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February 10, 2008 - February 16, 2008


Hello Google Porn

hello googleporn

Porn transmitted onHello.com, a Web site owned and operated by Google, helped catch an alleged predator in South Carolina. This isn't another mix-up about googleporn.com, one of more than 9,000 domains owned by Google, Inc.

Police nabbed the alleged child pornographer who sent more than 500 pornographic images and porn videos to a cop posing as a 13 year old boy.

Hello.com, a Google-Picasa social site that allows instant upload and transmission of pictures and video was the platform used by the suspect, high school teacher Timothy Lynn Brumit, 47, of Aiken, S.C. Amanda Stewart of Potomac News first reported the Google porn story on Saturday.

As Google scales social search as the "future of search" platform, its problems with porn and illegal activities - online and offline - have multiplied.

In 2005, police in Brazil arrested a gang of drug dealers who were using Google's Orkut social networking site to sell ecstasy and marijuana. Later the following year, Brazilian prosecutors threatened to shut down Orkut unless Google cooperated with police investigating child porn on the social search site.

Orkut allegedly published content promoting crime and child pornography. Federal prosecutors asked a judge to order Google in Brazil to disclose users' information or be closed down. The Brazilian prosecutors also asked Google to pay $61m (£32.2m) in fines for damages.

Prosecutors have been frustrated by Google's refusal to release identifying information so Brazilian authorities can pursue them for prosecution.
"In some cases Google has not even preserved the evidence we need to file charges against the pedophiles that use the Internet to spread their ideas," prosecutor Sergio Gardenghi Suiama said last year.

Microsoft and Yahoo have provided user information in similar cases, noted Suiama in a press conference last summer.

"We are reviewing the documentation we received today from prosecutors in Sao Paulo and will respond to their requests," Google said in a statement last August. "Google is committed to removing child pornography from Orkut and has been working with the authorities in several states in Brazil ... to deal with this problem through valid legal process."

SaferNet, a Brazilian non-profit organization, has alleged Orkut contains child pornography and other illegal content on user pages. Google says it removes child porn images and illegal content when it becomes aware of them.

Posted by Kevin Heisler on February 16, 2008, 7:01 PM | Permalink


Gathering of the SEM bloggers at Search Engine Strategies London

When Search Engine Strategies London gets underway on Tuesday, Feb. 19, there will be more than a dozen chieftans of the SEM and SEO blogging community gathered at the Business Design Centre in Islington.

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(I'd compare what will take place next week to a "gathering of the clans," except it involves a big bunch of SEM bloggers, not a large group of related people wearing kilts. Plus, it's taking place in England, not in Scotland. But, there may be some drinking of Scotch, so I think my analogy is not entirely off base.)

I've already mentioned a number of blog posts about SES London, including:
-- "Fredrick Marckini iProspect Exclusive SEO Interview with Dan Horton;"
-- Christine Churchill's "A Chat with Analytics Guru Jim Sterne;"
-- Simon Heseltine's "SES London 2008 Interview - Piers Stobbs;"
-- Massimo Burgio's "Pre-SES London interviews: Piers Stobbs, comScore;"
-- Lee Odden's “SES London: News & Blog SEO, Reputation Management;” and
-- Lisa Barone's “Gearing up for SES London!.”

(Lisa will be missing the show, but the other prominent search engine marketing industry bloggers will be there.)

But wait! There's more!

After watching a similar but different gathering of the clans on NESN, the New England Sports Network, this morning -- which broadcast the first workout of Red Sox pitchers and catchers during spring training live from Fort Myers -- I used Google Blog Search to discover more than a dozen other posts about Search Engine Strategies London.

This includes:

-- SES London 2008 - 10 Reasons To Attend. Mel Carson was doing quite a bit of work this weekend to clear the decks so he can immerse himself in all the sessions, all the talking, and he says that he might be found with a beer in his hand (instead of a Scotch) on some, if not all, of the evenings.

-- Andy Beal Speaking at SES London Feb 19-21. You'd think that being a British ex-pat, Andy Beal would have had many opportunities to speak at SES London in the past. Well, next week will actually be his first time speaking at the London event -- joining his good friend Mike Grehan.

-- SES London 2008. Pam Hoffman writes, "If you live and breathe search, or just want to know more about it, then Search Engine Strategies is for you. SES is a great show for anyone who wants to hear experts share their knowledge, find out about the latest developments and future technologies, and hone their search expertise."

-- Connectpoint to attend SES London 2008. Both Peter Young, Head of Online Marketing for Connectpoint, and Will Graham, the firm's Online Marketing Manager, will be attending Search Engine Strategies London. Pater says, "It is the first time we at Connectpoint will be attending one of the UK SEO showcase events, and definitely not the last."

-- SES London 2008 Interview - Jon Myers. Simon Heseltine also interviewed Jon Myers of Mediavest, a Manchester, England based firm. Jon is actually involved with 5 different sessions at this conference, but this interview deals directly with the Auditing Paid Listings & Click Fraud Issues session on Tuesday Feb 19th at 11am.

-- Reminder: Microsoft adCenter Team at SES London. Mel Carson also has another post that points out that quite a few of the members of the Microsoft adCenter Team are speaking at sessions throughout the conference.

-- Meals for the Day - 2/15/08. Okay, so this one is a bit of a mish-mash. But Jennifer Laycock meant to make chicken, asparagus and maybe some pasta for dinner, but she's been working for hours and hours on her PowerPoint for the training event after SES London and completely lost track of time.

-- SES Paris 2008 – Interesting Observation… Technically, this isn't about SES London. But, Mona Elesseily does say, "I can always get me some bangers and mash at SES London 2008 (starts on February 19 2008). (If you see Mona at the show, tell her she has "nice shoes." Trust me on this.)

-- SES London Preview. And, while this isn't a blog post, check out this preview of the upcoming SES London show with Kevin Ryan, Vice President and Global Content Director of Search Engine Strategies and SES London Chair Mike Grehan.

-- London to host search engine marketing event. Chris Bolwig of IceNews writes, "The event is seen as one of the most comprehensive SEM/SEO education opportunities in the UK or Europe and a number of highly-specialised sessions on search engine optimisation will be on offer. Search marketing guru Kristjan M. Hauksson, director of a growing Internet marketing company in Scandinavia, will deliver a session on ‘Dynamic Websites: Beyond the Basics'."

-- Search Engine Strategies sets agenda for London 2008. According to this news article, "This year's conference will be hosted by search marketing specialist Mike Grehan. Mike is recognized as one of the foremost SEM experts. He was voted one of the UK's top 100 influential people in Internet marketing in a poll of e-Consultancy's 22,000 UK members."

-- Search Engine Strategies. In this forum post, Fintan aka Wannabe Geek asks, "Any one going to Search Engine Strategies London - 19-21 February 2008 - the intersection of search, marketing & commerce in London this month?" There are lots of replies.

-- Anyone going to Search Engine Strategies 2008?. In another forum, Simon aka Figleaf asks, "Is anyone going to Search Engine Strategies in London 19-21 Feb? I think I will be going so if anyone fancies a meet up, drop me a line."

Now, I should disclose that SES London is a client. But, that's not so bad. While reading The Boston Globe this morning, I saw the most tortured disclosure statement that I've ever stumbled across. In his column, "It's live - but not lively," which is about NESN's live broadcast from Fort Myers, Dan Shaughnessy wrote, "Disclaimer: the New York Times Co., which owns the Globe, owns 17 percent of the Red Sox, who own 80 percent of NESN."

Now, that's something that I can discuss with the SEM bloggers gathering at Search Engine Strategies London -- over a Scotch, a beer, or some bangers and mash.

Posted by Greg Jarboe on February 16, 2008, 1:14 PM | Permalink


Social Media Buzz Pocket Mining: The New Keyword Research

The fundamental premise of search marketing remains revolutionary and timeless. We research what people care about and market (organic and paid) directly to SERPs for their queries. Classic keyword research reveals search frequency and phrase permutations to gauge marketplace interest. Lateral stemming thesaurus tools help us brainstorm frequently used alternate keyword clusters. For instance if your 're marketing "catering services," some customers are also searching for "wedding food" and "party planning." This is not earth shaking news to most.

However, keyword research's social-climbing step sister, "Buzz Pocket Mining" is not-so-quietly becoming the 800 pound gorilla next door. Buzz Pocket Mining refers to tools, usually free, that take the temperature of a social community's chatter patterns. What hot topics are people chirping about enmasse? What do social site SERPs reveal about the marketplace for your product? Who owns the thought leading authority profiles in any given community for a topic? What are the blogs of note? These are crucial questions for social search marketers who are considering forays into paid and organic social media marketing.

