Google did end commenting on why the BBC received an unnatural link notification despite offering us a “no comment” on our story this past Friday. Was the BBC penalized for unnatural links? Was it possible that the world’s largest news organization was not trusted by Google’s algorithms? The answer is, only one article was penalized. […]
Bing announced a new feature for Bing Webmaster Tools – the ability to inform Bing of a site move. The new Bing Site Move Tool allows you to not just move from one domain to another domain but also from within a site; URLs to URLs. Moving From Within The Same Domain Name If you […]
AdWords enhanced campaigns will force many advertisers to change their campaign structures. One of the benefits that have been touted for enhanced campaigns is that you will need fewer campaigns, thus making AdWords easier to manage. For mobile targeting, this is true, as the ability to target mobile devices is now gone. However, for the targeting features […]
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 Panda Update 25 Seems To Have Hit There are many webmasters and SEOs believing right now that Google has released an update to their Panda algorithm late yesterday. We’ve reached […]
There are many webmasters and SEOs believing right now that Google has released an update to their Panda algorithm late yesterday. We’ve reached out to Google to confirm or deny the Panda update, as we’ve done 24 times previously; but this time, Google told us they are unlikely to confirm future Panda updates since Panda […]
What’s that, a Panda Update you just felt? Some believe so. But Google says it is unlikely to confirm that or any future Panda Update, as it has done in the past, because of the new “gradual” rollout infrastructure it is using for Panda Update changes. Earlier this week at SMX West, Google’s Matt Cutts […]
You’re probably sick of hearing about it, but it’s true: enhanced campaigns are going to impact your ability to structure, segment, and optimize campaigns. Whether it’s in a positive or negative way is up for debate. Regardless, I hope you have done your research and understand the transition — how it affects you, your business […]
Google has sent the world’s largest broadcast news organization, BBC News, an unnatural link notification last Saturday. The Search Engine Roundtable reports Nick, a BBC News representative, posted in the Google Help Forums about the notification. Nick was seeking advice from Google or SEOs on how he may find those unnatural links so the BBC […]
In this week’s Search In Pictures, here are the latest images culled from the Web, showing what people eat at the search engine companies, how they play, who they meet, where they speak, what toys they have, and more.
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the Web. From Search Engine Land: Why Local Retailers Should Be Using Open Graph Markup Last November, Chris Sherman highlighted the findings of Forrester research in his article, Forrester Rates The Top Large Search Marketing Agencies. As […]
Last November, Chris Sherman highlighted the findings of Forrester research in his article, Forrester Rates The Top Large Search Marketing Agencies. As Chris noted, the Forrester report asked and answered this question: “What are the biggest search marketing challenges you expect to face in the next two years?” Today, I’m convinced the findings were not […]
Facebook’s engineering team is sharing some of the technical aspects of Graph Search, including a discussion today about how it indexes and ranks data via its Unicorn framework — the basis of its new Graph Search engine. In today’s blog post, Sriram Sankar talks about Facebook’s technical process for identifying and ranking Graph Search results […]
Here are a couple current user interface changes that Google appears to be testing. Search Within The first one comes to us from Tecno-Net, and shows Google adding a “Search Within” command to its Google Instant interface. When you do certain searches — like [CNN], [Apple] or [Google] — one of the options that Google […]
Kaspar Szymanski a Search Quality Strategist based in Google’s Dublin office posted the official one page Google SEO cheat sheet designed to dumb down webmaster and SEO related techniques. The Google SEO cheat sheet is in three steps: (1) How to make your search results look good in the search results. Google recommends you craft […]
A story generating buzz and controversy earlier this week amounts to a stinging indictment of the paid search industry as a whole. It was based on new research from eBay that argues SEM is all but worthless and has little or no impact on traffic and sales — except in marginal cases. However, Google studies […]
In the last three years, on the heels of Apple’s debut iPad in 2010, the rapid proliferation of tablet devices has changed the way consumers and advertisers interact across the paid search landscape. Consumers now rely on their tablets more than ever before to gain instant access to local business information, product details and reviews, […]
Having spent over ten years as an SEO consultant, I’ve gathered a list of “top ten challenges” (or, as I think of them, my pet peeves) about the industry and our clients. I’m sure you’ve had similar experiences to share with our community. I’ll go first, and list out 10 things that challenge and push […]
In retargeting, as in life, timing is everything. There are two major factors that make search marketing so successful. The first is marketer control at the keyword level. That’s about as granular as intent-based advertising gets. The second is that search ads have immediate recency. Meaning, the time between user intent and ad impression is […]
SMX West is now over, and we wanted to share some of the live blogging recaps published throughout the final day of the show and presentations. There is an extra for workshops, but those workshops will likely not be lived blogged. Deadeye Keyword Research: Advanced Tips For Choosing The Right KWs from #SMX, AIM Clear […]
With the shutdown of Google Reader having just been announced, the Web is full of discussion about where those of us who utilize RSS should turn next. I’m happy to report there’s a solution I already use and love: Newsblur. I have been a user of the completely Web-based Newsblur since 2011 and have been nothing but impressed. It’s easy […]
