Will the Espotting deal with FindWhat collapse?
When first announced, the merger of FindWhat (FWHT) with Espotting looked like a rosy deal for the UK based PPC search engine. But when FindWhat released a statement that it planned to renegotiate the terms of the merger, Espotting looked like it might be hung out to dry.
According to netimperative, FindWhat said it was renegotiating the merger as a result of its post-signing examination of Espotting's historical data, suggesting that it may have found some surprises in Espotting's books. It previously estimated that Espotting would have 2003 pro forma earnings of $7.5m on revenue of $75m, but has now retracted all prior statements made regarding Espotting's historical and projected financial performance.
But it is well aware that Espotting's cash position is weak, having already advanced the company $2m after the deal was signed in June. Should the deal fall through, Espotting is likely to be required to pay the loan back, which could force its hand in renegotiations over the merger terms. Some industry sources have suggested that the renegotiations will see the merger become more of a takeover, and that FindWhat will push for more control by getting rid of the majority of Espotting's existing management team.
So where does all this leave Espotting? The issue is likely to be resolved by lawyers, since its merger with FindWhat now looks an essential route to survival. Whether it will be forced to agree to a less sweet deal will come down to the balance between ensuring the deal goes through and the finer print of the deal already signed. Andy Beal
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Looking for a B2B search engine? Global Business Listing is the creation of Serge Thibodeau. The business search engine allows websites to be listed in one of their industry categories via a "paid inclusion" submission process. Andy Beal
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Google and Amazon tussle for search engine talent Cute story. It appears that both Google and Amazon are trying to hire the same type of employees in the search engine field.
When Web surfers use Google to search on the name "Udi Manber," who is president of Amazon's newly formed search unit, A9.com, they'll find the first result is an ad for jobs at Google.
Amazon countered late on Thursday by sponsoring its own recruiting ad on Manber's name through Google's self-serve ad program, AdWords. Still, Google's ad appears above Amazon's. Andy Beal
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Careerbuilder.com expands agreement with Fast Search & Transfer
CareerBuilder.com has expanded its agreement with Fast Search & TransferTM (FASTTM) to become FAST’s premier partner in careers-related online search technology. As part of the enterprise-wide agreement, CareerBuilder.com will join FAST’s Technology Advisory Board to help drive new advancements in FAST’s product direction as it relates to the online recruitment sector.
CareerBuilder.com will work exclusively with FAST to develop the industry’s top search engine and deliver best-in-breed search tools for CareerBuilder.com’s job seekers and employers. The agreement will go into effect on September 30, 2003. Full story Andy Beal
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September 28, 2003
More news on Amazon's new A9 search engine division CBS News has a story on Amazon's planned launch of it's specialized search engine service.
Unlike Google, A9 isn't trying to develop an all-purpose search engine that indexes billions of Web pages. Instead, the startup is focusing on a search engine sweet spot — e-commerce.
Amazon is not the only company wanting to enter the lucrative search arena. IBM Corp. is in the hunt with its own search engine, WebFountain. WebFountain is designed to not only find text online but also to analyze its meaning. Andy Beal
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September 26, 2003
Business Week article on search engine paid inclusions
Interesting article on search engines and paid inclusions in this week's edition of BusinessWeek.
Referring to paid inclusion:
"This practice is a booming business, one expected to double this year, to $200 million, and to reach $600 million by 2007, says U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray (USB ). But unlike the clearly marked advertised links that show up next to search results, these paid inclusions are virtually invisible to average Web surfers."
I know that paid inclusion has been a hot topic, but I think the article exaggerates a little with this:
"Controversy over paid inclusion is driving a wedge through the search industry. At the heart of the issue is whether the industry's content will be swayed by advertisers. Google, the leading search engine, steers clear of paid inclusions, saying that they undermine confidence in the objectivity of search results. Instead, Google relies entirely upon its technology for the search, and features paid ads only in clearly marked boxes near the search results. AOL uses Google technology and follows the same line. But others, including Yahoo, say that paid inclusion can provide users with better information. And they maintain that their search results are still displayed in order of relevance. That means that paid ads get no preferential treatment. "All listings are run through an algorithm that is blind to their source," says Tony Mamone, sales vice-president at LookSmart (LOOK ) Ltd., which feeds paid-inclusion results to portals like MSN."
