Owner, Blind Five Year Old. Digital Marketer and Start-Up Advisor. Tweet about SEO, Marketing, Technology, Social Media and UX. Now: @ajkohn@mastodon.social
San Francisco
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Hey @google and @searchliaison do you think a SERP where Yelp owns the first seven results is helping users? Asking for ... everyone. #seo
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Algorithm changes are most easily spotted when looking at hourly trends week over week. #seo #justsayin
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Algorithm Analysis In The Age of Embeddings bit.ly/2BhGJE1 (E-A-T won't help you during language understanding updates.) #seo
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Would you read a piece about why Google search got into this mess, what they've done to the content ecosystem and how they might be able to pull it out of the ditch?
#seo #google #search #opinionsarelike
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<#seo rant>
SEO is about understanding the USER. How do they search? And what is the intent behind those searches?
Some of the worst advice I've seen handed out over the last few years is to produce "good content" and optimize for topics.
1/?
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Thinking: If de-duping the featured snippet and organic listing helps users by decluttering results wouldn't de-duping paid and organic listings do essentially the same thing? #seo
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The details of the lyrics controversy haven't been discussed enough in my view. There's been a lot of press but little analysis and investigation. There's nuance that needs to be teased out. I hope you find this thread informative.
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1/ Here's a thread with my thoughts, comments and observations from my interview with @methode at last night's @BaySearch event at @stitchfix.
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We're coming up on a year since I wrote this piece and things have gotten worse and not better in that time.
I hardly recognize the Google we have today.
#seo #search #googenough
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Saving: Cheat Sheets for AI, Neural Networks, Machine Learning, Deep Learning & Big Data bit.ly/2Nw9tyV (Someday I know this will come in handy.) #ml
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Reading: How to use Google advanced search operators to find indexation and technical SEO issues bit.ly/2JP7GUv (I use many of these each and every day.) #seo
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Tracking Hidden Long-Tail Search Traffic bit.ly/hiddensearchtraffic (What you don't know could hurt you.) #seo #analytics
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Writing complete. 3,178 words. Tomorrow morning I'll re-read it, format it, source appropriate images and hit publish.
I know it's close to done because I'm beginning to hate it. #blogging
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Fuming: Google To Discontinue Some Old Search Console Features bit.ly/2CmbEyk (It's like they don't know how we use these reports. Who needs response codes!) #seo
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Reading: Best printer 2024, best printer for home use, office use, printing labels, printer for school, homework printer you are a printer we are all printers bit.ly/3TIKCZT (Trust me, read it. You'll thank me later.) #seo
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Google's Cascade Campaign on Link Spam Isn't Working bit.ly/2tlq8ex #seo
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In the past, I've been accused of being a Google apologist. So let me be clear here. Google stole this content for years. They were told. They knew. They decided to keep doing it. The LyricsBox as is must be removed. #seo
1: Google scrapes & republishes Genius.com's lyrics in full in the SERPs
2: Genius tells Google to quit it
3: Google denies & ignores
4: Genius puts "red handed" in Morse code of their apostrophes
5: Proof is in the SERPs. And now in the WSJ
wsj.com/amp/articles/lyrics-…
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I had a great conversation with @searchliaison but it was not taped or recorded. I'll work on a recap of sorts over the next week.
In general, I'd say there's a gap between the good advice provided and translating that into actual strategy and tactics.
#seo #search #google
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My Perfectly Healthy Obsession With Query Syntax bit.ly/2I6x7BC #seo
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Structure your content the right way and the world (aka featured snippets) are your oyster. #seo #truestory
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If you've ever searched for the next season of a show you're watching you should understand the target of the Helpful Content Update. #seo #unhelpfulcontent #google
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Hey @googlewmc how exactly am I supposed to help my client diagnose what's going on here? "We think you're doing terrible awful things but ... we're not going to tell you how to find them." Worst game of hide and seek ever. #seo
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Reading: Google’s Natural Language Processing API Tool for SEO bit.ly/2NMZwvx (Always a good idea to see how Google interprets your content.) #seo
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I encourage you to apply the #googenough tag your suboptimal Google search results.
If you do, it'll be easy for the @Goog_Enough account to collect and amplify these SERPs and AI Overviews.
I do not run that account. I don't have the time. But I know who does and endorse it.
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Reading: Technical SEO Basics That Drive Revenue bit.ly/2EHq2oa (This should really be the standard roadmap used for larger sites.) #seo
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What Pandu Nayak Taught Me About SEO bit.ly/pandunayakseo
A breakdown of Pandu Nayak's anti-trust testimony and how it can help you be a better SEO.
#seo #search #google
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I'm seeing Google rely less on query syntax matching and more on topical authority across a handful of verticals.
