Highlights from the SEW Blog: April 7-11, 2008

By Kevin Newcomb , April 14, 2008

We've collected all the search marketing news from selected posts to the Search Engine Watch blog in the past week.

From the SEW blog:

Organic Search

• Could the Term "SEO" Become Trademarked?
  If you read the headline and thought it was just a teaser to get you to read this post, think again. SEOs really do have a new trademark issue to worry about.
• Others' Trademark Terms In Meta Tags Illegal: Georgia Court Rules
  The 11th Circuit Court of Georgia ruled the use of others' trademarks in meta tags infringes trademark laws.
• SEW Experts: How to Tell if Your Domain is Banned
  Oftentimes it is difficult to tell whether a domain name is banned or penalized by a search engine. Or perhaps the domain name is neither banned, nor penalized. It could be, you just managed to screw up your site.

Search Advertising

• Yahoo to Test Google Ads -- Take That, Mr. Ballmer!
  Yahoo announced today that it will begin a limited test of Google Inc.'s AdSense for Search service.
• Google Will Not Kill the Agency Star, Says Publicis CEO
  While the business model for advertising agencies needs change, Publicis CEO Maurice Levy says that agencies will adapt and not become obsolete. Levy says that agencies are the ones who develop the creative, something that companies like Google, Microsoft and Yahoo do not provide.
• adCenter Advertiser Blog Explains Keyword Match Types
  If you've been in need of an explanation of keyword match types for your PPC campaign, you're in luck. The adCenter Advertiser blog has published a post that offers up a detailed explanation of keyword match terms as well as some tips for your paid search strategy.
• Yahoo Unveils Details of New AMP Advertising Platform
  In the midst of firmly responding to Microsoft's ultimatum, Yahoo has released details of the new AMP advertising platform.
• SEW Experts: A Look at Demographic Bidding for AdWords
  Google's new demographic bidding for content campaigns seems to promise much better control over where ads are served, and hence better ROI.

Linking Issues & Social Media

• Types of Social Media Content - A Conceptual Overview
  If social media success = 1/2 social network + 1/2 quality content ... an understanding of both social network building and content development is necessary.
• Digging deeper into the social press release
  A fair portrait of the social press release -- warts and all.
• SEW Experts: Link Building Strategies: Apprentice Edition
  Great content is only half the battle. Don't forget the other half: getting the word out about your great content.
• How to (Actually) Earn Money (Now) with Social Media (Really): Part 2
  Short term financial success in social media can be a multi-layered enigma, ranging somewhere between daunting and infuriating.

Analytics & ROI

• AdWords Launches New Conversion Tracking Tool
  A new update to AdWords tracking has been reported by the guys over at AccuraCast. Seems they have improved the conversion tracking allowing users to separate different things to track to conversion.
• IndexTools acquired by Yahoo!
  Yahoo has acquired IndexTools, a leading web analytics company.
• SEW Experts: How to Measure Customer Satisfaction with Web Analytics
  In a world where more Web transactions require multiple site visits, a measurement of satisfaction can tell you the likelihood of a visitor coming back to your site when they're ready to buy.
• HackerSafe & The Power of Trust
  There are no universal truths about what to test on a landing page. However, there are common themes that work well across a range of industries. One of these is the use of trust and credibility indicators.

Local & Mobile Search

• The Offline Benefits of Online Advertising
  The offline effects of online advertising has been a curious issue in the search engine marketing industry over the years. But according to published reports, new study conducted by comScore is shedding more light on the issue.
• As Wifi expands, local and mobile search continue to emerge
  Lately, there have been a swarm of announcements regarding Wifi coming to some previously unconnected spots. So what does this mean for Search Engine Marketers?
• Microsoft Updates Live Maps and Virtual Earth 3D
  Microsoft has announced 11 major updates to their Live Maps and Virtual Earth 3D.
• SEW Experts: Think Universal, Act Local
  Much of the discussion around Universal search, or blended search, focuses on video and images. But local search may be a more important factor; one that has the greatest impact in blended search results.
• eMarketer Releases Mobile and Online Advertising Projections
  This year, US mobile ad spending is expected to reach $1.7 billion, up from $878 million last year. Meanwhile, online spending is expected to continue growing, but the rate at which the growth will occur will decline, at least for a few years.

