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Tuesday, February 28, 2006

Karl Ribas.com Blog Disclaimer

We all understand that a Blog, even though sometimes seen as an authoritive presence on the Internet, is a place where opinions and personal thoughts are shared. With that, a question submerges. Do all Blog visitors understand whose opinions they are in fact reading? I've recently wondered if they do.

I've never thought to use a disclaimer because I've always felt that the term "Blog" simply implied to readers that they were indeed reading my views and opinions. I mean the title clearly says "The Karl Ribas.com Blog"... does it not? But the truth is, Bloggers should not depend solely on the notion that all readers are going to understand this concept, because not all will.

Just imagine if a search engine newbie were to come across Matt's Blog (and I am sure that it happens a lot). Because Matt is a well known representative of Google, I can easily see how that one person may mistakenly take his views to be those of his employer... when in fact they may or may not be.

Going back to the subject at hand, I have never thought that the commentary that I share with you all on a weekly basis would ever merit the need for a disclaimer (and frankly I still don't believe so), but because I do find myself expressing more and more of my own personal thoughts and beliefs about various subjects I figured now is an appropriate time to outline one.

Therefore, I want to take a quick moment and let the following be known:

The views and/or opinions expressed in the Karl Ribas.com Blog (AKA: The KLOG) are simply those of Karl Ribas and his alone. Regardless of what his commentary may indeed imply, the views and/or opinions shared within this Blog are not necessarily those shared by his affiliations, clients, and/or colleagues.

Furthermore, the views and/or opinions published by The Karl Ribas.com readers are not necessarily those shared by Karl Ribas nor his affiliations, clients, and/or colleagues. "Comments" are published on the fact that they in some way contribute to the content that is presented and not whether or not the views are necessarily shared by the author.

With that being said, enjoy!

 posted by Karl Ribas
Tuesday, February 28, 2006
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Friday, February 24, 2006

"Na Na Na... Na. Hey Hey Hey... Goodbye"

Jeeves, Ask Jeeves Butler MascotThe week has been a sad time for the Internet. As I am sure most of you already know, Ask Jeeves will be saying goodbye to their corporate icon of 10 years. That's right... Jeeves, the butler mascot for Ask Jeeves, is retiring from his duties as ask's "answer man", and the search engine is slimming down to its long used but little promoted Ask.com domain name.

The Internet's favorite butler has been serving up answers since its creation in November of 1995. From the start, Jeeves was different than the other search services of the day. The idea behind Jeeves was not to create yet another search engine or directory, but to offer a question/answering service... basically a virtual online concierge. At that time, AltaVista (now owned by Yahoo!) had just publicly launched, and Yahoo!, although popular, was still a small operation and hosted on servers provided by Netscape, the web's major powerhouse of the time. My how times have changed!

Looking back, one of my favorite memories of Jeeves would have to be his participation in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. Ask created a giant sized version of their butler character and floated it proudly amongst the New York City Skyline. Jeeves is the first Internet character (and I believe he's the only) to have participated in this traditional event.

So why now? Why is Jeeves hanging up his 10+ year old suit at a time when his popularity still continues to grow? Well, my guess is that it has a lot to do with the IAC / Ask Jeeves acquisition that took place last year. The butler and his future with the company must have been left out of the negotiations. To me, this just all seems like really bad timing. With Jeeves' expanded search technology and its recently added paid placement program (PPC) the company is literally in a position to launch a full-out assult on search giants Google, Yahoo!, and MSN.

Oh well, at least Jeeves' didn't just leave with out saying "Goodbye". The people over at Ask created a retirement website where visitors can read Jeeves' official resignation letter, cast a vote for what he should do during his retirement, and even sign his retirement card. In addition, Ask put together this very funny going away video.

It's funny, when you consider that Jeeves just a static drawing of a butler-ish figure on a website, how much the Jeeves character has come to mean for people over the years. There are people who take Jeeves very literally. They think of Jeeves as the guy behind their searches, a cartoon man giving them answers. Jeeves is what makes the site unique for these people, pure and simple. On the other hand, there are people who reel back at the very notion of Jeeves, who think he signifies weak technology, slows down the site, and embodies over-commercialization and over promise. They would never use a site that had a butler on it.

To me, Jeeves was the go-to-guy on the Internet, a place to go to ask questions and it will be difficult to ever think of him as anything more.

So what does a mid-aged search engine butler do after he retires? Does he golf? Does he fish? Does he take in a few ball games? Does he become one of those slow Sunday-driving elderly that get mad when you step on their lawn? Well, whatever comes of Jeeves, I wish him all the best.

