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Yoast WordPress Plugin Update Causes Fatal Errors

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Yoast WordPress Plugin Update Causes Fatal Errors

Yoast WordPress SEO plugin released an update but it soon became apparent that something went horribly wrong for some users. It appears that the problem caused fatal errors. Negatively affected victims of the Yoast update had to roll back to a previous version of Yoast.

According to one user, their WordPress installation alerted them to a “fatal error,” according to the email sent to them.

The dictionary defines a victim as someone who was harmed as a result of an accident or some other event. Under that definition, the publishers who experienced dysfunctional websites after the failed Yoast update can certainly be described as victims.

Yoast, appropriately, apologized for what happened.

The Doomed Yoast Version 18.4  Plugin Update

Yoast 18.4 was intended to introduce a new feature that introduced content and structured data timestamps for the purpose of copyright protection using blockchain technology.

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The new feature was connected to a service called, WordProof that provides verifiable timestamps that shows site visitors when the content was authored and updated.

Failed WordProof Integration with Yoast

WordProof is a company that lists on their About Us page that the husband and wife co-founders of Yoast are partners.

Screenshot from WordProof About Us Page

The WordProof service provides a blockchain certificate for certifying a timestamp and a copyright infringement tool.

The stated goal for WordProof is to foster trust with a website by providing proof and transparency.

According to WordProof:

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“The internet has deep-rooted problems that grow daily: distrust, plagiarism, and fake news. WordProof wants to create a new standard for a more reliable and trustworthy internet, with the help of blockchain technology.”

Unfortunately the integration of this feature caused Yoast to malfunction in serious ways for users.

At the time of writing, some Yoast customers indicated that this error affected Yoast versions 18.4 and 18.4.1.

According to Yoast, the Yoast free plugin version 18.4.1 and Yoast SEO Premium 18.2.1 are both stable versions that no longer contained the new WordProof feature in it.

Symptoms of the Bad Yoast SEO Plugin Update

The doomed Yoast WordPress SEO plugin update caused massive disruptions for some customers.

Typical problems that were reported:

  • XML sitemap shows all content types, including private content that is not supposed to be exposed
  • The Yoast Search Appearance settings tab was completely blank.
  • Fatal error message
  • WordPress Sends Message About Yoast Plugin Error

One user reported that the WordPress core emailed an alert message about the Yoast plugin:

“Since WordPress 5.2 there is a built-in feature that detects when a plugin or theme causes a fatal error on your site, and notifies you with this automated email.

In this case, WordPress caught an error with one of your plugins, Yoast SEO.”

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The user shared documentation of the bad Yoast SEO Plugin errors:

Screenshot of Yoast Update Errors

Bad Yoast Plugin UpdateAnother Yoast customer posted to the public Yoast support page to describe their issues:

“after update from yoast seo plugin 18.3 -> 18.4 in site health status page i can see some errors:

…The REST API encountered an error Performance

…The REST API request failed due to an error.”

A different Yoast plugin user wrote to inform Yoast of a similar error:

“critical error after update wordpress 5.9.2 & Yoast 18.4.1

…The REST API request failed due to an error.”

A problem involving the REST API issue seemed to be a fairly common complaint, as there were other Yoast update victims reporting it, too.

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Another Yoast victim wrote that Yoast broke his website:

“My site suddenly started displaying blank pages, error pages, pages formatted narrowly on a desktop browser (i.e., not taking up the full browser screen like they used to), etc. I also suddenly could not edit my home page…”

Another plea for help:

“i am unable to edit post or page. It throws error. When i deactivated the plugin. Than problem get disappeared.

…error : The editor has encountered an unexpected error.”

Yoast Assures Latest Version of SEO Plugin is Now Stable

The plugin caused fatal errors for many users who began posting to the Yoast plugin support page on WordPress.org.

Yoast issued an apology statement about the troubled update:

“In spite of extensive testing, some users, unfortunately, experienced issues with Yoast SEO 18.4.

As they’ve swiftly reach out to our 24/7 support team, we were able to act quickly and roll back this release.

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….We’re very sorry for any inconvenience you might have experienced.”

Yoast assured customers that the latest versions (Yoast SEO 18.4.1 and Yoast SEO Premium 18.2.1) are stable and that they would revisit WordProof integration at a later date.

Yoast SEO Plugin Errors

Yoast is not currently compatible with PHP 8+. At least one of the people reporting an error noted that they were using PHP 8.0.

In an unrelated support question, someone asked if Yoast was compatible with the latest version of PHP, version 8.x.

The Yoast support representative wrote:

“Unfortunately, we haven’t yet fully tested the plugin with PHP version 8. The entire WordPress community is still working on it”

So it’s possible that for that particular user, PHP 8.0 may have been a compounded the problems.

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Yoast recommends updating to the latest stable versions of their plugin. It may be prudent to check that your website is not running PHP 8.+ and if possible, to stage the site first to test if it functions correctly.

