It’s been announced, and we need to ramp up our understanding and implementation of Google Analytics 4. In part 2 of this interview, Krista Seiden of KS Digital, LLC shares her thoughts on the most significant differences between Universal Analytics and GA4. We explore the larger landscape of features and functions and understand the more flexible data model that GA4 provides. We’re in the world of cross-device attribution, and that’s been the focus of Google for the last three years. We thoroughly enjoyed our talk with Krista and highly recommended her training courses. We even have a discount code!

[00:03:43] Sunsetting of Google Analytics 3 - You Can't Take It With You!

[00:04:49] Quick Takes on the Reaction of the Announcement

[00:06:25] The Biggest Difference

[00:08:40] Moving Away from Pages and Sessions

[00:10:16] Bonus Events Out of the Box

[00:13:58] No Longer the Limitations that We All Had with Universal (Goals)

[00:14:28] Integrations Galore!

[00:17:03] Title Sponsor of the EDGE of the Web Interview Series: Wix edgeofthewebradio.com/WIX

[00:17:42] Is Google Forcing Us into a Paid Analytics Model?

[00:20:22] What's Different in Real-Time Reporting?

[00:23:27] What are the Advantages of GA4?

[00:27:19] Flexible Data Model: Deeper Content Parameters

[00:28:49] Sponsor: Site Strategics

[00:29:35] The World of Cross-Device Attribution

[00:33:56] How Much Training Does a UA User Need for GA4?

[00:36:20] Should a New Marketer Even Learn Universal Analytics?

We’re excited to offer a discount on Krista Seiden ’s GA4 courses! Go to https://academy.ksdigital.co EDGE listeners can get a $200 discount off of any non-intro course with the code “EDGE”!

The EDGE team dropped in on a number of articles this week from Search Engine Round Table and Search Engie Journal, carefully reading and ruminating about each.  Clearly Erin had a accurate bead on each and should be commended on his astute observation and insight on…..nope, can’t do it.  He forgot to read the first article completely and wow - did he muck it up.  Listen in as we dig through the news and pause as we honor a friend of the show and SEO legend, Bill Slawski. 

 

[00:04:46] Video thumbnails when there is no video?

[00:06:55] Erin completely makes a heady analysis without READING THE ARTICLE!!

[00:09:01] EDGE of the Web Title Sponsor: Site Strategics

[00:09:50] Google search results might start showing “sponsored” instead of “ad”

[00:15:59] EDGE of the Web Sponsor: edgeofthewebradio.com/inlinks

[00:16:47] A SEO Legend has passed: Bill Slawski

#StandwithUkraine edgeofthewebradio.com/ukraine

EDGE of the Web is proud to bring you some epic fails shared by friends of the show.  We wanted to lean into the 500, seeing that the server error code 500 is a bad thing, any way you cut it.  We reached out to our guests of the past and asked them to share one of their worst screw-ups in SEO and digital marketing, the ones they really learned from.  We wanted to share these with our listeners so you can learn too!  Thanks so much to all of our listeners and guests over the 10 years and 500 episodes.  We really are blessed to be able to do this and learn from the best.  Special thanks to our 500th episode sponsor, Ahrefs!  Check out their free tool at edgeofthewebradio.com/AWT.

 

Check out some great Epic Fails from our friends:

 

[00:03:46] Epic Fails for the 500th

[00:06:23] Benjamin Shapiro

[00:09:08] Marie Haynes

[00:12:41] Jonny Ross

[00:15:40] Garrett Sussman

[00:23:32] Title Sponsor of the 500th Episode: Ahrefs

[00:26:01] Dixon Jones

[00:30:15] Olga Zarzeczna

[00:33:59] Andrew Optimisey

[00:36:48] Barry Schwartz

[00:40:15] Mordy Oberstein

[00:45:38] Future paths of EDGE of the Web

Special thanks to the additional guests that submitted your fails.  We just couldn't fit everyone's in.  Watch for yours on social!

Thanks to everyone who has helped us over the years!

 

#StandwithUkraine edgeofthewebradio.com/ukraine

Did we hear that right?  Google introduces the first designated schema ranking signal!  That’s breaking news!  Erin, Mordy and Jacob cover the Google I/O news of the week from Search Engine Roundtable, Search Engine Land and TechCrunch.  Learn about Mordy danger whistle that Jacob has just in case!  All this and more from the EDGE.  Be sure to check out episode 500!

