SEARCHENGINES
Google Testing Web Stories Instead Of YouTube Videos For NFL Games

Google is testing displaying web stories in place of YouTube videos for searches on NFL games. Personally, I still see the YouTube videos but some folks, like NFL enthusiast Mordy Oberstein, is seeing Web Stories instead of YouTube videos.
Mordy shared this screenshot on Twitter saying “Looks like Google is testing Web Stories instead of YouTube videos for NFL highlights in the Sports Box!”
Here is how it works when you click on it:
Here’s what the Web Stories look like.
I get the feeling this is an intentional move on the part of the NFL to have Google move over to the format – hence the CTA to sign up for GamePass
(Also, here’s what it looks like when the Steelers beat the Ravens… yet again #HereWeGo) pic.twitter.com/Jhoh0hlnqC
— Mordy Oberstein (@MordyOberstein) January 10, 2022
For me, I see the YouTube videos but Google has been showing web stories for Major League Baseball and also for Cricket games as Glenn Gabe noted:
It’s an amazing format for sports highlights. They have been great for baseball in the US, glad to see them expand. Here’s the April announcement about cricket BTW. https://t.co/IACej5Nndo
— Glenn Gabe (@glenngabe) January 10, 2022
Forum discussion at Twitter.
SEARCHENGINES
Jeff Ferguson On Issues With SEO Studies & Ranking Factor Studies

In part one, we go through Jeff Ferguson’s long history in search marketing. In part two, we pick up with him starting his own agency. Then in part three we talk about the state of SEO studies.
In short, he goes off on his rant on SEO studies done on ranking factors and other areas. In short, he was not a fan of those studies and he wrote a lot about how they were done wrong. He wasn’t saying the intent was wrong, the companies that made these studies really wanted to help. But doing ranking factor studies are just too hard and really hard to prove.
Of course, it ruffled a lot of feathers in the SEO community. But he goes through more on why he did what he did and what he wanted to get out of it.
You can learn more about Jeff Ferguson at Amplitude Digital and follow him on Twitter @CountXero.
You can subscribe to our YouTube channel by clicking here so you don’t miss the next vlog where I interviews. I do have a nice lineup of interviews scheduled with SEOs and SEMS, many of which you don’t want to miss – and I promise to continue to make these vlogs better over time. If you want to be interviewed, please fill out this form with your details.
Forum discussion at YouTube.
SEARCHENGINES
Apple Maps Street View Camera Backpack

Here is a photo of some guy walking around Israel with an Apple Maps street view backpack. It was captured by Hillel Fuld the other day and posted on Twitter.
Google has its own street view backpack, which is more impressive to look at.
This post is part of our daily Search Photo of the Day column, where we find fun and interesting photos related to the search industry and share them with our readers.
SEARCHENGINES
Google’s Internal Menu System Tracks Googlers Food Preferences

A Googler shared screenshots of the output from the Google internal menu system where it told her that one day she avoids salades and then she must have had some salads to correct that and the next day it say she enjoys salad. I am just amazed Google tracks the food Googlers eat and offers suggestions.
Here are those tweets embedded:
Important update.
As much as I would like to be a conspiracy theorist and assume that my tweets are being monitored, seems the initial warning was just a bug. pic.twitter.com/FRbkw6QE0g
— Lara Levin (@TheLaraxSF) March 23, 2022
So… I think I have two preferences set on the menu… that I like soups and salads. I think the system inverted that to things I avoid. It is now fixed. Inadvertent shaming is over.
— Lara Levin (@TheLaraxSF) March 24, 2022
Haha, I think it’s just “here are the menus for the day”, and it’ll show you things you might like most at the top. It’s not that fancy 🙂
— Lara Levin (@TheLaraxSF) March 24, 2022
To be clear, it doesn’t track you! You can set favorites. And there was a bug 🙂
— Lara Levin (@TheLaraxSF) February 2, 2023
This is really not a photo of the day but close enough…
This post is part of our daily Search Photo of the Day column, where we find fun and interesting photos related to the search industry and share them with our readers.
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