Each community has different methods and tools available to measure it's users' Buzz Pockets. One of my favorites is StumbleUpon's socially moderated SERPs. It's free, so let's have a look .

First, navigate to the StumbleUpon buzz page. This illustrates, at an overview level, what tags and sites are hot in SU. As an aside, getting your site to this level can mean 5K to 20K unique visitors in a day. Type gibberish into the search box (outlined in red) and submit.

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The search results for this nonexistent keyword offer a treasure trove of information revealing what StumbleUpon users are interested in. Depending on the demographic of the product you're marketing, this insight can truly be worth its weight in gold. The font size is proportional to community interest-level.

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Ok, say you're marketing candy bars. Yay! There's a relatively small (but statistically significant) chocolate Buzz Pocket in StumbleUpon. Click on "chocolate" in the Tag Cloud. The results are exciting. First, you'll note the SU users who are interested in chocolate. Yup that's me. I'm active in SU and happen to love chocolate. Make note of these users for one- to-one conversation marketing later. These are potentially valuable evangelists for your candy product. They've expressed interest in chocolate by the sites they've bookmarked and tagged.



Further down the page is a list of featured chocolate sites. Note: getting your site on this page can result in 300-1000 unique visitors over the course of several days, depending on the size of the Buzz Pocket. There's even more word-of-mouth value to be gained here. Click on the Chocolate Travel Tours link. Now you've identified a blog comments-thread to participate in order to grow your involvement in the chocolate blog community.

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Each social community presents a different methodology to mine: it's Buzz Pockets for social media marketing. The insights gleaned are invaluable while researching the likely success of SMO efforts. While traditional keyword research remains the cornerstone of search marketing, Buzz Pocket Mining is becoming more and more important as "marketing to the social graph" comes on line and evolves.

Posted by Marty Weintraub on February 16, 2008, 11:48 AM | Permalink


Search Headlines & Links: February 15, 2008

Want a snapshot of the day's search marketing news? Here we've collected today's top news stories posted to the Search Engine Watch Blog, along with search-related headlines from around the Web:

From the SEW Blog:

Headlines & News from Elsewhere:

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 15, 2008, 5:30 PM | Permalink


Win a Free Pass to SES New York with the SES Affiliate Program

You've seen all the reasons to attend SES London, and you can be sure that SES New York will be just as good, if not better. If you're planning on going, you probably want to tell your clients, readers, and friends. To make that worth your while, we've teamed up with Pepperjam Network to create the Search Engine Strategies Affiliate Program.

We'll supply you with unique SES banners, text links, and pepperjamADS to promote the Search Engine Strategies events. In return, bloggers and affiliates get 5% of each referred sale. To give you an idea of what that's worth, a full-conference pass to SES New York (coming up on March 17-20) costs $1,895. The commission on that would be $94.75.

Need even more incentive to join? SES and Pepperjam have another prize for the top affiliate. Between now and March 14, the affiliate or blogger that generates the most ticket sales through our new affiliate program will get a FREE full-conference pass to attend SES NY, as well as an exclusive VIP ticket to a Pepperjam-sponsored private dinner party, to be held at the Manhattan Penthouse in NYC the week of the show. Get all the details and sign up now for the Search Engine Strategies Affiliate Program from Pepperjam Networks.

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 15, 2008, 4:50 PM | Permalink


Seven reasons to slip over to Islington for SES London

Let's say you're a savvy, seasoned search engine marketer. You can easily send some of your junior staff members to Search Engine Strategies London, which is being held next week at the Business Design Centre. So, why would you want to slip over to Islington for a few days to attend SES London yourself?

Let me give you seven serious reasons:

1. Keynote Roundtable: The Changing Search World. This session on Wednesday, Feb. 20, at 9:00 a.m., will discuss the global impact of Microsoft's recent bid for Yahoo! Following an introduction from Nick Carr, author of The Big Switch, Rewiring the World, From Edison to Google, Kevin Ryan, Vice President, Global Content Director, Search Engine Strategies and Search Engine Watch, will host a panel of leading industry analysts and search experts that includes: Mike Grehan, SES London Co-Chair and Founder and CEO, Searchvisible Ltd.; Steven Kaufman, SVP Media Director, Digitas; Bryan Eisenberg, Co-Founder, Future Now Inc.; and Erica Schmidt, Global Director of Search, Isobar. Watch the Associated Press video interview of Kevin Ryan on Microsoft's Yahoo bid.

2. Opening Keynote: Fredrick Marckini, Chief Global Search Officer, Isobar. Fredrick founded iProspect and is recognized as a leading expert in the field of search engine marketing. He is speaking on Tuesday, Feb. 19, at 3:30 p.m. Fredrick has authored three of the SEM industry's earliest books, including Secrets to Achieving Top-10 Positions (1997), Achieving Top-10 Rankings in Internet Search Engines (1998), and Search Engine Positioning (2001). If you want an idea of what he'll be talking about, read "Fredrick Marckini iProspect Exclusive SEO Interview with Dan Horton."

3. Orion Panel: Universal, Blended and Vertical Search. This panel of industry gurus is being held on Tuesday, Feb. 19, at 4:45 p.m. Moderated by Kevin Ryan, the speakers on this panel include: Andrew Goodman, Principal, Page Zero Media; Adam Lasnik, Search Evangelist, Search Quality Team, Google; Mike Grehan; and Jeff Revoy, VP Yahoo! Search and Social Media, Yahoo! Europe.

4. Orion Panel: All Star Analytics Team. This panel of thought leaders is being held on Tuesday, Feb. 19, at 1:30 p.m. Moderated by Kevin Ryan, the speakers include: Brian Clifton, Head of Web Analytics, EMEA, Google; Bryan Eisenberg, Co-Founder, Future Now Inc.; Steve Jackson, Senior Consultant, Web Analytics & Search Marketing, SATAMA, & International Co-Chair, Web Analytics Association; Jim Sterne, Target Marketing & Chairman, Web Analytics Association; and Ian Thomas, Director, Customer Intelligence, Microsoft Advertiser & Publisher Solutions. To get a flavor of the session, read Christine Churchill's blog post, "A Chat with Analytics Guru Jim Sterne."

5. Searcher Behavior Research Update. This session is being held on Wednesday, Feb. 20, at 4:00 p.m. Moderated by Jon Myers, Head of Search, MediaVest, speakers include: Piers Stobbs, Vice President, ComScore Europe; Erica Schmidt, Global Director of Search, Isobar; Dr. Jon Dodd, Co-founder and Managing Director, Bunnyfoot; and John Marshall, CTO, Market Motive. For a preview of what one of the speakers plans to say, read Simon Heseltine's blog post, "SES London 2008 Interview - Piers Stobbs." Or read Massimo Burgio's blog post, "Pre-SES London interviews: Piers Stobbs, comScore."

6. My SEM Toolbox. This session is being held on Thursday, Feb. 21, at 2:15 p.m. Several search marketers share a variety of tools and services they find useful in performing SEO and SEM. Moderated by Mike Grehan, speakers include: Thomas Bindl, Founder and CEO, Refined Labs GmbH; Maxime Grandchamp, President, Trellian Europe; and Bruce Clay, President, Bruce Clay, Inc.

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7. News Search SEO. This session is being held on Wednesday, Feb. 20, at 10:30 a.m. Moderated by Anne Kennedy, Manager, Managing Partner, Beyond Ink, speakers include: Lee Odden, CEO, TopRank Online Marketing; Tim Gibbon, Director, Elemental Communications; and me. For a preview of what one of the speakers plans to say, read Lee's article, “SES London: News & Blog SEO, Reputation Management.”

As the title of Lee's article indicates, there are a lot more than seven reasons to attend SES London. I should disclose that Search Engine Strategies London is a client. So, don't take my word for it.

Read Lisa Barone's blog post over at BurceClay.com, “Gearing up for SES London!” She lists 16 sessions that “we think will give you the most bang for your SEO buck,” including all seven of the sessions listed above.

Or watch Mike Grehan's video clip on YouTube, which covers his take on the highlights of the upcoming Search Engine Strategies London conference.

So, you should give serious consideration to slipping over to Islington for a few days.

Posted by Greg Jarboe on February 15, 2008, 10:54 AM | Permalink


SEW Experts: Google PageRank: Simplified

Google's PageRank may be the single most divisive element in the search optimization game. In today's Outsourced column, "Google PageRank: Simplified," William Flaiz outlines the controversy surrounding Toolbar PageRank and its impact on SEO and link building strategies.

