In 2023, we hit the ground running, optimizing our platform to deliver the best performance metrics for SEO, Core Web Vitals, and streamlined CMS functionality.
To ensure RebelMouse’s CMS remains the best publishing platform on the market, we’ve compiled a list of the latest updates to keep your content optimized and make it even easier to build your online presence.
Q1 2023 Platform Updates and Optimizations
Below is a categorized list of upgrades we’ve added to increase performance and allow users to customize their sites through an easy-to-use and adaptable interface.
SEO and Web Management Improvements
The following is a list of our 2023 SEO and web management improvements:
Display When a URL Changes in Entry Editor
Entry Editor is our content creation and publishing hub for users to create articles, add images, embed media, manage content, and more. For URL changes, we initiated the practice of displaying when a URL has been modified. This is good for troubleshooting and monitoring which URL optimizations offer better search performance.
Disable OpenAI Headline in Entry Editor Based on User Permissions
To prevent 403 errors, we've implemented a feature to disable OpenAI headlines when a user lacks the necessary permissions to use it.
Load Default Entry Editor When an Entry Editor A/B Test Is Removed
To avoid errors when removing an A/B test in Entry Editor, we've ensured that it loads the default Entry Editor instead.
Stable Diffusion in Entry Editor
We’ve added Stable Diffusion as a new search engine in Entry Editor as another source for images. Contact your account manager or support@rebelmouse.com to enable this feature for your account.
API Tag Identification
We’ve added a new endpoint to check if specific tags are associated with posts, aiding tag identification and suggested tag classification.
Pinging XML Sitemaps
In line with Google's best sitemap building practices, and to expedite Google's content indexing processes, we’ve introduced a feature that sends a notification to Google whenever there is a modification to your sitemaps, including regular sitemaps, videos, and news.
Google Sitemap Ping Tool
We've implemented a feature that pings Google whenever an article is updated or published. This aligns with Google's best practices, expediting the indexing process for faster page recognition.
Sitemaps to Support Multiple Paths in the Post.page_list Field
We’ve updated posts to have multiple page_list, and now we’ve made the page_list existing on posts to be available in your sitemaps.
Implemented Meta Description Rules for Public Pages
To improve SEO, we’ve updated the following meta description rules below:
- Home Page: If there is a site description added to your account page (/core/dashboard/sites#account), we will utilize that. If there is no description added, we won’t display a meta description.
- Section Page: If there is a section description in the "Description" field of a section in the Sections Dashboard (/dashboard/sections), we will utilize that. If there is no description added, we won’t display a meta description.
- Author Page: If there is an author bio added to an author’s page or in your Users Dashboard (/dashboard/users), we will utilize that. If there is no author bio added, we won’t display a meta description.
- Tag Page: The meta description should be removed from the tag page. Previously, we were erroneously outputting the same meta description (site title) on all tag pages, resulting in duplicate meta descriptions.
AI-Powered Improvements
The following is a list of our 2023 AI-powered improvements:
Improved Payload Delivered in Webhooks
We’ve incorporated additional fields into the payload sent via webhooks, with the aim of bolstering support across our AI-related endeavors.
OpenAI Recommendations in Entry Editor
We've integrated OpenAI to provide editors with alternative headline, tag, and summary suggestions to consider.
Alternative Headline Recommendations
We’ve added a new button that enables you to show five alternative headline suggestions using AI.
Tag Recommendations in the Channels Tab
Originally, AI-suggested tags required a user to click a button to trigger them. By adding them to the Channels tab, we've eliminated the need for the manual trigger.
User Function Improvements
The following is a list of our 2023 user function improvements:
Disabled the "Delete User Role" Button During a Role Removal
Previously, when a user tried to delete a role, it still appeared as though the deletion process wasn't complete. If the user attempted to delete the role again, they would encounter an error since only one deletion operation per site can run at a time. Now, we store the state in local storage to keep the delete button disabled while an operation is still in progress.
