Chris Sherman
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About Chris Sherman

Chris Sherman (@CJSherman) is a Founding editor of Search Engine Land and is now retired.

Chris Sherman's latest articles

Google

Google Image Swirl: A New Way To Browse For Similar Images

The newest addition to Google Labs is a mashup of Google Images, Google Similar Images and the visual query refinement tool, the Google Wonder Wheel. Called Google Image Swirl, the new tool clusters similar images based on characteristics found in both the text surrounding images, as well as using some of the visual analysis techniques […]

SEO

SMN Webcasts This Week: Bid Rules That Work & Call Tracking & Analytics

Search Marketing Now hosts two free webcasts this week, both at 1 PM Eastern. Tomorrow, Tuesday Oct. 20, Adam Scott Riff will deliver a presentation “PPC Bid Managements Rules that Actually Work,” sponsored by Acquisio. He’ll explain how to build rules from the bottom up, when (and when not) to use them, and more. Thursday, […]

SEO

Factual: Parting The Curtains Of The Invisible Web

This year, we’ve seen several ambitious new efforts to mine and make searchable the vast part of the web that remains largely hidden to search engines—often referred to as the deep, hidden or invisible web. The latest foray into the reaches of hidden web is actually a hybrid, of sorts: Factual, founded by Gil Elbaz, […]

LinkedIn

Citibank Survey: Small Business Finds Social Media Ineffective

A Citibank/GFK Roper survey of 500 U.S. businesses with fewer than 100 employees has found very few small businesses in the U.S. have adopted social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter for business uses. The findings include: Three-quarters of the small business owners surveyed say they have not found sites such as Facebook, Twitter […]

Analytics & conversion

Analyze This: New Column From Search Engine Land

Our newest Search Engine Land column, Analyze This, launches today. Analyze This focuses on analytics and measurement, two crucial aspects of search marketing that are often overlooked or underused. Columnists write about measurement techniques, compare analytics software programs, discuss strategies for using data to improve results and more.

SEO

SMN Webcast Tuesday – PPC: Not Just About The Numbers

Next Tuesday, September 22 at 1 PM Eastern, Alissa Ruehl will be the featured speaker on the Search Marketing Now webcast “PPC: Not Just About the Numbers.” Alissa will talk about the qualitative side of PPC campaign optimization—why human insights are every bit as important as the algorithms and machine-driven processes that are part of […]

SEO

How & When To Outsource Search Marketing: Free Webcast Thursday

If you’re thinking about hiring a PPC agency or SEO firm, or looking to outsource all your search engine marketing, there are many factors to consider. This Thursday at 1 PM EDT, I’ll go over the pros and cons of hiring an outside firm in a webcast “When to Outsource Your Search Engine Marketing: Making […]

SEO

Last Call To Speak At SMX East

We’re finalizing the speaker lineup for SMX East, and there are still a few openings. We’re particularly interested in hearing from you if you can speak knowledgeably on the following topics:

SEO

SMN Webcast August 4: Andrew Goodman On PPC Campaign Automation

Next Tuesday, August 4 at 1 PM EDT, Search Marketing Now presents a webcast with Andrew Goodman on “PPC Campaign Automation: Bid Management, Alerts…the Works!” Not only will attendees benefit from Andrew’s PPC expertise—but three lucky attendees will win an Acquisio tee-shirt at the end of the webcast (and yes, you have to be “present” […]

Apple

Want Solid SEM Benchmarks? This Report Has Them By The Boatload

Each year, Marketing Sherpa compiles an exhaustive look at the state of search marketing. Each year, these reports grow more comprehensive, reflecting the continuous change and evolution of our industry as it grows up. This year’s report is no exception. The Marketing Sherpa 2009-10 Search Marketing Benchmark Report is 213 pages, and is divided into […]

SEO

Online Holiday Retail 2009: Are You Ready? SMN Webcast Thursday

This Thursday, June 25 at 1 PM Eastern, Search Marketing Now hosts a free webcast “Online Holiday Retail 2009: Tips, Tactics & Timelines for Success,” sponsored by Performics. Eli Goodman of comScore will provide an overview of the current state of online retail. With Q1 e-commerce revenues flat—vs. down in Q4 2008—can we expect growth […]

