posted by Karl Ribas on Thursday, January 08, 2009
Just came across this while searching for a bear claw - a tool used to shred pork - and noticed that the Target paid listing has a drop-down option that when clicked will show products, descriptions, and pricing related to your search. Anybody else seeing this?
This could very well be old news, but this is the first time I've seen it.
Interesting.
Labels: google, paid-search
posted by Karl Ribas on Friday, November 17, 2006
In the first joint and open initiative to improve the web crawl process for search engines, Google, Yahoo and Microsoft today announced support for Sitemaps 0.90, a free and easy way for marketers and website owners to notify search engines about their websites.
Sitemaps 0.90 is set to be a one-stop shop for webmasters in which they can now alert all three major search engines of their websites, and all at the same time. The companies are adopting Google's Sitemaps protocol which enables webmasters to manually feed their pages directly to Google, MSN, and Yahoo!, and to check whether their sites have been crawled. Before Sitemaps 0.90, webmasters would have to repeat a similar process for each of the major search engines.
Here an official quote from the Google Search Blog:
"Last year we published the Sitemap 0.84 XML protocol as a free and easy way for webmasters to inform search engines about URLs on their web sites so that search engines can more effectively crawl them. We released it under the Attribution/Share Alike Creative Commons license in the hopes that other search engines would adopt the protocol too. And today, we're excited to announce that Yahoo! and Microsoft are joining us in officially supporting the Sitemap protocol."
I personally love the idea behind Sitemaps 0.90. It's not only simple, but also beneficial. As a search engine marketer, it saves me time from having to setup and manage each account individually and provides sites with a more comprehensive and efficient indexing process... allowing for an overall better representation in search.
And let's not forget the users... who benefit from having a more complete, higher-quality, and fresher search index.
For more information Sitemaps 0.90, visit the MSN, Yahoo!, and Google search blogs.
Labels: bing, google, yahoo
posted by Karl Ribas on Tuesday, October 10, 2006
This wouldn't be a Search Engine Marketing Blog if I didn't at least make mention of Google's recent acquisition (within the last 24hrs) of the online video phenomenon known as YouTube. That's right! In the case you've been living under your desk for the last week, Google has agreed to purchase YouTube for a WHOPPING $1.65 Million Billion. A billion and a half dollars... that's freakin' crazy!
For those of you who are unaware... YouTube was founded in February of 2005 by 3 former PayPal employees. The company has since grown to over 60 employees, and has since vastly become a very popular video sharing website which lets it's users upload, view, and share video clips. Utilizing Adobe Flash technology to display video, YouTube hosts a wide variety of site content including movie and TV clips and music videos, as well as amateur content such as video-blogging and personal home videos.
Just to give you all an idea of the kind of content you can find at YouTube... here is a link to one of my videos: http://youtube.com/watch?v=aM9wjqYHG6Y. You know the one... this video is infamous within our office!
Reviewing this whole situation... there is really only one factor that has me bothered, and that is simply the amount of the transaction. I don't know about you, but a million dollars is a lot of money... in this acquisition we're talking $1.65 Billion. What in the world was Google thinking when they agreed to pay so much for YouTube? Do they know something that no one else in the world knows? What could they possibly have up their sleeve?
After pondering these questions almost all night... well not all night, I did play about 4 hours of Super Mario Strikers (a really cool game for you gamers out there); I have come to 3 possible conclusions:
- Google, in attempt to become a major player in online video, probably felt that their current Google Video platform, released earlier this year, is not at all comparable to those of its immediate competition. Therefore, their only hope for becoming a true leader in the online video market was to buy one that is.
- Google really wants to be in control of YouTube's 1 million plus users, and solicit future users to sign-up via a Google account... similar to what Yahoo! has done with Flickr. Having more Google accounts under the company's belt will allow them more ways to solicit future products, not to mention track more individual user-behavior... no, Google wouldn't do that... would they?
- Anyone who is a frequent visitor of YouTube knows that Google is serving up advertisements on what seems like every page of the video giant's website. It is through this partnership that Google gets to monitor just how much web-traffic YouTube receives. I wouldn't be surprised if Google realized just how much money it stands to make now owning 100% of the money coming in through that ad distribution deal, rather than just the 20% or so it owned before.
I happened to check out YouTube this morning looking to see what immediate interface or logo changes had taken place overnight, and to my surprise there were none. I was certain "YouTube" would have been changed to "GooTube" or at least feature the Google logo somewhere on the homepage... but I was wrong. I did happen to find this video though:
Seriously... after actually seeing these guys (the creators of YouTube)... if they can create something worthy of $1.65 Billion... whom among us can't?
Labels: google, industry-news
posted by Karl Ribas on Wednesday, August 16, 2006
I came across another interesting tid-bit of information in my efforts to catch up after missing an entire week of work to attend the SES Conference (quick thanks to Michael for IMing me the details), and it too is Blogworthy. Apparently Google Maps is going to be offering printable coupons for everything from pizza to car washes as they make a move designed to appeal to peoples' appetites for a bargain.
Also, and in addition to offering a service to Google Map users, Google is also providing an easier way for merchants to understand the impact of their online presence by allowing them to better track online leads that convert offline... which is one of the major purposes of Google's Maps and Local Search divisions.
