Michelle Clarke

Web Search Strategies in "Plain English" is a fantastic, very simple video that explains a little about search engines, how they work & display their results for those who might be 'web beginners'. It provides a few short-cuts you can take when searching for something specific, that will save you valuable time.

Video was taken originally from CommonCraft

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I haven't blogged for a while, reason being a combination of getting stuck into work over the last few months & also a few important decisions to make recently. I'm excited to say that I'll be heading back to the Cape Town office with my current company, Clicks2Customers. Once again, they've been fantastic in 'getting me home' again. I have really enjoyed my time in the UK and will have been here for 7 months by the time I head back to the sunny shores of South Africa. Coincidentally I will be starting work in Cape Town on the exact date I joined them 5 years ago. Time flies when you're having fun.



I like to think I've learnt a fair bit by being here, both personally and work-wise. The social media & eMarketing space is a huge part of life here and everyone knows about it & incorporates it into their everyday life, whereas in SA there seemed to be a select few that knew about it but on the whole when asked what you did for a job and replied "search marketing," I usually just got a blank nod and polite smile. However, there is a huge amount of potential in SA and as more and more people / companies 'cotton on' more and more opportunities present themselves. I'm excited to see what SA offers and the direction search marketing takes.

So although I still have a couple of months left in the UK, which I'll definitely be making the most of, I'm looking forward to a new start in SA, hopefully with a new, wiser, more experienced set of eyes.

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Techcrunch aired this video showing what Google Squared, or what some are calling 'Search 3.0', has to offer. Google Squared is the next product to come out of Google Labs. So what is Google Squared? Google Squared allows users to search for something and then returns the search results in spreadsheet formats. It structures the data displayed on web pages in columns, rows and relevancy.

In the video demo below, from Techcrunch, a search for “camera” sorts the results in different columns by images, description, and manufacturer, resolution. You can refine results by clicking on a particular column such as manufacturer.

The general feeling is that this will be in Google Labs for some time yet.

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Google has released some new filters and search options.

Google has now made an attempt to organize universal search results to include ones that include news, blog posts, images, and videos. Once switched on (you can do this by clicking 'Show Options' in any search result), the feature appears as a left-hand column next to search results. Search Options has four different sections for filtering results, see the video below for more detail on how these new features work.

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There have been numerous viral marketing ads over the last few months - all taking place in stations or huge public areas. It's quite a trend and has a instant massive effect on people, within minutes video's are on YouTube

Another viral marketing ad - this time in Antwerp Central Station - so much better than the T-Mobile ad in Liverpool station.

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Google has recently unveiled its Display Ad Builder tool that allows ordinary companies to create their own display ads for the internet, without having expensive in-house designers or specialised online advertising firms.

Director of Google's Adsense Display Content, Damian Lawlor stated that the search giant now has "hundreds of thousands of advertisers around the world. The secret sauce is contextual advertising. Google lives and dies by ads being relevant to the users. We built an engine that could machine-read sites and match ads to that content. In the last quarter of 2008, we gave US $1.5 billion back to our partners, so it’s a gigantic global business at this point.”

In recent months, publishers in America, in particular the news wire Associated Press, said that news aggregators like Google News, were damaging their industry. But Lawlor disagrees with this & stresses the point that aggregators help drive traffic to newspaper websites. “It’s the publisher’s role to create and attract content, the advertiser is all about finding the audience through targeting. The way we’re funding the monetisation of the web, we’re allowing for a creative way of producing great content, allowing publishers to reinvest in that content, grow the user base and build a great business out of it."



Lawlor believes that the next step is to fine-tune the targeting for advertisers, allowing them to have a good relationship with publishers. For example, if you visit cooking sites, Google will show cooking ads on the browser. In his view, this will improve monetisation, while simultaneously provides higher relevance, making it less irritating. Giving an insight into the placement of ads, Lawlor says Google’s system is auction-based in terms of bids. “We don’t just run ads based on what people bid, but we reward relevance very heavily. The scale of automation is vast, the amount of auctions per second is phenomenal.”