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 15, 2008, 12:00 AM | Permalink


SEW Experts: The Great Nofollow Link Debate of '08

What started as a way to stop comment spam three years ago has turned into one of the most controversial topics in search. In today's SEM Crossfire column, "The Great Nofollow Link Debate of '08," Chris Boggs discusses the evolution of the "nofollow" attribute and its impact on SEO and link building.

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 15, 2008, 12:00 AM | Permalink


SEW Experts: Universal Pictures: Optimizing Video for Search

We hear a lot about universal search and how it will keep SEO professionals on their toes with constantly evolving ranking algorithms. So how can local online advertisers take advantage of universal search? In today's Vertical Challenge column, "Universal Pictures: Optimizing Video for Search," local search expert Michael Boland explains that creating optimized online video is a great opportunity for local marketers that are on top of their SEO game.

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 15, 2008, 12:00 AM | Permalink


Google to Test Video Ads on SERPs

Google has begun testing video ads on its search results pages, according to a report in the New York Times. Marissa Mayer, Google's vice president of search products and user experience, told the Times that just as video ads are not effective on pages of text-based search results, text ads are not effective on search results with more multimedia elements, like Google's universal search results.

“With universal search, something is getting shaken up a bit on the bottom part of the page,” Mayer said. “The ads on the top part of the page should match.”

Initially, video ads will not be apparent to searchers until they take action. Text ads with accompanying videos will be marked with a plus sign. Clicking on that plus sign will expand the video ad, just as clicking on the plus sign in some local results expands to include a map.

Observant search marketers will not be surprised, as Mayer alluded to this in May when Google launched universal search. At that time, Mayer responded to a question about the potential effect on ads with, "This opens the door for introducing richer media into the search results pages."

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 14, 2008, 11:06 PM | Permalink


Microsoft Shuffles Execs, Berkowitz to Exit

Microsoft today announced the executive shake-up that has been rumored to be coming. Microsoft packed a number of promotions and departures into the press release. Most notable among them is the departure of Steve Berkowitz, who left Ask.com to join Microsoft nearly two years ago. Berkowitz will step down from his role as senior vice president of the Online Services Group at the end of August.

Satya Nadella has been named senior VP of the Search, Portals and Advertising Group, heading up Microsoft's engineering efforts across Live Search, Microsoft adCenter, and Subscriptions, Points and Billing platforms. Windows VP Bill Veghte moves up to senior VP of the Online Services and Windows Business Group, which will include Windows Live, MSN and Search.

Nadella, Veghte, and former aQuantive exec Brian McAndrews, now senior VP of Microsoft's Advertiser and Publisher Solutions Group, will play key roles in Microsoft's plans. No new role was named for McAndrews, leaving many to speculate that he is being held in reserve to lead an acquired Yahoo, if that should come to pass.

For in-depth looks at all the changes, see Mary Jo Foley's All About Microsoft blog or Joe Wilcox's Microsoft Watch. Om Malik has copies of Microsoft memos discussing the moves.

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 14, 2008, 10:42 PM | Permalink


Tag your Photobucket , Picasa and Flickr photos: SES London 2008

If you're going to Search Engine Strategies London next week, bring your camera or cameraphone. And, if you upload your pictures to Photobucket, Fox Interactive Media's site for uploading, sharing, linking and finding photos, videos, and graphics; Picasa, Google's photo organizer; or Flickr, Yahoo's online photo management and sharing application; then please tag your photos: SES London 2008.

We'll be posting our own pics from the event online -- and we'll be tagging them with the phrase: “SES London 2008” – and if you tag along with us, hopefully we'll all get found in that big photo album called Google Image Search.

If the photo sharing website you use happens to be Flickr, then we invite you to join us and post to the SES London 2008 group.

And while you're there, why not send a buddy request to your favorite Search Engine Marketing conference? We have photos from last month's SES Paris and we look forward to adding to the collection.

By the way, I want to encourage you to "take you best shot." At the end of Search Engine Strategies London, I will be selecting the Best Photo of SES London 2008, the Best Photos of SES London, and Best Photography of SES London 2008. (Don't ask me to explain my criteria. I'll know it when I see it.)

The prize for each one of these top search terms -- I mean, these prestigious awards? One static text link to your site.

Hey, that's all I got. Unless, of course, you get some really funny pictures of people who happen to have a few incriminating photos of me -- geotagged at one of the pubs near Islington. Not that I want to encourage that kind of behavior.

No, no. I'd much rather encourage you to photograph Kevin Ryan, Mike Grehan, Fredrick
Marckini, the Orion Panels, the conference sessions, the exhibitors, the crowds. You know. The photos that you can show your business colleagues.

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Something like the photo to the left, which was taken back in 2004 at Search Engine Strategies New York. I think I was speaking during the Balancing Organic & Paid Listings session on Thursday, March 4. Not that anyone really cares about the past anymore -- except maybe history majors.

But, the fact that you've read to the end of this blog post and are still hanging out at the bottom of this page with nothing but this silly text to keep you amused is proof of your deep and abiding interest in what we're planning in the future.

So, what are you waiting for? Bring your camera or cameraphone to Search Engine Strategies London next week and tag your photos: SES London 2008.

Posted by Greg Jarboe on February 14, 2008, 8:47 PM | Permalink


YouTube New Features - A Marketer's Perspective

It's been an interesting week for YouTube this week--especially for those of us working in SMO or SMM (social media marketing), who spend our days marketing clients through YouTube videos. On Tuesday, YouTube abruptly stopped counting and updating views for all videos. The "blackout" lasted about 40 hours, and during that time no videos moved in or out of Most Viewed lists, other than those that expired (i.e. they had been uploaded more than 48 hours ago and so could no longer be in the Most Viewed Today list).

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YouTube has admitted that they were having server problems, and that does seem to ring true. View counts have generally been updated at a slower pace recently, and many users have complained about issues watching newly uploaded videos. Some users think the view count freeze was a response to the plethora of Anonymous-vs-Scientology videos that have flooded the front page of YouTube recently. Whether that's true or not is up for debate. The Tom Cruise video remains on the site, and the Anonymous warning remains high on the Most Viewed for the Month list. The freeze count did occur on the same day as videos from global Scientology protests from the day before were uploaded, so it's hard to tell whether YouTube subscribes to the "Don't Be Evil" motto of its parent.

While the servers were acting up, the brains behind YouTube were at YouTube's Videocracy event in New York, where they debuted some cool new features for the video sharing site, including:
* Video recommendations based on your viewing habits
* Active Sharing
* Better Video Editing Tools
* Multiple Platform Distribution
* Advanced Analytics for view of your video

For marketers, the last point seems most important. Currently, you can only see the same data about your video that everyone else sees: how many views, comments and ratings the video received; the honors it acquired; and the top 5 sources of embedded views. These new analytics will give video publishers the ability to see where the viewers are geographically, and will hopefully give a breakdown of embedded views vs YouTube views, bounce rates, average time spent on the video, view/subscription and/or view/channel visit rates and other demographics—as well a complete list of embeds driving views.

This is the data we've been waiting for, that will finally let YouTube marketers know what methods work—and the real, intrinsic value of each view. Do some videos lead to more subscriptions? Do some videos appeal to a certain demographic? Are people watching the entire video—and which people are not leaving immediately?

Video recommendations and multiple platform distribution are important too. Finetuning your YouTube video collection could potentially mean someone watching more of your videos on TV, and a much larger potential audience. All these changes taken together should mean more views for savvy YouTube marketers—provided they fix those servers!

Posted by on February 14, 2008, 6:43 PM | Permalink


Search Headlines & Links: February 14, 2008

Want a snapshot of the day's search marketing news? Here we've collected today's top news stories posted to the Search Engine Watch Blog, along with search-related headlines from around the Web:

From the SEW Blog:

Headlines & News from Elsewhere:

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 14, 2008, 5:49 PM | Permalink


Adult Films Vivid Asks Google, Yahoo to Protect Kids

Vivid CEO Steven Hirsch, speaking at Yale University, will call on Google and Yahoo to take measures to keep explicit material from children, according to a company press release.

Regarding his upcoming address to graduate business students during Sex Week at Yale, Hirsch stated: "Responsible companies in the adult industry such as ours have done a great deal to deter minors from accessing adult material."

"None of the search engines and portals, but particularly Yahoo and Google, has taken any significant steps in this direction. Vivid will work with any company that is ready to make it much more difficult for children to be exposed, even inadvertently, to material intended only for adults. This is not about First Amendment rights, it is about protecting children," according to Mr. Hirsch.

An interesting move given the failure of the .xxx extension over the last few years. But a way to effectively keep children away through some advanced filtering is something that needs to be developed with the growing reach of the web. How this develops will be worth tracking.

