News•Jan 20, 2026
Data Shows AI Overviews Disappears On Certain Kinds Of Finance Queries via @Sejournal, @Martinibuster
Recent BrightEdge data reveals that Google’s AI Overviews dominate finance queries with an educational focus, appearing in roughly 91% of “what is” style searches. In contrast, real‑time price lookups, calculator tools, and local “near me” queries trigger AI Overviews less than 10% of the time, often falling back to traditional SERP listings. Brand‑related finance searches also see AI Overviews in only 0‑4% of cases. The split reflects Google’s reliance on user‑feedback signals to decide when synthesized answers add value.
By Search Engine Journal
News•Jan 20, 2026
Schuh Appoints Chief Marketing Officer
Schuh has named Laura King as its new chief marketing officer, effective immediately. King brings two decades of brand and agency experience, including nine years at Wieden & Kennedy managing Nike and recent leadership roles at Accessorize and Urban Outfitters. She will...
By The Retail Bulletin
News•Jan 20, 2026
Dinosaur Wins Task to Cook up New Breville Ad Strategy
Breville has tapped UK creative agency Dinosaur to overhaul its advertising and marketing strategy, launching a long‑term partnership that will run through 2026 and beyond. Dinosaur will craft a new brand platform and integrated campaigns aimed at injecting colour, creativity...
By DecisionMarketing
News•Jan 20, 2026
Gen Z Is Changing Where Marketing Begins, Not Just Where It Ends
Gen Z’s purchasing power is set to hit roughly $12 trillion by 2030, turning the cohort into a primary decision driver rather than a peripheral audience. Marketers now see brand discovery moving from search engines to short‑form social clips on TikTok...
By Marketing Tech News
News•Jan 20, 2026
Cheil UK Hires Ex-MSQ Chief Nimmo to Head New Unit
Cheil UK has appointed former MSQ/MBAstack chief Nicola Nimmo to head a new data‑driven offering called Intelligent Engagement. Nimmo brings more than two decades of agency transformation experience, most recently launching MBAstack’s London office and expanding it to New York....
By DecisionMarketing
News•Jan 20, 2026
Comment: Overlook Older Shoppers at Your Peril
Retail and hospitality firms are overlooking older shoppers, even as the over‑65 population is set to double to 1.6 billion by 2050 and control a majority of discretionary spend. Older consumers are increasingly active on platforms like TikTok, where they favor...
By The Retail Bulletin
News•Jan 20, 2026
Influencer Spend Set to Soar Despite Brands ‘Flying Blind’
Kantar’s 2026 Marketing Trends report finds that 61% of marketers will increase creator budgets even as they admit to lacking clear ROI evidence. The UK influencer market, valued at £1.8bn in 2024, is projected to surge to over £17.8bn by...
By DecisionMarketing
News•Jan 20, 2026
Albertsons Is Putting Digital Screens for Ads in More than a Third of Its Stores
Albertsons Media Collective is rolling out an in‑store digital screen network to 800 of its more than 2,200 locations in 2026 after a successful pilot in 80 stores. The expansion follows the onboarding of over 50 advertising partners and a...
By Modern Retail
![The Rise of Gen AI Apps [Infographic]](/cdn-cgi/image/width=1200,quality=75,format=auto,fit=cover/https://hixhlmpcokxhartfkpyi.supabase.co/storage/v1/object/public/images/thumbnails/0bba91b48eca0a5003b92a071cff6318.webp)
News•Jan 20, 2026
The Rise of Gen AI Apps [Infographic]
A Visual Capitalist infographic, using Sensor Tower data, shows generative‑AI apps have surged to become among the most downloaded mobile tools, trailing only utilities, banking and social media. Practical guidance tops the usage chart, with search and writing assistance in...
By Social Media Today
News•Jan 20, 2026
TikTok Adds Teen Safety Measures in EU, Outlines Economic Contribution
TikTok announced a rollout of enhanced age‑verification tools across Europe to block users under 13, adding facial‑age estimation, credit‑card checks and government ID verification. The platform says the new system, built on behavior analysis and specialist moderation, follows a pilot...
By Social Media Today
News•Jan 20, 2026
Meta Says That the Science Does Not Support Teen Social Media Bans
Meta pushed back against proposals to ban teens from its platforms, arguing that scientific research shows teen mental health is shaped by many factors beyond social media. The company cited the 2024 National Academies report, which acknowledges both risks and...
By Social Media Today
News•Jan 19, 2026
Thomas Rolls Out AI Search and Performance-Based Ads to Speed Industrial Sourcing
Thomas, operating under Xometry, unveiled an AI‑driven smart search that lets industrial buyers use natural‑language, multi‑attribute queries, delivering more than 15% higher supplier evaluations than its legacy tool. The platform also introduced performance‑based listings, where manufacturers pay only when buyers...