Lawlor says the speed of development of smart phones and their place in the online advertising world is breathtaking. “Google is working on its own Android open platform for mobile, but you have to acknowledge the impact of the iPhone, which is a totem for the new world of mobile. People are using these as a mobile computer, an interface onto the web, and for social networking and watching YouTube videos. The number of web searches we see on the iPhone is 50 times higher than on a normal mobile phone. But small screens are limited, and very soon you’ll see a convergence between ultra-portable computers and mobile devices.”

The big shift in Google’s efforts came in recent days, when the company moved as Lawlor put it to “bring the science of search to the art of display. We’ve worked very hard to show advertisers the value and return they can get from working with search. Display is about rich media images, and it is something humans respond to. For example, we have built a display ad builder that allows users to build their own display ads. It includes clever innovations, such as what we call ‘gadget ads’, allowing users to interact with the ad without going off the page. This allows advertisers to build interactive campaigns using AdSense. This allows smaller advertisers to get used to what display can do for them. It also allows agencies to inexpensively display concepts.”

On the recent slowing in spending that is affecting media giants around the world, Lawlor's opinion is that businesses that have expanded their marketing during a downturn will have done disproportionately well when the upturn arrives. “A lot of companies have made huge gains during depressed years because of their foresight in going out to position their product and invest in growth. Clearly, you can measure the value you are getting from advertising. If you’re converting audience, whatever your goals, that makes a lot of sense.”

While Lawlor believes Google is just a small part of the global media pie that encompasses print, radio, TV and other media, the overall trend occurring is that audiences are moving online. “Hence, it’s only a matter of time before marketers follow. Traditional media will have to adapt. There will always be space for people with strong brands. But there’s a new generation growing up online. There’s the ability for people to interact with and for information, seek entertainment and connectedness. There’s opportunity for new business models to develop and thrive.”

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This is the new viral marketing ad by T-Mobile - it took place in Trafalgar Square, London - I was lucky enough to be able to see a lot of it - how amazing!!! Living in London certainly does have it's benefits..

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Google Mobile Ads allow you to target an incredibly large group of users that may not necessarily have access to the internet via a PC or laptop, but 'most people' have a WAP enabled mobile.

A while ago, I briefly touched on the fact that companies *must* have website friendly sites. Currently, there are 405 million mobile users worldwide - that's incredible reach, hence the need to ensure your site is mobile friendly. Google dominate Mobile Search at the moment and are fine tuning how advertisers can set up their ads and which phones to target.

Mobile Ads also allows you to specifically target & create ads for mobile-specific text and image ads. For example, the mobile ads for iPhone and Android phones allow you to show your regular text and image ads on these devices. Watch the below video for guidelines on where to start:

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Facebook are testing their own Ad Network for application developers which involves, according to Facebook, "a few applications occasionally serving Facebook Ads directly in their canvas pages as a part of a small alpha test. We will use the results of this test and other tests that we do to determine the best ways we can help you monetize."



So it seems that that Facebook would be a little more interested in selling ads to the actual page owners, such as “Become a Fan” ads that are more and more visible every time you login to Facebook and who enjoy a relatively large following. A recent example of this is US Weekly which has a Facebook page for magazine US Weekly, who have now sold a sponsorship to State Farm.

State Farm is trying to run a bigger deal with US Weekly & according to AdAge, “Us Weekly plans to use Facebook page sponsorships as added value or independent ad inventory for other advertisers after that.”

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Those of you that use Google Adwords regularly will have noticed that fairly recently, they are testing & have rolled out a new interface. It's a big improvement on the previous one and from what I've experienced, seems a little faster. The look & feel is modernized and offer 'quick view graphs' at every level, as opposed to on account level previously.

Adwords have now introduced a few shortcuts to run alongside the new interface. In a nutshell, Adwords will be running with a new series called, "New Interface Thursdays" on their blog. A few tips every Thursday on how to maximize the new interface & its features.



Full blog post at Adwords Blogspot.

First installment of "New Interface Thursdays"

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Susan Boyle has become a huge success & inspiration to not only YouTube but pretty much most of the UK who watch "Britain's Got Talent." From 'never been kissed' to a standing ovation by every person in the audience, as well as bringing a goofy grin to Simon Cowell's face.. This lady is amazing - see her full performance below. She has summed up nearly 20 million hits already in a matter of days!

