Written by Scott Van Achte and published at 11:03 AM
Google image searches can be further refined thanks to a hidden feature few knew about - until this week.
A blog post by Ionut Alex Chitu has shown that by adding a simple piece of code to the end of your Google image search, can be used to refine the results. Adding "&imgtype=face" to the end of the search URL string will refine the list of images with just those of faces.
Wired blogger Adario Strange posted today that he had taken this search to the next level by replacing the word "face" with "hands" during an image search for PBS television host "Charlie Rose". Strange notes images of Roses hands appearing, however, I was unable to duplicate these results.
This kind of image and face recognition is in its infant stages and it will be interesting to see how far Google goes, and when they will in fact release this technology openly within image searches.
Its scary to think that perhaps some day, armed only with a photo of someone, a user may be able to use the uploaded image to do a name look up and background search. While the technology (at least as far as I know) is not advanced enough to do such a thing, it is certainly within the realm of possibility.
Written by Scott Van Achte and published at 9:04 AM
If you are currently using long descriptions for your Yahoo Ads, be warned that effective this June, the short description option will be the only way to go.
Until end of day today, advertisers have had two options for ad copy; short descriptions utilizing a 70 character limit, and long descriptions providing up to 190 characters. As of June 2007, long descriptions will be eliminated, and those who are unprepared will see their ad copy truncated with an ellipsis.
The limits for short descriptions include 40 characters for the title, 70 for the description, and 35 characters for the display URL.
While ads will continue to run without problem after June 01, campaign performance may be affected by the new truncated ads, so it is recommended to change your ads prior to the switch. More information on the transition can be found at YSM Help.
Blogs 101 is a resource to provide our clients and readers with a clear concept of what a blog is, why a blog might be a positive addition to their website or marketing campaign, and how to implement, optimize and promote a blog. In Part 1 of this series I discussed the basics of a blog and some of the necessary steps to take before starting one. In Part 2, I explained blog feeds and how to optimize a blog. Now in Part 3, I will explain social media marketing and outline a selection of strategies for socially marketing your blog.
Important Note: Over the past few years social networks have exploded creating a service niche that Social Media Marketing has filled; evolving into a vast and complex profession of its own. In this regard, this article is by no means an exhaustive listing of the social methods for promoting a blog but it will provide you with worthwhile strategies to begin a successful campaign.
What is Social Media Marketing? Social Media Marketing (SMM) revolves around marketing online media such as blogs, podcasts, or videos through social interaction in various online communities; such as news/content voting (i.e. Digg.com), file sharing (i.e. BitTorrent), video sharing (i.e. YouTube, Revver, etc.), and site/blog voting communities (i.e. Technorati, StumbeUpon, etc.). Here is a snapshot of some of the more popular social marketing communities with snippet definitions from Wikipedia:
Digg: Primarily focused on news-related stories Digg is by far the most popular social book marking community online. “News stories and websites are submitted by users, and then promoted to the front page through a user-based ranking system” (source: Wikipedia). If an article gets “Dugg” enough to appear on the front page of Digg.com it is bound to experience a dramatic increase in traffic.
Del.icio.us: Acquired by Yahoo in 2005, Del.icio.us provides its users with an online repository of websites they find interesting enough to bookmark. When a user wants to create a bookmark they are asked to add related keywords (a practice termed “folksonomy”) to the bookmark so that it can be properly found within Del.icio.us by other users. Del.icio.us is second only to Digg in the social bookmarking community. (Del.icio.us further defined)
Technorati:“Technorati is an Internet search engine for searching blogs, competing with Google, Yahoo and IceRocket. As of April 2007, Technorati indexes over 75 million weblogs” (source: Wikipedia). To achieve maximum benefit from Technorati you need to claim your blog which will allow you to see additional statistics about your blog’s popularity according to Technorati.
StumbleUpon: “StumbleUpon is a web browser plugin that allows its users to discover and rate webpages, photos, videos, and news articles. These webpages are typically presented when the user -- known within the community as a Stumbler -- clicks the "Stumble!" button on the browser's toolbar. StumbleUpon chooses which new webpage to display based on the user's ratings of previous pages, ratings by his/her friends, and by the ratings of users with similar interests. i.e., it is a recommendation system which uses peer and social networking principles” (source: Wikipedia). I am personally a huge fan of StumbleUpon and recommend it everywhere; it is easy to use, I love the name and I have seen measurable impact on traffic from a single Stumble on my own articles.
Social Media Marketing and Blogs Blogs are perfect social marketing vehicles because great content (which is required for a blog to succeed) tends to be well written, educational, news worthy, or all of the above. Quality content naturally increases the likelihood that readers will want to bookmark or share the content they find with friends or online communities. You, as the blog publisher need to make certain that your readers will have all of the tools they require to easily share your content.
