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Friday, February 06, 2009

Google Latitude Adds More Social to Mobile

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 9:44 AM

This week Google announced the addition of a new feature for its Google Mobile Maps application called Google Latitude. The enhancement allows people to share their location via GPS, cellular tower triangulation, or manually. Check out the video below created by Google to learn more about this cool technology that may not be new to the Internet but Google has upped the ante by embracing it:

Check out "Google's Latitude Has Vast Marketing Potential" on Search Engine Guide to see where I think Google could take this technology in the near future.

by Ross Dunn, CEO, StepForth Web Marketing Inc.

Labels: Google, Local Search, Mobile, New Tech, Ross Dunn, SEGuide

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 9:44 AM.

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Friday, May 23, 2008

Microsoft Joins in with Mobile Display Ads

Written by Scott Van Achte and published at 11:51 AM

Google, Yahoo, and others are already there, and now Microsoft has decided to follow the leader with the launch of Mobile Display Ads.

On Tuesday Microsoft Announced it had opened the doors for advertisers to display banner ads directly to Windows Live Messenger and Hotmail mobile users.

Microsoft also rolled out its beta for keyword based advertising using Live Search Mobile, to be expanded in the second half of 2008. A select group of "invited advertisers can create keyword campaigns through Microsoft adCenter that target customers on the go. This will be the first time that Microsoft has enabled advertisers to monetize its popular mobile search service."

Mobile advertising and search is still in its very early stages and, in keeping with tradition, Microsoft has followed behind Google and Yahoo. If they ever hope to boost their market share and better compete with the two leaders, Microsoft should really try launching initiatives like this first rather then constantly playing catch-up.

The service is currently available to advertisers in France, Spain, the UK, and the US. As keeping with the trend of new web developments, Canada is still left out in the cold.

Labels: Mobile, MSN, Scott Van Achte

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This SEO News was posted by Scott Van Achte @ 11:51 AM.

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Thursday, May 01, 2008

Create Your Own Mobile Website - Easily and Free

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 4:33 PM

In follow-up to my most recent posting I just completed my article on How to Simply Create Your Own Mobile Website and it is now posted exclusively at my favourite search engine resource; Search Engine Guide.

Here is the introductory paragraph for a little taster:

"Mobile web browsing is gaining popularity and acceptance thanks to the extensive proliferation of iPhones and other mobile appliances with surf-friendly interfaces. As a result it is becoming more and more important to offer a mobile-friendly alternative to your current website. The reality is, however, that many website owners seem to have no inclination to spend money on a medium that (as far as they know) is unproven and could generate zero income. Fortunately there is a way for every website owner to create an alternative to their website and not only is it exceedingly simple but it is FREE. Now no one has an excuse to ignore this growing medium!"

by Ross Dunn, CEO, StepForth Web Marketing Inc.

Labels: Google, Mobile, Ross Dunn, SEGuide, SEO Tips, Yahoo

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 4:33 PM.

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Wednesday, April 30, 2008

How to Redirect Mobile Traffic to the Mobile Version of a Website

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 1:23 PM

In the past I have written articles about the growing importance of creating a mobile website. I am currently in the process of creating yet another article with an update on the basic methods of creating a mobile website based on StepForth's own work so that hopefully more people will take the time to do so. During my writing I came up with some burning questions:

Once I have a website how do I ensure mobile users find it? The obvious answer was a redirection of some sort but what kind?
Is there a simple answer to the most popular programming languages online?

I plowed through endless articles and tutorials that were often jam-packed with bafflegab only understandable to programmers - a group I am far from apt to join. After a while I finally came up with some answers but frankly I found the process exhausting and it became clear I had better share my findings so that others could benefit from my research. As a result, here is my latest addition to StepForth's Web Marketing Knowledgebase: How to Redirect Mobile Traffic to Mobile Content.

I must note that I am still far from confident that I have acquired all of the answers but I did provide at least one solution for redirecting mobile traffic within each of the most common web languages; PHP, ASP and ColdFusion.

If you are not of the faint of heart and you want to dive deeper into the world of mobile redirection and design I urge you to visit the Wireless Universal Resource File (WURFL).

by Ross Dunn, CEO, StepForth Web Marketing Inc.

Labels: Mobile, Ross Dunn

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 1:23 PM.

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Friday, February 15, 2008

Google and the Mobile Internet - An Update

Written by Scott Van Achte and published at 3:03 PM

Over the past few days there seems to be a lot of action with Google and Mobile search. As the advancement in mobile technology continues, the major search engines are finding their place in this infant marketplace to seek out as many advertiser dollars as possible.

Google Searches Abundant on iPhones
On Wednesday, Google reported that it has seen more mobile searches by users using Apple iPhones by 50 times that of any other mobile handset, according to the Financial Times. This shows that the increasing use of mobile search will prove to be a significant source of revenue for Google and others involved in mobile search into the future, but the statistic had Google second guessing.

"'We thought it was a mistake and made our engineers check the logs again,' Vic Gundotra, head of Google's mobile operations told the Financial Times at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona."

Gundotra went on to note that the number of mobile searches could outnumber that of fixed internet searches "within the next several years" if other manufactures improve the ease of web access as Apple has.

Google Loses T-Mobile in Europe to Yahoo
The Washington Post reported Wednesday that Google has lost its contract with T-Mobile (Europe) as they signed Yahoo as their preferred mobile search provider. Yahoo's growing mobile presence is also one that Microsoft is undoubtedly eyeing in their multi-billion dollar take-over attempt.

Yahoo signing with T-Mobile is a significant move given that Google's partnership with the mobile operator was one of the first of its kind. Starting in March Yahoo's mobile oneSearch will be used by default by T-Mobile customers in 11 European countries.

This may not be as big of a hit against Google as Gundotra notes "Users want an internet without fences. They know how to type in Google.com if they want to get to it. Two years ago the operators were still playing the role of gatekeepers but that is no longer the role for them."

Google Search Offered on Nokia Handsets
Tuesday, Nokia announced a deal to offer Google Search to customers worldwide.

Google will now be the default search integrated into new select Nokia handsets. The deal will offer users faster, easier access to online information from their mobile devices as well as the ability to search the handset itself for any content they have stored within it.

Nokia offers easy searching only one click away from the active standby screen. By increasing the ease of use, ultimately it will increase the number of users taking advantage of the feature.

"Providing choices for our consumers is an important driver in Nokia's Internet service strategy," said Ilkka Raiskinen, vice-president, software and services at Nokia. "This integration allows our consumers the ability to use the innovative search technologies, which have made Google almost synonymous with Internet search.

Nokia and Google have had a previous relationship. Last year the Nokia N95 became the first mobile device to support YouTube, and Google Search has been available on Nokia Internet tablets for some time now.

Labels: Google, Mobile, Scott Van Achte, Yahoo

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This SEO News was posted by Scott Van Achte @ 3:03 PM.

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Monday, November 05, 2007

ANDROID is Google's Answer to the GPhone

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 12:45 PM

Around 8 am PST today Google finally put the tiresome rumors to rest... there is NO GPHONE. Thank the gods! All the speculation over the GPhone was silly and getting sillier. It never made sense for Google to create its own phone so it was a real relief when they finally announced Google's development of Android with the cooperation of the Open Handset Alliance.