Posted by Frank Watson on February 14, 2008, 4:44 PM | Permalink


AOL to Distribute Citysearch Content, Ads

Amidst all the secret talks of mergers and deals between the top search players, AOL and IAC have agreed to a distribution deal. AOL will publish local content and pay-per-click ads from Citysearch across the AOL network. Content will include editorial reviews, user reviews, merchant videos, and photos, to be distributed on sites like AOL CityGuide, AOL Local Search and MapQuest.

Citysearch gains targeted inventory and reach for their advertisers, and AOL gets Citysearch content and a share in the ad revenue.

“AOL has the largest local online network and this partnership gives us the ability to enhance our local experience, expand our reach by incorporating Citysearch's rich local content in our numerous local sites and improve monetization of our local properties through Citysearch's local advertising network,” John Kannapell, SVP of AOL Search, said in a statement. “The combination of the enhanced content and reach into new markets will also increase the premium local advertising inventory available to advertisers through Platform-A.”

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 14, 2008, 2:20 PM | Permalink


SEW Experts: Search Engine Marketing Career Development

Why would anyone want to become an SEM professional? Well, it's a hot, growing, in-demand field, and everyone wants a piece of it: corporate clients, interactive agencies, investors, search engines, and traditional agencies. In today's SEM.EDU column, "Search Engine Marketing Career Development," Ron Jones explains that what each party wants and how they're going to get it differs, but those who are trained and prepared can step in, close the talent gap, and benefit everyone involved.

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 14, 2008, 12:00 AM | Permalink


SEW Experts: SEOs, Don't Just Do Something, Sit There!

Conventional business wisdom for the 21st century seems to be that to prosper you must change. In today's Link Love column, "SEOs, Don't Just Do Something, Sit There!," Sage Lewis urges search marketers to adapt. The Internet has changed everything for everyone. If you don't believe and act on that, you won't survive, plain and simple.

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 14, 2008, 12:00 AM | Permalink


Yahoo Mails Letter to Shareholders: Full Text

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Yahoo mailed a letter to shareholders outlining the reasons the Board believes Microsoft's proposal significantly undervalues Yahoo and isn't in the best interests of Yahoo stockholders.

In the missive Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang emphasizes its strong brand, financial strength, strategic investments, technology, and relationships with marketers, reminding shareholders the company holds a leadership position.

The upside for Yahoo without Microsoft? Not surprisingly, Yang sees "a huge market opportunity" in the $45 billion online advertising market projected to grow to $75 billion in 2010.

A copy of the letter from CEO Jerry Yang follows:

Dear Stockholders,

On February 1, 2008, Microsoft made an unsolicited proposal to acquire your company. As much has been reported in the press recently, I wanted to reach out to you personally to let you know why your Board of Directors, after a careful review by Yahoo!'s management along with our financial and legal advisors, believes that Microsoft's proposal substantially undervalues Yahoo! and is not in the best interests of our stockholders.

Most importantly, I want you to know that your Board is continuously evaluating all of Yahoo!'s strategic options in the context of the rapidly evolving industry environment, and we remain committed to pursuing initiatives that maximize value for all our stockholders.

We have a unique combination of strengths

-- Yahoo! is one of the most recognizable and admired brands in the world. We have over 500 million users (nearly 1 out of every 2 internet users worldwide). In the U.S., we are # 1 in many of the most used online services including personalized home pages, mail, news, music, shopping and travel. Because we have leadership positions in so many indispensable online services, users spend more time on Yahoo! sites than anywhere else online.

-- Yahoo! is an attractive partner for marketers. Yahoo! is #1 in online display advertising, which represents 90% of the advertising inventory on the web, and we are also a leader in search marketing and a pioneer in the growing fields of mobile advertising and online video advertising. Through Yahoo!, advertisers can now connect with consumers on our owned sites as well as those of our growing network of partners including eBay, Comcast, AT&T, a consortium of over 600 newspapers, Forbes.com, Cars.com, WebMD and more.

-- Yahoo! has the financial flexibility to execute our plans, thanks to our healthy cash balance, which exceeded $2 billion as of December 31, 2007, and our substantial operating cash flow, which we expect to grow double digits in 2009.

-- Yahoo! has made important investments in our core computing infrastructure enabling us to dramatically increase the speed of our search engine updates even while handling vast and growing quantities of data.

-- In addition, we have the added value of our substantial, unconsolidated investments in Japan and China. We have substantial positions in Yahoo! Japan, the leader in its market, and Alibaba, which is strongly positioned in China, a market with enormous growth potential.

These assets--our brand and its audience, our relationships with marketers, our financial strength, our technology, and our strategic investments--are the core of our value and our leadership position in the industry.

We have a huge market opportunity - and are uniquely positioned to capitalize on it

The global online advertising market is projected to grow from $45 billion in 2007 to $75 billion in 2010. And we are moving quickly to take advantage of what we see as a unique window of time in the growth - and evolution - of this market to build market share and to create value for stockholders.

We are executing our strategy - and making headway

We have taken significant but disciplined steps to refocus our business on our objectives to become the starting point for the most consumers and the must buy for the most advertisers and enhance Yahoo!'s long-term performance.

Starting Point Objective: Our goal is to grow visits to key Yahoo! starting points and properties, where users enter the Internet, by 15% per year over the next several years. We are the most visited site in the U.S., and we continue to grow - we experienced double-digit growth in U.S. users in 2007 on our Yahoo.com home page.

In addition to traditional starting points on the PC - including our home pages, mail, My Yahoo! and search, we are particularly excited about our growth prospects in mobile, the biggest emerging starting point in the world. Globally, there are twice as many users of mobile devices as users of personal computers, and mobile advertising is projected to grow substantially in the coming years. We have an important competitive edge as the number one mobile destination in the U.S., and we are building a superior mobile experience for Yahoo! users globally so we can further capitalize on this opportunity.

Must Buy Objective: We are working to make online advertising easier and more effective for marketers, opening up new ways for them to connect with consumers. We've successfully completed the global roll-out of our search marketing system, Panama, which improved the search experience for our users, boosted returns for our advertisers, and increased revenue for Yahoo!. Last year, we bought Right Media, an exchange that enables buyers and sellers of online advertising to come together. Another 2007 acquisition, Blue Lithium, brings us best-in-class performance marketing capabilities, complementing Yahoo!'s existing offerings for advertisers. We also integrated our search advertising and display advertising sales forces, creating a one-stop shop for all of advertisers' online marketing needs. All of these - Panama, Right Media, Blue Lithium, and our combined sales efforts - complement and enhance Yahoo!'s existing capabilities and will make it easier for advertisers and online publishers to buy and sell advertising online.

We are also creating a unique and valuable network of premium websites to serve our advertisers. We are making it easier for our advertisers to provide interesting and relevant offers to our users by combining advertising space on Yahoo!'s owned sites with that from a growing group of premium partners including eBay, Comcast, AT&T, a consortium of over 600 newspapers and many others.

As we reach more users both on our own websites and on the sites of our premium partners, and better monetize the ad space on Yahoo!'s owned and operated sites, we are striving to increase the percentage of total online advertising demand we touch from an estimated 15% in 2007 to 20% over the next several years.

These key strategies will be enhanced by our adoption of new, more open technology platforms that will encourage the development of new applications and the involvement of third-party developers - and help enrich the user experience.

We have accomplished a great deal in a very short time - and we are focused on building this momentum

Today, Yahoo! is a faster-moving, better-organized, more nimble company than it was just a few months ago. We have redeployed our resources to drive Yahoo!'s key strategic priorities - taking important steps to streamline our organization and close down or scale back businesses that don't support these critical growth initiatives. The fact is that we are well on our way to transforming the experiences of Yahoo!'s users, advertisers, publishers and developers - an important shift that is at the heart of our plan to create stockholder value.

I want you to know that the Yahoo! Board of Directors and management team remain committed to pursuing initiatives that maximize value for all our Yahoo! stockholders. This is a great company and we are moving quickly to make it even better.

Jerry Yang

Posted by Kevin Heisler on February 13, 2008, 9:21 PM | Permalink


Search Headlines & Links: February 13, 2008

Want a snapshot of the day's search marketing news? Here we've collected today's top news stories posted to the Search Engine Watch Blog, along with search-related headlines from around the Web:

From the SEW Blog:

Headlines & News from Elsewhere:

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 13, 2008, 5:55 PM | Permalink


Largest Legal Vertical Search Engine Launches: Public Library of Law

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The world's largest legal vertical search engine launched today in a partnership with legal research provider Fastcase, Inc. Public Library of Law (pLoL) may be more of a directory than a search engine, even though Fastcase CEO Ed Walters says it makes"first-time legal research as easy as using Google."

