SearchCap: The Day In Search, January 3, 2008

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

From Search Engine Land:

• Ask Mobile Adds “Click To Speak” Directions
  Ask’s Mobile WAP site has added voice to the process of getting directions. The voice-activated service is provided by Dial Directions. On the mobile Ask site, beside the “Directions” link you’ll find a new “Voice Entry” link. That sends users to the Dial Directions phone number (347-328-4667) or initiates a…
• Goodbye, Yahoo Picks
  Children, gather round. When I was a boy, we didn’t have Digg. We didn’t have Slashdot. When we wanted a big traffic rush, we had to walk eight miles in the snow to Yahoo Picks — Yahoo Picks Of The Week & Picks Of The Day — and we liked…
• ChaCha Goes Mobile With TextChaCha
  Social search engine ChaCha, which has struggled to gain traction and usage on the desktop, is introducing a new text-based mobile service called “textChaCha” (short code: 242242). The same human “guides” who provide assisted search on ChaCha.com answer potentially any question from mobile users. Accordingly it’s broader and more flexible…
• Google AdSense Launches Newbie Central
  Google AdSense has announced the launch of Newbie Central, a location for new publishers to go and get started with AdSense. The glorified help page gives instructions on how to sign up with AdSense, when to expect payment, information on ad implementation techniques, reporting tips, other AdSense products and much…
• A Smooth Sea Never Made a Skilled Mariner
  As a small business owner, the web holds a lot of challenges that if navigated successfully may yield some treasures. But there are some waves on the horizon, and uncharted waters ahead for many who would pursue those riches. A secret, to you who are starting out with a…
• Ask Sponsored Listings Gives Click Fraud Reimbursements
  Scott Hendison received an email about a click fraud settlement by Ask Sponsored Listings. If you purchased online advertising from IAC Search & Media and/or ASK Jeeves from August 2005 and now, you are entitled to some form of reimbursement for click fraud or other invalid or improper clicks. The…
• The Google Challengers: 2008 Edition
  Rich Skrenta — who aside from creating the first computer virus is more notable to search as a cofounder of the Open Directory Project and the Topix news search engine — has announced he’s founded a search start-up. A stealth one, as TechCrunch puts it. Don’t we already have several…
• How SEO Has Evolved Over The Years
  As I write this on New Year’s day, I can’t help but reflect on how SEO has changed during the more than 12 years since I first started optimizing websites. I was browsing through my hard-drive looking for a document I had saved that had various article ideas in…
• Traffic Power’s CEO Jailed Over Alleged Foreclosure Scams
  SEO Company CEO Arrested, Jailed: Accused of Foreclosure Scam from Search Engine Watch reports Traffic Power’s CEO, Matt Marlon, was jailed for allegedly committing foreclosure fraud. The news comes from Las Vegas’s News 3 station, which reports Matt Marlon was arrested for allegedly conning homeowners faced with foreclosure to give…
• Search Engine Land Stats: 2007, In Review
  As promised, now that a full calendar year has gone by, it’s time to look at some key stats about how Search Engine Land has grown in various ways over the year. Let’s dive in!…
• Don’t Miss SMX West – Register Now and Save
  Here are five compelling reasons to sign up for Search Marketing Expo – SMX West today: Content: The SMX West agenda is jam-packed with sessions that will make you a better marketer: 3 days, 5 tracks, more than 50 sessions. It all happens February 26-28 in Santa Clara, CA. The…

Search News From Around The Web:

Applications & Portal Features

• Google researcher calls for Flash flush, The Register
• Helping sellers integrate Checkout, Official Google Checkout Blog

Business Issues

• Infospace To Cut 20 Percent of Jobs; Reducing Costs, paidContent.org
• Online Display Ad Market To Hit $8.6 Billion, Yahoo Will Dominate – 01/03/2008, MediaPost

Local, Maps & Mobile

• Google Patent Application on a User Interface for a Phone, SEO By The Sea
• The Bible According To Google Earth, CR Blog
• Got caucus results? We do., Google LatLong
• YahooPeople.co.uk – Too Much Effort For Me, Andrew R H Girdwood

Link Building

• Matt Mullenweg on No Follow , ShoeMoney
• Queen Of Links – Debra Mastaler Interview, LinkJuicy

