{"id":6040,"date":"2026-04-07T21:36:09","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T13:36:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/?p=6040"},"modified":"2026-04-07T21:36:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T13:36:09","slug":"are-low-quality-listicles-about-to-lose-their-edge-in-google-search","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/?p=6040","title":{"rendered":"Are low-quality listicles about to lose their edge in Google Search?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p> <div id=\"articleContent\" itemprop=\"articlebody\"> <div class=\"bialty-container\"> <p>If you rank your own product #1 in \u201cbest of\u201d listicles, it\u2019s not just a search-quality issue \u2014 it may violate FTC rules that took effect in October 2024.<\/p> <p><strong>Driving the news<\/strong>. As Lily Ray noted on LinkedIn, the FTC\u2019s Consumer Review Rule (16 CFR Part 465) prohibits several deceptive practices tied to reviews and testimonials, including:<\/p> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li>Presenting company-controlled content as independent reviews.<\/li> <li>Publishing reviews of products or services never actually used.<\/li> <li>Attributing reviews to people who didn\u2019t write them.<\/li> <\/ul> <p>Penalties can reach up to $53,088 per violation, and each page may count separately. Ray also shared a reference table she generated with the help of Claude:<\/p> <div class=\"wp-block-image\"> <figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"816\" height=\"650\" alt=\"Self Promotional Listicles Ftc\" class=\"wp-image-473711\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2026\/04\/self-promotional-listicles-ftc.jpg.webp 816w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2026\/04\/self-promotional-listicles-ftc-768x612.jpg.webp 768w\" data-lazy-sizes=\"(max-width: 816px) 100vw, 816px\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2026\/04\/self-promotional-listicles-ftc.jpg.webp\" title=\"Are low-quality listicles about to lose their edge in Google Search?\u63d2\u56fe\" \/><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"816\" height=\"650\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2026\/04\/self-promotional-listicles-ftc.jpg.webp\" alt=\"Self Promotional Listicles Ftc\" class=\"wp-image-473711\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2026\/04\/self-promotional-listicles-ftc.jpg.webp 816w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2026\/04\/self-promotional-listicles-ftc-768x612.jpg.webp 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 816px) 100vw, 816px\" title=\"Are low-quality listicles about to lose their edge in Google Search?\u63d2\u56fe1\" \/><\/figure> <\/div> <p><strong>Why now<\/strong>. \u201cBest <em>X<\/em>\u201d and \u201cTop 10 <em>Y<\/em>\u201d listicles have surged as a GEO tactic over the past couple of years. These pages often perform well in search and increasingly influence AI-generated answers.<\/p> <p><strong>The backstory<\/strong>. Before the rule was formalized, Ray said at least one company faced legal action for publishing hundreds of \u201cbest of\u201d pages that:<\/p> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li>Ranked its own services #1.<\/li> <li>Included fabricated competitor reviews.<\/li> <li>Used fake reviews on third-party platforms.<\/li> <\/ul> <p>The Better Business Bureau later censured the company for unsubstantiated claims.<\/p> <p><strong>What\u2019s happening<\/strong>. Many modern listicles follow a similar pattern:<\/p> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li>A brand publishes a \u201cbest tools\u201d list.<\/li> <li>Includes competitors it hasn\u2019t tested.<\/li> <li>Uses subjective or invented scoring systems.<\/li> <li>Ranks itself #1.<\/li> <\/ul> <p>These listicles may imply independence or firsthand evaluation when neither exists.<\/p> <p><strong>The nuance.<\/strong> You can publish comparison content that includes your own product. However, based on FTC guidance, risk increases when:<\/p> <ul class=\"wp-block-list\"> <li>You imply objectivity, but promote your own product.<\/li> <li>You present reviews not based on real experience.<\/li> <li>You fail to clearly disclose material relationships.<\/li> <\/ul> <p><strong>What Google is saying<\/strong>. Google is aware of the low-quality listicle trend. In a statement to The Verge, a Google spokesperson said the company applies protections against manipulation in Search and Gemini, and reiterated its guidance: create content for people and ensure it\u2019s understandable to search systems.<\/p> <p><strong>Why we care. <\/strong>What has worked as a visibility tactic may carry risk on two fronts \u2014 regulators and a potential Google Search algorithm change. That means this popular GEO tactic could decline quickly as its effectiveness drops.<\/p> <p><strong>Caveat<\/strong>. I\u2019m not a lawyer. Consult your own legal counsel if you\u2019re concerned about using this tactic.<\/p> <\/div> <hr\/> <p class=\"article-disclosure\"> <em>Search Engine Land is owned by Semrush. We remain committed to providing high-quality coverage of marketing topics. Unless otherwise noted, this page\u2019s content was written by either an employee or a paid contractor of Semrush Inc.<\/em> <\/p> <hr\/> <div class=\"author-about py-4\"> <div class=\"card bg-light\"> <div class=\"row gx-0\"> <div class=\"col-12 col-lg-auto\"> <div class=\"authorImage p-2\"> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid rounded avatar-border\" alt=\"Danny Goodwin\" width=\"140\" height=\"140\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/07\/Danny-Goodwin-scaled.jpeg.webp\" title=\"Are low-quality listicles about to lose their edge in Google Search?\u63d2\u56fe2\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid rounded avatar-border\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/07\/Danny-Goodwin-scaled.jpeg.webp\" alt=\"Danny Goodwin\" width=\"140\" height=\"140\" title=\"Are low-quality listicles about to lose their edge in Google Search?\u63d2\u56fe3\" \/> <\/div> <\/p><\/div> <div class=\"col-12 col-lg\"> <div class=\"card-body author-body p-2\"> <div id=\"authorBio-23878\" class=\"author-desc\"> <p>Danny Goodwin is Editorial Director of Search Engine Land &amp; Search Marketing Expo &#8211; SMX. He joined Search Engine Land in 2022 as Senior Editor. In addition to reporting on the latest search marketing news, he manages Search Engine Land\u2019s SME (Subject Matter Expert) program. He also helps program U.S. SMX events. <\/p> <p>Goodwin has been editing and writing about the latest developments and trends in search and digital marketing since 2007. He previously was Executive Editor of Search Engine Journal (from 2017 to 2022), managing editor of Momentology (from 2014-2016) and editor of Search Engine Watch (from 2007 to 2014). He has spoken at many major search conferences and virtual events, and has been sourced for his expertise by a wide range of publications and podcasts.<\/p> <\/p><\/div> <\/p><\/div> <\/p><\/div> <\/p><\/div> <\/p><\/div> <\/div> <p> <!-- START SIDEBAR LOWER SPACE --><\/p> <p><!-- END SIDEBAR LOWER SPACE --><\/p><\/div> <p>News#lowquality #listicles #lose #edge #Google #Search1775568969<\/p> ","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you rank your own product #1 in \u201cbest of\u201d listicles, it\u2019s not just a search-quality issue \u2014 it may violate FTC rules that took effect in October 2024. Driving the news. As Lily Ray noted on LinkedIn, the FTC\u2019s Consumer Review Rule (16 CFR Part 465) prohibits several deceptive practices tied to reviews and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6041,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[340,75,9136,7693,10832,83,95],"class_list":["post-6040","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-careers","tag-edge","tag-google","tag-listicles","tag-lose","tag-lowquality","tag-news","tag-search"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6040","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6040"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6040\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6041"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6040"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6040"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6040"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}