Are you a Twitter Prostitute or Tweet Purity Ring Wearer?

Where do you fall on the spectrum of increasing your twitter following? Do you have your account locked down so only those "special" ones can get in? Or are you out on the corner begging for people to come visit you? You think you know what you may be on this spectrum but what does your follower count say about your Twitter promiscuity?

Just curious. Leave comments with where you think you fall on the line but also thoughts on why you would lean to one side more than the other. What keeps you from being an extremist in either direction?

No fence riders allowed! Pick a side!

Google-Bing Face off on Algorithms

I am not going to comment too much on this video as I want people to comment themselves on their take of this debate and Google's (and Bing's) accusations. So here is the debate for your consideration.

Things that won't happen in internet marketing in 2011

Yeah everyone does the Top 10 predictions of what will happen in the coming year. Well I am bucking that trend in a major way. Here is what isn't going to happen in 2011. In fact here are 11 things that are not going to come into fruition this next year.

1) Location based services will not reach wide adoption. The power users will still be power users but most people will stay away and most business will try it and then promptly ditch it due to low turnout outside their mega-marketing pushes that cost them more than they bring in via services like Foursquare or Facebook Places.

2) iPad imitators will not see the sales needed to keep them on the market. Apple will keep its strangle-hold on this section but will come out with an update that allows multi-tasking. This will still require us search/internet marketers to consider the best method to market to these devices. Optimization will stay the same for these devices search is search but viewing the page and listing could be affected.

3) Social media integration in search results still won't be perfected. Between spammers and devious marketers gaming the system and your friends being, well..., your friends, integration will not lead to better results but more things to consider when looking at the results (I wonder when there will be so much info per each listing that only 1 entry shows up for a search, hmmm).

4) Mobile search differentiation ain't gonna happen. In the vein of dogs will hunt, people will search! With the advent of Google Instant, this really brings mobile and desktop search closer together and the need for specialized optimization unnecessary. Mobile companies seem to be trying to attract users by making their mobile experience more like their desktop experience.

5) Search Algorithm gaming will not go away. Although Google and Bing continue to make strides to fight the infringement on their algorithm (i.e. Google's renewed efforts to find and punish cloaking) the spammers are hungry and innovative. I have a feeling as the search engines continue to minimize what is viewed as a top listing (sorry but top 10 doesn't make the above the fold status any more) there will be a greater effort for marketers to find any means to gain the attention of their target audience. It is the yin and yang of search marketing the black side (black hats) has the little bit of good somewhere deep down but the white side (search engines) still have that little bit of black deep down. It is all about how big that speck of good or bad is on each side.

6) Pay-per-click advertising isn't going to get easier. Sure there will be new tools but most of the good ones will be out of the price range of most small business owners. Google's innovations will continue to distract from the paid ads that have been under constant legal challenges and public questioning (BP oil spill ads).

7) Automated Search Engine Optimization will not be within reach for most Search Marketers. Similar to their PPC counterparts these tools are out of range for most for the effective ones. However, the ability to create the basis for SEO still escapes most of these tools.

8) FTC Do Not Track legislation will fail (as it is currently written). The Do Not Track (DNT) legislation is too broad and reaches too many companies with deep pockets. Before a version will pass congress certain limitations will be applied and then it will only apply to a narrow scope in specific instances.

9) Search Optimization certification/qualification will not be dictated by any authority. This is something that has been disputed in the industry for years. The idea is that there should be an authority that certifies search marketers so that companies can be ensured that the "expert" they are hiring knows what they are doing and is not going to endanger their company. The issue is that Black Hat SEO's probably know the most about passing these qualifications. In order to subvert the system you have to know the system inside and out. A singular authority for Certification will appear this year or will not be deemed a trusted source for certification. Companies will continue to offer educational courses with certificates but there is too diversified a field and companies don't know who to trust anymore unless Google/Microsoft give an endorsement to one of them. However, that is not happening this year.

10) I will not be buying a vacation home in Cozumel. Oh come on I had to have one fun one in here. At least I know this one will be true for sure (even if I win the lottery I still would not buy one in Cozumel, maybe Puerta Vallarta but not Cozumel).