Paid Search & Contextual

• AdSense Fix Inverted Exchange Rate Problem for Australian and New Zealand Publishers, ProBlogger
• Our top 10 of 2007, Inside AdWords
• Top 4 Paid Search Traps To Avoid in Early 2008 (plus final PPC stats from 2007 4th quarter), Rimm Kaufman
• Which Industries Really Like Sponsored Links, Search Engine Watch Blog
• How Much Did You Make from Google AdSense in 2007?, Search Engine Roundtable

Searching

• Medical Advice: Better From An MD Than A Search Engine, Adotas
• U.S. Patent Time: Microsoft Awarded Wish List Patent; Google: Anchor Tags, Web Mail and Radio; Enhanced Catalog Browsing from Amazon; and More, ResourceShelf
• Isn’t Google wonderful?, The Guardian

SEM Industry

• Search Marketing Forum Advance Fee Fraud (AKA Nigeria Scam)?, Search Engine Roundtable
• SEOmoz’s Stats for 2007, SEOmoz
• Cre8asiteforums Introduces New Future Internet Technologies Forum, Cre8tive Flow
• Cre8asiteforums Launches Non-Profit Forum, blog.cre8asite.net
• Internet Marketing Ninja Interview with Jim Boykin, Online Marketing Blog

SEO & SEM

• Basics of Search Engine Optimization, SEO.com
• Google’s Rick Klau Discusses RSS and Recent Changes To Google’s Indexation Algorithm, Rimm Kaufman
• How to get traffic from the New York Times, SEOptimise
• SEO.edu: Can You Learn SEO From a Book? – Part 3, Search Engine Watch
• Eliminating Toolbar PageRank Would Be A Mistake, All Things SEM
• Sculpt Your SERP Description, Search Newz
• Search Engine Marketing Career Tips, Search Engine Journal

Social Media

• 16 Effective Strategies to Expand Your Blog’s Reach in 2008, DoshDosh
• Are Your Social Networking Connections Hurting YOUR Reputation?, Search Engine Guide
• Facebook Ads Make You the Star — And You May Not Know It, Wired
• Social Media and Reputation, SiteLogic
• Facebook disabled my account (Robert Scoble/Scobleizer), Techmeme
• The Ins and Outs of Forum Marketing, 10e20

Video, Music & Image Search

• Google’s Music History is All Messed Up, Andrew R H Girdwood
• YouTube appoints first chief marketer, www.mad.co.uk
• China Limits Providers of Internet Video, The Associated Press
• Veoh Adds Videos From Hulu, TechCrunch

Web Analytics

• Top Analytics Posts of 2007, Web Analytics World

Other Items

• Sears: Come see the softer side of spyware, Ars Technica
• Google As Seen Through Vintage Netscapes, Google Blogoscoped
• ISPs Collect User Data for Behavioral Ad Targeting – ClickZ, ClickZ

Last 20 Hot Items From Sphinn, Our Social News Sharing Site:

• How Does Google Track Your Domains?
• The Unethical SEO Company Handbook – 11 Quick Tips
• The Link Spiel: Will The Real Search Engine Blog Please Stand Up?
• 2008 New Year’s Resolution: Choose Your Clients Wisely
• How to Fine Tune Your Blog for 2008
• Are Your Social Networking Connections Hurting YOUR Reputation?
• Queen Of Links – Debra Mastaler Interview
• How SEO Has Evolved Over The Years
• SEOmoz’s Stats for 2007
• The SEO Magic Beans
• SEO Company CEO Arrested, Jailed: Accused of Foreclosure Scam
• SEO For President II: We Link You Decide ‘08
• Internet Marketing Ninjas Training and SEO Tools Launched by Jim Boykin
• Aaron Wall’s 2008 New Year’s Resolutions for SEO Book
• Search Engine Land Stats: 2007 In Review
• Social Media Voting With VOTRS.com
• Big Algo Change at Google – the Hype and the Help
• Very First Posts From Authority SEM/SEO Blogs
• Five Ways You Can Fall in Love With Tagging Again
• How To Convert StumbleUpon Users To Regular Visitors
• Google’s Algorithm Awarding New Pages?
• How to Improve Your Digg Profile – A Dating Analogy
• 10 People Made Famous by Youtube
• You Know You’re a Social Media Addict When…
• 16 Strategies to Expand Your Blog’s Reach in 2008