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August 21, 2008

August 21, 2008

57% of Ad and Marketing Executives are Okay With Web Surfing at Work

The idea that surfing the web at work is taboo might largely be a myth. 57% of executives say it's alright that their employees browse non-work related websites during the work day, according to a survey by The Creative Group. 41% say it's not okay and 2% aren't sure.

Just how long can you surf before turning that yes into a no? The mean average is 32 minutes.

The survey was conducted among advertising and marketing executives, traditionally a field with more creative types.

"In the creative field, surfing non-work sites may be considered part of the job because it allows professionals to keep up with trends and seek new sources of inspiration," said Megan Slabinski, executive director of The Creative Group. "Also, many employers recognize that making appointments and attending to personal tasks online might actually improve productivity, since professionals can quickly take care of needs while in the office instead of stepping out."

What do you think about web use at work? Is that a completely ridiculous question to ask a bunch of SEOs? And just what is up the butt of the 41% who say no? Tell us in the comments.

Related Reading:
Social Networking and Employees: Where Do You Draw the Line?
Online Olympic Traffic Soars; Mobile Viewing Habits Form
Yahoo Wins Gold Medal for Online Olympic Traffic

Posted by Nathania Johnson at 11:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Google News Enables Cross-Language Search

Lately, Google has had a global focus. Recently, they gave tips on developing a multi-lingual site. Now, they're enabling cross-language search in Google News.

Users most likely to notice the change reside in countries where there are few online news resources or where multiple languages are traditionally spoken. Despite the heavy influx of people from Spanish-speaking countries, Google says US users will primarily see English. So will users from the UK. However, if you sort your results by date, you may see sources from a foreign language.

If you type your query in another language, then your results will be from that language no matter where you're typing from.

In June, Google announced that it was testing new features in Google News, as "part of the evolving state of online journalism."

What do you think of enabling cross-language search in Google News?

Posted by Nathania Johnson at 10:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

CitySquares.com is Fastest Growing Search Site

Hyper-local search site CitySquares.com is the fastest growing search site, according to Quantcast. Launched in 2005, focusing on Boston, CitySquares opened up to more locations this past June. Now the site features 1.5 million businesses in New York City, eastern New York State and all of New England.

Since the switch, traffic has increased by 1500%. If you're an SEO or SEM in the New England/New York area, you'll be happy to know that businesses are able to fully customize their CitySquares.com advertising campaign with SEO tools, content management, content syndication tools, email newsletters, video, etc and so on.

CitySquares also incorporates social media, with user reviews and ratings and other user-generated content.

Ben Saren, CEO of CitySquares.com, says this growth proves that consumers are finding the value of using a true hyper-local search site. “This kind of organic growth demonstrates that our model works and that we’re addressing a shortcoming in the marketplace. Consumers are finding what they want and businesses are seeing excellent results. We are proud so many businesses refer to us as a trusted online resource.â€

Related Reading:
Quantcast Offers Free Video and Widget Audience Measurement Services
Hyper-Local Gets a Vote of Confidence

Posted by Nathania Johnson at 10:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

IAC Completes Spinoff of Four Companies

IAC, the parent company of Ask.com, has completed the spinoff of four companies: HSN, Inc. (HSNi), Interval Leisure Group, Inc. (ILG), Ticketmaster and Tree.com. For every one share of IAC common stock held on August 11, 2008, the record date for the spin-off, or bought in the due bill period, holders received one-fifth of a share of common stock of each of HSNi, ILG and Ticketmaster, and one-thirtieth of a share of common stock of Tree.com. Immediately following the spin-off on August 20, 2008, IAC also effected a one-for-two reverse stock split.

Here are the new symbols for the companies being traded on the NASDAQ:

Shares of IAC common stock will trade under the symbol "IACID" until September 19, 2008 in compliance with NASDAQ rules. Afterwards, IAC will trade again under its current symbol, IACI.

"Armed with outstanding management teams, appropriate capital structures and their own currencies, HSNi, Ticketmaster, Interval and Tree.com are now ready for independent futures ... while the Internet businesses that make up new IAC can operate with a collective purpose and common goals," said Barry Diller, Chairman and CEO of IAC. "The work is done and our focus now is moving forward."

Posted by Nathania Johnson at 9:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Yahoo Wins Gold Medal for Online Olympic Traffic

As U.S. workers continue to check out the Olympics online during the work week, Yahoo is beating the competition in drawing eyes to its Olympic content. But if your in management, don't freak out. Peak time for your employees' daily Olympic fix is lunch time. Check out this data from Nielsen Online.

Now, if you'll excuse me, the gold medal match for women's soccer is about to begin - US versus Brazil. Should be a good one!

