Oh good, you’re here!

I gotta catch you up — digital marketing news is moving too quickly to fall behind!

• Calling my content marketers: we shouldn’t be thinking only about what people are asking AI chatbots for content development, but… which questions are worth answering through content. And while we’re at it, we should be figuring out how we can answer those questions authentically in ways that are clear and helpful to your audience.

• Google dropped a lot on us at I/O 2026. Here’s the roundup:
  • Gemini 3.5 Flash rolled out and is surpassing coding, agentic, and multimodal benchmarks. (3.5 Pro is in testing.)
  • Gemini Spark is “your personal agent” that works with you as a partner rather than just an assistant.
  • Google Search AI Mode is powered by Gemini 3.5 Flash with an intelligent Search box. Have you seen it yet?
  • Universal Cart helps you keep track of price drops, price history, insights, and stock alerts.
  • Ask YouTube can handle more complex search queries and follow-ups.

• What does Google’s search bar expansion and AI-first announcement mean for organic search traffic? This analysis of How AI Overviews Are Changing User Behavior provides some interesting perspective. The appearance of an AI Overview on the search result page (SERP) is increasing the amount of time and scrolling activity by users as they review and consider the range of information being presented. While it’s too early to gauge the analytics impact of the Google’s new AI-first search experience, we have some premonitions based on what we have already been seeing:
• Impressions in Google Search Results will continue to increase, but click-through-rates (CTR) will drop. So, Organic Search Traffic volume will be lower than previous averages.
• However, the value of the Organic Search Clicks you get will increase as the user has considered your content to be more relevant to their needs. This will result in higher overall Conversion Rates.

• On a related note, a McKinsey survey of US consumers puts “Research and understanding general topics” as the top use of AI by task. “Discover and/or decide on brands, products, or services” has the third-highest use of AI. Note, we added the italics on “decide” to emphasize the brand consideration aspect of AI per above.

• The Google May 2026 Core Update is up and at ‘em. The fact sheet that went live with the holiday weekend may have been just the right pairing to cause a shock in the SEO world. But like we say with all updates, as long as you’re following white-hat SEO best practices and other tips we’ve been sharing, you should be alright. (You can let out the breath you’ve been holding now.)

• LinkedIn wants to limit the reach on its platform for AI-generated content. This is a bit confusing, as they have been offering an AI feature to help you rewrite your content. So, let’s draw it back to what we continue to reiterate: humans need to stay in the content creation process, especially as people see through the AI facade.

Operation USA (otherwise known as OpUSA) has been helping people across the world recover from disasters, disease, and poverty since 1979. They’ve delivered over $450 million in aid for relief and development projects worldwide. Learn more and how to support: Operation USA.

…

Ellipses. Those three little dots in a line can mean so many things, but one thing they always signal is continuation… after a pause.

Dot, dot, dot is a thought, a breath, before action. 

When life feels too quick, it’s time to write an ellipsis into your day. A few deep breaths of fresh air. A head-clearing walk. A silent drive. 

Don’t forget that you write your own adventure.

Stay awesome, friends! 🌞

Natalie

Why do the best ideas come to us in the shower?

Why isn’t Walt Disney World overrun by mosquitos?

Why do cats love cardboard boxes?

Get your dose of fun facts here!