Under the conditions of this new service, a search for "Day Spas in New York" will display business listings that match those terms alongside a map. If any Day Spas are offering coupons, a link accompanying the listing will take people to a separate web page where the coupon can be printed. The coupon can then be redeemed in person at the business location... which to sum up my point will assist merchants, in addition to the customers, by providing them some basis of how their local search campaigns are doing.
Here are a few snap-shots of this new service:
Example of a Google Maps Coupon Listing
Example of Google Maps Coupon
Beginning as early as this morning, Google Maps users will see coupons from the more than 12,000 advertisers who offer printable online coupons. As of right now, it appears that any and all merchants are eligible to sign up to offer coupons, at no charge, on Google Maps at Google's Local Business Center. Google will also begin offering in coming months the ability for businesses that purchase AdWords search-related keywords to send people who click on the ads to a page containing a coupon hosted by Google Maps.
Ok... with all of that said, here's my take on this. In the traditional offline world, coupons drive a lot of business, and they haven't been well-explored online. What Google has done here is provided a very valuable marketing tool for local businesses and it doesn't cost anything beyond the discount given to customers.
For the longest time, online maps from Google and rivals Yahoo!, Microsoft, and AOL have been racing to offer the most bells and whistles to attract more user-eyeballs that can then be fed advertisements. With that in mind, "Bravo" goes to you Google for being the first major map provider to offer coupons, which will not only appeal to cost-conscious consumers but also offer advertisers a reliable way to gauge the success of an ad campaign.
Labels: google, industry-news, local-search
posted by Karl Ribas on Wednesday, August 16, 2006
There is only one major downfall to being gone an entire week attending any kind of conference or trade show, and that is dealing with the amount of work that awaits your return. And not only that, but after attending a show like SES, I've got a few ideas that I'd like to test, try, and work on but am unable to do so until I address the mountain of emails and tasks that reside within my inbox. I guess these "grand" ideas will just have to remain scribbled out in my notebook until I can find the time to check into them.
So I'm going though the hundreds of Blog posts (no lie) and news emails that currently have my attention, and I found an interesting, Blog-worthy announcement that took place last week and figured now is a good time to share it with you.
Apparently on that Monday (7th) Google inked a deal with MySpace.com, outbidding Yahoo! in the process, in which it will serve its web search and advertising listings to MySpace's nearly 100 million members. That's right... for those of you who are among the millions of MySpace users you can expect a change in scenery, as far as your search box is concerned, because Google will be implementing itself into your sites very shortly.
Under the terms of the agreement, which will begin in the fourth quarter, Google must guarantee Fox Interactive, MySpace's parent company, minimum payments of $900 million over a 3 year period of time. This is of course if MySpace can meet certain traffic expectations set forth by Google.
MySpace, for those unaware of it, is a social networking website which offers an interactive, user-submitted network of Blogs, profiles, groups, photos, MP3s, videos, and an internal e-mail system. In fact, in July of this year MySpace became the #1 ranked website in the United States (according to research performed by Hitwise)... which is probably what led Google to bid in the first place.
With this deal, Google is simply doing what they've always done... and that's move Google to where users are, as well as user-generated content. Great job Google, you've secured an important source of traffic and ad revenue by exposing it to a thriving young audience of millions on MySpace.
Labels: google, industry-news, paid-search
posted by Karl Ribas on Thursday, August 03, 2006
Do you remember back in January when Google purchased the radio ad company "dMarc Broadcasting"? Well if you don't... don't sweat it because not many will.
I, for one, do remember reading about the acquisition; however, I never got around to Blogging it simply because there was so much other Blog-worthy stuff to post instead. If you remember, at that time I was only posting once a week and I guess this subject had been trumped a couple of times by more important posts. Eventually, I must have just forgotten about it... until now that is.
So what has made me think about Google and dMarc Broadcasting after all this time? Well, this past Wednesday, Google inked a deal with XM Satellite Radio... a deal that will eventually allow the search giant's AdWords advertisers to promote their products and services through XM spots.
With the dMarc platform in its possession, Google has made what otherwise would be complicated radio advertising procedures, such as sales, scheduling and tracking, automated and simplified. Currently, the platform is available only to dMarc advertisers, and not AdWords clients, but Google estimates that dMarc will be integrated into the AdWords software by the fourth quarter of this year.
This deal is the latest of what seems like a series of moves to expand the AdWords program beyond a strictly online medium... and such a partnership with XM radio is definitely a major step in that direction.
Just take a moment and think about what Google is doing. With the use of their dMarc Broadcasting system and this partnership with XM radio, Google has opened the doors for its advertisers to more than 7 million radio subscribers throughout the U.S. alone. That, combined with the already powerful distribution of their current Adwords program, offers several different marketing avenues for small, medium, and large companies to explore. Not a bad move if you ask me.
Labels: google, paid-search
posted by Karl Ribas on Friday, July 28, 2006
Google's "kicking it up a notch" in their PPC click-fraud efforts and has now decided to reveal some of its key click-fraud stats to its advertisers. As of last Tuesday, Adwords advertisers have been given the option to view the number of invalid clicks (that's right... invalid) that Google finds within their account, as well as the percentage of overall clicks deemed invalid.