 

[00:05:02] Google I/O Rolls Out | What to know regarding SEARCH

[00:12:44] EDGE of the Web Title Sponsor: Site Strategics

[00:13:35] A New Ranking Signal from Google?

[00:19:19] EDGE of the Web Sponsor: edgeofthewebradio.com/inlinks

[00:20:13] Google's Latest Language AI Model

#StandwithUkraine edgeofthewebradio.com/ukraine

It’s been announced and we need to ramp up our understanding  and implementation of Google Analytics 4. 

 

Krista Seiden of KS Digital, LLC shares about her role as project manager of GA4, discusses the history of Google Analytics, and maps implementation of Google Analytics 4.  An incredible resource of knowledge of GA4, Krista teaches the foundational concepts of the new platform and the treasure trove of new insights that are coming our way.  It’s time to get our GA4 game on as we have a year to gather our data before it’s gone from Universal Analytics.

 

[00:03:52] Krista Seiden's history that led her to GA4

[00:06:41] Moving to the GA education team

[00:08:09] PM on the new Google Analytics product: GA4

[00:10:31] Short history of Google Analytics

[00:11:58] What Universal Analytics brought to the table in 2014

[00:13:16] GA4 released under the tool name: Google Analytics App Plus Web

[00:14:41] EDGE of the Web Title Sponsor: edgeofthewebradio.com/wix

[00:15:18] The web doesn't work the same way that we used to measure user behavior

[00:16:50] The GA4 foundational concept: User behavioral modeling as opposed to chasing fictitious accuracy

[00:19:00] The sunset announcement & the contention

[00:20:07] Why are people afraid of GA4

[00:22:30] Where is our historical data going?

[00:28:07] What is being lost in Google Analytics 4?

[00:31:03] EDGE of the Web Sponsor: Site Strategics

[00:32:00] This isn't the Bounce Rate you're looking for…

[00:44:04] First time ever: fully customize the user interface of analytics

[00:44:50] Google Signals: Connecting users between their devices

[00:47:03] The new mindset of getting into GA4

Erin, Mordy and Jacob are blown away by what happened to Moz.com, at least for 12 hours. Listen in on who Mordy thinks may have been the culprit of such a dastardly DMCA take down request.  Stories from Search Engine Land, Social Media Today and a special article from Will Critchlow’s Brain Labs Digital.  All this and we’re coming up to the 500th episode.  Listen in as we have something special in the works!

 

[00:02:54] Coming up to our 500th episode

[00:05:45] DMCA request took MOZ.com off of Google’s Index

[00:10:12] This Week’s Poll

[00:11:12] EDGE of the Web Title Sponsor: Site Strategics

[00:12:37] Improve your promotions on FB with “Culture Codes”

[00:00:00] EDGE of the Web Sponsor: edgeofthewebradio.com/inlinks

[00:22:06] 4 practical impacts to SEO from Google’s Machine Learning advances.

 

#StandwithUkraine edgeofthewebradio.com/ukraine

Recording from our home studios this week, EDGE rolled out its review of 4 digital news stories this week from Search Engine Roundtable, Search Engine Land and, yup, Search Engine Journal.   All the Searches!  We experienced the full immersion into the John Mueller AI - Mueller-bot.  We think we should have a dedicated segment just for that.  

 

[00:02:46] Ad Revenue growth reported by both Google and Microsoft

[00:05:39] EDGE of the Web Title Sponsor: Site Strategics

[00:06:26] Would you ask SEO questions to a bot based on John Mueller? It depends.  

[00:09:04] This Week’s Poll

[00:09:52] Google stealing content? Or are people stealing from Google? It’s the new Chicken or the Egg question.

[00:15:11] EDGE of the Web Sponsor: edgeofthewebradio.com/inlinks

[00:16:04] You can remove your personally identifiable information from Google Search Results

#StandwithUkraine edgeofthewebradio.com/ukraine

Jonny Ross of Fleek Marketing gives us a run through of practical tips for successful schema deployment on your website.  We also cover a great deal of information regarding citation strategies.  Learn about entity definition and the slew of tools out there to make your structured data grooming easy on this episode of the EDGE. Be sure to check out our first episode with Jonny Ross as he covered the basic of structured data.