It's interesting but ... I'm not sure it's going to produce positive results for Google. Mirroring and cognitive ease are quite powerful IMO.
#seo #algothoughts
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The ablation study featured in the DOJ ruling essentially shows that click data is no longer measuring content quality but instead is simply measuring brand affinity. Thus our current SERP is akin to a mall food court.
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Reading: The Man Who Killed Google Search bit.ly/4ba8j46 (I teased out much of this in my own piece, but without the invective. I think the Yahoo connection is the most damning in many ways.) #seo #search #google
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The search ecosystem works because people cite/link when using or referring to other content. Citation obfuscation and the abuse of nofollow is just as much a link manipulation scheme, perhaps worse since it violates the spirit and intent of the citation system. #seo
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At this point I'm not sure if the left hand even knows the right hand exists. #seo #google #paginationgate
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What I Learned in 2019 bit.ly/2RwHtgF (The eighth installment of my year in review post.) #seo #life #business
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It's Goog Enough! bit.ly/googenough
Based on reader feedback there is now jump link navigation to each section of the piece. I also urge you to check out the comments, which provide a host of other views and great insights.
#seo #google #search
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How much does trusting Google cost you? Quite a bit sometimes. Click signals and consensus propel brands to the top of SERPs with content that is often in the site's best interest instead of the consumer's.
#seo #search #googenough
Full discussion: linkedin.com/posts/ajkohn_go…
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On August 13th I'll be interviewing @searchliaison. Let me know what questions you might have for him.
That doesn't mean I'll ask all your questions and I won't engage with folks who hurl invective and ad hominem attacks. Keep it civil and productive. #seo #search #google
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Saving: Getting the Most out of Google Chrome for Technical SEO bit.ly/2LbcNwK (Still my favorite SEO tool for many of the reasons here.) #seo
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Reading: How to rank for head terms bit.ly/2KupNxn (An excellent must-read post and a great companion to my recent piece.) #seo
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I kept waiting for Google to roll out the image referrer in Google Analytics. But it turns out they decided not to after "further consideration". Am I the only one who missed this post update?
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The reason the LyricsBox matters so much is the huge demand for this content when a new song comes out. When you rank first you get an enormous amount of the clicks. Here's one of Drake's new songs which doesn't yet have a LyricsBox.
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Reading: Google appoints veteran engineers to lead Search, Artificial Intelligence amid shake-up bit.ly/2q0fvuR (Big news. Ben Gomes is the new head of search.) #seo
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Fun hack. Create page with links to those 400 URLs. Fetch page and request index of that page and all links.
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Reading: Query2vec - Search query expansion with query embeddings bit.ly/32pECIG (This is the engine of future SEO success.) #seo #nlp
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Reading: Google Webspam Report 2019 bit.ly/3dSqJJz (Did I miss the announcement that rel=sponsored and rel=ugc would be used for ranking purposes?) #seo
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This thread is a must read for anyone in the search industry. #seo
Last week, I gave a presentation about Google Search results not being perfect, how we update to improve those results, and how our guidance to creators needs to improve. In this thread, I’ll share my slides and commentary for those who weren’t able to attend my talk…
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It's always nice to get these types of accolades but I rarely retweet them. It makes me uncomfortable. But I like the characterization of 'actually figuring SEO out'. Many of my blog posts are simply a documentation of me trying to understand what's going on.
🔖 Looking for some amazing #marketing blogs to bookmark?
==> Check out @ajkohn 's blindfiveyearold.com/ <==
AJ runs a firm where he's deep in the trenches actually figuring SEO out.
So when he finally emerges with insights, everyone listens. 👍
ahrefs.com/blog/best-marketi…
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Reading: How Google is Killing Independent Sites bit.ly/48k0tDf (An excellent piece that dovetails with my Goog Enough post.) #seo #google #publishers
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1/ Today Google announced a new Popular products unit for search. One of my perennial resolutions is to be more positive. But it's challenging when you look at the mobile results for something like 'running shoes'. The top has shopping ads and then a local pack.
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What I Learned in 2017 bit.ly/2DoST0M (Reflections on my business, happiness and the state of the industry.) #seo #life
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Someone didn't get their cup of coffee this morning. #NYTimes #sayingthequietpartoutloud
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I have come to the conclusion that hreflang needs to die in a pit of blue fire. #seo
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These Google Search Console Coverage reports are oh so helpful when they're 15 days out of date. #not
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One of the smartest and funniest group of folks I've been with in a very long time. Thank you @eywu @DarwinSantosNYC @maxxeight @matthewgkay @ChouinardJC @mmwechsler @micahfk and JR Oakes #seo #search #googleIO
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Reading: Google Replacing Head of Search theverge.com/2024/10/17/2427… (Well, this is interesting.) #Google #Search #SEO
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Reading: How to Work Effectively with Google Search Console Data to Analyze Google Updates bit.ly/2Kv1tuU (Amazing what you can learn by looking at keyword traffic changes.) #seo
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Daft Punk SEO bit.ly/daftpunkseo (My deck from #engagepdx covering SEO strategies for large sites.)
