<div><img width="800" height="457" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/03/google-logo-cracking-1920-800x457.jpg" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="" style="margin-bottom: 15px;" decoding="async" fetchpriority="high" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/03/google-logo-cracking-1920-800x457.jpg 800w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/03/google-logo-cracking-1920-592x338.jpg 592w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/03/google-logo-cracking-1920-198x113.jpg 198w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/03/google-logo-cracking-1920-768x439.jpg 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/03/google-logo-cracking-1920-1536x878.jpg 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/03/google-logo-cracking-1920.jpg 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></div>Google confirmed  an issue with serving content across numerous surfaces for some users. May be part of the Google Cloud outage.

<div><img width="800" height="457" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/03/google-logo-cracking-1920-800x457.jpg" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="" style="margin-bottom: 15px;" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/03/google-logo-cracking-1920-800x457.jpg 800w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/03/google-logo-cracking-1920-592x338.jpg 592w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/03/google-logo-cracking-1920-198x113.jpg 198w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/03/google-logo-cracking-1920-768x439.jpg 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/03/google-logo-cracking-1920-1536x878.jpg 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/03/google-logo-cracking-1920.jpg 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></div>
<p>Google has confirmed a content serving issue with Google Discover, Google Lens and voice search for some users.</p>



<p><strong>What Google said. </strong>Google <a href="https://status.search.google.com/incidents/wNcefVMLpVGGoFLzgMEg">wrote</a>:</p>



<p>&#8220;There&#8217;s an ongoing issue with serving Google Lens, Discover, and Voice Search results that&#8217;s affecting some users. We&#8217;re working on identifying the root cause. The next update will be within 12 hours.&#8221;</p>



<p><strong>Impacting who. </strong>It is unclear how widespread the issue is but Google said it is &#8220;affecting some users.&#8221;  It must be larger enough of an impact for Google to post about it on its status report.</p>



<p><strong>Larger internet issues. </strong>Google Cloud <a href="https://status.cloud.google.com/">posted</a> regional issues across almost all its services, CloudFlare <a href="https://www.cloudflarestatus.com/">posted</a> issues for its services, and sevices like AWS and others are <a href="https://www.techmeme.com/250612/p34#a250612p34">reportedly</a> having issues as well.</p>



<p><strong>Why we care. </strong>If your site gets traffic from Google Discover, Google Lens and voice search, you may want to annotate the outage or issues.  In addition, even if you don&#8217;t, your site and services may be having loading issues due to AWS, Cloudflare and Google Cloud issues.</p>



<p><strong>Update</strong> &#8211; <strong>New content</strong> <strong>impacted too. </strong>It appears that Google Search is <a href="https://www.seroundtable.com/google-search-not-serving-new-content-39584.html">no longer returning new content</a> in its index and search results.  This started a few hours after the initial issue.  </p>


Google has confirmed a content serving issue with Google Discover, Google Lens and voice search for some users.
What Google said. Google wrote:
“There’s an ongoing issue with serving Google Lens, Discover, and Voice Search results that’s affecting some users. We’re working on identifying the root cause. The next update will be within 12 hours.”
Impacting who. It is unclear how widespread the issue is but Google said it is “affecting some users.”  It must be larger enough of an impact for Google to post about it on its status report.
Larger internet issues. Google Cloud posted regional issues across almost all its services, CloudFlare posted issues for its services, and sevices like AWS and others are reportedly having issues as well.
Why we care. If your site gets traffic from Google Discover, Google Lens and voice search, you may want to annotate the outage or issues.  In addition, even if you don’t, your site and services may be having loading issues due to AWS, Cloudflare and Google Cloud issues.
Update – New content impacted too. It appears that Google Search is no longer returning new content in its index and search results.  This started a few hours after the initial issue.

Google confirmed  an issue with serving content across numerous surfaces for some users. May be part of the Google Cloud outage.

Google Lens, Discover, and Voice Search serving issues

<div><img width="800" height="457" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/09/man-phone-desk-google-logo-1920-800x457.jpg" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="" style="margin-bottom: 15px;" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/09/man-phone-desk-google-logo-1920-800x457.jpg 800w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/09/man-phone-desk-google-logo-1920-592x338.jpg 592w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/09/man-phone-desk-google-logo-1920-198x113.jpg 198w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/09/man-phone-desk-google-logo-1920-768x439.jpg 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/09/man-phone-desk-google-logo-1920-1536x878.jpg 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/09/man-phone-desk-google-logo-1920.jpg 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></div>Specifically these will no longer be supported; Book Actions, Course Info, Claim Review, Estimated Salary, Learning Video, Special Announcement and Vehicle Listing. 

<div><img width="800" height="457" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/09/man-phone-desk-google-logo-1920-800x457.jpg" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="" style="margin-bottom: 15px;" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/09/man-phone-desk-google-logo-1920-800x457.jpg 800w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/09/man-phone-desk-google-logo-1920-592x338.jpg 592w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/09/man-phone-desk-google-logo-1920-198x113.jpg 198w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/09/man-phone-desk-google-logo-1920-768x439.jpg 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/09/man-phone-desk-google-logo-1920-1536x878.jpg 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/09/man-phone-desk-google-logo-1920.jpg 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></div>
<p>Google will be dropping support for several structured data markup elements in order to simplify the search results interface.  Specifically, Book Actions, Course Info, Claim Review, Estimated Salary, Learning Video, Special Announcement, and Vehicle Listing will no longer show rich results in the Google Search results.</p>



<p><strong>Why are they being removed. </strong>Google <a href="https://developers.google.com/search/blog/2025/06/simplifying-search-results">said</a> they &#8220;believe this change contributes to a cleaner, more focused Search results page for everyone.&#8221; Google added they are not used that much. &#8220;We’re phasing out these specific structured data types because our analysis shows that they’re not commonly used in Search, and we found that these specific displays are no longer providing significant additional value for users,&#8221; Google added.</p>



<p>Google said, &#8220;Removing them will help streamline the results page and focus on other experiences that are more useful and widely used.&#8221;</p>



<p><strong>What is being removed. </strong>Here is the list of structured data elements being removed:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><a href="https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/structured-data/book">Book Actions</a></li>



<li><a href="https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/structured-data/course-info">Course Info</a></li>



<li><a href="https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/structured-data/factcheck">Claim Review</a></li>



<li><a href="https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/structured-data/estimated-salary">Estimated Salary</a></li>



<li><a href="https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/structured-data/learning-video">Learning Video</a></li>



<li><a href="https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/structured-data/special-announcements">Special Announcement</a></li>



<li><a href="https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/structured-data/vehicle-listing">Vehicle Listing</a></li>
</ul>



<p><strong>When will they be removed. </strong>Google said these will be &#8220;phased out over the coming weeks and months.&#8221; It is unclear when each one will be removed but they will be removed over the coming weeks.</p>



<p><strong>Other structured data not going away. </strong>Google supports a large number (about 30 or so) of <a href="https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/structured-data/search-gallery">structured data elements</a> and Google stressed they will &#8220;continue to actively support a range of structured data types that users find helpful when evaluating content to visit.&#8221; &#8220;Structured data can be a valuable way for website owners to describe their content and enable helpful Search features,&#8221; Google added.</p>



<p><strong>More changes coming? </strong>Google hinted that more changes may be coming.  Google wrote, &#8220;We’ll keep looking for ways to simplify the Search results page to provide the best experience for users and website owners, and we’ll share updates as we continue this work.&#8221;</p>



<p><strong>Why we care. </strong>The removal structured data support may result in a lower click-through rate from the Google search results, since those search result snippets won&#8217;t have as much &#8220;dressing&#8221; to them.</p>



<p>But keep in mind, while Google may no longer support these structured data elements, other search engines may continue to support them.  So you can keep it on your pages for other search engines who may use them.</p>


Google will be dropping support for several structured data markup elements in order to simplify the search results interface.  Specifically, Book Actions, Course Info, Claim Review, Estimated Salary, Learning Video, Special Announcement, and Vehicle Listing will no longer show rich results in the Google Search results.
Why are they being removed. Google said they “believe this change contributes to a cleaner, more focused Search results page for everyone.” Google added they are not used that much. “We’re phasing out these specific structured data types because our analysis shows that they’re not commonly used in Search, and we found that these specific displays are no longer providing significant additional value for users,” Google added.
Google said, “Removing them will help streamline the results page and focus on other experiences that are more useful and widely used.”
What is being removed. Here is the list of structured data elements being removed:
Book Actions
Course Info
Claim Review
Estimated Salary
Learning Video
Special Announcement
Vehicle Listing
When will they be removed. Google said these will be “phased out over the coming weeks and months.” It is unclear when each one will be removed but they will be removed over the coming weeks.
Other structured data not going away. Google supports a large number (about 30 or so) of structured data elements and Google stressed they will “continue to actively support a range of structured data types that users find helpful when evaluating content to visit.” “Structured data can be a valuable way for website owners to describe their content and enable helpful Search features,” Google added.
More changes coming? Google hinted that more changes may be coming.  Google wrote, “We’ll keep looking for ways to simplify the Search results page to provide the best experience for users and website owners, and we’ll share updates as we continue this work.”
Why we care. The removal structured data support may result in a lower click-through rate from the Google search results, since those search result snippets won’t have as much “dressing” to them.
But keep in mind, while Google may no longer support these structured data elements, other search engines may continue to support them.  So you can keep it on your pages for other search engines who may use them.

Specifically these will no longer be supported; Book Actions, Course Info, Claim Review, Estimated Salary, Learning Video, Special Announcement and Vehicle Listing.

Google to drop support for several rich result types to simplify the search results page

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/12-actionable-tips-for-the-AI-Mode-era.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="12 actionable tips for the AI Mode era" style="margin-bottom: 15px;" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/12-actionable-tips-for-the-AI-Mode-era.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/12-actionable-tips-for-the-AI-Mode-era-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/12-actionable-tips-for-the-AI-Mode-era-1536x864.png 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>Get your brand ready for AI-first search. Create standout content, optimize for agents, and lead in the era of search everywhere.

Optimizing for Google AI Mode (and AI search in general) isn’t just business as usual for SEO professionals. 
But it also doesn’t necessitate a deep technical understanding of vector space or dense retrieval models. 
Instead, it calls for recognizing and addressing the evolution of both Google Search and user behavior. 
This means adapting existing SEO tactics (yes, SEO is still not dead) with updated strategies, fresh applications, evolving approaches, and new ways to measure success.
While these tips will help prepare your strategy for the future, remember the immediate goal is to win today. 
Currently, most people aren’t using AI Mode, and AI search still accounts for less than 1% of most brands’ traffic from what I’ve seen from client data. 
However, it is crucial to strategically prepare for tomorrow, as AI will undoubtedly expand its role and continue to bring significant new opportunities.
If you want to win today while also preparing for tomorrow, implement these 12 tips.
Topical authority model showing core topics and how they branch out to supplementary topics
1. Cultivate deep topical authority
Strive to become a go-to expert in your space by creating a wealth of insightful content that thoroughly explores your main topics and subtopics. 
Think of your goal as being the most comprehensive and reliable resource available. 
Ensure your pages link to one another naturally, guiding users and AI through your content like a clear, structured map. 
Your goal is to have Gemini find your brand for as many topically related queries as possible and to make your message as relevant as possible. 
When writing your content, focus on genuinely explaining concepts and their relationships, not just sprinkling in keywords. 
The aim is to make your expertise unmistakably clear and valuable to both people and AI systems.