 

[00:03:53] How do we measure the successful deployment of schema on a site?

[00:09:40] Linking to sources:  the most important piece of schema

[00:13:25] Your schema citation strategy

[00:15:06] The Interview Series Title Sponsor: Site Strategics

[00:17:30] Inlinks as a great schema delivery tool

[00:19:55] New products for engineered by SEOs

[00:22:27] Sponsor for EDGE of the Web: Wix

[00:22:58] Wordpress plugins for schema

[00:26:02] Defining entities.  Strategy inside the schema

[00:30:02] Wikipedia is very Americanized

Mordy’s back with the EDGE team as we go through a number of great news pieces this week from Search Engine Land, Search Engine Roundtable, TechCrunch and Search Engine Journal.  Had a fun time listening to Mordy’s analogy of echo chamber quality content - let’s say he did a crappy job explaining it (27:20 mark if your interested).

 

[00:05:21] Big Changes coming for Featured Snippets

[00:13:14] Universal Analytics’ Real-Time bug will remain, another reason to go to GA4

[00:16:53] EDGE of the Web Title Sponsor: Site Strategics

[00:18:49] What do scammers do when they grab up a popular domain

[00:23:55] EDGE of the Web Sponsor: edgeofthewebradio.com/inlinks

[00:25:18] Thousands of responses state that Google Search is worse.

[00:26:34] This Week’s Poll

 

#StandwithUkraine edgeofthewebradio.com/ukraine

THE Barry Schwartz joins the EDGE team and kicks Mordy out of his seat this week to cover the digital marketing news that is happening. Covering Search Engine Roundtable (of course), Search Engine Land and Marketing Brew news, Barry unveils his true intentions.  Check out our Twitter Poll to find out!  Lastly, explore with us our first “Barry Moment” here on the show. [00:05:52] Google rolling out conversion migration tool for Google Analytics 4
[00:11:17] EDGE of the Web Title Sponsor: Site Strategics
[00:11:43] U.S. search ad revenue grew 33% to $78 billion last year
[00:17:09] EDGE of the Web Sponsor: edgeofthewebradio.com/inlinks
[00:18:16] Spotify’s acquisition of podcast analytics firms has some in the industry concerned
[00:23:50] Our Barry Moment
[00:24:20] Highly cited labels in Google search
[00:25:34] Trusted Store Badges
[00:27:47] Google has done over 800,000 tests last year on Google Search Alone
[00:31:22] This Week’s Poll
#StandwithUkraine edgeofthewebradio.com/ukraine

Jonny Ross, the founder of Fleek Marketing, joins the EDGE to provide foundational information about structured data via schema.  We cover what it is, what it means to search engines, and the value you of schema deployment for visibility.  Is schema a ranking signal? We answer it on this podcast.

[00:09:38] What is schema?

[00:13:54] Benefits of schema: knowledge graphs, rich snippets

[00:14:00] The Interview Series Title Sponsor: Site Strategics

 

[00:17:33] Organization and authority for brands

 

[00:24:15] Schema is not needed for rich Snippets, but why not grease the wheels

 

[00:25:25] The opportunity is there.

 

[00:26:05] Does schema affect ranking search engine ranking?

 

[00:26:13] Sponsor for EDGE of the Web: Wix

 

[00:028:17] Structured data: Apply common sense

George Nguyen, Director of SEO Editorial at Wix, joins the team to replace the an absent Mordy Oberstein to cover articles of the week in digital marketing.  Discussing articles from Social Media Today, Search Engine Roundtable and Search Engine Journal was part of our podcast - and then we discovered the real news: TheThingAboutGeorge.com.  George is making a site all about him.  Tell us what you think at RateThisPodcast.com/EDGE.

• [00:05:24] SMBs can connect better in Nextdoor
• [00:16:33] Thin Content is site specific, not page specific.
• [00:23:12] EDGE of the Web Title Sponsor: Site Strategics
• [00:25:00] Elon Musk grabbed up a lot of Twitter shares. What’s Next?
• [00:30:40] EDGE of the Web Sponsor: edgeofthewebradio.com/inlinks
• [00:31:31] Google Disavows Negative SEO AGAIN!
• [00:39:14] This Week’s Poll
• [00:41:42] TheThingAboutGeorge.com

  #StandwithUkraine edgeofthewebradio.com/ukraine

The EDGE team tackled this week’s news with gusto and a bit of exhaustion, actually.  So much to cover and so little time.  We’ve got a Facebook study from Search Enge Land, Google algorithm volatility from Search Engine Roundtable and discussions about individual Google algorithms in niche industries.  Let us know what you think on this week’s Poll and be sure to RateThisPodcast.com/EDGE.