Blog Social Marketing Strategies The following are marketing strategies designed to both enable your readers to find, and then share your content easily.
Add Social Bookmarking Shortcuts Make it simple for visitors to socially bookmark any blog posting they find particularly interesting. There are simple tools available online that will allow you or your webmaster to add a line of quick links to major bookmarking communities such as Digg and Del.icio.us:
Note: Even though these tools will need to be added by someone familiar with basic coding (HTML or whatever your site/blog software uses) the benefits are well worth it.
AddToBookmarks.com: offers a script that will provide a row or column of social bookmarking links (and/or icons) to your blog posting.
The Socializer:There are many other social bookmarking communities that are not listed in the AddToBookmarks socializing widget. These missing communities may not be as popular but they still have users that may want to bookmark your content. This is where the Socializer comes in. The Socializer provides a direct link from any blog posting to a comprehensive list of social bookmarking communities.
Share Your Blog Feed There are countless websites that want your blog content, you just need to provide it. The trick is to find them and add your blog feed to their system. Here are some tips for finding feeds along with a couple of feed directory sites to make life easier:
Search any of the following phrases and you will find numerous avenues to promote your blog: “submit feed” or “RSS submission” or “submit blog” or “blog directory”
>> BlogUpper.com: offers a huge list of blogs directories
Get Social in Related Forums and Other Blogs Another great way to get your name and blog ‘out there’ is to participate in online forums or to leave thoughtful comments on related industry articles. Here is how this works:
Forums: In order to participate in a forum you need to create a profile which often includes the ability to provide a personalized signature. Within the signature provide your blog URL along with a slogan or description designed to peek the interest of anyone reading your forum post. Of course that leaves one issue on the table… you need to ensure your forum posts are thoughtful and intelligent enough for people to read them AND take interest in you.
Other Blogs: In most cases blogs offer the ability for readers to comment on a posting. In order to do so you usually have the option to attach a web address to your comment. This link should point directly to your blog home page so that anyone interested in reading more about you can visit your blog directly. Again make certain the comment is intelligent so that readers have a reason to click on your link.
Bonus Tip: Promote Bookmarking within Newsletters and Related Materials Pretty much anything can be socially bookmarked but it cannot hurt to provide reminders here and there for your readers. If you publish articles, news releases, or even how-to’s then it is important you add social bookmarking buttons to each page. One such example is a tutorial I provided recently on StepForth.com which explains how to recapture link popularity using redirects. The tutorial is now a significant driver of traffic and I expect the social bookmarking buttons I placed on the page have participated in its success.
Conclusion Like most marketing objectives you could spend months learning and honing your social media marketing campaign and still have work left to do. That said, this 3rd tutorial in my Blogs 101 series is designed to push you in the right direction and ultimately help you create a world of fans for your new blog.
Written by Scott Van Achte and published at 1:00 PM
The US and Canada have had access to the new Panama platform for some time and now advertisers in Europe are able to use the new version, just launched this week.
There have been many comments on the new system on both the positive and negative side of things, but hopefully most of the initial issues that plagued US users have been corrected in time for this launch.
When it first launched in North America, Panama caused chaos for some advertisers when the transition saw ad campaigns completely shuffled about. Some key phrases were lost, where others were moved into different groups and some groups disappeared entirely. While not everyone had issues with the account switch, there was plenty to be said in the forums regarding the changeover. (see "Yahoo Panama Pros and Cons, and Part 2")
Hopefully Europe will see a smoother transition into the new system with the correction of some of the known bugs. Currently, Google has approximately 70-80% market share for search in Europe.
Written by Scott Van Achte and published at 12:45 PM
In a press release issued by Microsoft Tuesday, the announcement of the first commercially available surface computer was made.
Expected to be released late this year, Surface will first appear in places like Casinos and hotels.
“With Surface, we are creating more intuitive ways for people to interact with technology,” Ballmer said. “We see this as a multibillion dollar category, and we envision a time when surface computing technologies will be pervasive, from tabletops and counters to the hallway mirror. Surface is the first step in realizing that vision.”
Surface also has the ability to recognize physical objects equipped with id tags. Examples noted in the press release include usage in restaurants. When a patron sets his wine glass down on the table, Surface could automatically bring up information about the wine they have ordered and display photos of the vineyard from which it came.
The retail industry could also see a practical application. When a product is placed on the tabletop display, information about the product could be brought up including price and specifications, and, with multiple products placed on the display, comparison information could be shown. The possibilities are really endless.
“With Surface, we can actually grab data with our hands and move information between objects with natural gestures and touch.
Surface features a 30-inch tabletop display whose unique abilities allow for several people to work independently or simultaneously all without using a mouse or keyboard.”