By Digital Commerce 360
News•Jan 19, 2026
Inside SearchGuard: How Google Detects Bots and What the SerpAPI Lawsuit Reveals
Google sued SerpAPI for allegedly circumventing its newly deployed SearchGuard anti‑bot system, which monitors mouse, keyboard, scroll and timing signals to distinguish humans from automated scrapers. The lawsuit, filed under DMCA Section 1201, highlights Google’s effort to protect its search...
By Search Engine Land
News•Jan 19, 2026
As AI Search Evolves, Dubai Businesses Strengthen SEO with Generative Engine Optimization
Dubai firms are adopting Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) and Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) to adapt to AI‑driven and answer‑based search. Right‑Door, a local digital agency, is rebuilding SEO foundations for companies with little organic presence, layering GEO and AEO principles...
By MarTech Series
News•Jan 19, 2026
Toxic Backlinks: What They Are & How to Find Them
Toxic backlinks are inbound links that violate Google’s link‑spam guidelines and can erode a site’s trust signals, especially when they appear in manipulative patterns. While Google often ignores isolated low‑quality links, large‑scale spam can trigger manual actions that suppress rankings....
By Semrush Blog
News•Jan 19, 2026
Viooh Partners With Atmosphere Tv To Unlock Programmatic Access
VIOOH has teamed up with Atmosphere TV to bring its premium programmatic supply‑side platform to the world’s largest place‑based streaming network. The deal unlocks more than 60,000 high‑traffic venues in the UK, North America and Australia, delivering over one billion monthly...
By MarTech Series
News•Jan 19, 2026
Google’s Core Updates, Explained
Google rolled out its most comprehensive 2025 Core Update over the holiday period, reshaping how its algorithm interprets queries and intent. Unlike Spam Updates, Core Updates do not penalize sites but shift rankings, lowering large publishers such as Macy’s while...
By Practical Ecommerce
News•Jan 19, 2026
How To Analyze Google Discover
Google Discover rewards content that quickly exceeds its predicted early‑stage performance, making high click‑through rates essential. The platform operates like a personalized news feed, driven by entities such as people, places, and organisations, and it mirrors search in valuing freshness...
By Search Engine Journal
News•Jan 19, 2026
Meta Castigated for Illegal Canadian Debt Relief Ads
Meta faces criticism from a Canadian licensed insolvency trustee after $20 million in 2023 was paid to unlicensed debt‑relief advertisers on Facebook and Instagram. Despite repeated outreach, evidence, and federal warnings, the ads remain live, prompting calls for accountability. The Office...
By Crowdfund Insider
News•Jan 19, 2026
GEO Myths: This Article May Contain Lies
The article debunks three prevalent Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) myths—llms.txt files, schema markup, and fresh content—by applying a "ladder of misinference" framework. It shows that llms.txt lacks empirical support, schema markup offers limited AI visibility benefits, and fresh content has...
By Search Engine Land
News•Jan 19, 2026
How Much Of Your Paid Media Budget Should Be Allocated To Upper Funnel?
Marketers are re‑evaluating how much of their paid media spend should support upper‑funnel activities such as awareness and interest. Research from BCG and academic studies shows that under‑investing in brand building can cost nearly twice as much later and depress...
By Search Engine Journal
News•Jan 19, 2026
10 Salary Negotiation Tips for Search Marketers
Negotiating salaries in marketing is challenging due to inconsistent job titles, lack of industry standards, and recent market shifts. The article outlines ten actionable tips grouped into four themes: assessing personal value, understanding realistic market rates, aligning with company values,...
By Search Engine Land
News•Jan 19, 2026
Google: Comments Link Spam Has No Effect On SEO/Search
Google’s John Mueller confirmed on Bluesky that links placed in comment sections have no effect on Google Search rankings, neither boosting nor harming a site. This clarification reiterates Google’s long‑standing position that comment spam is ignored by its algorithm. Webmasters...
By Search Engine Roundtable
News•Jan 19, 2026
Best Loop Marketing Tactics for the Era of AI-Powered Marketing
HubSpot unveiled Loop Marketing, a four‑stage, AI‑enhanced framework that replaces linear funnels with continuous cycles of learning and optimization. The model—Express, Tailor, Amplify, and Evolve—leverages AI to generate personalized content, expand presence across AI search engines and social video platforms,...
By HubSpot Marketing Blog
News•Jan 19, 2026
Head Of WordPress AI Team Explains SEO For AI Agents via @Sejournal, @Martinibuster
James LePage, Director Engineering AI at Automattic, explains that AI agents will tap the same web infrastructure and classic search indexes that power traditional search engines. He argues that AI SEO is fundamentally long‑tail keyword optimization, demanding clear schema, high...