Vertical & Specialty Search

• Video Search Is a False Messiah
  Video search is not about words, optimization or getting into the traditional web search engines. Instead, he says we must look to video consumers and more collaborative approaches.
• IAC to Launch a Flurry of Niche Sites
  IAC, parent company of Ask.com, is planning to launch several new niche sites that incorporate search and social media. First up is RushmoreDrive.com, which has already launched and is targeted at the African-American community.
• Yahoo Flickr Flicks: Who's Got Short Shorts?
  Yahoo Flickr launched videos tonight with a press release and a small yellow badge - an asterisk that adds "AND VIDEO" to their tagline: "Share Your Photos."

Small Business/Big Brand SEM

• Trellian Acquires Addme.com
  Trellian, the company behind SEO Toolkit and Keyword Discovery, has announced its acquisition of small business SEO tools provider Addme.com.
• SEW Experts: Keep the Lines of SEO Communication Open
  In large organizations, development teams don't always retain what they've learned about SEO. Without regular communication about SEO issues, you're destined to repeat past mistakes.

In-House & Outsourcing

• SEW Experts: Bringing the SEO Teacher to You
  Besides SEO books, online training, and in-person training, there's another option for teaching your staff about SEO: bring a consultant to you.

SEM Industry Issues

• Google Responds to FTC's Self-Regulatory Principles
  When concerns over data collection and behavioral advertising arise, it seems that the glass half empty people are the loudest. But in a recent response to the FTC's Self-Regulatory Principles, Google has pointed out the impact that online advertising has had on the economy.
• SEW Experts: Standards? We Don't Need No Stinkin' Standards!
  We don't need SEO standards to define our operation for us; we simply need to hold ourselves to a higher standard of business.
• We May Not Want Standards But FTC May Give Us Some
  The standards debate may be in full swing in our industry - but the decisions may be soon taken out of our hands if the FTC continues to define allowable advertising practices.
• Yahoo Gets Investor Support on Efforts to Fend Off Microsoft
  Microsoft's gamble that Yahoo investors will support their takeover of the search engine may already be backfiring. According to published reports, Legg Mason, Yahoo's second largest investor is standing behind Yahoo in its efforts to fend off Microsoft.
• SEW Experts: Making Yahoocrosoft a Reality
  The quibbling of two secondary competitors, while another lengthens its lead, has resulted in the downfall of many in the past. Yahoo and Microsoft would be wise to learn from those past mistakes.
• March Search Market Share Numbers Begin to Trickle In
  Search engine marketers love their data, so grab a cup of coffee and mull over the numbers released by Hitwise and Compete.com for the search market in March 2008.

Searching/Search Technologies

• SEW Experts: SEM Tools of the Experts
  There are a variety of SEM tools available to search marketers. You should be able to find something to fit every need, and every style.
• Majority of U.S. Adults Uncomfortable About Search Engine Data Collection
  A majority of U.S. adults are uncomfortable about search engine data collection practices.
• Microsoft to Fight Search Spam by Analyzing Email
  Microsoft was awarded a patent it applied for nearly 4 years ago, to fight search spam based on external elements, like "electronic documents," or email.
• European Group Wants to Cut Search Engine Data Storage
  Almost a month after the EU approved Google's DoubleClick acquisition, officials from 27 EU nations have unanimously adopted a proposal that could force search engines to reduce the amount of time they store personal information.

More from the SEW Blog

• Yahoo Execs Bad Mouthing AOL!
  Guess Yahoo does not want to partner with anyone these days... well apart from their biggest competitor Google.
• Google CEO to MicroHoo: We'll Bank on Frank
  Google CEO Eric Schmidt has reportedly named legendary Bubble 1.0 i-banker Frank Quattrone as an adviser to help reverse engineer the Yahoo-AOL and MSN- MySpace entanglements.
• Why search engine marketers should attend SES Toronto 2008
  Search engine marketers on both sides of the Canadian/American border should attend Search Engine Strategies Toronto, which is being held at Metro Toronto Convention Centre June 17-18, 2008.
• SEW Experts: Google Road Kill: Will the Pulitzer Prize Live to Be 100?
  On the 92nd anniversary of the Pulitzer Prize, prizewinners and publishers are fiddling while the newspaper industry is burning.
• Microsoft Gets Tired of Waiting
  Microsoft is apparently tired of waiting for Yahoo to respond to its unsolicited takeover bid, and has issued a deadline of April 26 for Yahoo to come to terms on an acquisition agreement, or face a hostile takeover.
• Yahoo to Microsoft: We Already Dumped You
  After Microsoft issued its ultimatum to Yahoo this weekend, giving them three more weeks before things get ugly, Yahoo's board of directors responded this morning, reminding Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer that it already rejected Microsoft's offer, and Yahoo still thinks Microsoft's offer is too low.

Back to Article