SEO Daily News Recap for Thursday, July 3, 2025
Organic SEO & Search News
Similarweb data shows significant growth in zero-click search since the release of Google AI Overviews. Google Ads introduces AI Max search match type and stops serving message assets ads for unverified numbers. Over 12% of “people also ask” results now feature AI Overviews. Additionally, Google is testing a new local panel tab under the main search bar, while Microsoft announces layoffs affecting 4% of its employees.
Paid Search & Platform Innovations
Google Ads makes strategic updates by discontinuing unverified phone number ads and introducing AI Max search match type. Meanwhile, Similarweb reports a significant increase in zero-click searches following the rollout of Google AI Overviews. The impact of AI mentions on high-traffic pages is also under scrutiny in the digital marketing landscape.
General Digital Marketing
Insightful content on SEO keyword selection strategies and building topical authority in 2025 is shared, along with a free SEO checklist for improved site performance. Additionally, entrepreneur Andrew Wilkinson discusses leveraging AI in business operations and the importance of focusing on practical ideas over flashy concepts. The evolving search landscape is further explored through the integration of AI in search results and the impact on user engagement.
Dive into our detailed sections for more insights and updates.
Organic SEO & Search News
SEO Daily News and Algorithm Updates
Daily Search Forum Recap: July 3, 2025
Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web.
Similarweb data says zero-click search is up a lot since Google AI Overviews were released a year ago. Google Ads added AI Max search match type. Google Ads will stop serving message assets ads for unverified numbers. 12% of people also ask include AI Overviews. Google is testing a local panel tab under the main search bar. Microsoft is laying off 9,000 employees, that is 4% of the workforce. Last night…
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Search Engine Roundtable
Microsoft To Layoff 9,000 Employees – 4% Of Workforce
Microsoft will be laying off about 4% of its workforce, which is about 9,000 employees. It is unclear if any of those jobs are across the Bing, Copilot or Microsoft Advertising businesses, or any search-related business.
Source:
Search Engine Roundtable
Similarweb Says No Clicks From Google Grew From 56% to 69% Since AI Overviews
Similarweb released a report shows that since the launch of Google AI Overviews in May 2024, zero-click search (as coined by Rand Fishkin) grew 13 percentage points, from 56% to 69% in May 2025 – just a year later.
Source:
Search Engine Roundtable
Technical SEO
How to Choose the Best Keywords for SEO (2025)
Knowing how to choose the right keywords for SEO is essential if you want to rank well in Google search. It’s easy to do—just follow this guide!
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Unknown Source
How to Build Topical Authority in 2025 (+ Free Tool)
Discover why conventional topical authority tactics fail in 2025. Learn how successful content creators earn loyal readers and high rankings from Google.
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Unknown Source
Free SEO Checklist (Follow This and Google Will Love You)
Copy the success of SEO winners with our free SEO checklist. Follow each step and watch Google reward your site with more traffic and better visibility.
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Unknown Source
Local SEO
Google Testing Local Panel Tab Buttons Under Main Search Bar
Google seems to be testing (or maybe it is a bug) the local panel sub-menu under the main search bar, under the search box. Normally, these sub-menu items would be grouped in the local panel on the right side of the page (normally on mobile) but here it is right below the search bar at the top.
Source:
Search Engine Roundtable
AI and Machine Learning in SEO
Over 12% Of People Also Ask Results Are Google AI Overviews
Last November, Google began to power some of the people also ask results with AI Overviews. Historically the people also ask were featured snippets, but now they can be featured snippets and/or AI Overviews. Data from Mark Williams-Cook of AlsoAsked said that 12.6% of the people also ask results are AI Overviews.
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Search Engine Roundtable
Does Being Mentioned on High Traffic Pages Influence AI Mentions?
Does being seen more on the web lead to more mentions in AI assistants? I analyzed 76.7M AI Overviews, 957k ChatGPT prompts, and 953.5k Perplexity prompts to find out.
Career Development and Industry Trends
I’ve run 75+ businesses. Here’s why you’re probably chasing the wrong idea. | Andrew Wilkinson (co‑founder of Tiny)
Listen now | Andrew Wilkinson shares how he used AI to replace his assistant, why boring businesses beat sexy ideas, why you need to fish where the fish are, and how he lost $10m
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Lenny’s Newsletter
Paid Search & Platform Innovations
Paid Search and Advertising
Google Ads Will Stop Serving Message Assets Ads With Unverified Phone Numbers
Google is notifying some advertisers that their ads with message assets will stop serving on September 1st, and won’t be able to create new ones on August 1st, if the phone numbers remain unverified.
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Search Engine Roundtable
Google Ads Adds AI Max Search Match Type
Google has added AI Max to the search match types in the Google Ads interface. If you click on the Keywords tab in the Google Ads console, and then segment by "Search terms match type" you should see it.
Source:
Search Engine Roundtable
Job Postings
Job Postings
7/3/2025
Associate Manager (SEO & Content Marketing) ~ TDS Telecom ~ $73.8-120k ~ Remote (US)
Overview At TDS Telecom, connecting people is at the heart of everything we do. We are forward thinkers who leverage cutting-edge fiber internet technology to strengthen communities. We are dedicated to excellence, which drives us to succeed together, creating a better world through meaningful connections. Ready to make an impact? We have an exciting opportunity […]
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In-house SEO jobs – SEOjobs.com
Job Postings
7/3/2025
SEO Associate (Contractor) ~ Owner ~ $30-40/hr. ~ Remote (US/CAN)
👋 About Owner.com Owner is the all-in-one platform that restaurants use to succeed online. Thousands of restaurant owners use our tools to build their website, drive online orders, create their own branded app, manage their customer relationships, and set up marketing automations. You can think of it as Shopify meets HubSpot, but specifically for restaurants. Learn more […]
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In-house SEO jobs – SEOjobs.com