For those of you not familiar with Pay Per Click advertising, click-fraud occurs when website publishers click on ads on their site to boost their revenue or when companies click on rivals' ads to eat away at their advertising budgets. Obviously, click-fraud is a very big thorn in the sides of PPC advertisers, and until now they have not had a great deal of data to use in defending their accounts from fraudulent click activity.
Industry reports say fraudulent clicks range from about 14 percent to as high as 20 percent of total clicks. Without relevant click-fraud data from Google and other search engines, advertisers have had to rely on estimates from third-party companies. Under this new system, AdWords customers will now have a better understanding of the amount of invalid clicks that exist within their campaigns, as well as being able to compare Google's information with that of their third-party provider.
Here are 2 small snap shots that highlight the recent Google reporting changes.
This image highlights the newly added click-fraud options in which users can select to see "invalid clicks" and "invalid clicks rate"
This is a sample of how the "invalid clicks" and "invalid clicks rate" sections will appear in a report after one has been generated.
There's no doubt (at least within my mind) that this is a step in the right direction for PPC advertising. As PPC advertising continues to be an effective way of marketing websites, advertisers will continually need more and more click-fraud support from search engines, in terms of reports, tools, and other resources. Hopefully other PPC search engines will realize what Google has - the need for releasing invalid click information - and will follow in their foot steps.
Labels: google, paid-search
posted by Karl Ribas on Wednesday, April 05, 2006
Google put advertising on the map. I don't mean this in the sense that Google was the first to make Internet advertising mainstream (actually they were probably hugely responsible for that as well), rather I mean it in a literal sense... Google literally put advertising on the map.
As I had anticipated for some time now, Google has created and recently launched a feature that will allow web-marketers the ability to place photos, logos, and possibly other advertising inside the balloons that pop up on Google maps. These balloons mark exactly where specific merchants are located, according to each relevant search, and will now allow businesses the chance to target customers based on geography.
A handful of advertisers, including Barnes & Noble and Ralph Lauren, have been testing this new Local Business Advertising system for a few weeks now. According to Google, these companies purchased several keywords such as "New York books" and "Ralph Lauren New York" which when searched allowed them an opportunity to plug a logo, website, and detailed store information, such as store hours and payment options.
With Local Business Ads, merchants bid on keywords and pay per click as they do for ads associated with Google AdWords, Google's primary advertising network. The ads show up on the maps as well as on Google's main search results page as regular text ads.
I did a quick search for "Barnes and Noble Books New York" and came across the following listing:
Notice that this search, and many others, brought up a few icons on the map. In this case I clicked on the "shopping cart" icon which generated specific information about the merchant. A given icon might be a coffee cup, a shopping bag, a car or, in the case of Ralph Lauren, a flower. When someone clicks the icon, a balloon pops up containing more information about the merchant, including a logo or photo and maybe a link to the merchant's Web site.
I spent some time messing around with this new feature and I absolutely love the fact that merchants can effectively and literally "brand" themselves on Google's mapping service. Let's face it, there's no bigger selling tool for large corporations than their own brand, whether it be their slogan or logo. The closest thing I can think of at this moment that maybe even comes close to being as big of a selling point as brand would be price, but even so there are a lot of people who'll gladly pay tons more to own a piece of the brand. We're all guilty of it.
It is for that reason I believe this new feature will succeed in building up the local search markets. Not only will merchants love the ability to plug their brand, but users will too. Users will be able to quickly scan the map and find exactly what it is they are looking for in matter of seconds. All in all... a great new feature.
Labels: google, local-search
posted by Karl Ribas on Friday, March 31, 2006
Earlier this week Google and Verizon SuperPages.com came together and signed a deal under which Verizon (aka the classified ad provider) will help its tens of thousands of marketers get ads onto the Google search result pages. Verizon SuperPages.com is now an authorized Google Adwords reseller and will now be helping small businesses take advantage of the many opportunities that Google provides.
This is actually a great thing for search... specifically local search. Verizon SuperPages.com sends sales representatives out to businesses to sell them advertising that will appear in print and online, something Google and other big Internet companies don't have the resources to do. This new arrangement "marries" Verizon's sales channel opportunities with Google's vast advertising network allowing Verizon an opportunity to play a key role with getting small merchants online.
Search engines have plenty to offer the small-business market and deals such as this are critical to move the local search market forward. I don't see small businesses going on their own to Google or Yahoo! anytime soon, so it's nice to see an authoritative source bring Search Engine Marketing services and resources to small businesses.
The Google deal also gives Verizon SuperPages.com advertisers an opportunity to appear in AOL's, Ask's (formerly Ask Jeeves), and other partner search engine's search results through their deals with Google. Not a bad arrangement for small-business marketing if you ask me!
Labels: google, industry-news, local-search
posted by Karl Ribas on Friday, January 20, 2006
Ok... I'm certain that by now you've all heard about the Bush administration / Google ordeal at least in some aspect, but, for those of you whom haven't because you been living under a rock or your desk for the past week I've got you covered.
