{"id":9797,"date":"2026-06-11T19:41:26","date_gmt":"2026-06-11T11:41:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/?p=9797"},"modified":"2026-06-11T19:41:26","modified_gmt":"2026-06-11T11:41:26","slug":"google-is-building-an-audience-loyalty-ecosystem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/?p=9797","title":{"rendered":"Google Is Building An Audience Loyalty Ecosystem"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p> <div id=\"narrow-cont\"> <p>I\u2019m far from Google\u2019s biggest fan. In fact, I have a well-earned reputation as an outspoken critic. But I believe my criticism comes from a position of fairness and balance.<\/p> <p>When Google does something right, I want to highlight that as well. This is one such occasion. I see what Google is trying to do for news and publishing, and I\u2019m almost perfectly aligned with their vision.<\/p> <p>Amidst the AI upheaval and the barrage of announcements coming out of Google these last few years, you may have missed a common thread among many of the search giant\u2019s new features.<\/p> <p>Let\u2019s take a look at some of the shiny new toys that Google is giving to publishers, and see if you can spot the trend:<\/p> <h2>1. Preferred Sources<\/h2> <p>First announced in August 2025\u00a0and rolled out globally in April 2026, this mechanism enables users to pick specific publishers that they want to see more of in Google\u2019s results.<\/p> <p><iframe class=\"sej-iframe-auto-height\" id=\"in-content-iframe\" scrolling=\"no\" src=\"https:\/\/www.searchenginejournal.com\/wp-json\/sscats\/v2\/tk\/Middle_Post_Text\"><\/iframe><\/p> <p>When a user then performs a Google search that shows a Top Stories box, and their preferred publisher has a story relevant to this query, the user will see that publisher\u2019s story in the Top Stories box.<\/p> <p>Since May 2026, Preferred Sources has also spread across AI Overviews and AI Mode, providing more visibility to a user\u2019s preferred publishers in all search surfaces.<\/p> <figure> <p><figure class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"width: 676px\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.searchenginejournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/https_3a_2f_2fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws-sej-887505.png\" alt=\"Button that publishers can add to their site that says. \u2018Add as a preferred source on Google.\u2019\" title=\"Button that publishers can add to their site that says. \u2018Add as a preferred source on Google.\u2019\" width=\"676\" height=\"213\" class=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Preferred source CTA (Image Credit: Barry Adams)<\/figcaption><\/figure><figcaption\/><\/p> <\/figure> <h2>2. Search Profiles<\/h2> <p>The newest toy in the arsenal, Search Profiles are dedicated profile pages for publishers and creators with sizable followings (more than 100,000 followers).<\/p> <p>Through this profile page, a user can choose to follow the publisher or creator, and is more likely to see their content in the Discover feed.<\/p> <figure> <p><figure class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"width: 525px\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.searchenginejournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/https_3a_2f_2fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws-sej-779383.jpg\" alt=\"Follow on Google call to action on search profile pages\" title=\"Follow on Google call to action on search profile pages\" width=\"525\" height=\"58\" class=\" small-img\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Follow on Google CTA (Image Credit: Barry Adams)<\/figcaption><\/figure> <\/p> <\/figure> <h2>3. Subscription Linking<\/h2> <p>With Subscription Linking, a publisher can link their subscription data to their subscribers\u2019 Google accounts.<\/p> <p>When linked, a user will see their subscription content more prominently in Google\u2019s search results and the Discover feed in a \u201cFrom your subscriptions\u201d panel.<\/p> <p>This increased visibility of a user\u2019s subscribed content also applies to AI Overviews and AI Mode.<\/p> <figure> <p><figure class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"width: 385px\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.searchenginejournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/https_3a_2f_2fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws-sej-102925.png\" alt=\"Subscription linking dialog box\" title=\"Subscription linking dialog box\" width=\"385\" height=\"240\" class=\" small-img\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Subscription linking CTA (Image Credit: Barry Adams)<\/figcaption><\/figure> <\/p> <\/figure> <h2>Not Traffic. Loyalty<\/h2> <p>The common theme among these new features is obvious: Google is building an audience loyalty ecosystem.