From Google tightening its policies on reputation abuse to Instagram revealing details about its algorithm, plus fresh data-driven PR strategies and Microsoft’s latest B2B PMax updates—the SEO world has had a busy start to 2025. To help you stay informed, we’ve compiled the biggest industry updates from January and February 2025.
In this monthly roundup, we’ll cover:
- Google’s updated site reputation abuse documentation, and what that means for your website’s compliance
- Insights into new studies show that nearly half of all Google searches are branded
- Google’s recent measures against web scrapers and the resulting impact on popular SEO tools
- Newly revealed details about Instagram’s algorithm and how they can inform your social media strategies
- Innovative approaches to public relations that leverage data for more effective media placements
- Microsoft’s latest enhancements to their B2B advertising solutions, including advanced targeting and LinkedIn integration
Here’s a recap of the most important SEO updates from January and February 2025, along with some steps to keep you ahead of the game.
SEO: Google Policy Changes, Search Trends, & Performance Insights
Google Clarified Site Reputation Abuse Guidelines
Google has updated its documentation on site reputation abuse, providing clearer definitions and examples of what constitutes a violation. While there’s no policy change, the revised guidelines pull from a November FAQ to help sites stay compliant.
Hawp’s Take: These clarifications make it easier for site owners to align with Google’s policies and avoid actions that could negatively impact organic performance.
Action Steps: Regularly review Google’s documentation to ensure compliance. Hawp will continue monitoring updates and advising on necessary adjustments.
Nearly 50% of Google Searches Are Branded
A study from Ahrefs analyzed over 150 million distinct U.S. search queries and found that nearly half are branded, reinforcing the importance of brand-building in SEO strategies.
Hawp’s Take: Overlooking branded search means missing key opportunities to engage audiences and capture organic demand. While Google serves search demand, brand-building efforts are essential for generating that demand across multiple channels.
Action Steps: Incorporate branded search into SEO strategies and invest in awareness campaigns to strengthen brand recognition.
Google Cracks Down on Web Scrapers, Causing SEO Tool Outages
On January 17, Google introduced measures to block web scrapers from extracting search result data, disrupting major SEO tools like Semrush. The change has impacted rank tracking and keyword analysis, reducing the accuracy of AI Overview tracking.
Hawp’s Take: As third-party data becomes less reliable, leveraging first-party sources like Google Search Console and GA4 is crucial for accurate reporting.
Action Steps: Shift focus toward first-party data insights and monitor whether third-party tools recover in the coming weeks.
Google Highlights HTTP Caching’s Role in Performance Optimization
Google’s engineers revealed that cacheable fetches have declined from 0.026% a decade ago to 0.017% today, reducing efficiency in content delivery. Proper caching can improve page load speeds, lower bandwidth use, and cut hosting costs.
Hawp’s Take: Optimizing for repeat visitors is just as important as optimizing for first-time users. Leveraging HTTP caching and 304 status codes can improve performance and user experience.
Action Steps: Implement caching best practices and focus on improving load times for returning visitors.
Organic Social: Key Platform Updates & Strategies
Instagram Algorithm Insights: What Drives Reach?
Instagram has revealed how its ranking system works, with two types of reach—connected (followers) and unconnected (non-followers). Watch time, likes, and sends are the top factors influencing visibility, while certain content faces restrictions in recommendations.
Hawp’s Take: Brands and creators should prioritize engagement-driven content. Stories help deepen audience connections, while Feed posts are best for discoverability. To maximize reach, focus on watch time, avoid watermarks, and ensure account health.
Action Steps: Create short, high-quality videos, track performance insights, experiment with content styles, and engage with trending audio.
Instagram Moves to Vertical Content for Feed Posts
Instagram is shifting away from the traditional 1:1 square format, now favoring a 4:5 vertical aspect ratio for Feed posts. Square images will be cropped, and videos not optimized for the format will be displayed with black bars.
Hawp’s Take: This change reinforces the dominance of vertical-first content across social media. Brands relying on square visuals must adjust their design strategy to maintain a cohesive Instagram presence.
Action Steps: Make sure all images and videos follow the 1080 x 1350 px (4:5) format and update creative assets to align with Instagram’s new grid layout.
Emerging LinkedIn Trends for 2025
A study found that 75% of buyers factor thought leadership content into their shortlisting decisions, making LinkedIn a key platform for brand authority. Emerging trends include video content, work-based humor, storytelling, employee advocacy, and strategic commenting.