Why No GPhone?
Google's press release: "... the Open Handset Alliance and Android -- is more significant and ambitious than a single phone... we hope Android will be the foundation for many new phones and will create an entirely new mobile experience for users, with new applications and new capabilities we can’t imagine today."

What is Android?
Google's press release: "Android is the first truly open and comprehensive platform for mobile devices. It includes an operating system, user-interface and applications -- all of the software to run a mobile phone, but without the proprietary obstacles that have hindered mobile innovation. We have developed Android in cooperation with the Open Handset Alliance, which consists of more than 30 technology and mobile leaders including Motorola, Qualcomm, HTC and T-Mobile."

From the Open Handset Alliance: "Android was built from the ground-up to enable developers to create compelling mobile applications that take full advantage of all a handset has to offer. It is built to be truly open. For example, an application could call upon any of the phone's core functionality such as making calls, sending text messages, or using the camera, allowing developers to create richer and more cohesive experiences for users. Android is built on the open Linux Kernel."

Will Google Mobile Fall to the Wayside?
Within the press release Google makes it very clear that Android is only one part of their mobile initiative. As a result, they will continue to ensure that they build and diversify their other mobile concepts to allow for other mobile users that may never touch an Android-based phone.

When will Android be Available?
They are 'expecting' Android to be released in the last half of 2008 on select phones.

Want to Know More about Android? Watch the Video Below:

Labels: Google, Mobile, New Tech, Ross Dunn

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 12:45 PM.

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Thursday, November 01, 2007

Ask Launches Improved UK Maps

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 10:16 AM

Yesterday Ask launched an improved version of UK Maps in a bid to get more users of the utility in the UK.

I am not too familiar with the pitfalls of version 1.0 but according to Ask's press release the new system accounts for the US-english vs UK-english language barrier (i.e. an 'exit' on a motorway is considered a 'junction' in the UK). The other improvements included:

Receive driving directions for up to ten different destinations at one time. In other words, plan your driving route for an entire day of errands - pretty cool.
It now includes walking directions.
"Landmark Assistance" is included which, I presume, allows you to find your way to particularly popular points of interest; this would be quite handy on a holiday!
Subway stations are marked for those who wish to get around a little quicker.
Curious about how everything might look in a particular location? Try the satellite view which will give you a decent photo view of the surroundings.
Satellite shots are available for purchase on the fly... odd but okay.
If you search for any UK city within Ask Search you will be presented with a myriad of city details including hot spots, links to maps, tips, etc.

All-in-all I feel I should reiterate that Ask really has the right approach... be the best you can be at your particular niches and you will get noticed. I think Ask is playing the sure and steady approach and I believe that will steadily grab marketshare as long as they don't play any more ridiculous commercials :-P

Here is a great comment that Ask received from what is definitely a winning response to this new version:

Oh yes, I'd like to congratulate you on your maps.

I've never used Ask.com before seriously, aside from just testing out one or two things; but that was until I found your maps had walking directions.

For me, someone who doesn't own a car and travels mostly by foot or public transport, this was a really nice feature - and one that works well.

So congratulations; you've done good with this maps malarky and I'll be using your map service from hereonin.

One thing I would like to see, but this would be a harrowingly long and tedious job, is to see a mapping system that recognises subways and narrow paths. This route suggested by Ask, for example, would be much quicker if you nipped under the subway.

"Ask Launches Improved UK Maps" by Ross Dunn, CEO, StepForth Web Marketing Inc.

Labels: Ask, Local Search, Mobile, Ross Dunn

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 10:16 AM.

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Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Twitter Gets a Guide

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 12:28 PM

My friend Jennifer Laycock suggested an article today that I am glad I checked out called "Twitter Guide Part #1" written by a blogging newcomer by the name of Caroline Middlebrook. It is a useful guide for an increasingly popular social property located at www.twitter.com.

Twitter has become so popular that it has, by its own nature, become a verb; "twittering" or "tweeting" is the act of 'telling' the world what you are doing at any given moment via instant messaging, mobile texting, or emailing.

When I first heard of Twitter I had much the same reaction as many of my friends and colleagues... "why would I want to send meaningless notes about my daily activities on a regular basis? It seems not only invasive but a waste of time and energy." Well I have to say that my reaction was more likely the result of social media startup overload than having put much thought into the marketing aspects of such a utility. The fact is that Twitter has become quite a marketing tool that is worth using if you are up to the task; I started using it today.

So how is Twitter a marketing tool? Well Jennifer Laycock noted a great example - CNN. CNN uses Twitter to publish news stories as they occur so that their Twitter community can be in touch with the latest events; a powerful tool for building and maintaining credibility. From my standpoint I plan on using Twitter to tell all which articles I find most interesting throughout my day and to perhaps post quick tips or links to articles we just posted on our blog. The trick to remember is that Twitter only allows 140 characters per 'tweet' so you have to be short and sweet; tweeting or twittering is aptly described as micro-blogging.

If you would like to learn more about Twitter then check out Caroline's Twitter Guide - it is a great introduction.

If you happen to signup for Twitter find me and join my community if you wish. I plan on having a lot of fun with it from now on :-)

Labels: Mobile, Ross Dunn, Social Marketing

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 12:28 PM.

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Friday, October 26, 2007

An Assortment of Interesting Stories for your Friday

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 12:01 PM

Here is a list of some articles that my staff and I came across today and thought worthy of sharing. Enjoy!

I, Cringely wrote an excellent article today describing Google's plans to host all of our applications. Cringely's insights are well founded in my opinion. This one is definitely well worth the read.
According to a mobile study released by Portio Research over half the worlds population will have a cell phone by 2009 and 75% of the population will have one by 2011.
"The Senate on Thursday night approved a seven-year extension of a moratorium on state and local taxes on Internet access." Honestly it is amazing to me that such a tax is even being considered - damn politicians!
"Google Inc. is confident that its $3.1 billion bid for online ad tracker DoubleClick will win over European and U.S. regulators." Personally I hope it doesn't go through simply because it has a very real possibility of giving Google a very damaging advantage over other search engines. I am still holding out hope that another player will steal more market share from Google because I prefer a more level playing field but I am well aware that is unlikely anytime soon.

And since we are approaching Halloween, here is something a little frightening for your day. A Zogby/463 Internet Attitudes poll states that 1 in 4 Americans feel the Internet is a decent substitute for a significant other for a period of time. Yikes. Oh and some other very interesting and occasionally boggling data was collected in the same poll so check it out for a laugh or two.

Labels: Google, Mobile, Online Statistics, Other News

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 12:01 PM.

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Wednesday, October 17, 2007

dotMobi Domains Sell for Half Million

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 1:05 PM

Congratulations to the gang at dotMobi for their successful Moniker auction in Miami last Friday. I am extremely impressed with how much they made on these domains.

poker.mobi - $150,000
ringtones.mobi - $145,000
news.mobi - $110,000
shopping.mobi - $55,000
email.mobi - $50,000
buy.mobi - $32,500
podcast.mobi - $25,000
cash.mobi - $12,500
pda.mobi - $8,000
zipcodes.mobi - $8,000

As the governing body of .Mobi domains all of the money made will be re-invested into dotMobi's further product launches and promotions of this popular domain extension.

