#dacademy

Google’s May Core Update appears to have reinforced a simple but important shift in search: pages that best match user intent and expected result type gained visibility, while those that were only loosely related to the query lost rankings.

An analysis based on SISTRIX visibility data (shared by SEO strategist Aleyda Solis) shows that Google may now be acting more like a “destination matcher” than a broad authority scorer. In other words, it’s not just about how strong a domain is; it’s about whether it is the right kind of page for that specific query.

For example, in the UK index, educational sources like cambridge.org gained visibility, while third-party tools such as pronunciation platforms dropped. Even high-authority domains like nytimes.com and nih.gov saw declines for some query sets. This suggests authority alone is no longer enough if the page format or intent alignment is weak.

A notable pattern was also local preference. UK users saw stronger performance from amazon.co.uk compared to amazon.com, showing that Google is increasingly prioritising market-specific relevance. Similarly, forums like Reddit saw declines in certain segments, while marketplaces and structured service platforms performed better.

Why this matters for SEO and education brands

For institutions and businesses, the takeaway is clear: ranking depends heavily on intent fit, not just backlinks or domain strength.

This is especially important for local education marketing. For example, a brand like Dacademy, which offers a digital marketing course in Calicut, needs to ensure its pages are structured exactly the way users expect when they search for learning programmes, not just general blog content or loosely related pages.

If someone searches “Digital marketing course in Calicut", Google is more likely to reward pages that clearly function as:

Course landing pages (not general service pages)

Locally relevant education providers

Structured, intent-matching content (syllabus, fees, admissions, outcomes)

The May Core Update reinforces a long-term direction in Google Search: matching intent, format, and locality matters more than raw authority.

Google has started testing new AI-focused reporting features in Search Console, giving website owners a clearer view of how their content performs within Google's generative AI search experiences. The test is currently available to a limited number of websites in the UK and is expected to expand globally after the trial period.

One of the new features is an AI visibility toggle that allows website owners to decide whether their content can appear in AI-powered search experiences such as AI Overviews, AI Mode, and AI Overviews in Discover. Google has confirmed that opting out will not affect rankings in traditional search results.

Google is also introducing dedicated AI Search performance reports. These reports show how often website pages appear in AI-generated search features and provide insights based on pages, countries, devices, and dates. Previously, AI-related data was included within overall Search Console reports, making it difficult to measure AI visibility separately.

Although the new reports provide valuable impression data, they currently do not include click-through metrics or query-level information. Many SEO professionals consider this a significant gap, as website owners still cannot accurately measure traffic generated specifically from AI-powered search results.

As AI continues to reshape search behaviour, digital marketers must stay updated with the latest developments in SEO and search analytics. Learning how AI impacts search visibility has become an essential skill for aspiring marketers and business owners.

Institutions such as DAcademy, a leading digital marketing academy in Calicut, help students and professionals understand modern SEO, AI-driven search trends, content marketing, and performance analytics. Through practical training and industry-focused learning, DAcademy (https://dacademy.in/) prepares learners for the rapidly evolving digital marketing landscape.

Google continues to reshape search with new AI-powered features. The latest updates focus on AI overviews, AI mode, and how users interact with trusted websites.

One of the biggest changes is the expansion of Preferred Sources into AI Overviews and AI Mode. Users can now choose websites they trust, and Google is more likely to display content from those sources within AI-generated answers. This highlights the growing importance of brand authority and audience trust in search visibility.

Another important finding comes from recent research showing that Gmail interactions may influence brand visibility in AI mode. Brands that users frequently engage with through email could receive greater exposure when Google's Personal Intelligence features are enabled.

Google CEO Sundar Pichai also acknowledged that some AI Overview responses can be "more opinionated than they should be", indicating that Google is still refining the quality and accuracy of AI-generated search answers.

What This Means for SEO and Digital Marketing

As AI becomes the primary layer between users and search results, businesses must focus on building trust, brand recognition, and audience engagement. Ranking well is no longer enough; becoming a recognised and trusted source is increasingly important.

For students and professionals looking to stay ahead of these industry changes, joining a digital marketing institution in Calicut can provide valuable insights into modern SEO, AI search optimisation, and content marketing strategies.

DAcademy (https://dacademy.in/) is a leading digital marketing academy in Calicut that helps aspiring marketers understand the latest developments in search engines, AI-driven marketing, and digital growth strategies. By learning these evolving trends, students can prepare for the future of digital marketing and search visibility.

DAcademy, a leading calicut digital marketing academy, highlights that Google has officially started rolling out the May 2026 Core Update, according to the Google Search Status Dashboard. The update was also confirmed through Google Search Central on X, with the rollout expected to take up to two weeks to complete.

This marks the second major Google core update of 2026, following the March 2026 core update that finished on April 8. As with previous updates, Google has not shared detailed information about the specific ranking changes or new signals involved. The company simply described it as a standard core update aimed at improving search result quality and relevance.

Website owners and SEO professionals may notice fluctuations in rankings, traffic, and visibility during the rollout period. Google advises against making immediate changes based on short-term ranking shifts, as search results may continue to fluctuate until the update fully completes.

