Friday, May 28, 2010

Yahoo Builds Pullover Ad Unit For Macy's, Garners Higher CPM

"Macy's tapped Yahoo this week to recreate its offline Memorial Day sales circular into a Smart Ad-powered pullover ad unit in Yahoo Mail, becoming the first retailer to run the advertisement.

Yahoo worked with PointRoll to develop the rollover technology integrated into the Smart Ad. Clicking on it takes consumers to the Macy's home page, but hovering over it opens the unit into a full-page circular, taking up the entire page in Yahoo Mail."

MediaPost Publications Yahoo Builds Pullover Ad Unit For Macy's, Garners Higher CPM 05/28/2010


Google Lists Top 1,000 Sites On The Web & Then Lets You Advertise On Them

"The big news is that Google publicly released a list of the top 1,000 sites by unique users as measured by Ad Planner. The list ranks sites based on category, unique visitors, reach and page views. Not only has Google come out with this list, but they are also allowing advertisers to specify that they only want their content ads to show on these top 1,000 sites."

Google Lists Top 1,000 Sites On The Web & Then Lets You Advertise On Them

The End of Advertising As We Know It, Says IBM

"According to IBM the next five years will hold as much change for the advertising industry as the previous fifty, because it's the end of advertising as we know it. Thanks IBM, but we sort of figured that out already... If you are still gainfully employed in the advertising, marketing, or public relations industries after three years of layoffs and lost clients you know how much the game has shifted. Chances are your job today looks nothing like it did three years ago; from social technologies to augmented reality it's a brave new world."

The End of Advertising As We Know It, Says IBM ~ ADMAVEN - The Interactive Advertising Blog

New Google Analytics Book Released

"A new book by a stellar team is now available for you to take your usage of Google Analytics to the next level. It's called Performance Marketing with Google Analytics, by Sebastian Tonkin (former Googler), Caleb Whitmore of Analytics Pros and Justin Cutroni from WebShare (both Google Analytics Certified Partners). Here's what Sebastian told us about it when we asked him how this book was different from others:"


Google Analytics Blog: New Google Analytics Book Released

Social Media Strategy from A to Z

"Social media might be old. It might even be a dead buzzword. That’s why you need to paint a picture that’s more meaningful and encompasses what “social media” as a label really is.

Some of us have been thrust into social media simply because the online landscape showed potential for online conversations. Others have been there for over a decade. Regardless of the many years of experience you have in the online space, the ideas behind social media and social media marketing are applicable to everyone. Let’s take a look at some lessons, takeaways, and tips."

Social Media Strategy from A to Z � Techipedia | Tamar Weinberg

Has the Internet's Level Playing Field Finally Arrived?

"Remember the early, tender days of the internet when businesses were still contemplating how to take advantage of this powerful new 'channel'? And in those early, optimistic days, the promise of the internet as the great equalizer was so alluring as to capture the hearts and minds of millions. Small merchants, the argument went, now had global access to a world market that, with a little bit of pluck, hard work and smarts could beat out even the largest players. It was technology's version of the American Dream spun on the loom of new technology."

Has the Internet's Level Playing Field Finally Arrived? - Advertising Age - DigitalNext

Web 3.0, Social Media and the Paradox of Choice

"Whether you’re looking for a pair of shoes, advice on health or a PR agency, there is now massive choice on the web. The original concept of the internet was as a tool to empower ordinary people to gain access to knowledge and share it with others. Sir Tim Berners-Lee’s vision of his invention, the world wide web, was to connect humanity. And then came Google."

Web 3.0, Social Media and the Paradox of Choice

Thursday, May 27, 2010

How Web 3.0 Will Impact Social Media and PR

"If like me you have heard the term Web 3.0 and the semantic web, but aren’t really sure what it means then watch the video I have embedded below. It is around 15 minutes, but is well worth the time investment. If you can’t spare the time I have attempted a summary below it.

The mini doco is by Kate Ray, a NYU�Psychology�and Journalism major student. It is incredibly interesting and got me thinking about the impact of Web 3.0 on the PR industry."

How Web 3.0 Will Impact Social Media and PR

Google Stands Firm On Refusing To Share Payload Data

"Regulators in Germany and Hong Kong are continuing to pressure Google to turn over the personal information that its Street View cars collected from unsecured WiFi networks.
Google, which says the payload data collection was accidental, takes the position that sharing such personal information would itself be illegal in Germany, The New York Times reports. It's not clear from the Times article whether Google also believes that disclosing the information is illegal in Hong Kong."

MediaPost Publications Google Stands Firm On Refusing To Share Payload Data 05/27/2010

How Your Small Business Can Start a Social Media for Social Good Campaign

"If you go online, watch TV or listen to the radio, you’ve probably heard about the Pepsi Refresh or Chase Community Giving Projects; two huge campaigns from mega-conglomerates that are using social media to raise money and do some good.

It’s no secret that people are more inclined to purchase from companies who are working to improve our world. Cause marketing is a great way to both draw people to your company and create good will. And it’s definitely something small businesses can take part in, too."

How Your Small Business Can Start a Social Media for Social Good Campaign

WebAward - enter your website now.

"Since 1997, Web industry professionals have used the WebAward competition as a way to promote themselves, their companies and their best website work to the outside world. Here, you will find a sample of some of the ways WebAward winners have promoted their website awards to clients, the media and internally.

Throughout our site you will see quotes from participants of past WebAward competitions telling you in their own words how they have benefited from their award winning website.

Many sites use online award pages to highlight their WebAward. Here are some examples of how past web site award winners promote their awards on their sites.

Many award winning web sites also use offline marketing to support their award winning internet marketing efforts. Here are some examples of how some companies merged online marketing with traditional marketing efforts."

The Buzz Web Marketing Association's WebAwards


Dallas Technology Pr Firm

"Public relations for technology companies is not the same as PR for blue jeans or perfume. For example, one PR firm could competently handle the jeans one minute and perfume the next. Technology companies, on the other hand, demand more than cookie-cutter solutions. The buyers are different. The news organizations are different. The kinds of stories that interest both are vastly different. And the depth and complexity of knowledge are much different. As a result, the strategies and tactics are different."



