SearchCap: The Day In Search, May 7, 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 Maps To Get A Major Design Overhaul
  Alex Chitu reports Google is testing a new Google Maps interface, possibly to be launched next week at Google I/O. The new interface is a complete and major overhaul of the current Google Maps user interface. The design and interface changes touch everything from the map colors, icons and text formats to dropping the navigation […]
• AdWords To End Product Extensions As PLAs Take Over
  AdWords product extensions will soon be heading off into the sunset. They are leaving quietly, too. Brad Geddes noticed the announcement in the AdWords agency newsletter, but no other formal notification has been communicated to advertisers. Product extensions will disappear from the campaign set-up flow on May 20th. Google eventually let product extensions be outrun […]
• Google Wins Vertical Search Antitrust Case In Germany
  In a German case that could have broader antitrust implications in Europe, Google defeated a petition for an injunction brought by a German online weather trade group, Verband Deutscher Wetterdienstleister. The case is interesting because it involves a private antitrust action against Google and directly addresses the “search bias” argument made by Google critics. The […]
• Yahoo Extends Microsoft Search Deal & Revenue Guarantees
  Yahoo is giving Microsoft a further chance to prove that its search ads really can make Yahoo as much money as promised — at a price. Microsoft has agreed to extend “search revenue guarantees” that it has continually paid since the two companies signed a deal in 2009. Yahoo Declares An Extension Reuters spotted the […]
• The Ultimate Guide to Multilingual and Multiregional SEO
  When you begin to get into multilingual and multiregional SEO, you know that you have taken a step forward as an SEO expert. Why? Well, because you are probably dealing with a large, complex site that demands the expertise of someone who knows what they are talking about. If you are dealing in multilingual or […]
• Yahoo Expands Search-Ads Relationship With Chitika Into Mobile
  Yahoo has apparently been working with search-ads network Chitika since 2006. Chitika ads appear on various Yahoo PC sites (e.g., Answers, Local) and Yahoo (Bing) search/text ads are syndicated across Chitika’s network of roughly 250,000 publisher sites. Now that relationship is expanding to mobile. According to the news out this morning: The multi-faceted agreement with […]
• The Hitchhiker’s Guide To Internal Linking Strategy
  It’s not the first thing you think of when you hear “link building.” It’s definitely not the sexiest aspect of link building. But, I’d argue it’s among the most important components of a solid link building strategy. That’s right, folks: today we’re going to chat about internal linking. Cue the communal groan. It’s okay! I’m […]
• Google Local Results Drops “More Results Near…” To “Improve” Local Search Experience
  Google has quietly dropped yet another search feature; this one is related to local search results within a search on Google. Google has removed the “more results near…” link on local search results for queries with local intent. For example, if you search for [pizza] on Google.com, Google will show you local businesses selling pizza […]
• Optimizing For Facebook Graph Search: SEO Meets Social
  As Facebook Graph Search evolves and marketers begin to come to grips with the opportunities provided from the social graph, it becomes clear that a combination of both search and social media tactics are required if brands aim to improve visibility in the graph search engine results. Today, I would like to focus on how […]
• AdWords Campaigns That Don’t Use Advanced Settings Will Be Migrated To Standard Type Campaigns
  Over the next few weeks, Google will be migrating AdWords campaigns that don’t use any advanced features from “All Features” to “Standard” type campaigns. The change applies only to “Search Network Only” and “Search and Display Networks” campaigns. When Google updated the AdWords campaign setup back in June 2012 to include the “Standard” and “All […]
• Bing Asking Users To Break Their Google Habit In Latest Bing It On Challenge
  Bing announced today a new version of their Bing It On Challenge, an online campaign launched last September that offers users a side-by-side comparison of Bing and Google search results. In the latest Bing It On Challenge, Bing asks users to perform five separate search queries on BingItOn.com and choose the unbranded search result list […]

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

• Why Yahoo Will Never Reach The “Revenue Per Search” That Microsoft Promised
• Study Finds Only 35% Of Google Products Have Closed Throughout Google’s History
• Sharethrough Mobile Platform Launches To Power Native Advertising On Mobile Devices
• Mobile Ad Network Sees Big Increase In “Geo-Precise” Targeting
• Facebook Video Ads Could Appear In Newsfeeds As Soon As July
• Content Curation Tools & Concepts
• Study: Social Networks Deliver Most Effective Mobile App Marketing Channel For Conversions, Quality & Volume
• Apple Climbs To Sixth Place On Fortune 500 List, While Facebook Makes Its First Appearance

Search News From Around The Web:

Business Issues

• The Man Behind the Google Brain: Andrew Ng and the Quest for the New AI, Wired
• With Wavii, Did Google Acquire the Future of Web Search?, SEO By The Sea

Local Search & Maps

• Capture Business Moments With Our New iPhone App, The Yext Blog
• Say hello to Foursquare for Windows Phone 8 — optimized for Nokia Lumia phones!, Foursquare Blog
• Tesla CEO Talking With Google About ‘Autopilot’ Systems, Bloomberg
• TripAdvisor Review Express Service Lets Businesses Bulk Email Visitors To Ask For Reviews, TechCrunch

Link Building

• Link Cleanup | Detecting Unnatural Links, Shimon Sandler
• Link Values Simplified, Search News Central
• The importance of a link clean up before it’s too late, State of Search

Paid Search

• 8 Tips to Reduce Your Cost-per-Conversion, Search Engine People

SEM Industry

• Interview with Elisabeth Osmeloski of Search Engine Land, brickmarketing.com

SEO & SEM

• How to Successfully Run Multilingual Campaigns, Bing Ads Blog
• 5 Reasons Your PPC Ads Bite, PPC Hero
• Bidding Best Practices (Part 1 of 6) – Prioritizing and Iterating on Your Bid Adjustments, Inside AdWords
• Brand Differentiation: 3 Ways to Differentiate Your Brand in SERPs, komarketingassociates.com
• Google: Making Your Site Awesome Is More Important Than Fixing Technical Problems, Search Engine Roundtable
• Lead Generation Pay-Per-Click Campaigns, PPC Chat Streamcap
• Rant: SEO Tests, Cutts Statements, & The Algorithm, dotCULT.com
• SEO co-citations: What they are & why they matter, seocopywriting.com
• Signs Of A Google Update? May 7, 2013, Search Engine Roundtable
• Still Relying on Old SEO Tricks? Here’s What Works Now, Search Engine Journal
• Why Does SEO Take So Long?, Search Engine Journal
• Why SEO’s Need to Be Realistic, Daily SEO Tip

Video, Music & Image Search

• Introducing the YouTube Trends Map, YouTube Trends
• Watch Before You Click: Smart Motion Preview, Bing Search Blog