Bing announced they now offer driving directions in the form of a quick answer directly in the Bing search results. For example, last week, I drove from New York to Toronto and I wanted to tell how long the drive was. So all you need to do is search for [nyc to toronto] and Bing […]
According to unnamed sources cited by 9to5mac, Apple’s forthcoming iOS 8 will see a number of improvements to its mapping product across platforms. The site says the next Apple mobile OS will offer: Better and more complete points of interest and business data Public transit information and directions (rolling out first to major US cities) […]
Yahoo has started to integrate indoor maps into its newly upgraded mapping product. Even though Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer didn’t want to go head to head with Google in “local” (read: maps), Yahoo has been improving its mapping and local search user experiences of late. The inclusion of venue maps comes courtesy of Nokia’s Here […]
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: Matt Cutts Video: How Google Determines What’s A Paid Link Google head of search spam Matt Cutts released a pretty detailed video discussing the Google webspam team’s criteria for determining whether […]
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: DoubleClick Search Adds Integration With Channel Intelligence For Product Feed Management Google announced Monday that Channel Intelligence’s feed management and optimization capabilities will integrate with the DoubleClick Search Commerce Suite. Performics […]
Within a week of releasing three new Windows phone apps, Bing announced a series of updates for its iPhone app, including a search widget to help with navigation, new image tiles, and a shake feature to see what stories are trending. According to the announcement, the new Bing iPhone app search widget has four buttons, […]
Yahoo has bought nearly 30 companies since Marissa Mayer took over as CEO. A large number of those were talent acquisitions — though not all of them. Among the product or technology acquisitions, Aviate could turn out to be one of the most strategic and important. Emphasis on the word “could.” Aviate presents itself as an “intelligent […]
Google quietly pushed out an update to the iOS version of the Google Maps app that now checks for faster routes to a destination as you drive. The new iOS version of the Google Maps app and the Android app will notify you if there’s a faster route available while you are in transit. Here […]
An Overlay (or Floater as they are known in the US) is an ad unit that appears as a kind of pop-up within the page the user is viewing. They can vary in size but are usually only allowed to appear for 15-30 seconds before they automatically close (unless a user interacts with them). This […]
Google announced they are replacing the old smartphone crawler user-agent with a new one in order to make it possible for Google to index more smartphone content. Zhijian He, a smartphone search engineer at Google said that the previous user-agent “made it impossible for Google to index smartphone content of some sites, or for Google […]
Though the numbers vary, the Q4 reports we’ve covered all point to solid year-over-year increases in paid search spending. Covario’s Q4 analysis of the global paid search advertising landscape is no different. Based on results from their high tech, consumer electronics and retail clients, PPC spending increased 17 percent year-over-year and 13 percent over Q3 […]
It’s Christmas Eve, time for all good boys and girls to be expecting Santa Claus to be bringing them gifts. But where is jolly old St. Nick on his journey? Once again, there are two major services tracking him: NORAD and Google. Below, our annual review of the tracking sites and methods of using them […]
On the heels of a very recent iOS Maps update, Google has further updated and optimized its search app for iOS 7. Some of the changes are cosmetic: “iOS 7 styling and true full screen browsing” for example. There’s also improved image search for the iPad and better integration with Google Maps. Google Now also seems more […]
In October, Google started adding Google Now style cards to its PC Maps. Now, Google is adding some of those same features to its iOS Maps apps. If you update Google Maps for iOS and sign in, you can now see flight, hotel, and restaurant reservations from Gmail in Maps — and then search or […]
Last week, Bing refreshed its Android app. Today, Bing announced an upgrade of its app for the iPad. The primary driver of the redesign was iOS 7 and the aesthetics of the new Bing app are intended to match the new Apple OS. One of the most promoted new features, as on the Android app, […]
Google announced an international upgrade to the Google Search App, which enables the voice response answers that work currently in English to also work in French, German or Japanese. So not only can you ask your question in English, French, German or Japanese or other languages via voice search — Google will respond to that […]
Microsoft’s Bing and Google are pursuing very similar strategies with their mobile apps. Google’s search app for iOS is essentially a browser and gateway to other Google apps and services. The same is true for Bing on iOS and Android. Earlier this week Bing refreshed its Android app to make its UI and design consistent […]
The (relatively) new Google Maps is certainly visually richer than the old Maps UI. However it may be somewhat less functional. As one example, it eliminates one of my favorite and most-used features: “search nearby.” It’s now also somewhat harder to access multiple results on a category query, ironically. Yesterday, Google Operating System spotted a […]
Bing has released its most popular searches for 2013, including more than 20 “Most Searched” lists, from most searched persons, sports stars and teams, to most searched TV shows and movies, social sites, entertainment electronics and apps. Beyonce topped two lists, winning the No. 1 spot for most searched person of 2013 and most searched […]