Dig deeper: How AI Mode and AI Overviews work based on patents and why we need new strategic focus on SEO
2. Build your brand through search everywhere optimization
In 2025, much of search is beyond our direct control. 
That makes it vital to focus on what you can influence: your brand. 
Build a strong brand presence through diverse channels and invest in digital PR to expand your reach. 
In addition to building strong topical authority on your site, you also need a search everywhere optimization strategy to make sure your content is discoverable across all the platforms where AI models, like Gemini, collect information.
The ultimate goal is for AI to identify your brand as the most relevant and valuable resource at every stage of its reasoning, effectively answering both explicit and implied user questions.
3. Be user-driven
AI Mode is user-first, so success in this new chapter will require user-centric approaches. 
AI Mode answers will be heavily personalized, integrating user behavior and preferences from other Google sources (e.g., Gmail). 
AI Mode answers will be contextualized based on user embeddings, which are like digital fingerprints based on things like:
Search and click history.
Content engagement history.
Location.
Demographics.
Google’s longstanding recommendation to do what’s best for your users has never been more critical.
Dig deeper: The next wave of search: AI Mode, deep research and beyond
4. Create unique content 
Standing out has never been more crucial. Simply replicating existing content from competitors won’t work. 
You need to create something truly unique and valuable, leaning into the existing E-E-A-T framework. This means:
Leveraging proprietary or custom data.
Integrating exclusive quotes.
Showcasing contextualized subject matter expertise to deliver content that genuinely hasn’t been done a dozen times before.
5. Think beyond rankings and clicks
Success metrics in modern-day search are changing. 
Google hasn’t shared data backing up their claim that clicks in an AI Overview SERP are coming from “more engaged audiences” that are “more likely to spend more time onsite.” 
Still, the recommendation to “understand the full value of your visits” is valid, nonetheless. 
Make sure you focus on lower funnel KPIs and how those are trending. 
Rather than just traffic volume, this means evaluating metrics like:
Transactions.
Leads generated.
Customer lifetime value. 
Understanding the qualitative impact of AI visits will be key to understanding and proving ROI.
Dig deeper: 12 new KPIs for the generative AI search era
6. Audit your content for relevancy and freshness
Relevance is everything in this next era of search. 
Continuously audit and refresh your website content for stronger relevance and new insights. 
Strategically retire outdated or off-topic content to optimize topical authority and overall site value. 
This ensures your content provides the most current and comprehensive answers, aligning with how AI prioritizes information. 
By maintaining a highly relevant and fresh content library, you signal expertise and trustworthiness to both users and AI.
AnswerThePublic questions flywheel showing longtail “marketing” questions
Get the newsletter search marketers rely on.
  
				
								
					MktoForms2.loadForm("https://app-sj02.marketo.com", "727-ZQE-044", 16298, function(form) {
						// form.onSubmit(function(){
						// });
						
						// form.onSuccess(function (values, followUpUrl) {
						// });
					});
				
			
See terms.
7. Think outside the ‘search volume’ box
AI mode captures intent that the user didn’t explicitly express. 
Gemini moves beyond the initial prompt and determines user intent either:

Directly from the user’s explicit query.
By inferring and synthesizing it from their history and context. 
While we aren’t in a position to completely eliminate search volume yet, conversational AI search will eventually render keyword search volumes less relevant and less accurate. 
Instead of focusing solely on keywords and search volumes, take the time to ensure: 
Your content is semantically rich.
Explores related concepts and diverse user intents.
Provides a deep and authoritative understanding.
Screenshots of Google’s AI Mode at work to find and book MLB tickets
Dig deeper: Chunks, passages and micro-answer engine optimization wins in Google AI Mode
8. Start thinking about agent optimization
It will take time, but connecting with audiences via AI agents will be crucial as users will ultimately rely on agents rather than websites for their needs.
Agents will not only synthesize and personalize answers for people, but they’ll complete actions, too. 
Grabbing tickets to a Padres game.
Signing up for a new yoga studio.
Purchasing a new set of earbuds. 
Agents will become personal assistants, and marketers need to start thinking about how they optimize content and experiences for agents.
Rank in AI mode by moving beyond text-based content into imagery, video, and audio
9. Move beyond text-based content
AI Mode’s ability to synthesize information extends far beyond just text, actively incorporating imagery, audio, and video into its responses. 
To maximize visibility and relevance, strategically diversify your content portfolio. 
This means:
Optimizing images with descriptive alt text and contextually relevant captions.
Creating engaging video content with clear transcripts.
Even exploring audio formats like podcasts, if you haven’t already. 
Ensuring these assets are discoverable and clearly aligned with related topics will be crucial, as AI aims to provide comprehensive, multi-faceted answers. 
If your content strategy remains solely text-focused, you risk being overlooked in this richer, more dynamic information landscape.
Dig deeper: How multimodal discovery is redefining SEO in the AI era
Invest in CRO and UX to get more from each site visitor
10. Invest in CRO and UX
With AI search reducing organic site traffic, every visitor becomes that much more valuable. 
CRO focuses on refining your website to make it easier for users to take desired actions, such as:
Completing a purchase.
Submitting a form. 
An optimized user experience ensures your site is intuitive, engaging, and easy to navigate. 
Make sure you have clear calls to action, fast load times, and an overall frustration-free journey, so those who do visit can easily convert.
Profound Answer Engine Insights
11. Onboard Profound
Profound is a best-in-class AI search optimization tool, built by a team who’s thinking isn’t clouded by the history of SEO and how things have been done historically. 
They’re building technology specifically to help brands show up in LLMs and AI Mode. 
Going forward, you’ll need data about your performance in AI search, such as: 
Sentiment.
Citation frequency.
AI share of voice. 
Your standard SEO tools just aren’t going to cut it anymore.
Dig deeper: SEO in an AI-powered world: What changed in just a year
12. Put poor collaboration to bed
Winning in 2025 and beyond means there’s zero tolerance when it comes to working in silos. 
Knowledge sharing and collaboration is the only path forward. 
SEO, content, social media, CRO, user experience, engineering, digital PR, brand, product, and data and analytics will all have to work together to:
Win AI visibility.
Keep up with the shifts.
React to what’s working or not.

Get your brand ready for AI-first search. Create standout content, optimize for agents, and lead in the era of search everywhere.

12 actionable tips for the Google AI Mode era

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/5-tests-to-run-to-drive-growth-with-LinkedIn-Ads.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="5 tests to run to drive growth with LinkedIn Ads" style="margin-bottom: 15px;" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/5-tests-to-run-to-drive-growth-with-LinkedIn-Ads.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/5-tests-to-run-to-drive-growth-with-LinkedIn-Ads-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/5-tests-to-run-to-drive-growth-with-LinkedIn-Ads-1536x864.png 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>LinkedIn’s not just an awareness play anymore. Try these five ad types, tune your offer, and start pulling qualified leads into your funnel.

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/5-tests-to-run-to-drive-growth-with-LinkedIn-Ads.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="5 tests to run to drive growth with LinkedIn Ads" style="margin-bottom: 15px;" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/5-tests-to-run-to-drive-growth-with-LinkedIn-Ads.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/5-tests-to-run-to-drive-growth-with-LinkedIn-Ads-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/5-tests-to-run-to-drive-growth-with-LinkedIn-Ads-1536x864.png 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>
<p>Convincing B2B brands to test <a href="https://searchengineland.com/linkedin-advertising-a-comprehensive-guide-439831">LinkedIn Ads</a> is getting easier as <a href="https://searchengineland.com/cpc-inflation-google-ads-costs-rising-fast-454291">Google’s CPCs continue to rise</a>.&nbsp;</p>



<p>For its part, LinkedIn has helped make a case for itself with some much-needed updates lately, including UX improvements in Campaign Manager and some measurement functionality, including <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/help/lms/answer/a1655394" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CAPI</a> (finally) and a new <a href="https://business.linkedin.com/marketing-solutions/revenue-attribution-report" target="_blank" rel="noopener">revenue attribution report</a>.</p>



<p>So, assuming you’re working with (or for) a brand that’s willing to see what kind of results LinkedIn can produce, here are the tests to prioritize, including:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Thought leader ads.</li>



<li>Conversation ads.</li>



<li>Video ads.</li>



<li>Carousel ads.</li>



<li>Different offers.</li>
</ul>



<p>Let’s lay out the reasoning and some recommendations for each.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-thought-leader-ads-testing">1. Thought leader ads testing</h2>



<p>Thought leader ads (TLAs) have produced great engagement for our clients since we began testing them shortly after LinkedIn introduced them in 2023.&nbsp;</p>



<p>The engagement makes sense.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Content coming from personal accounts is far more human and appealing than content coming from faceless corporate accounts.</p>



<p>Thought leader ads, especially given that they have only an indirect association with a brand, are perhaps LinkedIn’s ultimate top-of-funnel play.</p>



<p>Advertisers need to be aware of that when they test the ad type. They’re highly effective in conveying information in longer-form content and work best under the following conditions:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>A focus on customers and their problems and challenges, not your product.</li>



<li>A poster with a relatively high profile, a senior title, and a good base of followers.</li>



<li>An engaging hook, an authoritative but authentic tone, and highly readable formatting (e.g., short paragraphs and plenty of vertical spacing).</li>



<li>Emoji usage when appropriate (but beware patterns of clearly AI-generated content).</li>



<li>Images or video included.</li>
</ul>



<p>You <strong>can</strong><em> </em>use TLAs to promote assets to get lead information (you’ve all seen the “DM me to get a copy” or “Comment with {prompt}” to request a copy).&nbsp;</p>



<p>If you’d prefer to stay squarely focused on thought leadership, you can measure the effectiveness of your TLAs through engagements and impressions, particularly those from brands in your ICP.&nbsp;</p>



<p><strong><em>Dig deeper: <a href="https://searchengineland.com/top-6-b2b-paid-media-platforms-where-and-how-to-advertise-effectively-451512">Top 6 B2B paid media platforms: Where and how to advertise effectively</a></em></strong></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-conversation-ads-testing">2. Conversation ads testing</h2>



<p>TLAs are great for getting in front of a fairly good-sized, less-targeted audience for little cost.</p>



<p>On the other hand, conversation ads are good for very small audiences, with precise targeting of users in your ICP and tightly aligned, customized messaging.</p>



<p>Even with their small scale, conversation ads are much more cost-effective at engaging qualified leads than sponsored content.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Our clients use them for prospecting, but not just with decision-makers.&nbsp;</p>



<p>With a strong enough message, conversation ads can spark engagement with decision influencers that may catalyze internal conversations within the brand’s team.</p>



<p>Conversation ads have several elements to test:&nbsp;</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>CTAs.</li>



<li>Messaging angles and length.</li>



<li>Different senders (e.g., a company’s CEO vs. a director of business development).</li>



<li>Subject lines.</li>



<li>Etc.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>



<p>Test one of these at a time to keep results clear.</p>



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	<div class="row align-items-center nl-inline-container">
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-video-ads-testing">3. Video ads testing</h2>



<p>LinkedIn has introduced more functionality for video ads in the past year-plus. This has been a win-win for the platform and its advertisers.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Video has proven effective at the top of the funnel because people come to LinkedIn to engage with content, not to find solution providers, and video is a highly digestible, immersive format.</p>



<p>LinkedIn was later to the video game than Meta (as well as <a href="https://searchengineland.com/youtube-advertising-the-ultimate-guide-436845">YouTube</a> and <a href="https://searchengineland.com/tiktok-advertising-450817">TikTok</a>), but its users are showing similar preferences for playfulness and authenticity.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Our clients have had more success with less-produced videos and animations than slicker, more corporate-looking content, so save yourself some budget and go for a more UGC angle.</p>



<p><strong><em>Dig deeper: <a href="https://searchengineland.com/test-ugc-egc-ads-meta-campaigns-454940">How to test UGC and EGC ads in Meta campaigns</a></em></strong></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-4-carousel-ads-testing">4. Carousel ads testing</h2>



<p>Although carousel ads aren’t as immersive as video, the interactive element has provided a nice blend of user engagement and a narrative-friendly format for advertisers.</p>



<p>When we develop carousel ads for our clients, we test a few content themes:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Highlighted features of our clients’ product or service, with real use cases.</li>



<li>Data or insights-driven slides that include stats or quantifiable results.</li>



<li>A problem/solution journey that starts with a pain point and explains how the brand’s product or solution solves it.</li>
</ul>



<p>For all of these, the last slide of the carousel has a CTA, which we decide on thanks to our last test.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-5-offer-testing">5. Offer testing</h2>



<p>Remember that you’re living primarily at the top of the funnel with the ads I just mentioned, and align your offer accordingly (very, very few users are going to “sign up for a free demo” with a brand they just learned about).</p>



<p>We’ve seen good conversion rates with low-friction CTAs like “learn more,” “see how,” and an offer to engage with calculators or other interactive features.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Test a few offers to see what works; from there, make sure you’ve got strategically planned email sequences that align with the content the lead has engaged with.</p>



<p><strong><em>Dig deeper: <a href="https://searchengineland.com/5-underrated-tools-to-boost-your-b2b-ppc-performance-in-2025-451837">5 underrated tools to boost your B2B PPC performance in 2025</a></em></strong></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-final-thoughts">Final thoughts</h2>



<p>The most important consideration to keep front and center for LinkedIn ads is their relative strength in the customer journey.</p>



<p>They’re great for building engagement and awareness, not closing the deal.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Although we have definitely reaped the benefits of targeting in-market users, from decision-influencers to decision-makers.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Approached with the right mentality, strategic LinkedIn tests will introduce some productive options for bringing high-value users into your funnel.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Make sure you’ve locked down your nurture strategy and your measurement strategy, including the CAPI and revenue attribution tools mentioned above, to help you get a clearer picture of the ultimate impact of LinkedIn ads in your bottom-funnel metrics.&nbsp;</p>



<p>My well-informed hunch is that you’ll realize that adding LinkedIn to your channel mix is a great way to mitigate Google’s increasing costs and keep your funnel supplied with new users.</p>