That's what Yahoo and Microsoft said and look where it got them.

The PLol.org site indexes cases from the U.S. Supreme Court, Courts of Appeals and all 50 states (back to 1997); federal statutory law and codes from all 50 states; and regulations, court rules, and constitutions.

More than 2 million pages of cases previously available only by subscription make PLoL the largest free legal search engine online.

Last November, a Fastcase deal with PublicResource.org made 1.8 million pages of federal cases available in the public domain. Fastcase now boasts what it calls "free links to paid content." Now there's an original idea -- make blue links free!

While domains are at a premium these days, the combination of "LOL," "dot org," and "p" as in public cries out for brand rehab.

Google and Yahoo tried to help Fastcase sell legal docs to the general public via search back in September 2006. Fastcase powered "premium legal search" in Google and Yahoo by making their extensive law library – previously only accessible on a subscription basis – available for $4.99 per case.

We'd ask Fastcase the Dr. Phil question ("So how's that workin' out for ya?") but the answer arrived today.

Posted by Kevin Heisler on February 13, 2008, 2:31 PM | Permalink


Doodle 4 Google: Artsy-Craftsy March Madness

"Doodle 4 Google," a brutal, nationwide UGC competition Google launched today, pits kindergarteners against high school seniors in a Darwinian graphic arts contest to design a Google logo inspired by the question, "What If...?"

Attention professional artists and graphic designers: your kids have a homework assignment for you!

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The winning student's (or mom's/dad's) doodle will be shown on Google's homepage (May 22, 2008); U.S. champion "doodler" wins $10,000 college scholarship and a $25,000 technology grant for his/her elementary school, middle school, or high school. (Can winner switch prizes?)

(Winner's strategy: attend Cooper Union art school in NYC. Tuition is listed at $31,500 per year. But don't tell your parents: Every student gets a full tuition scholarship and is not responsible for tuition-related costs! Pocket the Google cash).

The "Doodle 4 Google" competition, open to U.S. citizens only:

K-12 students (Junior high bullies trounce kindergarteners!) eligible, plus lesson plans to help guide students (if your public school art class wasn't deleted by budget cuts!)

Google has suggested questions, too. (Our helpful questions? In parentheses.)

"What if...I could see into the future?" (Buy or sell Google shares?)

"What if....I could build any kind of invention I wanted?" (Facebook killer or Google killer?)

A panel of independent judges, Google employees and you, the public, will help select the final four. (Googley March Madness!)

Judged on artistic merit, creativity, representation of the theme ... and, in the grand Google tradition, the mystery quality score metric: "other criteria."

Google (mystery judges?) choose the prize winner and spill the beans at Google HQ on May 21, 2008. Teachers: register your class online by going to www.google.com/doodle4google. before March 28.

All entries must be postmarked (???) by April 12, 2008. Postmarked? (Doodle before doing your taxes! And don't mix up the envelopes.)

Click here for more info, details, videos and past doodles.

Image files of past Google doodles are available at:

www.google.com/doodle4google/press.html and broadcast quality video is available at www.thenewsmarket.com/google.

In a statement, the Google said, "The customization of the Google logo started in 1999, and these "doodles" are now designed almost exclusively by Google Webmaster Dennis Hwang, whose work is seen by millions every time he exhibits on the Google homepage. Dennis has creatively depicted worldwide events, anniversaries and holidays with doodles that incorporate the Google logo for the world of users to celebrate."

Posted by Kevin Heisler on February 13, 2008, 1:28 PM | Permalink


YouTube Channel launched for SES London 2008

Andrew Lipsman, an analyst at ComScore Media Metrix, recently told the Los Angeles Times that the writers strike drove a record number of restive viewers to the Internet in December. It was the single heaviest month for online video viewing since ComScore started tracking such results back in January 2007. People watched more than 10 billion video streams on their computers, including CrunchGear.com's hands-on with TI's prototype Android phone, which had drawn 30,911 views on YouTube as of this morning.

In fact, YouTube has been the biggest beneficiary of this trend, as the number of videos streamed on the site surged 12% from November to December. That's well above the steady growth rate in online video consumption, Lipsman told the LA Times. The average time visitors spent watching videos online increased seven minutes from 104 to 111 minutes a month.

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So, it seems like the perfect time for Search Engine Strategies to launch its own YouTube Channel – the SESConferenceExpo's Channel – just before SES London gets underway next week.

The Search Engine Strategies (SES) Conference & Expo Channel currently has three video clips – but more will be added during next week's event, which is being held at the Business Design Centre in London, UK, from February 19-22, 2008. That's in Islington, mate!

The top video clip, which was added yesterday, features and interview with Rebecca Lieb, Vice President and Editor-in-Chief of the ClickZ Network, about AOL's prospects in light of Microsoft's unsolicited bid for Yahoo. The interview originally appeared on CNBC's Media Money program on February 4, 2008. The video clip was provided by Ann Shannon and the team at PAN Communications.

In fact, the recent possibilities presented with a Microsoft/Yahoo combination will be discussed at Search Engine Strategies London during The Keynote Roundtable: The Changing Search World. Attendees will have front row seats to these industry-shaping events as they unfold.

Following an introduction from Nick Carr, author of The Big Switch, Rewiring the World, From Edison to Google, a group of search experts and analysts will discuss the impact of these changes in an interactive format. Kevin Ryan, Vice President, Global Content Director, Search Engine Strategies and Search Engine Watch, will be the moderator. The speakers include: Mike Grehan, SES London Co-Chair and Founder and CEO, Searchvisible Ltd.; Steven Kaufman, SVP Media Director, Digitas; Bryan Eisenberg, Co-Founder, Future Now Inc.; and Erica Schmidt, Global Director of Search, Isobar.

Also on the SES YouTube Channel is a video clip with Market Motive's CEO Michael Stebbins and CTO John Marshall, which was added a week ago. They discuss the company's on-demand video training, Q&A and direct conference calls with six of the top online marketing consultants – several of whom are speaking at SES London. John and Michael also explain their partnership with SES London and the special offer that they're making to conference attendees: a free month's subscription to MarketMotive.com.

For those of you who admire the quality of the videography, it was shot and edited by John Zukowski of Azimuth Productions / Video San Francisco.

Finally, the third YouTube video for SES London is my interview with Nick Carr, who will also be a keynote Speaker at SES New York. I chat with Nick about his new book, The Big Switch, which examines the future of computing and its implications for business and society, and about his introduction to The Keynote Roundtable at Search Engine Strategies London.

The video production company that created and produced this video clip is Diginovations, winners of the Platinum VISTA Award for Best Corporate Video from the National Professional Videographers Association for three of the last four years.

Added a week ago, this video clip of my interview with Nick already had more than 780 views as of this morning. Okay, so that not even close to comedian Judson Laipply's “Evolution of Dance,” which has drawn 74 million views on YouTube. But, while I should disclose that SES London is a client, I have to confess that I only got around to promoting this video clip today.

How did it rack up so many views, then? Well, Jasdev Dhaliwal's The Web Pitch gave it a plug even before I could get around to publicizing the video clip myself. That's what I love about social media.

Posted by Greg Jarboe on February 13, 2008, 8:33 AM | Permalink


UK search marketing survey goes live

Online publisher E-consultancy in conjunction with search agency Neutralize (*\*) are conducting follow up research to last year's widely read 2007 UK Search Engine Marketing Benchmark Report, which contained a comprehensive analysis of the UK Search environment.

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This year's research will cover online marketing budgets and the effectiveness of search marketing, as well as looking at the use of social media. Those taking part in this year's survey will receive a free copy of the ensuing 2008 UK Search Engine Marketing Benchmark Report.

Lotte Mahon, marketing manager at Neutralize (*\*), said in a press release issued this morning, “We are really looking forward to working with E-consultancy on the 2008 report. Last year's results offered a unique insight into UK Search Engine Marketing and the report received a wealth of positive feedback. We are aiming for an increase in respondents this year so I would urge everyone involved in the industry to give us their valuable opinions!”

The online survey, which is open to both advertisers and agencies, will be live until Thursday, March 6, 2008. Those wishing to complete the survey should go to http://tinyurl.com/3al59r.

More than 700 digital marketers responded to last year's survey, including just under 400 client-side search marketers and more than 250 agencies.

