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Surviving the Google Penguin Update

May 22, 2012 by Basil Puglisi Leave a Comment

Penguin Rescue_020
Penguin  (Photo credit: iliveisl)

Google’s April 24th update – codenamed Penguin – seems to have had some seriously adverse impact on many sites. Google has said time and time again, that SEO can be very constructive and positive. They have pointed out that effective SEO can make a website more accessible and crawlable. Basic SEO includes techniques such as easy keyword research conducted to help ensure that you are embedding the best and most attractive words for your industry, product or services.

Since good search engine optimization can equal good marketing, being creative and using a variety of ways to make your website’s content compelling is also key. This can also be beneficial on your social media networks, great content will be shared, and that is always a plus. Those who use suggested white hat, or organic, techniques as opposed to black hat, or more nefarious methods, do not usually experience some of the devastating problems that are common with big algorithm changes such as the one with Penguin and the previous Panda change.

Penguin Eats Webspam

Sites that pursue black hat techniques, or Webspam, may use shortcuts that can help to raise their page rankings quicker than the organic white hat methods. Anything from link farming to keyword stuffing can help to temporarily boost rankings, but then Google always seems to find a way to punish those who do. It is simply not worth it any longer to spend time looking for loopholes when organic methods continue to stand up to even the strongest test in Google’s content updates.

Penguin specifically focused on penalizing sites that utilized:

  • Covert Redirects or Doorway Pages
  • Keyword Stuffing
  • Link Schemes
  • Intentionally Duplicated Content

When Penguin was rolled out it was referred to as the ‘webspam algorithm update’ for this reason. It intentionally targeted those sites using black hat tricks to bump themselves above those using good wholesome white hat organic marketing methods.

Be sure to also check out the search engine spam penalties page for more information that could be helpful in helping you to remove issues from your site that Google’s new update is now frowning upon.

Google says that they want people to focus on white hat SEO methods such as creating compelling websites and creative content, or even no search engine optimization at all, before considering using any black hat methods. Although some of the webspam techniques they have been eliminating in recent algo changes are more than ten years old, Google has warned repeatedly about practicing bad SEO methods and admit that they are continually improving on ways to make sure their next releases find the other black hat needles in the haystack that is the internet and swiftly penalize them too.

Author:

@BasilPuglisi is the Executive Director and Publisher for Digital Brand Marketing Education (dbmei.com). Basil C. Puglisi is also the President of Puglisi Consulting Group, Inc. A Digital Brand Marketing Consultancy that manages professional and personal branding for Fortune 500 CEOs, Hedge Fund Managers and Small Business Owners.

Sources:

  • Should Penguin Hit Sites like WPMU.org
  • 7 Achievable Steps For Great SEO After The Penguin Update
  • Another Step to Reward High Quality Sites – Google Blog
  • How to Recover from Google’s Penguin Update
  • Google’s Penguin Update Makes The Wall Street Journal

Filed Under: Basil's Blog #AIa, General, SEO Search Engine Optimization Tagged With: google, Panda, Penguin, Promotion, search, Search engine optimization, Search Engines, Web Design and Development

BlogWorld and New Media Expo 2012 NY [Event]

May 16, 2012 by Basil Puglisi Leave a Comment

The BlogWorld Social Media Conference and Expo returns to New York again this year from June 5th through 7th as a must-attend social media networking and educational event. They are expecting thousands of attendees from over 50 countries with more than 200 speakers for the event. With a great trade-show planned this may be the only industry-encompassing event that will help bring together those in the content creation and publishing businesses together.

BlogWorld Speakers

There will be many notable speakers attending the BlogWorld Social Media Conference and Expo in 2012.

Greg Cargill –  VP of Client Services for Social & Media, Blitz

Greg’s professional career is focused on helping celebrities, brands, and products develop awareness through strategic and internet partnerships. Greg and his team at bigMethod have worked with some of the world’s largest brands such as City of Hope, Harley-Davidson, and Honda. They have successfully brought these organizations to the online social media marketing landscape. bigMethod was recently aquired by Blitz agency.

Greg will host a session called What Makes Big Brands Spend Money on Your Blog. He will share key points such as:

  • What makes brands decide to spend money on a blog
  • How much do they spend?

Linus Chou –  Product Manager, Google

Product manager for Google Analytics, Linus Chou focuses on social attribution as well as real time analytics products. Before arriving at Google, he was an engineer for display advertising at Amazon.com.