Convincing B2B brands to test LinkedIn Ads is getting easier as Google’s CPCs continue to rise. 
For its part, LinkedIn has helped make a case for itself with some much-needed updates lately, including UX improvements in Campaign Manager and some measurement functionality, including CAPI (finally) and a new revenue attribution report.
So, assuming you’re working with (or for) a brand that’s willing to see what kind of results LinkedIn can produce, here are the tests to prioritize, including:
Thought leader ads.
Conversation ads.
Video ads.
Carousel ads.
Different offers.
Let’s lay out the reasoning and some recommendations for each.
1. Thought leader ads testing
Thought leader ads (TLAs) have produced great engagement for our clients since we began testing them shortly after LinkedIn introduced them in 2023. 
The engagement makes sense. 
Content coming from personal accounts is far more human and appealing than content coming from faceless corporate accounts.
Thought leader ads, especially given that they have only an indirect association with a brand, are perhaps LinkedIn’s ultimate top-of-funnel play.
Advertisers need to be aware of that when they test the ad type. They’re highly effective in conveying information in longer-form content and work best under the following conditions:
A focus on customers and their problems and challenges, not your product.
A poster with a relatively high profile, a senior title, and a good base of followers.
An engaging hook, an authoritative but authentic tone, and highly readable formatting (e.g., short paragraphs and plenty of vertical spacing).
Emoji usage when appropriate (but beware patterns of clearly AI-generated content).
Images or video included.
You can use TLAs to promote assets to get lead information (you’ve all seen the “DM me to get a copy” or “Comment with {prompt}” to request a copy). 
If you’d prefer to stay squarely focused on thought leadership, you can measure the effectiveness of your TLAs through engagements and impressions, particularly those from brands in your ICP. 
Dig deeper: Top 6 B2B paid media platforms: Where and how to advertise effectively
2. Conversation ads testing
TLAs are great for getting in front of a fairly good-sized, less-targeted audience for little cost.
On the other hand, conversation ads are good for very small audiences, with precise targeting of users in your ICP and tightly aligned, customized messaging.
Even with their small scale, conversation ads are much more cost-effective at engaging qualified leads than sponsored content. 
Our clients use them for prospecting, but not just with decision-makers. 
With a strong enough message, conversation ads can spark engagement with decision influencers that may catalyze internal conversations within the brand’s team.
Conversation ads have several elements to test: 
CTAs.
Messaging angles and length.
Different senders (e.g., a company’s CEO vs. a director of business development).
Subject lines.
Etc. 
Test one of these at a time to keep results clear.
Get the newsletter search marketers rely on.
  
				
								
					MktoForms2.loadForm("https://app-sj02.marketo.com", "727-ZQE-044", 16298, function(form) {
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						// });
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See terms.
3. Video ads testing
LinkedIn has introduced more functionality for video ads in the past year-plus. This has been a win-win for the platform and its advertisers. 
Video has proven effective at the top of the funnel because people come to LinkedIn to engage with content, not to find solution providers, and video is a highly digestible, immersive format.
LinkedIn was later to the video game than Meta (as well as YouTube and TikTok), but its users are showing similar preferences for playfulness and authenticity. 
Our clients have had more success with less-produced videos and animations than slicker, more corporate-looking content, so save yourself some budget and go for a more UGC angle.
Dig deeper: How to test UGC and EGC ads in Meta campaigns
4. Carousel ads testing
Although carousel ads aren’t as immersive as video, the interactive element has provided a nice blend of user engagement and a narrative-friendly format for advertisers.
When we develop carousel ads for our clients, we test a few content themes:
Highlighted features of our clients’ product or service, with real use cases.
Data or insights-driven slides that include stats or quantifiable results.
A problem/solution journey that starts with a pain point and explains how the brand’s product or solution solves it.
For all of these, the last slide of the carousel has a CTA, which we decide on thanks to our last test.
5. Offer testing
Remember that you’re living primarily at the top of the funnel with the ads I just mentioned, and align your offer accordingly (very, very few users are going to “sign up for a free demo” with a brand they just learned about).
We’ve seen good conversion rates with low-friction CTAs like “learn more,” “see how,” and an offer to engage with calculators or other interactive features. 
Test a few offers to see what works; from there, make sure you’ve got strategically planned email sequences that align with the content the lead has engaged with.
Dig deeper: 5 underrated tools to boost your B2B PPC performance in 2025
Final thoughts
The most important consideration to keep front and center for LinkedIn ads is their relative strength in the customer journey.
They’re great for building engagement and awareness, not closing the deal. 
Although we have definitely reaped the benefits of targeting in-market users, from decision-influencers to decision-makers. 
Approached with the right mentality, strategic LinkedIn tests will introduce some productive options for bringing high-value users into your funnel. 
Make sure you’ve locked down your nurture strategy and your measurement strategy, including the CAPI and revenue attribution tools mentioned above, to help you get a clearer picture of the ultimate impact of LinkedIn ads in your bottom-funnel metrics. 
My well-informed hunch is that you’ll realize that adding LinkedIn to your channel mix is a great way to mitigate Google’s increasing costs and keep your funnel supplied with new users.

LinkedIn’s not just an awareness play anymore. Try these five ad types, tune your offer, and start pulling qualified leads into your funnel.

5 LinkedIn Ads tests to run to drive growth

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear-202506-header.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="" style="margin-bottom: 15px;" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear-202506-header.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear-202506-header-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear-202506-header-1536x864.png 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>Your top affiliates might be stealing from you. Discover the hidden tactics behind $84 billion in ad losses: cloaking, fake coupons, ad hijacking, and others.

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear-202506-header.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="" style="margin-bottom: 15px;" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear-202506-header.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear-202506-header-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear-202506-header-1536x864.png 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>
<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear-202506-header.png" alt="Fraud alert warning" class="wp-image-456531" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear-202506-header.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear-202506-header-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear-202506-header-1536x864.png 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></figure>



<p>Affiliate marketing is widely used by companies in different niches: from travel agents to ecommerce giants like Amazon and tech platforms like Shopify. No wonder, as affiliate marketing is a win-win strategy for both affiliates and brands. Brands get better results, while affiliates earn fair commissions.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Everyone benefits – but only when the system is used fairly.</p>



<p>Affiliate fraud refers to deceptive techniques used by affiliate partners who cheat to earn commissions they do not deserve. This threat hasn’t gone away in 2025 – it’s evolved.</p>



<p>Before, affiliate fraud was mostly about basic click farms or fake purchases. Today, it’s far more sophisticated: ad hijacking, cloaked sites, and smart redirects. These tactics are harder to detect and far more damaging forms of ad fraud.</p>



<p>Over 22% of global digital ad spend was lost to ad fraud in 2023, totaling around $84 billion, according to Juniper Research. What’s more, fraudsters are blending in as high-performing affiliates. You see “great” results while partners are quietly stealing from you and inflating costs using affiliate marketing fraud techniques.</p>



<p>This guide breaks down the most common affiliate fraud tactics, how they impact your business, and – most importantly – what you can do to spot and stop them using affiliate fraud prevention strategies.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-modern-affiliate-fraud-tactics-and-how-they-avoid-detection">Modern affiliate fraud tactics and how they avoid detection</h2>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-full"><img decoding="async" width="800" height="285" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear-202506-1.png" alt="Affiliate fraud playbook 2025" class="wp-image-456532" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear-202506-1.png 800w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear-202506-1-768x274.png 768w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></figure></div>


<p>Here are the most common tactics used today and how they stay under the radar:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ad-hijacking">Ad hijacking</h3>



<p>Fraudulent affiliates run paid search ads using your brand name, mimicking your official messaging. To the average user, the ad looks like yours – but it’s actually theirs, redirecting traffic through their affiliate link.</p>



<p>To hide the violations, affiliates use geotargeting, dayparting, and IP exclusions to avoid being caught by your own team.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-url-hijacking">URL hijacking</h3>



<p>Scammers register domain names that closely resemble your brand (e.g. brandnmae.com) and funnel visitors through affiliate links.</p>



<p>How do they hide it? The sites are often auto-redirects with no visible content, making them harder to track unless you’re actively scanning for variants.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-website-cloaking">Website cloaking</h3>



<p>This involves showing different content to users and to tracking tools or moderators. A landing page may appear compliant to you – but users see aggressive or misleading content.</p>



<p>Cloaking tools detect bots, IPs, and browser fingerprints, serving “clean” versions only to reviewers – bypassing basic detection systems not built for affiliate fraud prevention.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-trademark-abuse">Trademark abuse</h3>



<p>Fraudulent affiliates use your registered brand name in unauthorized ways to hijack traffic and appear as official partners. Violations may take place in domain names, ad copy, or meta descriptions.</p>



<p>To hide it, they often operate from regions with weak enforcement, use lookalike domains, or launch short-term campaigns to avoid detection before takedowns can happen.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-coupon-fraud-and-last-click-theft">Coupon fraud and last-click theft</h3>



<p>Fraudsters use fake coupon codes or browser extensions that trigger affiliate cookies seconds before checkout, even when the user came from another channel.</p>



<p>How do they hide it? The theft happens in the final step of the funnel, making it difficult to detect without proper attribution modeling and affiliate fraud detection tools.</p>



<p>Despite all the fraudsters’ efforts to hide the violations, you can still spot that something is wrong with your brand’s advertising. There are eight red flags that indicate affiliate marketing fraud:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Too many leads from a single traffic source.</li>



<li>A short time gap between an ad click and the target action. </li>



<li>Patterned user behavior.</li>



<li>Different GEOs for the same user.</li>



<li>Low conversion rates with significant traffic volume. </li>



<li>Conversion rates at 100% or close to it.</li>



<li>Suspicious activity at nighttime.</li>



<li>Users are active for no more than three days.</li>
</ul>



<p>Learn more about <a href="https://bluepear.net/blog/8-red-flags-of-affiliate-marketing-fraud?utm_source=searchengineland&amp;utm_medium=article&amp;utm_campaign=8_billion_lost_to_a_ad_fraud" target="_blank" rel="noopener sponsored nofollow">affiliate fraud detection</a> red flags in our in-depth guide.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-hidden-business-costs-of-affiliate-fraud">The hidden business costs of affiliate fraud</h2>



<p>Affiliate fraud may seem like just a few lost commissions, but the real damage goes far deeper. Brands that do not stop affiliate abuse may face long-term financial and reputational losses due to unchecked ad fraud.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-full"><img decoding="async" width="800" height="234" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear-202506-2.png" alt="Affiliate fraud playbook 2025" class="wp-image-456533" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear-202506-2.png 800w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear-202506-2-768x225.png 768w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></figure></div>


<p>Let’s see in detail what hidden costs affiliate marketing fraud causes:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-wasted-marketing-budgets">Wasted marketing budgets</h3>



<p>Fraudulent affiliates often steal your own organic traffic through brand bidding, fake coupon codes, or ad hijacking. Over time, this artificially inflates your cost-per-acquisition (CPA). You pay commissions for your loyal customers instead of attracting new clients.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-skewed-analytics-data">Skewed analytics data</h3>



<p>When scammers manipulate cookies or hijack last-click attribution, your reporting becomes unreliable. As a result, budgets get shifted to channels or affiliates that don’t actually perform, while real value drivers are underfunded or cut.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-damaged-brand-reputation">Damaged brand reputation</h3>



<p>Shady affiliates often use misleading ads, fake discount sites, or low-quality landing pages. Customers might not even realize the affiliate was a third party. They leave negative feedback, driving potential clients (and their money) away from your brand.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-higher-internal-costs">Higher internal costs</h3>



<p>Affiliate fraud forces your team to spend time on damage control: cleaning up tracking issues, handling complaints, auditing conversions, or chasing down bad actors. These hidden labor costs add up fast, and they don’t show up in your monthly performance reports.</p>



<p>This is how untracked affiliate abuse drains the company’s budget and keeps the brand from growth.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-affiliate-fraud-goes-unnoticed-even-by-great-teams">Why affiliate fraud goes unnoticed even by great teams</h2>



<p>Even the most experienced affiliate managers and marketing teams can miss affiliate fraud. Not because they aren’t skilled, but because modern affiliate marketing fraud is designed to stay hidden.</p>



<p>Today’s fraudulent affiliates use highly targeted tactics like geo-fencing, device filtering, language targeting, and time-based ad rotation. That’s why smart brands rely on affiliate fraud prevention solutions.</p>



<p>Let’s do some math:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>You have about <strong>30</strong> branded search queries.</li>



<li>You need to check them at least once in two hours, <strong>12</strong> times a day.</li>



<li>To combat geotargeting, you will do it from at least <strong>3</strong> different geos.</li>