Apple iTunes Facing Antitrust Inquiries

"The U.S. Department of Justice has been making a few calls to record labels to ask some pointed questions about iTunes.

According to several reports, the DoJ’s antitrust division has reached out to Universal, Sony, Warner Bros, EMI and several music services that compete with iTunes, such as eMusic. Feds have been asking preliminary questions about Apple’s pricing and competition, particularly with regard to Amazon’s music store."

Apple iTunes Facing Antitrust Inquiries

Why MySpace Can Still Win as a Music Destination

"Last October, MySpace reached an all-time low of 50.2 million unique visitors per month. That number has only gone down since (47.6 million in March). The site is hemorrhaging money, while a certain competitor extends its reach throughout the web, in spite of mounting privacy issues. After years of enduring seizure-inducing Flash animations and child predator scares, some ex-users seem glad to see it go. As the world of social media moves on though, there’s at least one bit of the site worth keeping: MySpace Music."

Why MySpace Can Still Win as a Music Destination

SEO Will Never, Ever Die

"From the inception of search in the early 90’s, individuals and monolithic companies revolutionized the world’s information management.� Since then post BBS pioneers have taken over the marketing world. Over the years, as contextual advertising platforms evolved and blossomed into robust networks like Facebook and DoubleClick, there have been naysayers.� Contrary to nearly half a decade of “SEO is dead” hyperbole, SEO is and always will be king. Here’s why."

SEO Will Never, Ever Die � aimClear Search Marketing Blog

5 Ways To Turn Your Traffic Into Valuable User Data

"Face it: Most of us website owners don’t extract as much value from our traffic as we could.

Even if you’re using an analytics solution like Chartbeat or Google Analytics, you’re probably leaving money on the table in the form of ungathered data that could lead to opportunities to engage with, cater to, and monetize users."

check it out mashable.com

Google Confirms “Mayday” Update Impacts Long Tail Traffic

"Google made between 350 and 550 changes in its organic search algorithms in 2009. This is one of the reasons I recommend that site owners not get too fixated on specific ranking factors. If you tie construction of your site to any one perceived�algorithm signal, you’re at the mercy of Google’s constant tweaks. These frequent changes are one reason Google itself downplays algorithm updates. Focus on what Google is trying to accomplish as it refines things (the most relevant, useful results possible for searchers) and you’ll generally avoid too much turbulence in your organic search traffic."

Google Confirms “Mayday” Update Impacts Long Tail Traffic


Google Ranking



What is the future of semantic search?



Can I exclude certain words from Googlebot?



How does Google rank sites which run on non-standard ports?



How many search algorithm changes were made in 2009?

I've been telling you EVERY DAY!!!






Hackers Take Over BP Twitter Feed

"BP's Twitter account looked to have fallen victim to hackers early Thursday, with a post referencing a fictional character from a popular fake BP microblog page."

FOXNews.com - Hackers Take Over BP Twitter Feed

Fake BP Twitter Account In Response to Spill

"What BP has done�isn’t�funny. The Wall Street Journal reports a Twitter user with an account dubbed�BPGlobalPR is posting satirical entries about the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico — and already has more than twice as many followers as BP America’s actual account. I’m sure BP�doesn’t�think its “satirical” or funny. BP’s actions or lack thereof certainly deserve a lashing, and the public is�responding�in a number of ways. Social media identity�theft�appears�to be one of them."

Fake BP Twitter Account In Response to Spill | KnowEm.com

Global CIO: Oracle's Larry Ellison Embraces Cloud Computing's 'Idiocy'

"This story offers a, uh, colorful example of how leading IT companies eventually manage to get out of their own way and adapt to the realities of the marketplace to come up with creative approaches to solving customer problems. Microsoft puts Office online, SAP puts its heart into SaaS, IBM re-energizes its hardware business, Hewlett-Packard moves beyond infrastructure, and Dell offers services."


Global CIO: Oracle's Larry Ellison Embraces Cloud Computing's 'Idiocy' -- InformationWeek

Mix Up YouTube Tunes With Muziic DJ

"The author of one of our favorite music apps for Facebook, Muziic, is back with a new app that brings some pizazz to your YouTube music listening sessions. Muziic DJ is a web application that turns YouTube into a virtual DJ studio, enabling you to create playlists and mix the tracks into a seamless party mix."

Mix Up YouTube Tunes With Muziic DJ

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Majority of Adults Now Google Themselves

"Online users are taking a more active interest in reputation management, a new report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project found.

Findings suggest that users increasingly change privacy settings, delete comments and untag themselves in photos, but overall the online population worries 7% less about how much information is available about itself than it did in 2006."

Majority of Adults Now Google Themselves [STUDY]

Twitter Measurement Tool - Twitalyzer

"Name: Twitalyzer

Quick Pitch: Twitalyzer is social media’s most complete application for measuring impact, engagement and influence on Twitter.

Genius Idea: Twitalyzer is a free analytics dashboard for Twitter that provides detailed metrics on things like impact, engagement, clout and velocity for individual Twitter accounts."


Twitalyzer Offers a Buffet of Twitter Analytical Data

News agendas for social media and the press are different

"Social media and the mainstream press embrace different news agendas, and the former have much shorter attention spans than the latter when dealing with news items.

They are among the major findings of New Media, Old Media, a report by the Pew Research Centre's Project for Excellence in Journalism that studied a year's worth of media coverage of news stories."

Roy Greenslade: News agendas for social media and the press are different | Media | guardian.co.uk


Apple Is Now Worth More Than Microsoft

"Apple's stock market capitalization (AAPL) has not yet quite surpassed Microsoft's (MSFT), but the value of its actual business is now higher.
Specifically, Apple's business is now worth $200 billion, while Microsoft's is only worth $197 billion--at least by one simple calculation of enterprise value.*"

It's Official: Apple Is Now Worth More Than Microsoft*

What it means to be #1 on google

"How much is the top spot on Google actually worth?� According to data from the Chitika network, it’s worth a ton – double the traffic of the #2 spot, to be precise.

In order to find out the value of SEO, we looked at a sample of traffic coming into our advertising network from Google and broke it down by Google results placement.� The top spot drove 34.35% of all traffic in the sample, almost as much as the numbers 2 through 5 slots combined, and more than the numbers 5 through 20 (the end of page 2) put together."

