NEWS

Google on Using Duplicate Manufacturer Product Descriptions via @sejournal, @martinibuster

Published

3 years ago

September 24, 2021

Google’s John Mueller in an SEO Office Hours hangout answered how Google handles product descriptions that are duplicates from the manufacturers. Mueller assured that it’s not a problem and described what Google does to choose which page to show in the search results.

How to Get Around Duplicate Content Issues?

The person asking the question was concerned about an ecommerce store that uses the stock product descriptions from the manufacturer. He wanted to know if there was a way to avoid any negative ranking consequences from duplicate product descriptions that were taken from the manufacturer.

The person asking the question asked if linking to the original source might be a way to avoid duplicate content issues.

Google’s John Mueller on Using Manufacturer Product Descriptions

Google on duplicate product descriptions

There are No Duplicate Content Penalties

John Mueller started out by answering that they don’t need to link to the original source in order to avoid the consequences of duplicate content.

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He explained that the reason he didn’t have to take that step was because there is no algorithmic penalty or harm from duplicate content.

Mueller commented:

“So there are two aspects here, when it comes to duplicate content.

First of all, you don’t get a penalty for duplicate content.

So …even before you look into it too much, the only time we would have something like a penalty or an algorithmic action or manual action is when the whole website is purely duplicated content, …if it’s one website that is scraping other websites for example.

If these are ecommerce sites and you have the description that’s the same and the rest of your website is different, that’s perfectly fine.

You don’t need to worry about any demotion or dropping in ranking or anything.”

How Google Analyzes Websites for Duplicate Content

Mueller then shared how Google handles the specific situation of product resellers who publish manufacturer product descriptions.

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He went into detail about how Google is okay with ranking pages that feature product descriptions that are the same as on the manufacturer’s website.

John Mueller explained:

“With duplicate content we have essentially two, roughly, different things that we look at.

On the one hand we check if the whole page is the same.

And that includes everything like the header and the footer and the address of the store and things like that, which in your case this would not be the case because one is maybe a manufacturer’s website and the description is the same but everything around it is different.

So that’s kind of the basic kind of duplicate content.”

How Google Ranks Pages with Duplicate Product Descriptions

Mueller next explained the considerations that go into ranking web pages that feature duplicate content.

He said,

“The other kind is with regards to things like a description. That plays a role when we show a snippet in the search results.

So essentially what we try to avoid is to create search results pages where the snippet is exactly the same as other websites.

If someone is searching for something generic which is only in the description of that product and the snippet that we would show for your website, for the manufacturer were exactly the same, then we would try to pick one of those pages and show only that one.

That’s kind of the other part of the duplicate content story… it’s a little bit simplified.

But that also means that if someone is searching for …something generic that is in the description and we can tell that they want to buy it and maybe you’re the best source or the local source of that product or you have it in stock or whatever, then we will show your pages and not the other one.

And all of that is independent of you marking up like where you took the description from.

It’s essentially, we have this description, we want to show it in search and we’ll pick the best page that we can show for this description. So from that point of view I think it’s always a good practice to have unique descriptions on your pages.

But if you have a lot of products it’s not always possible.

And it’s also the case that we would not penalize a website for having duplicate descriptions in their products.”

Duplicate Product Descriptions are Okay with Google

While it’s relatively well known that there is no such thing as a duplicate content penalty, it’s generally less well known how Google uses things like the header and footer to determine that a page is a store and that it is distinct from the manufacturer whose product is for sale at that store.

Another interesting point Mueller made is that Google doesn’t want to populate the search results with the same exact snippets for every ranked web page.

That might seem obvious but it’s something that some might ignore in the race to rank for “Keyword XYZ” by adding those keywords to the title tag and headings even though two or three competitors already rank with the exact same keywords in their titles, ignoring the fact that Google ranks pages with synonyms in the title…

Mueller also noted circumstances where Google would choose to rank a reseller over the manufacturer:

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When the user intent to buy is clear and the reseller is the best source for the product
The reseller is local and a local retailer is the best result

Overall, Mueller provided several interesting things to think about.

Citation

How Google Chooses Product Pages with Content Duplicated from Manufacturers

Watch John Mueller answer the question at the 55 minute mark:

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Searchenginejournal.com

NEWS

OpenAI Introduces Fine-Tuning for GPT-4 and Enabling Customized AI Models

Published

2 months ago

August 21, 2024

Max

OpenAI Introduces Fine-Tuning for GPT-4 and Enabling Customized AI Models

OpenAI has today announced the release of fine-tuning capabilities for its flagship GPT-4 large language model, marking a significant milestone in the AI landscape. This new functionality empowers developers to create tailored versions of GPT-4 to suit specialized use cases, enhancing the model’s utility across various industries.

Fine-tuning has long been a desired feature for developers who require more control over AI behavior, and with this update, OpenAI delivers on that demand. The ability to fine-tune GPT-4 allows businesses and developers to refine the model’s responses to better align with specific requirements, whether for customer service, content generation, technical support, or other unique applications.

Why Fine-Tuning Matters

GPT-4 is a very flexible model that can handle many different tasks. However, some businesses and developers need more specialized AI that matches their specific language, style, and needs. Fine-tuning helps with this by letting them adjust GPT-4 using custom data. For example, companies can train a fine-tuned model to keep a consistent brand tone or focus on industry-specific language.

Fine-tuning also offers improvements in areas like response accuracy and context comprehension. For use cases where nuanced understanding or specialized knowledge is crucial, this can be a game-changer. Models can be taught to better grasp intricate details, improving their effectiveness in sectors such as legal analysis, medical advice, or technical writing.