Matt Cutts, Google’s head of search spam, announced at SMX West today that their Panda algorithm will soon be more integrated into their overall continuous algorithm updates. Meaning, the Panda refreshes that we have been tracking in detail will start to be less severe and noticeable to webmasters and SEOs. The Panda updates will be […]
Core search activity was down in February overall, but both Google’s and Bing’s share of search activity in the U.S. were up during the month. According to comScore’s February U.S. search engine rankings, Google’s market share rose from 67 percent in January to 67.5 percent in February. Bing’s also rose month-over-month, from 16.5 percent to […]
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the Web. From Search Engine Land: Bing Ads Makes Campaign & Ad Group Targeting Improvements In its February release, Bing Ads made changes to how ad group and campaign targets relate to each other. Prior to the […]
In its Februrary release, Bing Ads made changes to how ad group and campaign targets relate to each other. Prior to the release on February 18th, ad group targets overrode campaign targets. Now, both target settings will be considered together to improve ad relevancy and delivery. Here is the company’s summary of the change: If […]
Google has announced on its Commerce blog that product listing ads (PLAs) are now showing on smartphones in all markets that currently serve PLAs. To be eligble to run on smartphones, product listing ad campaigns must be upgraded to enhanced. Below are two screenshots of how the ads are appearing:
Large numbers of people believe that the majority of mobile search activity happens “on the go.” However, according to an extensive new study from Google and Nielsen, the overwhelming majority (77 percent) of mobile search happens at home or work — even when there’s a PC nearby and readily available. These people are choosing to […]
Google is set to launch major expansion efforts to their Kirkland, Seattle office — home of many of the Google Webmaster Central team. The reports claim this will double the size of the existing office, making this one of largest Google offices outside of Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, California. The Kirkland office was first […]
Day two of SMX West is now over, and we wanted to share some of the live blogging recaps published throughout the day. There is one more day of SMX West still to go. Facebook Q&A Keynote: Danny Sullivan Interviews FB’s VP of Global Marketing Solutions Grady Burnett, AIM Clear Blog From Authorship to Authority: […]
Engadget spotted and has archived a promotional video that suggests the Google Search App for iOS may be gaining Google Now support. That support might help boost usage of the Google Search App, which barely makes the iTunes Top 100. Google Now No Longer Android-Only? Google Now is Google’s predictive search assistant, which tries to […]
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’s Matt Cutts On Upcoming Penguin, Panda & Link Networks Updates Google’s head of search spam, Matt Cutts, announced new updates with Google’s Penguin and Panda algorithms and new link network […]
As reported last week, Google has formally settled the so-called “WiSpy” case with 30 US state Attorneys General for $7 million. The agreement also contains some other non-monetary provisions that are, frankly, more meaningful. The investigation began in 2010 concerning unauthorized collection of private emails and other “payload” data by Google Street View vehicles. The […]
Google has just launched a help center for hacked sites, complete with step-by-step instructions and videos that outline each part of the process. The videos feature Maile Ohye, Developer Programs Tech Lead at Google (and her Googler colleagues), who told me “we wanted to connect our capability to detect and alert site owners of their hacked […]
At this morning’s SMX West Keynote with Grady Burnett, Vice President of Global Marketing Solutions for Facebook, Grady said Facebook has no plans or intentions on launching an external search engine to compete with Google or Microsoft Bing. Grady Burnett explained that Facebook is focused on improving search from within Facebook through Graph Search. Facebook […]
As SEO becomes more about good content and outreach becomes more about relationship building, the gap between link building and journalism continues to shrink. Where once I cursed my journalist background (because of the lack of job opportunities it brought me), I now adore it because it’s taught me how to tell great stories. Storytelling […]
Google+ is poised for major growth with 3 out of 4 top 100 brands on the network. With 85% adoption, YouTube is a hit among marketers. Together, Google+ and YouTube make Google a search and social media powerhouse. Since Google + was launched in June 2011, there have been a number of articles, opinions, surveys […]
Day one of SMX West is now over, and we wanted to share some of the live blogging recaps published throughout the day. There are two more days of SMX West still to go. You can also watch the last session named “Walk A Mile In Google’s Shoes: Dealing With Tough Calls In Organic Search” […]
Google’s head of search spam, Matt Cutts, announced new updates with Google’s Penguin and Panda algorithms and new link network targets in 2013. Matt announced this during the SMX West panel, The Search Police. Significant Penguin Update Matt said that there will be a large Penguin update in 2013 that he thinks will be one […]
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the Web. From Search Engine Land: How To Work With Four Common SEO Leadership Styles I’ve had the pleasure of working on SEO in a variety of companies both in house and, frequently, through casual advice to […]
I’ve had the pleasure of working on SEO in a variety of companies both in house and, frequently, through casual advice to other companies. After eight years in the business, I’m convinced that the success of search for an in-house person hinges on their ability to work within a leader’s approach to search. This is […]
The staggering growth in smartphone and iPad/tablet usage is changing the way consumers behave. Having these powerful devices glued to our hands 18 hours a day changes how we manage our lives, stay in touch with friends and consume media. It also affects how we find and engage with businesses and services, and no more […]