<li>You need to check the SERPs from <strong>2</strong> search engines. </li>



<li>Plus, it is better to use <strong>3</strong> different browsers.</li>
</ul>



<p>30 search queries х 12 times a day х 3 geos х 2 search engines х 3 browser = <strong>6,480</strong></p>



<p>That’s the number of queries that your team needs to cover per day to keep up with the fraudsters. Let’s be honest: it’s not realistic. And that’s exactly what fraudsters count on.</p>



<p>What teams need isn’t more hours; it’s better tools built for real-time affiliate fraud protection.<strong> </strong>Affiliate fraud detection tools simulate real user behavior, scan global search results from multiple environments, and uncover what human review simply can’t reach.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-smarter-monitoring-a-reliable-way-to-stop-affiliate-abuse">Smarter monitoring: A reliable way to stop affiliate abuse </h2>



<p>Let’s break down how automated monitoring works. Bluepear is fraud-detecting software that protects branded search:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>You set branded keywords for Bluepear to watch in search results.</li>



<li>The system continuously scans SERPs and flags suspicious placements.</li>



<li>It mimics real users – switching devices, locations, browsers, and languages – to uncover hidden violations.</li>



<li>Each finding includes full details: ad text, destination URL, redirect chain, time, and geo.</li>



<li>Bluepear captures screenshots and logs everything in a clear, actionable report – making it a powerful tool for affiliate fraud protection.</li>



<li>You get notified the moment a violation is found – no guesswork, no delay.<br></li>
</ul>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-full"><img decoding="async" width="800" height="450" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear0202506-3.png" alt="" class="wp-image-456534" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear0202506-3.png 800w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Bluepear0202506-3-768x432.png 768w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></figure></div>


<p>As you see, automated tools make it a lot easier to spot and stop violations, even the most sophisticated ones. Great news: <a href="https://bluepear.net/?utm_source=searchengineland&amp;utm_medium=article&amp;utm_campaign=8_billion_lost_to_a_ad_fraud" target="_blank" rel="noopener sponsored nofollow"><strong>Bluepear provides a free 7-day trial</strong></a><strong>, so that you can check if the tool meets your needs or not.</strong></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-final-thoughts">Final thoughts</h2>



<p>Affiliate fraud is a real and growing threat, even for skilled and well-resourced marketing teams. As fraud tactics become more advanced and harder to detect, ignoring the problem is no longer an option.</p>



<p>The fact that you read this line is already a good sign. Understanding how affiliate scams work is a first step to effective brand protection. Awareness creates clarity, and clarity leads to smarter decisions.</p>



<p>We recommend taking a moment to watch your traffic more closely:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Consider how transparent your affiliate program really is.</li>



<li>Think about where automation might help you see what manual checks can’t.</li>
</ul>



<p><strong><a href="https://bluepear.net/?utm_source=searchengineland&amp;utm_medium=article&amp;utm_campaign=8_billion_lost_to_a_ad_fraud" target="_blank" rel="noopener sponsored nofollow">Bluepear is here to help — get a 7-day free trial</a> to see how effective automated monitoring is.</strong></p>



<p>Think about where automation might help you see what manual checks can’t – it’s a key to building solid affiliate fraud protection strategies.</p>


Affiliate marketing is widely used by companies in different niches: from travel agents to ecommerce giants like Amazon and tech platforms like Shopify. No wonder, as affiliate marketing is a win-win strategy for both affiliates and brands. Brands get better results, while affiliates earn fair commissions. 
Everyone benefits – but only when the system is used fairly.
Affiliate fraud refers to deceptive techniques used by affiliate partners who cheat to earn commissions they do not deserve. This threat hasn’t gone away in 2025 – it’s evolved.
Before, affiliate fraud was mostly about basic click farms or fake purchases. Today, it’s far more sophisticated: ad hijacking, cloaked sites, and smart redirects. These tactics are harder to detect and far more damaging forms of ad fraud.
Over 22% of global digital ad spend was lost to ad fraud in 2023, totaling around $84 billion, according to Juniper Research. What’s more, fraudsters are blending in as high-performing affiliates. You see “great” results while partners are quietly stealing from you and inflating costs using affiliate marketing fraud techniques.
This guide breaks down the most common affiliate fraud tactics, how they impact your business, and – most importantly – what you can do to spot and stop them using affiliate fraud prevention strategies.
Modern affiliate fraud tactics and how they avoid detection

Here are the most common tactics used today and how they stay under the radar:
Ad hijacking
Fraudulent affiliates run paid search ads using your brand name, mimicking your official messaging. To the average user, the ad looks like yours – but it’s actually theirs, redirecting traffic through their affiliate link.
To hide the violations, affiliates use geotargeting, dayparting, and IP exclusions to avoid being caught by your own team.
URL hijacking
Scammers register domain names that closely resemble your brand (e.g. brandnmae.com) and funnel visitors through affiliate links.
How do they hide it? The sites are often auto-redirects with no visible content, making them harder to track unless you’re actively scanning for variants.
Website cloaking
This involves showing different content to users and to tracking tools or moderators. A landing page may appear compliant to you – but users see aggressive or misleading content.
Cloaking tools detect bots, IPs, and browser fingerprints, serving “clean” versions only to reviewers – bypassing basic detection systems not built for affiliate fraud prevention.
Trademark abuse
Fraudulent affiliates use your registered brand name in unauthorized ways to hijack traffic and appear as official partners. Violations may take place in domain names, ad copy, or meta descriptions.
To hide it, they often operate from regions with weak enforcement, use lookalike domains, or launch short-term campaigns to avoid detection before takedowns can happen.
Coupon fraud and last-click theft
Fraudsters use fake coupon codes or browser extensions that trigger affiliate cookies seconds before checkout, even when the user came from another channel.
How do they hide it? The theft happens in the final step of the funnel, making it difficult to detect without proper attribution modeling and affiliate fraud detection tools.
Despite all the fraudsters’ efforts to hide the violations, you can still spot that something is wrong with your brand’s advertising. There are eight red flags that indicate affiliate marketing fraud:
Too many leads from a single traffic source.
A short time gap between an ad click and the target action. 
Patterned user behavior.
Different GEOs for the same user.
Low conversion rates with significant traffic volume. 
Conversion rates at 100% or close to it.
Suspicious activity at nighttime.
Users are active for no more than three days.
Learn more about affiliate fraud detection red flags in our in-depth guide.
The hidden business costs of affiliate fraud
Affiliate fraud may seem like just a few lost commissions, but the real damage goes far deeper. Brands that do not stop affiliate abuse may face long-term financial and reputational losses due to unchecked ad fraud.

Let’s see in detail what hidden costs affiliate marketing fraud causes:
Wasted marketing budgets
Fraudulent affiliates often steal your own organic traffic through brand bidding, fake coupon codes, or ad hijacking. Over time, this artificially inflates your cost-per-acquisition (CPA). You pay commissions for your loyal customers instead of attracting new clients.
Skewed analytics data
When scammers manipulate cookies or hijack last-click attribution, your reporting becomes unreliable. As a result, budgets get shifted to channels or affiliates that don’t actually perform, while real value drivers are underfunded or cut.
Damaged brand reputation
Shady affiliates often use misleading ads, fake discount sites, or low-quality landing pages. Customers might not even realize the affiliate was a third party. They leave negative feedback, driving potential clients (and their money) away from your brand.
Higher internal costs
Affiliate fraud forces your team to spend time on damage control: cleaning up tracking issues, handling complaints, auditing conversions, or chasing down bad actors. These hidden labor costs add up fast, and they don’t show up in your monthly performance reports.
This is how untracked affiliate abuse drains the company’s budget and keeps the brand from growth.
Why affiliate fraud goes unnoticed even by great teams
Even the most experienced affiliate managers and marketing teams can miss affiliate fraud. Not because they aren’t skilled, but because modern affiliate marketing fraud is designed to stay hidden.
Today’s fraudulent affiliates use highly targeted tactics like geo-fencing, device filtering, language targeting, and time-based ad rotation. That’s why smart brands rely on affiliate fraud prevention solutions.
Let’s do some math:
You have about 30 branded search queries.
You need to check them at least once in two hours, 12 times a day.
To combat geotargeting, you will do it from at least 3 different geos.
You need to check the SERPs from 2 search engines. 
Plus, it is better to use 3 different browsers.
30 search queries х 12 times a day х 3 geos х 2 search engines х 3 browser = 6,480
That’s the number of queries that your team needs to cover per day to keep up with the fraudsters. Let’s be honest: it’s not realistic. And that’s exactly what fraudsters count on.
What teams need isn’t more hours; it’s better tools built for real-time affiliate fraud protection. Affiliate fraud detection tools simulate real user behavior, scan global search results from multiple environments, and uncover what human review simply can’t reach.
Smarter monitoring: A reliable way to stop affiliate abuse 
Let’s break down how automated monitoring works. Bluepear is fraud-detecting software that protects branded search:
You set branded keywords for Bluepear to watch in search results.
The system continuously scans SERPs and flags suspicious placements.
It mimics real users – switching devices, locations, browsers, and languages – to uncover hidden violations.
Each finding includes full details: ad text, destination URL, redirect chain, time, and geo.
Bluepear captures screenshots and logs everything in a clear, actionable report – making it a powerful tool for affiliate fraud protection.
You get notified the moment a violation is found – no guesswork, no delay.






As you see, automated tools make it a lot easier to spot and stop violations, even the most sophisticated ones. Great news: Bluepear provides a free 7-day trial, so that you can check if the tool meets your needs or not.
Final thoughts
Affiliate fraud is a real and growing threat, even for skilled and well-resourced marketing teams. As fraud tactics become more advanced and harder to detect, ignoring the problem is no longer an option.
The fact that you read this line is already a good sign. Understanding how affiliate scams work is a first step to effective brand protection. Awareness creates clarity, and clarity leads to smarter decisions.
We recommend taking a moment to watch your traffic more closely:
Consider how transparent your affiliate program really is.
Think about where automation might help you see what manual checks can’t.
Bluepear is here to help — get a 7-day free trial to see how effective automated monitoring is.
Think about where automation might help you see what manual checks can’t – it’s a key to building solid affiliate fraud protection strategies.

Your top affiliates might be stealing from you. Discover the hidden tactics behind $84 billion in ad losses: cloaking, fake coupons, ad hijacking, and others.

$84 billion lost to ad fraud: What you missed about affiliate abuse in 2025 by Bluepear

<div><img width="800" height="450" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/Microsoft-Ads-800x450.jpg" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="Microsoft Ads" style="margin-bottom: 15px;" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/Microsoft-Ads-800x450.jpg 800w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/Microsoft-Ads-600x338.jpg 600w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/Microsoft-Ads-200x113.jpg 200w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/Microsoft-Ads-768x432.jpg 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/Microsoft-Ads-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/Microsoft-Ads.jpg 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></div>Microsoft Advertising's latest updates bring smarter reporting, more flexible campaign controls, and streamlined cross-platform tools.

<div><img width="800" height="450" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/Microsoft-Ads-800x450.jpg" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="Microsoft Ads" style="margin-bottom: 15px;" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/Microsoft-Ads-800x450.jpg 800w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/Microsoft-Ads-600x338.jpg 600w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/Microsoft-Ads-200x113.jpg 200w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/Microsoft-Ads-768x432.jpg 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/Microsoft-Ads-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/Microsoft-Ads.jpg 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></div>
<p>Microsoft Advertising just dropped a fresh wave of product updates, with major changes to reporting, Performance Max, import tools, and Shopify integration — all designed to help advertisers stay agile in a shifting economic and consumer landscape.</p>



<p><strong>Reporting gets a full redesign</strong>. Microsoft has overhauled the Reporting homepage and launched a powerful new Custom Report Builder. </p>



<p>Why it matters &#8211; Faster access to key metrics and recommended templates. Full customization with filters, breakdowns, and scheduling. More flexibility to analyze what matters most — with less effort. </p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="833" height="482" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/blog-73124-bodyimage01-833x467-1.webp" alt="" class="wp-image-456910" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/blog-73124-bodyimage01-833x467-1.webp 833w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/blog-73124-bodyimage01-833x467-1-768x444.webp 768w" sizes="(max-width: 833px) 100vw, 833px" /></figure>



<p><strong>Performance Max</strong>. Performance Max campaigns now follow standard auction dynamics when overlapping with Standard Shopping campaigns — meaning the highest Ad Rank wins, not just default PMax priority. </p>



<p>Why it matters &#8211; More flexibility and control in mixed-campaign accounts. Smoother testing with fewer surprises in delivery. </p>



<p>Microsoft reports that PMax campaigns deliver 39% higher conversion rates than Standard Shopping (US, Feb–Apr 2025). Other new PMax features include support for scripts, automated rules, asset group copy-paste, new customer acquisition goals (in pilot), and enhanced conversion diagnostic tools directly in the UI.</p>



<p><strong>Google &amp; Meta Import: Smarter, faster setup</strong>. Importing carousel ads? Now you can bring the first image from Google or Meta ads into Microsoft Audience ads as native creatives. Coming soon in June: Smart import issue detection with quick-fix recommendations for faster campaign troubleshooting. </p>



<p>Why it matters &#8211; Less manual work, faster cross-platform scaling, and more consistent brand performance.</p>



<p><strong>Shopify + Microsoft: Global reach, simplified</strong>. The Microsoft Channel app on Shopify now supports more markets — including the UK, Japan, Australia, and key EU countries. Merchants can connect Microsoft Ads directly from Shopify, sync product catalogs to Bing/MSN Shopping, and launch and manage Performance Max campaigns natively. </p>



<p>Why it matters &#8211; Shopify merchants can now expand reach and conversions without leaving their store interface.</p>



<p><strong>Why we care.</strong> These updates give advertisers more control, efficiency, and visibility. The redesigned reporting tools make it easier to track performance and optimize faster. Performance Max campaign improvements allow smarter bidding and more flexibility, while enhanced import features and Shopify integration help streamline cross-platform efforts and expand reach—all with less manual work.</p>



<p><strong>The bottom line</strong>. These updates give advertisers more control, clearer insights, and faster ways to scale campaigns — helping them drive better performance across Microsoft’s growing ad ecosystem.</p>


Microsoft Advertising just dropped a fresh wave of product updates, with major changes to reporting, Performance Max, import tools, and Shopify integration — all designed to help advertisers stay agile in a shifting economic and consumer landscape.
Reporting gets a full redesign. Microsoft has overhauled the Reporting homepage and launched a powerful new Custom Report Builder. 
Why it matters – Faster access to key metrics and recommended templates. Full customization with filters, breakdowns, and scheduling. More flexibility to analyze what matters most — with less effort. 




