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.
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Google
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Official Google Webmaster Central Blog (325 unread)
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Emily Chang (347 unread)
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Search Engine Roundtable
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Search Engine Roundtable (6 unread)
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Daily Search Forum Recap: May 20, 2009
Posted: May 20th, 2009, 11:00pm CEST by rustybrick
Tags: Search Forum Recap
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Google Wants To Know If They Helped You Get Better Rankings
Posted: May 20th, 2009, 4:13pm CEST by rustybrick
Tags: Google Optimization
Google Webmaster Tools and Webmaster Central are tools I cannot believe SEOs ever lived without. Early on, many experienced SEOs were skeptical about the tools, but many of us have learned that the tools and advice are here to help us with our web sites.
Adam Lasnik, who I rarely hear from in the forums anymore, started a thread at Google Webmasters Help discussion area asking Webmasters to give Google case studies on if the Google Webmaster Central team has helped them or not. Adam said:
Did your website once scare away both users and Googlebot but -- after you put in some hard work and used the resources of Google Webmaster Central -- later turn into a success story?
Whether it was intelligence you gleaned from Webmaster Tools, insights you got from friendly Webmaster Help Bionic Posters, or wisdom you soaked up from our blog or Help Center, we'd love to know! So please take just a moment to brag to us and to your fellow webmasters, sharing your ugly-duckling-to-swan web site story.
I promise to share your positive vibes with all relevant Googlers (which will make their day!), and you might serve as an inspiration to your fellow webmasters, too! :-)
So, if you want to share your success, which you think is due in part of Google Webmaster Central, do join the thread at add your thoughts.
Forum discussion at Google Webmasters Help.
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Microsoft Getting Ready to Launch New Search Engine - Kumo? Bing? Live? MSN?
Posted: May 20th, 2009, 4:00pm CEST by rustybrick
Tags: Microsoft MSN Search
The exciting topic from last night was that Microsoft is demonstrating their search engine next week at the D: All Things Digital conference. It is expected that the search engine will go live at the SMX Advanced conference a week later.
Danny Sullivan has a nice write up on what we can expect from Microsoft. There are questions about when it is launching, what brand will it go under and how it will compete with Google. Microsoft is struggling in the area of both branding the engine and making it as good as Google. So we will see how the demo works out and if it can make a dent in Google.
Time will tell. I was wrong in 2004 when I said Microsoft will beat Google even if they aren't more relevant. I actually am happy that they did not and I am happy to admit I was wrong. I am now wiser to say, let's wait and see with what happens here.
Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.
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Earn More AdSense Money By Slowing Down Your Server
Posted: May 20th, 2009, 3:48pm CEST by rustybrick
Tags: Google AdSense
A WebmasterWorld thread has many experienced publishers talking about a tip they never talked about before. The tip is about how slowing down your server, actually increases your AdSense CTR and leads to higher earnings.
WebmasterWorld moderator, incrediBILL, said that by accident he noticed that when his server is slow and bogged down by traffic, his AdSense CTR climbs. As soon as he posted it, Moderator martinibuster and Senior Member, youfoundjake both said he let the secret out.
They both confirmed that slowing down your server will make people impatient and encourage people to click on the ads, assuming they load faster then the rest of the page.
One member points out that "smart pricing" is linked directly to how fast your pages load. So in the long run, it might hurt your earnings. But I guess if you make it slow enough to not be considered slow by Google's standard but yet slow enough to make people want to click on ads, you win?
In the past, we heard reports that speeding up your server increases AdSense earnings by as much as 25%.
Who knows? Do you think faster or slower servers have an impact on earnings? Take our quick poll:
How Does Speed Impact Google AdSense Earnings?(opinion poll)
Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.
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Google AdSense Webinar on Getting Paid Scheduled for Tomorrow
Posted: May 20th, 2009, 3:43pm CEST by rustybrick
Tags: Google AdSense
Google has been holding webinars for both new and expert AdSense publishers. The next webinar is tomorrow, Thursday, at 6.30 pm PDT. It is on the topic of getting paid.
The topic is named "Understanding the payment cycle" and is described as:
De-mystifying the AdSense payments system. Learn about the various payment options and understand the payment cycle.
One of the most discussed topics in the various AdSense forums are about payments, so a webinar devoted to payment topics, makes a lot of sense.
Keep in mind, Google caps the attendance to 500 people. So go register for the event now and don't forget to be there.
AdSense experts will be on hand to answer questions submitted from the audience.
Forum discussion at Google AdSense Help.
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Big List of Interview Questions for SEO Candidates
Posted: May 20th, 2009, 3:37pm CEST by rustybrick
Tags: SEM SEO Companies
We covered this topic twice in the past, including January 2008 and December 2007. A post by Ben McKay has 80+ SEO Job Interview Questions, which may be the biggest list of questions I have seen to date.
I am not sure asking 80 questions to an interviewee is good. But clearly, have 80 questions you can ask and fine tune based on how the interview is going, is nice to have. Since we figure there is roughly 7% unemployment in the SEO industry, there are clearly talented SEOs out there looking for work. There are also many companies still hiring SEO talent, so getting the best talent should be key. Interviewing is just on step of that process.
There are many blog posts on the SEO interview, just see Google.
Forum discussion at Sphinn.