Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web.
Feeds
5540 items (5015 unread) in 3 feeds
Google
(325 unread)
-
Official Google Webmaster Central Blog (325 unread)
SEO
(4690 unread)
-
Emily Chang (347 unread)
-
Search Engine Roundtable
(4343 unread)
Search Engine Roundtable
-
Daily Search Forum Recap: April 18, 2008
Posted: April 18th, 2008, 10:55pm CEST by rustybrick
Tags: Search Forum Recap
-
Video Recap of Weekly Search Buzz :: April 18, 2008
Posted: April 18th, 2008, 7:20pm CEST by rustybrick
Tags: Search Buzz RoundUp
In this week's edition of the video search buzz, I talked about the Yahoo, Google and Live Search tax day updates. I also talked about the new Yahoo slap and a new AdWords slap. Google's bot is now crawling forms and Yahoo releases Slurp 3.0. Plus many more topics - make sure to watch to win search related schwag!
To win, watch the video and comment at this post below with the correct answer. Make sure to subscribe to our video feed or subscribe directly on iTunes to be notified of these updates and download the video in the background. Here is the YouTube version of the feed:
Some Of The Topics Discussed:
- Subscribe To Our New Video Podcast: Hosted By Barry Schwartz
- Tax Day Theme is Live
- Yahoo Search April 2008 'Tax Day' Update
- Microsoft Live Search April 2008 Update?
- Major Google UK Search Changes? 'Dewey' Crosses The Pond
- Possible Google AdWords Slap on April 12, 2008?
- Yahoo Jacks Up Advertisers Minimum By 2-4X Overnight
- Google Ads Now Live on Yahoo Search
- Google Now Crawling Content Behind Forms
- Yahoo Adds Slurp 3.0, Reminds Me Of Peanut Butter Memo
- Bigreds Sues Yahoo Over Click-Fraud For $1 Million
- Buy A Google-Plex Tour on eBay
- Google (GOOG) Stock Surges Overnight After Awesome Q1 Announcement
- Winners Announced in This Video
Please do subscribe via iTunes or on your favorite RSS reader. Don't forget to comment below with the right answer and good luck!
I may not be able to mail schwag outside of the United States.
-
Weekly Search Buzz Roundup - April 18, 2008: Tax Day, Search Engine Updates, The Yahoo Slap
Posted: April 18th, 2008, 6:15pm CEST by Tamar Weinberg
Tags: Search Buzz RoundUp
While you're all reading this, I'm in sunny (rainy?) Puerto Rico preparing for the Passover holiday. This means that you'll see a little less of Barry and me over the upcoming days, at least until the holiday ends. As for me, this isn't much of a vacation since I'm blogging, and why would I want to keep you away from search news? That would be unfair, wouldn't it?
By the way, we're still looking for sponsors for our weekly video series that summarize these events. If you're interested, tell Barry I sent you. Additionally, the schwag addict in me needs duplicates. Send lots. Cool? (kthx.)
Tax Day in the USA
Ah, the day I realize I hate more than ever this year. It was Tax Day on Tuesday, and we "celebrated" (for lack of better word) with a theme:
For what it's worth, the theme DID put a smile on my face, but tax day still sucks. I can't believe the government thinks it's entitled to about 50% of my wages.
Yahoo's Tax Day Update, and Microsoft is in a Similar Boat
In preparation for their own tax due date, Yahoo had a major reshuffling of search results. The sentiment? More Wiki pages on top and "really bad" traffic. On the Microsoft update front, there are "awful SERPs" and it's a "total disaster." With Google's Dewey shuffle, it's not looking good for any search engine right now.
Google 'Dewey' Update Hits the UK
Yup, speaking of which, the reshuffling is back, as the Google "Dewey" update is beginning to impact UK-based users. I, too, keep seeing shuffled results. Maybe I should report my findings to Matt after all.