Linus will host a session called Measuring Social Media Using Google Analytics. His key points will be.

  • Always measure ROI
  • Understanding  how social channels are generating conversions for your business
  • Learn the difference between upper and lower funnel social channels and what that can mean for your social media marketing campaigns.

Katie Richman – Director of Social Media Strategy , ESPN / espnW

Director of Social Media Strategy for ESPN Digital Media, Katie Richman is part of the startup team that is building ESPN’s women’s sports business. Katie began her career in 2001 with MTV Networks Brand Creative and moved onto Oxygen Media in their startup days as well.

Katie will be hosting a session titled Creation, Curation and Collection: Getting to know Pinterest, Instagram and Tumblr with key points focused on providing a good understanding of tastes, metrics and segmentation options as well as information on cutting edge platforms.

Who Should Attend?

Anyone who publishes online can benefit from the knowledge shared at this event. Content creators, publishers, bloggers, podcasters, radio and WebTV broadcasters will benefit from new understanding on topics such as trending strategies, best practices, and trusted techniques to improve content creation and monetization.

Author:

@BasilPuglisi is the Executive Director and Publisher for Digital Brand Marketing Education (dbmei.com). Basil C. Puglisi is also the President of Puglisi Consulting Group, Inc. A Digital Brand Marketing Consultancy that manages professional and personal branding for Fortune 500 CEOs, Hedge Fund Managers and Small Business Owners.

Sources:

  • BlogWorld Expo 2012
  • BlogWorld & New Media Expo NY at BookExpo America (BEA)
  • BlogWorld & New Media Expo NY 2012 – Plancast

Filed Under: Basil's Blog #AIa, Branding & Marketing, Content Marketing, Digital & Internet Marketing, General, PR & Writing, Publishing Tagged With: BlogWorld, BookExpo America, business, Ellisdale Fossil Site, google, Google Analytics, Marketing and Advertising, New York, Social Media

How to Write Great Web Content if You’re Not a Writer

May 13, 2012 by Basil Puglisi 1 Comment

We’ve all heard it before: Content is King. And your website needs it. Your site’s content is what tells your customers who you are, what you’re offering and why your business is better than the rest. It tells them where to go, who to call and what the next step is. It drives traffic to your site from Google. Your business cannot afford poorly-written content, but unfortunately, not everyone can afford a professional copywriter to convey their message for them.
There’s good news: Writing great Web content, even if you’re not a great writer, is not impossible. Here are several tips to get you started.
Less really is more.
Yes, your business is awesome, and you want everyone to know it. Yet there’s also something to be said about the guy who talks way too much about himself. Be brief with your website content. This can be tough when there’s a lot to say, so the first step involves understanding what your audience needs and giving it to them. No more, no less. If your company offers credit card processing for non-profits, outline the best services for accepting donations, but don’t go into too much detail. Long chunks of text that are loaded with jargon can get confusing and turn customers off.
Use call to actions.
A call to action gives your visitors direction and encourages them to take that next step to connect with your company:

  • Call now to speak with a representative.
  • Download our PDF to learn more about vehicle tracking using GPS.
  • Make an appointment to start improving your smile today!

Call to action text is usually linked to another page that brings visitors to a contact form, or it can be a single-word phrase within a button that downloads a program or PDF. Don’t hide your call to actions within the copy – make them clear and easy to see so your visitors know exactly what to do next.
Subheads and bullet points are your best friends.
While content is king, your website visitors probably aren’t spending too much time reading every single word. Instead, they’re scanning the copy to find what they’re looking for – benefits, product details, services, rates. Make it easy for them by breaking up your content into short paragraphs with clear subheads, as well as bullets that outline key points.
Add keywords with caution.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is crucial to helping your website get ranked and found through search engines. Optimizing your content with relevant keywords will help drive users to your site as they search Google for certain products and services.
However, it’s not as simple as stuffing your headlines and body copy with keywords and calling it a day. Your visitors can tell when you’re adding keywords just to add them, especially when you put no thought into how the keywords affect the flow of copy. More importantly, Google values quality content and penalizes keyword stuffing. Your site will rank higher when your content provides truly valuable information to your visitors.
Do you have any tips for writing great Web content?
Author:
Jacqui MacKenzie is a writer for Straight North, one of the leading Chicago Web design companies specializing in Internet marketing, social media and SEO. She writes for a wide range of clients, including providers of vehicle tracking using GPS and credit card processing for non-profits. Check out the Straight North blog! @ straightnorth
Sources:

  • How To Write Great Website Content
  • Five Tips For Writing Great Web Content
  • Steps to Writing Great Website Content

Filed Under: Basil's Blog #AIa, General, Publishing Tagged With: google, GPS, Great Comet, internet marketing, Search engine optimization, Web content, website, World Wide Web

Display Ads and Tumblr [News]

April 25, 2012 by Basil Puglisi Leave a Comment

Technically, display advertising, or banner ads, are graphical advertisements on the web that pop up next to, above, blended into or under content on emails, web sites, or even IM applications. This video is very short but provides a great overall understanding of what display ads are and how they work.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUT5H723Ii4]

What Benefits Will Display Ad Networks Have on Your Business?

Just like magazines or newspaper ads, you can expect to receive the same type of benefit from display ads in exposure for your business and hopefully in an obviously increasing customer base. However, unlike magazines and newspaper ads, the flexibility of the internet lets us advertise to a worldwide community, expanding a business’s horizons endlessly. Display advertising also has distinct advantages over the more traditional formats.

  • Businesses can target specific options such as behavioral targeting options or direct choices in demographics allowing them to expertly direct ads only to their most vital audiences.
  • Performance of your ads can be tracked as part of your daily marketing campaign to allow you to measure metrics such as clicks, conversions, and impressions which will allow you to calculate your ROI.

Top Display Ad Networks

Although the list is constantly changing, some of the top display ad networks in the country include:

  • Yahoo Network
  • Google Ad Network
  • ValueClick Networks
  • Turn Media Platform
  • 27/7 Real Media
  • Adbrite

News in Ad Display  – Tumblr

A couple of years ago, CEO David Karp of Tumblr was asked what his feelings were on display ads. At that time he shared that they turned his stomach. Not something he wanted for his blogging platform. Very recent news shared that he may have found himself eating those words a bit when he shared that Tumblr plans to begin selling ad display units to advertisers. So far, the platform has survived without any ads but users will soon begin to see them displayed on their Tumblr “Featured” section of the dashboard.

Tumblr dashboard
Tumblr dashboard (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Advertisers should be able to pay for ad space beginning May 2nd. Tumblr currently hosts over 52 million blogs with a growth rate of approximately 50 million posts per day.

Author:

@BasilPuglisi is the Executive Director and Publisher for Digital Brand Marketing Education (dbmei.com). Basil C. Puglisi is also the President of Puglisi Consulting Group, Inc. A Digital Brand Marketing Consultancy that manages professional and personal branding for Fortune 500 CEOs, Hedge Fund Managers and Small Business Owners.

Sources:

  • Study: For Display Ads Clicks Have “Nearly Zero” Correlation With Conversion
  • Conversions, Not Clicks, Key To Display Ads
  • Display Ad Networks – YouTube
  • Tumblr Ads Display Ads to Dashboard
  • Nielsen’s Fourth Screen Report Shows a Huge Increase in Audience Delivered by Digital Mall Media in December

Filed Under: Basil's Blog #AIa, Business, General Tagged With: AdBrite, advertising, Advertising network, business, David Karp, Display advertising, google, Nielsen, Tumblr, Web banner, YouTube

Is Your Business Website Ready for Mobile?