Written by Scott Van Achte and published at 10:44 AM
Recently when traveling on the ferry from Nanaimo to Vancouver BC, I picked up the June 2007 issue of Discover Magazine. In this issue there was one article that I found particularly interesting. On page 42, “How Much Does the Internet Weigh”?. The article attempts to put an actual physical weight on the data being transferred over the internet on an average day.
The article in many places is far too technical and scientific for me to truly understand, but the basis for the theory is that every bit of data sent via voltages in electronic circuits has some level of mass, albeit minuscule. There is an incredible amount of data sent across the internet on any given day so there must be a measurable figure of weight.
The article goes on to explain and calculate individual internet activities such as sending an email. On average a 50 kilobyte file contains 409,600 bits, half of which, the 1s, have weight and need to be stored. Those 204,800 bits require around 8 billion electrons. One electron weights 2 x 10-30 pound. When they crunched the numbers they got a figure. A 50kb email weights approximately two ten-thousandths of a quadrillionth of an ounce, give or take.
This figure represents just a single email not to mention the seemingly endless stream of instant messages, voice, video, file transfers, web page browsing, etc.
So how much does the internet weigh in an average given day? When taking into account all activities Discover came up with a rough figure: the internet weighs 0.2 millionths of an ounce. Perhaps its time to go on a diet.
As a follow up to my article "So Google Has Feedburner, What Now?" I thought this Wallstrip video interview with Feedburner CEO Dick Costolo was a perfect addition. If you are at all curious about Feedburner this is a clip for you:
Here is a direct link to the clip on YouTube in case the video has difficulty showing on our blog. Unfortunately this is more often the case than not. Apparently YouTube is not very Blogger friendly which seems ridiculous to me.
Russell Shaw over at ZDNet caught a new Google patent filed today revealing their potential plans for mobile search.
I must stress 'potential plans' because you just never know if they will follow this roadmap exactly. Now with my caution stated, I DO believe this patent is a good indicator of their future plans simply because it includes many of the options already present in the recently launched Ask Mobile GPS service. Furthermore, unless I missed something fundamental, everything I read was relatively expected and necessary for the proper functionality of local search on mobile phones.
That said, the patent application is detailed and has many great images to drive the point home. Since most commercial websites are bound to have a mobile website (or a compatible one) in 5 years or less this patent may be worth a moment of your time.
According to TechCrunch.com today Feedburner is in the final steps of an acquisition by Google for $100 million - with little or no chance of the all-cash buy going south.
What is Feedburner? "FeedBurner is the leading provider of media distribution and audience engagement services for blogs and RSS feeds. Our Web-based tools help bloggers, podcasters and commercial publishers promote, deliver and profit from their content on the Web."
In my words Feedburner is a central hub of hundreds of thousands of blog and podcast feeds owned by corporations, small businesses and individuals alike that can use its software to publicize their feeds, monitor subscriptions and user interaction, and to monetize their feeds.
How Might Owning Feedburner Help Google?
An Edge Over Other Analytics Solutions: Google Analytics could integrate an edge that few (if any) analytics programs could match - RSS feed statistics. One of Feedburner's most alluring capabilities is its ability to track subscribers to feeds and the activities of feed subscribers. Integrating this with Google Analytics would automatically provide a powerful edge for Google over other analytics solutions.
Monetization of Over 700,000 Feeds: Feedburner has created a significant feed advertising solution where advertisers can pay-per-impression for visibility within a chosen marketplace. Publishers (those who create the feeds) can opt to monetize their feed using Feedburner's system. Google will now have access to this network and over time I expect they will enhance this system dramatically to include the new and existing pay per click solutions that have made them so successful.
More Visibility: FeedBurner's total feeds sit at 700,000 as I write this posting (according to Feedburner). Now a mere 700,000 may seem small in comparison to Google's massive reach but when you consider that some feeds have hundreds of thousands of subscribers (see a list of the top 40 here) it becomes clear this acquisition offers some appealing numbers.
So they did it again... Google has made yet another smart acquisition. If the report from TechCrunch is accurate the acquisition is set to be completed within 2-3 weeks.
My friend and fellow Canadian SEO company owner Jeff Quipp over at Search Engine People has launched a lyrics contest where one lucky person could win $1000 USD. The contest rules and details are listed here but here is a quick lowdown on this fun contest:
SEO Lyric Contest Overview:
Create a full lyrical song using terms from the SEO/SEM industry.
Contestant website's should be internet marketing related and have no bans or search engine penalties.
Song parodies are allowed but the source must be noted.
Entries will be evaluated "totally unscientifically" by a panel industry people (including myself - unless of course I enter something), social bookmarking votes, and comments.
The award will go to the "most popular and marketable submission".
Weird Al is completely prohibited from participating - purely out of principle.
A minimum of ten contestants must enter for the contest to take place.