Highlights from last year's report included:
• Just under half of respondents (48%) said that their companies carried out paid search exclusively in-house. Some 57% of companies were doing SEO exclusively in-house.
• On average, company respondents said that they spent 32% of their total marketing budget on online marketing. On average, they spent a third of their online marketing budget on Search.
• Overall, respondents said that SEO was more important than PPC in terms of impact on brand.
• Google was viewed as the best search engine across a range of criteria. However, half of respondents believed that Google had an unhealthy dominance of the UK search marketplace.
• According to company respondents, lack of internal resource was the biggest problem preventing success for both Paid Search and SEO (natural search).

Go to http://www.e-consultancy.com/publications/search-engine-marketing-report-2007/ for more details about last year's report.

Posted by Greg Jarboe on February 13, 2008, 3:01 AM | Permalink


Yahoo Layoffs Top 1,000 Employees in U.S.

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Yahoo layoffs may top 1,000 employees before the U.S. mass layoff ends.

When 50 or more new claims for unemployment benefits are received from one company in a month, government statisticians designate it a mass layoff.

If the layoff lasts more than 31 days, it's called an extended mass layoff. This one? Massive.

Techmeme has excellent coverage of individuals who've made their job loss public or blogged about their experience. No stigma. No badge of shame.

Signs of the subprime times we live in.

Posted by Kevin Heisler on February 13, 2008, 12:35 AM | Permalink


SEW Experts: Landing Page Optimization Defined for SEM

Search marketers need to be concerned about landing page optimization because it can multiply the impact of your search marketing campaigns. In today's By the Numbers column, "Landing Page Optimization Defined for SEM," Eric Enge explains that understanding what you're trying to do with your site, and how visitors will interact with it, are the first key steps down the road to optimizing conversions.

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 13, 2008, 12:00 AM | Permalink


SEW Experts: The Search Monopoly Transforms

Google, Yahoo, and MSN have been going at it like cats and dogs in the press. Much of the hype surrounding the three tech powerhouses coming together in the United States centers around a monopoly discussion. In today's Searching for Meaning column, "The Search Monopoly Transforms," Kevin Ryan looks at the changing search landscape.

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 13, 2008, 12:00 AM | Permalink


Search Headlines & Links: February 12, 2008

Want a snapshot of the day's search marketing news? Here we've collected today's top news stories posted to the Search Engine Watch Blog, along with search-related headlines from around the Web:

From the SEW Blog:

  • You Must Be 21 to View This Site: Yahoo Searchlight Award
    The third annual Yahoo Searchlight Award winner: "Partay" the whitest boys in the room hip-hop video promoting the responsible consumption of Smirnoff Raw Tea by search marketing firm Outrider.
  • Yahoo OneSearch T-Mobile vs Google vs Nokia
    The players change partners as the mobile phone is fast becoming the gateway to the Internet, Wireless Web and local search.
  • Find Your Dream Job with the New SEW Job Boards
    If you're reading Search Engine Watch, it's likely that your skills are in demand, or soon will be, if you're just starting out. To help you make the most of your search marketing skills, we've launched the Search Engine Watch Job Board.
  • SEW Experts: High Performance SEO Requires Fast Load Times
    Many large companies assume that site speed isn't very important to the overall user experience, but they'd be wrong.
  • SEW Experts: Microsoft Responds to Yahoo: a Micro, Who Cares?
    Who wins or loses the Microhoo battle won't change the mission of most search marketers: helping clients or employers acquire leads and customers, and generating online sales.
  • SEW Experts: SEO Outsourcing: Don't! Until You Read This
    One basic rule in life: it's difficult to buy things you don't understand. SEO can be difficult to understand, especially for marketing folks who'd rather put the search budget into PPC campaigns.
  • One basic rule in life: it's difficult to buy things you don't understand. SEO can be difficult to understand, especially for marketing folks who'd rather put the search budget into PPC campaigns
    CNN will soon launch iReport.com for citizen journalists. News sharing is a natural next step, because people already send far more videos and images than CNN could ever show online or on air.
  • Microsoft Won't Take "No" for an Answer
    Microsoft made it clear that it would continue with its plans to acquire Yahoo, one way or another.

Headlines & News from Elsewhere:

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 12, 2008, 6:30 PM | Permalink


You Must Be 21 to View This Site: Yahoo Searchlight Award

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Warning: You must be 21 years of age to view this site.

You must be of legal purchase age to enter the corrupt world of this online video / search campaign -- winner of the Yahoo Searchlight Awards.

The third annual Yahoo Searchlight Award winner: "Partay" the whitest boys in the room hip-hop video promoting the responsible consumption of Smirnoff Raw Tea by search marketing firm Outrider.

Target demographic for search ads: Who cares? Par-tay! You don't have to type in your age to click on a "Crizazy" text ad for Russian hooch.

Don't agree with the winner? Don't blame the judges. All, including Kevin Ryan, were limited to "one man, one vote" while the big audience voted electronically.

That'll teach interactive agencies not to send a whole crew to an awards ceremony.

Funniest line: Ron Belanger called Kevin Ryan, "The Howard Stern of Search."

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2nd Funniest line: What world-famous comedian and emcee Craig Ferguson called Kevin Ryan.

To find the answer, go to the Search Engine Strategies blog.

For more drunken rap videos in the East vs West Rap WarGames, go to TeaPartay.com. (No link love for preppie rappers.)

Outrider copywriter say, IF YA WANNA ROLL WIT DA TEA PARTAY WE NEED TO KNOW YOUR AGE PLAYA. Submit, yo.

Posted by Kevin Heisler on February 12, 2008, 6:15 PM | Permalink


Yahoo OneSearch T-Mobile vs Google vs Nokia

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While the Google vs. Nokia global battle escalates (GPS-enabled Nokia phones vs. Google Android-driven handsets), the mobile phone is fast becoming the gateway to the Internet, Wireless Web and local search.

You can imagine the frantic calls lately between Silicon Valley and Redmond:

Steve: "Jerry, have your people call my people."
Jerry: "Frack off, Steve."

Yahoo announced a strategic partnership today with T-Mobile in Europe. Yahoo! oneSearch will become the exclusive mobile search service for T-Mobile's 11 European markets by the end of next month. Yahoo! oneSearch is designed for mobile phones to deliver relevant results and instant answers without navigating through a sea of blue links.

A number of Yahoo! oneSearch partnerships have been announced in the last year. Since introducing Yahoo! oneSearch in early 2007, Yahoo! has signed partnership agreements with more than 29 mobile operators covering more than 600 million mobile subscribers worldwide.

In a statement, Marco Boerries, execute vice president, Connected Life, Yahoo, said, "When we created Yahoo! oneSearch, we had a belief that mobile search was not the same as PC search. A fundamentally different approach was required, one that included different usage models and results filtering. Most importantly, we believed there was no guarantee that success in PC search would automatically translate into similar success in mobile search, creating a real opportunity for those who innovate."

Recent strategic Yahoo! oneSearch partnerships include AT&T (United States), a global framework agreement with America Movil (16 countries across Latin America), a partnership with Rogers Wireless (Canada), partnerships with 16 operators (Asia Pacific Region), and an agreement with Telefonica (portals in 15 countries in Europe and Latin America). Yahoo! will be the exclusive or preferred mobile search service on the carrier portal.

Yahoo! oneSearch has added Flight Tracker, movie reviews (critics and UGC), and movie trailers (select carriers/handsets), along with Yahoo! Answers and Wikipedia. If you're lucky enough to read this at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Yahoo will discuss its strategy for the local mobile search ecosystem.

Or, if you're in New York, join the Search Engine Watch, Search Engine Strategies, and ClickZ teams at the Yahoo Search Spotlight Awards.

Posted by Kevin Heisler on February 12, 2008, 9:02 AM | Permalink


Find Your Dream Job with the New SEW Job Boards

If you're reading Search Engine Watch, it's likely that your skills are in demand, or soon will be, if you're just starting out. To help you make the most of your search marketing skills, we've launched the Search Engine Watch Job Board. Job seekers can post an anonymous resume, view jobs, and create job alerts. Employers and recruiters can pay by the post or get a discount for buying multiple-posting packs. They can also browse resumes and only pay for the ones they want to contact.

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 12, 2008, 12:00 AM | Permalink


SEW Experts: High Performance SEO Requires Fast Load Times

Many large companies assume that site speed isn't very important to the overall user experience, but they'd be wrong. In today's Big Biz column, "High Performance SEO Requires Fast Load Times," Aaron Shear explains that slow load times, compounded by other network issues, can both create a horrible user experience and impact organic search rankings.

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 12, 2008, 12:00 AM | Permalink


SEW Experts: Microsoft Responds to Yahoo: a Micro, Who Cares?

