SearchCap: Google search shortcuts, exact match & local entities

Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web.

From Search Engine Land:

• SMX West keynote: Google talks about ranking, more in Google Assistant
  Mar 21, 2017 by Matt McGee

  Google’s Jason Douglas shares what marketers and developers need to know about Actions on Google.

• Google’s new tappable shortcuts eliminate the need to search on mobile
  Mar 21, 2017 by Amy Gesenhues

  Rolling out today on Google’s search app and mobile site, the shortcuts offer quick answers on weather, sports & entertainment info.

• Seriously, Google, can you just make exact match exact?
  Mar 21, 2017 by Daniel Gilbert

  In the wake of Google’s announced changes to exact match, contributor Daniel Gilbert offers a passionate argument against the shift, as well as a script to help advertisers regain control.

• Why and how entities are shaping location marketing
  Mar 21, 2017 by Adam Dorfman

  What are entities, and how are they impacting local search marketing? Columnist Adam Dorfman tackles these questions and provides advice to local businesses looking to capitalize on this trend.

Recent Headlines From MarTech, Our Sister Site Dedicated To Internet Marketing:

• Hootsuite acquires Snapchat analytics solution from marketing firm Naritiv
• Amazon Alexa now accepts Prime Now orders via voice
• Twitter, Periscope make it easier to stream TV-quality live broadcasts
• Google thaws (a little) on defamation cases
• 5-year trends in artificially intelligent marketing
• What happens when Google pushes into branding and messaging?
• Google announces new brand safety controls for display & video advertisers
• What is the GDPR, and why should martech care?
• How to harness the power of Facebook Local Pages to drive in-store sales
• Instagram opens shoppable organic posts to more businesses in the US
• New: LinkedIn’s Matched Audiences will target ads based on people’s web browsing, email addresses
• How to scale content creation for social and digital channels

Search News From Around The Web:

Searching

• Answer: Scandinavia?, SearchReSearch
• More news in Google News & Weather, blog.google

SEO

• 5 Important Audience Targeting Tips for Your SEO Campaign, SEM Rush
• Google Search Console Incorrect Namespace For Referencing HTTPS URLs, Search Engine Roundtable
• GoogleBot Can Detect If Cookies Is Blocking It, Search Engine Roundtable
• How can SEO Improve your Affiliate Marketing Profits, SEM Rush
• How Fake News Changed SEO & How to Add More Facts to a Site, BruceClay.com
• The Ultimate Guide to Ranking 0 (Better Than #1!), Ignite Visibility
• Yoast SEO 4.5: update your PHP version, Yoast

SEM / Paid Search

• A Pool Party, Lucky Strike, and Hundreds of PPC Geeks, PPC Hero
• Bing Ads app for iOS and Android: Add Keyword Opportunities now available, Bing Ads Blog
• The Step-By-Step Guide to Testing Voice Search Via PPC, Moz

Search Marketing

• Google prefers HTTPS sites – Are your site security settings correct?, blog.seoprofiler.com
• Keywords that Sell: Choosing the Right Ones, Marketing Mojo
• What we learned about "Long Tail" by analyzing 1.4 Billion keywords, ahrefs.com