The Value of Google Result Positioning – Chitika Research

Google-Backed SCVNGR Takes On Foursquare

"SCVNGR wants to build a game layer on top of the world. The company's Chief Executive Officer Seth Priebatsch -- who founded the concept 18 months ago while a freshman at Princeton -- recently got one step closer after securing deals with Tesla, the Patriots, the Celtics, Warner Bros., and The New York Times."

MediaPost Publications Google-Backed SCVNGR Takes On Foursquare 05/26/2010

Facebook User Feels Violated, Sues

"A Rhode Island man has sued Facebook for allegedly violating his privacy with the four-week-old 'instant personalization' feature, which automatically shares information about users with outside companies.

In papers filed in federal court late last week, East Providence resident Derrick Rose alleges that the launch of instant personalization 'violated users' reasonable expectations of privacy.'"


MediaPost Publications Facebook User Feels Violated, Sues 05/26/2010

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Why Facebook Users Are Considering Leaving

"Last week we asked you, our (MASHABLE) readers, to tell us why you’re planning on leaving Facebook (if you actually are, that is). Well, more than 5,000 votes later, and the results are in: 31% of respondents proclaimed their intention to stick with FB, and approximately the same number cited access to personal information as their number-one reason for vamoosing."

Why Facebook Users Are Considering Leaving [CHART]

Four Ways to Find Out if Your Customers Are Active With Social Media

"For many companies, the conversation has shifted from “why” or “should” we do social media, to “where” and “how” social media should be done."


Four Ways to Find Out if Your Customers Are Active With Social Media | Social Media Examiner

Block Google Analytics

"Many website owners use Google Analytics and other web analytics tools to make business-critical decisions about how to improve their websites by understanding how users engage with their webpages. We’ve worked hard to make Google Analytics both a robust and reliable web analytics platform while also ensuring the trust and privacy of visitors of these websites. Today we’re taking additional steps to provide even more choice and transparency for both website owners and users."

Google Analytics Blog: Greater choice and transparency for Google Analytics

Google Listen

"Listen from Google Labs brings podcasts and web audio to your Android-powered device. It lets you search, subscribe, download and stream."

By subscribing to programs it will create a personalized audio-magazine loaded with fresh shows and news stories whenever you listen. In this release Listen is indexing thousands of popular English-only audio sources.

PubCon Las Vegas Hotel

"PubCon has secured a special discount rate on luxury accommodations at the magnificent Wynn Las Vegas Hotel, the only casino resort in the world to receive the Mobil 5 Star, the AAA 5 Diamond, and the Michelin 5 Red ratings, for registered attendees of PubCon Las Vegas 2010 on November 8 - 11, 2010 at the Las Vegas Convention Center."

PubCon Social Media and Search Marketing Conferences 2010 steveplunkett

New Facebook Privacy Controls Arrive on Wednesday

"On Sunday, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg promised simplified privacy settings “in coming weeks.” It now looks like that timetable has been bumped up, with an executive at the social network revealing at an event in New York that new features will launch tomorrow."

PubCon Conference Vegas 2010

"PubCon, the premier search and social media conference and expo will hold its multi-track Las Vegas event on November 8 - 11, 2010 at the Las Vegas Convention Center in sunny Las Vegas, Nevada.

PubCon Las Vegas 2010, supported by the industry's leading businesses, speakers, exhibitors, and sponsors involved in social media, Internet marketing, search engines, and online advertising, will offer a week-long look at the future of technology presented by many of the world's top speakers."

Monday, May 24, 2010

Facebook CEO's Privacy Promises: What's Missing

"Good news: Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg admitted that his site did wrong with users' privacy, and has promised to make changes. But something's amiss from Zuckerberg's editorial in today's Washington Post, and I'm not convinced Facebook will deliver the privacy fixes people want."

What Google's Encrypted Search Changes

"Encrypted search is probably one of the most important options for people searching on Google. It aims to improve privacy by creating an encrypted tunnel that allows data to travel between the browser and the chosen Web site or searches. Last Monday I told you how Google chief executive officer Eric Schmidt alluded to Google moving SSL into search, and by Friday the company had made the official announcement."


Facebook CEO: We Will Add Simpler Privacy Controls

"Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg addresses Facebook users’ privacy concerns in a column in the Washington Post on Monday.

Zuckerberg admits that users find their privacy settings confusing, and promises new, simplified settings “in the coming weeks”. The public statement follows a private email exchange with a blogger in which he admitted “we’ve made a bunch of mistakes“."

Twitter’s Most Influential Users

"On March 21st 2006, Twitter’s founders uttered their first tweets. If you look at that moment as a big bang of influence in the ever-expanding Twittersphere, how does Twitter’s cosmos look today? Web design studio Information Architects aims to answer that with an enormous visualization of the Cosmic 140 – the 140 most influential users on Twitter"

Friday, May 21, 2010

Are You Planning on Quitting Facebook? Why?

"Every book has an ending (except, perhaps for The Neverending Story), and it seems like come May 31, Facebook could be reaching its denouement for many a user.

There’s movements forming against it. It’s cover news for Time Magazine. There’s even a faction of Zuckerberg-alikes looking to cash in on those opting out of the social network."

How MySpace Plans to Become the Best Place to Play Games

"MySpace has launched a new initiative to invite social game developers like Playdom, Zynga, TheBroth and Meez to work directly with the MySpace Games team of developers to improve the experience for social gamers on the site.

MySpace launched its MySpace Games platform earlier this year, and the company has already said that it hopes to increase user engagement with games and apps from around 20-30% to something more like 50%."

Facebook caught sending user info to advertisers

"Dow Jones Newswires-Wall Street Journal | Facebook, MySpace and several other social-networking sites have been sending data to advertising companies that could be used to find consumers' names and other personal details, despite promises they don't share such information without consent.

The practice, which most of the companies defended, sent user names or ID numbers tied to personal profiles being viewed when users clicked on ads. After questions were raised by The Wall Street Journal, Facebook and MySpace moved to make changes. By Thursday morning Facebook had rewritten some of the offending computer code."