Apparently, in an attempt to measure the amount of child pornography on the Internet and to defend the 1998 Child Online Protection Act, which is being challenged in court in Philadelphia by the American Civil Liberties Union, federal prosecutors have subpoenaed Google, Microsoft, Yahoo!, and America Online to hand over millions of search records.
Without hesitation, Microsoft, Yahoo, and AOL chose to comply with the US Government's request rather than fight their subpoena in court. Google, however, denied the fed's demands and is more than prepared to give the Bush administration hell before ever complying with such a request.
So, is Google being stubborn with their search data? Should they be so defensive considering what is at stake? One would think that Google would want exercise its good corporate branding and hand deliver any requested search data... especially if it means securing the protection of the youth. Records from search logs would help to understand the behavior of web users and estimate how frequently they encounter pornography. For instance, Internet addresses obtained from the search engines could be tested against filtering programs to evaluate their effectiveness.
Or... is Google doing right by protecting its search data and ultimately their search users? Although the government is not asking for Internet addresses that would identify people, Google no doubt fears that disclosing search terms and data would invade on its user's privacy. It's quite simple, the more our government is able to figure out, regarding whom the search engine surfers are, the more people's First Amendment rights are in jeopardy.
I'm almost hesitant to pick a side in this debate, but, nonetheless I am siding with Google. This isn't a case of who is searching what. This is a case of fishing into a business structures records to try to find criminals. Bush and the US Government have already gone to extremes with the recent phone tapping incidents and to allow them permission to gain such data would be just as violating.
Don't get me wrong, child porn is a very serious matter and it should be dealt with, but so is personal privacy and the First Amendment rights of American citizens. Since the Government is unable to find these people themselves handing over data such as this could get every single web surfer sued for something. Google created a business, buys bandwidth, employs people and this is their data and their business. The Government needs to figure out how to fight this without bullying companies into giving over data such as this.
In addition, I have my doubts about the Administration's approach to this matter. To quote the infamous Danny Sullivan, the search industry's most recognized spokesman, if you want to measure how much porn is showing up in searches, try searching for it yourself rather than issuing privacy alarm sounding subpoenas... just a thought. It would certainly be more accurate.
Take a bow to Google. I tip my hat to you for fighting the fight when you know your right.Labels: commentary-rants, google
posted by Karl Ribas on Friday, January 13, 2006
This past Friday, Google announced its newest service the Google Video Store, which will let people rent or buy downloadable videos online, including classic and contemporary CBS television shows and NBA basketball games.
I spent a few moments playing around in the Google Video Store and found that for $1.99 I could rent (for 24 hours) recent episodes of popular TV series like "NCIS", "CSI", "Survivor", and "The Amazing Race". I even found episodes of older TV programs like "I Love Lucy" and "The Brady Bunch" which can be purchased for a similar fee.
The main Google Video page has rotating feature videos categorized under "popular" and "random" sections. Most of these samples were free to view and included the notorious Tom Cruise appearance on "Oprah Winfrey," a "biker dancing silly" and a documentary claiming to expose "the conspiracy between the Free Masons, U.S. presidents and the 9/11 terrorists attacks." Needless to say, there is a little something for everybody.
Google Video Store customers will make their payments with a credit card through Google's account system, similar to what is done with the Google AdWords advertising system and other Google services. As of now there doesn't appear to be any form of advertisement in the videos or on the view web pages, however, I would bet that it's only a matter of time before Google starts offering an advertising model of some sort.
Meanwhile, America Online announced on Tuesday that it has acquired video search company Truveo, a purchase that comes at a time when many top Internet companies are jumping into the video-on-demand business. AOL declined to disclose what it paid for the 12-employee company, but the acquisition was said to be an all-cash transaction and was the largest acquisition AOL has made since paying $435 million for interactive marketing company Advertising.com in June 2004.
Video search technology generally relies on finding and parsing through text documents, but if you look at video sites, there is little text information available about the video and what the video is about. Truveo's Web crawler is said to have the ability to understand visual characteristics and return more accurate search results... thus making it a very powerful resource in Video Search.
As of now, there is no news from either AOL or Google on a video distribution deal, despite the $1 billion Google agreed to pay last month for a 5 percent interest in Time Warner's AOL unit. I do think that future collaborations will be introduced later as Google further develops its own video search and Video Store programs.
Clearly online video is a mass market phenomenon and therefore it's important for consumers to have the best means to find what they are looking for. It's obvious that video search is not up to the standards of text search, but I feel that it's only a matter of time before it will be... especially when you've got AOL, Google, and others leading the way.
Labels: google
posted by Karl Ribas on Friday, December 16, 2005
I always find it hard to get back into the swing of things after a conference like last week's Search Engine Strategies show. There's something about returning to the office to find my "inbox" full (which is a funny thing too seeing how I make an effort to attend to emails during the show) and my project work-load doubled that makes me not want to show up on Monday. Does this happen to you?
Don't get me wrong... I love what I do and I enjoy working with those I work with, but the last thing I want to do after returning from a conference is to attend to clients, leads, or company email. In fact, my desires lie within reviewing my conference notes, exploring the latest SEO techniques and strategies, and playing around with all the new tools and resources I learned about the previous week. Oh well... there's always next week.
By the way, I did find time to publish my SES conference pics the other day if anyone's interested. Check them out: Search Engine Strategies, December 2005 Pictures.