This is yet another indication that the .Mobi mobile website domain extension is here to stay and has a great many powerful supporters. If you haven't picked one up for your own brand then I highly recommend doing so quickly. The news is getting out! And no, I am in no way profiting from this recommendation... I just love the concept and I am 100% behind it.

Read up on mobile news, and mobile website creation and optimization:

by Ross Dunn, StepForth Web Marketing Inc.
Celebrating 10 Years of Web Marketing Excellence

Labels: Mobile, Ross Dunn

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 1:05 PM.

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Friday, September 07, 2007

Insight into Steve Job's iPhone Price Drop

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 10:39 AM

On Wednesday the news lines were afire as Apple's CEO Steve Jobs announced a $200 price slash on the iPhone. Ever since the announcement there has been rampant speculation on Job's move...

Why, why, why?

Well I came across a fantastic character profile on Bill Gates and Steve Jobs by Robert X. Cringely; a man with abnormally deep insight into both men. The article is fascinating and I strongly recommend the read. After all, these are two people who have serious influence over the technological world we live in.

Labels: Mobile, Other News, Ross Dunn

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 10:39 AM.

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Wednesday, September 05, 2007

iPhone Cost Slashed and Awesome iPod Touch Released

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 5:56 PM

I enjoyed a fantastic overview of a press conference presented by Steve Jobs today. Among other cool news such as a new line of iPods Steve Jobs announced huge price slashes on the iPhone (sorry those who already bought it!) and added a particularly cool product called the iPod Touch which looks identical to the iPhone but lacks the phone capabilities.

Complete with WiFi I expect the iPod Touch to be a new rage... I want one badly! I also expect the iPhone Touch will vastly increase the frequency of mobile search since it uses the far less expensive (or free) WiFi networks that seem ever-present in the big cities.

Check out the excellent coverage of this news event by Ryan Block of Engadget

Labels: Mobile, Other News, Ross Dunn, Video

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 5:56 PM.

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Wednesday, August 29, 2007

dotMobi to Release Sex.Mobi for Auction

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 4:28 PM

In a post today dotMobi CEO, Neil Edwards announced that dotMobi would be releasing approximately 500 premium domain names to auction in the next few months. And yes, that includes Sex.Mobi.

Neil goes on to explain why dotMobi waited over a year to release these highly sought after domains: "We are a well funded company who has a long term view on dotMobi. The content publishing tools were not available last year to build good mobile content sites. It was not in the best interest of the consumer or the company to release names for sale when buyers would have had no good way to produce content."

As an added note Neil Edwards should have quieted a few naysayers out there who believe dotMobi is going nowhere; in a period of only 3 months, Google's index for .mobi pages has increased five times from 1 million pages to 5 million pages. Not bad for a relatively fresh domain in a emerging marketplace!

Congratulations dotMobi! I hope you guys make a killing on those premium domain names.

by Ross Dunn, CEO, StepForth Web Marketing Inc.
Celebrating 10 Years of Web Marketing Excellence

Labels: Mobile, Ross Dunn

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Monday, August 27, 2007

The Gphone Hype

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 4:02 PM

News of the potential Google Phone (gPhone) has been slowly but surely taking over the net over the past 6 months or so. As of late, however, the hype is louder than ever since recent (supposedly more concrete) evidence has appeared of its existence. At this point there is simply too much hearsay to really know what the heck is going on but a bit part of my gut says this may just be the biggest bad rumor ever. Unfortunately the other half of my gut wonders why Google's Marissa Mayer never actually denied the existence of the gPhone at the latest Search Engine Strategies conference.

One thing is for sure, mobile Internet use is skyrocketing and Google undoubtedly wants a sure footing in this burgeoning industry. The question is... will they meddle with the Telcos by taking their own piece of the pie or just continue to supply the ingredients?

Here are some interesting threads if you want to keep up on the latest gPhone hype:

My Prediction: Okay I am going to have fun here and try to predict where Google is with the 'Gphone'... nowhere! Look it seems bleeming crazy for Google to move on a concept that could alienate their telco partners and put them into a vertical they have little or no experience in. If they do go somewhere with this I expect it will be by way of a partnership model with a leading innovative Telco.

What Google Might Do
Okay here is my serious prediction: I predict that Google will partner with a Telco to create a phone (or modify an existing one) that takes complete advantage of Google's current and upcoming web applications. The new phone will be priced well below competitors and after they get users hooked on it they will offer an innovative new concept where users receive better rates in exchange for a form of advertising (yes, advertising I mean come on, this is Google after all!). How the advertising is integrated will depend entirely on the physical layout of the phone, however, I would be blown away if the phone did not include an iPhone-like larger than life touch screen which would (theoretically) allow similar ads to what we experience now.

Google will likely make the home page default to a mobile Google page with optional personalization enabled; but they will stress the usefulness of personalization because it will enhance the user experience by providing higher quality results. The phones will become your daily update on all things online including weather, flash news, scheduling, where to go (using GPS built-in or optionally added), email... etc.

Oh and of course Google will not make these great phones available in Canada because Google likes to forget about their Northern neighbors.

What Do You Think?
Is the Gphone all a bunch of whooey or are you betting on it? Drop a note!

by Ross Dunn, CEO, StepForth Web Marketing Inc.
Celebrating 10 Years of Web Marketing Excellence

Labels: Google, Mobile, Other News, Ross Dunn

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 4:02 PM.

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Friday, August 10, 2007

Recommended Reading this Friday

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 11:19 AM

Here are a few articles I came across today that I felt would add some richness to your Friday:

"Interview with Google's Sep Kamvar, Lead Software Engineer for Personalization"
Are you curious how Google's drive toward personalization might affect your privacy or the quality of search results? This short interview might answer some questions you have.
>> thanks for the tip from the blog "Geeking With Greg"
doMobi: Growth in the .mobi mobile web is undisputed in this post. Skip to the bottom if you just want that facts ma'am.

Huge kudos to James Pearce and the gang; I am a big fan of the .mobi concept and frankly the great support and awareness the .mobi squad brings to the mobile revolution.
Matt Cutts published a blog posting with Whitehat SEO Tips for Bloggers. I haven't read it all yet but by nature these posts are often interesting.
"Listen Up (Why your customer's native tongue matters)": Marketer Drew McLellan explains that for sales content to be effective you need to make sure your content is written in a fashion similar to how your customers speak.

All the best and I hope you all have a great weekend wherever you are. - Ross Dunn

Labels: Google, Mobile, Ross Dunn, SEO Tips

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 11:19 AM.

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Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Canadian Mobile Data Rates Are Appalling

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 4:05 PM

The Mobile Web is undoubtedly going to grow and grow until a mega industry takes shape; after all, there are simply too many people getting more and more addicted to instant information gratification. This fact is not lost on any country with a mobile network and Canada is no exception. Unfortunately for Canadians we are being suffocated by mobile data rates that are exceedingly more expensive than even a third world country like Rwanda. Unless our data rates come down you can bet that Canada will be left in the dust while the world of mobile commerce skyrockets.

Don't believe me? The chart below dramatically illustrates the appalling impact of a lack of Canadian competition.