Peace out Jeeves... you'll be missed.

 posted by Karl Ribas
Friday, February 24, 2006
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Friday, February 17, 2006

YSM - "Dropping The Ball"

Ok... I hadn't planned on today's post being a "rant", but after talking with a few of my colleagues this morning, mainly those of All Web's Pay Per Click division, it only seems right that I address some of our issues. To bring you all up-to-speed on our conversation, the team and I were discussing Yahoo! Search Marketing (formerly Overture) and their customer service efforts... or lack there of.

Yahoo has definitely "dropped the ball" as of late as we (and I imagine other "Pay Per Click industry folks) are experiencing some very shitty customer service. I'm not talking about something as common as a conversation gone bad with an a-hole employee... hell we'd be fortunate to have that call. I'm referring to several issues where we aren't even able to get in contact with our supposedly "always available to help" Yahoo! Representatives and so forth.

You see, a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away we had ourselves a great account Rep. He was polite, knowledgeable, and fast on his feet when handling our requests. Recently they've pulled our Rep and assigned us the "Yahoo! Search Marketing Gold Team"... whom you would think would be able to replace this one guy and provide even more benefits while doing so. Well, we were wrong! Not one of them is worthy of being associated with Yahoo! and not one of them or all of them together is capable of filling the shoes of our past rep. Yeah, that's right Yahoo!... you took away our very knowledgeable and polite representative and gave us a team of worthless incompetent asses! None of them are on the same page with each other and none have a clue about how to deal with the issues we present to them. They're absolute morons.

On top of having access to the fabulous and powerful Gold Team (said sarcastically if you couldn't tell), we also have ourselves a district Representative who isn't much help either. This woman never answers the phone, never replies to our emails, and never checks in with us. If were lucky enough to track her down, usually at a search engine conference, she puts on this huge front like she actually gives a damn. She'll take out her little black notebook and scribble some things down, and then she'll tell us that our issues will be addressed immediately. To top it off, things never pan out as our problems are never addressed and we're back to square one.

I find it kind of funny that in order to have a word with our Chicago Rep., who is only an hour away from our main office, we have to book a flight to San Jose, buy a conference pass into the Search Engine Strategies conference, and hunt her down in the expo hall. Was this really the kind of customer service they wanted to provide with the switch?

Further more... there are many other issues I would like to address, like how their keyword automation system declines 90% of each submission, or how Google's traffic tends to convert more, or how 20% - 30% of our client's monthly budget is eaten away by PPC click-fraud, but I know that my voice will fall short of being heard by an actual Yahoo! employee who seriously gives a shit.

Yahoo!, I am well aware that you are the KING of search and one of the biggest players in the PPC game, but, if you seriously have a problem with earning our 6-7 figure yearly budget than I must say that your priorities are a bit screwed up. I can easily think of a few search engines that will gladly accept our checks and provide us with the appropriate customer service.

Oh... and before you get too comfortable sitting on your thrown, you should reminisce back and remember that it was companies like All Web that helped you too get there and it will be companies like All Web who will help keep you there. It should be blatantly obvious, that it's in your best interest to provide Pay Per Click marketers with the tools and resources needed to resell your services. Please don't forget the fact that you need us... we don't need you as long as there's a Google.

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 posted by Karl Ribas
Friday, February 17, 2006
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Friday, February 10, 2006

The "State Of The KLOG" Address

Break out those Champaign glasses and pour yourself a little bubbly... it's time to celebrate. One year ago tomorrow I started this Search Engine Marketing Blog and thus far it's been a wild, wild ride. Looking back at my 56 posts, I've covered a little bit of everything that the SEM industry threw our way.

Do you remember when the SMA-NA debuted at the Search Engine Strategies conference in New York almost a year ago? Or... when MSN announced its intentions of stepping into the Pay Per Click industry? Those were some pretty big announcements. How about when I received a letter from a fellow SEM claiming that my opinion of his/her involvement at a SES conference was off-based. Remember that? They all seem so long ago, but surely enough, they all happened in the past year.

So what is the "State of the KLOG"? Well, first of all for those of you who didn't already know the KLOG is my Blog's nickname as given to me by my All Web colleague Jessica Guadiana. Apparently The Karl Ribas.com Blog is a bit too long for her to say and write and so she decided to shorten it up to KLOG. Now, it seems as if everyone in the office has adapted her way of thinking.