Alright, seeing how my headline refers to "Google Whistling a New Tune" I should probably begin discussing the main topic of this entry, which is Google's new Music Search. That's right, Google this past week launched a new service which is intended to give searchers fast links to song lyrics, musical artists and CD titles on the main search results page.
Google Music will allow a person to type in the name of a band, artist, album or song in the main Google search bar special, and results will appear at the top, accompanied by icons of music notes. Results will also include links to supplemental Google Web pages with more information about the music, including names of tracks on a CD and other CDs a band or artist has released. Google also will provide snippets of reviews from sites on the Web and links to those sites.
It's great to see that Google is committed to adding and providing valuable search services to its users, but in my opinion they are a bit late to the game as competitors Ask Jeeves, MSN, and Yahoo! have all offered similar features for some time now. Personally, I find myself searching music and entertainment related topics on the Ask Jeeves search engine. Ask Jeeves has offered a Smart Search box for many pop artists for some time. Here's an example for U2. Here you'll find a short bio and picture (via AllMusic.com, an amazing reference resource all by itself) along with a links to read the full bio on AllMusic.com. The same happens when searching popular actors and so forth.
Google has a lot of catching up to do if they are going to start competing with the other search giants on a "Music Search" level, but if anyone can... Google can.Labels: google, industry-news
posted by Karl Ribas on Friday, December 02, 2005
This past week Google began testing a new click-to-call service which lets people speak with advertisers on its search results page and without having to pick up and dial a phone. Interesting concept isn't it? It's definitely innovative. Unlike voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP), a technology that sends voice transmission over the Internet, this service appears to connect two parties over the regular phone lines. According to the project's details, a web surfer can click a phone icon adjacent to an ad, enter his or her own phone number and then click a "connect for free" button. Google's service calls the advertiser's phone number and when the web surfer picks up the receiver on his phone, he or she hears ringing as the call to the advertiser is connected. Impressed?... you should be. Click-to-Call could easily be the next big thing in search engine marketing and may in some instance be as profitable, if not more profitable, than Pay Per Click advertising. That's definitely a long shot statement, but as long as Google is leading the way in this new development than I have no problems with stating it.
In addition, Google promises that it will not be sharing your telephone number with anyone, including the advertiser. Apparently when you're connected with the advertiser, your number is blocked and will remain unavailable throughout the process. Google itself promises to remove your number from their servers after a short period of time. Ah... this is a relief. God knows we can go without the extra tele-marketer calls.
For more information on this service, view Google's Click-To-Call FAQ page
-----------------------------------------------------Just a reminder that the SES show is next week in Chicago. Last year's Chicago show was a blast and this year should be no different... especially with all of the additional "All Webbers" attending this time. Go Ninja Death Squad!I am hopping to publish notes throughout the show, but if that should fail for some reason, I'll definately be posting again on Friday.Labels: google, paid-search
posted by Karl Ribas on Friday, November 18, 2005
Raise your hand if you remember an analytics company by the name of Urchin? "Memmer?... You memmer!" They're the company that hides the "Easter-Egg" in your badge at the Search Engine Strategies conferences and when you present them with it at their booth they give you a free shirt. "Memmer?... You memmer!" Well, back in March of this year, Google acquired the San Diego-based Urchin, slapped the Google logo on it, renamed it to Google Analytics, reduced the price from $495 a month to $199 a month and continued to hammer out the popular analytics service. This past week, Google took another step forward in the website statistics / analytics direction and launched a free version of their Web analytics service, one that will let companies see exactly how visitors interact with their website and how their advertising campaigns are faring. In fact, Google Analytics will allow website owners the ability to see exactly where visitors are coming from, what links on the site are getting the most traffic, what pages visitors are viewing, how long people stay on the site, which products on merchant sites are being sold and where people give up in multi-step checkout processes. A truly amazing package if I don't say so myself and best yet... it's free! To top it off, Google Analytics will be integrated with Google AdWords and will offer a new interface within existing AdWords accounts. Google Analytics will include a feature that automatically imports the cost data for return on investment (ROI) reports into the Google Analytics program so advertisers can see how much they're paying for keywords compared with how much money they're making off them. In addition, Online Marketers will be able to use the service to track banner, e-mail, non-paid, and paid search advertising campaigns from other ad service providers. I have not yet had a chance to play around with the new Google Analytics program, but I'm betting that it's going to be a remarkable product. I feel comfortable saying so because it's Google who is putting it out there and as we all know anything that Google touches turns to both Gold and Greatness, similar to what happened King Midas in his fiction story. Heck I bet that Google's personnel could take turns crapping in a box, label it Google, and it too would fly off the shelf of your local retail store. Ok... maybe that was pushing it, but my point is that Google is vastly becoming a true trustworthy household name and for good reason... they strive for and achieve greatness on each of their business ventures. I see this venture as being no different. In my opinion, Google made all the right moves at all the right times. They purchased a great product at the beginning of the year and are now using it to their advantage. Not only are they offering the service for free, but they are literally putting the squeeze on companies like Web Trends, Web Side Story, KeywordMax, and Click Tracks whom all seem to focus on the small to medium-size business market. It should be interesting to see what those companies are bound to come up with in order to compete with Google Analytics.
