In this episode, Bill Hunt and Bill Scully take a closer look at the risks of taking Google’s SEO advice or the headlines about it, at face value without understanding the full context. Using a recent discussion around hreflang tags and 301 redirects as a starting point, they explain how oversimplified interpretations can lead to flawed implementation, particularly during site migrations.

The conversation highlights the role of reciprocal hreflang tags, the complications introduced by redirects, and how false assumptions can throw off international SEO strategies.

They also dig into the ongoing confusion around structured data, AI-generated content, and the SEO community's habit of mistaking correlation for causation. If you’ve ever acted on advice without asking deeper questions, this episode is worth your time.

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Hosts: Bill Hunt and Bill Scully

Full show notes: ⁠ https://internationalwebmastery.com/international-web-effectiveness-podcast/risk-of-misreading-googles-advice/

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Links:

Google: Hreflang Tags With 301 Redirects Are Probably Okay by Barry Schwartz -

https://www.seroundtable.com/google-hreflang-301-redirects-39185.html

Google Again Says Structured Data Does Not Make Your Site Rank Better by Barry Schwartz -

https://www.seroundtable.com/google-structured-data-ranking-39232.html

When Context Gets Lost: The Risk of Misreading Google’s Advice by Bill Hunt - https://internationalwebmastery.com/blog/when-context-gets-lost-the-risk-of-misreading-googles-advice/

When a Simple Change Sparks Complex Assumptions: The Danger of Misreading Google’s Signals by Bill Hunt - https://internationalwebmastery.com/blog/when-a-simple-change-sparks-complex-assumptions-the-danger-of-misreading-googles-signals/

Google SOTR Podcast Recap – Duplicate Content by Bill Hunt -

https://internationalwebmastery.com/blog/google-sotr-podcast-recap-duplicate-content/

Understanding & Fixing Common Hreflang Errors Course -

https://learn.internationalwebmastery.com/courses/understanding-fixing-common-hreflang-errors

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Looking for more episodes like these?

Check out our main YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@InternationalWebMastery

Or visit our podcast page: https://internationalwebmastery.com/international-web-effectiveness-podcast/

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