The SEO Juice: Rewriting the Rules with Search Everywhere Optimization
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Still think SEO begins and ends with Google? Think again. This month’s SEO Juice unpacks what’s really happening across social, search, and AI—and why your strategy needs to catch up.
Spoiler alert: Success in local discovery now hinges on how well your brand shows up everywhere.
Industry Updates: Fresh Squeezed Insights
Google’s Core Update
Google rolled out its second Core Update of 2025 on June 30. If you’re following best practices—relevant, well-optimized content, strong local pages, and a good user experience—you’re likely in the clear. But for brands with known SEO gaps, it’s worth monitoring keyword rankings for top queries over the next few months to see if profiles or linked local pages took a hit.
Core updates aren’t out to get you. They reward relevance, trust, and authority. Focus on being helpful, not gaming the system.
What to do: Keep your pages well-optimized and up to date so they stay aligned with Google’s updates.
Google Confirms: Trust & Engagement = Ranking Signals
After years of sidestepping the question, a recent update confirmed what SEOs have long suspected: user behavior and engagement do influence rankings. Visits, clicks, interactions, and reviews all play a role. Google’s “Trust Ranking” model tracks how real people engage with your brand—and rewards those who build credibility.
What to do: Reply to reviews and keep your listings fresh—attention-grabbing local content matters.
Real-Time Content Wins in AI Search
Google’s head of AI, Jeff Dean, recently called out closed LLMs like OpenAI and Anthropic for relying on outdated indexes.
His point: Google’s real-time crawling and data freshness give it a major edge.
What to do: Make sure your content is updated often and stays locally relevant; it’s the key to being competitive in this new landscape.
Content Crossing Platforms
Instagram has started alerting businesses that their public content may soon appear in search engine results.
Meanwhile, TikTok is testing a feature that surfaces Google Maps reviews on some business profiles. If it rolls out widely, your reputation could follow your brand across more platforms than ever.
What to do: Audit your presence across platforms. Make sure your social content, review sites, and listings all tell a consistent story. Treat every channel with equal care—what shows up in one place could surface in another.
Maximize Your Local SEO Strategy with These Updates
What is Search Everywhere Optimization?
Traditional SEO focuses on improving a website’s visibility in organic search results. Local SEO is often framed around Google—but local discovery doesn’t stop there, and Local Search Optimization shouldn’t either.
Search now spans AI tools, maps, social media, photos, video, and even real-world behaviors. Your content needs to work across all of them.
Search Before Search Engines
People have always searched for businesses—long before Google. Back then, it was the phone book or a neighbor’s recommendation.
Local businesses tried to game those systems too, naming themselves “A1 Plumbing” to show up first or relying on word of mouth to build a reputation.
Today’s platforms look different, but the behavior is the same. People still choose what’s visible, trusted, and top of mind. Whether it’s a Google listing, a TikTok, or a local review, the principle holds: show up, stand out, and earn trust.
Beyond the Local Pack: Where Discovery Is Actually Happening
Discovery Through Photos
Google is spotlighting photos in local search—especially in Maps—often surfacing image-based results before traditional listings.
Why it matters: Your business could appear in top results for a keyword even if it’s not directly related—if a customer photo matches the query (think: a mouthwatering pizza shot at a seafood restaurant). This gives unexpected visibility to businesses that might not have ranked through conventional product listings.
What to do:
- Post high-quality images that align with popular search queries.
- Use Google Vision AI to verify how your images are interpreted.
- Encourage real customers to post photos—Google is currently prioritizing user-generated content.
Short Videos in Google Search
Google is now pulling TikToks and Instagram Reels into search results.
Want in? Optimize your video title like a page title tag—make it clear, local, and specific. A title like “Pet-Friendly Apartments in Long Beach” will beat something vague like “Check this out!”
Don’t rely on visuals alone. Use on-screen text and captions to help Google understand the context.
AI-Curated Local Results
Search “restaurants near me,” and Google may auto-suggest things like:
- Waterfront dining
- Smoothies with fresh fruit
These AI-driven prompts highlight businesses based on attributes, menus, photos, and content—even if they don’t use those exact keywords.
What to do:
- Keep your Google attributes up to date.
- Upload photos that reflect the real experience.
- Use Google Posts and menu content to highlight your unique selling points.
Nearby Offers & In-Store Products
People are discovering your business through product listings and promotions—not just by name.
Want to appear?
- Set up Google Merchant Center to showcase your products.
- Use the correct formats to post events and offers (not just standard posts).
- Keep your content fresh—Google favors recency.
Caught in the Wild: Fun New Features
We’ve spotted some experimental features that hint at what’s next in local search.
On mobile, Google has started testing AI-generated panels for certain searches—like universities—that surface details such as cost, admissions, and notable alumni.
Why it matters: If similar panels begin appearing for business categories, your Google Business Profile content may be what populates them. Make sure it’s optimized so the right information shows up.
The rules of SEO are changing fast—and they now stretch far beyond traditional search engines. Visibility depends on how your brand shows up everywhere.
Search Everywhere Optimization means treating every digital touchpoint—photos, videos, reviews, social posts, and listings—as part of your SEO strategy. Stay current. Stay consistent. Stay visible wherever people are looking.
In today’s search landscape, everywhere is the new front page.
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