We've collected all the search marketing news from selected posts to the Search Engine Watch blog in the past week, along with recent search-related headlines from around the Web.
From the SEW blog:
Organic Search
- Cutts: The End is Near for Black Hat SEO
Google's Matt Cutts all but sounds the death knell for black hat SEO, which will be wiped out by personalization. - Personalization, SEO, and Web Marketing
I don't believe that SEO is dead, but SEO in a vacuum will be dead at some point in the not-too-distant future. - Google and the Site: Command Glitch
There's something amiss with the current "site:" command. - SEO Is Easy...and Hard
Reduced to its simplest form, SEO is a four-step process -- though implementing that process is no simple task. - Value of Search Rankings Explained
What is a number one organic search ranking worth? - Flash and HTML Text Copies = Duplicate Content?
What techniques should be used to provide search engines an HTML file to chew on instead of trying to parse the Flash itself?
Search Advertising
- Google Shares More Click Fraud Numbers
Invalid clicks on Google AdWords ads are generally in low single-digits, and the amount of invalid clicks that are not proactively detected and are caught by advertisers is less than 0.02 percent, Google revealed today. - Panama from a Big Agency Perspective
Avenue A | Razorfish put Yahoo's Panama platform through the paces this month, and has shared some data from 33 search clients. - More Search Engine Wishes
Kevin Lee continues his look at search engine wish lists, asking search engines for things that would help search advertisers. - Forbes.com Joins Quigo's Ad Network
Contextual ad provider Quigo has signed Forbes as a distribution partner. - Search Engines Are Allowed to Reject Ads
A court decision made it clear that search engines are allowed to reject an ad as part of their protected right of free speech. - Google Content Will Report Publishers, Allow Separate Bidding
The New York Times reported today that Google will soon allow advertisers separate bidding for individual publishing partner sites. - comScore Defines Panama Effects
ComScore Networks has found that Yahoo's new ranking model has increased click through rates on its ads, at least initially. - MSN Rectifies CPC Bug
Microsoft adCenter fixed the bug that boosted many people's CPC bids late last week. - Google Mixes Videos in Organic Result
Google is experimenting with including videos in the organic results.
Analytics & ROI
- Clicktracks CEO Interviewed
While many people are familiar with Google Analytics, fewer people are aware that Clicktracks offers a free analytics solution as well. - Avinash Kaushik Interview
From an SEO perspective, getting clear data about what's happening on your site can be a very powerful way to focus your efforts.
Vertical & Specialty Search
- Using MoLo to find a Mocha
There has been widespread agreement that location-based services will only work with an opt in model, hence the increased discussion over Mobile Local Search (MoLo). - Microsoft's Appeal to Hollywood
Microsoft is reaching out to Hollywood studios to offer their assistance on anti-piracy efforts for its MSN Soapbox video sharing platform. - ReportLinker: Vertical Search Engine For Marketing Research
The engine addresses the problem of "how to quickly find and access relevant information using general public tools." - Autobytel's MyRide.com: The Future of Automobile Search?
Is the company that invented the automotive Internet now reinventing it? - Mobile, Video Search Ads Set to Grow?
A majority of North American search marketers are interested in mobile and video search, but few were willing to pay more for those ads. - Jump On The Video Distribution Bandwagon
Rich video content can provide additional revenue streams outside your own domain. - Convera Offering New Search Tools
The Convera Publisher Control Panel is designed to help publishers integrate vertical search tools into their sites. - Niched Portals and Vertical Search: The Catch Phrases of 2007
Microsoft and Yahoo seem to be making 2007 the year of niched portals and vertical search. - Microsoft Acquires Medical Search Provider
Microsoft has agreed to acquire MedStory, a search engine focused on the medical space.
