We hope you are in good health. Here are some of the major SEO news updates of the week that you need to know:
Search Related News and Updates from Major Search Engine
Google Confirms Decline in Crawl Rates: Efficiency, Not a Problem
Google confirmed that the average crawl requests from Googlebot have declined over the years, but clarified this is intentional and not a problem. Advances in indexing efficiency, smarter crawling, and better use of resources mean Googlebot no longer needs to crawl as much to keep search results fresh.
Android App Performance Data Disappears in Google Search Console — Is It a Bug?
Starting around August 12, 2025, users noticed that the Android App search appearance filter in Google Search Console’s Performance report began showing zero impressions and clicks by August 18, 2025, despite the app functioning normally and traffic still registering in analytics. This suggests a probable reporting bug specific to the Android App filter, which Google hasn’t addressed publicly yet.
Bing Tests Bolding Site Names on Hover
Microsoft Bing is testing a new hover effect that bolds the site name in search result snippets when you hover over a result—mirroring a similar experiment where the result titles are bolded on hover. This visual tweak is designed to make the site branding pop and add an interactive feel to the SERP experience.
Google Tests AI Mode Tweaks to Drive More Clicks
Google’s Robby Stein revealed that over the coming weeks, Google will test updates to AI Mode designed to encourage clicks to publishers by tweaking how links appear in responses. Changes include embedded link carousels for mobile, improved inline link placement, and expanding the Web Guide feature into the “All” tab, all with the goal of making links more useful and clickable.
Google Search Console Links Report Lacks ‘Last Updated’ Timestamp
Barry Schwartz points out that the Links report in Google Search Console is one of the only reports without a “last updated” timestamp. He reached out to Google’s John Mueller, who responded that the omission is simply because “different reports are different,” with no specific reason.
PPC Related News and Updates from Major Search Engine
Bing Ads Get a Visual Upgrade: Microsoft Testing Larger Headline Fonts
Microsoft Advertising is currently experimenting with larger font sizes for ad headlines in Bing search results, making sponsored ads visually stand out more compared to organic listings. The change—estimated at around 5 pixels larger—was first noticed and shared on X by Drew Cannon.
Google Ads Brings Audience Exclusions to Shopping Campaigns
Google Ads has quietly started rolling out the capability to exclude audience segments within Shopping campaigns, a feature that previously wasn’t available for this campaign type. This change allows advertisers more precision in filtering out irrelevant or low-value audiences from their Shopping ads.
