SEO 101 Ep 535: Major Changes in Search Console, Plus AI Overview Lawsuits

Uh, so for now, uh, Google Ads is going to allow for social casino gaming ads now.

Uh, starting in August, which is this month, Google Ads is updating its gambling and c- games policy to allow advertising for s- social media...

Sorry, social casino games.

Uh, social casino games are basically simulated gambling games played with virtual currency where you earn that money through gameplay.

Uh, there's no real opportunity to win real money or anything of actual value.

If you are, um, one of these websites where you're offering a chance to win prizes or real currency, you will not be allowed to participate.

This is only for social games with no real material value.

Uh, if you're an advertiser in this space, here's what you need to know.

Uh, to run social casino game ads, you'll need to apply a specific Google Ad certification, and you'll need to have a separate application for each country you are targeting.

That certification is only available in a defined list of countries, including the US, Canada, the UK, and several others in Europe, Asia, and Latin America.

There are also very strict content rules.

Ads and landing pages must clearly state the game is for legal gambling age only.

It cannot target minors, it must disclose any in-app purchases, and it can't use branding tied to real money gambling companies.

Any affiliates or aggregators that promote social casino games aren't allowed to advertise either, uh, only the actual operators.

Violations of this policy are considered very severe.

Uh, there are no warnings, and Google will suspend your account immediately upon detection, and you won't be allowed to advertise on the platform again.

So if you are one of these companies, uh, be careful.

Make sure you're following the rules or you will get banned.

Nobody wants to get banned.

[laughs] And, and here's a, a new change as well for Google Ads.

Uh, they are testing clickable hyperlinks in search ad descriptions.

Uh, they're testing this new ad format for regular search ads.

The test adds clickable hyperlinks directly inside the ad's description text, not just the headline.

Uh, selected words or phrases in the description will now show up, at least in the test, show up underlined like a normal link on a web page.

Click the highlighted link in the description and it will take you to the same landing page as the main ad headline.