“Your XML sitemap may be a static snapshot of the website at the time it was created. If so, there’s a chance that it will be outdated,” explains Michelle Race of Ricemedia. “A dynamic sitemap is better as it automatically updates, but settings should be checked to ensure key sections/URLs are not excluded.”

“How to check: Compare URLs on a web crawl with URLs from your XML sitemaps. You can use crawlers like Screaming Frog, Deepcrawl or Sitebulb for this as they give the option to include the sitemap within a crawl.”

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We’ll be sharing daily mindfulness exercises to help us all take some time to decompress. If you have a suggestion, please email me at gmarvin@thirddoormedia.com. 

“Go for a walk, don’t take your phone. Count your steps and as you do so, focus on how your feet hit the ground one at a time,” suggests Marc Sirkin, Third Door Media’s SVP of marketing and experience. 

If you’re unable to go outside, you can still practice this. Take a “stroll” around your home or apartment. You might even see your surroundings anew. 

This guide from MarTech Today examines the market for local marketing solutions and the 5 critical elements for local marketing success: Listing Management, Local SEO, Local Landing Pages, Reputation Management, and Paid Search and Social Media. Also included are profiles of 17 leading local marketing solution vendors and capabilities comparisons.

Read more »

Google ranking volatility. There have been some signs this week of another Google search ranking algorithm update. Have you noticed any changes? Google has not confirmed this one.

Closing e-commerce site, Google advice. When it comes to temporarily closing your site due to COVID-19, Gary Illyes from Google recommends “closing the cart and putting up a message that explains to the user what’s happening should be the way to go if you’re planning the closure will last a long time.”

Sarcasm in Google search. Can Google detect sarcasm? John Mueller of Google said on Twitter that “people write about things in all kinds of weird ways, we have to make do with what’s available online. People also search in surprisingly different ways, so I think it kinda evens out.”

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There’s nothing like curling up with a good book — or good Marketing Intelligence Report — when you’re stuck inside. MarTech Today’s Enterprise SEO Tools For Content Marketing, Search Intelligence, UX, And More guide is an insightful and informative read that will help you understand who the leading players are and what capabilities these platforms provide.

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5 Things Businesses Should Do in an Outbreak – Didit

Five things you (maybe) didn’t know about AI – Google Blog

Google Ads Phone Support Not Accepting Phone Calls – Bill Hartzer

Google My Business Adds Mark Business As Temporarily Closed Feature – Search Engine 

Roundtable

Google’s understanding of the Marketing sector – InLinks

How Often Does Google Rewrite Meta Descriptions? (New Data Study) – Ahrefs

How to Handle Temporarily Out-of-Stock Product Pages – Moz

How to Improve Your Search Messaging Flexibility with Ad Customizers – Merkle

PPC Pricing – What Does PPC Cost in 2020? – HigherVisibility

SEO & UX: How User Signals Impact your Rankings – Search Metrics

Staysure turns audience strategy on its head with LinkedIn Profile targeting – Microsoft 

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