Google: New Algos or "SEO Filter"?pop
Date: 2003-12-05 Source: Search Engine Guide
The "SEO Filter" discussion seems to be the theory that holds water, or rather, has the fewest leaks. However, there are anomalies within the results that don't point to a single theory being totally true. My belief is that we are seeing newly acquired technology and PageRank modifications in play. [Recommend Article] [Open In New Window]
Is Google (Break) Dancing?
Date: 2003-12-05 Source: SearchDay
Google's recent major changes have sparked an uproar among search marketers and web searchers alike. Here's some insight into what's changed, what it means, and a look at future implications. Plus, this weeks search engine forum threads from around the web. [Recommend Article] [Open In New Window]
Florida Fever: The Google Update Uproar
Date: 2003-12-04 Source: Search Engine Guide
The most dramatic impact will be the devastation of the affiliate industry. Just 3 short weeks ago I listened to 4 major Internet marketers say they didn't bother with organic SEO because their affiliate partners did it for them. Those days are over. If Google was targeting anyone with Florida, it was affiliate sites. [Recommend Article] [Open In New Window]
Google's search under the microscope
Date: 2003-12-04 Source: CBS.MarketWatch.com
Google flatly denies that its rankings are motivated by anything other than the goal of getting the most relevant pages. "There is absolutely no connection between ranking on Google search results pages and Google advertising products. Google search results are objective and cannot be monetarily influenced in any way," said a Google spokesperson. [Recommend Article] [Open In New Window]
Search engine fine-tuned
Date: 2003-12-04 Source: MediaGuardian.co.uk
Last month Google revamped its ranking system as part of an ongoing campaign to stop companies appearing higher up than their business justifies. But while the overhaul has thwarted many website operators who had secured an unfair advantage by using clever search engine tactics, it has also hurt legitimate online retailers in the run-up to the holiday season. [Recommend Article] [Open In New Window]
"We're Always Trying to Improve the Index for the User": Google
Date: 2003-12-03 Source: Traffick
"We used to look at just links and keywords, but now we're incorporating a lot of other stuff... looking for more and more signals and types of information on a page that attempts to determine or read a 'real meaning' or what a page is trying to provide..." [Recommend Article] [Open In New Window]
Google's "Florida" Update
Date: 2003-12-03 Source: webworkshop.net
The Hilltop system employs an 'expert' system to rank pages. It compiles an index of expert web pages - these are pages that contain multiple links to other pages on the web of the same subject matter. The pages that end up in the rankings are those that the expert pages link to. Of course, there's much more to it than that, but it gives the general idea. [Recommend Article] [Open In New Window]
Prepare to be Monetized, Punk: Google Plays Sherriff with Commercially-Oriented Search Listings
Date: 2003-12-03 Source: Search Engine Guide
Another revenue angle to consider: Google now actually stands to make money from quality content sites which get ranked well. That's because many of these sites now show AdSense ads, and Google gets a little revenue share from them, too. It's ingenious, really. Google has figured out how to get paid much more than the zilch they used to get paid for running a search engine, whether users click through to commercial listings or quality content, and yet without assaulting users with irrelevant, commercialized search index listings. [Recommend Article] [Open In New Window]
Google Bayesian Spam Filtering Problem?
Date: 2003-12-02 Source: sethf.com
This report describes a possible explanation for recent changes in Google search results, where long-time high-ranking sites have disappeared. It is hypothesized that the changes are a result of the implementation of a "Bayesian spam filtering" algorithm, which is producing unintended consequences. [Recommend Article] [Open In New Window]
Google Dance Syndrome Strikes Again
Date: 2003-12-01 Source: SearchDay
There's been a new outbreak of Google Dance Syndrome, causing some web sites last month to lose top positions for some search terms. However, unlike previous outbreaks, a cure exists that makes it easy to compare results from old to new Google. These comparisons have some marketers convinced that recent changes at Google are designed to boost ad sales, a charge Google flatly denies. [Recommend Article] [Open In New Window]
Google to Limit Some Drug Ads
Date: 2003-12-01 Source: BizReport
Google will stop accepting advertising from unlicensed pharmacies that have used the Internet to sell millions of doses of narcotics and prescription drugs without medical supervision, company officials said. Google's move follows decisions last month by Yahoo and by Microsoft's MSN site to stop accepting similar advertising. [Recommend Article] [Open In New Window]
I Search, Therefore I Google
Date: 2003-11-26 Source: PC Magazine
One colleague suggested that Google is becoming the new Microsoft, referring to the way the search giant now dominates its market. (Actually, there have been rumors floating around about Microsoft acquiring Google, but I think that would be wishful thinking on Microsoft's part.) I'm not sure I agree, but these two companies are alike in one regard: Google has become a target. [Recommend Article] [Open In New Window]
Been Gazumped by Google? Trying to make Sense of the "Florida" Update!
Date: 2003-11-25 Source: Search Engine Guide
With the huge number of postings on all the various forums, concerning this update, most people don't know where to start looking for information about the recent Google update. The following is an attempt to put down rationally (I hope) most of the information that is known and the (unproven) theories behind the update algo. [Recommend Article] [Open In New Window]
Can Google Grow Up?
Date: 2003-11-24 Source: Fortune
The reporting revealed plenty about a company that has succeeded on the Net beyond anyone's imagination. But it also turned up signs of trouble—enough to worry any founder and raise alarms for investors considering (and who isn't?) betting on the IPO. [Recommend Article] [Open In New Window]
Google Update
Date: 2003-11-20 Source: Search Engine Journal
Google recently introduced a new keyword phrase filter during its most recent update. Some phrases were unchanged, but many highly optimized and highly competitive phrases were drastically altered. [Recommend Article] [Open In New Window]
Retailers Rise in Google Rankings as Rivals Cry Foul
Date: 2003-11-20 Source: The New York Times
Because search engines like Google give weight to sites that are linked to other sites, companies set up networks, creating or encouraging others to create large numbers of sites that sell the same products and then linking them together. If the strategy works, what the searcher sees is a list of links that lead back to the same product or company. [Recommend Article] [Open In New Window]
What Is Google Worth?
Date: 2003-11-20 Source: Knowledge@Wharton
Experts at Wharton point out that the company has enormous strengths because of its unique search technology and powerful brand. Still, they say that Google faces huge risks because economic models on the web tend to be volatile and that makes the task of predicting future cash flows -- and hence the company's value -- particularly challenging. [Recommend Article] [Open In New Window]