WARNING: Facebook Clickjacking Attack Spreading Through News Feed

"A new malware attack is spreading via Facebook’s news feed, according to reports from users on Twitter.

The attack consists of a message starting with the phrase “try not to laugh xD,” followed by this link: “http://www.fbhole.com/omg/allow.php?s=a&r=72306″ (don’t open it)."

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Video SEO Opportunities With Google’s Recent Makeover

"Earlier this month, Google rolled out its redesigned search engine results page (SERP) with a new menu of search-refinement options on the left-hand rail. The recent modifications to Google’s logo and search results pages serve as big changes for a company whose design hasn’t changed much in years. Simply put: It’s a big deal. Google continues, however, to keep it clean and straightforward. The streamlined feel and functionality of Google’s SERP redesign presents great opportunities for marketers. While each of the categorical changes deserve the consideration of search marketers in general, video search in particular may benefit from these opportunities and provide marketers a chance to separate their brands from the pack."

Facebook Privacy Makes The Cover of Time Magazine

"Time Magazine’s May 31 issue will hit newsstands with a cover and feature story dedicated to the “scary” side of Facebook.

The cover art pays homage to the Facebook generation with a mosaic of 1,295 Facebook profile photos, accompanied by a blurb from the feature article: “Facebook …and how it’s redefining privacy. With nearly 500 million users, Facebook is connecting us in new (and scary) ways.”"

A Plea To Corporate America: Get IT Out Of The SEO Business

"A lot of people think I’m an Information Technology hater. I’ve often said that IT can be a huge impediment to SEO efforts. I constantly lobby to move websites off company networks. I strongly feel that Internet marketing is marketing first and technology second. But the truth is, I’m a huge fan of IT. I worked in IT at two companies for a total of five years, so I know whereof I speak."

Google Reveals Android 2.2 and Google TV [LIVE]

"Today is day two of Google I/O, Google’s developers conference. Yesterday, Google used its keynote.

Today, we expect the launch of Google TV, Android 2.2 (FroYo), and several other Android related announcements."

Google Reveals Android 2.2 and Google TV [LIVE]

4 Tips for B2B Marketing on Facebook

"A couple of months ago, we talked about ways to engage your fan base on Facebook. Several readers asked how B2B companies could take advantage of the tips we shared, and I know that some organizations are still wondering if it even makes sense to try to reach a business audience on Facebook."

4 Tips for B2B Marketing on Facebook

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Where Adobe makes money

"The gradual elimination of Flash sounds like a bad thing for Adobe, but it's actually not a huge problem. From a revenue perspective, Flash only accounted for 7% of the company's revenue in fiscal 2009, or $231.2 million, according to Citi analyst Walter Pritchard."

Google Fonts

"The long-planned inevitable has now been announced. With open-source-licensed web fonts, web font hosting, and add-a-line-to-your-header ease of configuration, Google has joined Typekit, Font Squirrel, Ascender, Font Bureau and others in forever changing the meaning of the phrase, “typography on the web.”"
And now, Google – Jeffrey Zeldman Presents The Daily Report

PayPal’s Mobile Payments Available for Android

"We know you want a quick and easy way to integrate payments into the Android apps you’re building, and we’re pleased to announce that our Mobile Payments Library is now available for the Android."

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Google Chrome Version 6 in the Works

"Not one to rest on its laurels, the Google Chrome team is hard at work on Chrome 6. The official move to the 6.0 designation in the Chromium developer builds officially started a few days ago.

The move to a Chrome 6 branch for Chromium means that the final tweaks and polishes on Chrome 5 are almost complete. Chrome 5 is a big release — not only is it blazingly fast, it’s also going to be the first stable release for Mac and Linux users."

Friday, May 14, 2010

B2B Social Media Case Study

"Mike Travis, founder and CEO of Equation Research, presented a case study of how he used social media to crowdsource a marketing trends survey. This video is a recap of his presentation at the Marketing Profs B2B Forum, which was part of a session featuring four case studies moderated by CK."
B2B Social Media Case Study: Marketing Survey | Social Media B2B


6 Steps to Find your B2B Audience on Twitter | Social Media B2B

"We all know Twitter is a great tool for connecting and sharing information. But using it to find the right audience for your business can be a bit difficult, especially in the B2B environment. So how do you go about finding this elusive crowd? Here’s several options using both Twitter search and third party tools to help you find and follow meaningful connections."

6 Steps to Find your B2B Audience on Twitter | Social Media B2B

Flash is the new Vista

"Here’s some advice, Adobe. The first step on the road to recovery is admitting that you have a problem."

Top 5 Social Media Tips for C-Suite Execs

"For the rank and file at companies big and small, social media is infiltrating the workplace and fast becoming an important part of day-to-day activities. When it comes to executives and upper management, though, social media mostly remains an art unpracticed."

Lucky Magazine Brings "Pop-Up" Shop to Facebook

"Lucky magazine and e-retailer HSN have teamed up to offer Facebook Fans exclusive early access to their Summer Designer Capsule Collection. The full series, which features apparel and accessories by designers Anna Foley, Gerard Yosca, Pour La Victoire, PadeVavra and Thread made especially for the partnership, will be available on HSN.com on May 19 and 20."

Three Texas metro areas among best for growth, study says

"Texas metro areas have already been singled out as among the best places to ride out the Great Recession, but a new study illustrates the long-term vigor of the Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston and Austin economies."


Site review for Google I/O attendees

"If you’re attending Google I/O next week then you might enjoy the SEO site review session that we’ll be doing. If you’ll be attending Google I/O, you can now submit your website for review. I’ll also include the form below:"

Foursquare Gets Mainstream Exposure on "The Today Show"

"Foursquare has scored itself another partnership, this time with NBC’s The Today Show. Foursquare users who head to 30 Rock this summer for the Toyota Concert Series on Today will be able to check in, earn badges and compete for mayorships. The Today Show has its own branded Foursquare partner page that you can also visit to get music tips and other assorted information."

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Americans Received 1 Trillion Display Ads in Q1 2010 as Online Advertising Market Rebounds

"RESTON, VA, May 13, 2010 – comScore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today released an overview of the U.S. online display advertising market for Q1 2010, which showed strong gains following softness for much of 2009. Data from comScore’s Ad Metrix services shows that U.S. Internet users received a record 1.1 trillion display ads during the first quarter, marking a 15-percent increase versus year ago. Total U.S. display ad spending in Q1 reached an estimated $2.7 billion, with the average cost per thousand impressions (CPM) equal to $2.48."