Who wins or loses the Microhoo battle won't change the mission of most search marketers: helping clients or employers acquire leads and customers, and generating online sales. In today's Search Engine WarGames column, "Microsoft Responds to Yahoo: a Micro, Who Cares?," Kevin Heisler recounts last night's industry meet-up in New York.

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 12, 2008, 12:00 AM | Permalink


SEW Experts: SEO Outsourcing: Don't! Until You Read This

One basic rule in life: it's difficult to buy things you don't understand. SEO can be difficult to understand, especially for marketing folks who'd rather put the search budget into PPC campaigns, which are easier to understand and buy.In today's au Natural column, "SEO Outsourcing: Don't! Until You Read This," Mark Jackson discusses the basics everyone should be asking during the RFP (request for proposal) stage, and offers a free SEO RFP template.

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 12, 2008, 12:00 AM | Permalink


CNN Wants News Mojo From the People

CNN%20i-Report.JPGCNN wants news mojo from the people -- and will soon launch iReport.com for citizen journalists.

News sharing is a natural next step, because people already send far more videos and images than CNN could ever show online or on air. According to MediaWeek, CNN uses only 10 percent of all contributions through its current iReport functionality.

Today when you upload video to the CNN site, your content is thoroughly vetted. With this News “You Tube” service, both terrific and terrible videos will get shared there.

Susan Grant, EVP of CNN News Services, welcomes all the noise. CNN will allow all content to be shared, but remove objectionable items when they feel it's necessary.

Unfortunately, CNN won't get the most mojo! They decided to launch a new iReport destination, and even spent $750k to secure two domain names. There could be many reasons for doing this, but traffic didn't enter into this decision.

From a search marketing perspective, it's baffling that CNN isn't able to leverage their brand, authority, link love and traffic within the mother domain. My sympathies are extended to CNN's online marketers and techies, who are figuring out all possible ways to optimize this new destination. It's a lot more work.

To me, it would be far better if CNN tried to create a nice, big searchable world of professional and user-generated news content. If CNN really wants mojo, then they should open up directly to people -- at least on a branded CNN sub-domain. Take a calculated risk here.

Posted by on February 11, 2008, 10:40 PM | Permalink


Microsoft Won't Take "No" for an Answer

Yahoo's board of directors may have spurned its advances, but that's not going to stop Microsoft in its effort to acquire Yahoo. In a statement released this afternoon, Microsoft made it clear that it would continue with its plans, one way or another:

It is unfortunate that Yahoo! has not embraced our full and fair proposal to combine our companies. Based on conversations with stakeholders of both companies, we are confident that moving forward promptly to consummate a transaction is in the best interests of all parties.

We are offering shareholders superior value and the opportunity to participate in the upside of the combined company. The combination also offers an increasingly exciting set of solutions for consumers, publishers and advertisers while becoming better positioned to compete in the online services market.

A Microsoft-Yahoo! combination will create a more effective company that would provide greater value and service to our customers. Furthermore, the combination will create a more competitive marketplace by establishing a compelling number two competitor for Internet search and online advertising.

The Yahoo! response does not change our belief in the strategic and financial merits of our proposal. As we have said previously, Microsoft reserves the right to pursue all necessary steps to ensure that Yahoo!'s shareholders are provided with the opportunity to realize the value inherent in our proposal.

Judging by that statement, it seems that Microsoft plans to push its original $31-per-share offer directly to shareholders in an effort to force the Yahoo board's hand.

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 11, 2008, 9:57 PM | Permalink


Search Headlines & Links: February 11, 2008

Want a snapshot of the day's search marketing news? Here we've collected today's top news stories posted to the Search Engine Watch Blog, along with search-related headlines from around the Web:

From the SEW Blog:

Headlines & News from Elsewhere:

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 11, 2008, 5:42 PM | Permalink


Israeli Town Suing Google

Seems Google is being sued by a northern Israeli town because Google Maps claims it was built on an old Arab village, according to the International Herald Tribune.

This one will be interesting to watch, though one would think a simple correction would suffice.

The information was put into Google Maps by a Palestinian doctor, Thameen Darby, "raised in the northern West Bank town of Jenin, said his mother was a refugee from to the village Balad al-Sheikh near Kiryat Yam. He said his contributions to Google Earth are part of the "Nakhba -- Palestinian Catastrophe" information hub aimed to help displaced Palestinians understand their heritage or find the villages of their parents or grandparents," the International Herald Tribune reported.

Posted by Frank Watson on February 11, 2008, 4:04 PM | Permalink


Kevin Heisler Speaking Tonight in NYC

If you need something to do after work in NYC tonight Kevin Heisler is speaking at the Aspen Forum in a presentation called SEO Super Powers.

Kevin you should have let us know earlier so we could have gotten a crew together. Hope you let us know how it went.

The gathering is part of MeetUp.com - which is becoming very popular.

Posted by Frank Watson on February 11, 2008, 3:52 PM | Permalink


What's it Really Like to Work at Google?

Many of us have have heard tales about Google’s storied culture, lifestyle, and talented employees. Yes, we’ve also heard about the food! Take a moment and dig into the details with Avinash Kaushik. He shares what it’s truly like to work at Google, hang out with the beautiful people, dream in color, create, and manufacture atomic powered ideas from intellectual metal.

He's just published an emotionally introspective post, 10 Insights From 11 Months Of Working At Google, in which he freely shares specifics as concern day to day life among Googlers.

Who Is Avinash Anyway?
In the world of search marketing there are precious few true analytics luminaries. Avinash Kaushik is a consensus master in taking analytics to the “actionable” level.   He also happens to work at the Googleplex making his creative wit extremely influential. His personal blog, Occam’s razor, is nearly universally respected by SEM professionals, revered by some.

Google’s Analytics Evangelist
Many readers know that Google Analytics is an powerful (and free) analytics package offered by Google to it's users. Used effectively in tandem with AdWords PPC, rudimentary (albeit powerful) conversion tracking can be set up.  Avinash is currently contracted as Google's in-house Analytics Evangelist, rolling up his pragmatic/esoteric sleeves.

Here are the categories by which the analytics master segments the blessed Google life. Avinash says "ten insights from / cool things about / reasons for / delightful surprises from almost a year of working at Google."

#10 The amazingly fantastic food and impressive digs.
# 9: “Micro Efficiencies”
# 8: A company that truly cares.
# 7: Brain expansion opportunities.
# 6: The sheer amount of brilliant Google employees.
# 5: Empowerment (The big small company).
# 4: The scale of your impact.
# 3: Doing Good: Green & .org
# 2: It’s a happening place. The energy, the vibe, the passion.
# 1: The brand."

No doubt the matrix outlined above has been given due thought by Avinash. The post is worth a read for the pictures alone. Thanks for the terrific insight  Avinash.

Posted by Marty Weintraub on February 11, 2008, 2:06 PM | Permalink


Another AOL Exec Leaves

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AOL says aloha to strategic ad exec Dave Morgan, founder of AOL-acquired Tacoda.

From a leadership standpoint, huge loss. Morgan was EVP Global Advertising Strategy. His departure essentially leaves AOL without a global advertising strategy while Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes splits and sells AOL.

Doubtful any entrepreneurial execs would stay through the sale. Buyers: Yahoo? Google? MicroWho? Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.

Impact on Yahoo-AOL talks? Negligible. Paid Content's Rafat Ali broke the story and has the exclusive on why Morgan stayed at AOL for only 90 days - think startups & Platform A, not AvenueA or M&A.

AOL paid around $275 million (actual purchase price undisclosed) to buy the behavioral targeting network, Tacoda. AOL most likely didn't have the development team to build behavioral targeting technology in-house.

That left AOL's search engine renaissance missing the search re-targeting piece, the hottest area in paid search and conversion marketing. If search engine consolidation is all about search, then Tacoda and Advertising.com are valuable prizes for Yahoo -- or Google, which owns a 5 percent stake in AOL.

Tacoda had several slogans during its evolution (before being swallowed up by AOL). The startup was "The Audience Management Company" and "The Audience Company." My favorite: "Where the people are" … and Dave Morgan is not.

Posted by Kevin Heisler on February 11, 2008, 10:54 AM | Permalink


The adventure of going to SES London for the first time

I expect that about half of the attendees at the Search Engine Strategies 2008 Conference & Expo in London will be going to the event for the first time.

“And what analysis led you to that deduction, Holmes?”

It was elementary, my dear Watson, elementary.

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The event being held at the Business Design Centre in Islington Feb. 19-21, 2008, will be the fourth SES London that I've attended. At the previous three conferences, I've asked attendees to raise their hands if it was their first Search Engine Strategies. About half the people in the room raised their hands in 2005, 2006 and 2007. You don't need to be a super-sleuth to deduce that this will be case again in 2008.