Once the leader and innovator in online mapping, MapQuest has fallen pretty far from that perch. While the brand survives and the site is still widely used, it has for several years been overshadowed by rivals including Google and more recently Apple. According to recent comScore data MapQuest’s mobile apps aren’t in the top 15, although […]
A big change in Android 4.4 is: those using Google’s new mobile operating system, nicknamed “KitKat,” can search for businesses right from within the Phone app. How’s it work? For me, it’s awful. Google+ Invades The Android 4.4 “KitKat” Phone App: What It Means For Businesses & People is our separate article that explores the integration […]
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the Web. From Search Engine Land: Image Mismatch: The Latest Google Webmaster Tools Manual Action Penalty Google has a new manual action penalty within their guidelines named image mismatch. Image mismatch is when the images on your […]
Yesterday, comScore’s US smartphone market share figures for September came out. There weren’t many surprises — except for one thing: the Google Maps app has fallen three spots in comScore’s rankings. The smartphone app, which used to be the most popular in the US, fell from 5th to 8th position in comScore’s “Top 15 apps” […]
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 iOS Search App Now Has “OK Google” Voice Activation, New Notifications, Reminders & Cards Google released a new version of its iOS Search App today, with an extensive list of […]
Google released a new version of its iOS Search App today, with an extensive list of updates, including new notifications, reminder alerts, cards and a handsfree search activation feature. With the 3.1.0 version of the iOS Search App, those with the iPhone 4s or higher can say, “OK Google” or touch the mic to start […]
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 AdWords Yellow “Ad” Icon Spotted On Desktop SERPs In UK The bold yellow “Ad” icon that started showing up in Google search results on smartphones in September, now appear to […]
Google shipped out demo versions of the Nexus 5 late last week. People are still receiving them today. I got one on Friday and have been using it on WiFi ever since. (I haven’t tried it on a wireless network and can’t speak to the LTE experience.) The phone immediately sold out of its initial […]
I recently got a new Android phone and found a little card in the box advertising Ingress, the “massively multi-player location-based alternate reality game from Niantic Labs at Google.” Ingress had slipped past my notice despite Greg Sterling’s mention of it nearly a year ago. Yet, here it was, already preloaded as an app in […]
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 Intros Android App For Managing Google Places Listings Local business owners have a new tool for managing their Google Places For Business Listing. Mike Blumenthal got the scoop on the […]
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 Places Expands To Canada, UK Bing Places is finally available beyond U.S. borders. The company announced today that local businesses in Canada and the United Kingdom — and search marketing […]
Foursquare announced three new upgrades today. The location sharing app has extended its ‘Real-Time Recommendations‘ to iPhone users, and added two new search features: a ‘Nearby’ button and the ‘Friends at a Glance’ feature that displays most recent check-ins by friends. According to the announcement, the app’s look and feel has also been updated with, […]
Yahoo rolled out a newly designed search experience for iOS users today. According to the company, the new design mirrors the PC search update Yahoo launched earlier this year. Now, instead of the previous Yahoo Search tabs, users on iOS mobile devices will see a navigation bar that disappears when a they begin to scroll. […]
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the Web. From Search Engine Land: Searching For The Voice Of Siri: Voiceover Actor Susan Bennett Says, “It’s Obviously Me” A story on CNN.com claims that Atlanta voiceover professional Susan Bennett is the original voice of Siri, […]
A story on CNN.com claims that Atlanta voiceover professional Susan Bennett is the original voice of Siri, Apple’s iPhone voice application. According to the story, Bennett did voice work for the software company ScanSoft in 2005. CNN says ScanSoft was then purchased by Nuance Communications, a company that is credited with providing Apple the technology […]
While the launch of iOS7 has received a ton of press and blogger nitpicking about every last detail, little has been said about how the new version of Apple Maps affects local marketers. I feel like most marketers are still ignoring Apple Maps because it got a lot of Apple Maps Sucks-type press a year […]
Google has just rolled out their new “more unified design” of displaying search results for mobile devices, including smartphones and tablet devices. As expected, Google said A new “more unified design” will offer “cleaner and simpler, optimized for touch, with results clustered on cards so you can focus on the answers you’re looking for.” Here […]
Google has a new search algorithm, the system it uses to sort through all the information it has when you search and come back with answers. It’s called “Hummingbird” and below, what we know about it so far. What’s a “search algorithm?” That’s a technical term for what you can think of as a recipe […]
Google’s Knowledge Graph is a little smarter today with the addition of filters and a way to compare two Knowledge Graph items side-by-side. These are some of the Google search updates that the company announced today at a media event celebrating its 15th birthday, and explained in more detail on Google’s Inside Search blog. Knowledge […]
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 Launches Hashtag Search, Shows Google+ Posts On Search Results Page The integration of Google+ across Google properties continues in a big way today with the launch of hashtag search. Simply […]
I’ve watched Microsoft fight Google in search for a very long time. Bing has come a long way, and I’ve been pleased to see a strong competitor emerge. But Microsoft hasn’t actually hurt Google’s share. It’s only robbed from its partner, Yahoo. So how’s Microsoft going to beat Google? Comments from departing CEO Steve Ballmer […]