September always brings with it that ‘new school year’ feeling.
So, if you’ve been sunnin’ it up all summer, we’ve got you covered: our Strategy team have rounded up the key events from August that you need to be aware of, so you can hit the ground running.
Read the report here
Google’s August 2024 core update
Google rolled out a major core algorithm update that impacted search rankings across various industries. The latest update – which hasn’t yet finished rolling out at the time of writing – is designed to prioritise content that users find genuinely useful and offers real value. Senior Strategist Sara Galbiati details what this means.
AI Overviews have landed (again)
Google has launched AI overviews in India, Brazil, Japan, UK, Indonesia and Mexico, and is reportedly increasing the visibility of reference sites on both desktop and mobile. AI Overviews is now being offered for 17% of queries (Authoritas), and as high as 35%+ for certain niches. And, whilst Google insists that links contained in AI Overviews generate more clicks, they have so far declined to share any data on this…
Paula Gonzalez, Hallam’s Head of Organic, outlines the need-to-know basics of this latest update.
Perplexity’s entry into the search ad market
Perplexity is set to launch an advertising offering in Q4 2024, using its AI-search data to attract advertisers and push its tech into the mainstream. As AI platforms grapple with how best to monetise their offering against the background of huge levels of product investment, Perplexity looks to be following the well-trodden path of leveraging advertising to scale their user base. Jack Morgan looks further into this.