Google

Google Researchers Create Landmark Image Search Engine

When most of us travel, we like to visit famous landmarks in the area we’re touring. It’s easy to find famous landmarks, like the Eiffel Tower or the Great Pyramid, but can be difficult to find lesser known sites. And for armchair travelers, it can take time to search for images of landmarks even with […]

SEO

Choosing A PPC Campaign Management Application: SMN Webcast Thursday

Tomorrow, Thursday June 18 at 1 PM Eastern, Search Marketing Now hosts a webcast “Choosing a PPC Campaign Management Application: 20 Questions You’ll Need to Ask.” Speaker David Rodnitzky has come up with 20 key questions to help you determine what you need and how to evaluate your options and make an informed decision about […]

SEO

Report: How The Internet Has Changed Music Consumption

Music file sharing services have always been a mutant species of search, offering different tools and methods for finding and listening to tunes. Napster was one of the first and most infamous, and its widespread adoption caused the recording industry to panic, suing both the company and thousands of its users. That hasn’t stopped the […]

SEO

An Insider’s Look At SMX Advanced: Greg Sterling

SMX Advanced kicks off tomorrow (well, tonight, really with our SMX Meet & Greet bash), and it’s the third time in a row that the show has sold out. If you still want to attend, don’t completely despair—we’ve established a waitlist in case we have last minute cancellations. Below, Search Engine Land contributing editor Greg […]

SEO

An Insider’s Look At SMX Advanced: Chris Elwell

Many people don’t realize that Search Marketing Expo is just one part of Third Door Media, the company that’s also parent of Search Engine Land, Search Marketing Now and Sphinn. Chris Elwell, today’s featured SMX insider, is president of Third Door Media, and provides the business expertise and acumen to keep our different businesses thriving. […]

SEO

SMN Webcast Wednesday: Mastering Local Listings

Tomorrow, May 20 at 1 PM Eastern, Search Marketing Now presents: “Local Search Marketing: Local Listings GONE WILD!” with Michael Boland of the Kelsey Group and Bryan Simkins from FedEx. Local listings were once relatively easy—businesses targeted Yellow Pages and classified. Today, there’s a range of free online listings—from local search engines to city guides, […]

Ecommerce

Wolfram Alpha Live Review: The Un-Google

The already much discussed Wolfram Alpha official launch is Monday May 18, though the company has said they plan a “soft launch” starting tonight, with access gradually becoming available to everyone throughout the weekend. Some members of the press, like myself, have been able to directly use a preview version to test it out. Expect […]

SEO

SMX London Keynote Preview: Brian Fetherstonhaugh

Brian Fetherstonhaugh, Chairman and CEO, OgilvyOne Worldwide will be presenting the keynote address at SMX London next week. We’re extremely excited and honored to have Brian give this talk. He has a unique vantage point on how brands are built, how corporate cultures are created, and what happens as the world goes digital. Brian is […]

SEO

SMN Webcast Thursday: Search Marketing For Small Business

On Thursday at 1 PM EDT, tune in to Search Marketing Now to hear Disa Johnson, Coordinator of Paid Search Boot Camp at SMX East, present a free webcast for small business owners – “Search Marketing for Small Business: Basics for Online Success.” According to a recent Nielsen/WebVisible study, there’s a gap between search-savvy consumers […]

SEO

An Insider’s Look At SMX Advanced: Jeffrey Rohrs

Move over, Denny Crane: SMX has its own legal star programming and moderating panels in Seattle next month. In our fourth installment of our behind the scenes look at how SMX gets put together, Jeff Rohrs talks about paid search, law, fraud and what he’s looking forward to most at SMX Advanced. You are a […]

LinkedIn

An Insider’s Look At SMX Advanced: Michelle Robbins

Continuing our series of behind-the-scenes insights from our SMX Advanced programming team, today we have a Q&A with Michelle Robbins, Third Door Media’s Technology Director, and the operations whiz behind Search Engine Land, Sphinn and our other web sites. You are the Technology Director at Third Door Media. Tell us what that means. Michelle Robbins: […]

SEO

SMN Webcast: Get Your Questions Answered By SEO Experts

This Tuesday, May 12, at 1 PM Eastern Search Marketing Now will present a unique format in the webcast “Ask iProspect: Strategies & Tactics for World-Class SEO.” Senior management from iProspect will be on hand to answer questions from registrants on what it takes with the biggest and the best when it comes to search […]

Link building

Previewing SMX London: The Speakers Speak!