• [00:04:43] “Interest Categories” on FB Ads are 33% inaccurate??
• [00:09:17] Badges? We need all the stinking badges!
• [00:11:50] EDGE of the Web Title Sponsor: Site Strategics
• [00:12:17] March update starting to cause Volatility
• [00:18:21] EDGE of the Web Sponsor: InLinks edgeofthewebradio.com/inlinks
• [00:19:21] Is Google using different algorithms for niche industries?
• [00:27:20] This Week’s Poll

#StandwithUkraine edgeofthewebradio.com/ukraine

Is Google wanting to see a Google-shaped web?

There is a huge debate swirling around the Google AMP over the past 5 years.  Proponents and detractors of the Google-centered mobile framework have positioned themselves with steadfast resolve.  The mobile news visibility on the search engine result pages were exclusively AMP sites until just last year, to much animosity. With the recent unredacted memos found through a recent antitrust lawsuit in Texas revealing inferred manipulation against advertising networks with the AMP framework, there’s a rekindling of the debate.  To AMP or NOT to AMP….that is the question.  And this is The SCRUM!

 

[00:00:46] Introduction Barry Adams and Jono Alderson

[00:05:09] History of Google AMP

[00:06:26] When AMP was launched, it was flawed (Jono)

[00:09:20] Mobile is the primary source of traffic to news publishers (Barry)

[00:12:18] Google wanting to see a Google shaped web.

[00:13:21] Google is not overreaching (Jono)

[00:16:26] Is the lack of control of your website the currency to play in the Google Sandbox?

[00:18:34] Google is increasingly violating the social contract (Barry)

[00:19:07] The SCRUM 2 Title Sponsor: edgeofthewebradio.com/AWT

[00:22:36] Was this just a money grab? 

[00:23:24] Google fumbling a product launch again (Jono)

[00:28:16] The surge of new, non-AMP visibility when Google removed AMP requirements for the news carousel.

[00:32:25] Google is helping business build performance driven sites (Jono)

[00:36:06] The slippery slope of Google’s content curation

[00:40:50] A model for content licensing?

[00:43:27] Lawsuits is the only language Google understands? (Barry)

[00:45:45] You can't site on the sidelines and complain (Jono)

[00:51:19] The relationship with the SEO community is so combative (Jono)

[00:52:51] There have been some congressional hearings that were just cringe-worthy (Barry)

Erin’s back in the captain’s seat to go over the recent digital marketing news of the week.  Stories from Search Engine Roundtable….yup, that’s it….all from Barry Schwartz.  It’s a trifecta.  We should probably just give up looking anywhere else…

 

[00:08:05] Product Reviews Update rolling out from Google

[00:17:33] Show Notes

[00:19:11] 100 million fraudulent or abusive edits blocked on Google Maps

[00:21:51] This Week’s Poll

[00:23:17] EDGE of the Web Title Sponsor: Site Strategics

[00:24:37] What does it mean to “De-SEO” a web page? 

[00:29:53] EDGE of the Web Sponsor: edgeofthewebradio.com/inlinks

 

#StandwithUkraine edgeofthewebradio.com/ukraine

Erin may have left Mordy this week to fend for himself but he was still present during the show… you will have to tune in to the video on YouTube to find out how. Mordy decided to replace Erin and bring in a special guest/ co-worker, Crystal Carter, Head of SEO Communications at Wix. 

• [00:07:30] Header and Footer Links - What does Google think?
• [00:10:43] EDGE of the Web Title Sponsor: Site Strategics
• [00:12:56] How are Expertise, Authority, and Trust evaluated by Google?
• [00:20:13] EDGE of the Web Sponsor: edgeofthewebradio.com/inlinks
• [00:20:54] Get ready to say goodbye to the Analytics you’re used to.