Americans Received 1 Trillion Display Ads in Q1 2010 as Online Advertising Market Rebounds from 2009 Recession - comScore, Inc

Why Facebook “Like” Won’t Change the World

"Social media have claimed the mindspace of a generation.�This is impressive, but it has not proven easy to monetize, and the model may be nearing saturation.�Many therefore believe that the name players are out for bigger game, grabbing chunks of search, personalization, and e-commerce generally.�Exhibit A in this case is Facebook Like.�"

Why Facebook “Like” Won’t Change the World | Vertical Measures

7 things to STOP doing NOW on FaceBook

"It's an ideal target for identity thieves, who could use it to obtain more information about you and potentially gain access to your bank or credit card account. If you've already entered a birth date, go to your profile page and click on the Info tab, then on Edit Information. Under the Basic Information section, choose to show only the month and day or no birthday at all."

Here's How Your Business Can Use Foursquare

"Companies are starting to use LBS (location-based services) as the new cutting edge marketing to attract a new crowd. The question is whether they’ll pay for the privilege. Or whether Foursquare, which has 400,000 users now voluntarily “checking in” at locations, and broadcasting that to their followers, will transcend its current “it” status among the technorati and become a lasting consumer phenomenon and a marketing tool."

How the Value of a Link May Differ Based upon Link and Document Features and User Data

"One of the signals Google uses to rank web pages looks at the links to and from those pages, to see which pages are linked to by others. Links from “important” pages carry more weight than links from less important pages. An important page under this system is one that is linked to by other important pages, or by a large number of less important pages, or a combination of the two. This signal is known as PageRank, and it is only one of a large number of ranking signals that are used by Google to rank web pages and determine how highly those pages show up in search results in response to a query from a searcher."


Adobe Responds to Apple’s Attacks on Flash with New Ad Campaign

"Two weeks ago, Steve Jobs published his now infamous “Thoughts on Flash” memo on Apple.com. Adobe has now responded with its own message, a message of “love,” “choice” and “open markets.”

In addition to the post on its own website, Adobe has also placed display ads (created in Flash, naturally) on Engadget and The New York Times, and taken out a full-page ad in The Washington Post outlining its position and what it thinks consumers should know."




(image lifted from Mashable)

Adobe Responds to Apple’s Attacks on Flash with New Ad Campaign

Google Maps Mashup - Colgate University = Yearbook 2.0

"The senior yearbook is a time-honored tradition at many colleges and universities, but given the general decline of print it’s about time school yearbooks were given a dose of digital therapy. Colgate University did just that with its Class of 2010 interactive Google Map.

The map mashup is pinned with each graduating senior’s new location as she or he heads off to pursue post-collegiate plans and opportunities. Clicking on either a name or a pin pulls up information about that student’s post-graduation plans, making it easy to track at a glance the locations of one’s fellow students after leaving the Colgate fold."

Why Hasn't Location Reached the Mainstream Yet?

"For all their buzz and value, location-based social networks haven’t really gone mainstream yet. Only 7% of Americans are aware of location-based social networks, according to data from Edison Research.

Part of the explanation for this is that the majority of mobile users aren’t using smartphones. And as a result, just 10% of those surveyed use mobile location services at least once a week, according to the Mobile Marketing Association’s latest Mobile Consumer Briefing survey. For smartphone users, like those of the iPhone (a popular device among early adopters), that number jumps all the way up to 63%."

The Next Big Platform for Magazines Could be Facebook

"Today, Vanity Fair for the iPad appeared in Apple’s App Store. This summer, the title — and many others — may be available directly in your Facebook newsfeed.

Synapse, a subscription marketing agency that works with major magazine publishers like Cond�Nast, Hachette Filipacchi and Hearst, is working with with Alvenda, a company that specializes in Facebook shopping applications, to enable publishers to sell subscriptions directly on Facebook Pages and even in users’ newsfeeds beginning in July or August."

How Location-Based Social Networking Gets Creepy

"I've been having a blast with Foursquare, checking in to new locations, finding my friends on the go and exploring this new type of social networking.
But it changed from fun and frivolous to scary and threatening when my young son got involved. And it caused me to overreact a little, too -- although in that protective parental way."

Expert SEO Interview with Alex Bennert

"This interview with Alex Bennert, a longtime SEO professional with experience working on very large web sites such as Zillow and now with the Wall Street Journal, offers SEO career advice, explores the difference between in-house, agency and solo SEO practitioner, her experiences providing SEO services for a large publisher and the inevitable obsolescence of technical SEO. Oh yeah, we hit the obligatory social media topic too. Enjoy:"


Google Webmaster Tools

"Google strongly recommends that all webmasters regularly monitor site performance using Page Speed, YSlow, WebPagetest, or other tools. For more information, tools, and resources, see Let's Make The Web Faster. In addition, the Site Performance tool in Webmaster Tools shows the speed of your website as experienced by users around the world."

Webmaster guidelines - Webmaster Tools Help

SCVNGR Puts the Game Back in Location-Based Gaming

"Today, SCVNGR (scavenger), a location-centric social game that initially gained traction in the enterprise and at universities, is coming to the public by way of mobile apps for iPhone and Android. Backed by Google Ventures and Highland Capital, SCVNGR is already being used by the U.S. Navy, MIT, Princeton, Harvard and the City of Boston and now its coming everywhere (well, everywhere in the U.S.)."

SCVNGR Puts the Game Back in Location-Based Gaming


Is Your Browser HTML5 and CSS3 Ready?

"Lately, in part due to Apple’s rejection of Flash on its mobile devices, we’re hearing a lot about HTML5 and CSS3. These new web standards promise video and audio support and many graphical improvements in web page rendering, as well as certain technical tidbits, such as drag and drop support, which will make our web browsing experience more enjoyable."

