Daily Search Forum Recap: September 5, 2023 -

Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web.

Google says content quality is not about typos but overall quality. Google Search Console had a canonical URL reporting bug for some sites. Google SGE dropped the local pack results. Google has this issue where you can edit negative reviews to keep them at the top for years. And I posted the monthly Google webmaster report, catch up there.

Search Engine Roundtable Stories:

September 2023 Google Webmaster Report

It is time for the big Google Webmaster Report, the September edition. This past month, we finally had a confirmed update, the August 2023 core update that was announced on the 22nd but began being felt on the 25th. We also had a couple of unconfirmed Google updates. Google SGE officially rolled out links.

Google Fixed The Search Console Canonical URL Reporting Bug

From the end of July through just a couple of days ago, Google has had this weird error for some sites in Google Search Console. In short, Google Search Console was reporting the wrong canonical URL for some pages. Yesterday, September 4th, it seemed like Google fixed the issue.

Google: Content Quality Is Not About Typos But Overall Quality

Google’s John Mueller said when it comes to rankings, Google doesn’t really care too much about typos here and there but rather the overall quality of the site’s content. I guess I am in luck on this sight (did that on purpose), don’t you think?

Google Local Negative Reviews Hack Leads To Harassment & Abuse

Did you know that Google is totally fine with customers leaving negative reviews and then every few months they “update” that negative review just to ensure the review is labeled as “new” and remains at the top of all the other positive reviews?

Google SGE Drops Local Results (5 Local Pack)

When Google launched its Search Generative Experience, the AI-powered answer embedded local results from Google Business Profiles in a local pack. In fact, it was a “five pack” but now, Google is no longer showing the local pack at all – at least at the time I wrote this story.

Sunflower At GooglePlex with Peter The Greeter

Peter The Greeter gets all the best shots at the GooglePlex, Google’s main headquarters in Mountain View, California. Here he is in a sunflower prop of sorts, sitting on a chair posing. He posted thi