SearchCap: The Day In Search, November 9, 2011

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

From Search Engine Land:

• ‘Think Insights’: Google’s New Research Hub Offers Data Porn For Marketers

  Lest you think that Google’s product streamlining has completely stifled any new developments, the company has announced a new research center for marketers called Think Insights. On first glance, there’s almost an overwhelming amount of information in Think Insights … thus the “data porn” reference in our headline. If you love statistics and marketing, you […]
• The Industry Speaks On The Overlap Between Search & Display

  We talk a lot in the digital industry about the overlap between search media and display media, and how when planned and operated in unison, there is a 1+1=3 benefit model that magically appears, resulting in higher returns than could be generated by those channels on their own. But does this overlap really exist, and […]

• Bing Maps Expands Sharing, Editing Options

  Bing has added new options for editing and sharing inside of Bing Maps. The “Send” link on a Maps search result now has an option to send a business listing to a mobile phone via SMS. This is available to users in the U.S., UK, Australia, Canada, France, Germany and Italy. There’s also a “Share” […]

• Annual Budgeting Guide For The In-House Marketer

  When Q4 rolls around, in-house search marketers, like me, probably feel a heady mix of anxiety, dread and oddly, excitement. All this can only mean one thing, it is annual budgeting time! Stressful deadlines, aggressive goals, but also great ideas and opportunities all roll into a couple of intense weeks (and I feel for those […]

• Google May Penalize Ad Heavy Pages

  Ever encountered an ad-heavy page, where you struggle to find the actual content on that page? Google’s looking at penalizing those in its search results. The head of Google’s web spam team, Matt Cutts, shared the news when speaking at the Pubcon conference today. Cutts said Google is testing algorithms that determine ”what are the things that really matter, […]

• Twitter Begins To Roll Out The ‘Activities’ Tab To The Masses

  As we reported a few months ago, Twitter has rolled out the “activities tab” for web users. This tab allows Twitter to operate more like a classic social network as you can keep tabs on your friends… pun intended. Here’s a look at how the activitiy tab looks: This tab shows items favorited by those you […]

• Yahoo & Microsoft Proceeds With Search Ad Transition In 2012

  Microsoft announced they are now ready to move forward with transitioning over the search ad technology from Yahoo to Microsoft in the European regions. Microsoft said, the “European roll out is scheduled to begin with the UK, Ireland and France in the second quarter of 2012.” Yahoo and Microsoft have already transitioned the search ad […]

• Infographic: How, When & Where People Share Content

  Today being Wednesday, the odds are better than any other day you’ll share this post with someone else. Or so say the stats from social sharing service AddThis, one of several it compiled into an infographic. Other interesting stats? People tend to share the most around 9:30 Eastern Time (so we cunningly timed this post for […]

• Google Expands Offers To Five New Markets

  This morning Google is announcing that its Offers product is coming to five more US cities: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles and Brooklyn (NY). That brings to 24 the number of live Offers locations (although New York City is divided into three distinct areas). Google recently incorporated a broad range of other inventory sources and […]

• Twitter, Mozilla Strike Deal That Bakes Twitter Search Into Firefox 8 Search Box

  Twitter and Mozilla have struck a deal that makes Twitter search one of the default search options in the new Firefox 8 web browser. It’s included in the Windows, Mac and Linux versions, which can be downloaded now. As Mozilla’s blog post explains, the Twitter search option can be used to search Twitter usernames, hashtags […]

Search News From Around The Web:

Applications & Portal Features

• Deprecation of Gmail App for BlackBerry, Google Apps update alerts

Business Issues

• Alibaba, Softbank Said to Seek Yahoo Partners, Bloomberg
• Head Of Communications Sean Garrett Leaves Twitter, TechCrunch
• Yahoo, Microsoft and AOL announce display ad deals, ZDNet
• Yelp Moves Toward IPO, Hires Bankers, Wall Street Journal
• Exclusive: Silver Lake Signs Yahoo NDA, as Talks Proceed With Bidders, allthingsd.com
• Google offers support to Android firms in lawsuits, Reuters
• Google’s Piracy Liability, Forbes
• Memo: Microsoft online vet Mehdi moving to Xbox business, GeekWire
• Yahoo!: Searching for a future, www.economist.com

Link Building

• AVOS Acquires Trunk.ly to Enhance Link-Saving in Delicious, AVOS
• Link building with content is not the only way to get links, cornwallseo.com

Searching

• Google Tests Thumbnail Position For Videos & News In Search Results, Search Engine Roundtable
• Translate more Indic languages with the updated Google Translate for iPhone app, Official Google Mobile Blog

SEM Industry

• Google Webmaster Hangout : November 9 at 4pm EDT, Search Engine Roundtable
• How Google Picks Forum Top Contributors, Search Engine Roundtable

SEO & SEM

• An SEO Guide to Adsense, Ads and Placement, SEOmoz
• Google Allow Browser Based Content Delivery / Cloaking?, Search Engine Roundtable
• How to Get the Most Value From Your SEO Investment, Search Engine Guide
• Introducing the revamped Ad Traffic Quality Resource Center, Inside AdWords
• Online Marketing Needs More than SEO to Succeed, Search Engine People
• Why PPC Marketing is Becoming a Universal Language, SEM Geek
• Why You Should Never Use Google’s "Free" AdWords Service, SageRock

Social Media

• Google+ had a chance to compete with Facebook. Not anymore., Slate
• 10 Facebook & Social Media Tips for the Holidays, Rimm Kaufman
• Facebook For The Famous, Fast Company
• Google+ badges: Drive Engagement with Your Users on Google+, Right from Your Own Website, Google+ Platform Blog
• How Consistent Branding is Being Challenged in the Digital Age, Techipedia
• LinkedIn Events are now bigger, better, and more user-friendly., thenextweb.com
• The +1 button for Images: See it. Share it., Inside Search

Video, Music & Image Search

• Apple: We Have No Plans To Bring Siri To Older Devices, michaelsteeber.tumblr.com

Web Analytics

• Simplifying eCommerce reporting across international sites with multiple currencies, Google Analytics Blog

Recent Hot Items From Sphinn, Our Social News Sharing Site:

• Discussion: What's Your Preferred Keyword Research Tool(s)? – There are plenty of choices on the market today for keyword research. No matter your budget, there are probably several options to choose from. In our "Discussion of the Week," we want to know what KR tool(s) you prefer at the moment, and why. Do you use different KR tools for different types of projects/research? Share your thoughts below, but let's not turn it into a promotional link-fest. Just let us know what your favorite keyword tools are and why. The floor is open!
• Google+ had a chance to compete with Facebook. Not anymore. – Whether you agree with the conclusion or not, Slate tries to make the case that Google+ will survive for only another year or two before Google has to shut it down. An interesting read, especially in light of the user-started discussion we published yesterday.
• An SEO Guide to Adsense, Ads and Placement – Cyrus Shephard does a great job explaining pre and post Panda effects on websites utilizing and sometimes abusing Adsense / Ad placements.
• Five Defining Features of Landing Pages 3.0 – Good post outlining trends in the next generation of landing pages.