Greg recently mentioned that Reuters have launched a new video/people search engine powered by Viewdle, and I've been playing around with it. While it has some drawbacks (currently it's only possible to search through 612 hours of footage held by Reuters), it has a lot of features that I like. The results screen tells you how many videos have been located that feature the person you're interested in, the context ("Mandela statue unveiled in London"), date of the video, overall length, and time the searched for individual is on screen for. When viewing a video it starts at the point where the [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Video | Search Engines: Video Search Engines

Compete and Nielsen show Microsoft gaining search share over the summer, while comScore and Hitwise show the company losing share. Regardless of these numbers, however, Microsoft is confident that the search engine it's reintroducing tonight in conjunction with its Searchification event will be a substantial improvement of the current version of Live search. Vanessa Fox was at Searchification and has an excellent post with lots of detail about specifics in the announcements today, including some technical detail. I was briefed ahead of that event, and here I'll provide an overview, focus on s [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Consumer | Microsoft: Bing

I'm sitting at the Microsoft conference center for Searchification Day. We're within walking distance from the Googleplex, where I was for Google Searchology Day just a few short months ago. Searchology was all about Google's unveiling of universal search, and interestingly, today could be seen as Live's answer to that. As Nathan Buggia, Product Manager puts it, the name "Searchification" is like the name "Searchology," only better. Brad Goldberg, Live Search General Manager, opened up the session by explaining that Microsoft is making a new push towards transparency, and today is an example [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Consumer | Microsoft: Bing

Join the Search Engine Land editorial team and their guests for SMX Stockholm (Oct. 31-Nov. 1) or for SMX London (Nov. 15-16). Register today and you'll save 20% off the on-site registration rate - but do it now because this offer ends soon! Driving traffic is critical to internet business success. And Search Marketing Expo conferences are the only shows focused 100% on showing you the secrets of getting visitors to your website. Whether you're an advanced professional or just beginning, SMX is the conference for you. Internationally recognized search marketing authorities and home-grown [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Other | SMX & DMD Alerts

Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: Now Accepting Speaking Pitches For SMX Stockholm & LondonI'm now accepting speaking proposals for these two shows: SMX Stockholm 31 October-1 November, 2007 Sheraton Stockholm Hotel SMX London 15-16 November, 2007 Hilton London Metropole Please note that the agendas are final for both shows, and I will only consider pitches for specific panels (Stockholm agenda; London agenda). There... Yahoo Search Updating Index & AlgorithmWe have been noticing repor [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Other | SearchCap

I'm now accepting speaking proposals for these two shows: SMX Stockholm 31 October-1 November, 2007 Sheraton Stockholm Hotel SMX London 15-16 November, 2007 Hilton London Metropole Please note that the agendas are final for both shows, and I will only consider pitches for specific panels (Stockholm agenda; London agenda). There are a limited number of openings, and I expect to fill them quickly, so don’t delay if you want to be considered. Ready to pitch? Click over to our SMX Speaker Pitch Form and follow the instructions there. [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Industry | SEM Industry: Conferences

We have been noticing reports from several sources of a Yahoo Search index and algorithm update. It is important to note that Yahoo has not yet posted their "weather report" at the Yahoo Search Blog yet. However Aaron Wall, Loren Baker and several forums have noticed major changes at Yahoo Search. Aaron noticed two main things: (1) What Aaron calls a "botch up" in how Yahoo handles sitewide 301 redirects. (2) Yahoo seems to be giving more weight to the words in a domain name. These are very early reports. Feel free to share your thoughts by Sphinning this article below! Postscript: It [...]

Related Topics: Channel: SEO | Yahoo: Search | Yahoo: SEO | Yahoo: Site & Enterprise Search

With the aQuantive acquisition now done, Microsoft is moving to try and thwart Google on multiple fronts, both competitive and regulatory. It is lobbying in the U.S. and before the EU to stop the DoubleClick acquisition, arguing it would create an online ad monopoly. And the longer the investigations, discussion of investigations, and hearings (which start in the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee tomorrow) go on, the more it becomes possible that the deal might be blocked. However, such a scenario remains unlikely. On the competitive front, a number of interesting pieces appearing today in the [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Industry | Microsoft: Bing | Microsoft: Business Issues | Microsoft: Employees

AOL is quickly and quietly moving on a number of fronts in mobile to establish itself as a leader. Not long after the relaunch of rival MSN's WAP portal, AOL upgraded mobile search and, last week, relaunched its WAP portal with more personalization and generally greater usability. According to this BusinessWeek article, "U.S. traffic to AOL's mobile Web site is higher than that to Google Mobile's and double that of MSN Mobile's, according to Hitwise." On the advertising side, AOL owns Third Screen Media, Advertising.com and BT provider Tacoda, which are all being integrated into the recently [...]

Related Topics: AOL: Mobile | Channel: Mobile

Chances are, your search marketing efforts could be missing as much as 80% of your target audience. Don’t believe me? It’s true. Why? It’s fundamental. Most search marketers agree that about 70%-80% of all clicks come from the natural (organic) search results, while the other 20%-30% come from sponsored listings (PPC). Yet despite these stats, it seems that the only thing B2B marketers want to talk about lately is their PPC campaigns. Now am I saying that most B2B marketers only engage in PPC? Hardly. Thankfully, most organizations today participate in both PPC and S [...]