April 16, 2012 by Basil Puglisi 10 Comments

Is your small business website ready for mobile? I am referring to the smartphones people have been overwhelmingly converting to.   According to a recent Google Study using research firm Ipsos they quantified what devices costumers across five key global markets are currently using. Not surprisingly, the numbers show that smartphone ownership is on the rise. What caught some analysts off guard was the finding that in each of the countries polled, use of mobile phones had edged out use of personal computers in 2011.
According to a study by Compuware 71% of global mobile web users expect websites to load as quickly, almost as quickly or faster on their mobile phone compared to the computer they use at home.
Nearly 60% of web users say they expect a website to load on their mobile phone in three seconds or less, and 74% are only willing to wait five seconds or less for a single web page to load before leaving the site. 50% are only willing to wait five seconds or less for an application to load before exiting.
Below are some best practices for mobile websites suggested by GoMO:
1. Keep it Quick   Mobile users want their information fast. To help them, design your site to load fast and make copy easy to read. Prioritize the content and features that mobile users need most. Use your desktop site analytics to see what mobile users are doing
2. Make it Easy to Convert No matter what your site’s objective is, your customers need to be able to do it with a virtual keyboard and no mouse. Make it easy to buy something or contact you!
3. Simplify Navigation  No one likes to be confused. Clear navigation and, on large or complex sites, search functionality, will help your customers easily find what they need
4. Make it Local – Consumers look for local info on their phones all the time—from locating the    nearest gas station to finding an open pizza place. Include functionality that helps people find and get to you.
5. Be Thumb Ready – People use their fingers to operate mobile devices – especially their thumbs. Design your site so even large hands can easily interact with it.
6. Make it Seamless – People now use multiple screens throughout the day. Convert as much of the functionality of your desktop site to mobile as you can to create a seamless experience.
7. Design for Visibility – A mobile-friendly site gets its message across without causing eyestrain. Make it easy for your customers to read – remember they may be in a place with low light.
8. Use Re-Directs – A mobile site redirect is code that can automatically tell if visitors are using a mobile device and send them to the mobile-friendly version of your site. Have your site developer implement this redirect code so your customers get the best version of your site for their needs.
9. Make it accessible.  Your mobile site should work across all mobile devices and all handset orientations.
10. Good mobile sites are user-centric, which means they’re built with input from your audience.
It is time to consider all modes of electronic media in your business marketing plan.  Mobile users will continue to play an ever growing part of how you will gain your customers.  Start incorporating these processes now.
Author:

Marilyn Zayfert is a passionate digital strategist implementing online and mobile applications. She is a results-driven sales and marketing strategist with a proven track record of achievement and demonstrated success. Marilyn founded illumiNET Creative Media in 2009. illumiNET Creative builds and implements online marketing strategies for local businesses. Twitter @mzayfert
Website http://www.illuminetmedia.com
Sources:
http://www.investorplace.com/2012/01/google-study-mobile-phone-use-tops-the-pc-goog-aapl-dell/
http://www.ipsos.com/
http://www.compuware.com/d/release/592528/new-study-reveals-the-mobile-web-disappoints-global-consumers
http://www.howtogomo.com/en/d/why-go-mo/#mobile-best-practices

Filed Under: Basil's Blog #AIa, General, Mobile, Mobile & Technology Tagged With: Compuware, google, Ipsos, Mobile device, Mobile phone, Mobile Web, twitter, website

Google Started Changing the Way Search Results are Shown

April 11, 2012 by Basil Puglisi Leave a Comment

Every time Google changes the algorithms of its search engine, it sends shivers down the spines of many who rely on that calculation to get a better placement on the search engine’s result page (SERP). That is why Google is very careful and secretive when a change like that is coming. But Amit Singhal, the top Google Search executive, confirmed recently they are working on something big.

What they are trying to do, he said, is for the search to work more like we humans understand the world.  By cross referencing millions of entities that Google has been collecting in the past few years, the new search engine algorithms will attempt to understand the context of the query and give direct answers instead of sending you to a website to find out by yourself.

For example: If you ask what the deepest 10 lakes in the US are? Today, you are getting results based on the keywords and a list of websites talking about lakes, but not the exact answer to your question. In the future the first thing that will appear is a direct answer to your query. You can see it already happening with the “best guess” results. Type in “who is the chancellor of Germany” and see what you get.

Another example: If you ask information about a place, Lake Eerie for instance. Today you get all the websites that have anything to do with the lake. In the future, first you will get all the information Google has collected about the lake: depth, location, altitude, average temp and so on.

Google and Metaweb Tech

A little more than a year ago Google purchased a start-up company called Metaweb Technologies. The company had an index of 12 million entities; movies, books, companies and celebrities. (For the sake of comparison, Wikipedia has 3.5 million English entries.) Amit Singhal said that since this acquisition they have expended the index to 200 million by developing “extraction algorithms” that can organize data in a semantic way from around the web.

What would it do to the listings on the first page if a large amount of information will appear first? A person who was briefed on Google’s change says it may impact directly the results of 10%-20% of the queries. There are billions of queries performed each day.

Google hopes that with the new search results, people will spend more time on their page and see more relevant ads, but it is still unclear how it would impact the ads which appear beside the search results. People familiar with the project say the changes will appear in the next few months. Amit Singhal says it will be rolled out slowly and will be a year-long process.