Anyway, a week or so ago the President of the United States stood center at the white house and delivered his "State of the Union" address, which we all know is when he addresses the nation and congress reviewing his past year and his plans for the next. Building off of this idea, I've decided to do same thing here, except I'll be reviewing this past year's changes to my Blog and outlining what you readers can expect in the year to come.

So, without further ado... here's the "State of KLOG" address:

THE KLOG REVIEW
Since signing up with Blogger a year ago I have made some tremendous improvements to the design and layout of my blog. If you remember correctly, I first posted on a 100% Blogger template. Since then I've done my best to incorporate the Blog into my website and to better the overall experience that my readers have. Here are a few of last year's major changes:

Added Blog Links Section - I've added this as a second navigation option and to compliment the main navigation found at the top of every page of my website. These links are Blog specific and highlight pages that relate to the KLOG and those that my readers maybe interested in viewing.

Blogger's Profile - This was a page that I created to explain a little bit about myself and my position in the SEM industry. I personally enjoy reading about the authors of my favorite Blogs and newsletters and I figured that maybe some of my readers shared that same interest.

Added Syndication Section - This was one of the latest elements I've added and it had been long overdue. This section includes specifically formatted links that when clicked automatically add my Blog to some of the more popular RSS readers such as "My Yahoo!", "My MSN", and the "Google Reader". For those of you not familiar with RSS readers it's a program that will import the content of all the places you subscribe into one central place (either online or a desktop program like MS Outlook). The point of a reader is to save you time from having to check each day for Blog updates.

If you happen to use any of these RSS readers, please feel free to subscribe to my blog. In addition, I provide a standard RSS and an Atom feeds for your viewing pleasure.

Added Email Subscription Option - This is also a pretty new element which I am very proud to offer. Much like the Syndication feature, readers can begin receiving my Blog's content without actually visiting the KLOG. If you're interested, simply subscribe via email and my Blog posts will automatically be delivered to your "inbox" shortly after I've posted it.

Added Blog Roll Section - This is a list of Search Engine Marketing and Website Design blogs that I personally tune into. I thought that these maybe of some interest to my readers.

DISCLAMER: Please note that the views and opinions expressed within any of these Blogs are not necessarily the views and opinions of Karl Ribas or the Karl Ribas.com Blog.

Added 2005 Blog Archives Page - The 2005 Blog archives page is just as it sounds... a place where I've referenced descriptions and links to all 2005 Blog posts. This was of course created for those few readers who maybe interested in reading back that far or catching up on their Search Engine Marketing happenings over the past year.

THE FUTURE OF THE KLOG
The exact future of the KLOG, like most things, is a bit hard to predict but I can definitely share with you some of the ideas I've been considering.

Adding Google Adsense - I have been tossing the idea of Google Adsense around for awhile now. I have gone as far as opening an account and testing them in different locations throughout my blog but am still pondering whether or not displaying these text-based ads is at all relevant to my users... even if it does help pay the bills.

Adding Category Archives - This is a thought I'm entertaining where I would categorize all of my posts by categories. The idea is to have a "Pay Per Click" category where readers can find all my posts regarding Pay Per Click or a "Tools" category where readers can find all my posts regarding the cool tools and resources I've reviewed.

Improving the Design and Layout of Emails (for email subscribers) - As of now, email subscribers are receiving their update in a pretty standard template. I'm thinking about possibly incorporating my Blog's design into this template here very shortly.

Blogging More - I've been putting some serious thought into possibly posting more each week, instead of just on Fridays. This will of course depends on how much "free" time I have and whether or not I really want to spend it on Blogging as opposed to other website upkeep.

Providing Better Conference Coverage - I posted every day of this past SES conference (instead of just 1 post at the end) and my readers seemed to have enjoyed that a bit more. Because of the positive response I've received, I will be posting conference notes daily whenever I'm fortunate enough to be attending one.

Inviting Guest Bloggers - Yes... guest Bloggers. I'm seriously considering the possibility of inviting other Search Engine Marketers or Website Designers to post on a subject of their choice. Even though this is my Blog, I think that this idea may turn out to be very beneficial for some. Hearing the views and opinions of other industry members could definitely change things up a bit.