Click here to check out Google Analytics.Labels: google, web-analytics
posted by Karl Ribas on Friday, October 28, 2005
Google released yet another search feature to their very popular and beloved search engine and this time it's geared towards airline travelers. That's right... airline travelers.Google's new search function will allow its users to quickly access airline flight information when they type in two different cities, or airport codes, into the Google search box. Doing so will bring up two additional boxes for entering departing and returning flight dates.
In addition to that, Google is also listing links to the travel websites Expedia, Hotwire, and Orbitz. By clicking through on any one of those links, users will be directed to flight options for their selected itineraries on that site.I spent a little bit of time this morning messing around with this new search feature and found it to be very user-friendly and easily accessible. I simply typed "Chicago to New York City" into the Google Search box and the new flight option came up, among the other Google listings. You can check out my search by clicking here: Chicago to New York City.Google's move to release this search function comes one day after Yahoo! debuted its new Trip Planner (currently in BETA), which allows people to create, share and print personalized trip itineraries. This goes to show that Google will not be "Trumped" so easy, especially by Yahoo!, in their efforts to create the best search engine on the Internet.Labels: google, industry-news
posted by Karl Ribas on Friday, September 16, 2005
Everything as of late has been Google, Google, and Google, and this week on the Karl Ribas.com Blog will be no different. Google, a few days back, launched (in Beta of course) their long awaited blog search feature. This feature, deemed to go head-to-head with Yahoo!'s search technology, will give Google a little bit of an advantage as both compete in the booming blog market.Google's new blog search feature is designed to not only find and index listings within it's own Blogger.com network, but actually go one step further and search blogs that publish feeds via RSS or Atom. As with all other Google's search properties, their spiders will no doubt be checking these feeds frequently for new content, which is definitely a great thing for blog readers like me.What is it with blogs that attract people like us? Well, for me personally it's the straight to the point, no-room for bullshit commentary. Simply put, we have numerous options on how we can get the information we want or need. I, for one, prefer to read blogs, as opposed to online-newspapers, forums, message boards, or even email-newsletters, to get my dose of search engine marketing related information. Blogs, pending on the author, are written in a casual, conversation-like way and deliver news and updates, but at the same can offer you the author's personal opinion. Where as online-newspapers or forums have to uphold a certain professional image and can only offer news and positive feedback. If something sucks... I want to know it sucks.Anyway, going back to Google's blog search, the feature can be accessed at a couple of different places. If you interested in finding more blogs like mine, or those not related to search engine marketing check out search.blogger.com. In addition, miniature versions of the blog search engine have been added to the main Blogger.com Dashboard. Enjoy!Labels: google, industry-news
posted by Karl Ribas on Friday, September 09, 2005
About 2 or so weeks ago Google launched an instant-messaging program that allows text chat and computer-to-computer voice connections, a move that in my opinion will further highlight the search giant's increasing competition with Yahoo, Microsoft and America Online.Google's IM service, titled Google Talk, resides in Beta and enables users to call or send instant messages to their "friends" for free--anytime, anywhere in the world. In addition to that, the program is linked to the Google's web-based e-mail program, Gmail, making email communication that much easier for its users.When I first heard the rumors of this service a few months back, I thought to myself "How does Google plan to compete with the likes of MSN, Yahoo!, and AOL? How do they expect to go toe-to-toe, pound for pound with the already very popular and well-established instant messaging systems?" Nothing against Google, but aren't they a bit late to be entering the fight now?Well apparently not. Google not only released the new beta version of Google Talk, but did so with an authority and a few surprises that are sure to lure loyal users and their millions of buddies away from established instant messaging applications. One advantage to using Google Talk is its ability to connect with users of competing services. The service is based on the Jabber open-source standard, which allows consumers to connect with other messaging systems that work with Jabber, such as Apple Computer's iChat, GAIM, Adium, Trillian Pro and Psi.I did get a change to play around with Google Talk and found it to be very basic... which can be a good thing or bad pending on your IM expectations. I personally found it to be a very good thing. The messenger is free of advertisements (as of now anyway) and doesn't ask me to rate "buddies" based on their resemblance to famous people, like AOL does. It's just straight instant messaging and of course free voice chat.Another aspect that I enjoyed is the user's ability to change how their buddies name appears in their list. My friends are constantly changing screen names and sometimes it's hard to remember who they are that week. Well this feature eliminates that problem by allowing you to change your buddies name from "Solid Snake" to "Karl Ribas."So will Google Talk fly or will it die? It's probably a bit early to tell, but I believe that it's definitely going to soar. It packs some new innovative features and knowing Google, I'm sure there are a few more to come as newer version of the beta are released. Google will no doubt put up a good fight!Dowload Google Talk
Labels: google
posted by Karl Ribas on Friday, August 26, 2005
This past Monday, Google rolled out a new beta version of its widely acknowledge desktop search software, offering features such as integration with Outlook, a sidebar with nifty widgets to display photos, headlines and much more. After taking a few moments to actually sit and play around with the product, I would have to say that Google has definitely out-done its rival Microsoft in the desktop search battle.For more information Microsoft's desktop search tool, please review my past entry titled "MSN Release Desktop Search."The Google software contains three major components:
Outlook Toolbar: This is an embedded toolbar and allows users to search through their email without actually leaving Outlook.Sidebar: This is a window page that is designed to automatically update itself based on users' interests, as expressed by the Web sites they visit, with little or no manual configuration. Among its many windows, Sidebar offers the scratch pad tool, weather data, news, RSS and Atom feeds from the Web, links to open browser windows and an e-mail preview.Quick Find: A search feature which is designed to let users search the web, search and find files on their hard drives, and even launch applications.One customizable option that I found truly enjoyable is the option that is given to the user as to where they would like to display main Deskbar. Users can either opt for a compact view, where the Deskbar sits in the Window's taskbar, or they can choose a "Floating Deskbar" option which will allow the tool to be dragged anywhere on the desktop. This is truly a feature that all can appreciate.Overall, the Google Desktop is a new and easier way for users to gather the information they desire. With this move, Google no doubt has the folks over at Microsoft and Yahoo! very nervous as they continue to step deeper and deeper into territory currently held by Microsoft--which has its own notepad and search features--and Yahoo, with its My Yahoo personalization efforts.Download Googles New Desktop (Beta) ToolLabels: google, industry-news
posted by Karl Ribas on Sunday, July 10, 2005
As I am sure that everyone is well aware of, a few months ago Google developed an Adwords training program that if completed would grant you the title of "Adwords Qualified Professional"... a title that could be used to promote yourself in your business' marketing efforts.