Related Reading:
ConnectU Co-Founders Place 6th in Olympics Rowing
Google Sits Out Olympic Search Results; Microsoft , Yahoo Take Home Medals
mInfo Chosen as Official Mobile Search Provider for Beijing Olympics

Posted by Nathania Johnson at 8:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

SEW Experts: NBC's Olympic Fool's Gold; Google Comes Home Empty-Handed

In the last days of the Olympics, many are taking stock of the unprecedented online coverage. In today's Brand Equity column, "NBC's Olympic Fool's Gold; Google Comes Home Empty-Handed ," Erik Qualman explains why NBC left a lot to be desired, and why Google was left in the dust.

» Full story

Posted by Nathania Johnson at 1:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

SES San Jose 2008: Top stories for Day 3 of SEM Conference & Expo

So much was taking place on Day 3 of SES San Jose 2008, even attendees needed to use news and blog search engines to keep up with more than 75 articles and posts coming out of the SEM conference & expo. Here are the top stories that represent just the tip of the iceberg:

Report: Bill Gates Remains Tied To Search
Doug Caverly of WebProNews reports, “The latest Nielsen stats put Microsoft's share of the search market at an unimpressive 11.9 percent. What's more (or to be accurate, less), its year-over-year growth is negative. But Microsoft's search team has an interesting ally in its corner, as it turns out Bill Gates may still be lending some sort of hand.â€

Google Dance 2008 (Photo by Byron Gordon)

SES roundtable: Search shouldn't take all the credit
Ellen Keohane of DM News reports, “Search marketing often gets credit for the final sale or conversion, even when it shouldn't, according to a roundtable discussion today at Search Engine Strategies in San Jose.â€

Tools teach owners about Web site traffic
Deborah Gage of the San Francisco Chronicle reports, “Most people who search the Web are really stumbling in the dark. So said a couple of Google evangelists who spoke Tuesday to a packed audience, all looking for advice on how to light the path to their Web site's door.â€

SEO Through Blogs and Feeds SES San Jose
Darrell Long of Search Engine Journal reports, “I am here at the first session of the day, yes I am up on time after the Google Dance! We have Rebecca Lieb, Contributing Editor, ClickZ moderating this morning.â€

SES San Jose: News Search SEO
Jessica of TopRank’s Online Marketing Blog writes, “News search engines offer a great way to receive targeted traffic related to breaking topics or to help with a public relations launch. In this session, industry experts Lee Odden, CEO of TopRank Online Marketing, Lisa Buyer, President & CEO of The Buyer Group and Greg Jarboe, President and Co-Founder, SEO-PR look at how to make use of press releases and news content to tap into the power of news search.â€

Getting Vertical Search Right
Susan Esparza of the BruceClay.com SEO Blog writes, “Day 3 of SES San Jose and everyone looks a little tired from partying at the Googleplex last night. The coffee shop was out of bagels. That's a crime. I'm going to starve. My kingdom for some scrambled eggs. But enough about me. Moderator Lauren Vaccerello (FXCM) and panelists Philip James (Snooth, Inc), Jonathan Dingman (Digitally Imported, Inc) and Paul Forster (Indeed) are ready to go. On with the show!â€

Measuring Web 2.0 with Star Trek - & SiteLogic's Matt Bailey
Matt Bailey of SiteLogic Marketing talks Trekkie lore and web analytics with Jamie O'Donnell of SEO-PR about his SES San Jose 2008 panel on Web 2.0 measurement. Matt's famous Star Trek/Web Analytics mashup played well at the show as he explained the increasing likelihood of Enterprise ensigns' chances of survival given various circumstances, including the color of their shirts, shuttlecraft landings, and the captain's amorous liaisons.

Blended Search Demands Blended Marketing and PR
Sally Falkow writes in her Website Content Strategy Blog, “At the session on Universal and blended search at SES San Jose we heard from all the search engines. Johanna Wright of Google, Cris Pierry of Yahoo! Erik collier of Ask and Todd Schwartz of LIve search all gave their insights and predictions about how search is displayed and how searchers view a results page.â€

SEO Sucks at SES San Jose & The Google Dance
Jeremy Schoemaker of ShoeMoney writes, “I thought I would spice it up a bit and wear my ‘Seo Sucks’ t-shirt as a bit of a social experiment to see what kind of reaction it would get. Being at the largest and most respected SEO gathering/conference I was curious to (see) the reaction.â€

Search Marketing Agencies: Why Can’t They Sell Themselves?
Julia Hyde of Creative Search Media reports, “If I was a prospect looking for an agency to represent my company, I’d throw my hands up in the air and make the decision to handle search marketing in house.â€

AdGooroo Debuts Online Competitor Keyword Report
MarketingVOX reports, “Online keyword intelligence firm AdGooroo announced the release of the "Top Ad Copy Report," part of its SEM Insight offering. The report went live at the SES conference in San Jose this week.â€

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 12:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

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