Related Topics: B2B Search Marketing | Channel: Search

The Google Blog announced they have added Google Video into the bundle of search verticals that Google Alerts will work with. Google Alerts will send you an email when a keyword match occurs on one of the 6 types of alerts you configure. The alerts are supported for News, Web, Blogs, Comprehensive (News, Web & Blogs combined), Video and Groups. To add Google Video to your email alerts, you can either do a search at Google Video, scroll down to the bottom and click on "Get the latest videos on [keyword phrase] with Google Alerts," or you can go to Google Alerts and fill out the form. Say [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Video | Google: YouTube & Video

Education is very important to in-house search engine marketers—it's the only way you can hope to keep up with the scrappy entrepreneurs who are constantly pushing the envelope with new tactics and techniques. There are many routes that you can go to get your education, but you should understand that in a constantly changing field, education needs to be continual. While you're learning you'll be using your new knowledge as part of your daily job. But what else can you do with that education to further the goals of your department? First, let's look at the places that you can get yo [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Search | In House Search Marketing | SEM Industry: General | SEM Industry: In House

Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: Search Illustrated: Geo Targeting Search Strategies Are you reaching the right people with your search optimization and marketing campaigns? Even though we're living in an increasingly globalized world, it often pays to tailor content and optimization efforts to specific regions. Today's Search Illustrated shows a number of ways that your web sites can be geo... AdWords Quality Score: Can Your Business Model Be Banned? Let's get this uncomfortable trut [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Other | SearchCap

Are you reaching the right people with your search optimization and marketing campaigns? Even though we're living in an increasingly globalized world, it often pays to tailor content and optimization efforts to specific regions. Today's Search Illustrated shows a number of ways that your web sites can be geo targeted for particular areas of the globe: Graphic by Elliance, an eMarketing firm specializing in results-driven search engine marketing, web site design, and outbound eMarketing campaigns. The firm is the creator of the ennect online marketing toolkit. The Search Illustrated colum [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Other | Infographics | Search Illustrated

Let's get this uncomfortable truth out of the way up front: Google's actions, manifested through a variety of methodologies to rank (and sometimes ban) listings and content, have regularly irritated, angered, and alienated some webmasters, website owners, and advertisers. The outcry is more vociferous if you can give an initiative, a cute name, and get the mainstream press to catch wind of the story (like the infamous "Florida" update to the organic rankings algorithm). Perhaps this is why Google has become more expert in timing its enforcement episodes and in trying to make them less [...]

Related Topics: Channel: SEM | Paid Search

The Open Directory just launched the official DMOZ blog. The first blog post explains that DMOZ wants to use this blog to: Provide authentic messages about DMOZ and the efforts of our volunteer community.Highlight enhancements, both current and future.Allow editors to showcase their categories and describe, in their own words, why DMOZ is so important.Recruit new editors. If you have access to the Web and are passionate about a category, find out how to apply. But most importantly, they want to use the blog to get feedback from the community. The Managing Editor, Bob Keating, said: What [...]

Related Topics: Channel: SEO | Search Engines: Open Directory Project

The NY Post is reporting that Microsoft is weighing two big investment options: buying a 5 percent stake in Facebook (at rougly $500 million), which was widely reported yesterday, or buying some or all of Yahoo. But the options are probably mutually exclusive, given the earlier $6 billion acquisition of aQuantive. According to the article: According to two sources familiar with the discussions, Microsoft has restarted talks with Facebook about a potential investment that would give the social networking Web site its sought-after $10 billion valuation. At the same time, both sources said th [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Industry | Microsoft: Business Issues | Microsoft: Partnerships | Yahoo: Business Issues

Marshall Simmonds of the New York Times is, to me, the SEO of the hour right now. For an industry often mischaracterized as doing nothing but blog spamming, Marshall's work as chief search strategist to institutionalize SEO as part of the regular editorial production at the New York Times lead directly to last week's news that the paper was opening up its archives without charge, since it already gains so much free search engine traffic that leaving the archives open will mean more traffic and thus higher ad revenues. So those of you who are cursing those SEOs out of ignorance of what they can [...]

Related Topics: Channel: SEO | SEM Industry: General | SEM Industry: In House | SEO: General

Gary Price picked up on a major change coming to the German Wikipedia, where only "trusted editors" will be able to make instant changes to the online community-driven encyclopedia. This change is coming to the German Wikipedia later this year, and it may follow suit on the English version of Wikipedia as well as other versions of Wikipedia. Basically, anyone can make changes to an entry, but those changes will first have to be reviewed by a "trusted editor" before they can be visible to the public. Gary makes several excellent comments about this change. It is important to note that this [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Consumer | Search Engines: Wikipedia

Following on last month's search privacy video from Google, the Google Blog announced that a new installment dealing with personalized results is now available. Meanwhile, two new articles about privacy issues and naming Google in particular have also come out today. The video discusses how Google can use your IP address, domain, or location to better personalize your search results. The video also shows how they can use your web history to do the same. Plus, the video ends with showing how you can pause Google from recording your web history, delete specific items in your history, or com [...]

Related Topics: Channel: Industry | Google: Legal | Google: Personalized Search | Legal: Privacy