BusinessWeek does back up its claims:
"Yet an investigation by BusinessWeek, based on more than 30 interviews and analysis of dozens of Internet searches, suggests that paying customers frequently fare better. Indeed, out of 20 advertisers and online marketing pros interviewed by BusinessWeek, 10 had experienced firsthand a boost in search-engine rankings when they signed up for paid inclusion."
Segway recalled
Not search engine related, but the futuristic scooter that was supposed to revolutionize our lives is being recalled. Andy Beal
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Thanks to Cre8pc.com
Thanks to Kim Krause over at Cre8pc.com for letting me know about a spelling error in my blog. Nice to know that I not only have visitors, but people read the darn thing too! Visit Kim's blog at
cre8pcblog. Andy Beal
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WebSourced, Inc selected as one of the best places to work in Triangle Business Journal Platinum Rule Awards.
WebSourced, Inc which offers search engine marketing services under the brand KeywordRanking.com, today announced that it has received two awards in the prestigious Platinum Rule Awards for the Best Places to Work 2003. Facing tough competition, WebSourced walked away from the event, held at Raleigh’s Brier Creek Country Club, with both “Most Family Friendly� and “Incentives/Rewards/Recognitions� awards; one of only two companies to win awards in separate categories.
WebSourced has more than doubled the number of employees during the past year and is looking to move into new offices at the end of the 2003. While already known as one the largest search engine marketing companies in the world, the awards demonstrate that the company’s success comes from ensuring a working environment that attracts North Carolina’s top-tier sales and technical workers.
Accepting the award for “Most Family Friendly� company, CEO and President, Pat Martin said, “We are delighted to receive this prestigious honor. As we have grown our company we have endeavored to create a working environment that promotes family values and ensures a pleasant setting for our employees� Martin continued, “Our hard-working employees have played a pivotal role in the success of this company and we want to ensure that we give back to them by providing a company that understands and supports the needs of a family.�
Chadd Lomoglio, vice president of sales, accepted the award for “Incentives/Rewards/Recognitions� on behalf of the company. “We have created a work-place that looks beyond simply providing a pay-check and benefits. Whether it’s giving away tickets to sporting events, regular company outings or making sure that all employees are eligible for cash rewards, we have always looked to find new and exciting ways to motivate and reward every member of our company.�
The upcoming issue of the Triangle Business Journal will feature further interviews with the company as well as photos of the winners. Andy Beal
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Google News to get better CyberJournalist reports that Google is planning to make Google News a lot better and fresher. One way they intend to do this is by avoiding press releases as much as possible and focussing on editorials, news reports and articles. Andy Beal
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More details of Amazon.com's new search engine
Seattle-based Amazon.com has set up a new Silicon Valley startup called "A9" that will develop a commercial search engine and potentially put the company on a collision course with another Internet icon, Google.
Based in Palo Alto, Calif., offices just a few miles from Google's Mountain View headquarters, A9 hopes to launch in October with 30 employees and grow much larger as it develops a search engine that will be licensed to other Web sites, said spokeswoman Alison Diboll.
Lycos uses Gator to serve ads on rival free mail sites Search Engine Guide directed me to an interesting story that claims Lycos is using the controversial Gator network to place pop-up ads pushing its free Web email product on competing Web email services, including those from MSN, Yahoo!, AOL and Freeserve. Andy Beal
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Make your vote in our survey
If you're a regular visitor to this blog, you have likely seen the survey we have been conducting (and hopefully voted). We want to hear from our readers, what you feel is the most effective method of promoting your website. To make it easier for you to vote, here is the survey:
Google Opens Madrid Office
Google announced today that it plans to open an office in Madrid, Spain. Andy Beal
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Online Holiday Sales Could Surpass $17B Retail Forward reported this week that it projects retail sales will rise during the 2003 holiday season by 4% from the previous year's season.
Specifically in the online retail sector, Retail Forward projects a rise of 27% in the 2003 holiday season over that of 2002, with sales totaling $17.5 billion in Q4. Andy Beal
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Amazon.com developing a Google rival Amazon is making moves to enter the search engine industry with the creation of a subsidary call A9.
Amazon Chief Executive Jeff Bezos has charged the new unit with developing software that will help keep the company competitive as online shopping habits evolve. Increasingly, Web shoppers buy products through retailers they found by conducting Web searches, rather than by going directly to retailers' sites. Andy Beal
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VeriSign thumbs its nose at corporate governance Interesting article reports that Verisign is standing firm on its use of the controversial Site Finder service.