Author:

@BasilPuglisi is the Executive Director and Publisher for Digital Brand Marketing Education (dbmei.com). Basil C. Puglisi is also the President of Puglisi Consulting Group, Inc. A Digital Brand Marketing Consultancy that manages professional and personal branding for Fortune 500 CEOs, Hedge Fund Managers and Small Business Owners.

Sources:

  • Google Announces 50 Search Changes in March
  • Google Gives Search a Refresh
  • Social Media Club Google Search Changes

Filed Under: Basil's Blog #AIa, General, Search Engines Tagged With: Algorithm, Amit Singhal, Chief executive officer, Executive director, google, Google search, Metaweb Technologies, Search engine results page, Web search engine, Wikipedia

Why Blogs Matter More than Ever for SEO

April 4, 2012 by Basil Puglisi 3 Comments

I recently showed a college student a blog post I was working on, and he asked me what percentage of the content I dedicated to keyword phrases. He had taken a course in SEO, and he understood keyword density. So do I. But even as an SEO copywriter, it’s not really something that I take into account when writing content anymore.
Rather than give him a percentage, I explained to him that the number of times a keyword is placed within an article isn’t as important as it used be. Yes, keywords still play a big role, but the quality of the content has become a more critical factor in getting higher search results. That’s where blogs come into play.
The Rise of the Blog
Back in the day (1990s to early 2000s), blogs weren’t as widely accepted as they are now. Saying you had a blog was like telling people that you’re kind of a geek and you really like to talk about yourself. Last May, eMarketer reported that 53.5% of Internet users would read blogs in 2011. That’s 122.6 million blog readers. Today, blogs have become an effective way for people to share their opinions; stay updated on news, trends and topics that interest them; and have ongoing conversations with others who share those opinions and interests. For businesses, blogs have become a necessary tool for reaching customers on a higher level and improving SEO.
The rising value of blog content has not gone unnoticed when it comes to search results – Google wants to put the content that people read in front of them, and right now, that means blogs.
Keep Your Content Fresh and Relevant
Google favors new, fresh content, and in today’s fast-paced market, content can get outdated pretty quickly. Maintaining a continually updated blog on your company website allows you to keep adding new content to your site without having to completely rework product or service pages. In addition, the content must contain valuable information – Google Panda updates now put low-quality content created solely for link building at the bottom of search results.
Guest Blog, Guest Blog, Guest Blog
Writing guest posts on other blogs has a number of benefits, one of which includes SEO value. Guest posts often allow back links to your blog and website within your blogger bio. Good relationships with authoritative bloggers can be incredibly valuable for SEO, especially if the blogs have high page ranks, as Google is impressed by link quality and diversity. Networking also helps establish your own blog as an authority in your niche.
Social Sharing
The better quality the content, the more it’s shared through social media. Google recognizes social sharing, such as tweets, retweets, Facebook likes and Google +1’s. Internet users are much quicker to share a blog post, rather than a website page, through Twitter. With the rise of Pinterest, blogs that post quality images are also being shared more, resulting in increased traffic and higher search rankings.
Do you have a blog? Are you using it to improve your SEO strategy?
Author:

Jacqui MacKenzie is a writer for Straight North, one of the leading Internet marketing companies in Chicago. She writes for a wide range of clients, from providers of GPS for vehicle tracking to broadcasting equipment specialists. Check out the Straight North blog! @ straightnorth

Sources:

  • 53% of Internet Users Will Read Blogs This Year
  • The Rising Popularity of Blogging
  • Google Panda Update: Say Goodbye to Low-Quality Link Building

Filed Under: Basil's Blog #AIa, General Tagged With: blog, google, Internaut, pinterest, Search engine optimization, twitter, Web content, Web search engine

The Path Less Taken: Google+

March 26, 2012 by Basil Puglisi 2 Comments

We’ve all heard about Google+; but to be quite honest, Google’s social network seemed to fizzle out after its release. It’s certainly no Facebook or Twitter, but that hasn’t stopped several major marketers from switching gears lately to focus on Google+. But why? Not only is Google+ no Twitter and Facebook, but February reports showed that the average Google+ user spends a total of 3 minutes on the site monthly. This compared to Facebook’s 405 minute average and Pinterest’s and Tumbler’s 100 minute average demonstrates Google+’s deceptive shortcoming . However, the reason marketers are turning their attention to this social networking platform is because Google+ is imperative in the world of social media and SEO, and here’ why.

