Crisp fall weather has come again, and it looks like we’ve got a beautiful weekend in store! Before you put on the house robe and hunker down with a log of cookie dough and a new episode of Ugly Betty (What?! Isn’t that how you start your weekends? [No, I dropped Ugly Betty in favor of Numb3rs and Dollhouse. --Susan]) here’s a recap to ease your brain’s transition from work to weekend.
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Google fans are excited about the new Droid smartphone for Google’s Android mobile operating system. Google skeptics, meanwhile, are finding solace in the fact that the company’s buddy-buddy relationship with the White House administration is getting some mainstream exposure.
The search engine and Internet service company has announced a new product for retailers. Google Commerce Search is a storefront that e-commerce business owners can put on their site to make searching for products easier. On first glance it looks like a pretty cool tool to offer visitors, but it sure does cost a pretty penny! Minimum fifty-thousand a year!
Digital marketing conference ad:tech is in New York this week. You can find assorted coverage across the Web, including Microsoft’s reporting of the State of the Industry panel and Bruce’s slide deck for his presentation on SEO best practices (pdf) as part of SMX@ad:tech.
10e20 compiled a list of November’s hot topics in social media. Knowing the popular topics of the day is a great place to start when aiming to create popular and sharable content. And who doesn’t love holidays, movies and the latest tech toys?
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For a nostalgic stroll down the memory lane of toys, check out the most popular Christmas toys, going all the way back to the holiday season of 1960. In ‘69, were you all about the Hot Wheels, or does your best Christmas memory lie with the Care Bear craze of ‘84? [I totally remember getting a Cabbage Patch when I was little. --Susan]
Or wait, is social media actually the hot toy this holiday season? A report from Reuters suggests that consumers aren’t the only ones excited for what the holidays may bring. Retailers and brands across the country are relying on social media to be a strong team player over the next few months.
We’re also deep into American football season, so I’d be remiss not to include a football-themed post on the 10 fundamentals of local SEO. Thanks for the pep talk, David Mihm!
Social media super stars like Twitter and other status update services have seen a jump in users, says the Pew Internet & American Life Project. Younger Internet users, those connecting with mobile devices, and social network participants make up the three main groups driving the growth.
Over at Facebook, I’m willing to bet there’s been a good amount of head scratching and brainstorming going on following one spammer’s creepy confession. Dennis Yu walked TechCrunch readers through his process of gaming the Facebook ad system and flooding it with scammy, misleading, and highly profitable content.
Yu’s dealings make up but a small part of the aptly dubbed fakeosphere. The FTC is cracking down on ads (or more accurately, scams) parading as blog posts and user-generated testimonials. I know Halloween is over, but consumers beware.
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That level of skeezy can only be followed by a unicorn chaser. Of course, I’m the one writing here, so you’re getting a baby turtle chaser! These kids are going to be such lady killers when they grow up. *Squeal!* Time to take a trip to Sea World!
Babies have definitely been cause for celebration in the search realm of late. Loren Baker, president of Search Engine Journal, found out he and his wife, Janna, have a boy on the way. Google co-creator Larry Page and his wife, Lucy, welcomed a boy into the world yesterday. WordPress developer extraordinaire Joost De Valk cuddled up with his new baby girl for the first time this morning. [And tomorrow, I'm hosting my sister-in-law's baby shower! Huzzah! --Susan]
Internet marketing newsletter and Web resource Web Marketing Today ushers in its 15th year on November 9. If you aren’t subscribed to Dr. Ralph Wilson’s power-packed newsletter complete with actionable articles and expert-laden video interviews, really, what are you waiting for? Congrats to all!
A thread on webmaster forum WebmasterWorld suggests that Microsoft’s search engine Bing is honoring 301 redirects after gaining a notorious reputation for not doing so. Wonder if it has anything to do with MSNBot 1.1 being put out to pasture. MSNBot 1.1 may not have been “old” but it sure seemed a little bit senile.
A new forum has been launched by SEO Phill Midwinter, and he’s come out the gate with a bang and unique insights into optimization strategy for semantic search. As Phill explains, Google uses semantic data (technology that identifies the meaning of words based on their relationship with one another) which we can see through Wonder Wheel, the AdWords Keyword Tool and related searches in SERPs.
In a two part series, Phill breaks down his technical tactics for semantic search engine optimization. He’s explained the concept to me before, but getting a formalized version complete with diagrams did wonders to help deepen my understanding. The step-by-step process Phill outlines is primed for adoption and adaptation.
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Next week Internet marketers will be converging on Vegas to attend the search, social media and affiliate marketing conference PubCon. I know super-bloggers will be reporting all the action live (or close to it) on Search Engine Roundtable and Outspoken Media. And if you know of other media outlets providing coverage, feel free to drop a link in the comments.
Not too busy gearing up for PubCon to chime in on a convo I started yesterday, Outspoken Media’s Lisa Barone challenged my admonition against the controversial, saying that strongly worded blog posts force readers to face assumptions, potentially leaving us wiser and more open-minded in the process.
Also challenging assumptions, keyword management platform WordStream offers up five SEO myths and proceeds to bust ‘em wide open with dynamite and rubber mannequins. …Or am I thinking of Mythbusters? Take a look at these common assumptions of the SEO’s handbook and consider what you believe and why.
Things I learned from Boing Boing this week:
- Mind control through sound and light? La la la… I’m not listening!
- It’s possible to make beautiful music resemble like an alien encounter.
- AT&T is suing Verizon for comparing apples to apples.
- How does China prepare to host next year’s World Expo? By banning pajamas in public, of course.
See the rest here:
Friday Recap - Fine Fall Edition