Performance Max. Performance Max campaigns now follow standard auction dynamics when overlapping with Standard Shopping campaigns — meaning the highest Ad Rank wins, not just default PMax priority. 
Why it matters – More flexibility and control in mixed-campaign accounts. Smoother testing with fewer surprises in delivery. 
Microsoft reports that PMax campaigns deliver 39% higher conversion rates than Standard Shopping (US, Feb–Apr 2025). Other new PMax features include support for scripts, automated rules, asset group copy-paste, new customer acquisition goals (in pilot), and enhanced conversion diagnostic tools directly in the UI.
Google & Meta Import: Smarter, faster setup. Importing carousel ads? Now you can bring the first image from Google or Meta ads into Microsoft Audience ads as native creatives. Coming soon in June: Smart import issue detection with quick-fix recommendations for faster campaign troubleshooting. 
Why it matters – Less manual work, faster cross-platform scaling, and more consistent brand performance.
Shopify + Microsoft: Global reach, simplified. The Microsoft Channel app on Shopify now supports more markets — including the UK, Japan, Australia, and key EU countries. Merchants can connect Microsoft Ads directly from Shopify, sync product catalogs to Bing/MSN Shopping, and launch and manage Performance Max campaigns natively. 
Why it matters – Shopify merchants can now expand reach and conversions without leaving their store interface.
Why we care. These updates give advertisers more control, efficiency, and visibility. The redesigned reporting tools make it easier to track performance and optimize faster. Performance Max campaign improvements allow smarter bidding and more flexibility, while enhanced import features and Shopify integration help streamline cross-platform efforts and expand reach—all with less manual work.
The bottom line. These updates give advertisers more control, clearer insights, and faster ways to scale campaigns — helping them drive better performance across Microsoft’s growing ad ecosystem.

Microsoft Advertising's latest updates bring smarter reporting, more flexible campaign controls, and streamlined cross-platform tools.

Microsoft Advertising launches reporting overhaul & Performance Max updates

<div><img width="800" height="457" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/05/google-reddit-splatter-1920-800x457.jpg" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="" style="margin-bottom: 15px;" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/05/google-reddit-splatter-1920-800x457.jpg 800w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/05/google-reddit-splatter-1920-592x338.jpg 592w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/05/google-reddit-splatter-1920-198x113.jpg 198w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/05/google-reddit-splatter-1920-768x439.jpg 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/05/google-reddit-splatter-1920-1536x878.jpg 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/05/google-reddit-splatter-1920.jpg 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></div>Google also removed the section in their help docs on using the robots.txt to block all automatically translated pages.

<div><img width="800" height="457" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/05/google-reddit-splatter-1920-800x457.jpg" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="" style="margin-bottom: 15px;" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/05/google-reddit-splatter-1920-800x457.jpg 800w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/05/google-reddit-splatter-1920-592x338.jpg 592w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/05/google-reddit-splatter-1920-198x113.jpg 198w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/05/google-reddit-splatter-1920-768x439.jpg 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/05/google-reddit-splatter-1920-1536x878.jpg 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/05/google-reddit-splatter-1920.jpg 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></div>
<p>A number of sites are using AI tools to translate their content, some are even auto-translating millions of pages and pieces of content across their websites. Reddit was one of the most notable, but <a href="https://searchengineland.com/google-stealing-international-traffic-translations-456797">we&#8217;ve covered others</a>.</p>



<p>Glenn Gabe, an SEO consultant, asked <a href="https://www.gsqi.com/marketing-blog/auto-translating-content-google-scaled-content-abuse/">Is it safe</a> to do this and wrote an excellent deep dive into Google&#8217;s documentation on the topic.  In fact, he dug up a Reddit earnings call where Reddit&#8217;s executive team <a href="https://www.gsqi.com/marketing-blog/auto-translating-content-google-scaled-content-abuse/#:~:text=And%20beyond%20that,in%20the%20video).">said</a>, &#8220;it’s totally sanctioned (by Google)&#8221; to do this.</p>



<p><strong>Google comments. </strong>So I reached out to Google to learn more about this since there been cases where Google in the past said using automated translation is a no-go. That being said, Google&#8217;s new statement makes it sound like in many cases, it is OK.</p>



<p>A Google spokesperson told us:</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p>&#8220;While we don’t comment on the status of specific sites or pages, nor do we provide individualized support for any site, our policies do not strictly define content that has been translated by AI as spam. Our&nbsp;<a href="https://developers.google.com/search/docs/essentials/spam-policies#scaled-content" target="_blank" rel="noopener">scaled content abuse policy</a>&nbsp;mentions automated transformations, including translations, as part of the overall warning against creating large amounts of unoriginal content that provides little to no value to users.&#8221;</p>
</blockquote>



<p><strong>More changes to Google documentation.</strong> In addition to the statement that Google both sent Glenn Gabe and myself, <a href="https://x.com/glenngabe/status/1932820373587763485">Glenn noted</a> that Google changed its search <a href="https://developers.google.com/search/docs/specialty/international/managing-multi-regional-sites">documentation on managing multi-regional sites</a>. Gabe wrote:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>&#8220;Google is removing information about blocking auto-translated content from their documentation about managing multilingual sites. I had a feeling they would do that. I think it was just overlooked.&#8221;</li>
</ul>



<p><strong>Why we care. </strong>It appears that using AI translation to produce translated pages that provide value to your users is OK with Google. But Google is not saying all AI translation is okay and they reference their <a href="https://developers.google.com/search/docs/essentials/spam-policies#scaled-content" target="_blank" rel="noopener">scaled content abuse policy</a> for further guidance.</p>



<p>Just be careful with taking shortcuts with content, ensure that users appreciate it and find value from it.</p>


A number of sites are using AI tools to translate their content, some are even auto-translating millions of pages and pieces of content across their websites. Reddit was one of the most notable, but we’ve covered others.
Glenn Gabe, an SEO consultant, asked Is it safe to do this and wrote an excellent deep dive into Google’s documentation on the topic.  In fact, he dug up a Reddit earnings call where Reddit’s executive team said, “it’s totally sanctioned (by Google)” to do this.
Google comments. So I reached out to Google to learn more about this since there been cases where Google in the past said using automated translation is a no-go. That being said, Google’s new statement makes it sound like in many cases, it is OK.
A Google spokesperson told us:
“While we don’t comment on the status of specific sites or pages, nor do we provide individualized support for any site, our policies do not strictly define content that has been translated by AI as spam. Our scaled content abuse policy mentions automated transformations, including translations, as part of the overall warning against creating large amounts of unoriginal content that provides little to no value to users.”
More changes to Google documentation. In addition to the statement that Google both sent Glenn Gabe and myself, Glenn noted that Google changed its search documentation on managing multi-regional sites. Gabe wrote:
“Google is removing information about blocking auto-translated content from their documentation about managing multilingual sites. I had a feeling they would do that. I think it was just overlooked.”
Why we care. It appears that using AI translation to produce translated pages that provide value to your users is OK with Google. But Google is not saying all AI translation is okay and they reference their scaled content abuse policy for further guidance.
Just be careful with taking shortcuts with content, ensure that users appreciate it and find value from it.

Google also removed the section in their help docs on using the robots.txt to block all automatically translated pages.

Reddit uses AI to translate millions of pages and Google’s OK with it

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Google-Display-Network-Explained.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="Google Display Network Explained" style="margin-bottom: 15px;" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Google-Display-Network-Explained.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Google-Display-Network-Explained-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Google-Display-Network-Explained-1536x864.png 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>Learn how the Google Display Network works, challenges to watch out for, and practical tips to improve ad performance and avoid wasted spend.

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Google-Display-Network-Explained.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="Google Display Network Explained" style="margin-bottom: 15px;" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Google-Display-Network-Explained.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Google-Display-Network-Explained-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Google-Display-Network-Explained-1536x864.png 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div><div style="padding:177.78% 0 0 0;position:relative;"><iframe src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/1092154197?badge=0&amp;autopause=0&amp;player_id=0&amp;app_id=58479" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture; clipboard-write; encrypted-media" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;" title="Google Display Network EXPLAINED | Google Ads Tips"></iframe></div><script src="https://player.vimeo.com/api/player.js"></script>


<p></p>



<p>You’d be hard pressed to find a Google Ads practitioner who loves the Google Display Network (GDN). Some may be indifferent to display ads, some (like me) may hate them, but I have yet to encounter anyone who is passionate about success with the GDN.</p>



<p>That being said, GDN is either an optional or required part of most Google Ads campaign types, so it’s important to understand its capabilities and limitations. </p>



<p>In this article, we’ll cover what the GDN is, how it works with different Google Ads campaign types, and most importantly, how to navigate its challenges to get the best possible results for your campaigns.</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>What is the Google Display Network?</li>



<li>What are Video Partners in Google Ads?</li>



<li>How different campaign types work with the Display Network</li>



<li>How to monitor your Display Network performance</li>



<li>How can you target ads on the Display Network?</li>



<li>Should you run ads on the Display Network?</li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-the-google-display-network">What is the Google Display Network?</h2>



<p>The Google Display Network is a collection of more than 2 million websites and apps that monetize using Google AdSense. According to Google, the GDN reaches more than 90% of the internet audience globally. That&#8217;s huge – it has a wider reach than Google Search!</p>



<p>Here&#8217;s how it works: website owners, app developers and even YouTube creators who want to earn money can use a tool like Google AdSense to create space for ads on their platforms. </p>



<p>As an advertiser, you can then place your ads in these spaces through Google Ads. When a user interacts with your ad, you pay Google, and Google shares a portion of that revenue with the publisher.</p>



<p>When I say &#8220;publisher,&#8221; your mind might jump to major news outlets like The New York Times. And while they are certainly part of it, the GDN encompasses a massive variety of sites and apps, from small blogs to popular mobile games. Accordingly, there is a wide range in the quality of these websites, apps, and channels.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-are-video-partners-in-google-ads">What are Video Partners in Google Ads?</h2>



<p>Within the broad scope of the Google Display Network, there&#8217;s a specialized segment called Video Partners.</p>



<p>The GDN has a mix of text, image, and video ad inventory. </p>



<p>Video Partners are a subset of that video inventory, meaning they are specific websites and apps that are set up to show video ads.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-different-campaign-types-work-with-the-display-network">How different campaign types work with the Display Network</h2>



<p>Depending on what type of Google Ads campaign you’re running, you may be automatically opted into GDN, and potentially unable to opt out. Here’s what that looks like by campaign type:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong>Display Campaigns, Performance Max Campaigns, App Campaigns:</strong> If you&#8217;re running any of these campaign types, your ads will automatically show on the Google Display Network. If you&#8217;ve included video ad creative, you’ll likely also appear on Video Partners. These campaign types are designed with the GDN in mind, making them a natural fit for broader reach.</li>