Mitul Gandhi, CEO of seoClarity, with Mark Traphagan, speaks to the EDGE about their new product, seoClarity Automate, a game-changing scenario for enterprise SEO analysis, insight, and execution.  No paid sponsorship here, folks, this is the real deal. Enterprise SEO is about to be at executed at scale!  Be sure to listen to the first episode of our two-part interview with these two SEO innovators.  They are about to make SEO history……and Erin’s a little verklempt….

[00:04:15] How seoClarity learned about the biggest roadblock in getting changes done at the Enterprise level

[00:08:39] We are at an all-time high of the number of open SEO positions at the Enterprise level.

[00:10:18] Are SEO's aware of these limitations?

[00:12:18] Google’s at scale, what aren’t Enterprise SEOs?

[00:15:36] The Interview Series Title Sponsor: Site Strategics edgeofthewebradio.com/Site

[00:16:22] Changing the exectution of Enterprise SEO at scale: seoClarity Automate

[00:20:50] Everything that an enterprise would expect: publishing, workflow and security

[00:25:00] Sponsor for EDGE of the Web: Wix edgeofthewebradio.com/Wix

[00:25:32] Tested on 3,500 of seoClarity's clients

[00:26:36] SEO Agencies are able to take control of their own destiny

[00:29:16] What is the cost of not doing something? 

[00:30:42] A moment of reality check

[00:33:27] The Reality: No-Code SEO

[00:38:17] A George Lucas moment

How did last week’s poll fail?  That’s our question.  Erin’s not happy there.  New From the EDGE this week covers articles are from George Nguyen, Andrew Hutchinson, Matt G. Southern, and Roger Montti.  Short-form videos are the way of the future!  Give us a listen, today on the EDGE!

[00:03:50] Update your WordPress As Soon As Possible

[00:06:45] More Short-Form Videos coming to Google SERPs

[00:14:26] EDGE of the Web Title Sponsor: Site Strategics

[00:15:23] Twitter Testing new Profiles for Shops, Products In-App

[00:19:00] This Week’s Poll

[00:21:58] Show Notes

[00:22:46] EDGE of the Web Sponsor: edgeofthewebradio.com/inlinks

[00:00:00] Advertisers in Russia have their ads paused by Google

#StandwithUkraine edgeofthewebradio.com/ukraine

The EDGE team gets back to it and covers some key digital marketing news from Search Engine Land exclusively this episode. Articles are from Barry Schwartz (bing), George Nguyen and danny Goodwin.  We’re wanting to continue to get the word out on how to support Ukraine.  Please go to edgeofthewebradio.com/ukraine for more information.    

[00:05:08] New Businesses Are Opening at pre-pandemic levels!

[00:14:21] Verifying your business on Google - harder than getting a passport?

[00:18:55] EDGE of the Web Title Sponsor: Site Strategics

[00:20:07] Show Notes

[00:21:13] EDGE of the Web Sponsor: edgeofthewebradio.com/inlinks

[00:22:00] This Week’s Poll

[00:24:19] How can you help in Ukraine? Why not hire an SEO or PPC Specialist?

We’re discussing how to help Ukraine during an incredibly dangerous time. Erin Sparks, Mordy Oberstein, and Jason Barnard discuss digital news related to the crisis as well as individuals from Ukraine that are making a difference, showing what is happening to the rest of the world.  Articles from Social Media Today and Search Engine Journal. Let’s make sure to get the word out and share this information.  

[00:05:05] FB Bans announced by Russia

[00:10:51] Website Security important to review due to increases in Russian Cyber-Attacks

[00:17:56] Ukrainian Patriot: Tim Soulo from Ahrefs extending memberships to match donations

[00:21:03] Ukrainian Patriots: Wix evacuates nearly 1,000 Ukrainian staff and families

[00:22:52] Ukrainian Patriot: Anton Shulke: Head of Influencer Marketing at Duda

[00:25:41] Aleyda Solis: Showcasing Ukrainian SEOs

[00:22:52] Ukrainian Patriot: Ievgen Saveliev

[00:27:35] Information for supporting Ukraine: edgeofthewebradio.com/ukraine

Mordy’s got news that he won’t tell anyone.  Way to start off a news show, right? We dove into articles from Search Engine Land, Journal and Roundtable and the train went off the tracks a few too many times to count. Great reads from Miranda Miller, Barry Schwartz and Celeste Gonzalez.