A chart titled "The Travesty of Canadian Mobile Data Rates"

This chart and story was originally posted in April by a blogger by the name of Tom Purves. I came across it and I was struck dumb by the price gouging that this beautiful country is allowing (here are more stats courtesy of Tom). As a result, I thought I would do a little digging into the past of the CRTC (Canadian Radio and Telecommunication Commission) to see how they have handled this marketplace in the past. Unfortunately few answers were obtained... just more shock and outrage on my part. What I "loved" the most was this horrendous quotation from a 1994 announcement from the CRTC that they were opting out of regulating wireless rates:

Citing a "sufficient" level of competition in all of these markets, the agency said it will continue to oversee the setting of rates only in the case of wireless services provided directly by the nation's telephone companies. Otherwise, wireless services "are sufficiently competitive not to warrant regulation," it said. However, the CRTC also said it is "prepared to forbear from exercising some of its regulatory powers" over mobile wireless services provided directly by the telephone companies if they can show evidence of "the establishment of sufficient costing and marketing safeguards."

Although this quote is from 1994 it seems to be still in sync with the current CRTC Fact Sheet on Cellular (Wireless) Telephone Services. So what can I, as a Canadian, do now? I suppose I can only make a lot of noise by writing articles like this and furthering the message from Tom's original article.

One thing seems for sure... if Canada does not dramatically decrease its mobile data rates then us Canucks are going to enjoy fewer benefits of the growing Mobile Web.

Here is another current article on this subject: "Mobile Web Canada"

Labels: Mobile, Other News, Ross Dunn

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 4:05 PM.

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Monday, July 16, 2007

Increase Your Visibility in Local Search

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 11:33 AM

This morning I came across a great article by Sujan Patel at Search Engine Journal called "5 Quick Ways to Optimize for Local Search". I highly recommend reading this article!

The following is a summary of the main points with an added Canadian perspective for those who want to add/edit their business listing in Canada:

1) Make sure to list your business in the following local sections of these sites:

Google Maps
Yahoo! Local - here is the link to Yahoo Local Canada
MSN Live Local
SuperPages here is the link to SuperPages Canada
YellowPages - SuperPages and YellowPages have the same listings in Canada so just use the SuperPages Canada link above.
Switchboard - this directory does not appear to have a Canadian version. Even if it did it would be populated by YellowPages information which you can edit using SuperPages Canada.
CitySearch - it appears that Toronto is the only Canadian region covered.

2) Make sure your address information is present within your website; a great place is the footer of every page.

3) Ensure your domain is registered with your business address. Use a WHOIS tool to verify the address is correct in your domain.

4) If you want to take your local Internet presence to a more competitive level try getting backlinks to your website with geographical references. For example, StepForth might look for "web marketing, Victoria, BC" or "SEO services, Victoria, BC"

5) Cell phone and PDA users are turning to fast local searches using their mobile devices. In order to tap this marketplace create a mobile version of your website with geographical references including nearby popular spots/businesses. You would also benefit from trading links or acquiring links from businesses in your area. Read "Stake Your Claim on the Mobile Web" to get an introduction into Mobile device marketing or read our other articles and posts on mobile.

by Ross Dunn, CEO, StepForth Search Engine Placement Inc.
Celebrating 10 Years of Web Marketing Excellence

Labels: Local Search, Mobile, Ross Dunn, SEO News, SEO Tips

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 11:33 AM.

Copyright ©2006-2012, The SEO News Blog, StepForth SEO Services
View this Article Only: Increase Your Visibility in Local Search

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Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Ready.Mobi Releases Major Upgrade

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 8:10 AM

Today James Pearce at .Mobi announced that their mobile website review tool (ready.mobi) has been upgraded to offer a site wide mobile-ready analysis. Previously users could only verify their site's mobile page compatibility one page at a time so this upgrade is indeed newsworthy.

If you are unfamiliar with the advantages of the mobile web or just why it is worthwhile learning about then I invite you to read the following:

All-in-all I strongly recommend keeping an eye on the mobile marketplace. The mobile web is still very much in its infancy but as you may know these 'infant' technologies have a way of sneaking up on us all. It also helps that I am certain the mobile web is the way of the future; though definitely with a far more pleasant user experience. I liken mobile search now to that of the first color tv's... clunky, unpredictable, and a limited content base. But just look at TVs now!

Labels: Mobile, New Tech, Ross Dunn

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 8:10 AM.

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View this Article Only: Ready.Mobi Releases Major Upgrade

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Thursday, May 24, 2007

Have a Peek at Googles Future of Mobile Search

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 4:46 PM

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.

Labels: Google, Mobile, Ross Dunn

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 4:46 PM.

Copyright ©2006-2012, The SEO News Blog, StepForth SEO Services
View this Article Only: Have a Peek at Googles Future of Mobile Search

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Monday, May 14, 2007

ASK Mobile GPS Provides a Glimpse of What is to Come

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 11:18 AM

Today the official Ask.com Blog announced details of its local-focused mobile services called Ask Mobile GPS. When I read the offering provided by this 1st generation of local (GPS-driven) mobile service currently only available on specific Sprint phones, I was blown away. The Ask blog posting explains these details more thoroughly but here is a point-by-point rundown of the new offering:

Share My Location: opt to let specific friends know where you are at any given moment... creepy but cool. If a friend wants to meet with you their Sprint phone will provide step by step directions to get to your location.
Directions: navigate to any available location using audible driving (or walking) directions provided in real-time by the GPS enabled phone.
CitySearch: search for specific stores or facilities in your current area. The CitySearch will provide recommendations within a predescribed distance of your location.
EVites: receive and send invites to friends for parties or simply a coffee meeting. You can create, view, cancel or accept EVites easily from your phone. In each case the EVites can provide directions to the event location.
Favorite Places: save shortcuts to your favorite locations for easy access to directions wherever you are.

Being the first to launch this powerful mobile service Ask.com has really put itself ahead of the pack. "At the end of the day, everyone needs to go mobile. But being early in the game can help lock people in for the long term," Ask's CEO, Jim Lanzone aptly stated in an interview with Reuters.

by Ross Dunn, CEO, StepForth SEO Services
Celebrating 10 Years of SEO Excellence

Labels: Ask, Mobile, New Tech, Ross Dunn, Social Marketing

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 11:18 AM.