Google's AdWords Slap, Yahoo Minimum Bids Live
On April 12th, advertisers reported a Google AdWords slap with $10 minimum bid rates. Our commenters saw the same behavior. Is the Yahoo Slap next? Nope, not yet. The Yahoo minimum bids are live but the costs aren't exorbitant. Actually, that's because (as we later learned) that only Yahoo's minimum bid interface is live, but not the new pricing. It'll happen soon, they say. Well, it just happened, prices surge for some advertisers.
And finally, on a similar note, Yahoo was displaying Google AdWords ads in search results as part of a test earlier this month. The test appears to have stopped early, then came back again, and the Wall Street Journal suggests that a partnership could be underway.
Google is Crawling Content Behind Forms
For the SEO-unsavvy webmaster, you're in luck. Google is beginning to submit GET forms and see the content behind web forms. For the SEO-savvy-but-really-want-privacy webmaster, you're going to have to tweak your code to prevent Google from doing it.
Google Sitelinks Update
Google has updated sitelinks for numerous sites and added other sites to the list. Are you one of them?
Yahoo Gets Slurp 3.0
A new Yahoo crawler, Yahoo Slurp 3.0, has been unleashed into the wild. Your biggest concern is that new IP addresses will be used which is important if you're using IP-based checking.
Blended Search Changes Behavior
We're starting to see that blended search is changing user behavior and people are more inclined to click on news stories, videos, and images than the regular blue link. It's time to optimize!
Flickr Video Support Added to Google Reader
Now that Flickr video is out, it was only a matter of time for Google Reader to support the videos. And they did this week. That didn't take long. :)
Google is an Informational Search Engine?
A Penn State study reported earlier says that 80 percent of Google searches are informational, whereas the remaining 20% is split about evenly into navigational and transactional queries. Do you agree with that?
Snake Oil SEO Firm Sued with $100K+ Fine
Eric Pender says it right. "It's firms like these that, in aggregate, can give our industry a black eye." Here we are, defining SEO standards, and there Internet Advancement is, lying about true SEO offerings. I'm sure folks are glad they got what they deserved...for the most part.
Yahoo Sued by Internet Retailer Bigreds
It seems that there's another lawsuit brewing this week. The news is that internet retailer Bigreds is suing Yahoo for $1 million for click fraud that they believe begun in 2002. They refused to settle for $17k, instead requesting nearly 100x as much. Good luck.
Google Local Gives Businesses More Leeway
How do you best feel like you want to represent your company? Well, if you're offering some adult services or something sketchy, chances are, Google doesn't have a pre-filled box for you to select your business type. No need to worry any longer. Google now gives you, the business owner, the ability to enter a category that you feel is the best fit for your company or business, so you can get more targeted business results.
Googleplex Entry Fee? It's Yours to Determine
An eBay auction of a tour of the Googleplex has surfaced in the interwebs this week. The winner gets an insider's view of the "best place to work." Proceeds go to Foundation for the Future, educational organization.
Google AdSense Allows "Choose Units" Reporting Option
For Google AdSense users, you can now filter your reports by a new field called "Choose Units" which lets you either view your results by Ad Units, Link Units, or the two combined. The Google AdSense Blog expounds on the features.
Get Your SEO Terms Straightened Out
It seems that more and more people are not understanding basic SEO terms. Look things up if you're not sure. Maybe this is why people are fighting for SEO standards... not that it would help someone who doesn't know where to look!
Google's Earnings Soar, Again
Google announced outstanding earnings, sending their stock price up 18% so far today. Profits were 30% higher and revenue was up 40%.
Have a wonderful weekend and subsequent week! Don't miss us too much! (I know those of you who are going to SMX Social Media are going to have to hold it in!)
-
Google Pays AdSense Publishers Larger Share Overall
Posted: April 18th, 2008, 2:45pm CEST by rustybrick
Tags: Google AdSense
Whenever Google announces earnings, we have a thread at WebmasterWorld that summarizes how much share Google is taking from the earnings AdSense publishers make.
So if you click on an AdSense ad on my personal blog, how much of that cost-per-click am I get and how much is Google getting.
