SearchCap: The Day In Search, March 5, 2013

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 Awarded Patent On Detecting Hidden Text & Hidden Links
  A new Google patent was awarded today named Systems and methods for detecting hidden text and hidden links. The patent was filed on August 25, 2009 by Google’s Matt Cutts and Fritz Schneider. It was awarded today after being in pending status for over 3 years. The abstract reads: A system detects hidden elements in […]
• Web Spam Archive Tool Saves Google’s Live Spam For More Than Just Recent Results
  One of the more interesting aspects of Google’s recently released “How Search Works” interactive infographic were the live examples of spam that were recently removed. The features allow users to see live spam that was recently removed (once they clicked through the disclaimer that offensive material may be included.) Just 4 days later our own RustyBrick (the […]
• Interflora Is Back: What Did They Fix & How Did They Come Back So Fast?
  Interflora got penalized only 2 weeks ago, right after Valentine’s day with a huge coverage in the media and also a some-what indirect statement from Google’s Matt Cutts himself about Advertorials also counting as paid links if they pass Page Rank (i.e. do not have NOFOLLOW tags on them). Now, just this past Sunday, a […]
• Flush With New Cash, Structured Data Engine FindTheBest Ready To Make It Move
  It was unclear what to call FindTheBest when it first launched roughly two years ago: “anti-search engine,” “decision engine” or “comparison engine.” Today it may not matter. The company just raised $11 million and has 22 million monthly users. (The site has raised $17 million to date.) CEO (and former DoubleClick founder) Kevin O’Connor sees […]
• Why Pay Per Click Is Such A Beautiful Tool For SEO
  SEO and PPC fans often find themselves in different parts of the building, on different floors and sometimes on a different planet. This shouldn’t really be the case, but is. If you start to think of PPC as a device of SEO, it takes on a very different light and your own attitude shifts slightly. […]
• The Lasting Effect Of Memes & Social Media Timing
  They say timing is everything. This couldn’t be truer than when it comes to Social Media. One wrong move could spell a PR nightmare. It feels like we are walking on egg shells sometimes. Just look at what happened with poor Beyoncé. She made a fantastic performance at the Superbowl and then this: Why this became […]
• Google Maps App For iPhone Upgrade Adds Local Icons, Google Contacts & More Countries
  Google announced an upgrade to the Google Maps for iPhone app that was originally released in December 2012. The update is version 1.1 and is available in the App Store as a free update. The changes include improved search for local venues, integration with your contacts and the addition of new countries. Local Icons To […]
• Wanted: Session Ideas For SMX Advanced
  Do you have a topic you’d like to see covered in a session at SMX Advanced on June 11-12, 2013? Something you’d like to see covered in depth, or a discussion of advanced strategies and tactics for getting the most out your search marketing campaigns? If so, we’d like to hear from you. Anyone can […]
• Google’s Cutts: We Don’t Ban Sites Critical Of Google, But Here Is Why We Do Penalize Sites…
  In the latest video from Google’s head of search spam, Matt Cutts, he addresses Google’s standards for manually removing spam from the Google index. Matt Cutts first said and repeated it a couple times within the video that Google will not penalize or ban a site that is being critical of Google. Matt said: “One […]
• Live @ SMX West: Being National, Going Local
  Many businesses are fortunate to have widely recognized brands operating across countries or even the world, yet conduct much of their business locally. Retailers, real-estate agencies, home-service providers, B2B organizations… online marketing is essential for all of these types of businesses, but there can be a downside to being nationally recognized when you’re trying to […]

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

• Google Shares How Often The FBI Sends National Security Letters For User Information
• Rumor: Google Creating Amazon Prime Competitor Including Same Day Delivery
• The Rise & Fall Of Microsoft’s “Scroogled” Petition Against Gmail
• China Sounds Alarm About Android Market Dominance
• Harnessing Open Data: 4 Resources To Get You Started
• 10 Predictions For The Future Of Google Glass
• Twitter To Shut Down Older & Mobile Versions Of TweetDeck
• Facebook Fact Checks The New York Times Claim To Lower Organic Engagement

Search News From Around The Web:

Business Issues

• Former Top Yahoo Ad Exec Sues Yahoo, Accusing It of Trying to “Cheat” Him Over Acquisition Compensation, AllThingsD
• Google Exception in Obama’s Cyber Order Questioned as Unwise Gap, Bloomberg
• Google services should not require real names: Vint Cerf, Reuters
• Transparency Report: Shedding more light on National Security Letters, Official Google Blog

Link Building

• Creative Link Building Techniques For A Sustainable Strategy, koozai.com

SEO & SEM

• What Does Recipe Rich Snippet Combined With Authorship Markup Look Like?, [Ag] Search Blog
• 3 Reasons Your Keyword Has a Low Quality Score, WordStream
• 7 Ways to Get More Organic Search Clicks, Search Engine Watch
• 8 Free Technical SEO Tools, State of Search
• Determining Your Mobile SEO Strategy, Renegade Search
• Google AdWords Adds Search Terms Filter Option To Search Terms Report, Search Engine Roundtable
• Is WordPress or Blogger better for SEO?, YouTube
• Learn About the 7 Factors of Bid Optimization, Google Analytics Blog
• SEO Without Boarders: A Guide to International SEO, Search Engine Journal
• Three Automated Reports That Make You a Great Account Manager, PPC Hero
• Why Web Professionals Hate SEOs, portent.com

Video, Music & Image Search

• Google Images: “Try These Too”, Search Engine Roundtable
• Picasa Web Albums Redirects to Google+ Photos, Google Operating System
• YouTube to launch music streaming service, take on Spotify, Fortune Tech