“Well, what about the other half of the attendees?”

Obviously, they have returned from previous shows. This explains why attendance at SES London has grown so dramatically since 2005.

“So, are newbies at a disadvantage at the show?”

Not really. The search landscape changes so radically from year to year that even the experts come back to discover what the don't know yet, as well as to uncover what they thought they knew that is now antiquated. So, newbies aren't at a serious disadvantage – but they don't know it.

“Surely you can spot the newbies when you catch them poring over the conference handbook trying to decide what session to attend next.”

This year may be different, my good friend. Only 28 of the 46 sessions, panels, and keynotes at this year's Search Engine Strategies were listed in last year's conference handbook. With almost 40% of the topics brand new, I suspect that we might catch some of the experts pouring over this year's conference handbook – if there is a conference handbook. The one at SES Chicago was replaced by a new magazine. So, that dog won't bark this time around.

“But at least the experts know about the conference at a glance on the Search Engine Strategies website. Won't they determine in advance which of three or four concurrent sessions they should attend over the three-day conference?”

That's an astute observation, Watson. One that I'm sure Inspector Lestrade will take credit for, if we don't intervene. So, let's propose a hypothetical track for the first time attendee. Of course, newbies can deviate from it. But, the Great Game will be giving a preliminary plan to help a newbie navigate his or her way through a dozen dilemmas that face anyone going to SES London for the first time.

“Excellent!”

Let's begin with Day 1: Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008. I propose that a newbie should attend “Introduction to Search Marketing” at 9:30 a.m. and then “Search Engine Friendly Design” at 11:00 a.m.

The rest of the day is child's play. Attend “Google University: Basics” at noon; the “Orion Panel: All Star Analytics Team” at 1:30 p.m.; the “Google University: Masterclass” at 2:30 p.m.; Fredrick Marckini's opening keynote at 3:30 p.m.; the “Orion Panel: Universal, Blended and Vertical Search” at 4:45 p.m.; and the Networking Cocktail Reception in the Expo Hall at 5:45 p.m.

“What about Day 2? The choices are less obvious on Wednesday, Feb. 20.”

On the contrary, the choices are quite obvious. Even to the youngest of the Baker Street Irregulars knows a newbie should attend the keynote roundtable at 9:00 a.m.; “News Search SEO” at 10:30 a.m.; “Search Term Research & Targeting” at 11:45 a.m.; the “Google University: Google Analytics and Website Optimiser” session at 12:45 p.m.; and “Compare & Contrast: Ad Program Strategies” at 2:00 p.m.

Then, our first time attendee should visit the 20 exhibitors on the trade show floor at 3:00 p.m. After that, our newbie should attend “Balancing Organic & Paid Listings” at 4:p.m.; and “Linking Strategies” at 5:15 p.m.

“And what do you propose for Thursday?”

I must admit, Watson, the choices on Feb. 21 baffle me. The agenda looks like the handiwork of Professor Moriarty. But, let's hope that by Day 3 our fictional newbie will have gained enough confidence to start making difficult choices without our advice.

“But Holmes, we can't abandon our poor newbie without of clue about what to do next! Where's you sense of honor?”

I was just pulling your leg, Watson. So, on Day 3, let's have our newbie begin by attending “Meet the Crawlers” at 9:30 a.m. Then, let's suggest that he or she sit in on the “Site Clinic” at 11:00 a.m. Following lunch, I'd recommend attending “Beyond Linkbait: Getting Authoritative Online Mentions.” Then, it's off to “My SEM Toolbox” at 2:15 p.m. Finally, let's tell our newbie to attend “Brand & Reputation Management” at 3:30 p.m.

“What about the search training classes on Friday, Feb. 22?”

Oh, those could be useful, too. I'd counsel our fictional first time attendee to sign up for the “Optimizing for Universal Search” workshop at 8:30 a.m.; and the “Making Pay Per Click Pay – Best Practices in Pay Per Click Advertising” workshop at 1:30 p.m. There are additional registration costs, if there are any seats left, of course.

“Shouldn't you disclose that SES London is one of your clients?”

Of course I will, Watson. But, I would have thought that anyone who has read “It's ‘Horses for Courses' at SES London” would have known that.

And, anyone who has ever read Search Engine Watch or The Strand Magazine already knows that I have shown myself to be a master of disguise from my earliest cases, adopting personas from all walks of life.

Finally, deductive reasoning, Google and Wikipedia should have led to this obvious conclusion. How often have I said to you that when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth?

Posted by Greg Jarboe on February 11, 2008, 9:19 AM | Permalink


Yahoo Formally Rejects Microsoft Bid

As expected, the Yahoo board of directors has rejected Microsoft's unsolicited bid to acquire the company. In a statement, the board said that the proposal is not in the best interests of Yahoo or its stockholders:

After careful evaluation, the Board believes that Microsoft's proposal substantially undervalues Yahoo! including our global brand, large worldwide audience, significant recent investments in advertising platforms and future growth prospects, free cash flow and earnings potential, as well as our substantial unconsolidated investments. The Board of Directors is continually evaluating all of its strategic options in the context of the rapidly evolving industry environment and we remain committed to pursuing initiatives that maximize value for all stockholders.

The board did not mention whether any of the "strategic options" it's exploring include Google or AOL, both of which are rumored to have been in talks with Yahoo to discuss some form of partnership or merger. In a Google-partnership scenario, Yahoo might outsource some or all of its search and search advertising operations to Google. AOL doesn't have its own search index, but licenses Google's, so an AOL tie-up would likely see Yahoo keep its search and search ad operations.

AOL has been investing heavily in advertising technology, adding Tacoda (behavioral targeting), AdTech (ad serving, big in Europe), Lightningcast (video ads), Quigo (contextual ads) and Third Screen Media (mobile ads) to its newly formed Platform A business, built around the base of its Advertising.com ad network.

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 11, 2008, 9:13 AM | Permalink


SEW Experts: Google AdWords Targeting: Expect More, Pay Less

Google AdWords placement-targeted campaigns on the content network can be a useful tool, if you can find the sites that support it. In today's Content Advertising column, "Google AdWords Targeting: Expect More, Pay Less," David Szetela discusses AdSense publishers' options for showing or blocking placement-targeted ads.

Posted by Kevin Newcomb on February 11, 2008, 12:00 AM | Permalink


AOL Yahoo Talk Merger - Microsoft Rebuked

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Yahoo merges with AOL, saves Time Warner and re-Bewkes Microsoft. That's a best case scenario for Yahoo from investment bank advisers at Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers. The i-banks are advising Yahoo on mergers with media and technology firms that might snatch Yang & Co. from the jaws of Microsoft. On Sunday, Siobhan Kennedy and Suzy Jagger of The Times Online (UK) broke the story AOL may emerge as Yahoo's exit strategy from the Microsoft $45 billion (give or take a billion) bid.

An AOL merger leads the pack of deals Yahoo and its i-bank M&A advisers are pursuing. Not long ago Yahoo failed to close a deal for AOL. Now the pressure from Yahoo shareholders won't let up until a Microsoft bid (sweetened or unsweetened) is accepted - or an AOL-sized deal is done. Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes would be the big winner.

Google has long been discussed as Yahoo's outsourced search partner (again). The surprise? The House of Mouse has emerged as a possible home for Yahooligans. (The revenge of Terry Semel?)

If you can't bring Hollywood to Yahoo, then move the Yahoo to Hollywood. Any Yahoo tie-up would likely put Disney CEO Bob Iger in the driver's seat, not a bad thing for Yahoo's beleaguered shareholders.

Would an AOL merger somehow increase the value of Yahoo's stock by more than 60 percent? (Microsoft premium: 62 percent) Not likely. Yahoo shareholders have long been asking - to no avail - for a plan to boost YHOO by 25 percent from its 52 week low. So far the Microsoft bid has been the only (un)plan that did.

I mentioned the AOL scenario last Friday morning on a conference call with Oppenheimer senior analyst Sandeep Aggarwal and Oppenheimer's Media & Internet and Enterprise Software teams.

Kevin Lee of Didit joined us on the call, along with Jaideep Singh, CEO of vertical search engine Spock.com and Seth Barnes, senior manager for Edmunds.com, a leading consumer automotive site.

To listen to a replay, the dial-in number is (888) 266-2081 or (703) 925-2533. Replay dates are now thru 2/22/2008 23:59 EST.

Whether the Yahoo AOL portal-saurus merger would work is moot.

Now it's One Deal, One Day.

All this week: Yahoo! on Woot!.

Posted by Kevin Heisler on February 10, 2008, 11:43 PM | Permalink

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