For those of you unfamiliar with the program, Google basically threw together a list of credentials that an ideal "professional" would need to have in order to be first considered. Then, if you happen to be one that meets all requirements, you need to pass a timed, multiple-choice type test with about 100 or so questions.
This past week I finally had the opportunity to prepare (yes study and thankfully so because it was a bit tough) and take the test. You're all thinking "I spend hours on end each day managing Google Adwords accounts, how hard can it be?" Well... that's exactly what I thought, but was soon set straight.
Google requires that you score a 75% or higher and I barely made the cut with a score of 80%. This test was created around questions that I either found to be tricky or just plan non-relevant, which leads me to wonder what Google had hope accomplish with this program.
Personally I see no benefits from being an Adwords Qualified Professional and do not recommend that others join the program. In the end, All Web paid $50 so that I could take a one an a half hour test to reap no proven benefits? I didn't earn anything from this program, I still manage accounts with the same techniques and strategies, and I really don't foresee potential clients throwing us their business just because we now have Google's approval. All in all... in my opinion, Google's "Qualified Professional" program is a true waste of time!
Labels: google, paid-search
posted by Karl Ribas on Friday, July 01, 2005
"Lights... camera... action" seems to be the general theme these days for Internet search engines as just this past week Google launched its newest search feature, a premiere web-based video search service.
Following the steps of its arch nemesis, Yahoo!, Google has given its users the option of searching video content directly from the company's indexed video database and while using the same keywords used for other types of search. This new search function will complement Google's existing beta version, which currently people search, but not yet play back, the closed-caption text of television shows from PBS, CNN and others that Google has hosted.
Google Video is currently only available in English (IE ver. 5 and higher and Firefox) and will require that users download the "Google Video Viewer," a tool needed in order to watch an entire video piece or a section of a movie relating to their search keywords.
Obvious this is another step in the search giant's expansion into more comprehensive media services. As it stands now, Google is the only search provider that has all the pieces to bring movies on demand via Internet to the masses. Bet your bottom dollar that some time real soon Google will discover a system where they will be able to charge per-view or subscription fees, as well as insert ads into the video stream... I am!Labels: google, industry-news
posted by Karl Ribas on Sunday, April 24, 2005
Say goodbye to bookmarks! Google, in a move to outdo rivals, announced this past Wednesday that it will begin to offer its users custom accounts to search over their personal query history. The search king will unveil "My Search History," another of its experimental services. This service takes a page from the long-standing "My" programs from which Yahoo!, MSN, and others prominently use. However, unlike typical personal portal services, such as customized stocks and headlines, Google's feature will focus exclusively on archiving personal search histories for a later recall.
This feature differs greatly from the automatic caching feature that resides in the Google Desktop application, which saves copies of web pages you've viewed on your personal computer. Most importantly, the service will automatically integrate with Web search so that once people have signed up and logged on they can view their personalized history alongside general information from the Web.
Using the application is easy. Simply enter your query in a Google search box and click the additional "Search History" button that is installed next to the familiar "Search Web" button. Results are displayed in what Google calls the Main View for your search history.
Results on this view are ordered by date, with your most recent searches appearing at the top. Each of your search queries is displayed as a linked, boldfaced term. Beneath each search term is a list of results that you viewed from that search, along with the time and number of times you've viewed each page. A calendar on the right side of the result page allows you to access the searches you did on a particular date. Color on a date box on the calendar shows the number of searches you did on that day. White means zero, and shades of green from lighter to darker indicate heavier usage.
As you build a search history, Google begins to cluster results from related queries together, making it easier to find conceptually similar results even if you can't recall the exact search terms you used. The more search history Google has to work with, the better the related results... at least in theory.