Copyright ©2006-2012, The SEO News Blog, StepForth SEO Services
View this Article Only: ASK Mobile GPS Provides a Glimpse of What is to Come

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Friday, May 04, 2007

The Search Engines Have Been Busy this Week - A Recap

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 11:44 AM

This week the search world has been rampant with news of buyouts and related rumors. Here is a snapshot of the events of interest:

The Dow Jones is up for sale and rumors started by a connected analyst state that Google may be interested. I say "don't hold your breath." This is likely a tall tale. Here is another article from Bloomberg: "Dow Jones Holders Say Murdoch Bid May Trigger Auction (Update4)"
Yahoo responds to Google's purchase of DoubleClick by purchasing the remaining shares of Right Media for $680 Million; an ad buying exchange very similar to DoubleClick.
Microsoft has expressed interest in purchasing 24/7 Real Media; one of the few remaining media companies in the Internet advertising industry that have not already been snatched up. In fact, 24/7 Real Media appears to be the only advertising firm that would provide Microsoft with the ability to compete with Google and Yahoo in this advertising exchange space. According to a recent posting by the Houston Chronicle on 24/7's stock holdings these unconfirmed reports of a Microsoft buyout is creating uncertainty with investors so at this point there is no telling if the talks are going anywhere.
Microsoft purchased ScreenTonic, a European mobile technology pioneer that specializes in advertising on the mobile web. Steve Berkowitz, Senior Vice President of Microsoft's Online Services Group had this to say, "the acquisition of ScreenTonic will be part of our long-term strategy to deliver ad experiences that map to the environment. Together, we will be able to provide relevant ads where consumers are, when they are actively engaged and communicating."
Microsoft completed its acquisition of TellMe Networks, a company specializing in speech recognition, automated enterprise support services, and voice-enabled mobile search. The purchase was originally announced in March of 2007 and was touted by Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft as a way to "enable us to deliver a new wave of products and revolutionize human-computer interaction."

by Ross Dunn, CEO, StepForth SEO Services
Celebrating 10 Years of SEO Excellence

Labels: Google, Microsoft, Mobile, Other News, Ross Dunn, Yahoo

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 11:44 AM.

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Wednesday, May 02, 2007

Your First Mobile Website - Should it be a .mobi or a mobile subdomain?

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 10:58 AM

In reference to my article "Mobile Search Site Creation and Optimization - Part 1" Vance Hedderal, Director of Public Relations at .mobi explains why he thinks the .mobi extension should be used instead of a mobile subdomain (i.e. yoursite.mobi vs. mobile.yoursite.com)

Quote from Vance Hedderal:

I was surprised to read the section in Rachel Pasqua’s presentation summation that says, "iCrossing decided to proceed with the subdomain concept rather than a separate domain such as a .mobi. In this case their mobile site is located at mobile.icrossing.com; a sensible concept that retained the branding of the top level domain name without having to rebrand a new one."

I was surprised because, up until then, the ideas in her section seemed well thought out.

It's rare to see companies that hinge their brand on a domain. Even the greatest Internet success stories like Amazon, Google and Yahoo aren't tied to a domain. They realize a domain is a channel; to them, a .fr, or .co.uk or .jp matters as much as a .com. That's what .mobi brings to branding: a distinct, easy-to-remember formula for finding the mobile content of a brand and a distinct channel, much the same as a country code offers.

The subdomain strategy that iCrossing is employing is what has brought mobile users addresses like http://wap.oa.yahoo.com and http://proxy.espn.go.com/wireless/espn/. With .mobi, users can easily guess -- say -- “cnnmoney.mobi” or “google.mobi” and know that they'll get content that works on their phones.

Now, think about brands that did tie themselves to a domain. Here's one: pets.com.

We've talked more about this in our own blog's misconception series. Our contributor, Ronan Cremin, remarked, "Third level domains such as wap.domain.com and mobile.domain.com do not work well for the purpose identifying mobile content, nor do special URLs such as domain.com/mobile and domain.com/xhtml because there are no enforceable standards for doing this (DNS is inherently distributed -- registrants can do whatever they want with third-level domains). A top-level domain, on the other hand, can do this, and help the user to identify (and trust) mobile friendly sites."

It bears noting that iCrossing does own the icrossing.mobi domain. That said, Rachel was clear that .mobi was not their first choice for promoting their site. The other presenters also noted that although they did not have high expectations for the .mobi extension they felt it was still a good idea to purchase the domain to avoid the possibility of future losses should it gain traction.

Go For .Mobi
I recommend that clients utilize the .mobi extension when creating their new mobile websites because it is inherently logical; having a single top level domain (TLD) that is dedicated to mobile is a sensible manner to simplify mobile surfing. That .mobi is not a popular top level domain says very little since the mobile web is still in the first stages of formation. I expect the next 2 years will be the real test and I for one believe that .mobi has a real chance of catching on as long as the .mobi PR machine can get big media and other early adopters to utilize it.

by Ross Dunn, CEO, StepForth SEO Services
Celebrating 10 Years of SEO Excellence

Labels: Conferences, Mobile, Ross Dunn

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Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Mobile Search Site Creation and Optimization: Part 2 of 2

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 12:40 PM

Written by Ross Dunn, CEO, StepForth SEO Services

Credits: (Continued from Part 1)
The following is Part 2 of the coverage of the Search Engine Strategies (SES) New York presentation called “Mobile Search Optimization” by Cindy Krum of Blue Moon Works, Gregory Markel, President of Infuse Creative LLC and Rachel Pasqua, Director of Mobile Marketing at iCrossing.

Part 2: Mobile Site Optimization
The question remains; how should you optimize a mobile web page? All of the presenters provided tips, but Cindy Krum’s presentation provided the majority of information. I listed a blend of the tips from all presenters below:

Make certain that no information is located more than 3 clicks from the home page

Organize the page so the main content appears first on the page followed by the navigation. For most this will seem counter intuitive, but by laying out the mobile page in this manner mobile users will see the content they want faster and thus know they are on a different page; versus seeing the same navigation listing again if the navigation was at the top – which would look the same across all pages. In addition, mobile users want to avoid scrolling as much as possible so having the content first will offer better visitor retention.

Organize your navigation in the most logical fashion. In other words, place what is likely to be the most popular buttons first using text links, followed by the others in order. In addition, make certain to word the buttons clearly and succinctly to use as little screen real estate as possible while applying good call to action principles.

Offer a sitemap so that spiders and users alike can quickly navigate the mobile site if need be.

Keep the filenames for the mobile pages short and keyword rich.

Do not use pop-ups, frames or Flash because these are likely to block mobile browsers, not just search engine spiders.

Optimize mobile pages for short keyword phrases since mobile users tend search using up to three words in a single phrase.

Rely only on the textual content, not on images, objects or scripts because they may not appear on handheld browsers.

Minimize file size for faster content loading.

Use optimized heading tags wherever appropriate. Just like standard web pages, properly optimized Heading Tags play a significant role in search engine algorithms.

Test and validate your mobile website to ensure maximum effectiveness for both users and spiders alike. Here are some options that Cindy Klum provided in her presentation:
Simulators: Skweezer, Google,
Validators: .Mobi Validator, W3C Mobile Web Validator

Conduct a traditional link building campaign specifically for your mobile website. Do this by submitting to local and mobile directories and getting links from other mobile websites. Also, purchase text links from other mobile and traditional websites.

Announce to the world that your mobile website now exists through press releases. This will add bonus backlinks to your website.

Offer social book marking and tagging functionality to your mobile website.
When a user clicks on one of these phone numbers their mobile phone will immediately connect them to the number.
Include your main website address in the footer of the mobile page and make your phone numbers clickable using the following sample syntax:
< href="tel:2503851190">250-385-1190< /a >

Note: eliminate spacing immediately beside brackets for the code to work.

Other Tips from the Mobile Optimization PanelAmidst discussion and the question and answer period there were a few great points that I felt were worth adding to this summary:

If you choose not to use a .mobi domain as your primary address for the mobile website then you should still purchase the domain and forward traffic to the alternate address. In this way, you will at least protect your brand. As an added note, I would strongly recommend using a 301 redirect from the .mobi to the main address if you decide to follow this path.