The recent Google update timeline includes the following:

March 2026 Core Update – 12 days

March 2026 Spam Update – under 20 hours

February 2026 Discover Update – 22 days

December 2025 Core Update – 18 days

Google’s John Mueller recently clarified why Google uses markdown pages on developer documentation sites and why most websites shouldn’t rush to copy the approach. According to Mueller, markdown pages are not created for SEO or search rankings. Instead, they are designed to improve functionality for AI coding systems and developers who need cleaner, easier-to-parse documentation.

Mueller explained the difference between “discovery” and "functionality". Discovery focuses on helping pages rank and get found through search engines, while functionality helps users or AI tools effectively use the content once they arrive. On developer-focused platforms like Google’s documentation websites, Markdown versions help AI coding tools better understand technical references and generate accurate code.

YouTube is pushing deeper into AI-powered content discovery and creation with two major updates announced at Google I/O '26. The platform introduced “Ask YouTube", a conversational search feature that allows users to find videos through natural language questions instead of traditional keyword searches. Users can now ask detailed prompts like “best cosy games before bedtime” or “tips for teaching a child to ride a bike", and YouTube will generate structured recommendations using both Shorts and long-form videos.

At the same time, YouTube expanded AI video remixing tools through Gemini Omni inside Shorts and the YouTube Create app. Creators can now transform scenes into different styles, generate new concepts from prompts, and even insert themselves into videos using AI-assisted editing. YouTube says the goal is to simplify content creation while still protecting creators through watermarking, metadata labelling, and opt-out controls for AI remixes.

These updates could significantly change how content is discovered on YouTube. Instead of relying only on searchable keywords, the platform may increasingly interpret user intent through conversations and follow-up prompts. That shift may create new challenges for SEO tracking, video optimisation, and performance measurement for marketers and advertisers.

Digital marketing has changed dramatically in recent years. With the decline of cookies, reduced user tracking, and AI-driven “black box” algorithms controlling audience targeting, businesses can no longer rely only on data to understand customers. This shift, often called the “signal-loss era", is forcing marketers to return to the fundamentals: understanding real people, their emotions, behaviours, and decision-making processes.

Traditional marketing strategies focused heavily on analytics and performance metrics. While data remains important, it no longer provides the complete picture. User behaviour is influenced by emotions, habits, values, and subconscious decisions that cannot always be tracked. This is why marketers must move beyond demographics and personas to truly understand what their audience wants and how they make choices.

To address this challenge, marketers are now focusing on the R.E.M. Framework: Relevant, Everywhere, and Memorable.

1. Be Relevant

People pay attention to content that directly connects with their needs or interests. In today’s fast-scrolling digital world, brands only have a few seconds to capture attention. Successful marketing focuses on solving the audience’s problem rather than simply promoting the business.

2. Be Everywhere

Customer journeys are no longer linear. Users discover brands through Google searches, social media, videos, AI tools, and online communities. Being visible across multiple platforms helps build familiarity and trust. Repeated exposure keeps brands top-of-mind when customers are ready to make decisions.

3. Be Memorable

Memorable brands create emotional connections. Whether through storytelling, creativity, trust, or shared values, emotional engagement helps audiences remember a brand long after seeing an ad or post. Strong emotional branding often influences purchasing decisions more than pure logic.

For educational institutions and training centres, this approach is especially important. Students today research across multiple channels before choosing a course or academy. They look for trust, credibility, community, and career value, not just advertisements.

DAcademy, known for offering a leading digital marketing course in Calicut, understands the importance of building meaningful connections with learners. As a trusted Calicut digital marketing academy, the institute focuses on practical learning, industry relevance, and real student engagement rather than relying only on traditional advertising methods.

Structured data and schema markup are facing a major shift in SEO. Over the past few years, Google has gradually reduced visible rewards tied to schema types like FAQ, HowTo, Course Info, and Claim Review rich results. In 2026, Google officially removed FAQ rich results for most websites, continuing a trend that has reshaped how marketers view structured data.

At the same time, a new report from Ahrefs challenged another growing belief in SEO: that adding JSON-LD schema significantly improves AI citations in tools like Google AI Overviews and ChatGPT.

Ahrefs analysed 1,885 pages that added schema markup and compared them with similar pages that did not. The findings showed little measurable impact on AI visibility. Google AI Mode increased only slightly, ChatGPT citations showed minimal improvement, and Google AI Overviews actually declined slightly. The study suggests schema markup alone is not a guaranteed shortcut for AI search visibility.

This has sparked debate within the SEO industry. Many marketers promoted FAQ schema and structured data as “essential” for GEO (Generative Engine Optimisation), but experts now argue that AI systems rely more on clear, visible content, structured headings, and direct answers in HTML rather than hidden JSON-LD markup.

Even so, schema markup still matters. Product, Review, Organisation, Article, and Event schemas continue to help search engines understand website content and entities better. The difference is that schema should now be seen as a technical infrastructure rather than a quick-win SEO tactic.

For educational brands like dacademy.in, a leading digital marketing institution in Calicut, this change highlights the importance of focusing on high-quality, well-structured content instead of depending only on schema-based SEO tricks. AI-driven search platforms increasingly reward useful content, topical authority, and user-focused page structure over excessive markup implementation.