In case you missed them, these are the standout stories making waves across marketing, tech, and search this week.
Following YouTube, Meta announces crackdown on ‘unoriginal’ Facebook content
Meta is ramping up its efforts to reduce “unoriginal” content on Facebook. Accounts that repost or impersonate others may see lower distribution, loss of monetisation eligibility, and often have duplicate content linked back to the original creator. These changes aim to protect creator rights and encourage higher quality, original storytelling.
On the downside, automated enforcement has sparked complaints about wrongful takedowns and disrupted creator income for legitimate remixers or commentators. With the policy rolling out slowly, many creators face uncertainty about their account status or the fate of their content during this transition.
ChatGPT web search uses Google Search and NOT Bing Search (with proof)
https://acme.bot/blog/chatgpt-web-search-uses-google-search-and-not-bing-search-with-proof/
Recent experiments show that ChatGPT Plus uses Google Search, not Bing or OpenAI’s own index. This was proved by creating a hidden test page indexed only on Google, which ChatGPT Plus could reference. Snippet analysis also showed a high overlap with Google results and much lower similarity with Bing. For SEO, this means ranking well in Google is now more important than ever, especially if you want your content to appear in ChatGPT answers. However, this reliance on Google raises privacy and disclosure questions, especially since OpenAI has not officially confirmed this in its documentation.
Google June 2025 core update rollout is now complete
https://searchengineland.com/google-june-2025-core-update-rollout-is-now-complete-458617
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Google’s June 2025 Update Analysis: What Just Happened?
https://www.searchenginejournal.com/googles-june-2025-update-analysis-what-just-happened/551501
Google released a broad core update on 30 June 2025, which completed its rollout by 17 July. This update included two new systems—MUVERA and GFM—designed to improve how Google identifies relevant and trustworthy pages before they are ranked. Although the update was not highly disruptive overall, it still caused significant ranking fluctuations. Some websites that had been hit by previous updates managed to recover, indicating that content quality and helpfulness still play a key role.
Websites in industries like finance and health saw some of the biggest changes, with visibility shifts of up to 40 percent. This highlights how important it is for content to demonstrate expertise and trustworthiness. While the update rewarded some improved sites, full recovery is often delayed until future updates. Google’s advice remains the same: focus on creating helpful, user-first content and allow time for improvements to take effect.
Google homepage search box rolling out AI Mode button
https://searchengineland.com/google-homepage-search-box-rolling-out-ai-mode-button-458968
Google has added an AI Mode button next to the search box on its homepage and new tab page in Chrome. Although AI Mode is still optional, making it more visible signals that AI-powered search is becoming a central part of Google’s interface. Users who opt in will receive conversational, AI-generated responses rather than a traditional list of links.
This change may shift user behaviour over time, especially for branded searches. Some SEO experts warn that branded traffic could drop as users rely on AI answers instead of clicking through. Tracking and attribution may become more difficult, too, since Google combines AI Mode data with traditional search metrics in Search Console. Marketers should monitor trends and consider how this could affect visibility and referral traffic in the coming months.
Your website still matters in the age of AI
https://searchengineland.com/website-matters-ai-age-458829
AI is reshaping search and marketing, but your website still plays a vital role. Rather than chasing every shiny new AI tool, marketing professionals should focus on combining strategic thinking with AI assistance. Content written with care, backed by human judgement, continues to outperform generic or quickly produced AI-generated pages.
Structured and visible content, using clear headings, question and answer formats, bullet points, and schema markup, is more likely to be picked up by AI systems. Brands that combine traditional SEO with Answer Engine Optimisation (AEO) and Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) will stay relevant. The key is making sure AI tools can actually read and understand your content, so you do not become invisible in the evolving search landscape.
Why It’s Okay To Not Buy Or Obsess Over Links Anymore
https://www.searchenginejournal.com/why-its-okay-to-not-buy-or-obsess-over-links-anymore/551563
The article explains that while links still matter, they are not as important as they used to be. Google now focuses more on signals like user behaviour, including clicks and engagement, to decide which content should rank. Experts at Google have said the algorithm often needs only a small number of links to understand relevance. Because of this, businesses are being encouraged to shift their SEO focus away from buying or obsessing over backlinks and instead put energy into building trust and visibility through broader promotion.
To succeed with SEO today, it is better to avoid risky link schemes that could lead to manual penalties. A more effective strategy is to build brand awareness through high-quality content, public relations, and community involvement. This approach helps generate natural signals that Google can pick up and rewards businesses that offer real value to their audiences.
What else have I been reading this week?…
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO): How to Win in AI Search
https://backlinko.com/generative-engine-optimization-geo
Google’s Top 5 SEO Tools
https://www.searchenginejournal.com/googles-top-seo-tools/548265
Perplexity Looks Beyond Search With Its AI Browser, Comet
https://www.searchenginejournal.com/perplexity-looks-beyond-search-with-its-ai-browser-comet/551469