Google launches brand-new logo

Following up on its company restructuring and the recent launch of Alphabet, Google has announced the biggest change to its logo since the company began, dropping its serif font for a custom-font sans serif logo, with a new multi-coloured ‘G’ for thumbnails. The new logo is to reflect the constantly growing importance of mobile traffic, as the sans serif font should display better at a variety of sizes on different devices and screens. By now, you should already be seeing just about everywhere you use Google.

Large app interstitial ads no longer mobile-friendly

Google has announced a change to its mobile-friendly design guidelines, now advising that sites displaying large app install interstitial ads that block much of the screen will not be deemed mobile-friendly, and will suffer from a search ranking drop as a result. The new rules kick in from November 1st, but Google’s mobile-friendly assessment tools will warn against the technique immediately. As an alternative to big interstitial ads, Google recommends browser app install banners such as Safari’s Smart Banners and Chrome’s Native App Install Banners, which are less obtrusive on the user experience.

Search Queries report dropped from Webmaster Tools

The old Search Queries report appears to have been officially retired from Google Webmaster Tools and the Search Console, and is no longer accessible. This shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise, as its replacement, the Search Analytics report, has been available for a number of months, and Google has been encouraging webmasters to make the switch to the new report. For full guidance on how to use the new tool, take a look at Google’s official in-depth help document.