Google: expect a Caffeine jolt after the holidays
Google's Caffeine update is coming. Billed by Google as "the first step in a process that will let us push the envelope on size, indexing speed, accuracy, comprehensiveness and other dimensions", Caffeine is not your regular Google update.
When Caffeine was announced, Google did something it had never done before: it offered up a sandbox so that the public could preview search results with Caffeine and provide Google with feedback. While that sandbox is no longer available, you won't have to wait long for your Caffeine jolt: according to Google's Matt Cutts, Caffeine is coming after the holidays.
The five biggest myths about Google
On the internet, few companies receive more attention than Google. And for good reason: Google touches so many individuals and businesses. From search to its 'side projects', just about everything Google does creates interest.
Google's prominence, not surprisingly, has led to the creation of many myths. Here are my top five.
Six inconvenient truths about SEO
You've probably seen them: programs claiming to teach you how you can use SEO to boost your Google rankings and in turn build a successful internet business that runs on cruise control. All for the low price of $49.95.
While such programs almost always fall into the 'scam' category, there is truth to the notion that SEO can be a pathway to success. If you run any sort of website, chances are you need traffic, and SEO can deliver it. But there are some inconvenient truths about SEO that often get ignored, especially in 'newbie' circles. Here are six of them.
Search experts weigh in on Google and Bing's real-time deals with Twitter
Twitter's deals with Microsoft (Bing) and Google have the blogosphere and Twittersphere abuzz. 'Real-time search' has been a hot topic in 2009 and there has been much speculation on Twitter's strategy vis-à-vis the real-time search opportunity. It appears that we now know what that strategy is: sell firehose access to the Twitter stream to the search engines and let them do what they do best.
The Bing and Google deals could be significant. Depending on what Bing and Google decide to do with their Twitter firehose, internet users could potentially see SERPs that are heavily influenced by Twitter activity, which would mean that SEOs will have to deal with Twitter as a 'ranking factor'. Of course, nobody knows all of the details yet, which is why I thought it would be worthwhile to see what experts and observers are saying about the deals.
Four steps to profiting from a decent domain name
If you're an entrepreneur, or budding entrepreneur, making money online can sometimes seem like a real challenge. In my opinion, that's often because entrepreneurs focus on the wrong thing. They want to create a 'startup' and become the next Facebook or Twitter.
That's a tall order and, for most of us, a recipe for disappointment. But if you're willing to start out small and work hard, profit on the internet isn't so elusive.
10 reasons people criticize SEO
SEO is a polarizing subject. Bring it up in the company of the tech set and chances are you'll get a debate not unlike one you might get when talking about religion and politics.
A lot of the criticism of SEO is misplaced while some of it isn't. When addressing SEO criticism, it helps to have an understanding of why critics are so skeptical. Here are top 10 reasons.
SEOs are not spammers, evildoers, or opportunists
It seems like every few months, somebody has to write a blog post
calling SEO a 'scam' of some sort. It's a meme that always works and
this time around, it's coming from a guy named Derek Powazek, who calls
SEOs "spammers, evildoers, and opportunists".
It's a great linkbait, which, ironically, is sure to help Powazek's SERPs.
Google improves SERPs for message board content
To many, the word 'community' elicits thoughts of social networks like MySpace and Facebook, and of popular social media websites like Flickr and Digg. But if you were active on the internet about a decade ago, you probably don't forget the precursor to today's social communities: the message board/forum.
They're still around (there are quite a few massive ones) and while they may not be as sexy as today's social networks, a Google update that will make it easier for searchers to find content posted in message board communities is likely going to benefit many operators of message board communities.
Exact-match keyword domains: the fastest way to first page SERPs?
The idea that exact-match keyword domain names can be a significant ranking factor is not new. But, for me at least, the significance has always been hard to confirm for a few simple reasons.
First, it's not every day that I acquire an exact-match keyword domain for a popular search phrase. Second, I've never launched a new site on an exact-match keyword domain with the specific goal of seeing what the domain can do on its own. That makes it nearly impossible to isolate the ranking factors that are likely contributing the most to results.
Google: stop wasting your time on meta tags
Are you still using the keywords meta tag? Or are you stuffing your description meta tags in hopes that it will help your rankings?
If so, Google has a reminder for you: you're wasting your time.
Social media: the best and worst of 2009
Email marketing: six steps to improving customer engagement in 2010
Web 2.0
Graham Charlton
Strategy & Planning