Social Media
- John McCain and Hillary Clinton post on Yahoo Answers
Before announcing his presidential candidacy yesterday, Republican Senator John McCain asked Yahoo users, “What would you do to stop wasteful government spending in Washington?” - Step Right Up, Start A Community Site
Now anyone can invite their extended neighbors into a closed community and begin making money, right? - Ning Launches Build-Your-Own Social Network Service
The startup has launched a customizable platform that lets users pick and choose elements to add to their hosted social networks.
SEM for Small Businesses
- Citysearch to Acquire Insider Pages
IAC/InterActiveCorp, parent to Ask.com and Citysearch, announced plans to acquire reviews-based local search provider Insider Pages. - The Long Tail of Local Search
In his ClickZ column today, Brian Wool takes a look at how Long Tail economics are affecting local search.
In-House & Big Brand SEM
- Should You Bring Search Marketing In-House?
What goes into making a decision to bring search in-house? Duane Forrester takes a look in today's SearchDay. - Consumer Mags Are Waking Up
Consumer magazines are finally waking up and extending their brands online.
SEM Industry Issues
- SEMPO Board Named
SEMPO has elected a new board of directors for 2007, with eight returning and five new directors. - A Look at Google Censorship
Philipp Lenssen of Google Blogoscoped has compiled the answers to several questions on Google's censorship activities.
More from the SEW Blog
- Test of YouTube AdSense Unit Reveals Clickthroughs
A new Google ad format, which features YouTube videos inside an AdSense unit, may reveal clickthroughs for the ads via a bug in YouTube's "links" feature. - IBM's WebSphere to Support Google Gadgets
IBM is opening WebSphere to Google Gadgets, which should help ease security concerns in enterprise environments. - Yahoo Adds NOYDIR Tag
Finally we get to undo the silly descriptions the Yahoo directory editors foisted upon us. - Google Ad Sales Exec Exits
Patrick Keane, until recently the head of advertising sales strategy at Google, has left to become executive VP and chief marketing officer at CBS Interactive. - vFlyer and "The Year of the Widget"
Online classifieds content and distribution platform vFlyer has come out with a line of widgets to display products or inventory on Web sites and blogs. - Google Holds Testapalooza
"The idea for Testapalooza came out of discussions about how to build a vibrant testing community here at Google." - Gmail Domain At Risk
Following an English court decision against Google, a British company is coming to the U.S. to challenge the search engine's ownership of Gmail.com. - Redrum Returns to NYC: Informal Gathering of Interactive & Search Marketers
If you'll be in New York next Tuesday and feel like stopping by for a drink with other search and interactive marketing professionals, we'll be gathering in Soho. - Cramer Picks Ask and Yahoo Over Google Short Term
Google is CNBC personality Jim Cramer's Internet darling, but for the short term he advised selling some of your Google stock and taking some of the future profits from Ask and Yahoo. - Yahoo Adds Another Rep To Help Online Forum Communities
First there was YahooSarah, now we also have YahooPete.
Search Headlines
We report the top search marketing news daily at the Search Engine Watch Blog. You'll find more news from around the Web below.
- Is Search Marketing Too Much Work for Publishers?, Biznology
- Search Sucks, Vol. 386: "Get Off Your Lazy Butt" Edition, Traffick
- YADAC: Yet Another Debate About Cloaking Happens Again, Search Engine Land
- Basic SEO & Advanced SEO, SEO Hotline
- Yahoo Panama - Pros and Cons, 15 Digital Marketing
- SEM, Measure for Measure, ClickZ
- Keane Keen on CBS Interactive, paidContent
- Octopart: Search Engine For Gadget Parts, TechCrunch
- Microsoft Deal Gives It Shot At Thriving Health Search Vertical, MediaPost
- Google’s 30 US Subsidiaries & International Companies, Search Engine Journal
- Why Google won't index USAToday's New Long Tail, Click Influence
- Zoominfo Selects Indeed to Power Job Search, Blog Indeed
Know your Ambiguous Customer: Effective Multi-Channel Tracking
Wednesday, June 5 at 1pm ET - Learn why a move from the "batch and blast" email approach enables better conversations with your customers.
Register today - don't miss this free webinar!
