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π¨ The Latest Search News & Updates [SEOFOMO, September 7, 2025]
Your weekly SEO & AI Search News to Stop the FOMO, read by 39K SEOs. Today's sponsor: JetOctopus. Want to advertise? Ask here.β
π₯ This Weekβs Biggest Search Stories
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Donβt hold your beer waiting for the dataβ¦ Google will appeal.
βGoogle Won't Be Broken Up In Monopoly Case But Required To Share Search Dataββ βBarry Schwarz / Search Engine Roundtableβ βAs an outcome of the DOJ antitrust trial, Google won't have to sell Chrome and will be able to keep Android, but US District Judge Amit Mehta has ordered specific remedies to address Google's search monopoly:
The Commission has ordered Google to bring these self-preferencing practices to an end; and to implement measures to cease its conflicts of interest along the adtech supply chain. Google has now 60 days to inform the Commission about how it intends to do so.
Bloomberg reports that Apple plans to launch its own AI powered Answer Engine next year in the spring as part of a long-delayed overhaul to Siri. The goal is to "transform Siri into an 'answer engine', pulling information from across the web in a style similar to Googleβs AI Overviews, ChatGPT, and Perplexity."
ποΈ More Updates from Search Engines
Worthy to check for local business
βGoogle Business links policies and guidelines updatedβ βBarry Schwartz / Search Engine Landβ βGoogle has made several additions to the business links policies & guidelines within the Google Business Profiles help section: New dedicated landing pages, direct action completion, social media sites and a new business links crawability policy.
Is GEO already dead?
βGoogleβs Danny Sullivan: βGood SEO is good GEOββ βDanny Goodwin / Search Engine Landβ βGoogle doubles down on GEO being the same core work SEOs have always done: creating unique, valuable content for people and providing a great page experience.
Learn how Google indexes restricted content
βGoogle: Optimizing login-page content for Google Searchβ βJohn Mueller, Martin Splitt / Search Off The Record Podcast β βJohn and Martin go through critical aspects of SEO for web content that lives behind a login or paywall; how Googlebot interacts with these pages, the role of paywall structured data, and more.
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βBranding in the Age of AI and Zero-Click SERPsβ βRand Fishkin, Gianluca Fiorelli / Advanced Web Rankingβ βRand explains how SEO can support branding, the current attention shift with search being now less than 10% of online behavior, and TikTok, YouTube, Reddit dominating user focus and more!
An internal linking optimization revamp
βInternal Linking Grows Up: Evolving From Link Juice To Entity Mapsβ βKevin Indig / Search Engine Journalβ βKevin shares how internal linking is no longer just about distributing authority. Itβs about: Building your own semantic map that Google can trust, reinforcing your topical authority, and earning a place in an AI-search-forward landscape.
The value of junior talent that AI canβt (yet) replace
βWhat AI Canβt Replace: Your SEO Talent Pipelineβ βNick LeRoyβ βAI might be a better junior level task resource but it can't grow and become the future of your company. Nick explains why you need to hire junior talent.
Because it's about a positive ROI
βHow To Measure Content Revenue and Prove Successβ βHelen Pollitt / Moz βHelen provides a framework to measure the ROI of organic content. You can also use it to prioritize work, justify investment, and forecast growth.
βRecap: The SEOFOMO x Semrush Meetup in Barcelona in September 2025: SEO & AI Search Insights + Great Networkingββ βSEOFOMO, Semrush βOn September 4th we held the 7th edition of the free SEOFOMO Meetup, this time with an outstanding host in a spectacular city: Semrush in Barcelona. The event was a success with 100+ attendees who joined to enjoy three SEO panels discussing the trends in SEO and AI search in English and Spanish. Learn about what was discussed and the outcomes here!
βThe AI Visibility Indexβ βSemrush βSemrush' AI Visibility Index features a monthly updated report on who's winning in AI search and how they're doing it, analyzing 2,500 prompts and responses across 5 major industries to find visibility trends per sector, differences in ChatGPT and AI Mode, top cited sources, and more.
Prioritize what brings impact
βGEO and SEO: How to invest your time and efforts wiselyβ βAmanda King / Search Engine Land βA comprehensive guide by Amanda going through what search marketers should assume about where AI is heading, the types of executional work that align with GEO and what all of this means for prioritization and investment.
βNew Study: How Often Do AI Assistants Hallucinate Links? (16 Million URLs Studied)β βRyan Law, Xibeijia Guan / Ahrefs βAhrefs looked at the HTTP status of 16 million unique URLs cited by ChatGPT, Perplexity, Copilot, Gemini, Claude, and Mistral. They found that AI platforms send visitors to 404 pages 2.87x more often than Google Search and ChatGPT is the greatest offender.
Visibility builds awareness and memorability
βWhy Informational Content Still Matters in the AI Search Eraβ βGianluca Fiorelli / Advanced Web Rankingβ βGianluca goes through five compelling reasons why investing in high-quality, fresh informational content remains crucial, using a travel brand example.
LLM traffic converts as traditional organic search
βDoes LLM Traffic Convert Better Than Organic? A New Data-Backed Studyβ βWill Guevara / Amsive β βThe evidence from this study shows that LLM traffic is not delivering a measurable conversion advantage over organic at this stage since LLM traffic is converting about the same as organic and site averages.
ππ»ββοΈ Join +190 SEOs to answer the AI Search Optimization Survey & Participate in Giveaway
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Help us uncover the state of AI search optimization by completing this short survey and get the chance to win an SEOFOMO hoodie, mug, as well as free access to some of the best AI search, SEO and digital marketing tools:
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Sitebulb, Similarweb, SparkToro, ScreamingFrog, JetOctopus. Peec AI, AirOps, Waikay, The New Leader, Advanced Web Ranking, Worflift, AlsoAsked, Demandsphere π
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Hurry up! You have until tomorrow September 8, 2025 to take the survey. The results will be published here on September 10, 2025 along with the winners of the giveaway.
ββThe AI Visibility Indexββ βSemrush βA benchmark for AI search visibility featuring top brand rankings, key sources, and strategies to win in AI search, updated monthly.
βAI/ML SEO & Marketing Experts Directoryββ βMLforSEO βA complete list of SEOs and marketing experts, heavily invested in AI/ML and helping businesses and professionals alike thrive in the AI era.
Join Aleyda SolΓs, Erik Sarissky, Ismael GarcΓa, and more to learn about the AI search optimization roadmap, social media and branding strategies, and for networking and drinks.
Enjoy of organic and paid growth talks and workshops with experienced professionals, a luxurious accommodation, all-Inclusive dining and drinks in an stunning beachside setting. Get a special 35% discount by using the SEOFOMO35 promo code.
SEOFOMO is a weekly free newsletter sent to +38K subscribers with the latest SEO and AI Search news, updates, guides, tips, free tools and jobs. Avoid missing any worthy SEO & AI Search update and subscribe now!