Google offers a transcoding system that will attempt to change any website into a mobile website automatically. It was universally agreed on the panel that depending on transcoding to provide your mobile users with a mobile-friendly website is a very bad idea.

According to Gregory Markel, approximately 17% of mobile traffic comes from users navigating directly to a URL. As a result, it is strongly recommended that your mobile URL is very simple to remember and easily typed in (no too long or difficult to spell).

The current best source for mobile user statistics is http://www.mmetrics.com/

Google produced a (PDF) Mobile Search Behavior study that Gregory Markel mentioned was an excellent source of information.

I will end this synopsis with an apt quote that Rachel Pasqua began her presentation with:

"… it’s really not a matter IF the mobile phone will become the dominant internet platform any more but WHEN…" - Yahoo! analyst Russell Beattie

Labels: Conferences, Mobile, Ross Dunn, SEO, SEO Tips

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Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Mobile Search Site Creation and Optimization: Part 1 of 2

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 3:27 PM

The following is coverage of the Search Engine Strategies (SES) New York presentation called “Mobile Search Optimization” by Cindy Krum of Blue Moon Works, Gregory Markel, President of Infuse Creative LLC and Rachel Pasqua, Director of Mobile Marketing at iCrossing.

This presentation provided a fascinating glimpse into the young realm of mobile site creation, compliance and optimization. I have a lot of information to work with here so to make this article a little more digestible I have broken it into two parts; one is the site creation and the second is the site optimization.

Mobile Website Design & Creation
During this presentation two very different lines of thought were noted regarding the best method for creating a mobile website, one from Cindy Krum and the other from Rachel Pasqua.

> Cindy Krum’s Presentation

Cindy Krum felt strongly that an existing website should pull double-duty as both the wired and the mobile version by using CSS to provide an alternative, mobile friendly version shown only to mobile users.

Cindy provided some great tips on how to create a hybrid mobile/wired website:

Ensure your website is 100% W3C XHTML compliant because mobile browsers are completely unforgiving when it comes to improper coding.

Follow strict XHTML accessibility guidelines to provide the best quality product for both wired, mobile, and those that require accessibility (i.e. the blind). She also noted that by following accessibility requirements any images that do not show up on the mobile browser will be defined in text format – a nice backup.

Avoid unnecessary code to minimize download times.

Ensure the site uses CSS to control content – this is critical to ensure the mobile version can have reorganized placement of content. (i.e. the menu might be at the bottom vs. the top)

Use external CSS files to provide maximum flexibility such as the ability to specify a different style sheet for each mobile browser.

Use the LINK element to attach style sheets because it is a much friendlier format for mobile browsers.

Use multiple style sheets. The minimum would be a style sheet called “screen” for regular wired visitors and a second style sheet (provided below the first) called “handheld”.

Use “display: none” to hide elements in either rendering. This is useful if you have page elements you do not want to appear to mobile users or vice versa. Using this method of hiding content is part of what makes Cindy’s hybrid approach feasible of using a single website for both viewing technologies (handheld, and wired).

These headers will help you identify the mobile device being used to access the content. HTTP User-Agent headers, HTTP Accept Headers, and UAProf.

Use the appropriate MIME type: “text/html” or “application/xhtml+xml”.

> Rachel Pasqua’s Presentation

At the opposite spectrum was Rachel Pasqua who firmly stated that offering your current website to users, reformatted or not, would likely provide a less than desirable user experience. She went on to explain that mobile users should see an entirely different, more time efficient version of your website because such users are task oriented. Rachel put her thoughts into excellent perspective when she stated that mobile search is “not surf media, it’s search media”. She also went on to state that iCrossing decided to proceed with the subdomain concept rather than a separate domain such as a .mobi. In this case their mobile site is located at mobile.icrossing.com; a sensible concept that retained the branding of the top level domain name without having to rebrand a new one (i.e. going with the .mobi version)

Rachel had some interesting metrics and tips to share with the group that were researched at iCrossing using focus groups and other research (sorry I don’t know the source but the report is due to be released soon I hear). Here are a few tidbits that I caught on paper:

Mobile searchers tend to utilize the same search engine they use when they are on their PC.

Only 10% of the estimated 234 million US wireless subscribers are active users of mobile search.

Searchers are task oriented, they tend to want to get their information and get out; mobile surfing is extremely uncommon.

My Take on Hybrid Sites Versus A Separate Mobile Website
Of the two beliefs I felt myself more strongly drawn to the concept of a separate mobile site. Why? I think the maintenance of a hybrid website is bound to be far more difficult because design updates will require designers to think in both realms which is likely to make updates laborious for the average business owner.

> Gregory Markel’s Presentation
Gregory Markel of Infuse Creative LLC, dropped a very intriguing bombshell at the beginning of his discussion when he noted that Google’s Voice Local Search just might take the world of mobile search in an entirely different direction. According to Gregory, his friends and network of mobile enthusiasts have been impressed by the results of using 800-GOOG-411 and conducting a free voice search; the results have been extremely relevant and Google immediately connects the user to their preferred result by phone. After this bombshell had sunk in, he went on to discuss many of the points already mentioned by Cindy but he had a few highlights definitely worth mentioning including this valuable tip: get into Google local for your area so that you can be found on Google’s Voice Local Search, it is free and easy to do. (Note, I wrote an article on how to do this a few months back called: Have Your Company Listed Free in Google Maps). Unfortunately, Google Voice Local Search is experimental and only available in the United States.

Highlights from Markel:

Mobile search adoption has been slower in the US than expected at only 19%

An excellent source of mobile statistics is the self-described authority on mobile metrics, MMetrics.com.

When users conduct searches, they are more likely to search using 2 or a maximum of 3 words.

Nokia has decided to try to simplify the process of searching by integrating it into its future line of cell phones.

Mobile devices require ultimate simplicity to ensure compatibility across the vast number of proprietary mobile browsers available.

Stay tuned for Part 2 of this presentation brief on Mobile Site Optimization.

Written by Ross Dunn, CEO, StepForth SEO Services
Celebrating 10 Years of SEO Excellence

Labels: Conferences, Mobile, Ross Dunn, SEO, SEO Tips

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Thursday, January 04, 2007

StepForth’s Predictions for 2007

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 9:41 PM

Another New Years has come and gone and over the past few weeks search industry professionals have been releasing their search market predictions for 2007. I have steered clear of reading them because it is time for me to write down StepForth’s predictions and the last thing I want to worry about is duplication. Without further adieu, here are the predictions my staff and I put together for 2007.