11) SEO will not die. I know a cliche one to end on but I think appropriate given my profession. I do whole heartedly believe this to be the case. Are there adjustments to tactics? Yes. Are there new methods that need to be learned? Definitely. Will search marketers become irrelevant? Irreverent, Yes; irrelevant, no.

The opinions expressed above are based on observations and analysis. They are mostly hunches and thoughts so please take these in the spirit that they were written...to spark discussion. So lets talk it out!
HAPPY NEW YEAR!>I think...

Doing the Bump with Google Places

Google continues its shift of their results pages. The newest culprit doesn't affect the natural search listings, per se, but mostly affects the paid, right column, ads.

Google Places is the latest addition to the Google Search Results page. The idea behind this is to free up some space on the natural search listings (center column) by simply tagging the locations in the center and having a map off to the right ABOVE the paid ads. So while this allows more room for those websites that are occurring naturally it is decreasing the visibility of those who are paying for attention for those results.

Most of you can see why this would be detrimental to pay-per-click marketers, but let me spell it out for those who don't see it:

1) Competition for local results now not only includes other businesses but Google's map which takes up 2-3 possible positions.
2) In order to be seen in these results you are now bidding at a much higher rate than before just to be seen.
3) Justifying the expense for pay-per-click ads will be a tad more difficult because the ROI that you had been optimizing for before Google Places no longer applies unless you were already in the #1 position which now is technically the #3 or #4 position.
4) UPDATED PORTION: The map box that takes up a good portion of the right column also scrolls down with you thus completely eliminating a top right column search ad position. All ads disappear behind the map box.

Marketers threw their hands in the air in disgust when Google first tested this out several months ago, now that it is common place, I foresee the same backlash on its way.

That's my opinion, you don't like it, let me know about!

Putting SEOs Where They Belong

I think it is time to put SEOs in their place! But where is that? Let’s look at some options:



The Technology/Developer Group: This is a good option, a lot of the onsite site SEO happens behind the curtain of the webpage and they occasionally dabble in coding.



The Copy Writers/Designers Group: Ooh this is another good option. SEOs help to inform the content creation and can head off designs that are not the most search engine friendly.



The Web Analyst Group: Hmm, another interesting choice. Most Search Engine Optimizers can filter through the raw data and provide perspective on what is going on and help put it into actionable context (the good ones can at least).



The Marketing/Strategy Development Group: Dang, another possible selection. SEOs are an excellent resource to bring in on the beginning strategy phase. They can inform best practices, perform competitive analysis, and many other exploratory and strategic offerings.



The Business Development Group: OK, Search Engine Optimizers are not going to be the closer but they definitely have the ability to add to the sales pitch; what is going wrong with the current site, value add for current clients, and other ways to ensure the client will found or will maintain ranking during a website refresh.



All these options seem to be a good fit; how do I choose? Oh, wait maybe that is the point I am trying to make! SEOs play a roll in many areas of the agency environment. No matter where they sit their perspectives and targeted insights in the whole digital marketing process can help aid the success of a client’s web presence. The SEO specialist adds to each of the groups and only when they are fully integrated into the process and a feedback loop is in place, do the best results rear their beautiful head. If your SEO strategy is developed in a vacuum then the results will truly suck. The communication needs to be a two-way street, but be sure to use your turn signal.



Have another group that is a good fit or you think doesn't fit, let me know!

Google's Instant SEO Challenge

Does Google Instant provide an SEO minefield or just expand the way we think about keyword selection?

All across the Twitterverse and in industry blogs the question is being raised, "Is Google Instant what will kill off SEO?"

I think that Google Instant provides a challenge for those of us in the Search Marketing industry. For a long time we in the SEO field have been trying to find the secret sauce of Google and trying to figure out what keywords are driving results to our clients' pages. We now not only have to think about the ultimate keyword they will use to find what they are looking for but what keywords they will start searching with. Most recently long-tail keywords have been the solution to how most searchers ultimately find what they are looking for, as the head terms are increasingly less relevant as more pages fill up these results but not targeted to what the searchers are looking for.