Is Your Browser HTML5 and CSS3 Ready? [INFOGRAPHIC]

Digg’s Biggest Mistake: Removing the Top Users List

"Recently, Lady Gaga surpassed Barack Obama in the number of Twitter followers. I briefly considered writing about it, and I’m sure the story would generate some interest. Instead, however, I’ll cover a topic that was very hot three years ago, and I feel that only now we can draw some definite conclusions from it: Digg’s top user list and its removal in February 2007."


Digg’s Biggest Mistake: Removing the Top Users List

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

DJ Rap Blog - artists need itunes authentication

"This �blog is a personal blog about my album ‘Synthesis’ There has been some confusion about the release date �as it has changed many times.There are many good reasons for this and the label (ministry of sound had my best interests at heart here ) and we all agreed that June 29 was the right date june 15 for some exclusives….."

Understanding the web to find short answers and “something different”

"One year ago today we announced Google Squared in Labs, an early attempt to find and extract structured data from across the web, such as a detailed table of [dog breeds] or [broadway shows]. Since then, our team in New York has steadily worked to improve quality and add new features, such as the ability to sort your data and export it to a file. In the past week, we’ve introduced two features that bring parts of Squared’s technology directly to regular search results. The first provides better answers to fact-finding queries like [independence day of india], and the second is “something different”, a special kind of search refinement in our new left-hand panel."

The Best of What's Left of Privacy on Facebook

"Hundreds of millions of people signed up to use Facebook when the default setting was that things you published there were kept private among approved friends. That changed dramatically last December and the company has taken a pounding from critics all around the world, not the least of which has been us."

HTC Wants Ban on iPhone, iPad and iPod Sales Over Patent Issues

"Remember how Apple sued HTC over patent infringements two months ago? Today HTC is fighting back by filing its own complaint with the International Trade Commission (ITC). In addition, HTC is seeking a ban on the importation and sale of iPhones, iPads and iPods in the U.S.

For those of you who have been following our coverage of “Patent Lawsuit Theater,” this should sound pretty familiar. Both Nokia and Kodak have also filed ITC complaints in addition to import bans. Apple has called for a ban of Nokia imports in its countersuit."


Facebook Now Serving More Than 50 Billion Banner Ads Per Month

"During the first quarter of 2010, Facebook served up more banner ads than any other website, according to new data from comScore published in The Wall Street Journal.

In total, the social networking site displayed 176.3 billion ads during the period, for an average of better than 50 billion ads each month. That total represents 16.2% of the total number of banner ads served across the entire Web, and places the site ahead of the likes of Yahoo and Microsoft — the latter by nearly triple."

Living the Unexpected - Reincarnated


How technology management became akin to politics

"News that Android phones are now outselling those from Apple, and that Facebook’s market position is suddenly precarious, forces technology executives to rewrite their playbooks.

The new analogy is politics."

How technology management became akin to politics - SmartPlanet

Older Users Hear Facebook Is Bad News [STATS]

"According to one study, adults ages 35 and older hear more bad news about Facebook than good. Between bugs, changes and privacy fear, uncertainty and doubt in the media, these mature folks have heard significantly more negative reports than have their younger counterparts.

Does this mean “older” people aren’t into Facebook? Hardly. It just means that they’re more aware of negatively slanted news reports, which likely has more to do with their preferred news sources than their online habits or personal opinions."

Older Users Hear Facebook Is Bad News [STATS]

Smart Grid Security and Encryption

"The Networked Grid 2010 will bring together the premiere industry players in the emerging smart grid market. The conference will feature presentations, panel discussions, exhibits and networking while covering topics including: smart grid consumer engagement, tiered network architectures moving beyond advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) to support distribution automation, the integration of electric vehicles, data management and analytics, the future of grid security and much more. The full agenda, speaker list and registration are available on Greentech Media's website."

Smart Grid Security and Encryption : Revere Security CEO to Speak at Greentech Media’s Networked Grid 2010 Conference

Call for spam reports in five languages

" I (Matt Cutts) recently returned from a vacation to Japan, Hong Kong, and Thailand. It was a ton of fun and I hope to blog about it at some point — each country was of course unique and each offered different, wonderful experiences. From the cherry blossoms and the kindness shown to me by my colleagues at the Google Tokyo office in Japan, to the hustle and bustle and skyscrapers of Hong Kong, to the beautiful landscapes, people (and elephants!) of Thailand, I relished every minute. The trip also redoubled my interest in webspam in world-wide languages."

Call for spam reports in five languages

Gmail adds drag and drop to Gmail.

"Recently, we launched a feature that allows you to drag an attachment from your computer right onto Gmail.

I've always been a fan of the inserting image lab, so I naturally wondered if it would be possible to combine the two.

Today we're launching a feature that allows you to drag images from your computer into a message. You don't have to have the insert image lab enabled for it to work. Just drag the image in, resize it if you want, and send."

Drag images into messages - Official Gmail Blog

Monday, May 10, 2010

Interview with Maile Ohye of Google

"Maile Ohye has become a well known public figure from Google that works with webmasters and web marketers coordinating Google Webmaster Central outreach efforts, including the Webmaster Central Blog. She�has been speaking at search conferences for several years and has done many interviews like this video with Greg Jarboe on the topic off�real-time search. Her involvement with Google’s Webmaster Central has been instrumental in helping many web site owners find solutions to their Google problems."

Interview with Maile Ohye of Google - Online Marketing Blog

Android Now Outselling iPhone [REPORT]

"Smartphones carrying Google’s Android operating system outsold the iPhone in the first quarter of 2010, according to new research out today from NPD.

During the quarter, Android handsets accounted for 28 percent of smartphone sales, beating out iPhone OS and its 21 percent share. BlackBerry was the best-selling OS, with its devices capturing 36 percent of the market. NPD the shift to strong sales of the Motorola Droid and Droid Eris."

Android Now Outselling iPhone [REPORT]




Foursquare Exceeds 40 Million Check-Ins

"Location-based social network Foursquare counted its 40 millionth check-in a “couple days ago”, according to a Tweet from one of its developers.

The number shows that Foursquare’s growth rate is accelerating: Five weeks ago, we clocked Foursquare’s total check-ins at 22 million. In short: Foursquare appears to have doubled its check-in rate in just over a month."