Section 1: The Movers and Shakers

Windows Live: will continue the uphill battle of branding their relatively new search platform; the confusion over whether Windows Live is a replacement for MSN contributed to their forbidding decline in market share in 2006. My staff and I firmly agree, however, that MSN/Windows Live will rebound and increase its market share slightly over pre-2006 statistics.
Yahoo!: We expect Yahoo to improve in 2007 due to the fresh perspectives of new staff (from the 2006 executive restructuring) and the incredible potential of this massive search network. Unfortunately, I read that Yahoo is comfortable with its current market share and has no illusions about ever being a market leader; hardly the kind of intentional goal setting that leads to results. Their unfortunate vision statement aside, I anticipate Yahoo will increase its global market share from the current 19% to 24%. Frankly, I am still dumbfounded that Yahoo has anything less than a 30% stake. I realize Google is the clear victor in the search engine wars but Yahoo definitely has the necessary weight to grab a better than 19% share.
Ask: 2006 was a good year for Ask because they stuck to their guns and focused on what they were good at; answering questions. Ask has gained quite a loyal following over the past couple of years and I expect it will continue to do so as long as it maintains its focus; Ask’s push into local and mobile answers search was particularly well timed. I expect Ask will not lose any market share over 2007; in fact I would be surprised if they didn’t take a few more percentage points over the year.
Google: Google’s insatiable appetite for growth will have it pushing for more market share in Asia and Europe where new Google outposts have recently opened. In addition, I expect that its algorithms will be improved sometime in the 3rd quarter to further devalue the benefit of reciprocal links (see more in Section 2 under "Link Building"). Google will continue to improve its mobile services which will culminate in more aggressive promotion of searching “on the go” wherever you are in the world.
Baidu: I don’t consider this engine to be one of the major 4 search engines (yet) but it has grown so much over the past 2 years that it just felt right to add it. Who is Baidu? Baidu.com is China’s leading search engine and since its conception in 2000 by two young entrepreneurs, this company has experienced massive growth (i.e. their IPO in 2005 started at $27/share and is now sitting at $122/share); sound reminiscent of Google? In my opinion Baidu is not going to be another Google but it has potential to grab a noteworthy piece of the search market when it finally premieres in North America; still no word yet when this premiere might happen but I expect the first steps to begin late this year. Part of Baidu’s success stems from its simple and effective methods of searching for multimedia such as mp3’s and videos online in addition to standard searchable content.

Section 2: Search Engine Marketing Strategies

For added reading on this topic please see Scott Van Achte’s insightful article written in November 2006 titled "Future Evolution of Search."

Link Building: The industry of link building will take quite a hit this year as Google (among other SE’s) continues the process of weeding out unscrupulous linking techniques such as haphazard reciprocal link building and advanced link building directories (previously missed in other weedings). By no means will Google get a handle on all of the less desirable links but an onward push to cleansing rigged results based on false popularity will be noticed throughout the industry.

The future of link building will be more difficult but definitely more effective because one-way links (someone linking to you without need for reciprocation), be it through carefully researched paid links or from premiere link building companies, will finally be known as the only way to provide a lasting ranking advantage. For more information visit the home of the guru of link building, Eric Ward or read "Thinking (a lot) About Link Building" by Jim Hedger.
Search Engine Optimization: As the most complex search engine Google tends to set the bar for best optimization practices so focusing on attaining results on Google usually nets favourable results on the other major engines. With that information in mind I do not see any reason that ethical optimization tactics will be revised to any significant level in 2007. If you would like a refresher on what it takes to optimize a web page see "The Ten Minute Optimization REDUX" white paper.
SPAMMERS Beware: This year Google will begin a more focused campaign of eradication for websites using keyword stuffing to attain search engine results. It amazes me to this day that I still find top ranking sites with keyword-stuffed footer navigations designed to fortify competitive rankings and attain dozens of long-tail results. At any rate, it has been a long time since I have seen a significant cleansing of Google’s SERPS and I would be blown away if we don’t see at least one significant cleanse this year. For more information on what is considered SPAM please see "15 Shades of SEO SPAM."
PPC: This year Google will crank up the volume and remove 99% of the Adsense-driven leader pages that repeatedly clog the top ten rankings under many queries. Unfortunately, Google’s “don’t be evil” catchphrase may clash with their interest in the bottom line since these SPAM sites effectively add to Google’s pocketbook.
Mobile Search: I cannot stress enough the importance of this emerging industry and I expect that the increase in R&D from Google and some effort from Yahoo and Microsoft in this area will produce an undeniable need for separate, mobile-friendly websites (i.e. .mobi sites designed entirely for mobile use). This market place will see significant growth this year as Internet marketing companies jump into the fray and begin offering mobile site creation, promotion and optimization. For more information on the emerging mobile market place see "Stake Your Claim on the Mobile Web."

Section 3: The Path to Success Will Require More Planning and Technical Expertise

As top search engine rankings become more entrenched the average website owner will need to be more calculating when planning their pending web presence in order to join the ranks of the top 10. As a result, I see the following areas of intentional research and planning becoming critical requirements for online success:

Web Site Analytics: Understanding and managing the behaviour of web site visitors is crucial to repeated online success and I expect this fact will finally become common knowledge throughout 2007. Consequently, enterprising new technologies like ClickTale will emerge and ClickTracks (an analytics leader) will see record sales beyond their expectations. For some introductory information on analytics see "Did You Know You Had Stats?"
Competitor Analysis: In an effort to shorten the path to online success, it is important to start any online marketing with a clear understanding of what it takes to attain rankings and deconstructing the tactics that led to a competitor’s success is an important first step. StepForth has been performing advanced competitor analysis services for over 3 years now and every year we see the demand for such intelligence mounting. I expect the need to grow significantly over 2007 and it will become an accepted first step for all online campaigns within the next 2 years. For more information see our SEO Research page.
Search Engine Friendly Web Design: The importance of search engine visibility to online success is now common knowledge and this year more and more informed design clients will be demanding their web designers create search engine friendly web sites vs. websites that pose significant, if not fundamental barriers to rankings. "Is Your Website Search Engine Friendly?"
Professional Copy Writing: Does your content sell your site? In other words, are you converting your visitors? Professional copy writing is a must because it allows you, the site owner, to make more money from the traffic that you attain. Consequently, a higher conversion ratio means you have more money to reinvest in your online success and it is entirely reasonable to expect you may be making more money in the #10 position in rankings than a website in the #1 position that has poorly written sales copy. There is absolutely no question in my mind that professional copy writing services is going to be a growth market in 2007. If you haven’t had your sales copy professionally written then drop me a note because I know of an excellent copywriting company that may radically increase your bottom line.

Section 4: StepForth’s Dreams for the Search World of 2007

Google will finally show they care about their neighbours to the North and allow Canadian companies to become Adwords Certified; this will ultimately extend Canadians the benefit of participating in all beta programs.
A lesser search engine such as Baidu or a newcomer will take a significant (10% +) of the global search market share; we really need a new presence in the list of major search engines to keep life interesting.
Search engines will work together on an unprecedented scale to eradicate the majority of pay-per-click fraud.
StepForth will be sent loads of cool bling from search engines from around the world. We particularly want banners from the major search engines that we can hang on our wall - bling call!

by Ross Dunn, CEO, StepForth Search Engine Placement Inc.
"StepForth's Predictions for 2007", Copyright 2007, the StepForth SEO Blog

Labels: Analytics, Ask, Baidu, Google, Jim Hedger, Mobile, MSN, Other Engines, PPC, Ross Dunn, Scott Van Achte, SEO, SEO Tips, Yahoo

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Wednesday, December 13, 2006

Stake Your Claim on the Mobile Web

Written by Ross Dunn and published at 5:10 PM

With the Internet growing so rapidly do you ever wonder if you are missing a new trend or technology that could boost your bottom line? Well, there just happens to be a piece of the Internet that I bet you haven't made the leap to yet and it is going to be BIG. This new space is mobile search and mobile Internet surfing.