Based on the earnings report, Google is taking 21% and the remaining 79% is going to me. Now, I doubt this is an exact number, because this includes premium publishers, special partners and so on. So I am sure some of those partners get a higher or maybe even a lower share than the typical AdSense publisher.
But overall, Google is being fair. In fact, Google seems to been paying out publishers more then they have done historically. The thread summarizes:
The past few quarters have been between 75% and 79%.
One other member has a nice post as well:
Revenues up 41%, earnings up 31% - doesn't sound like they're ripping anyone off to me. Now if revenues were up 30% and earnings were up 40%, that would be a different story.
Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.
-
Yahoo Jacks Up Advertisers Minimum By 2-4X Overnight
Posted: April 18th, 2008, 2:35pm CEST by rustybrick
Tags: Yahoo Search Marketing
Yahoo's new minimum bids are now official live, and several advertisers have posted their new minimum bid increases at both WebmasterWorld and Search Engine Watch Forums.
Each advertiser who noticed a change in their minimum bid said they noticed an increase by two to four times of their original minimum bid price. Here is a quote from the thread:
yahoo just raised my minimum bids by 3 -4 times on many keywords.. they must be out of their minds..
Some advertisers feel stranded, having to now deal with Google Slaps and now the Yahoo Slap.
Google was impossible. And now Yahoo. Where to go?
But this is the reality of the game now. If your quality does not meet the definition of quality at Yahoo or Google, you will pay for it.
Let's poll our audience... Did your minimum bid increase in Yahoo?
Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld and Search Engine Watch Forums.
-
Yahoo Ad Test on Google Continues
Posted: April 18th, 2008, 2:28pm CEST by rustybrick
Tags: Yahoo Search Marketing
Yesterday I reported that Google stopped running the Yahoo ads test that they started a week earlier and then asked why. I asked why would they stop the test early?
Well, the answer is that they did not. The individual we are tracking to see if the Google ads are live or not on Yahoo, saw that they went down. But now he is reported at Search Engine Watch Forums that the ads are currently showing again.
So I was premature in reporting that Google stopped testing the ads. They have continued the test and outlooks are continuing to look positive for advertisers and Yahoo, with this test.
Forum discussion continued at Search Engine Watch Forums.
-
Google Webmaster Tools Delists All Verified Sites?
Posted: April 18th, 2008, 2:20pm CEST by rustybrick
Tags: Google Optimization
There seems to be a major bug in Google Webmaster Tools where Google is telling virtually all webmasters that their sites are not indexed in Google. For example, I am personally getting the following message for all my sites:
Yes, that reads:
No pages from your site are currently included in Google's index. Indexing can take time. You may find it helpful to review our information for webmasters and webmaster guidelines.
Hmm, but this site is indexed in Google:
So, I would not worry, it just seems to be a display issue in Google Webmaster Tools. As you can imagine, there is a lot of forum noise about the issue.
Forum discussion at DigitalPoint Forums, HighRankings Forum and Google Groups.
-
Google (GOOG) Stock Surges Overnight After Awesome Q1 Announcement
Posted: April 18th, 2008, 2:11pm CEST by rustybrick
Tags: Other Google Topics
Can Google disappoint? I am personally don't get it, but I did help cover the announcement last night at Search Engine Land with Google Beats Forecasts With 30% Increase In Profit. The news is still dominating Techmeme, here is the overview:
Google's reported revenues of $5.19 billion for the quarter ended March 31, 2008 and a net income of $1.31 billion. Previous quarter revenues was $4.83 billion in Q4 and $3.66 billion in Q1 2007. Previous quarter income was 1.21 billion in Q4 2007. Google's shares are currently up over 12% in after market conditions, now at $506.87.
In short, they totally beat expectations and now their stock has climbed $77, 17% plus, overnight in after-market conditions.
The forums are buzzing about the news. Many are saying things like, "wow" and Google is making too much profit on their dime, and so on.
Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld,Search Engine Watch Forums and DigitalPoint Forums.
-
Daily Search Forum Recap: April 17, 2008
Posted: April 18th, 2008, 1:00am CEST by rustybrick
Tags: Search Forum Recap
Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web.