Still wondering whether to attend Search Marketing Expo London? Our speakers have been particularly enthusiastic about telling the world about the conference and what they plan to talk about. Here’s a roundup of what they’re looking forward to at SMX London on May 18-19. Each of the links below points to a blog post where […]

SEO

An Insider’s Look At SMX Advanced: Alex Bennert

Continuing our series of behind-the-scenes insights from our SMX Advanced programming team, today we have a Q&A with Alex Bennert, the In House SEO for the Wall Street Journal. Alex has been a self-professed “search geek” for more than a decade, and has worked with clients such as Zillow, Philips, SFGate, JibJab and other large-scale […]

SEO

An Insider’s Look At SMX Advanced: Matt Van Wagner

We often get asked how we pull together our Search Marketing Expo conferences. We strive to make things look effortless, but in reality there’s a lot that goes into organizing an SMX event. To get the logistics right, we hold weekly meetings with our operations staff, relentlessly assuring that all details that make a great […]

SEO

Searchme Launches Multimedia Visual Search

Searchme has rolled out what it calls “true” blended search results, combining web, video, images, music and Twitter results organized by their relevance and playable inside the search results page. Searchme displays results as small versions of entire web pages, in a format that looks just like the “cover flow” display in iTunes. I love […]

Google News

Tracking The Swine Flu Epidemic With Maps & Search

It was less than a week ago that health officials alerted the media to a possible pandemic of swine flu in humans. Since then, authorities have moved quickly to track the outbreak and reassure the public with precautionary measures. Here’s a look at some of the best sources of online information about swine, avian and […]

SEO

Google Adds Search By Similarity To Image Search

Google has introduced a new experimental refinement tool that lets you click a “similar images” link beneath image search results and see a new screen of images with similar color, shape and other visual elements. The new tool has been released in Google Labs and isn’t yet available in standard image search results. The similar […]

Link building

Looking Forward To SMX London

Our London edition of Search Marketing Expo is coming up on May 18 and 19, and is shaping up to be a terrific show. We’ve got some of the best search marketers from the U.K., Europe and the U.S. speaking, with tracks for people at all levels of experience. We’re kicking things off with an […]

PPC

Large PPC & SEO Campaign Management – Webcasts Next Week

Don’t miss our upcoming webcasts next week: Tuesday, April 14, Marin Software’s Marc Barach and Chris Wine will discuss the “pain points” in large paid search campaigns, including reporting and analytics, linking conversion data with click and cost data, and calculating bids and hitting ROI goals. “Rx for Large Paid Search Campaigns: Anatomy of an […]

Content

How To Make Your Web Site Really Pay Off

Most books on search marketing focus on either the technical aspects of SEO or paid search, or on how to adapt traditional marketing strategies to the web. Web Design For ROI, by Lance Loveday and Sandra Niehaus, is unique in its sharp focus on making your web site accomplish what should be its primary goal: […]

Apple

Kosmix Launches MeeHive Personalized News

MeeHive, a personalized service that scans more than 5,000 news sources and 5 million blogs to bring you fresh news and information based on your interests, launches today. MeeHive organizes information “relevant to a person rather than a topic,” with “fundamentally time-changing information,” said Kosmix co-founder Venky Harinarayan. The service is very easy to use. […]

SEO

Want To Speak At SMX London? Let Us Know!

I’m now accepting speaking proposals for SMX London. We’ve moved the conference dates to May 18 and 19, the perfect time to be in London, especially at our venue, the New Connaught Rooms in the heart of London at Covent Garden. Please note that the agenda for the show is final, and I will only […]

Platforms

EveryZing Launches Automatic Metadata Generator For Multimedia

Video search and SEO services provider EveryZing has introduced MediaCloud, an online service that automatically generates search-friendly metadata for video, audio and other rich media content. One of the big problems with rich media is that without accompanying metadata that describes the contents, video and audio files are essentially “invisible” to search engines. MediaCloud seeks […]

Ecommerce

Ask.com & Symantec Partner To Detect Malicious Sites

Ask.com has partnered with Symantec to include a new “Safe Search” feature into the Norton 360 security suite, integrated into the Norton toolbar that is part of the suite. When a search is run from the toolbar, results are safety-rated by Symantec using a color-coded icon, to flag sites or sections of sites that may […]

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