I know, I know, mobile Internet use has been around for a while, but even now it is very much in the infancy phase of development. After all, it was only over the past year that a W3C working draft appeared that allows web designers to create mobile sites compatible with the many mobile phone browsers. I have tried to use the search and navigation abilities on mobile phones and I have not been impressed; clunky is a nice way to put it. That said, there is no question in my mind this is a market that will explode over the next couple of years. To back up my lofty claim here are just a few of the notable headlines on the build-up to mobile search and advertising published over the last 30 days:

• Vodafone and Yahoo to Launch Advertising on Mobile Devices (Yahoo)
Mobile technology is way ahead in Europe and Vodafone is currently “the largest mobile telecommunications network company in the world by turnover and has a market value of about £86 billion (November 2006)” ( according to Wikipedia ) . Yahoo has signed a deal which will provide Vodafone users with carefully targeted advertising in exchange for cheaper phone options.

• Google Testing Mobile Ads in Eight More Countries (MarketWatch)
“The ads apparently will appear whenever someone in those countries use a cell phone's Internet capability to access a site or to search via Google's engine.” The article also states that Google is “… also going after the $11 billion that advertisers are expected to spend on mobile marketing by 2011, according to a recent report by the telecom division of Informa Group.”

• Google and Microsoft in Mobile Search Race (Financial Times)
This article notes that “ Google announced a deal to put its search function on 3mobile's handsets”, and “Sprint Nextel, the US carrier, said it would place Microsoft's search engine on its mobile phones.”

So we know from the articles above that the mobile web is poised to really take off. However, did you know that it already has to some degree? For example:

• Google Mobile has an option that will only provide results from sites that were created mobile-friendly. ( link )

• On November 28, 2006 the Webby's, which are labeled the “Oscars of the Internet” by the New York Times, added a new category specifically for the mobile web: “ Webby Awards Join With dotmobi To Launch Webby Mobile Awards. ”

In short, there is a huge amount of positive growth in the mobile marketplace and I recommend taking a slice of it before your competition does. So what do you need to do? Get a dotmobi domain, build a mobile version of your website and promote it by adding it to various mobile directories and sites.

1. Get a .Mobi Mobile Domain
Just this year a consortium of major players including Google, Microsoft, Vodafone, Samsung, Ericsson and Nokia sponsored a new domain meant specifically for a new mobile web: .mobi . Opened for general registration as of September 26, 2006, the .mobi top level domain “is the first and only top level domain dedicated to delivering the Internet to mobile devices” says the official “ What is dotmobi? ” page).

The idea of the .mobi domain is to create a mobile version of your website so that users can simply type in your .mobi address and be assured of a streamlined viewing of your company website on their mobile device. It really is quite brilliant in my opinion and it has a good chance of becoming a popular address with such monsters as Google and Microsoft on the list of supporters.

If you wish to register your dotmobi domain here is a list of registrars provided by the dotmobi website. From what I can tell, however, GoDaddy is providing the best annual .mobi registration price of $15 per domain (min. 2 yrs).

2. Build Your Mobile Web Site
Designing for mobiles is not exactly new but as it is still new to me I cannot provide a great deal of first hand knowledge. That said, StepForth will be creating our own mobile site in-house so I know my Senior Designer and I have a learning curve ahead. Fortunately, to this end, a little research and patience led me to some great resources that I recommend. The following sites will take you in the right direction:

- MobiSiteGalore.com : if you are looking for a simple cookie cutter approach to creating your mobile website you can develop it for free using this website's mobile compliant website builder. I watched the demo movie on how a website is created and I must say I am very impressed with its functionality.

- Official .mobi Development Standards : If you would like to custom design your mobile website so that it stands out from the rest then this is the site for you. Develop a mobile website to meet .mobi guidelines at the .mobi development website . The .mobi development site appears to be designed to make the move to mobile as easy as possible – thankfully! The development site even offers a free course to put your designer through so that he/she can understand the needs of a properly designed mobile website. In short, I am very impressed with this website and I expect it to provide all that StepForth needs to get our own mobile website online (it will be stepforth.mobi when it is complete).

Additional Mobile Resources
Here are some sites that provide some great additional information but they would likely be a bit too technical for the average site owner. These are, however, great for your designer to check out:

- Mobile FAQ: a mixture of general and specific questions for understanding the mobile phenomenon and designing a mobile site.

- W3C Mobile Web Best Practices Working Group: this is not light reading but your designer may find it interesting.

Check Your Final Product
Once your mobile website is complete you need to verify that it is completely mobile compliant. The .mobi development site provides a “ MobiReady Report ” which will check your site for compliance. This is a great way to be sure that your designer has done a good job and that your website will be as compliant as possible across the wide range of mobile products available.

3. Optimize Your Mobile Site
Optimizing a mobile site is only slightly different than the average website. The basics of optimization remain true; be sure to create great Title Tags, Description Tags, headings, navigation, and focus your content to match page targets. The only difference is you will have less screen real estate to work with so try to keep your optimized content concise – no one wants to read useless information on his or her mobiles. After all, you can be reasonably sure that the time a visitor is willing to spend on a mobile site to find information will be significantly less than their standard visit from their home computer; thus the word ‘mobile'. In short, you will have very little time to convince a visitor to stay at your website.

Google Optimization Note: create a Google Mobile Sitemap so Google can ensure your mobile content is properly noted and categorized as mobile friendly. Will this help traffic? I would think so, here is Google's message verbatim, ‘ by using Mobile Sitemaps to inform and direct our crawlers, we hope to expand our coverage of the mobile web and speed up the discovery and addition of pages to our mobile index.' ( link )

4. Promote Your Mobile Web Site
The mobile Internet is composed of a growing exclusive group at the moment so it is important that your new website get as much visibility as possible. Here are some great tips and resources to help you do that:

- Submit your mobile site to Yahoo! Mobile for free

- Use PRWeb.com to send out a press release about your new .mobi website. Show the world that your company is cutting edge and strives to provide multiple solutions for accessing your products/services.

- Publish your mobile address on your website, business cards, and any other promotional materials. If you don't tell your target market that you have a mobile site they won't know to use it.

- Tell dotmobi about your site and it might just get some free publicity by being featured or becoming a case study.

In Summary
I think the .mobi domain is a fantastic way to provide a unique presence specifically designed for the mobile world. The fact that mobile phones are ubiquitous simply reinforces the need for the informed website owner to get their own mobile site setup ASAP. At the very least I would recommend picking up a .mobi domain of your own so that it is not snatched up when the inevitable rush to the mobile web becomes a reality.

Other Excellent Mobile Content
The following are some sites that I came across throughout the creation of this article. I found them very interesting and well worth noting:

• WAPReview.com “It's all about the mobile web”: this site is well written and includes some great tips and stories that you may find revealing – I know I did. Here is a particularly good posting that attracted my attention: “ Mobile Web (un)Usability ”

• Open Gardens : a blog that discusses the latest innovations in wireless mobility.

Labels: Google, Mobile, Ross Dunn, SEO News, SEO Tips

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This SEO News was posted by Ross Dunn @ 5:10 PM.