Foursquare Exceeds 40 Million Check-Ins


Friday, May 07, 2010

First Non-Latin, International Domain Names Finally Launch

"The first significant change to internet domain names in many years was made today when ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) approved and deployed three domain names using a non-Latin script: Arabic.

You can already visit http://موقع.وزارة-الأتصالات.مصر/ and two other Arabic script domain names, though they might not display correctly if your browser doesn’t have IDN (International Domain Name) support."


First Non-Latin, International Domain Names Finally Launch

UC Davis scraps Gmail pilot: Privacy levels 'unacceptable'

"Google has been hit with a major blow in regards to privacy by a leading US university, which this week ended their pilot of the outsourced Google Apps email system.

Peter Siegel, the University of California Davis chief information officer, sent a letter with support from senior staff to employees stating that the Gmail pilot�to supply 30,000 students and staff�would end before a full roll-out�across its entire network,�due to doubts�in keeping the students’ email and content secure and�private."

UC Davis scraps Gmail pilot: Privacy levels 'unacceptable' | ZDNet

The Growth of Social Media [VIDEO]

The Growth of Social Media [VIDEO]

WSJ Uses Foursquare To Alert Users About Times Square Evacuation

"The Wall Street Journal just checked-in on Foursquare – to tell people that Times Square has been evacuated due to a�suspicious�package. Here is a screenshot of the check-in taken by Foursqure’s CEO Dennis Crowley:"


WSJ Uses Foursquare To Alert Users About Times Square Evacuation

Top 12 Social Media and Tech News Stories This Week

"This week was positively schizophrenic when it comes to social media news: web coverage of major news events, Google search’s makeover, Twitter innovations, Facebook privacy gaffes, Apple-centric controversy and, of course, the Webbys.

If you’re still reeling from yesterday’s market madness and have subsequently forgotten everything you learned over the past seven days, never fear — Mashable has a list of the top 12 social media and tech stories of the week."

Top 12 Social Media and Tech News Stories This Week

Nokia Sues Apple Over iPad Patents

"Nokia is suing Apple over what it claims are infringing patents in the iPad and iPad 3G. This is just the latest in a series of escalating lawsuits between the two companies regarding their respective mobile and consumer electronic devices.

This lawsuit — which unlike the others was filed in the Federal District Court in the Western District of Wisconsin — is about technologies related to enhanced speech and data transmission. In a statement, Nokia described this technology as “positioning data in applications and innovations in antenna configurations that improve performance and save space, allowing smaller and more compact devices.”"

Nokia Sues Apple Over iPad Patents

5 Ways Facebook Will Impact E-commerce

"After watching Mark Zuckerberg’s recent keynote at the Facebook F8 developers conference, it is clear that Facebook is looking to become the standard in social personalization for everything you do online. And the new social features and direction that they announced will undoubtedly have an impact on the broader world of e-commerce."

5 Ways Facebook Will Impact E-commerce

Thursday, May 06, 2010

Enterprise software giants graze on cloud startups

"If you lead a startup focused on cloud computing or software as a service you’re in luck. The big enterprise software players want to buy you. It’s safe to say 12 to 18 months from today there will be a lot fewer young cloud players—they’ll be units in giant on-premise applications companies.

Cloud washing refers to the practice of slapping the term “cloud” on any technology you have. Cloud washing’s cousin is green washing (is anything NOT green these days?) The game plan for enterprise software giants: Buy up on-demand IT players, slap the term “cloud” on your old stuff and sell away to customers that are asking questions about these nutty upstarts that want to reinvent computing."

May the cloud washing begin: Enterprise software giants graze on cloud startups | ZDNet

SearchExchange - SEO Conference

"We are proud to announce that Charlotte, NC will be the host of the 2010 Search Exchange Conference and Expo. Search Exchange is a 3 day internet marketing conference that will feature the top professionals in the industry. Day 1 of the conference will be aimed towards SEO professionals, Day 2 for Social Media Marketers, and Day 3 for Pay Per Click and Reputation Management

Day 1 - Search Engine Optimization - Lee Odden 'Beyond Google: SEO and the Social Web', and Rae Hoffman - 'The Evolution of SEO'
Day 2 - Social Media Marketing - Sarah Evans 'How and Why to Stand Out Online', and Chris Winfield 'Yes Virginia, There is ROI in Social Media Marketing'
Day 3 - Pay Per Click Advertising & Online Reputation Management - David Szetela “The Future of Search and Personal Computing – and the Impact on SEO/SEM”, and Rhea Drysdale “The Online Reputation Management Landscape”

Join hundreds of business professionals and entrepreneurs from May 17-19th as we learn, network, and share experiences from across the different online marketing segments. The three day conference will consist of keynotes and panel discussions on search engine optimization, social media marketing, pay per click advertising, and web analytics.

We're offering special discounts to corporations who plan to purchase 5 or more tickets. Please Contact Us for details"

Internet Marketing Conference | SEO Internet Conference 2010 | Search Exchange

Ultra White Hat SEO - Google Webmaster guidelines

"Following these guidelines will help Google find, index, and rank your site. Even if you choose not to implement any of these suggestions, we strongly encourage you to pay very close attention to the 'Quality Guidelines,' which outline some of the illicit practices that may lead to a site being removed entirely from the Google index or otherwise penalized. If a site has been penalized, it may no longer show up in results on Google.com or on any of Google's partner sites."

Webmaster guidelines - Webmaster Tools Help

Google Googles releases an exciting new feature. Lets you translate…the world.

"Google has announced another update to its Google Goggles service that enables a user to translate phrases or words written in a foreign language just by snapping a picture of them."


Google Googles releases an exciting new feature. Lets you translate…the world.

Google's new look amps up search-engine competition

"Google's unveiling Wednesday of a major redesign signals the start of what promises to be a period of intensified competition with rival Microsoft Bing.
Consumers can sit back and reap the rewards. 'Only two search-engine players are investing heavily right now, Google and Microsoft,' says Kevin Lee, CEO of search consultancy Didit.com. 'The end users will be the beneficiaries of this highly competitive landscape.'"

Google's new look amps up search-engine competition - USATODAY.com

Wednesday, May 05, 2010

Foursquare Whale is a Win

"There were fewer Foursquare Mayorships announced and fewer “I’m at _____ #foursquare” tweets today. The popular service, I mean game, in which people “check in” with friends at local establishments and unlock badges was down, out-of-service, a few times."

