Google

Search Off the Record

Search Off the Record takes you behind the scenes of Google Search and its inner workings! In each episode, the folks from the Search Relations team will give you background info on the decision-making behind launches, feature prioritization in Search Console, and the projects Google Search teams are working on. They will share fun stories from the many conferences they attend as well as from their day-to-day working life at Google. They will also dive into the currently trending conversations in the SEO community at large. Have a listen!

Author

Google

Category

Technology

Podcast website

developers.google.com

Latest episode

Jun 15, 2026

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Episodes

2023: Year in review 21.12.2023

In this episode of Search, Martin, John, and Gary look back at 2023 and reminisce on some of this year's Search announcements. From updates to Core Web Vitals to going back to basics of website titling, the team covers a wide range of announcements and updates in the world of SEO.   Resources: Episode transcript → https://goo.gle/sotr067-transcript   Search Off the Record is a podcast series that...

Transcript for 2023: Year in review 21.12.2023
Which aspect of my site should I focus on? 21.11.2023

In this episode of Search, Martin, Gary, and John discuss aspects of SEO that website owners often overlook. From overall quality to more technical aspects, The Search team talks about where they focus on their SEO work and why the details add up to a better SEO experience. Resources: Episode transcript → https://goo.gle/sotr066-transcript Search Off the Record is a podcast series that takes you b...

Transcript for Which aspect of my site should I focus on? 21.11.2023
Features and deprecations on Steve 07.11.2023

In this episode of Search, John, Gary, and Martin discuss why the search team adds and removes features on their search engine, Steve. From creating a better user experience to surfacing relevant answers for search queries, maintaining an organized webspace requires continual retooling. Tune into this episode of Search Off the Record to learn about what the team considers when updating their searc...

Transcript for Features and deprecations on Steve 07.11.2023
The effect of quality on Search 19.09.2023

In this episode of Search, John and Gary discuss the impact of quality on search results. From sitemaps to scheduling and more, the Google Search team talks about how the quality of the page and site plays a role in crawling and indexing, besides ranking. Do you need to update your site often or add many links? Tune in and find out on this episode of Search Off the Record!  Resources: Episode tran...

Transcript for The effect of quality on Search 19.09.2023
Let's talk ranking updates 22.08.2023

The Google Search algorithm has been updated and panic quickly sets in. In this episode of Search, Martin, John, and Danny help content creators everywhere focus on the value they bring into the digital world. From changing ranking systems to updated documentation, the Google Search team discusses their holistic approach to SEO, ranking, and more! Resources: Episode transcript → https://goo.gle/so...

Transcript for Let's talk ranking updates 22.08.2023
Let's pick a domain name 20.07.2023

A top-level domain (TLD) is the last part of a domain name, after the dot, and identifies the type of organization the domain belongs to, or the country the domain is targeting. Some examples include .com, .org, .ai, .ch, .xyz. In this episode of Search, John, Gary, and Martin help you choose the best top-level domain for you and your website, including price, popularity, and if a custom one makes...

Transcript for Let's pick a domain name 20.07.2023
Why is my site not indexed? 22.06.2023

Martin, John, and Gary discuss the potential reasons why your website or page is not indexed, both from a technical and quality perspective. Learn about the tools and reports available in Google Search Console to help determine why your website is not indexed.   Resources: Episode transcript → https://goo.gle/sotr061-transcript Search Off the Record is a podcast series that takes you behind the sc...

Transcript for Why is my site not indexed? 22.06.2023
Q&A: You asked on Linkedin, we answered in here 30.05.2023

In this episode of Search Off the Record, John, Gary, and Martin answer highly sought-after questions left on Gary's Linkedin post. They share the drawbacks of client-side rendering, how Web3 would affect SEO, and more. Why do 410 response codes show the same as 404s in Search Console? Is it treated differently in the backend? Find out that, and more from how the Search team would rebuild a search...

Transcript for Q&A: You asked on Linkedin, we answered in here 30.05.2023
Staging and launching a site 05.04.2023

In this episode of Search Off the Record, John, Gary, and Lizzi chat about launching websites. Launching a website can be a nerve-wracking experience, especially staging your website for launch, or if you're a seasoned website owner and want to stage a new feature. How can you prevent a staging site from becoming indexed? Who are the people having the problem with the staging servers? What is the...

Transcript for Staging and launching a site 05.04.2023
JavaScript at Google 23.03.2023

In this episode of Search Off the Record, Googlers Edu Pereda and Pascal Birchler join Martin Splitt to chat in-depth about programming languages, JavaScript and TypeScript. Learn more about the projects they use JavaScript with, why people have strong emotions towards JavaScript, what they like and dislike about the controversial programming language, and more! Has Javascript improved? Is there s...

Transcript for JavaScript at Google 23.03.2023
Search and Open Source 08.03.2023

On this episode of Search Off the Record, guest Edu Pereda, Engineer at Google joins Martin Splitt and Gary Illyes to chat about Search Open Sourcing projects. Open source is a source code made available for the public to modify and distribute. Learn about the Search open source library projects, requirements in mind when creating open source libraries, why not every library can be open source, an...

Transcript for Search and Open Source 08.03.2023
Site moves: Are they getting any easier? 23.02.2023

With the right resources, site moves or domain changes don't have to be as hard as we once remember. In this episode of Search Off the Record, join Lizzi, Gary, and John for a chat about site moves. Learn about the different types of site moves, common issues, and how to move your site without harming search ranking results. Find out how site moves affect users and Search, how there could be a dro...

Transcript for Site moves: Are they getting any easier? 23.02.2023
Search Console Help Center 12.01.2023

In this episode of Search Off the Record, Josh Cohen, a Tech Writer on the Search Console Team, joins John and Lizzi to chat about the Search Console Help Center. They dive into who drives changes in Search Console, tips for writing feedback, and questions to ask when deciding the right level of information to give in a document. Learn the differences between product and doc issues, not being able...

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