Well, I think its time to wrap up this thing up. Unlike, the "State of the Union" address, I hope the "State of the KLOG" address was entertaining and not so much boring. I want to thank you all for reading this week's. It's been a pleasure of mine to provide you with Search Engine Marketing news and updates. Furthermore, I appreciate those of you who've subscribed via feeds and email and for those of you who've shared your comments on past posts. It definitely makes Blogging worth the effort!

 posted by Karl Ribas
Friday, February 10, 2006
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Friday, February 03, 2006

"I does what I does"

So there I am... sitting at my desk 8 hours a day, 5 days a week. I optimize websites, tweak Pay Per Click accounts, monitor conversion tracking data, design websites, create graphic design solutions, and develop email advertisements. I write and respond to emails, introduce and follow up with all-sorts of projects, speak with vendors, and discuss the pros and cons of search marketing to interested potential clients. I maintain two websites, a blog, and a directory. I read SEO and marketing related newsletters, books, magazines, and participate in a variety of different forums, and Blogs. And most recently, I've been tuning into several different SEM related radio shows via podcasts from WebmasterRadio.fm. Does this sound at all familiar?

It should be no surprise to anybody who knows me personally that I am very involved in this industry and with my position at All Web Promotion. To me... search engine marketing is not just a pay check, rather a passion. It has become a big part of me and who I am... obviously getting paid for it is a major plus.

The only problem that I have with this industry, and it's a major one, is that I find it very hard to just "turn it off" sort of speak. I have often found myself sitting at home after work or on the weekends pondering some of the SEO challenges that await my return to the office and I will often spend hours researching creative ways to improve and beef up my website. It's also not a rare occurrence for me to wake up during the night and think about the contents of my "inbox", and its impossible for me to surf the net without stopping for a moment to view a source code file or to appreciate a website's CSS and JavaScript attributes.

So with that, how does one simply "turn off" something that he or she puts so much time, effort, and thought into on a daily basis. Let me tell you that its not easy and most of the time it's actually impossible to do so... at least for me anyway. I mean there is no magical switch to flip or button to push that will clear your heard of search engine marketing. Is there?

On the other hand, I do feel that that there are things in life that can certainly help suppress the mind long enough for a person to manage from day to day. Here are a few things that help me to unwind after work and on the weekends. Maybe these will help you to do so as well.

Good Company
Having friends, family, and a girlfriend who are NOT involved in search marketing and graphic design industries or with computers in general really does help to keep work where it belongs... at the office. Simply put, there's really no reason to talk about the recent Google or Yahoo! developments outside of work as chances are nobody's going to care anyway... or in the case of my family, they're not going to know what Google, Yahoo!, or a search engine is.

Video Games
I know that playing video games may actually seem a bit child-like but I guarantee you that there is nothing that takes your mind off of SEO faster than sinking 10 clips from your M16 into the chest of a zombie-like creature who is destined to consume your soul. I own a PlayStation 2, Nintendo GameCube, and a PSP (among other older systems) and play them as often as I can. I am a fan of action-adventure games and my current favorites are Metal Gear Solid 3, God of War, and Hot Shots Golf (PSP). In addition to playing games, I maintain subscriptions to a few different VG magazines which help to defuse my brain during breaks and lunches.

Poker
I have been a student of the poker for quite some time now and enjoy playing the game very much. I know some of you readers out there are saying something along the lines of "Poker is a game of luck" or "it's all in the cards", but trust me when I say that it is a true game of patience and skill. I currently play once a week and enroll into local tournaments whenever they become available.

Camping
Camping is something that is just so relaxing for me that it's almost impossible to think about work. I mean who can resist fishing, sleeping in tents and underneath the stars, and big camp fires that last all night even if you don't. I enjoy camping in the late summer/early fall months just as our Illinois weather is getting ready to switch from "Horribly Humid" to "Comfortable and Cool".

Sports
I am a huge MLB baseball fan and follow the sport very closely. Being from the Chicago-land area, naturally I am a Chicago Cubs fan, which as of late has been really hard to admit to. Even though the cubs aren't as successful as one would hope for their team, its fun to support them year after year. Besides there's nothing better in baseball than catching a game live from Wrigley Field. I have also been really interested in pro football as of late. I've watched more NFL games this year than any other and even though I don't have a proclaimed favorite team... it's still been fun to watch. College basketball isn't all that bad either.

Working in an industry such as search engine marketing and website development definitely takes its toll on me. There is a lot to know and a lot more to learn. Even though I have a huge interest in the industry, I firmly believe that it's important to keep as much work at the office as possible and to keep your nights and weekends SEM-free. Trust me... its for the best!

Just out of curiosity, what kinds of things do you do to help keep the SEM head-swell to a minimum?

 posted by Karl Ribas
Friday, February 03, 2006
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