Key Features of GPT-4 Fine-Tuning

The fine-tuning process leverages OpenAI’s established tools, but now it is optimized for GPT-4’s advanced architecture. Notable features include:

Enhanced Customization: Developers can precisely influence the model’s behavior and knowledge base.
Consistency in Output: Fine-tuned models can be made to maintain consistent formatting, tone, or responses, essential for professional applications.
Higher Efficiency: Compared to training models from scratch, fine-tuning GPT-4 allows organizations to deploy sophisticated AI with reduced time and computational cost.

Additionally, OpenAI has emphasized ease of use with this feature. The fine-tuning workflow is designed to be accessible even to teams with limited AI experience, reducing barriers to customization. For more advanced users, OpenAI provides granular control options to achieve highly specialized outputs.

Implications for the Future

The launch of fine-tuning capabilities for GPT-4 signals a broader shift toward more user-centric AI development. As businesses increasingly adopt AI, the demand for models that can cater to specific business needs, without compromising on performance, will continue to grow. OpenAI’s move positions GPT-4 as a flexible and adaptable tool that can be refined to deliver optimal value in any given scenario.

By offering fine-tuning, OpenAI not only enhances GPT-4’s appeal but also reinforces the model’s role as a leading AI solution across diverse sectors. From startups seeking to automate niche tasks to large enterprises looking to scale intelligent systems, GPT-4’s fine-tuning capability provides a powerful resource for driving innovation.

OpenAI announced that fine-tuning GPT-4o will cost $25 for every million tokens used during training. After the model is set up, it will cost $3.75 per million input tokens and $15 per million output tokens. To help developers get started, OpenAI is offering 1 million free training tokens per day for GPT-4o and 2 million free tokens per day for GPT-4o mini until September 23. This makes it easier for developers to try out the fine-tuning service.

As AI continues to evolve, OpenAI’s focus on customization and adaptability with GPT-4 represents a critical step in making advanced AI accessible, scalable, and more aligned with real-world applications. This new capability is expected to accelerate the adoption of AI across industries, creating a new wave of AI-driven solutions tailored to specific challenges and opportunities.

GOOGLE

This Week in Search News: Simple and Easy-to-Read Update

Published

3 months ago

June 30, 2024

Entireweb News Bot

This Week in Search News: Simple and Easy-to-Read Update

Here’s what happened in the world of Google and search engines this week:

1. Google’s June 2024 Spam Update

Google finished rolling out its June 2024 spam update over a period of seven days. This update aims to reduce spammy content in search results.

2. Changes to Google Search Interface

Google has removed the continuous scroll feature for search results. Instead, it’s back to the old system of pages.

3. New Features and Tests

Link Cards: Google is testing link cards at the top of AI-generated overviews.
Health Overviews: There are more AI-generated health overviews showing up in search results.
Local Panels: Google is testing AI overviews in local information panels.

4. Search Rankings and Quality

Improving Rankings: Google said it can improve its search ranking system but will only do so on a large scale.
Measuring Quality: Google’s Elizabeth Tucker shared how they measure search quality.

5. Advice for Content Creators

Brand Names in Reviews: Google advises not to avoid mentioning brand names in review content.
Fixing 404 Pages: Google explained when it’s important to fix 404 error pages.

6. New Search Features in Google Chrome

Google Chrome for mobile devices has added several new search features to enhance user experience.

7. New Tests and Features in Google Search

Credit Card Widget: Google is testing a new widget for credit card information in search results.
Sliding Search Results: When making a new search query, the results might slide to the right.

8. Bing’s New Feature

Bing is now using AI to write “People Also Ask” questions in search results.

9. Local Search Ranking Factors

Menu items and popular times might be factors that influence local search rankings on Google.

10. Google Ads Updates

Query Matching and Brand Controls: Google Ads updated its query matching and brand controls, and advertisers are happy with these changes.
Lead Credits: Google will automate lead credits for Local Service Ads. Google says this is a good change, but some advertisers are worried.
tROAS Insights Box: Google Ads is testing a new insights box for tROAS (Target Return on Ad Spend) in Performance Max and Standard Shopping campaigns.
WordPress Tag Code: There is a new conversion code for Google Ads on WordPress sites.

These updates highlight how Google and other search engines are continuously evolving to improve user experience and provide better advertising tools.

FACEBOOK

Facebook Faces Yet Another Outage: Platform Encounters Technical Issues Again

Published

7 months ago

March 20, 2024

Max

Uppdated: It seems that today’s issues with Facebook haven’t affected as many users as the last time. A smaller group of people appears to be impacted this time around, which is a relief compared to the larger incident before. Nevertheless, it’s still frustrating for those affected, and hopefully, the issues will be resolved soon by the Facebook team.

Facebook had another problem today (March 20, 2024). According to Downdetector, a website that shows when other websites are not working, many people had trouble using Facebook.

This isn’t the first time Facebook has had issues. Just a little while ago, there was another problem that stopped people from using the site. Today, when people tried to use Facebook, it didn’t work like it should. People couldn’t see their friends’ posts, and sometimes the website wouldn’t even load.

Downdetector, which watches out for problems on websites, showed that lots of people were having trouble with Facebook. People from all over the world said they couldn’t use the site, and they were not happy about it.

When websites like Facebook have problems, it affects a lot of people. It’s not just about not being able to see posts or chat with friends. It can also impact businesses that use Facebook to reach customers.

Since Facebook owns Messenger and Instagram, the problems with Facebook also meant that people had trouble using these apps. It made the situation even more frustrating for many users, who rely on these apps to stay connected with others.

During this recent problem, one thing is obvious: the internet is always changing, and even big websites like Facebook can have problems. While people wait for Facebook to fix the issue, it shows us how easily things online can go wrong. It’s a good reminder that we should have backup plans for staying connected online, just in case something like this happens again.