Over the weekend, thousands of alleged Google Search API documents were leaked. The highly technical documents purport to cover Google’s over 14,000 ranking factors, how link value and click behavior are evaluated, and how Google classifies smaller sites. But for the average marketer focused on building a brand, the news may be more exciting than actionable.

Though platforms like Perplexity, Arc Browser, and Bing have advanced generated search results, Google’s announcement last week that it’s rolling out “AI Overviews” to searchers will likely make AI-written search results the norm. But some marketers say the feature is not quite ready for widespread use.

Think of off-site retail media as filling a bus with potential customers and driving them directly to your storefront, Bob Coon senior vice president of US sales at TripleLift, said during a recent EMARKETER webinar. But just delivering customers to your storefront doesn’t guarantee they will buy. Here’s what retailers and marketers need to know to take advantage of off-site retail media.

Generative AI search engine Perplexity will launch ads in the next few quarters. But while advertisers probably don’t need to form Perplexity ad strategies just yet, they should keep an eye on how the search engine is approaching monetization for clues into what Google (and other emerging search competitors) could do in the future.

Google’s new core update focuses on decluttering spam from search, targeting sites that employ generative AI to mass produce low-quality content with minimal oversight. Marketers can still use ChatGPT to draft content, but using the raw output of these tools is a bad idea, according to Lily Ray, vice president of SEO strategy and research at Amsive.

More than one-third (34%) of Amazon sellers and brands worldwide use AI to write and optimize product listings, according to January 2024 data from Jungle Scout.

The future of B2B content marketing is with genAI, but marketers must still learn how to overcome its challenges, adopt innovative strategies, and embrace the technology as a helpful and increasingly essential tool.

With OpenAI’s new GPT Store, an Apple App Store-like interface that opened earlier this month, SEO professionals can share their own custom versions of ChatGPT with premium subscribers. But these collaborative innovations aren’t without their challenges. Generative AI can’t do everything, and it can be hard to vet new tools in the store.

Earlier this month, a story in The Verge set fire to the SEO world, describing the stereotypes of SEO professionals as “that of a hustler: a content goblin willing to eschew rules, morals, and good taste in exchange for eyeballs and mountains of cash. A nihilist in it for the thrills, a prankster gleeful about getting away with something.”

On today's podcast episode, we discuss what Amazon's next big hit is, whether X (formerly Twitter) might become a subscription-only platform, whether SEO is already dead, if most retailers will stop offering free shipping, the shortest commercial flight you can take today, and more. Tune in to the discussion with our director of reports editing Rahul Chadha and analysts Ross Benes and Blake Droesch.

Key stat: 92% of local marketing and SEO professionals worldwide experimented most with ChatGPT in their work in July 2023, according to an August survey by SurveyMonkey.

Michaels and Shutterstock are navigating growth through a blend of creative initiatives and hard metrics. Michaels is focused on enhancing its customer experience and its new online marketplace. Shutterstock is leaning into SEO, automated dashboards, social listening, and collaboration.

Since Google debuted its Search Generative Experience AI-based interface in beta three months ago, it’s made a lot of updates to alleviate early concerns from testers. But according to search expert Lily Ray, Google still has some work to do to fix issues with its new AI-driven experience. Meanwhile, Microsoft—which is still a very distant rival—continues to innovate on Bing Chat, which Ray called “the best AI product that’s out there right now.”

Marketers have a wealth of opportunities throughout the buyer’s journey to leverage generative AI. Here's how to use it effectively at each stage of the customer life cycle.

Google experiments with chat ads: The tech giant plans to embed its Search and Shopping ads into the AI-powered SGE conversational mode.

What is truly promising with generative AI, and when should content marketers stay human? Here’s how content marketers might use ChatGPT and other AI tools and where they should invest time and resources.

As marketing budgets bend under the pressure of economic uncertainty, SEO is increasingly important for its low costs and compounding returns. Some 58% of marketers plan to use AI for content and SEO by the end of this year, compared to 10% who currently do, according to BrightEdge data.

In a video- and image-centric world, SEO is still the key to allocating marketing budgets, and Google has already done much of the research for you. “Every time Google shows a search result, they are displaying billions of dollars in R&D to understand the customer,” said Wil Reynolds, VP of Innovation at Seer Interactive, speaking at the Paid Search Association annual conference. “Billions that I don't have.”

ChatGPT has fast become one of the biggest buzzwords in retail. But retailers remain cautious over its potential pitfalls, especially concerning direct interactions with customers. We delve into the future of generative AI and provide actionable steps for retailers and brands to prepare for its rise.