<li><strong>Search Campaigns: </strong>The Display Network will be turned on by default when you create a new Search campaign, but most Google Ads experts (myself included) will advise that you turn this off. The intent of users on Search is very different from those browsing the Display Network, and mixing them usually leads to wasted budget in your Search campaigns.</li>



<li><strong>Video Campaigns: </strong>For Video campaigns, you have the option to include Video Partners. While you&#8217;re welcome to test it, I generally don&#8217;t recommend this. It&#8217;s often better to keep your video campaigns focused on YouTube for better performance.</li>



<li><strong>Demand Gen Campaigns:</strong> With Demand Gen campaigns, you have granular control over your channel settings. You can choose to opt into or out of the Display Network. I prefer to keep my Demand Gen campaigns on Google-owned properties only: YouTube, Gmail and Discover.</li>



<li><strong>Shopping Campaigns:</strong> This is the only campaign type that is not compatible with the Display Network. However, you can include your Google Merchant Center feed in a Display, Video, Demand Gen or Performance Max campaign, which opens up GDN inventory for your products.</li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-to-monitor-your-display-network-performance">How to monitor your Display Network performance</h2>



<p>If you want to understand how your ads are performing on the GDN, you have a few different options in Google Ads:</p>



<ol class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong>Segment by Network</strong>: For most campaign types, you can add a <em>Segment</em> for <em>Network</em> in your reports. This allows you to break down your performance data by where your ads showed (e.g., Google Search vs. Google Display Network). This is particularly helpful for Search campaigns, to see if you might have accidentally opted into the GDN.</li>



<li><strong>Channel Performance Report (Performance Max)</strong>: If you&#8217;re running Performance Max campaigns, you can find insights into your GDN performance within the &#8220;Channel performance report.&#8221; This report gives you a detailed breakdown of how your ads are doing across different channels, including the GDN.</li>



<li><strong>Insights and Reports > Where ads showed</strong>: This report, also known as your Placements report, lists all the websites, apps and YouTube channels where your GDN ads have run. If you see any placements that look irrelevant, spammy, or just not a good fit for your brand, you can add them as exclusions. This is similar to adding a negative keyword to a Search campaign. You can add exclusions at the ad group, campaign, or account level</li>
</ol>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-can-you-target-ads-on-the-display-network">How can you target ads on the Display Network?</h2>



<p>Ads that run on the Display Network can be targeted based on audience and/or content.</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>With <strong>audience targeting</strong>, you’re selecting users based on who they are. This could be based on their interests, demographics, behaviors, or even if they&#8217;ve interacted with your business before (remarketing). For example, you might target people interested in outdoor activities or those who have visited your website in the last 30 days.</li>



<li>With <strong>content targeting</strong>, you’re selecting users based on the content they are currently engaging with. This includes display keywords, topics and even specific placements on websites, apps, YouTube channels or YouTube videos. For example, you might target people using gaming apps, or place your ads on your competitors’ YouTube channels.</li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-should-you-run-ads-on-the-display-network">Should you run ads on the Display Network?</h2>



<p>I&#8217;m generally not a fan of the Display Network. </p>



<p>I’ve found that the traffic quality tends to be lower compared to Google-owned properties like Discover, Gmail, Maps, and Google Search. That’s because most users on Google-owned properties are signed in, so Google knows exactly who they are, which is immensely helpful for ad targeting purposes. </p>



<p>On the Display Network, Google doesn’t know who all of those users are. This lack of data often leads to more irrelevant traffic and more susceptibility to spam.</p>



<p>However, the GDN is unavoidable in an increasingly automated Google Ads environment. And it does have a few unique benefits; combined segments only work with Search and Display campaigns now, and dynamic remarketing is only available through Display campaigns and Performance Max. Just make sure you monitor your performance closely, and leverage conversion-based Smart Bidding to minimize wasted ad spend.</p>



<p><em>This article is part of our ongoing weekly Search Engine Land series, Everything you need to know about Google Ads in less than 3 minutes. Every Wednesday, Jyll highlights a different Google Ads feature, and what you need to know to get the best results from it – all in a quick 3-minute read.</em></p>


You’d be hard pressed to find a Google Ads practitioner who loves the Google Display Network (GDN). Some may be indifferent to display ads, some (like me) may hate them, but I have yet to encounter anyone who is passionate about success with the GDN.
That being said, GDN is either an optional or required part of most Google Ads campaign types, so it’s important to understand its capabilities and limitations. 
In this article, we’ll cover what the GDN is, how it works with different Google Ads campaign types, and most importantly, how to navigate its challenges to get the best possible results for your campaigns.
What is the Google Display Network?
What are Video Partners in Google Ads?
How different campaign types work with the Display Network
How to monitor your Display Network performance
How can you target ads on the Display Network?
Should you run ads on the Display Network?
What is the Google Display Network?
The Google Display Network is a collection of more than 2 million websites and apps that monetize using Google AdSense. According to Google, the GDN reaches more than 90% of the internet audience globally. That’s huge – it has a wider reach than Google Search!
Here’s how it works: website owners, app developers and even YouTube creators who want to earn money can use a tool like Google AdSense to create space for ads on their platforms. 
As an advertiser, you can then place your ads in these spaces through Google Ads. When a user interacts with your ad, you pay Google, and Google shares a portion of that revenue with the publisher.
When I say “publisher,” your mind might jump to major news outlets like The New York Times. And while they are certainly part of it, the GDN encompasses a massive variety of sites and apps, from small blogs to popular mobile games. Accordingly, there is a wide range in the quality of these websites, apps, and channels.
What are Video Partners in Google Ads?
Within the broad scope of the Google Display Network, there’s a specialized segment called Video Partners.
The GDN has a mix of text, image, and video ad inventory. 
Video Partners are a subset of that video inventory, meaning they are specific websites and apps that are set up to show video ads.
How different campaign types work with the Display Network
Depending on what type of Google Ads campaign you’re running, you may be automatically opted into GDN, and potentially unable to opt out. Here’s what that looks like by campaign type:
Display Campaigns, Performance Max Campaigns, App Campaigns: If you’re running any of these campaign types, your ads will automatically show on the Google Display Network. If you’ve included video ad creative, you’ll likely also appear on Video Partners. These campaign types are designed with the GDN in mind, making them a natural fit for broader reach.
Search Campaigns: The Display Network will be turned on by default when you create a new Search campaign, but most Google Ads experts (myself included) will advise that you turn this off. The intent of users on Search is very different from those browsing the Display Network, and mixing them usually leads to wasted budget in your Search campaigns.
Video Campaigns: For Video campaigns, you have the option to include Video Partners. While you’re welcome to test it, I generally don’t recommend this. It’s often better to keep your video campaigns focused on YouTube for better performance.
Demand Gen Campaigns: With Demand Gen campaigns, you have granular control over your channel settings. You can choose to opt into or out of the Display Network. I prefer to keep my Demand Gen campaigns on Google-owned properties only: YouTube, Gmail and Discover.
Shopping Campaigns: This is the only campaign type that is not compatible with the Display Network. However, you can include your Google Merchant Center feed in a Display, Video, Demand Gen or Performance Max campaign, which opens up GDN inventory for your products.
How to monitor your Display Network performance
If you want to understand how your ads are performing on the GDN, you have a few different options in Google Ads:
Segment by Network: For most campaign types, you can add a Segment for Network in your reports. This allows you to break down your performance data by where your ads showed (e.g., Google Search vs. Google Display Network). This is particularly helpful for Search campaigns, to see if you might have accidentally opted into the GDN.
Channel Performance Report (Performance Max): If you’re running Performance Max campaigns, you can find insights into your GDN performance within the “Channel performance report.” This report gives you a detailed breakdown of how your ads are doing across different channels, including the GDN.
Insights and Reports > Where ads showed: This report, also known as your Placements report, lists all the websites, apps and YouTube channels where your GDN ads have run. If you see any placements that look irrelevant, spammy, or just not a good fit for your brand, you can add them as exclusions. This is similar to adding a negative keyword to a Search campaign. You can add exclusions at the ad group, campaign, or account level
How can you target ads on the Display Network?
Ads that run on the Display Network can be targeted based on audience and/or content.
With audience targeting, you’re selecting users based on who they are. This could be based on their interests, demographics, behaviors, or even if they’ve interacted with your business before (remarketing). For example, you might target people interested in outdoor activities or those who have visited your website in the last 30 days.
With content targeting, you’re selecting users based on the content they are currently engaging with. This includes display keywords, topics and even specific placements on websites, apps, YouTube channels or YouTube videos. For example, you might target people using gaming apps, or place your ads on your competitors’ YouTube channels.
Should you run ads on the Display Network?
I’m generally not a fan of the Display Network. 
I’ve found that the traffic quality tends to be lower compared to Google-owned properties like Discover, Gmail, Maps, and Google Search. That’s because most users on Google-owned properties are signed in, so Google knows exactly who they are, which is immensely helpful for ad targeting purposes. 
On the Display Network, Google doesn’t know who all of those users are. This lack of data often leads to more irrelevant traffic and more susceptibility to spam.
However, the GDN is unavoidable in an increasingly automated Google Ads environment. And it does have a few unique benefits; combined segments only work with Search and Display campaigns now, and dynamic remarketing is only available through Display campaigns and Performance Max. Just make sure you monitor your performance closely, and leverage conversion-based Smart Bidding to minimize wasted ad spend.
This article is part of our ongoing weekly Search Engine Land series, Everything you need to know about Google Ads in less than 3 minutes. Every Wednesday, Jyll highlights a different Google Ads feature, and what you need to know to get the best results from it – all in a quick 3-minute read.

Learn how the Google Display Network works, challenges to watch out for, and practical tips to improve ad performance and avoid wasted spend.

Google Display Network explained: Your quick guide to GDN

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Chunks-passages-and-micro-answer-engine-optimization-wins-in-Google-AI-Mode.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="Chunks, passages and micro-answer engine optimization wins in Google AI Mode" style="margin-bottom: 15px;" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Chunks-passages-and-micro-answer-engine-optimization-wins-in-Google-AI-Mode.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Chunks-passages-and-micro-answer-engine-optimization-wins-in-Google-AI-Mode-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Chunks-passages-and-micro-answer-engine-optimization-wins-in-Google-AI-Mode-1536x864.png 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>Google's AI Mode synthesizes answers from multiple background queries. Here's how to optimize content passages for inclusion in AI responses.

<div><img width="1920" height="1080" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Chunks-passages-and-micro-answer-engine-optimization-wins-in-Google-AI-Mode.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="Chunks, passages and micro-answer engine optimization wins in Google AI Mode" style="margin-bottom: 15px;" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Chunks-passages-and-micro-answer-engine-optimization-wins-in-Google-AI-Mode.png 1920w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Chunks-passages-and-micro-answer-engine-optimization-wins-in-Google-AI-Mode-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2025/06/Chunks-passages-and-micro-answer-engine-optimization-wins-in-Google-AI-Mode-1536x864.png 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /></div>
<p>The best CRM article on Page 1 might lose to a single paragraph buried on Page 3.&nbsp;</p>



<p>That&#8217;s how AI search works now, and it&#8217;s why traditional <a href="https://searchengineland.com/guide/what-is-seo">SEO</a> strategies are failing businesses that should be winning.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ai-mode-synthesizing-answers-from-multiple-background-queries">AI Mode: Synthesizing answers from multiple background queries</h2>



<p>When you use Google’s <a href="https://searchengineland.com/google-ai-mode-what-matters-seo-marketing-453461">AI Mode</a> (the new tab next to <em>All</em>), you’re not getting a direct answer from one query.&nbsp;</p>



<p>You’re seeing a synthesized response created from a cascade of related questions that Google asks behind the scenes.</p>



<p>If you query [What’s the best CRM for SaaS startups?], the machine might also run:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>[What features do B2B founders care about?]</li>



<li>[What’s the pricing model of HubSpot?]</li>



<li>[Which CRMs integrate best with Slack and Zapier?]</li>
</ul>



<p>The machine builds its answer from multiple fragments or chunks of content – the best passages it can find for each of those background queries.</p>



<p>That layered, stitched-together response is a summary of multiple queries related to the original query with a huge chunk of “informed guessing” about the original intent.</p>



<p>As a business (or a person), your presence in those results depends on the power of your digital brand echo – what Google’s AI believes about you or your company based on every web-wide brand signal.</p>



<p>Controlling your digital brand echo is the only thing that matters in modern SEO – a.k.a. generative engine optimization (GEO), assistive engine optimization (AEO), or whatever you choose to call it.</p>



<p><strong><em>Dig deeper: <a href="https://searchengineland.com/how-ai-mode-ai-overviews-work-patents-456346">How AI Mode and AI Overviews work based on patents and why we need new strategic focus on SEO</a></em></strong></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ranking-in-position-1-isn-t-the-be-all-end-all-it-once-was">Ranking in Position 1 isn’t the be-all, end-all it once was</h2>