Foursquare Whale is a Win

Facebook Chat Down for Maintenance Following Privacy Lapse

"Facebook Chat is now down for maintenance. The feature was presumably disabled following a report that exposed a Facebook security bug that allowed users to access and view friends’ live chats, friend requests and friends in common.

The report indicates that access to this personal information was accessible via Facebook’s privacy settings, with the Preview My Profile feature creating the loophole to access the private live chats of friends"

Facebook Chat Down for Maintenance Following Privacy Lapse

Google Search Gets a Major Overhaul

"After months of testing and speculation, Google is finally releasing the next edition of Google search to the public, complete with a left-hand menu bar and even an update to the well-known Google logo.

The new version of Google has some major differences, but the changes can be broken down into three groups: design changes, the addition of a left-hand navigation panel and a more “unified” search experience."

Google Search Gets a Major Overhaul [PICS]

Android Tablet Prototype Running Flash Spotted in the Wild

"Now that Adobe and Apple have officially parted ways (at least when it comes to Flash on Apple’s mobile devices), Adobe is pointing in the general direction of Android, whose next version (2.2) will support Flash.

It’s therefore no surprise that their stand at the Web 2.0 Expo in San Francisco is showcasing Android-based phones, but a surprise guest managed to sneak through, too – an Android-based multi-touch tablet prototype."

Android Tablet Prototype Running Flash Spotted in the Wild

Tuesday, May 04, 2010

Google Mail is becoming Gmail in the UK - Official Gmail Blog

"As a Brit, my friends and family often tell me they're miffed that they get an @googlemail.com address instead of @gmail.com. Today I have good news for them: Google Mail is soon becoming Gmail again in the UK."

Google Mail is becoming Gmail in the UK - Official Gmail Blog

Google Invests in App that Predicts the Future

"Google Ventures has just invested an undisclosed amount in Recorded Future, a company that is working to accurately predict the future.

As its name implies, the web application uses a wealth of quantifiable data from the past and present to forecast trends and predict outcomes. It likely has around the same level of accuracy, give or take, as a weather report."


Google Invests in App that Predicts the Future

Half of social networkers post risky information, study finds

"The magazine, which released its State of the Net survey today, noted that 52% of adults who use social networks, such as Facebook, MySpace and Twitter, have posted personal information like their full birth dates and other revealing facts that criminals could use to victimize them."


Half of social networkers post risky information, study finds - Computerworld

Fresh-baked tweets for your posts – Twitter Media

"Here at Twitter Media, we want to experiment in exactly the same way we’re encouraging you to experiment. We want to implement the things we’re recommending that you implement. And we want to share tools that we develop—even when they’re quite simple."

Fresh-baked tweets for your posts – Twitter Media

5 Tips for Getting Execs on Board

"Even though there are now a plenitude of enterprise social media success stories, we know that driving home the business necessity of social media in the board room can be a daunting task.

We turned to five people — Steve Rubel, Jade Bailey, Adam Brown, Angela LoSasso and Brad Nelson — intimately familiar with the�Why? enterprise challenge to give us tips on how they go about getting executives on board."


Social Enterprise: 5 Tips for Getting Execs on Board

Buddy Media Helps Marketers Take Advantage of Facebook's New "Likes"

"Buddy Media already helps big brands do more with their Facebook presence. Today the company is extending its service to include Facebook Open Graph integration.

This update is about connecting the dots between user activity on and off Facebook — think the “Like” button — so that platform users can manage and track their website’s Facebook performance in addition to Page performance and content. They’ve also added real-time analytics for all social activity and a new publish option so that clients can connect with customers who “liked” content on their sites."

Buddy Media Helps Marketers Take Advantage of Facebook's New "Likes"

5 Rules For Awesome Impromptu Web Analysis

"Recently on behalf of Market Motive, my start up that focuses on online marketing education, I had the opportunity to offer one scholarship for the latest round of Master Certification in Web Analytics.

So at the end of my 10 Fundamental Web Analytics Truths blog post I requested readers who were interested in the scholarship to complete this simple task:

Pick a site you love and tell me three things you would change about it, and why."


5 Rules For Awesome Impromptu Web Analysis | Occam's Razor by Avinash Kaushik


30 Quick Tips For Speakers

"1. Don’t be a “speaker”. Be an expert who speaks. Speakers are a “nice to have” but experts are a necessity

2. The power is not the point – slides are there as navigation points, not to be the content

3. If everything you say is on your slides, you’ve rendered yourself useless.

4. There is a high demand for people that can both provide content and deliver it effectively from stage. Some can do one of the two, most don’t do either and a select few do both. Aim to be great.

5. End your presentation early."

UnMarketing � Blog Archive � 30 Quick Tips For Speakers

Monday, May 03, 2010

Twitter to Launch Embeddable Tweets?

"Most of the time, when a blog or website wants to add specific tweets to its blog posts (say, like, this one), it has to either quote the text or screenshot the tweets and put them in the post. Suffice it to say, the former doesn’t have have the same impact as the latter, but the latter is a time-intensive affair."

Twitter to Launch Embeddable Tweets?

YouTube to Let Users Charge Rental Fees for Videos

"YouTube’s movie rental service is still in its infancy, and it still only offers a small selection of films, but that could change quickly. YouTube exec Hunter Walk told MediaPost that the site will soon offer its users the ability to charge rental fees for their uploaded videos."

YouTube to Let Users Charge Rental Fees for Videos

How Non-Profits are Using Social Media for Real Results

"While non-profits may not allocate extra funds to stakeholders, charitable organizations still have a bottom line — to spread their message and accomplish their mission. To do this, strategic planning, which includes digital outreach, is involved. That’s why a growing number of non-profits are using social media to draw attention to their goals."

How Non-Profits are Using Social Media for Real Results

Apple Could Face Antitrust Inquiry Over Flash Ban

"Apple CEO Steve Jobs has been very clear on the matter of Flash, and why Apple won’t let developers use a third party layer of software to create apps for their mobile devices, the iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch."


Apple Could Face Antitrust Inquiry Over Flash Ban [REPORT]