By Search Engine Journal
News•Jan 19, 2026
Battle SEO® Launches Multi-Location SEO Expansion to Help Franchises Dominate Regional Search Results
Battle SEO has launched a multi‑location SEO expansion aimed at helping franchise brands and multi‑site businesses dominate regional search results. The offering addresses common pain points such as inconsistent city rankings, duplicated location pages, and diluted brand messaging by providing...
By MarTech Series
News•Jan 19, 2026
Speed and Transparency: The New CX Imperatives for 2026
Humii’s 2024‑2025 data shows e‑commerce speed is stagnating while shoppers demand clearer timelines. Mismanaged expectations—not slow service—are the primary cause of churn, especially around dispatch, live‑chat, and return authorisations. Young‑fashion retailers outperform the industry with five‑day refunds, whereas segments like...
By Inside Retail Australia
News•Jan 19, 2026
Google’s Mueller: Free Subdomain Hosting Makes SEO Harder via @Sejournal, @MattGSouthern
Google’s John Mueller warned that free subdomain hosting services create SEO challenges because they share infrastructure with spam‑filled sites. Even if a publisher follows best practices, the host’s reputation can lower crawl rates and indexation speed. The issue mirrors earlier...
By Search Engine Journal
News•Jan 19, 2026
Freeduhm.com Partnered With AdPlunge To Boost Both Brands Digital Advertising Business
Freeduhm.com, a global digital media and advertising firm, has entered a strategic partnership with AdPlunge.com, a programmatic ad network. The alliance merges Freeduhm’s data‑driven optimization platform with AdPlunge’s extensive publisher network to improve inventory utilization, fill rates and effective CPMs...
By MarTech Series
News•Jan 19, 2026
How Pattern Beauty’s CEO Sets up Brand Strategy to Win in a Multi-Channel World
At the NRF conference, Pattern Beauty co‑CEO Christiane Pendarvis detailed the brand’s rapid multi‑channel expansion, launching its DTC site and adding Ulta within ten days before partnering with Target, Sephora, Nordstrom, Amazon and Macy’s. She explained that each retailer is...
By Inside Retail Australia
News•Jan 19, 2026
Comment: Direct-to-Consumer Retail in 2026
Direct‑to‑Consumer (D2C) retail in 2026 is shifting from pure transactional models to relational commerce, where AI handles scale and humans deliver high‑emotion experiences. Trust has become the primary purchase driver, with 81% of shoppers needing brand confidence and referrals delivering...
By The Retail Bulletin
News•Jan 19, 2026
Avocados From Mexico Turns to AI to Advertise Around the Super Bowl Instead of a TV Buy
Avocados From Mexico is forgoing a traditional $8 million Super Bowl TV spot in favor of an AI‑driven Prediction Pit that delivers real‑time football forecasts and custom guacamole recipes. The experience features a realistic Rob Riggle avatar powered by a predictive AI...
By Modern Retail
News•Jan 19, 2026
Why Customer Service Is the Ultimate Competitive Edge in 2026
Customer service has become the decisive differentiator for businesses in 2026, with 89% of consumers abandoning a brand after a single poor interaction. The data shows it takes twelve positive experiences to offset one negative, and 55% of shoppers are...
By Martech Zone Interviews
News•Jan 19, 2026
Digital Translucency: Privacy Is Dying And Authenticity Is Your Only Defense
The blog argues that we have moved from managing an online image to a state of digital translucency, where every digital trace is permanent and eventually discoverable. Quantum‑computing advances and AI‑driven doxxing are eroding traditional privacy tools like encryption and...
By Martech Zone Interviews
News•Jan 19, 2026
Adalore: Turn Your Shopify Thank-You Page Into A Profit Engine
Adalore is an AI‑powered platform that converts Shopify thank‑you pages into a monetization channel by displaying curated, non‑competing offers from partner brands. The solution automates partner selection, offers performance‑based pricing, and provides real‑time analytics, allowing merchants to earn commissions without...
By Martech Zone Interviews
News•Jan 18, 2026
Mint Explainer: How AI Is a Threat to the Reputation of Top Influencers and What Can Be Done About It?
Top Indian influencers have recently taken legal action against AI‑generated deepfakes that misuse their likenesses, ranging from obscene videos to unauthorized commercial ads. While the Delhi High Court secured takedowns for some creators, only podcaster Raj Shamani has obtained a...