 

[00:04:48] RatethisPodcast.com/EDGE

[00:05:57] Majority of Small / Medium Businesses still without an SEO strategy

[00:13:07] EDGE of the Web Title Sponsor: SiteStrategics.com

[00:13:32] Changes coming for how Businesses work with Google

[00:20:08] Show Notes

[00:22:17] EDGE of the Web Sponsor: edgeofthewebradio.com/inlinks

[00:22:58] Have there been Mass suspension of Google Ad accounts?

[00:28:00] This Week's Poll

There's such a growth in SEO technology. It's time to take a moment and learn how one of these firms use what they learn from companies that use them to deliver best services. We're talking to Mitul Gandhi and mark trap Hagen, SEO clarity today on the EDGE.

 

[00:04:14] How Mitul came into the SEO industry…and why?

[00:07:54] Software had to originate out of a need.

[00:09:37] seoClarity first had to understand how to scale themselves

[00:11:27] What insights did you have from consulting and how did you would them into the product?

[00:13:54] The Interview Series Title Sponsor: edgeofthewebradio.com/site

[00:14:38] If two or more clients ask for it, seoClarity delivers it

[00:19:17] Custom SAS product delivery at a boutique level to customers, exemplifying what the listening process should be.

[00:24:24] The Growth of SEO Technology

[00:25:43] Sponsor for EDGE of the Web: edgeofthewebradio.com/Wix

[00:30:01] The gaps Mitul sees at the enterprise level of collaboration between departments

[00:34:24] How do you help companies bridge that last mile between insights and action?

Congrats to Barry Schwartz for 30,000 posts on Search Engine Roundtable!  Thanks for all of the hard work.  The EDGE is covering stories from Search Engine Land, Journal and Roundtable this week.  Be sure to check out sponsor edgeofthewebradio.com/inlinks to receive a free account today!  

 

[00:04:42] Local News gets more visibility

[00:10:42] Bing to help get millions of new visitors via PubHub

[00:16:25] EDGE of the Web Title Sponsor: Site Strategics

[00:17:32] Is Code to Text ratio a ranking factor?

[00:22:56] This Week's Poll

[00:26:22] Show Notes

[00:27:02] EDGE of the Web Sponsor: Inlinks.net

Eli Schwartz joins us on the second part of his interview on the EDGE, discussing how to achieve Blue Ocean status with your SEO strategy.  Learn some key points on how to acquire that valuable knowledge of customer need and experiences by tried and true methodology. Lastly - learn why you shouldn’t care about Position Zero. Make sure you check out his new book, “Product-Led SEO: The Why Behind Building Your Organic Growth Strategy”.

 

[00:06:05] Blue Ocean and Red Ocean

[00:11:27] Are Blue Ocean Strategies for Everyone?

[00:12:23] Learning Customer Blue Oceans: Surveys, Customer Data & Customer Support

[00:15:32] The Interview Series Title Sponsor: Site Strategics

[00:16:17] The Challenge: SEO Siloed Away from Sales and Marketing

[00:18:43] Paid Search is Research

[00:19:40] The Goal is the North Star

[00:20:47] Sponsor for EDGE of the Web: Wix

[00:22:13] How to Guide Clients Away from Keyword Volume Buglights

[00:25:18] Touching the Third Rail: Who Cares about Position Zero?

Celebrating 10 Years of our SEO podcast - we had a great time covering digital marketing news from Barry Schwartz, Roger Montti and Kirk Williams.  We strolled through memory lane with a video montage of all of the studios we have been in over the years. Please check out the video on YouTube.  Lastly, we just have to share Mordy’s new job - throwing in as many curse bombs as he can get away with to provide Jacob’s job security.  Yeah, that happened, today on the EDGE!   [00:05:27] Mordy bomb drop 1 | Jacob edit [00:05:46] Is Google Ads emailing your opted out customers? [00:09:21] Mordy bomb drop 2 | Jacob edit

[00:12:41] Really, Mordy - even with Daniel Tiger? | Jacob edit

[00:14:56] EDGE of the Web Title Sponsor: Site Strategics

[00:15:45] Structured Data? Maybe… no problem?

[00:21:10] Show Notes

[00:21:57] EDGE of the Web Sponsor: Inlinks.net

[00:22:50] Top SEO podcasts for 2022 (yeah, gratuitous plug)