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Read Yoast’s Statement About the Ill-fated Update

Yoast SEO 18.4.1 and Premium 18.2.1 available now




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brightonSEO Live Blog

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brightonSEO Live Blog

Hello everyone. It’s April again, so I’m back in Brighton for another two days of sun, sea, and SEO!

Being the introvert I am, my idea of fun isn’t hanging around our booth all day explaining we’ve run out of t-shirts (seriously, you need to be fast if you want swag!). So I decided to do something useful and live-blog the event instead.

Follow below for talk takeaways and (very) mildly humorous commentary. 

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Google Further Postpones Third-Party Cookie Deprecation In Chrome

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Close-up of a document with a grid and a red stamp that reads "delayed" over the word "status" due to Chrome's deprecation of third-party cookies.

Google has again delayed its plan to phase out third-party cookies in the Chrome web browser. The latest postponement comes after ongoing challenges in reconciling feedback from industry stakeholders and regulators.

The announcement was made in Google and the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) joint quarterly report on the Privacy Sandbox initiative, scheduled for release on April 26.

Chrome’s Third-Party Cookie Phaseout Pushed To 2025

Google states it “will not complete third-party cookie deprecation during the second half of Q4” this year as planned.

Instead, the tech giant aims to begin deprecating third-party cookies in Chrome “starting early next year,” assuming an agreement can be reached with the CMA and the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

The statement reads:

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“We recognize that there are ongoing challenges related to reconciling divergent feedback from the industry, regulators and developers, and will continue to engage closely with the entire ecosystem. It’s also critical that the CMA has sufficient time to review all evidence, including results from industry tests, which the CMA has asked market participants to provide by the end of June.”

Continued Engagement With Regulators

Google reiterated its commitment to “engaging closely with the CMA and ICO” throughout the process and hopes to conclude discussions this year.

This marks the third delay to Google’s plan to deprecate third-party cookies, initially aiming for a Q3 2023 phaseout before pushing it back to late 2024.

The postponements reflect the challenges in transitioning away from cross-site user tracking while balancing privacy and advertiser interests.

Transition Period & Impact

In January, Chrome began restricting third-party cookie access for 1% of users globally. This percentage was expected to gradually increase until 100% of users were covered by Q3 2024.

However, the latest delay gives websites and services more time to migrate away from third-party cookie dependencies through Google’s limited “deprecation trials” program.

The trials offer temporary cookie access extensions until December 27, 2024, for non-advertising use cases that can demonstrate direct user impact and functional breakage.

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While easing the transition, the trials have strict eligibility rules. Advertising-related services are ineligible, and origins matching known ad-related domains are rejected.

Google states the program aims to address functional issues rather than relieve general data collection inconveniences.

Publisher & Advertiser Implications

The repeated delays highlight the potential disruption for digital publishers and advertisers relying on third-party cookie tracking.

Industry groups have raised concerns that restricting cross-site tracking could push websites toward more opaque privacy-invasive practices.

However, privacy advocates view the phaseout as crucial in preventing covert user profiling across the web.

With the latest postponement, all parties have more time to prepare for the eventual loss of third-party cookies and adopt Google’s proposed Privacy Sandbox APIs as replacements.

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Featured Image: Novikov Aleksey/Shutterstock

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How To Write ChatGPT Prompts To Get The Best Results

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How To Write ChatGPT Prompts To Get The Best Results

ChatGPT is a game changer in the field of SEO. This powerful language model can generate human-like content, making it an invaluable tool for SEO professionals.

However, the prompts you provide largely determine the quality of the output.

To unlock the full potential of ChatGPT and create content that resonates with your audience and search engines, writing effective prompts is crucial.

In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore the art of writing prompts for ChatGPT, covering everything from basic techniques to advanced strategies for layering prompts and generating high-quality, SEO-friendly content.

Writing Prompts For ChatGPT

What Is A ChatGPT Prompt?

A ChatGPT prompt is an instruction or discussion topic a user provides for the ChatGPT AI model to respond to.

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The prompt can be a question, statement, or any other stimulus to spark creativity, reflection, or engagement.

Users can use the prompt to generate ideas, share their thoughts, or start a conversation.

ChatGPT prompts are designed to be open-ended and can be customized based on the user’s preferences and interests.

How To Write Prompts For ChatGPT

Start by giving ChatGPT a writing prompt, such as, “Write a short story about a person who discovers they have a superpower.”

ChatGPT will then generate a response based on your prompt. Depending on the prompt’s complexity and the level of detail you requested, the answer may be a few sentences or several paragraphs long.

Use the ChatGPT-generated response as a starting point for your writing. You can take the ideas and concepts presented in the answer and expand upon them, adding your own unique spin to the story.

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If you want to generate additional ideas, try asking ChatGPT follow-up questions related to your original prompt.

For example, you could ask, “What challenges might the person face in exploring their newfound superpower?” Or, “How might the person’s relationships with others be affected by their superpower?”