The pictures below speak for themselves. Not one person thought much of her when she took the stage (including me) and were left a little teary eyed by the time she walked off it. I take my hat off to her! My best 3 moments below!

The Start - "nobody thinks much until she opens her mouth"



The Effect - "puts him in his place"



The End "amazement & appreciation"



The Full Performance



For the full audition with judges comments, visit this link.

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Rumour is that Firefox is updating it's design. Firefox quickly became the favorite browser for most users in the know. But while extensions are a great way to make Firefox more functional, Mozilla's designers are also currently thinking about a complete redesign of the way the browser looks and feels, in order to keep up with changing usage patterns. The most radical proposal we have seen so far would do away with the standard browser tabs, and replace them with an interface that looks more like iTunes than Firefox.

The funny thing is, to me it looks VERY much like Chrome. iTunes & Chrome.. Look at the simple design? With my 'favourite' sites - fairly similar to 'most visited?'

Firefox



Chrome



Is it just me? Whatever the case, the new design looks great, the next thing is to see how it all functions. Knowing & using Firefox, it can only be an improvement on its current offering. Mozilla are also moving ahead with the integration of Ubiquity, "a command-line style interface for common browser tasks, into Firefox's 'awesome bar.'"

Mozilla plans to add this project, dubbed Taskfox, into the main Firefox interface by the time version 3.6 of Firefox is released. What is Taskfox? Enjoy the video and find out. ;-)


Taskfox Prototype from Aza Raskin on Vimeo.

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VisitBritain is intent on becoming 'Google for British Tourism,' according to Christopher Rodgrigues, the Chairman. The idea behind this concept is that it would entail VisitBritain working more closely with regional development agencies and tourism bodies to provide a common web platform for consumers to find out information. You're able to choose your country setting before you enter the main site, so that preferences & information are set according to your country.



Rodrigues also states that, "We have to evolve into a Google for Britain. Having multiple competing platforms with data that is not inter-operable is missing an opportunity. You ought to be able to search the nation [online]. If you research customers and find out what they want, once they have got that aspiration offline, then they need help with the geography, general destination or specifics. That’s when they want to know about value and that has to be clear."

So how does it all work in a nutshell? Well, say that holidaymakers wanting to experience a golf break / weekend currently need to go to different sites to find out about regional facilities and suitable destinations. The idea is that they no longer need to look further than VisitBritain. Rodrigues said the national tourism body’s 'promotions, marketing and advertising worldwide already builds aspiration to visit but that holidaymakers needed help with geography and specific costs when researching online. This would also mean working more closely across all suppliers, such as accommodation providers.'

Sounds like a pretty well thought out & good idea - I've also tested the site a little and am so far, impressed. Any weekends I might be wanting to take, I'll be testing this site out.

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Microsoft AdCentre Analytics has closed it's Beta version. From the Microsoft Adcentre site, "Analytics will remain available to current beta participants through December 31, 2009. Please note that all hosted services, data collection, and technical support will end at that time. Current beta users that wish to save their historical data are encouraged to use the export feature to download their reports before December 31, 2009."

The site then goes on to offer a list "of companies offering alternative solutions." This seems to be another of the products the Microsoft has canned lately. It would have been great to test out the Analytics too, as so much value is found in Google Analytics which benefit online campaigns an incredible amount. So it's quite sad that Microsoft have canned a tool with such incredible potential, but in such economic times, such a tool is free, so I guess there lies the answer. I just hope they get around to re-introducing Analytics again as my job would certainly not be as "easy" without Google's Analytics.

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I can say that I'm incredibly excited to get my first taste of a London concert! I'll be going to see Pink live at the O2 Arena on the 1st of May. Who exactly is Pink? Well she is, "a pop singer who has credibility within the rock world and a rock singer who's achieved the status of a pop star." To say the least! I saw a convert of hers a few years ago in Cape Town's Velodrome, but from what I've been told her SA concerts were in comparison to the shows put on in the likes of the UK, Germany, Australia etc - so I look forward to seeing for myself.



