SearchCap: The Day In Search, February 16, 2012

Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web.

From Search Engine Land:

• Google Showing Fewer Than 10 Results For Some Searches?

  It appears Google is testing showing fewer than the typical 10 web search results, in what might either be a test or possibly a bug. I spotted complaints in a WebmasterWorld thread where searchers were asking why is Google limiting the results for a search query on Google UK for bbc football, such as shown: […]
• How To Get A 10x Lift In Monthly Unique Visitors

  Retailers have used signage, billboards, newspapers, magazines, vehicles, buildings, radio, TV – just about every means imaginable to market their products and services. But never have we seen retail marketing spread exponentially in different directions since the advent of the Internet and the proliferation of computers, laptops, tablets and smartphones. In fact, the Internet and […]

• An Inside Look At How Yahoo! Handles Olympic Games Marketing

  Last month, I wrote about managing search in a decentralized marketing organization. We covered budgets, goals, alignment, etc. All good in theory, but how does it work in real life? To answer that question, I thought I would take a close look at how we’re working on one of our major marketing initiatives of the […]

• Everything You Need To Know About SEO Web Structure & Internal Links

  Website structure and internal linking is one of the most inconsistent topics within search engine optimization. Not only are SEO practitioners frequently at odds among ourselves, we must compete with the often conflicting goals of designers, usability experts, and marketing or sales teams. There is a lot of disagreement out there. Look for yourself. Pick […]

• Microsoft Security Patch Marked Google.com As Malware

  Some of those who use Microsoft security software received a security patch a couple days ago that lead to malware warnings for users trying to visit Google.com. Softpedia posted a picture of the warning. Microsoft quickly learned about the issue on their support forums and issued a patch yesterday to address the issue. Microsoft didn’t […]

• Blekko Testing Search Ads

  MediaPost reports that Blekko, the slashtags search engine, has started testing monetization efforts through search ads. Currently, the ads are provided through ad fees from Google and Bing. Blekko has yet to build out their own ad network. Rich Skrenta, Blekko founder and CEO said, “we’re still ironing out the kinks.” They are testing out […]

• Report: 52 Pct Of Local-Mobile Search Clicks Turned Into Calls

  Local-mobile ad network xAd released a treasure-trove of data from Q4 2011 this morning. The US-based information is drawn from mobile sites and apps that run its ads and the related user behaviors that xAd observes. These data are interesting in part because xAd has what is probably the largest network offering local search and […]

• Search Engine Land’s SMX West Conference Comes to San Jose, CA in Less Than Two Weeks – Register Today!

  February 28 thru March 1 ­ San Jose, CA 60 Tactical Sessions. 130+ Expert Speakers. Two Provocative Keynotes. Less than two weeks until Search Marketing Expo ­ SMX West returns to San Jose February 28 ­ March 1. Here is what’s in store: Multi-track program including search marketing topics for all skill levels, from fundamentals […]

Recent Headlines From MarTech, Our Sister Site Dedicated To Internet Marketing:

• Pinterest Drops Skimlinks, Might Try Ads; Says Copyright Issues Not A Significant Issue Yet
• 8 Great Ways To Use QR Codes For Marketing
• Hands On With msnNOW, Microsoft’s New “Social Trend Breaking” Site
• Report: Some Brands Will Get Facebook’s Timeline This Month
• Google+ Suggested Users Get 10,000 New Followers Per Day, But Are They Real?

Search News From Around The Web:

Business Issues

• Baidu Announces Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2011 Results, Baidu | Press Releases
• Baidu said to expand reach to Brazil, chinadaily.com.cn
• Video – Danny Sullivan on Google’s New Privacy Policy Saga, WebProNews

Local, Maps & Mobile

• Syrian opposition seeks to wipe the Assad name off the map — via Google, Washington Post

Link Building

• Five Tools for More Efficient Link Outreach, Search Engine People
• Link Development – RKG Style, Rimm Kaufman
• The Inside Scoop to Finding Link Building Opportunities with Free Alerts, SEOmoz

Paid Search & Contextual

• iAds Drops Prices Increases Revenue Share: But Does It Compare To AdMob or Google AdSense?, Search Engine Roundtable

Searching

• Kayak Partners With Trip Advisor To Integrate 60 Million Travel Reviews Into Hotel Search, TechCrunch

SEM Industry

• SMX West 2012 Liveblogging & Speaking Schedule, outspokenmedia.com

SEO & SEM

• App Store Optimization, Search Engine Watch
• Conversion Rate Optimization – Authority + Trust = Conversions, BruceClay.com
• Three Reasons You Should Put Products in Their Own Directory, seOverflow
• Why AuthorRank Matters & How to Leverage It [Infographic], blueglass.com
• Your SEO is not the problem, SEO Copywriting

Social Media

• For social sharing, Apple turns to Twitter again, gigaom.com
• New version of Twitter, now on for everyone, Twitter Blog

Video, Music & Image Search

• YouTube Release Notes: More ways to communicate, YouTube Blog