<p>You don’t need to rank first for the primary query.&nbsp;</p>



<p>If any passage from your web-wide content ranks well for just one of the related cascading queries, you’ll be included in the final AI response.&nbsp;</p>



<p>And inclusion is everything.</p>



<p>I call this micro-AEO ranking – small, precise moments where a chunk (passage) of your content hits exactly what the machine is looking for and ranks first as one facet of the answer to a wider, explicit or implicit question.</p>



<p>In traditional SEO, your focus was on the entire page.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Now, your focus needs to be on being the best passage for one angle or facet of the user&#8217;s query intent.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-pages-rank-in-the-all-tab-hyper-relevant-passages-win-in-ai-mode">Pages rank in the <em>All</em> tab, hyper-relevant passages win in AI Mode</h2>



<p>Here’s the real shift:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>In the <em>All</em> tab, Google ranks full pages.</li>



<li>In AI Mode, it ranks chunks – individual passages that answer a very specific sub-question in a larger chain/cascade of related queries.</li>
</ul>



<p>That means you could be completely absent from Page 1 traditional search results, but still show up in AI Mode because you wrote the best paragraph on “CRM integrations for early-stage SaaS.”</p>



<p>This is what I call <a href="https://searchengineland.com/seo-reality-check-13-hard-hitting-truths-you-need-to-hear-448258">implicit ranking</a>.</p>



<p>It’s not about what users see. It’s about what machines research behind the scenes.&nbsp;</p>



<p>As a business or SEO, this is opaque: you don’t know the query and yet you need to win it… with a single paragraph within one page within your digital ecosystem (your website is just one of the many opportunities you have, if you open your eyes).</p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-one-ai-mode-response-a-network-of-micro-wins-stitched-together">One AI Mode response = a network of micro-wins stitched together</h2>



<p>AI Mode is not one big win – it’s a dozen micro-wins stitched into a summary.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Google is choosing helpful, trustworthy, self-contained answers and stringing them together.</p>



<p>This isn’t limited to Google. The same logic applies in <a href="https://searchengineland.com/what-is-chatgpt-and-why-seos-should-care-392165">ChatGPT</a>, <a href="https://searchengineland.com/perplexity-ai-exploring-ai-powered-search-beyond-google-439879">Perplexity</a>, Microsoft Copilot, and other assistive engines. </p>



<p>The difference between them is simply the balance of the <a href="https://searchengineland.com/search-answer-assistive-engine-optimization-approach-454685">algorithmic trinity</a> they use.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-assistive-engines-protect-the-click-they-summarize-interpret-and-recommend">The assistive engines protect the click — they summarize, interpret, and recommend</h2>



<p>This is why I talk about:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>The perfect click (the direct-to-conversion path assistive engines are designed to give you).</li>



<li>And zero-click reputation (how the person perceives your brand before ever visiting your website).</li>
</ul>



<p>In a world where AI delivers the answer instead of linking to it, your goal is no longer to win the click.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Your goal is to be part of the answer.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-chunks-passages-and-micro-answer-engine-optimization-mean-for-your-strategy">What chunks, passages and micro-answer engine optimization mean for your strategy</h2>



<p>If you’re optimizing your digital presence only for Google’s <em>All</em> tab, you’re fighting a battle that ended years ago.</p>



<p>Way back in 2020, Darwinism in search (a term coined following a conversation with Google’s Gary Illyes) was already pointing everyone to the multi-vertical approach to SEO and the “survival of the fittest,” with the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5kJFlMIHVU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">whole page algorithm</a> as the final arbiter.</p>



<p>In a <a href="https://content.libsyn.com/p/5/c/6/5c6a766416e8e4bc/Search_Off_the_Record_-_21st_episode.pdf?c_id=107896964&amp;cs_id=107896964&amp;response-content-type=application%2Fpdf&amp;Expires=1748699567&amp;Signature=M8dfXL6Zzfrh5ZE3S4a5-GvDfZ-MBu2mT5F~p5uvPIV2wLkdSoi4VSB23WxI70Kso77BRqSWI4152G8W5rz4M4iqEQ-G0a5nuTIr0RTn-zx8ZT1QZH-zPMoZRBxcDoHzaEKgbfaBnPTCyOmGtoLowGemtst7hjzyfdSWrlpDSup2gp025KtRLrKzHvXB75oxZ2WUeSNMD2R8aRC0kCF2lgCtMWoEcdE3b-GsVYjU4vYWnndg-N2j7qFOtoKpQZ7nU02fpoCITpxAC0baut4v91DxdcOv9pqG~iXijLnBAgEw3pPXvQ6R20AQ2qZwh4OXYQHWADTY4DauuZPnhigRww__&amp;Key-Pair-Id=K1YS7LZGUP96OI" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Search Off the Record podcast episode in 2022</a>, John Mueller irreverently referred to the whole page algorithm as “the super search engine,” and Gary Illyes used the term “universal mixer.” </p>



<p>They confirmed that a whole page algorithm exists at Google.</p>



<p>With AI Mode, the concept of Bing’s whole page algorithm and Google’s universal mixer takes on a whole new meaning.</p>



<p>To have any chance of being included in that one single multifaceted answer that doesn’t need a click, you have to provide the snippet that best answers one aspect of the question.&nbsp;</p>



<p>That is micro-answer engine optimization in a nutshell.</p>



<p><strong><em>Dig deeper: <a href="https://searchengineland.com/answer-engine-optimization-ai-models-453509">Answer engine optimization: 6 AI models you should optimize for</a></em></strong></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-inclusion-in-ai-answers-is-the-new-metric-that-matters">Inclusion in AI answers is the new metric that matters</h2>



<p>The shift from traditional SEO to GEO is well and truly here.</p>



<p>SEO is no longer about visibility in isolation. It&#8217;s about the usefulness of one of your snippets of content in synthesis for Google, ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, Perplexity, and other assistive engines.</p>



<p>To earn your place in the AI-generated narrative, your content must deliver clarity, precision, and trust at the passage level.</p>



<p>You aren&#8217;t optimizing to rank. You’re optimizing to be included in the answer. And in the AI era, inclusion is everything.</p>



<p><strong><em>Dig deeper: <a href="https://searchengineland.com/seo-in-an-ai-powered-world-what-changed-in-just-a-year-455269">SEO in an AI-powered world: What changed in just a year</a></em></strong></p>

The best CRM article on Page 1 might lose to a single paragraph buried on Page 3. 
That’s how AI search works now, and it’s why traditional SEO strategies are failing businesses that should be winning.
AI Mode: Synthesizing answers from multiple background queries
When you use Google’s AI Mode (the new tab next to All), you’re not getting a direct answer from one query. 
You’re seeing a synthesized response created from a cascade of related questions that Google asks behind the scenes.
If you query [What’s the best CRM for SaaS startups?], the machine might also run:
[What features do B2B founders care about?]
[What’s the pricing model of HubSpot?]
[Which CRMs integrate best with Slack and Zapier?]
The machine builds its answer from multiple fragments or chunks of content – the best passages it can find for each of those background queries.
That layered, stitched-together response is a summary of multiple queries related to the original query with a huge chunk of “informed guessing” about the original intent.
As a business (or a person), your presence in those results depends on the power of your digital brand echo – what Google’s AI believes about you or your company based on every web-wide brand signal.
Controlling your digital brand echo is the only thing that matters in modern SEO – a.k.a. generative engine optimization (GEO), assistive engine optimization (AEO), or whatever you choose to call it.
Dig deeper: How AI Mode and AI Overviews work based on patents and why we need new strategic focus on SEO
Ranking in Position 1 isn’t the be-all, end-all it once was
You don’t need to rank first for the primary query. 
If any passage from your web-wide content ranks well for just one of the related cascading queries, you’ll be included in the final AI response. 
And inclusion is everything.
I call this micro-AEO ranking – small, precise moments where a chunk (passage) of your content hits exactly what the machine is looking for and ranks first as one facet of the answer to a wider, explicit or implicit question.
In traditional SEO, your focus was on the entire page. 
Now, your focus needs to be on being the best passage for one angle or facet of the user’s query intent. 
Pages rank in the All tab, hyper-relevant passages win in AI Mode
Here’s the real shift:
In the All tab, Google ranks full pages.
In AI Mode, it ranks chunks – individual passages that answer a very specific sub-question in a larger chain/cascade of related queries.
That means you could be completely absent from Page 1 traditional search results, but still show up in AI Mode because you wrote the best paragraph on “CRM integrations for early-stage SaaS.”
This is what I call implicit ranking.
It’s not about what users see. It’s about what machines research behind the scenes. 
As a business or SEO, this is opaque: you don’t know the query and yet you need to win it… with a single paragraph within one page within your digital ecosystem (your website is just one of the many opportunities you have, if you open your eyes).
Get the newsletter search marketers rely on.
  
				
								
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See terms.
One AI Mode response = a network of micro-wins stitched together
AI Mode is not one big win – it’s a dozen micro-wins stitched into a summary. 
Google is choosing helpful, trustworthy, self-contained answers and stringing them together.
This isn’t limited to Google. The same logic applies in ChatGPT, Perplexity, Microsoft Copilot, and other assistive engines. 
The difference between them is simply the balance of the algorithmic trinity they use.
The assistive engines protect the click — they summarize, interpret, and recommend
This is why I talk about:
The perfect click (the direct-to-conversion path assistive engines are designed to give you).
And zero-click reputation (how the person perceives your brand before ever visiting your website).
In a world where AI delivers the answer instead of linking to it, your goal is no longer to win the click. 
Your goal is to be part of the answer.
What chunks, passages and micro-answer engine optimization mean for your strategy
If you’re optimizing your digital presence only for Google’s All tab, you’re fighting a battle that ended years ago.
Way back in 2020, Darwinism in search (a term coined following a conversation with Google’s Gary Illyes) was already pointing everyone to the multi-vertical approach to SEO and the “survival of the fittest,” with the whole page algorithm as the final arbiter.
In a Search Off the Record podcast episode in 2022, John Mueller irreverently referred to the whole page algorithm as “the super search engine,” and Gary Illyes used the term “universal mixer.” 
They confirmed that a whole page algorithm exists at Google.
With AI Mode, the concept of Bing’s whole page algorithm and Google’s universal mixer takes on a whole new meaning.
To have any chance of being included in that one single multifaceted answer that doesn’t need a click, you have to provide the snippet that best answers one aspect of the question. 
That is micro-answer engine optimization in a nutshell.
Dig deeper: Answer engine optimization: 6 AI models you should optimize for
Inclusion in AI answers is the new metric that matters
The shift from traditional SEO to GEO is well and truly here.
SEO is no longer about visibility in isolation. It’s about the usefulness of one of your snippets of content in synthesis for Google, ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, Perplexity, and other assistive engines.
To earn your place in the AI-generated narrative, your content must deliver clarity, precision, and trust at the passage level.
You aren’t optimizing to rank. You’re optimizing to be included in the answer. And in the AI era, inclusion is everything.
Dig deeper: SEO in an AI-powered world: What changed in just a year

Google's AI Mode synthesizes answers from multiple background queries. Here's how to optimize content passages for inclusion in AI responses.

Chunks, passages and micro-answer engine optimization wins in Google AI Mode

<div><img width="800" height="450" src="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/What-is-on-page-optimization-800x450.png" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="What is on-page optimization" style="margin-bottom: 15px;" decoding="async" srcset="https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/What-is-on-page-optimization-800x450.png 800w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/What-is-on-page-optimization-600x338.png 600w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/What-is-on-page-optimization-200x113.png 200w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/What-is-on-page-optimization-768x432.png 768w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/What-is-on-page-optimization-1536x864.png 1536w, https://searchengineland.com/wp-content/seloads/2024/01/What-is-on-page-optimization.png 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></div>Learn the essentials of on-page optimization to strengthen your website's SEO foundation and boost your organic visibility.