I am definitely looking forward to this one! This concert will be one of many & will be a part of her Funhouse Tour for 2009. If you're interested in finding out when she will be nearest to your city, check out the tour dates. I leave you will the music video from her "Sober" song - one I am particularly looking forward to seeing.

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Google Voice already seems to have great reviews. What is Google Voice? Well it's currently only open to 'Grand Users' - I have applied through both Google Voice & through TechCrunch's special offer, but let's see what happens. Google Push has been described as "A push to rewire your phone service."

Craig Walker, head of Google Voice, stated that "Our goal is to be able to offer it to people for free." He was then asked what the revenue model would be for Google Voice, after which he answered, "Let's get a bunch of happy users engaged in Google properties and getting their voice mail through this. Google gets value out of having happy Google users."

Google Voice will have 3 main functions:

1. Google Number - one number to use for all sms's and voice calls with the ability to screen / block calls & phone routing.
2. Google Voicemail - voicemail with email notifications, checked either online or from your phone.
3. Voice Features - features such as conference calling, switching calls, viewing inbox from your mobile & recording calls.



Google's promise, with this service, is to "simplify your phone communications." No longer will you need to worry about which number to hand out to people. Business, mobile, work? An added benefit is that if you're sitting with both your work & personal mobiles, you can choose which once you'd prefer to answer. If you have the "screen calls" option enabled, Google Voice will tell ask you if you want to accept the call or send the caller to voice mail. Google Voice also asks callers, who are calling for the first time, to identify themselves for the record. I can't wait to try this out - not sure if it will complicate things more or truly keep them simple - I guess with all things, will take some getting used to.

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Earth Hour is encouraging everyone to:



What exactly is 'Earth Hour?' Well,

"Earth Hour 2009 is a global initiative by the World Wide Fund for Nature which acts as a worldwide call to action to every individual, business and community to take a stand against switching off your lights for one hour on Saturday, March 28th at 8:30pm. Originating in Sydney, Australia in 2007, the Earth Hour initiative proved more than worthwhile when it witnessed 2 million people coming together to switch off their lights for one hour for this vital cause. Climate Change."

Adgator is already supporting the Earth Hour campaign. Have you signed up? Do something, sign up, send the link to friends in an email, blog about it, Tweet about it. I dare you...

Roxy Ingram also supports Earth Hour in the video below. Do something, we can all make a difference, however small.

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YouTube has recently announced that due to a failed deal with the UK's Performing Rights Society, who collect licensing fees for musicians and labels in the UK. Due to this partnership failure, YouTube will now block access to all premium music videos for users in the UK. So what does this mean for UK muso lovers, well for the time being, users will have to resort to illegally uploaded videos if they want to watch music videos on YouTube in the UK. Not ideal is it?

According to YouTube, the licensing fees were "simply prohibitive" and Google would lose a "significant amount of money with every playback."



YouTube also states that PRS were unwilling to provide a comprehensive list of songs that were actually included in the license. PRS bite back by stating,"According to PRS, Google has told us they are taking this step because they wish to pay significantly less than at present to the writers of the music on which their service relies, despite the massive increase in YouTube viewing." It appears that negotiations may still press on, so hopefully they'll reach some kind of agreement, sometime soon..

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I recently posted a blog about ensuring that your website is mobile friendly well LastMinute.com has recently developed an iPhone application allowing you to access LastMinute.com on the move. And now there's a Radar Tool from LastMinute's labs. What does this offer:

"a new way to quickly see nearby offers. This is the first site to use the new wifi positioning capability provided by the Gears plugin from Google. Give it a spin at labs.lastminute.com/radar." Pretty cool stuff - mobiles are on the up and up...


Lastminute.com labs showcase phone fight at MoMoLondon from ribot on Vimeo.

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Twitter has been testing an integrated version of its' search engine, but only with a limited number of users, over the past few weeks. In earlier days, this search tool existed only at search.twitter.com (the result of the company’s acquisition of Summize last year.)

By the sounds of things, Twitter is pushing this search out to all users tonight. People are already tweeting the new look & feel. Although there has been no "official word" from Twitter yet as to whether or not it’s being rolled out to everyone tonight, but it seems that most people are able to see / use this function now. Can you?

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