LIVE updates: This month in search marketing [January 2025]

2nd of January of 2025

Google restores Tag Assistant functionality

Google has brought back its Tag Assistant extension, making it easier for businesses to manage tags and ensuring more accurate data and better campaign performance. After listening to user feedback, Google decided to reverse its plan to discontinue the popular Chrome extension. The new version combines Tag Assistant Legacy and Tag Assistant Companion into one, more efficient tool.

The update simplifies the process of troubleshooting and managing tags, which is essential for tracking conversions, retargeting customers, and optimising ad spend. This unified tool reduces downtime and helps ensure that your campaigns are measured accurately, leading to better insights and improved marketing strategies.

With a stable Tag Assistant, businesses can have more confidence in the accuracy of their data, which can lead to stronger campaign results. This update was shared by Utku Gülden, a Data and Analytics professional, on LinkedIn.

The improved tool offers a more seamless experience, with fewer compatibility issues. It strengthens Google’s troubleshooting tools, adapting to the changing needs of users. By reviving and improving Tag Assistant, Google demonstrates its responsiveness to user feedback. With trust in digital marketing being crucial in 2025, this update helps businesses maintain accurate data and optimise site performance, ensuring more reliable insights and better campaign results.

Google Ads to drive major AI transformation in 2025

Google Ads is preparing for a significant transformation in advertising, driven by artificial intelligence (AI), which executives believe will be even more profound than the mobile revolution. The company is focusing on adapting to shifts in consumer search behaviour, with AI playing a central role in reshaping how users discover information and interact with businesses.

Brendon Kraham, Vice President of Global Search Ads and Commerce, explained that this shift represents a fundamental change in how advertisers will approach digital marketing. One key aspect of this transformation is the evolution of search behaviour, where the focus moves beyond traditional keywords towards multimodal experiences. Additionally, AI-powered creative tools for marketers will enable more sophisticated ad creation, while enhanced measurement capabilities will provide deeper insights across all channels.

This AI-driven shift could drastically change how consumers discover products and services in 2025, making it essential for businesses to adapt their strategies quickly. Those who fail to prioritise mastering these new tools and capabilities may find themselves falling behind competitors.

The initiative ties into Google CEO Sundar Pichai’s broader strategy to scale Gemini, the company’s AI platform, amidst increasing competition and regulatory scrutiny.

Looking ahead, Google plans to further improve its core advertising products, such as Performance Max, Demand Gen, and Search capabilities. All these tools will be powered by Google AI while upholding user privacy standards.

3rd of January of 2025

Advertisers face uncertainty with Google Performance Max Exclusions

Google Performance Max (PMax) campaigns have led to confusion regarding placement exclusions, as there is a noticeable gap between Google’s official policy and what is happening in reality.

While Google claims that placement exclusions through APIs don’t work for PMax campaigns, multiple advertisers have reported success in using APIs for exclusions. This inconsistency between Google’s stated policy and the actual functionality creates uncertainty for advertisers who manage campaigns programmatically.

This discrepancy could affect how advertisers handle placement exclusions at scale, especially for those using APIs and automation tools. If exclusions aren’t properly implemented, ads may end up appearing on sites that are not aligned with the brand’s reputation or objectives, potentially causing harm.

In short, the confusion around API-based exclusions could impact campaign safety and brand protection, especially for advertisers running Performance Max campaigns across multiple accounts.

6th of January of 2025

Microsoft features new Google-inspired design on Bing

Microsoft has introduced a change to its Bing search engine that mimics the Google homepage when users search for Google on Bing. This move aims to reduce Bing’s bounce rate by retaining users who search for Google, which is often used as a general term for search engines or finding information online.

Microsoft Edge, the default browser for Windows 11, uses Bing as the default search engine, similar to how Google is the default search engine on Chrome for Android. Users may search for Google in the address bar of Edge, which uses Bing, and then click on the Google link, often leading them to abandon Bing and switch to Google. Microsoft’s new approach seems designed to prevent this by offering a Bing page that closely resembles Google’s minimalistic design.

When users search for Google or Google.com on Bing, the page now features an animated image of people celebrating, along with a message. The layout includes a search bar in the centre and simple illustrations, giving the page a look that is quite similar to Google’s homepage. The design appears to be a part of a new experiment by Microsoft, observed when users are logged out of their Microsoft accounts.

The design is intended to make the page feel familiar to those who typically use Google, with the aim of preventing confusion. The top search bar on the page is hidden unless users scroll down, making the Bing search bar less prominent and giving the appearance of a Google-like interface.

This tactic could appeal to users who are simply looking for a search engine and are not particularly loyal to one brand. While more tech-savvy users may notice the subtle differences and realise what is happening, others may simply continue using the search engine without recognising the distinction. This could be especially effective with users who associate search engines in general with Google, as Google has become synonymous with the term “search engine” for many people.

Additionally, the page features a message below the search bar that reads, “Every search brings you closer to a free donation. Choose from over 2 million nonprofits.” This could further incentivise users to continue using Bing instead of switching to Google.

The move has sparked a response from Google’s head of Chrome, Parisa Tabriz, who criticised Microsoft’s actions, calling it another attempt to confuse users and limit choice. Microsoft’s strategy appears to be aimed at enhancing Bing’s user retention by exploiting the familiarity and dominance of Google’s interface, even though some may view this as an attempt to mimic Google’s style.

7th of January of 2025

Google Search Console adds export feature for 24-Hour hourly data

Google has introduced the option to export 24-hour hourly data from the performance report in Google Search Console. This feature allows users to export the most recent data from the performance report, including hourly insights for the last 24 hours.

This update follows the announcement made last month, where Google revealed the addition of a 24-hour view in the Search Console Performance reports. The feature has been well-received, and based on user feedback and feature requests, Google has now made it possible to export this data, a feature that had been highly anticipated.

The 24-hour hourly data view was first launched a month ago, allowing users to access more granular details about their site’s recent performance on Google Search. The new view aims to help users stay informed about the most up-to-date performance metrics.

While the ability to export the data is a welcomed improvement, many users are already requesting that Google extend this functionality to allow the export of hourly data for periods longer than just the past 24 hours.