The contest ends at midnight (wherever you are) June 21st, 2007.
It is always a pleasure to get feedback on my postings, especially from those who are intimately involved with the news I am reporting. In this case Trader Mike (Michael Seneadza), one of the first partners in Wallstrip posted the following comment to my recent posting (CBS Jumps on the Bandwagon and Purchases Wallstrip) that I felt was important to highlight:
"YouTube was just one of many platforms we used to distribute WallStrip. On our own site we initially used Revver and then moved to Blip. But the show was indeed uploaded to YouTube and other services daily."
In addition, Mike noted "there's a list of sites where wallstrip is available over in the right column of wallstrip.com under 'Watch Wallstrip where YOU want!'"
So let me first say congratulations to those other great services that helped out Wallstrip become the success it is today. You deserve your time in the limelight and I am the last person who would have left you out purposely. The reason I noted YouTube with such prominence was two-fold: partly because it drove my point home that free popular video-sharing services like YouTube allowed Wallstrip to become the success it did so quickly. And more importantly in his announcement posting Howard Lindzon said "Google/YouTube have been great supporters of the show. Obviously a tremendous help."
All-in-all I doubt anyone would argue that Wallstrip would have been acquired so quickly without the social marketing aspects of online video sharing. That said, video sharing sites Revver and Blip also played a notable role in their success and I am glad to note them. In fact, thanks to Michael's comment I have now been exposed to both video sharing sites, new to my world; of which Blip.tv seems the most intriguing to me.
The F.C.C. is preparing to auction off the use of airwaves within the 700mhz band, currently used for UHF, to hungry telcos and other media operators for the use of next generation digital signals. Google has recommended to the F.C.C. that companies who win a portion of the airwaves be allowed to auction off any unused portions to other providers or users using a real-time auction system similar to Adwords.
Reed E. Hundt, a former F.C.C. commissioner proposes "that one quarter of the capacity of the network that uses this spectrum must be sold not in a long-term service contract but instead in ongoing open auctions to any and all comers." (source NY Times). Both Google's and Mr. Hundt's suggestions would allow independents and other low-capital enterprises a chance to get airtime without the lofty up-front costs of the current leasing process; at the moment winners of an auction have to pay their long-term lease up front which is often out of the reach of most businesses.
So what does Google get out of this? Fortunately it seems Google's interests happen to mate nicely with those of us who appreciate any initiative providing more competition and lower prices. Now this is not my space of expertise but it seems to me that opening a pay-per-minute (or whatever model is chosen) window in the airwaves will allow others to innovate (more tasty Google acquisitions) and provide Google with a cheaper medium to sell advertising; fewer payments to middlemen (current radio stations, cable providers, and the like) . A paragraph in this article by the New York Times also tweaked my interest because it explained how the proposed bidding system could also increase the range of the Internet and spawn technological innovation in cell phones and computers:
"... in the future such a system might require that advanced computing technology be built into wireless handsets and computers to automate the auction bidding process and permit it to take place without users noticing. The Google proposal states that such a system would reduce retail prices for wireless spectrum and extend Internet access into rural areas not now served by existing providers."
Go Google go! Opening up the airwaves to a real-time bidding process may give some renewed life to the airwaves and I am all for another thriving promotional medium. Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on your views, when auctioned airwaves become available Google's business model will likely thrive because few can compete with their constant innovation and massive cash reserves.
This Monday CBS joined the acquisition bandwagon and bought the popular online video site Wallstrip.com. Purchased for a price in the single-digit millions (rumors are around $5 million but this has been disputed) after having been online for less than a year, Wallstrip is a fantastic success story. Investor & creator Howard Lindzon's blog announced the purchase and he sent his thanks to those involved.
Congrats Wallstrip!
Apart from the fact that Wallstrip deserves this good fortune (it IS a great site), what I find the most interesting is that Wallstrip's success came about, in part, thanks to Google. Yes, I said Google, and no Google did not have a financial stake in Wallstrip. Google owns YouTube and YouTube provided the free video hosting and feed services that allowed Wallstrip to function. It is fascinating that a free service can provide a platform where an idea can become an acquisition.
Wallstrip put out a clever announcement which Lindsay Campbell (one of the winners in this deal) hosts. It is definitely worth a viewing for a good laugh.
Many of you may have never heard of Baidu and that is expected since over 95% of its users are from China. I knew a little about the company but frankly since I could not read Chinese there was little for me to glean from their interface at www.baidu.com. Today, however, I came across an excellent video created by WallStrip that provides insight on this monster company. What I found most interesting was how a different culture can drastically effect the interface and options present on a search engine:
Blink
Del.icio.us
Digg
Furl
Google
Simpy
Spurl
Y! MyWeb
Digg
Del.icio.us
Technorati
StumbleUpon