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Definitely worth a full read. Sadly, each time I delve into GA4 I am shocked at how big a miss it is on nearly all levels. @googleanalytics helped improve content across the Internet via analytics. GA4 will hasten a dark ages.
GA4 is an on-coming disaster.
@googleanalytics I say this with a heavy heart from a place of love.
Let's dive into:
Part I
Who the heck am I and my history
Part II
Why #GA4 has a problem
Part III
If not rectified, what I expect is going to happen
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Reading: SEO Moves From Keywords to Ontologies and Query Patterns bit.ly/2ptEBlB (Thing is, humans should be better at identifying query patterns and classes.) #seo
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Reading: One year in, Facebook’s big algorithm change has spurred an angry News Feed bit.ly/2HxIr81 (Facebook is not good for your mental health.) #social #facebook
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What I Learned in 2018 bit.ly/2D4qfiz (My yearly post describing business, SEO and life lessons.)
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Reading: SEO for Faceted Navigation bit.ly/2LgBWW9 (Pretty good. Unfortunately, very few seem to be paying any attention to faceted navigation these days.) #seo
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Seems like both MarketWatch Guides and USA Today Homefront are run by the same third-party company.
#seo #search #googenough
MarketWatch Guides is another site reputation abuser run by Three Ships and its subsidiaries. The MarketWatch writers really work for Three Ships or companies it owns.
The abuse is working too. They're making ~$2M / month just from "cheap car insurance" & "best car insurance."
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The choice you make isn't forever. The trick is to make a decision. You can only open the door right in front of you. Step through and figure out the next place you want to go.
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Reading: A Detailed 1,000 Keyword Analysis of Affiliate SERPs bit.ly/38AE5rs (Very interesting and yet another clue to the direction of search in general.) #seo
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What I Learned In 2021 bit.ly/what-i-learned-in-202… (The timing of this post should be a clue that 2021 was a difficult one.) #life #seo bit.ly/3zOSAID
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I very rarely share praise of my own stuff but I make an exception when someone connects what I wrote to another area of search. Great insights here from @DarrenShaw_ on Local SEO. #seo #google #local
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4/ The most interesting concept to me was the idea that organic search rankings are essentially an auction model, similar to paid search. Multiple signals combine to provide each candidate a bid for a position on a SERP.
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September Algorithm Update: Google tests boosting high authority sites via link graph to improve SERPs (AKA 'let's make sure we're not going too far with NLU')
[Measurement]
November Algorithm Update: Returns to reliance on NLU. Expect specificity trend to continue.
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Reading: Genius vs Google bit.ly/3858KNo (Lawsuit filed in State of New York alleging misappropriation of lyrics and effort to conceal this act.) #google #seo
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Reading: How to Leverage Keyword Cannibalization bit.ly/2LcrkHS (It's not sexy but doing this type of analysis and work pays off. Next level is automated flagging of issues.) #seo
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Panda and Penguin are dead. This is the way you do modern algorithm change analysis. Dig deep. Understand the syntax. Uncover intent mismatches. #seo #writethatpost
I don't see these updates as being sitewide 'punitive' based updates (like Panda or Penguin)... anyway - I hope that helps someone trying to make sense of any updates. Do you want to see a more in-depth blog post? Lemme know, I drafted one back in March, but never finished it.
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Okay! Thank you for the very kind words. Truly. I sometimes hesitate to write a piece that is purely opinion and won't have any actionable insights. But I'll start writing and doing due diligence.
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I'm finding it really hard to finish this blog post with everything that is going on in the world right now.
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SEO is about optimization which comes from the root optimum.
Sure, Google might be able to understand a whole slew of things. But we seek to do what's optimal.
Search success doesn't come from doing just one thing. It comes from doing all of the things as best as we can.
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Crawl is the canary in the coal mine. If you're not tracking your crawl you're going to have a bad time. #seo
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The Invisible Attribution Model of Link Acquisition bit.ly/32coXN2 (Link acquisition is both asymmetrical and asynchronous.) #seo #marketing
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Reading: Why Google Needed a Graph Serving System bit.ly/2Nkshjj (This is a fascinating read on so many levels.) #google #search #knowledge
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Saving: Frequently Used LLM Words bit.ly/4aJpIRJ (Delve into the dynamics and intricacies of words that illuminate this new paradigm.) #seo #search #LLMs
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Reading: The Demise of Senior SEO Leadership bit.ly/3wvMBsC (Always great to hear from @audette) #seo #search
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