Social Web Experience

Google+ is so much more than a social network as it gives users something new: a complete social web experience. Unlike Facebook and Twitter, Google+ implements all of the services of Google into its social network: we’re talking Google Voice, Google Shopping, location filtered Google Search Engine Results, Google Video, photo sharing, and the list goes on. Google+ isn’t just about connecting with friends, it’s about connecting with the world. And in that connection, users share their personal and commercial experiences with the world, offering market researchers huge opportunities. And because Google+ is more than a social network, it is attractive and convenient to users. According to Google-plus.com, this is evident by the fact that by January 2012 Google+ was boasting 90 million active users worldwide, making it the 4th largest social networking platform in the world; and of course, one must take into account that this success comes only 6 months after the social network’s beta version was released.

Impact on the World of SEO

Two things make Google+ more important in the world of SEO than any other social network. First, because sharing and endorsing commercial items is both convenient and appealing to users, they are driven to participate; they this by utilizing Google+’s “+1” button. Through this utilization, users not only share public endorsement of products, services, websites, and the like on Google+ and websites, but through Google’s search engine; user’s Google+ friend’s +1 recommendations, if relevant, show up in their Google searches. Not to mention that the +1 button has been implemented into all results on Google’s search engine result pages; this is a big deal considering that Google holds more than 66 percent of the search engine market share, according to searchengineland.com.
Second, because everywhere we look features the +1 button, this means something big to SEO. Think about it. Google operates the majority of the search engine market. Millions of people flock to Google to query searches every day. Google+ and Google+1s directly affect SEO. Google owns Google+. Therefore it isn’t a far leap to assume that Google will give Google+ more weight in its algorithms than other social networks. So, put quite bluntly, anyone hoping to utilize SEO is completely and hopelessly dependent on Google and its secret algorithms.
Author:
Amber Paley is a guest post and article writer bringing to us information on why many marketers are turning their attention to Google+. Outraged by the prevalence of elder abuse in the U.S., Amber spends much of her professional life writing educational articles to help those affected by elder abuse find a good nursing home abuse lawyer. Amber’s social profile can be found at http://about.me/amberpaley
Sources:

  • Forbes.com, Why It Doesn’t Matter That Google Users…
  • Google-Plus.com, Google Has 90 Million Users…
  • SearchEngineLand.com, Bing and Google Gain Market Share…

Filed Under: Basil's Blog #AIa, General Tagged With: facebook, google, Search engine optimization, social network, Social networking service, twitter, Web search engine

Google Started Changing the Way Search Results are Shown

March 19, 2012 by Basil Puglisi Leave a Comment

Image representing Google as depicted in Crunc...
Image via CrunchBase

Every time Google changes the algorithms of its search engine, it sends shivers down the spines of many who rely on that calculation to get a better placement on the search engine’s result page (SERP).

That is why Google is very careful and secretive when a change like that is coming. But Amit Singhal, the top Google Search executive, confirmed recently they are working on something big.

What they are trying to do, Amit said, is for the search to work more like we humans understand the world.  By cross referencing millions of entities that Google has been collecting in the past few years, the new search engine algorithms will attempt to understand the context of the query and give direct answers instead of sending you to a website to find out by yourself.

For example: If you ask what the deepest 10 lakes in the US are? Today, you are getting results based on the keywords and a list of websites talking about lakes, but not the exact answer to your question. In the future the first thing that will appear is a direct answer to your query. You can see it already happening with the “best guess” results. Type in “who is the chancellor of Germany” and see what you get.

Another example: If you ask information about a place, Lake Eerie for instance. Today you get all the websites that have anything to do with the lake. In the future, first you will get all the information Google has collected about the lake: depth, location, altitude, average temp and so on.

Image representing Metaweb Technologies as dep...
Image via CrunchBase

A little more than a year ago Google purchased a start-up company called Metaweb Technologies. The company had an index of 12 million entities; movies, books, companies and celebrities. (For the sake of comparison, Wikipedia has 3.5 million English entries.) Amit Singhal said that since this acquisition they have expended the index to 200 million by developing “extraction algorithms” that can organize data in a semantic way from around the web.

What would it do to the listings on the first page if a large amount of information will appear first? A person who was briefed on Google’s change says it may impact directly the results of 10%-20% of the queries. There are billions of queries performed each day.

Google hopes that with the new search results, people will spend more time on their page and see more relevant ads, but it is still unclear how it would impact the ads which appear beside the search results.