I believe searchers have grown accustomed to using more long-tail queries first to get at what they really want and have started adjusting their searching habits to avoid those pages that seemingly have less specific results.

Ok, now how does this apply to Google Instant?

Google is now taking a step away from the searcher by predicting what they are going to type for their query. No longer does the searcher have to waste time reformatting their query for head terms or long-tail terms. Google is now showing what results they would get if they did decide to go for the often irrelevant head terms automatically without additional keystrokes. As a searcher knowing that these results will be presented to me instantly I am more likely to try those terms knowing that I can quickly adjust that query and get what I am try looking for but it doesn't hurt to look at those head terms since they are there anyway.

As a search marketer I need to take into account how my clients' customers are searching for their products. As I mentioned previously this was focusing on a few head terms and a large portion of long-tail keywords but with the new adaptation of Google Instant it will be important to try for those head terms as they will now be viewed and considered more often because they will be the first results given for a specific query even if the searcher is heading toward the long-tail keyword.

So bottom line is that this will be a difficult period for search marketers, the results won't change instantly but SEO practitioners need to start working through their keyword strategy and see how this will ultimately affect their customers' experience of search for their products or services.

Google's Making Me Fat

As I am getting older I am noticing that I don't metabolize like I used to. Personally, I am going to blame this all on Google. I know, I know, you are saying "Oh sure blame Google, everyone else is blaming Google for their problems, like them sharing the information that they freely share online," but wait I have some good excuses how Google is driving me to add on the pounds.

1) Their Search Algorithm: From when I was a kid, shoot even when I was in college, I had to literally search for the information I needed to put into my report or do my job. Sure Yahoo was around but let's be honest those results were skewed(emphasis on were) and not the most reliable. So I ended up walking to the library and doing my research or, heaven forbid, do my own research study with hand taken surveys. Now I can just type in the data that I want to know and get a plethora of data that I can scrutinize. So I don't have to make that walking trip to the library to get what I need. - Fat Burned= -2

2) Google Maps: My family takes a lot of car trips (mainly because it is too expensive to fly 4 people now) but how do I (or my wife) plan these car trips? Get out the big paper map if I have one or go down to the store and buy the map? No! I go on my computer and plot my trip by typing in my location and where the hell I'm going and bada-boom bada-bing I have my whole route planned out. Even if I have to spend a night because the trip is too long I can find the hotel right there in that same map. I don't have to drive down to the AAA office to get a book for the area and look up what hotels are there. By not standing over the map and plotting the course or even in the car struggling with re-folding that big map. No calories burned with holding the turn-by-turn directions, forget getting out and asking for directions if I get lost I pull up the map on my smart-phone. - Fat Burned= -1

3) Google Reader: With this fabulous product I not only do not have to go to the library to pick up the latest newspaper or news-magazine to read the stories I am interested in, I don't even have to search the web! The stories are delivered to one spot that I can just go and start reading. Do you know what would help me burn less calories if I enabled the voice webpage reader. I have all the stories that I could possibly be interested in at one location, I don't have to walk from store to store in the mall to get everything I am interested in; food, video games, business journals, etc. - Fat Burned= -3

4) YouTube: I have saved the worst Google product that is leading to my forthcoming obesity problem for last. YouTube has an endless supply of stupidity, wondrous oddities, and crazy shit that you cannot find anywhere else, let alone one location. So with this myriad of entertainment options (Thank you Hockey Fights) I don't need to go and rent movies as often (I still get out of the house some, but I do have kids) or go bowling or golf or __________ Name your favorite activity that is truly active. I can sit around for hours on end and still not find everything YouTube has to offer. Thanks a lot YouTube. Here is a big F*ckYou for - Fat Burned= -10

So Google be expecting to get a bill for my diet supplements, gym membership (as long as I can watch YouTube while doing the elliptical), and the cardiac surgeon's bill. I love you Google but you are going to freakin' kill me!!!