In this issue, we will focus on the Chrome update, which introduces changes in the way the Largest Contentful Paint loading is evaluated, as well as several practical tips on SEO. Antoine Ripret will show how to effectively fight cannibalization using only Google Search Console, and John Mueller will reveal how to improve the indexing of pages with a large amount of pagination. Searching for inspiration for SEO tests, Logan Bryant has a list of ideas for you! Moreover, take a look at our suggestions on auditing the site structure, using SQL in SEO work, and server log analysis.
Most important SEO news (April 12, 2023)
- With the latest Chrome update, the evaluation criteria for loading one of the Core Web Vitals components is changing slightly. This is about the Largest Contentful Paint and the use of Low-Quality Image Placeholder, which will no longer be counted as LCP. How will this actually affect the evaluation of our pages? It will be necessary to perform new measurements and a detailed waterfall analysis to optimize the new element recognized as LCP during website loading.
https://chromium.googlesource.com/chromium/src/… - Cannibalization impacts both the e-commerce industry and extensive content-based portals. However, it can be effectively combated without necessarily using paid SEO tools. Antoine Ripret shows step by step how to do this using only GSC.
https://twitter.com/antoinerip… - One user asked on Twitter about how pagination impacts the crawl budget for large websites. John Mueller revealed a way to improve the indexing of such addresses.
https://twitter.com/juancvarga… - If you’re searching for ideas for conducting SEO tests, you’ve just found them! Logan Bryant presents a large list of ready-made ideas – both simple and slightly more complicated ones. Every specialist will find something for themselves. It’s also a great way to understand how SEO works and what to pay attention to during optimization.
https://loganbryant.com/the-bi… - A new perspective on your website’s structure might help you understand what users are focusing on and how they perceive the site. How to achieve this? Audit the structure based on breadcrumbs and H1 header content!
https://seodepths.com/python-f… - More technical SEO! Why is it worth learning SQL and how to combine it with SEO? Many arguments are suggesting that specialists should expand their knowledge, at least with the basics of programming. In the article below, you’ll learn the benefits of using SQL, which offers many more possibilities than Google Sheets or Excel.
https://www.aeripret.com/sql-f… - We’ve just passed the 404 Error Day, which means it’s the best time for a short reminder. What is this error, how to deal with it, and interestingly, you’ll also find information on how to edit the error page on different CMS systems.
https://salt.agency/blog/404-d… - Increasingly, technical SEO specialists are turning to server logs to perform various analyses. Which ones? For example, monitoring error-returning addresses, the last crawl date of the website, and many others. If you haven’t had a chance to analyze logs yet, maybe Mohd Amaan’s arguments will convince you.
https://www.linkedin.com/feed/…
SEO Experts recommend:
- Newly announced certificates from Google – for those who want to develop their skills in data analysis as well:
https://blog.google/outreach-i… - A quick summary of alternatives to GPT Chat, what is worth testing (tldr: it’s not just Bard and Bing, which is why I encourage you to go through it):
https://www.searchenginejourna… - It’s hard to find a (reassuring) knowledge pill about artificial intelligence, especially if we consider the technological arms race. However, it’s worth trying, and one such attempt is a report for journalists from Media Voices – about the practical applications of A.I. in newsrooms:
https://voices.media/practical… - An interesting case study about Bard – specifically about what might influence the high ranking of local businesses in this channel. The power of customer/user reviews is strongly emphasized here: https://moz.com/blog/local-bus…
- Many people focus on the fact that texts generated by A.I. are not very original and rely on someone else’s work. The other side of the same coin, however, is the lack of diversity. Originality is one thing, but a significant limitation of choice is another – text generated by A.I. simplify reality, which can ultimately be very annoying.
https://www.vox.com/future-per… - Will GPT Chat hybrids become a dull tool of propaganda? The NYT conducted such tests on a “conservative” chat meant to be a response to the “left-wing” GPT. It looks really eerie and reinforces the message about problems with A.I. narratives:
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/0… - Are you tempted by the great idea of publishing a few thousand articles at once (of course, high-quality articles, obviously), but are afraid that it will cause an earthquake? Well, it won’t, so you can breathe a sigh of relief:
https://www.seroundtable.com/g… - And finally, to cheer up those who have just reluctantly finished their holiday break: Google will make it easier to search for the best hotel for your next vacation. 🙂 Enjoy:
https://blog.google/products/t…
Joanna Sarnat, SEO Specialist at Wyborcza.pl LinkedIn
Latest news on SEO and AI
- Here’s another great example of why you should approach ChatGPT with caution and limited trust. While searching for something online, Chat cited a Guardian article as a source, which cannot be found directly on Google. The journalists also did not recall writing such an article, and no mention of its removal was found in their database. Why? You can probably guess. Of course, ChatGPT made up the entry, which never existed within the service.
https://www.theguardian.com/co…