People familiar with the project say the changes will appear in the next few months. Amit Singhal says it will be rolled out slowly and will be a year-long process.

Author:

@BasilPuglisi is the Executive Director and Publisher for Digital Brand Marketing Education (dbmei.com). Basil C. Puglisi is also the President of Puglisi Consulting Group, Inc. A Digital Brand Marketing Consultancy that manages professional and personal branding for Fortune 500 CEOs, Hedge Fund Managers and Small Business Owners.

Sources:

  • http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304459804577281842851136290.html?mod=WSJ_hp_LEFTTopStories
  • http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9225245/Google_works_to_overhaul_its_search
  • http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/google/9149141/Why-Google-searchs-overhaul-will-matter-to-businesses.html

Filed Under: Basil's Blog #AIa, General, Search Engines Tagged With: Amit, Amit Singhal, google, Google search, Metaweb Technologies, Searching, SERP, Web search engine

Reference.me – A Unique Business Social Site

March 15, 2012 by Basil Puglisi Leave a Comment

Since almost every social site claims to be unique, yet there are several floating around that seem to mirror each other, we have come to understand that often ‘unique social site’ in reality means, social site with a unique name. So when I came across Reference.me, I gave it a shot, but without any genuine expectations for uncommon features.

c/o www.domain.me

Trusted Networks

We have other social sites that rely on trusted networks. LinkedIn immediately comes to mind. Currently the largest business social network online, LinkedIn has over 120 million users. Many people use it to connect to business partners and other colleagues, or even employees and customers.

While most of us likely have a LinkedIn account and profile, accept or decline contacts on a daily basis, and even update our profiles when business opportunities change, we usually stop just short of using our LinkedIn profiles outside of a social bookmark on our website or link on our email signatures unless we are in the process of actively building on that network.

How Does Reference.Me Work?

Your trusted network on Reference.me actually comes with a very impressive visual reference of who your trusted network represents. It differs immediately from other social networks in one specific way. Log in is only integrated with Google + currently. However, once signed up, and logged in, you can still easily integrate your Facebook and LinkedIn accounts. Integration with LinkedIn will also fill out many of the details, work references, education, and skills on the Reference.me details tab.

There is no messaging on Reference.me, no activity streams, groups, or anything else you may be called to join in, or at least not yet. That doesn’t mean that Reference.me doesn’t have a shining quality or two at this stage in its development game.

Reference.me Pros

The site already has a great setup when it comes to a quick list and profile viewing opportunity with a few different filter options. Arranging your network by skills, location, companies, strongest connection, or even alphabetically supplies users with the ability to quickly locate members in their network that may not be so readily available on the top of your network. This layering feature is absolutely unique from any other social business network available on the net currently. It provides a more in-depth look at how the rest of your network functions with their own, giving potentially more elaborate insight if browsing the networks of perspective new hires, new colleagues, or even consumers.

The references system on Reference.me is impressive, as well it should be on a social site with such a URL. Grabbing a reference from their system is as easy as clicking on a name and choosing the big tab that pops up. Under the tab you may also see that the source is already a trusted one for you, or that you may need to request them to join your network so that they too receive trusted status on your Reference.me account.

c/o www.growyourbusinessnetwork.com

Reference.me Cons

Reference.me cons are as mostly as listed above. There is no messaging on Reference.me, no activity streams, groups, or anything else you may be called to join in, and for this reason Reference.me may not be seen as a full-bodied network that promotes major interactivity.

Fortunately, this doesn’t seem to be what the team at Reference.me is going for. Reference.me seems like a great place to send a prospective client, employee, or consumer when they ask for references, whole references, and nothing but your references.

Author:

@BasilPuglisi is the Executive Director and Publisher for Digital Brand Marketing Education (dbmei.com). Basil C. Puglisi is also the President of Puglisi Consulting Group, Inc. A Digital Brand Marketing Consultancy that manages professional and personal branding for Fortune 500 CEOs, Hedge Fund Managers and Small Business Owners.

Sources:

  • Reference.Me
  • Reference.Me: Look at Your Business Network, Now Look Again!
  • Reference.me Aims at Resetting Professional Networking

Filed Under: Basil's Blog #AIa, General Tagged With: Chief executive officer, Executive director, facebook, google, Hedge fund, LinkedIn, social network, Uniform Resource Locator

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