infection, you may want to bring a just-in-case course. If you have been asthmatic in the past, consider packing an inhaler in …
Florida Guide > Dining Orlando Magical Dining Month Why didn’t I know about this annual event? We have owned our own villa for over 15 years now and it wasn’t until I was planning this year’s holiday that I started to read about Orlando Magical Dining Month. I soon realised we had been missing out …
Florida Guide > Dining First Watch – Champions Gate The Champions Gate Area has been calling out for more restaurants for some time now and I am pleased to say that we now have a First Watch restaurant. First Watch serves Breakfast, Brunch and Lunch opening at 7am and closes at 2.30pm. The menu is …
Florida Guide > Dining The Melting Pot Our recent visit to Orlando was during the annual Magical Dining Month where over 100 local restaurants offered a 3-course prix fixe menu for $35. The 3-course dinner includes the choice of appetiser, entrée and dessert. Drinks, tax and gratuity are extra. $1 from each meal goes to …
For most boaters and water lovers, red tide means one thing: bad news. But at Atlantic Beer and Oyster (ABO) in Winter Park, red tide is where the fun begins. Nicole, an accounting student at Polk State College who currently bartends part time at the restaurant, recently concocted a unique beverage of the same name …
Florida Guide > Dining Island Grove Wine Company – Formosa Gardens, Kissimmee Fl 34747 I suppose by saying it was like a Phoenix rising from the ashes sounds a bit dramatic but. . . . . where once stood an old shed on a neglected, overgrown piece of land, we watched it all flattened and …
Florida Guide > Shopping Lake Buena Vista Outlet – Bargain Shopping Lake Buena Vista Outlet is not one of the main shopping destinations for tourists, but we would heartily recommend a visit. It’s not as fancy as the more upmarket premium outlet places on Vineland road and the top of International drive, but there are …
Florida Guide > Universal Parks Volcano Bay This article is not aimed at describing the rides, but rather the basics of getting in and around the park. Getting there:- a) If you are staying at one of the Universal resorts hotels, you can make full use of the free buses that run to Volcano Bay …
President Jimmy Carter signed a federal law making homebrewing legal in 1978 tucked into a transportation bill to “avoid scrutiny,” according to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. Now brewers and local business owners are raising their glasses in a toast to the man who made it all possible as the former President transitions …
Florida Guide > Dining The Boathouse at Disney Springs On a recent trip over to our villa, we decided on a trip to The Boathouse at Disney Springs. It was a beautiful sunny December day and we chose a table at the Dockside Bar, overlooking the lake and the views were just wonderful. There are …
Florida Guide > Miscellaneous Countdown to Christmas On a recent pre-Christmas trip to our villa at Highlands Reserve, we took the opportunity to visit the Now Snowing Event at Celebration. The event is held every year between late November and the end of December and we have always been there just too soon or just …
Florida Guide > Animal Kingdom How to ride Flight of Passage Animal Kingdom without a Fast Pass in less than 30 minutes We spent Christmas and New Year 2018/2019 in Orlando at our house in Tuscan Ridge, Davenport. We were 2 families 4 adults and 3 children aged 11, and 13, We knew that the …
Florida Guide > Dining About Those Chain Restaurants…. There is a building boom along Hwy 192 just west of Disney…a boom of restaurants, with many of them being chain restaurants. Realizing that not all these chains exist or are plentiful outside of the USA, here is some opinion and information about them. There are some …
Stoneybrook West Village will soon welcome Beth’s Burger Bar. The company has erected a “coming soon” sign at the former address of The Big Easy, located at 15502 Stoneybrook West Parkway, Suite 120. Beth’s Burger Bar, owned by Beth Steele’s, began with a love for burgers and beer at the age of 16. Steele experimented with …
Park Avenue Tavern is set for a public grand opening Friday, March 3rd. The restaurant recently soft opened in Dexter’s former location in Winter Park neary Hannibal Square. The restaurant/bar concept, by New York-based In Good Company (IGC) Hospitality Group, features Contemporary American fare with daily specials, brunch, and a drink menu that includes specialty …
Florida Guide > Disney Parks Disney Skyliner The Newest Way for Guests to Travel Around Walt Disney World Resort Disney Skyliner is the latest way you can travel around Walt Disney World adding to the Disney magic. The gondolas join other transportation ways like Walt Disney World monorail system, the ferry boats, water taxis, and …
Florida Guide > Places to Visit International Drive WonderWorks WonderWorks is an amusement park for the mind with 35, 000 square feet of “edu-tainment”. The attraction combines education and entertainment with more than 100 hands on exhibits that challenge the mind and spark the imagination. WonderWorks is an amusement park for the mind with 35, …