<\/p> <p>There is no denying the hard truth: Google traffic is harder to come by. While Google Zero is a myth, there is most definitely less traffic to go around.<\/p> <p>However, despite the publishing industry\u2019s convulsions, AI didn\u2019t cause the traffic collapse \u2013 it merely accelerated it.<\/p> <p>Google has been clear about its intent for the better part of two decades. You should not chase clicks. You should not write content purely to acquire traffic. You should not produce cheap journalism to get a few more high-bounce, low-engagement visits on your website.<\/p> <p>Over the past 20 years, Google has been replacing that type of cheap content in its search results with direct answers. Sport match information is directly on Google\u2019s SERPs. Basic facts are provided in featured snippets and knowledge panels. Address details are shown in map packs.<\/p> <p>None of this is new. The writing has been on the wall for all this time. Generative AI merely enabled Google to put the final nail in churnalism\u2019s coffin. AI summaries make churnalism obsolete.<\/p> <p>These new features Google gives us aren\u2019t meant to replace that traffic. None of these toys will give us back those cheap visits.<\/p> <p>What they will provide is greater visibility to an already loyal audience. Google is opening up its ecosystem for publishers that already have highly engaged readers.<\/p> <h2>Features For Engaged Readers<\/h2> <p>Think about the kind of user that will set you as a preferred source in Top Stories. The kind of user that will click that Follow button on your search profile. The kind of user that will subscribe to your site.<\/p> <p>Those are not cheap visits. Those aren\u2019t high-bounce clicks.<\/p> <p>Those are users that buy into your product, that want to read your journalism, that want to consume what you publish.<\/p> <p>These features are meant for users that are already sold on your output. They already understand and appreciate your value as a publisher.<\/p> <p>The path forward is clearer than ever. Don\u2019t chase clicks \u2013 chase loyalty. Don\u2019t produce cheap churnalism \u2013 produce high-quality, original content. Don\u2019t use traffic as your core KPI \u2013 focus on engagement and retention.<\/p> <p>Do all that, and Google is your ally. It\u2019ll help you retain your loyal readers. It\u2019ll give you the tools to maximize engagement and retention. It\u2019ll show your content to your subscribers everywhere it can.<\/p> <p>There is no confusion at all about what publishers need to do to survive, and even thrive, in the era of AI. If you are still unsure, you\u2019re either wilfully ignorant or so entrenched in your \u2018traffic-first\u2019 mentality that you probably deserve to lose.<\/p> <h2>Original Sin<\/h2> <p>None of this devalues the \u201coriginal sin,\u201d as AG Sulzberger stated it in his excellent speech at the 2026 WAN-IFRA World News Media Congress. AI is built on the greatest theft humankind has ever seen.<\/p> <p>But we cannot put the genie back in its bottle. AI is here to stay. We\u2019re going to have to live with it.<\/p> <p>And the survival strategy for a post-AI publishing world has never been more obvious.<\/p> <p><strong>More Resources:<\/strong><\/p> <hr\/> <p><em>This post was originally published on SEO For Google News.<\/em><\/p> <hr\/> <p><em>Featured Image: hmorena\/Shutterstock<\/em><\/p> <\/div> <p>SEO#Google #Building #Audience #Loyalty #Ecosystem1781178086<\/p> ","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I\u2019m far from Google\u2019s biggest fan. In fact, I have a well-earned reputation as an outspoken critic. But I believe my criticism comes from a position of fairness and balance. When Google does something right, I want to highlight that as well. This is one such occasion. I see what Google is trying to do [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9798,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[12561,250,11264,75,29281],"class_list":["post-9797","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-accessibility","tag-audience","tag-building","tag-ecosystem","tag-google","tag-loyalty"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9797","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=9797"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9797\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/9798"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9797"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9797"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/longzhuplatform.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9797"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}