Welcome to Part II of Edition No. 30 of my weekly newsletter, providing practical analysis in the world of digital content strategy.
ICYMI Tuesday: The Spotted Lanternflies of Social Media
Contents
I. Google’s Helpful Content Update’s Impact Less Than Expected
II. Community Context Tool ‘Birdwatch’ is Expanding
III. Google ‘News Showcase’ Behind Schedule in U.S.
IV. Snapchat’s Comeback Plan (Leaked)
V. Instagram is Testing a ‘Topics’ Option for Reels Uploads
VI. Video Editing Platform CapCut now Free on Desktop
VII. Reminder: Google Ranks Pages, Not Sites
I. Google’s Helpful Content Update’s Impact Less Than Expected
The latest update to Google’s search algorithm began Aug. 25, and is still rolling out as of the sending of this newsletter.
It was expected to take “up to two weeks,” which would have meant ending yesterday, Sept. 8.
Some SEO experts are surprised at the limited affect this has had on SERP rankings.
Google Search Liaison Danny Sullivan responded to one complaint on Twitter:
Click through for the full thread.
🛠 Why does this matter? When Google updates its algorithm, the intention is to further refine the mechanism by which it delivers quality, useful content to users. They say that’s always been the goal.
Sometimes, though, algorithm changes have emaciated sites’s organic search traffic. So every time there’s an update, publishers – regardless of industry – are on the edge of their seats.
This time, as mentioned above, you can find lots of people tweeting about “helpful content update” who say that they haven’t seen many changes at all. If you’re one of those people – congratulations!
I’m not sure why people whose sites are doing well, and continue to do well, are complaining. They should be celebrating.
In the early days of updates, it’s best not to jump to conclusions. But at this point, more than two weeks in, you should know if you were affected.
To check your your organic search traffic “health,” the first places I would go are the Perfomance report in Google Search Console and your organic search traffic channel in GA4.
If you have any questions, comment below or email me.
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II. Community Context Tool ‘Birdwatch’ is Expanding
Launched in 2021 and only available in the U.S., Twitter’s Birdwatch “is made up of a group of … contributors, who help identify information in Tweets they believe is misleading and write notes that provide informative context.”
Now that program is expanding by “adding larger groups of eligible applicants to the pilot on a more frequent basis.”
According to a Twitter-conducted survey, “people who see a Birdwatch note are, on average:
“20-40% less likely to agree with the substance of a potentially misleading Tweet than someone who sees the Tweet alone…
“15-35% less likely to Like or Retweet a Tweet than someone who sees the Tweet alone”
Birdwatch contributor eligibility rules: “Birdwatch contributors must have a verified phone number from a trusted US-based carrier, no recent Twitter Rules violations, and a minimum six months on Twitter.”
🛠 Why does this matter? Midterm elections, for one thing.
Then there’s the ongoing legal battle with Elon Musk, who wanted to back out of the deal in case of World War III.
Twitter needs to maintain its credibility not just for its battle with Musk, but also to be seen as a reliable source of information for its millions of users. Its hoping to achieve this through the masses, though we saw this week that its screening process hasn’t been perfect.
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III. Google ‘News Showcase’ Behind Schedule in U.S.
Launched in late 2020, the product is already available in 18 countries and more than 1,700 publishers are onboard, according to the WSJ.
For the uninitiated:
Google pays participating publishers to curate quality journalism for an improved online news experience that benefits readers and publishers.
News organizations have direct control of their presentation and branding…
To help readers discover new content, Google News Showcase offers no-charge access to select paywalled articles…
🛠 Why does this matter? Facebook announced in July it would no longer pay publishers for news. Now an anticipated revenue opportunity with Google has hit various snags, as the Journal reports.
Some publishers feel Google isn’t paying enough and are objecting to certain contractual terms, including a provision that would limit their right to get more money from the tech company in other ways…
Among publishers that have already reached agreements are Bloomberg, Reuters and the Texas Tribune.
Some news publishers were hesitant to commit to a Showcase deal ahead of pending U.S. legislation that would allow publishers to collectively negotiate with Google for compensation without violating antitrust laws, according to publishing executives.
We know that any publisher staking its existence on an outside partner like Google to keep them afloat is doomed. This isn’t about that.
The extra revenue is great, even for behemoths like Bloomberg that are fine without it. The more exciting development, in my opinion, is a chance for trusted publishers to leverage Google to reach a wider audience while maintaining control over how content is presented.
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