Content Caffeine: a newsletter for the content-obsessed.

Hi everyone!

We've hit 3200 subscribers! I can't believe so many of you are enjoying my occasional missives.
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I aim to continually increase the quality of the info you're getting from me.
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I'm planning my 2024 conference schedule and would love to meet some of you in person. Are there any that you're attending? Let me know.

News & Analysis

It was another huge couple of weeks for SEO. Here's my take on all the stories you should be watching.

TikTok vs. Google

Is TikTok a search engine? Is it beating out Google?

• This week, I saw two reports and tracked 6+ massive threads across LinkedIn and X with SEOs arguing over whether TikTok is a search engine and if it has more search volume and users than the big G.
• It was wild, with one post getting 330 comments alone.

Many of the arguments are not new, but the controversy is getting bigger instead of settling.

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• First, nobody disputes that TikTok users search the platform. Whether that makes TikTok a search engine or not is a distraction. Personally, I think it's sensational to call TikTok a search engine. I use the search function on all major platforms I frequent, including Reddit, LinkedIn, X, YouTube, Instagram, Amazon, and Facebook.
• Second, any information marketers can obtain about keywords and volume on a platform is valuable to efforts on that platform.
• Most importantly, there is currently no reliable way to compare search volumes between Google and TikTok.
• Some in the industry combine data from different third-party applications without understanding how that data is reported. It's like measuring one thing in centimeters and another in inches and pretending those measures are the same.
• Using the same third-party tool and comparing relative volume is a slightly better attempt. Keywordtool.io is emerging as the tool of choice here.
• The problem is that, as data consumers, we must understand where and how our tools source and process data.
• Keywordtool.io uses Google Keyword Planner for its Google search volume data. GKP uses broad search for volume, so this data should be inflated.
• The tool provides a guesstimate of search volume for TikTok based on its own scrape from autocomplete. Very unreliable, and I would not recommend anyone make business decisions based on this data.

​Original discussion​
​Mark's post​

AI-Assisted Search

​Google announced Google Circle and Multisearch on Android​

This allows users to interact with images and videos by circling or scribbling on them. Users can then begin a more traditional search experience on Google.
I think it is a genius way to pull people back into Google from native video apps like TikTok.

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​Google is signaling that SGE isn't happening anytime soon...or at all

• Users may not find SGE useful. In their recent announcement of Circle, they mention: "But our goal is to make AI helpful for everyone, not just early adopters." I read this to mean their user data on SGE found that not enough people liked it or found it useful, and it largely remains a tool for the tech community to play with.
• Bing’s market share has barely increased since rolling out AI-assisted search. Remember, Google only began moving toward SGE due to pressure from Bing. But that pressure amounted to only a 1% increase in market share for the Bing search engine over the last year. Hardly enough to motivate Google to change its golden goose dramatically.
• Absent a clear preference for generative search by users, Google will continue to slow-roll these changes to ensure the continuation of the ecosystem that's worked so well for them.
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  ​Nicole's LinkedIn discussion.
  ​Lily Ray's LinkedIn discussion.

Quality Raters Shakeup

​Google terminated its contract with Appen for Quality Raters​

• This news quickly sent the SEO community into a tizzy as speculation spread that AI would replace the raters.
• In fact, Dawn Anderson wrote a detailed article openly speculating about a move like this back in November.
• Barry Schwartz spoke with Google, who told him they were merely moving those contracts to new vendors. See the update at the bottom here.
• My big takeaway here is that we're on edge, people. There's been so much news and so many changes happening so quickly that it's easy to get excited. This news story was a good reminder to keep calm and SEO on.

Red Ventures Selling CNET

​Red Ventures has been trying to sell CNET...for a while.

• Axios and Futurism reported this week that the company's troubles may stem from the reputational harm caused by the AI content fiasco last year.
• Red Ventures is a good company with phenomenal SEOs and content marketers. I wish them well individually. But I am glad that we live in a world where AI misinformation and lack of transparency cause enough damage to a brand to impact value.
• I'm not convinced that's what's happening here, though. If the site's organic footprint was on the rise, there might be a different story.

Another Update Soon?

​Danny Sullivan is hinting that another update will start soon.​

In response to a hilarious meme from Lily Ray, Danny Sullivan posted a meme of his own saying someone's "cooking up a storm tonight."
It sure would be nice for an update to address all the recent spam.

Future of the Industry

​New jobs are on the rise.

• I spotted a new type of job opening that may interest readers--Generative Search Specialist.
• As our industry digests the changes brought by AI, these will become best practices that bleed into job descriptions and create new jobs. Though I haven't created a jobs area in this newsletter, I'll definitely track this evolution in roles as they happen.
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I hope these insights help. For more tips, follow me here. To explore our work further, reach out here.

See our work! Check out more of our work or how we might help you achieve your organic goals.

Inspiration

This week's inspiration is an internal checklist we use to ensure our client surveys provide newsmaking stats.
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This process is the same one we've used to gain coverage in the Wall Street Journal, The Independent, Fortune, and 100s of other top-tier media.

I've never shared this externally. And I gotta say, I'm a little nervous.

Let me know if this helps.

Got something to share?

If you've got a resource or campaign you're proud of, let me know. We'd love to feature your awesome work.

Upcoming PR & Seasonal Dates

March 1, 2024: Share a Smile Day
March 1, 2024: National Barista Day
March 1, 2024: Employee Appreciation Day
March 1, 2024: NHS Workers Day
March 2, 2024: Dr. Seuss Day
March 2, 2024: International Rescue Cat Day
March 3, 2024: World Hearing Day
March 3, 2024: World Wildlife Day
March 3, 2024: National Cold Cuts Day
March 3, 2024: Start of Consumer Protection Week
March 3, 2024: Start of Professional Pet Sitters Week
March 4, 2024: National Sons Day
March 4, 2024: National Grammar Day
March 4, 2024: World Obesity Day
March 5, 2024: Unique Names Day
March 6, 2024: National Dress Day
March 6, 2024: Oreo Cookie Day
March 6, 2024: Dentist's Day
March 7, 2024: World Book Day
March 7, 2024: Plant Power Day
March 8. 2024: International Women's Day
March 8, 2024: National Freelancers Day
March 9, 2024: Made in UK Day
March 9, 2024: National Barbie Day
March 9, 2024: National Meatball Day
March 10, 2024: National Mario Day
March 10, 2024: Start of Ramadan
March 11, 2024: World Plumbing Day
March 12, 2024: National Girl Scout Day
March 12, 2024: National Working Moms Day
March 14, 2024: National Pi Day
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March is also:

National Reading Month
National Colon Cancer Awareness Month
Epilepsy Awareness Month
National Women's History Month
National Credit Education Month
Irish American History Month
National Nutrition Month
MS Awareness Month
National Peanut Month
National Caffeine Awareness Month

See our work! Check out more of our work or how we might help you achieve your organic goals.