Remember that ChatGPT’s answers are generated by artificial intelligence and may not always be perfect or exactly what you want.

However, they can still be a great source of inspiration and help you start writing.

Must-Have GPTs Assistant

I recommend installing the WebBrowser Assistant created by the OpenAI Team. This tool allows you to add relevant Bing results to your ChatGPT prompts.

This assistant adds the first web results to your ChatGPT prompts for more accurate and up-to-date conversations.

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It is very easy to install in only two clicks. (Click on Start Chat.)

Screenshot from ChatGPT, April 2024

For example, if I ask, “Who is Vincent Terrasi?,” ChatGPT has no answer.

With WebBrower Assistant, the assistant creates a new prompt with the first Bing results, and now ChatGPT knows who Vincent Terrasi is.

Enabling reverse prompt engineeringScreenshot from ChatGPT, March 2023

You can test other GPT assistants available in the GPTs search engine if you want to use Google results.

Master Reverse Prompt Engineering

ChatGPT can be an excellent tool for reverse engineering prompts because it generates natural and engaging responses to any given input.

By analyzing the prompts generated by ChatGPT, it is possible to gain insight into the model’s underlying thought processes and decision-making strategies.

One key benefit of using ChatGPT to reverse engineer prompts is that the model is highly transparent in its decision-making.

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This means that the reasoning and logic behind each response can be traced, making it easier to understand how the model arrives at its conclusions.

Once you’ve done this a few times for different types of content, you’ll gain insight into crafting more effective prompts.

Prepare Your ChatGPT For Generating Prompts

First, activate the reverse prompt engineering.

  • Type the following prompt: “Enable Reverse Prompt Engineering? By Reverse Prompt Engineering I mean creating a prompt from a given text.”
Enabling reverse prompt engineeringScreenshot from ChatGPT, March 2023

ChatGPT is now ready to generate your prompt. You can test the product description in a new chatbot session and evaluate the generated prompt.

  • Type: “Create a very technical reverse prompt engineering template for a product description about iPhone 11.”
Reverse Prompt engineering via WebChatGPTScreenshot from ChatGPT, March 2023

The result is amazing. You can test with a full text that you want to reproduce. Here is an example of a prompt for selling a Kindle on Amazon.

  • Type: “Reverse Prompt engineer the following {product), capture the writing style and the length of the text :
    product =”
Reverse prompt engineering: Amazon productScreenshot from ChatGPT, March 2023

I tested it on an SEJ blog post. Enjoy the analysis – it is excellent.

  • Type: “Reverse Prompt engineer the following {text}, capture the tone and writing style of the {text} to include in the prompt :
    text = all text coming from https://www.searchenginejournal.com/google-bard-training-data/478941/”
Reverse prompt engineering an SEJ blog postScreenshot from ChatGPT, March 2023

But be careful not to use ChatGPT to generate your texts. It is just a personal assistant.

Go Deeper

Prompts and examples for SEO:

  • Keyword research and content ideas prompt: “Provide a list of 20 long-tail keyword ideas related to ‘local SEO strategies’ along with brief content topic descriptions for each keyword.”
  • Optimizing content for featured snippets prompt: “Write a 40-50 word paragraph optimized for the query ‘what is the featured snippet in Google search’ that could potentially earn the featured snippet.”
  • Creating meta descriptions prompt: “Draft a compelling meta description for the following blog post title: ’10 Technical SEO Factors You Can’t Ignore in 2024′.”

Important Considerations:

  • Always Fact-Check: While ChatGPT can be a helpful tool, it’s crucial to remember that it may generate inaccurate or fabricated information. Always verify any facts, statistics, or quotes generated by ChatGPT before incorporating them into your content.
  • Maintain Control and Creativity: Use ChatGPT as a tool to assist your writing, not replace it. Don’t rely on it to do your thinking or create content from scratch. Your unique perspective and creativity are essential for producing high-quality, engaging content.
  • Iteration is Key: Refine and revise the outputs generated by ChatGPT to ensure they align with your voice, style, and intended message.

Additional Prompts for Rewording and SEO:
– Rewrite this sentence to be more concise and impactful.
– Suggest alternative phrasing for this section to improve clarity.
– Identify opportunities to incorporate relevant internal and external links.
– Analyze the keyword density and suggest improvements for better SEO.

Remember, while ChatGPT can be a valuable tool, it’s essential to use it responsibly and maintain control over your content creation process.

Experiment And Refine Your Prompting Techniques

Writing effective prompts for ChatGPT is an essential skill for any SEO professional who wants to harness the power of AI-generated content.

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Hopefully, the insights and examples shared in this article can inspire you and help guide you to crafting stronger prompts that yield high-quality content.

Remember to experiment with layering prompts, iterating on the output, and continually refining your prompting techniques.

This will help you stay ahead of the curve in the ever-changing world of SEO.

More resources: 


Featured Image: Tapati Rinchumrus/Shutterstock

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