Google & SEO
Learn all about the latest in digital market industry updates from Google and how they might effect your business here
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Google’s linking improvements in AI search
What’s changed?
Google has recently announced an update to the way it links to sources and information within its AI overview and in AI Mode.
It will now link directly within the AI response next to the relevant text, rather than linking a cluster of sources towards the end of the information provided.
It’s also introduced a new feature, giving users the ability to preview a website when hovering over the inline link on desktop.
Why it matters
The more relevant placement of links will help with further exploration on a subject, rather than AI responses being a ‘dead end’ to the search.
The new preview feature will help a user decide whether to click through to a site, with Google saying “We’ve seen that people might hesitate to click a link if they’re not sure exactly where it leads — so this update will help people feel more confident about visiting helpful websites.”
Read hereAI search is splitting user behaviour
Google is not putting every AI experience in one place. Search, AI Mode and Gemini are being used in different ways, with Google’s VP of Search Liz Reid saying people often move between them depending on what they are trying to do.
Search and AI Mode are more likely to be used for informational queries, while Gemini leans more towards writing and creative tasks. AI Mode also appears to be where longer, more complex and conversational questions are happening.
For brands, that makes authority and clarity even more important. If people are asking different types of questions across different Google tools, brands need to be clearly associated with the topics they want to be found for. Digital PR can support this by building trusted coverage, expert commentary and consistent mentions across the wider web, helping search engines and AI tools understand who the brand is, what it knows and when it should be surfaced.
Read moreGoogle Search console fixing bug inflating metrics
Since 13th May 2025, impression reporting has become challenging. Google recently confirmed a bug was affecting how impressions had been logged in Search Console, with a fix now being rolled out over the coming weeks. The ‘bug’ caused huge inflation in impression figures, making it difficult to accurately benchmark SERP visibility and evaluate month-on-month trends.
Thankfully, Google has begun and will continue making corrections over the coming weeks.
So if you notice impressions dipping over the next few weeks, it’s most likely down to Google correcting the data rather than any drastic changes in visibility
Read moreMarch 2026 core update complete
Just days after a quick, spam update roll-out was complete, Google have announced their latest core update has officially rolling out this morning. The March 2026 core update has been deemed a “regular update designed to better surface relevant, satisfying content for searchers from all types of sites”.
As we typically expect with all core updates, this may take up to 2 weeks to complete and we will be continuing to monitor all impact for clients and competitors across various industries. Ideally, impact will always be minimal for those sites which are improving organic performance, but it’s important not to knee-jerk react to any site changes until the update has finalised and rankings have stabilised.
See updateGoogle’s March 2026 Spam Update finished in record time!
How it works: Google has fully rolled out its March 2026 Spam Update, completing the entire process in less than 24 hours. The update targets “scaled content abuse,” site reputation abuse, and expired domain abuse. Unlike updates in the past that often take weeks to deply, this fast rollout highlights a far more efficient and likely automated approach to identifying and penalising poor-quality, AI-created spam.
Why it matters for SEO: With this update rolling out so quickly, it’s likely sites will be able to see an impact almost immediately. It’s a key reminder for businesses and SEOs to consistently be prioritising strong content that highlights strong E-E-A-T (experiece, expertise, authority and trust), rather than throwing out a high volume of low-value and poor quality pages.
Read moreGoogle’s February 2026 Discover core update has completed
Google has confirmed that the February 2026 Discover core update rollout has completed. It started on 5th February and finished on 27th February. This is the first confirmed Search update of 2026 and notably, the first core update that only impacts Google Discover.
The update only applies to English-language users in the USA, however Google has confirmed this will expand globally in the coming months.
Google says the update was designed to improve the Discover experience by:
- Prioritising locally relevant content from publishers based in the users country
- Reducing sensationalist headlines and clickbait
- Elevating original and timely content from sites with clear topical expertise
Importantly, expertise is assess topic by topic, not just at domain level, which means broad publishers can still perform well, but only where Google recongises genuine authority.
Read moreGoogle Search Console announces AI assistant
Google Search Console launched a new AI powered feature this week, allowing users to configure the performance dashboard through a chat box with the AI assistant. This new feature simplifies comparing time periods, setting up a custom regex, and identifying aspects such as CTR for specific pages.
The tool is currently labelled as ‘experiment’ and will continue to be developed over the coming months. Aiming to improve accuracy and determine how effective this feature is for identifying value and areas for improvement across a website’s organic presence.
Hear form GoogleGoogle Discover Core Update
Google has begun rolling out its February Discover Core Update, a dedicated algorithm adjustment for the Google Discover feed (separate from traditional search ranking changes). The update aims to enhance the quality and relevance of content shown in personalised feeds by prioritising more locally relevant and expert content while downgrading clickbait style material.
Potential impacts:
- Local content can gain traction: Content tailored to specific regions or audiences is more likely to appear in Discover.
- Clickbait de-prioritised: Exaggerated content and engagement-bait tactics are more likely to lose Discover visibility.
- Depth and expertise rewarded: Original, authoritative and topically focused content is more likely to surface in feeds.
Key takeaway: Prioritising original reporting, topic-focused expertise and honest, accurate content will position any site to benefit as Google Discover’s feed evolves over the coming months.
Hear from GoogleAdobe move to acquire Semrush
Adobe is acquiring Semrush for roughly £1.6 Billion, a move that signals where SEO and digital marketing tools are headed as AI-driven search reshapes discovery and visibility.
The acquisition aims to combine Semrush’s search-intelligence capabilities with Adobe’s content and marketing stack which will help brands handle both traditional SEO and newer GEO channels.
As AI-powered search gains traction, the deal underscores a wider consolidation trend in the industry as marketers want unified platforms that track visibility across both classic search engines and AI-driven answer engines.
Google Search Console adds branded queries filter
Google has announced that they’re rolling out a new filter in Search Console which will allow us to filter branded queries in Performance reports. Allowing users to check the brand/generic ratio of search visibility and clicks without having to use regex.
This feature will give marketers clearer visibility into how much traffic is driven by brand, and also a sneaky insight into what Google believes is your branded terms (as you cannot specify them within the filter).
It is not yet rolled out into every property, and it cannot provide retrospective filtering, so we can only see this from the date it is available in the property.