Google's "My Search History" is a very desirable feature and one that has launched the search giant into what I feel will be the future of search. Imagine a search engine that can provide its users with personalized search results - those that 100% geared towards that individual user. Simply amazing... and that's what Google is out to achieve.Labels: google
posted by Karl Ribas on Sunday, April 10, 2005
In a move to outdo competitors, Google "took it up a notch" this past week when they added satellite technology to its already very popular mapping service. The new satellite feature allows users an option to view an aerial photo snapshot of the location for which they are searching... this is of course is in addition to the "general" street maps that we've come to expect (those that every mapping service provides).
Satellite imaging company Keyhole, which Google acquired last October, provided the technology that allowed the search giant to launch the new mapping feature. As with most mapping services, users can enter an address and then be able to view the area surrounding their query. Google, a company that is always looking for ways to improve the overall search and Internet experience, has given it's users the option of viewing an aerial photo of their query by simply clicking on a "Satellite" link.
I've personally spent some time playing around with this new feature of Google maps and I have enjoyed it very much. In my opinion, it brings much more to the table than what other popular mapping services, such as MapQuest and Yahoo! Maps, are currently offering. Google's satellite imaging offers several levels of "zoom", one so close that you can actually see inside open-roof ball parks and stadiums, and has an easy "drag and move" type navigation. In fact, Its only down-fall (yes every tool and service must have a down-fall) is that you aren't really able to view small towns or residential areas with the same levels of zoom that you could when viewing cities and such. When viewing these areas, either the imaging gets a little distorted or Google replaces it with section all-together with a square block that states "You are unable to view this section at the selected level of zoom".
Another aspect of this feature that Google is currently toying around with is to integrate it with their new beta Google Local Search service. Imagine the possibilities of searching for a business or a type of business, finding it on the web, and then with a click be able to see accurate aerial photos of what the business and its surrounds look like. Truly amazing in my book. Don't get me wrong. Obviously, we knew that this type of aerial-mapping existed and is currently being offered on the net already. What makes this feature so special and worth Blogging about is first it is Google that is now offering this service and second, unlike the other aerial mapping services, Google is offering their version for free.Labels: google, industry-news
posted by Karl Ribas on Friday, March 11, 2005
While Yahoo! and Google already go head-to-head for major search advertising partners such as AOL and MSN, Google has largely enjoyed a monopoly serving its signature text-only ads, also known and Adsense ads, to smaller websites... until now that is. Yahoo! has announced plans to launch its own ad network option for small publishers.
Much like Google's Adsense service, Yahoo's product will display text ads deemed relevant to the content of specific web pages in which advertisers will pay only when a reader clicks on their ad. As opposed to regular search-related ads, which are triggered by keywords entered into a search engine query bar, this new Yahoo! product will feature ads that are targeted to the content of a page and its meaning. For example, a news story about a soccer match might display a sponsored link for soccer gear.
Yahoo's on-going push to expand its advertising reach comes as the market for search advertising is taking off, fueling record revenue and profits. At the same time, Yahoo! is busy looking for new revenue sources as it seeks to transform itself into an online media conglomerate and beat Google in the Web search game.
In my opinion, Yahoo's plan for relying on small publishers to show its Overture ads offers a promising growth path for both Yahoo! and its Overture advertisers, given Google's earlier efforts in this niche.Labels: google, industry-news, paid-search, yahoo
posted by Karl Ribas on Friday, February 25, 2005
The search market is witnessing intense competition as of late, with leading players unveiling new, specialized search products in an effort to win the market share. This past week, Google announced the release of its newest searching component "Google Movie Search" which will allow users the opportunity to use local data, such as a zip code, city or state, to find show times within local theaters.
The new search function will also help users to find other film-related information, such as film titles, actors, directors, and reviews. So if you ever get stuck to the point where you can not remember the name of a film, let's say the one where Tom Hanks made friends with a volleyball, simple search Google for "movie: Tom Hanks talking to a volleyball" and Google will tell you that the movie your referring to is Cast Away.
Also, if you're looking for some rental recommendations try searching Google with the types of movies that interest you. For instance, try "movie: awesome car chase" or "movie: good chick flick" and Google will not only provide you options matching your query, but also rate them according to written reviews they've received.
All in all, this is a pretty cool tool and a great resource for Googlers (loyal Google users) and movie lovers alike. I will rate it 4 out of 5 stars and I am sure that Sisco and Ebert (or Roper if you will) would have given it 2 thumbs way up!Labels: google, industry-news
posted by Karl Ribas on Friday, February 18, 2005
This past Wednesday, Google announced and released its newest version of the Google Toolbar, a web-searching toolbar with a trio of new utilities. Earlier versions of the toolbar allowed Internet users to search the Web from a static box on their Internet Explorer Web browser and helped to block annoying pop-up ads.
This new version includes features that will allow users to automatically check their spelling in Web forms, translate words from English into several languages, and add Web links to certain plain text. For example, an address could be enhanced with a hypertext link to its location on a map, with the click of a button on the toolbar.
I haven't had too much time to play around with these new features, but I did find the look and feel to be much like the older versions. Besides... anything stamped with a Google logo can't be too far from greatness. Check it out!Labels: google, industry-news
