Yoast June 2026 SEO Update Summary • Yoast

Watch the full recap on YouTube to delve deeper into these topics, hear some examples and hear the answer to audience questions.

Remembering Bruce Clay

In this month’s SEO update we recognize Bruce Claywho recently died. He was an SEO pioneer whose work shaped the industry. His mentorship and leadership left a lasting impression on professionals around the world.

Google warns against manipulating brand names for AI

Google has issued a clear warning: Stop manipulating brand names in gaming AI systems. This includes tactics such as paying for unrelated brand citations, such as dog food brands, mentioned on sports betting sites to artificially inflate perceived authority.

Why it matters:

Google’s message is simple: If your brand mentions are irrelevant or forced, they won’t help your authority. Worse, they could backfire because AI systems are better at detecting manipulation. Instead, focus on getting real mentions from relevant sources.

Actionable insight:

• Avoid paid or spam brand mentions.
• Build authority through contextually relevant quotes.
• If your mentions feel unnatural, that’s probably the case.

Britain forces Google to give publishers control over AI use

The United Kingdom Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has struck a deal with Google that requires the company to allow publishers to block their content from being used in AI features without affecting their standard search rankings.

Why it matters:

Publishers can now opt out of AI training data, but there’s a catch. If you block Google’s AI from consuming your content, you may miss citations in AI digests, even if you rank well in traditional search. Users instead see synthesized answers from other sources.

Actionable insight:

• If your content is truly unique and proprietary, blocking AI access may make sense, but only if you have a monetization strategy that goes beyond search traffic.
• For most websites, allowing AI access is better for visibility. Make sure your content is structured and crawlable so AI systems can cite you correctly.
• If you block AI access, provide a teaser, such as: B. Amazon’s “Look Inside” feature to encourage clicks.

New insights into AI visibility in Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools

Both Google and Bing have introduced new reporting features to help you understand how your content appears in AI-driven search.

Basic Google Search Console queries

Google now shows reasonable search queriesthe specific searches where your content was cited by AI. This will help you identify which topics are driving AI visibility.

Why it matters:

Ground queries indicate that AI systems are using your content to generate answers. If you don’t see citations, your content may not be structured or visible enough for the AI ​​to reference.

Actionable insight:

• Check Search Console weekly for in-depth questions.
• Focus on visible, structured content. Therefore, avoid hiding important information in accordions or tabs.
• Use this data to refine your content strategy. So focus on what works or fix what doesn’t.

Bing Webmaster Tools: AI Performance Reports

Bing’s new reports include intent, topics, citation share, and performance comparisons for AI-driven search. This gives you a clearer picture of how your content is performing in Bing’s AI experiences like Copilot.

Why it matters:

Bing’s AI integrations, such as Copilot in Windows, reach millions of business users. Ignoring Bing means missing out on a growing segment of AI-driven traffic.

Actionable insight:

• Set up Bing Webmaster Tools if you haven’t already.
• Compare Bing’s data with Google’s to identify gaps or opportunities.
• Use LLMs like ChatGPT or Claude to analyze exports from both tools and get deeper insights.

Google’s new publisher profiles and business data integrations

Google has introduced publisher profiles and improved business data integrations that give creators and businesses more control over how their content appears in search.

Why it matters:

These tools help you fill out your knowledge graph, which increases visibility across the Google ecosystem, including Gemini. Think of it like Google+ for publishers, but with a focus on business authority rather than social networks.

Actionable insight:

• Create or update your publisher profile in Google Search Console.
• Make sure your Google business profile is complete and accurate.
• Use structured data to link entities such as authors, brands, and products to your content.

Google updates SEO guide: Don’t blindly trust AI or SEO tools

The latest guidance from Google warns against blindly following AI-generated SEO advice or third-party tool recommendations. The example? An AI suggested changing “advisor” to “advisor” for a website, only for the site to compete with financial advisors rather than its intended audience.

Why it matters:

AI and SEO tools can misinterpret context. Always review recommendations before implementing them.

Actionable insight:

• Trust but verify, so use AI and tools for ideas, but apply critical thinking.
• Check multiple sources, so compare Google’s data with Bing’s or use tools like SEMrush/Ahrefs for cross-referencing.
• Prioritize human judgment because if a recommendation feels awkward, it probably is.

Schema.org usage statistics show untapped opportunities

Schema.org published data This shows that 95% of websites only use 12 of the 958 available schema types. There are now fewer than 1,000 websites using more than 485 schema types.

Why it matters:

Schema helps search engines understand your content, but most websites don’t use it to its full potential. Using additional schema types can improve visibility in AI-driven search and rich results.

Actionable insight:

• Review your current schema usage to identify missed opportunities.
• Explore less common schema types, such as: FAQPage, HowToor Event stand out.
• Use Yoast SEO’s schema blocks to simplify implementation.

German court finds Google liable for false AI overview claims

A German court has ruled that Google can be sued for false claims created in AI overviews. This sets a precedent for AI systems to be held accountable for inaccurate information.

Why it matters:

If Google’s AI provides false or harmful information about your business, you now have legal recourse in Germany. However, prevention is better than litigation.

Actionable insight:

• Monitor AI overviews for brand inaccuracies.
• Publish accurate, crawlable content to counter misinformation.
• If you find false claims, correct them at the source, such as on Reddit or forums, and report them to Google.

Google’s open knowledge format: A new way to structure content

Google introduced this Open Knowledge Format (OKF)a way to catalog website content at a discount for AI use. This is part of Google’s push for structured, AI-friendly content.

Why it matters:

While Google’s search team discourages duplicate Markdown versions of pages, the engineering team develops tools like OKF. This suggests that structured content will play a larger role in AI-driven search.

Actionable insight:

• Wait, because OKF is new and the introduction is not yet urgent.
• Focus on structured content such as schematics, clear headings and visible text.
• Avoid hiding important information behind interactive elements such as accordions and tabs.

Yoast news: performance improvements and new features

We introduced performance improvements in Yoast SEO versions 27.8 and 27.9, including:

• Faster admin pages and post editor for large websites.

• Speed ​​improvements for SEO analysis. For example, the duration of a sitemap query on a website with 2 million pages decreased from 300 seconds to 25 milliseconds.

• Yoast Duplicate Post plugin upgrades, including improved rewrite and republish features for easier content reuse.

Sign up for the next Yoast SEO update

The next Yoast SEO update is online August 25, 2026, 4:00 p.m. CET (10:00 a.m. EST). Register to be there live!