By Mint AI
News•Jan 18, 2026
Free QR Code Generator: How to Create Custom QR Codes with Logo Online
QR codes have become a ubiquitous bridge between physical media and digital experiences, and free online generators now let anyone create them in minutes. The article outlines how tools like Pixluca’s free QR code generator enable instant code creation, full‑color...
By TechBullion
News•Jan 18, 2026
Frasers Group Unifies Loyalty and Rewards Offering Under Frasers Plus
Frasers Group is consolidating its loyalty programmes by folding the Sports Direct Membership into its Frasers Plus platform, an FCA‑regulated credit account that spans the group’s portfolio and 16 partner retailers. The unified rewards system launches in February 2026, promising...
By The Retail Bulletin
News•Jan 18, 2026
X Announces $1 Million Prize For Top X Article This Month
X announced a $1 million prize for the most popular long‑form article posted on the platform before Jan 30, targeting U.S. X Premium subscribers. The winning piece must be original, at least 1,000 words, and judged primarily on verified Home Timeline impressions....
By Social Media Today
News•Jan 17, 2026
Google On Phantom Noindex Errors In Search Console via @Sejournal, @Martinibuster
Google Search Console can flag “Submitted URL marked ‘noindex’” even when no visible noindex tag exists. John Mueller confirmed such phantom noindex reports are often genuine, typically stemming from hidden HTTP headers or CDN‑level blocks. The issue usually arises when cached...
By Search Engine Journal
News•Jan 17, 2026
How to Overcome the “Link in Comments” Problem on LinkedIn and Other Social Platforms
Marketers increasingly hide URLs in LinkedIn comments to avoid algorithmic demotion, but the platform now suppresses link‑laden comments as well. The authors propose three workarounds: using implied links in the post copy, posting curiosity‑driven “hidden” comments that hint at additional...
By SparkToro Blog
News•Jan 17, 2026
How KRK Jewels Is Building Trust in the Online Diamond Marketplace
KRK Jewels is leveraging lab‑grown diamonds, certification and digital tools to overcome trust barriers in online diamond sales. The brand emphasizes IGI certification, high‑resolution imagery, and detailed specifications to assure buyers of quality and ethical sourcing. By integrating education on...
By TechBullion
News•Jan 16, 2026
Amy Hebdon Discusses the PPC Decision that Cost Her a Good Client Relationship
On episode 337 of PPC Live The Podcast, paid‑search veteran Amy Hebdon discusses two early career mistakes—a creative compliance conflict and an inactive low‑touch account—that strained client relationships. She emphasizes that while the tactical decisions were correct, poor communication and...
By Search Engine Land
News•Jan 16, 2026
OpenAI Says It Is Bringing Ads to ChatGPT
OpenAI announced it will begin testing advertisements in the free and Go tiers of ChatGPT within the next few weeks. Sponsored messages will appear at the bottom of AI‑generated answers, clearly labeled and separated from the organic response. The ads...
By Adweek AI
News•Jan 16, 2026
Discoverability in 2026: How Digital PR and Social Search Work Together
Discoverability has shifted from a single Google box to a multi‑platform journey across TikTok, Reddit, YouTube, and AI assistants. Brands must treat search as a layered experience, combining digital PR’s authority with social search’s distribution to influence decisions before a...
By Search Engine Land
News•Jan 16, 2026
Google Search Ranking Volatility Hits January 15-16
Google’s search algorithm showed noticeable volatility on January 15‑16, flagged by a suite of third‑party ranking tools. The fluctuation follows earlier unconfirmed spikes on January 6 and 12, as well as the December 2025 core update. No official Google statement has been released,...
By Search Engine Roundtable
News•Jan 16, 2026
Google To Prioritize Removing Prediction News Content From Search & News
Google announced it will prioritize changes to its search and news ranking algorithms to remove prediction‑type articles that masquerade as factual news. The move follows complaints that sports‑trade speculation pieces appear in top‑stories without clear labeling, misleading readers. VP of...
By Search Engine Roundtable
News•Jan 16, 2026
Microsoft Advertising Adds Share Of Voice Metrics, Asset Group-Level URL Options, Customer Acquisition Goals...
Microsoft Advertising unveiled a suite of enhancements, launching an open‑beta for customer‑acquisition goals and introducing Share of Voice (SOV) metrics that surface impression and click share data. Asset‑group‑level URL options and tracking templates now let advertisers tag performance at a...
By Search Engine Roundtable
News•Jan 16, 2026
Google Ads Manual CPC Bid Selection Streamlined
Google Ads has moved the Manual CPC bidding option into the Conversions goal section, now labeled “Manually set bids.” Previously, advertisers had to navigate to the “Select a bid strategy directly (not recommended)” area to use Manual CPC. The UI...
By Search Engine Roundtable