Hawp’s Take: LinkedIn is shifting from a networking tool into a content-driven hub. Video engagement is rising, humor and authenticity are cutting through corporate formality, and storytelling is creating deeper audience connections.
Action Steps: Leverage short-form videos for engagement, encourage employee advocacy to expand reach, participate in meaningful discussions, and use strategic storytelling to boost brand relatability.
Paid Social: Ad Targeting & Attribution Updates
Meta Automates Targeting for Advantage+ Catalog Ads
Meta is removing the “Audience Types” option from Advantage+ catalog ads with the sales objective, and instead, shifting toward automated targeting. However, advertisers can still use catalog custom audiences for retargeting and prospecting.
Hawp’s Take: While this change reduces manual control, it helps performance by leveraging dynamic product displays to reach high-intent users. For more precision, advertisers should focus on building and refining custom catalog audiences.
Action Steps: Optimize product catalogs, leverage Meta’s automated targeting tools, and monitor ad performance closely. Use custom audiences to maintain targeting flexibility.
LinkedIn Enhances Ad Attribution with a More Comprehensive Model
LinkedIn’s new attribution model integrates Multi-Touch Attribution and Marketing Mix Modeling, thus significantly improving conversion tracking accuracy. Early results show a 150x increase in attribution credit.
Hawp’s Take: This update gives advertisers better visibility into the customer journey, helping optimize ad spend and improve ROI. Understanding which touchpoints drive conversions allows for more data-driven campaign decisions.
Action Steps: Use LinkedIn’s advanced attribution insights to refine campaign strategies, allocate budget effectively, and maximize performance.
Pinterest Expands Ad Capabilities Amid Growing Gen Z Audience
With 537 million monthly active users and a rising Gen Z demographic, Pinterest is positioning itself as a shopping-centric platform. To attract advertisers, it’s offering customized support and bonus media programs.
Hawp’s Take: Pinterest’s high-intent user base makes it a strong platform for brands looking to boost e-commerce sales and awareness. Its unique audience demographics provide valuable opportunities for targeted advertising.
Action Steps: Integrate Pinterest into your media strategy, optimize ad creatives for shopping intent, and explore bonus media programs to maximize reach and ROI.
Content Marketing: Optimizing for Audience Engagement & SEO
Making Content for Every Stage of the Sales Funnel
Effective content marketing meets users where they are in their buyer’s journey. Top-of-funnel content (awareness stage) should be informative and engaging, middle-funnel content (consideration stage) should highlight solutions and credibility, and bottom-funnel content (decision stage) should emphasize value and encourage conversions.
Hawp’s Take: Aligning content with the sales funnel helps brands fill content gaps and drive conversions. Using personas, search intent, and audience insights ensures messaging resonates at every stage. Shareable assets and blogs work best for top-of-funnel, while core pages should focus on mid- and bottom-funnel engagement.
Action Steps: Conduct persona research to identify customer pain points, map out content touchpoints, and optimize messaging for each stage of the buyer’s journey.
HubSpot’s Organic SEO Decline: Lessons for Content Strategy
HubSpot experienced a huge drop in organic traffic starting in Q4, which largely impacted blog topics unrelated to their core audience and product offerings. The decline may be tied to Google’s algorithm updates or a lack of topical authority.
Hawp’s Take: To maintain rankings, brands must focus on EEAT (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness) and avoid publishing content outside their domain expertise. Google prioritizes sites with strong topical authority, meaning businesses should create content directly aligned with their industry and offerings.
Action Steps: Perform a content gap analysis to identify relevant topics, audit existing content for EEAT alignment, and focus on industry-specific, high-value content that strengthens domain authority.
Digital Marketing Changes in 2025 and How to Stay Ahead
As we move further into 2025, it’s clear that staying ahead in SEO, social media, paid advertising, and content marketing requires constant adaptation. Google is cracking down on policy violations, Instagram is tweaking its algorithm, LinkedIn is making it easier to track ad performance, and Pinterest is growing its audience—digital marketing is moving fast, and staying ahead means keeping up with these shifts.
Success in digital marketing comes down to creating high-quality content, having a solid strategy, and keeping up with platform changes. Whether you’re crafting unique content for different stages of the buyer’s journey, tapping into branded search trends, or refining your ad targeting, these updates provide helpful insights to help you stay visible and ahead of the competition.
In case you missed our last update, check out the top SEO news from November and December 2025.