On-page optimization is a crucial part of any SEO strategy. It includes optimizations made directly to the elements of a webpage to improve rankings in search engines and provide a better user experience.
While off-page techniques like link building, citations, and brand demand also play a role, you have full control over on-page factors, making them the foundation of SEO success.
This article covers the key elements that should be optimized on every page for the best SEO results. This includes both content-focused aspects and technical elements.
Understanding on-page SEO
On-page SEO is about improving the different parts of a webpage so that both people and search engines can easily figure out what the page is about. It includes making the page more user-friendly and providing helpful information.
This includes the:
Code.
Content.
Page design.
Citations and sourcing.
Navigational elements.
Crawling and indexing instructions.
On-page SEO is completely under your control, and that’s why some companies can go overboard trying to make everything perfect for search engines. Still, “over-optimizing” your webpages can harm user experience and lead to devaluations.
When you create a good user experience by focusing on the visitor’s or potential visitor’s needs vs. your own, you have likely created the perfect experience for a search engine. 
The job of the search engine is to display the most relevant result to a query in the easiest-to-absorb format and in the fastest way possible. By creating your on-page experience to do this, you are doing SEO. 
Aim to design your content to meet user needs, deliver information effectively, and remain accessible to all users, including those with disabilities and without a reliable internet connection.
Below are the on-page elements to optimize.
Content
Header tags.
Titles.
Description.
Content.
Internal links.
External links.
Details from customer questions and complaints.
Images (alt text, descriptions, names).
Technical
Naming clickable elements.
Page speed (caching, fetch priority, deferring, and lazy loading).
Canonical links.
Meta robots.
Schema.
Content elements for on-page SEO
Content can take the form of text, videos, images, audio, or any combination of these. 
Search engines can use:
Words.
Associations between them.
Phrases you link to from one page to another.
Anything else that renders for their spiders. 
This isn’t AI or LLMs, they have been using associations and topical understandings for years.
Google’s MUM and BERT are prime examples of machine learning, which non-SEOs or IT professionals would likely consider AI.  
Not every page has to rank or be optimized. Homepages may only need to appear for brand searches. 
Instead, prioritize optimizing product, service, blog posts, and category pages. Use the homepage and navigation to pass authority to these pages through text links and menus.
Here are some of the on-page contextual elements you may want to check for both SEO and the user. 
Header tags
Also known as H tags, header tags define the topic of the page and the individual sections underneath. 
Clear and specific language improves the user experience for both visitors and search engines, compared to using fluffy words or branding.  
Use the words your customers use in the headers, not branded words or “SEO keywords” as phrases.  
This is more important than ever as modern search engines and AI use entities to make associations and generate answers or search results. It is not a game of keywords and hasn’t been for over 10 years.
If the visitor cannot see images because of visual impairment, they cannot associate the content in the section if the header isn’t specific and you rely on images. It is more crucial if there is no supporting imagery, as now they have to rely on random words. 
An example could be “crossing the finish line first” as a header on a page for an SaaS product that speeds up a system.  
If that is the majority of content on the landing page, or the top is fully branded, and you show an image or table with before and after, you just created a bad experience for search engines and users with disabilities.
Instead, say “Speed up XYZ systems 10X faster” and then add your branding. You can cross the finish line ahead of competitors with ABC solutions.  Here’s how customers like you improve their workflows.
There should only be one H1 tag on a page (which includes navigation and menus), and the keywords and topic should pass to H2s.
If the topic and H1 is “t-shirts,” you don’t have to repeat that in your H2s. You can simply do “Blue Crew” and “Red V Neck” as your H2s. And the copy below will take care of the rest.
Header tags must be used in a specific order and should not skip levels. For instance, you shouldn’t go directly from H2 to H4. However, going back up is OK, like moving from H4 to H2.
Avoid using header tags for font size styling or in navigation. 
While using them in menus isn’t the worst thing, it’s not the best practice. The same goes for defining sections or lists in your site’s footer.
The one exception to having multiple H1 tags is blogs. Blog titles are normally H1 tags, but with proper coding, you can fix this. 
More than one H1 tag on a page is not a good idea unless it is a blog category page with multiple posts, so avoid it when you can. 
Titles
Title tags appear within a search result and can help entice a user to click through to your page and a search engine to understand the page’s topic. They’re very similar to the title of a book. 
The title tag should match the theme of the H1 tag, but they don’t have to be identical.
Title best practices change depending on the tool you use, as the space depends on pixels, not characters. 
Most tools give a character count. Because a phrase with multiple letters like “m” or “w” takes more pixels than phrases with more “i” or “t,” some titles can have 55 characters with spaces and others 60.
It is never a good idea to keyword stuff and create excessively long titles.
It doesn’t matter if it’s local, national, or international SEO. Keyword stuffing is never a good idea and leads to issues across the board.
Instead, test ways to make titles more relevant to the users and use the keyword phrases customers use because this can help entice a click through.  
The title also helps define what the topic of the page you’re going to load is, so it has value for SEO too.
Description
While meta descriptions don’t directly impact rankings, they are crucial for on-page SEO.
If your description is more relevant, you might get clicks over a higher-ranked site with an inadequate description.
Content
Think of content as the fuel for search engines. It includes text, images, sounds, videos, and any other type of media. 
Clear and to-the-point content improves the user experience and helps Google know when to display your page for certain queries and to the right audience.
If you bury useful information behind unnecessary words or use fancy branding instead of clear language, Google may struggle to determine your page’s purpose. 
Text content, which is the most common, can be formatted in:
Paragraphs.
Tables.
Bullet lists.

Numbered (ordered).
Bullets (unordered).
Don’t worry about word counts or keyword density for SEO. These are just measures used by tools to assess content and not by search engines like Google or Microsoft Bing.
Provide a strong answer with evidence, support it with facts, and don’t hesitate to link to specific blogs, websites, or studies. Even if a site is new or has a low score in SEO tools, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s unreliable. 
For instance, an article might be written by a licensed professional on their new blog, and they could be a recognized expert. Linking to their study is better as it leads to the original source, not a third-party journal.
Metrics like domain authority, authority score, etc., are from third-party tools, not search engines. If a tool suggests not linking to a site, it doesn’t necessarily mean you shouldn’t.
When deciding on your external linking strategy, focus on the quality of the site, content, and author rather than relying solely on tool metrics.
Make sure the citations back up the claim, don’t cite a definition. Definitions can be done after you mention the jargon or with an example.  
Citations should be studies, examples that don’t make sense for your page, and back up the claim with facts and peer-reviewed studies.
One very important thing, especially with AI answers, is to never leave a statement open.  
Don’t just say something is great, share why it is great and provide supporting details.
We’re redoing a lot of content with clients to fix this issue, and those clients are appearing more often in AI overviews.
For example, when you say “blue is the best,” it should also include “blue is the best because it has XY effect on performance, and the resell value is AB times higher after 5 years than yellow.”  
By sourcing the claims and giving the “how” and “why” on generic statements, you give the visitor and AI a reason to continue reading, indexing, and absorbing your content.  You’re being “helpful.”
Internal links
These are links from one page on your website to another page. They help search engines understand the topic of each page and help build your site structure.
Internal links include:
Menus.
In content.
Footer links.
Breadcrumbs.
Buttons and CTAs.
Sidebar links.
Redirects.
Canonical links (depending on who you talk to).
A best practice is to map out your internal links to make sure you’re not linking off the same words to multiple pages or into redirect chains (daisy chains).
There is one exception to linking the same phrase to two separate pages. When the phrase is in an informational context, go to a guide or explanation.  
If the phrase is in a shopping context and the user is ready to purchase or fill out a form, go to your shopping or conversion page.
Internal links may also pass authority built from backlinks from one page to another. I personally believe they do hold some weight, but some of my peers say they do not anymore.
Some say the position of internal links in content is crucial, but Google has debunked this myth. The idea is that internal links placed higher up on the page are more important, but I disagree. 
Internal links should be natural and placed where they benefit the user. 
For example, it might make sense to have a link at the bottom if you’re citing a definition rather than forcing it into the middle of a paragraph.
Some SEOs suggest that you can “sculpt” rank by building more internal links to specific pages. I have seen this work, and I’ve also seen where it doesn’t. 
My recommendation is to use internal links naturally to benefit a user on the page – not to sculpt rank.
Another SEO theory is that menu and footer links may have more authority than in-content internal links because they:
Exist on every page as part of the template.
Are keyword-rich.
Are navigational. 
This one can make sense and be tested. But it doesn’t always work or move the needle, so use your data and control groups.
A last internal linking myth is that the more links on a page, the less authority they can pass. 
I see the merit in the claim, but have not seen an impact in any test I’ve done, so for me, it is just a myth. 
Go with what will benefit the end user; don’t use internal links for SEO ranking purposes.
External links
Linking to resources, sources, and other websites is part of SEO; you should not be afraid to do it. Multiple search engine representatives have said it is ok and a best practice when the link is earned.
If the website provides valuable content that supports your article, link to it. 
If you are paid to give a link, mark it as sponsored. If you don’t trust the site, but the resource is good and worth linking to, use the nofollow attribute. 
Details from customer questions and complaints
Search engines are always looking for unique perspectives and experiences.
If you sell products from other people, like a department store, or you have an affiliate website, look up customer complaints and questions.
You can use forums and reviews to find these. Then, incorporate the accurate answers and definitions into your product descriptions and specs. 
This helps the end user decide, showing search engines that your content is more beneficial to an end user than a competing website. 
It could be sizing, compatibility, user experience level needed, actual color in real life vs. photos, etc. These are beneficial to consumers and can give you an advantage. 
Images (alt text, descriptions, names)
Make sure to name your images for what the image is about and/or the section of the page. 
If it is a featured image for display and in your meta, matching the post’s topic could make sense. 
If it is a diagram, label what the diagram is and what the person will learn. Have a formula or calculation, name the image for it, and you can add “example” or “infographic” if it is relevant.
Once you’ve completed the name, fill out the alt text and description. These can help people using browsing assistants and search engines understand what is in the image better.
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See terms.
Technical on-page SEO elements
These refer to non-visible elements search engines use to understand your page and page experience. I’m not including items like .htaccess because they’re related to SEO but not essential to the day-to-day tasks of an SEO specialist. 
Also, robots.txt and sitemaps, even though they’re crucial for SEO, aren’t considered here because they deal with how search engines explore and find your site, not what’s directly on the webpage.
Naming clickable elements
Clickable elements include buttons, links, calls to action (like phone numbers, emails, icons, logins), and sometimes form submissions should be named for the action. 
They can signal to search engines which pages are meant for conversions and, like internal links, the topics of the pages being linked to.
Search engines can also potentially determine if a page experience is a direct conversion or contextual and informative based on the clickable elements and the action being taken.
Page speed (caching, fetch priority, deferring, and lazy loading)
If the goal of a search engine is to show the most relevant result in the fastest way possible, page speed and site speed make sense. But don’t obsess over them. 
Page speed provides a good user experience, but SEO-wise, there are more important things than Core Web Vitals.
In my view, these factors come into play only when everything else is the same, and search engines must choose between two pieces of equally good content.
In such cases, the page that loads faster and becomes interactive sooner should be preferred. However, different people may have different opinions on this, and that’s perfectly fine.
Canonical links
A canonical link is a meta tag that helps deduplicate content for search engines by defining where the official version of the content lives. They are used:
When you have products or articles in multiple categories.
For split tests, when you have similar or identical content on two different layouts.
When you syndicate content to a third-party website.
On-site search and parameter-based pages when you don’t have them disallowed in robots.txt or when search engines are ignoring the crawl and indexing instructions via robots.txt and meta robots.
Canonicals are also vital to migrating URLs, as you want to define where the new page exists.
Meta robots
Meta robots are meta tags that tell a search engine if they should index or not index the page, and follow or nofollow the links on the page.
These are different from robots.txt, which defines which folders, pages, URLs, parameters, and backlinks should count and not count.
A temporary landing page, for example, could be noindex, follow because it is not something that should be indexed as it is temporary, but you have internal links and want Googlebot to follow and crawl your website. 
The temporary page could be linked to by a journalist in the media if it is a promotion, and that’s how it gets discovered. Make sure to do these correctly, and they’re always situational.
But here’s a rule of thumb if you get stuck:
If you want your page to show up in search results for a long time, go index. 
If the links go to your site, are not paid for, and should be followed, make them follow.
If the page is temporary or not valuable, go noindex, and do the same with the links. 
If the links are going to temporary folders, paid partnerships, or partnership companies, use nofollow in the meta robots. It’s simpler than handling each one separately.
Schema
This is the code way of saying what the page is about and what the user will experience. 
You can define just about anything, from the area you offer a service in and what that service is to a piece of art created by a well-known person. 
There is schema for:
Hours of operation.
Ticket sales.
Reviews.
Recipes.
Videos on a page.
Variants like colors or sizes on product pages.
And more.
If you don’t see a library relevant to your page, you can use additional types and build one to help search engines understand what you’re providing to searchers. 
Schema warnings can be nerve-wracking, but they’re not an end-all. 
Sometimes, a specific recommended field isn’t relevant. However, errors need to be resolved as they can impact your site.
Although some may not be used by all search engines, you can find all available schemas here on Schema.org.
Make your webpages more SEO-friendly
Optimizing just a few of these elements can provide a rankings boost. 
However, addressing the on-page SEO basics discussed here will put your pages in the best possible position to rank.
Follow these on-page optimization best practices, and you should see improved organic visibility and more qualified traffic to your site.

Learn the essentials of on-page optimization to strengthen your website's SEO foundation and boost your organic visibility.

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