Disabled the “Delete Section” Button While a Section Is Being Removed
Previously, when a user attempted to delete a section, it would still be visible until the deletion process was complete. If the user tried to delete it again, they received an “SectionsRemovalLockedException([])” error since only one deletion operation is allowed at a time. Now, we store the state in local storage to keep the delete button disabled while an operation is still in progress.
Clicking “Quick Add” in the Popular Keywords Dashboard Opens a New Tab
The “Quick Add” button in the Popular Keywords Dashboard used to redirect users to the SmartLinks Dashboard, taking them away from Popular Keywords. Now, it opens up in a new tab, so you can stay on the Popular Keywords Dashboard.
SmartLinks improvement: Limit Insertion to Once per Post
A SmartLink in a post should only link to the first mention of a phrase, not any subsequent ones.
Exposed Posts Tied to Smart Links
We enhanced our SmartLinks feature by displaying the number of posts that are using a specific phrase for smart linking. You can now click on a SmartLink phrase to see a list of all of the posts that are tied together.
Made Popular Keywords Available as SmartLink Suggestions
To assist users with creating SmartLinks, we now display top-performing phrases based on popular Google Search results that you are currently ranking for. We obtain this data from Google Search Analytics.
Allow Scraping/Embedding of TikTok URLs
We made it possible to scrape or embed TikTok URLs starting with https://www.tiktok.com/embed.
Eliminated the X (Twitter) API call in Entry Editor and Removed the Discovery Link
From the Posts Dashboard
To reduce costs due to increased X (Twitter) API fees, we've made several changes:
- 1. Removed @mentions search when social scheduling tweets.
- 2. Stopped liking tweets included in the post body/listicle.
- 3. Eliminated the Discovery Twitter tab.
- 4. Removed the Discovery link in the Posts Dashboard.
Layout & Design Tool Improvements
The following is a list of our 2023 Layout & Design Tool upgrades:
Implemented a New Design for the Shortcodes Dashboard
We have a new design for shortcodes. We decided to change the experience because we have a new field for AMP code and the table needed to be modified to accommodate it better.
Adjusted the Warning Error in a Custom HTML Element
When "" is missing in an element, we used to only make the “=” red, which was easily missed by editors as a warning error. We’ve improved the warning system as follows:
Add robots.txt Validation in Layout & Design Tool
We’ve exposed robots.txt in Layout & Design Tool with validators that will prevent a user from saving it in the wrong format.
Functionality Improvements
The following is a list of our 2023 CMS functionality improvements:
Added Progress Reporting to Async Tasks
We used to have long-running tasks like posts and users indexing. However, we lacked a way to track their progress which could lead to issues. To fix this, we’ve added a progress tracking system for custom search indexing.
Kubernetes Deployment for the RebelMouse Application
We've set up a Kubernetes deployment process for our web frontend application to help transition our sites to Kubernetes. With Kubernetes Deployments, we can efficiently manage pod instances, easily scale replicas, control code updates, and perform smooth rollbacks when needed.
Updated Structured Data by Adding a “Name Field”
Google introduced a new “name” parameter for ”website type,” and we have included this as a default setting for all sites.
Support for the Creation of Server-Side First-Party Cookies
After a user logs in through a third-party service, we'll use their API to check their login status. If they are logged in, we'll create a first-party cookie if it doesn't already exist. During subsequent visits, the third-party login will check for the presence of this first-party cookie, and if it exists, the user will be automatically logged in. You can configure the cookie's name and expiration, as well as override settings as needed.
Prevent Image Optimization Feature
We added the option to skip image optimization in Entry Editor. Use the “Save origin image” checkbox after heeding the warning about how the setting can affect page performance. This will be applied to both the main post image and the teaser image.
Able to Close Notifications In Dashboard
We added the option to close our notifications bar in all dashboards.
Integration With Simplestream
You can now utilize Simplestream’s search API to list videos in Entry Editor, Simplestream’s video API to scrape videos in Entry Editor, and Simplestream’s embed code to create shortcodes. Talk to your account manager or contact support@rebelmouse.com to learn more.