"ICANN asked VeriSign to voluntarily suspend Site Finder while the Internet community studied the issues. VeriSign's response, in effect, was ``drop dead.'' Indeed, the company insisted that it was doing the world's Web users a great service." Andy Beal
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Looking for a foreign search engine?
Thanks to About.com for bringing the website Search Engine Colossus to my attention.
This simple site has information on hundreds of search engines from around the world. Next time we get a client from Swaziland, I'll know which search engines to target (it's still probably Google). Andy Beal
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Google increases online advertisers to 150,000
Google's growth continues with an announcement this week that the popular search engine has amassed more than 150,000 advertisers worldwide.
Google's advertiser milestone eclipses the latest number from archrival Overture Services, which Yahoo plans to acquire for $1.7 billion. In its financial report from July, Overture claimed 95,000 advertisers, inching closer to Google's 100,000 figure from July. The numbers race is just one area of fierce competition from the two companies, which both sell Web and commercial search services to Net operators globally. Andy Beal
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Google like "evil" Microsoft? Silicon Valley has a story on the growth of Google and whether is has reached monopoly status Microsoft has with software.
"Some observers fear their privacy is being violated: too much personal information culled about them by one company. Some advertisers complain about a lack of transparency in Google's search algorithms, which dictate the ranking of Web pages on its results page. Individuals might wonder about this, too."
Is Google getting lazy in catching spam?
Over at Search Engine Watch, Keith Boswell asks if Google is allowing spam that even Inktomi is rejecting and also discusses the best methods for obtaining inbound links. Andy Beal
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Google Dancing?
Looks like Google is updating its different data centers. We have noticed new backward links and changing pageranks. Hold on to your rankings folks, it could get bumpy! Andy Beal
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More Yahoo Shopping news CNN.com has more coverage of Yahoo's re-launch of its shopping search engine.
"The new products search is directly integrated into Yahoo's main search engine and features a full range of products from across the Internet, from computers to camping gear, with search results sorted by relevance.
'In opening that catalog up to other retailers, who are not under the Yahoo umbrella, they make a very strong bid for a compelling site,' Berk said. 'I think Yahoo's real competitive advantage, at the end of the day, is their ability to redirect traffic there.' " Andy Beal
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Is Google courting Friendster Rumor has it that Google may be looking to acquire online dating site, Friendster.com.
"It makes a ton of sense," said one Valley VC who's in the loop with the social networking crowd. "If you look at what Google's doing and what they've bought, it consists of a lot of highly scalable technologies where people are linked together and connecting. Google has huge usage, but it doesn't know a lot about its users. Blogger and Friendster both have huge horizontal usage and deeper relationships with their users than Google. If I were Google, I would definitely want to buy Friendster." Andy Beal
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September 23, 2003
eMarketing Association Seminar/Workshop
It's not too late to register for the eMarketing Association Seminar/Workshop in Boston, Sep 30th. You'll learn the very latest information on email marketing and search engine marketing. I'll be there to present a two hour session on Advanced Search Engine Marketing. I look forward to seeing you there! Andy Beal
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More news on Yahoo's product search More news on Yahoo's launch of its new product search.
"(Search is) becoming the most efficient way for consumers to find products," said Rob Solomon, the general manager of Yahoo Shopping.
Product search is an increasingly competitive market on the Internet, with engines like MySimon and PriceGrabber vying to be the launch point for consumer purchases, generating revenue through commissions or other fees when users click one of their links to buy from a retailer. Andy Beal
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Google tests search by location - Web User News
Search engine Google is testing a new service that will let surfers search for information based on their location. Google's search by location service helps you focus your search on a specific geographic location in the US.
With Yahoo and other search engines already offering geographical search results, Google needed to act quickly to ensure it remained as the #1 choice for search.
Top of the morning to Google Reuters is reporting that Google is expected to announce Dublin, Ireland as its base for European operations.
Ireland's Investment and Development Agency (IDA) said it is in the final stages of negotiations with the privately held California-based company to locate its European heaquarters in the Irish capital. Andy Beal
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Dealtime Relaunches as Shopping.com
Shopping search and product review site Dealtime officially changed its name today to Shopping.com, marking another milestone in the fascinating journey of a storied domain name. Read more Andy Beal
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Are SEO Authors simply promoting their own company? Traffick.com takes a look at whether recent articles posted on ClickZ.com are nothing more than the online equivalent of an "infomercial".
"[read Traffick article to get name], a well known author and entrepreneur in the search engine optimization business, is a recent addition to ClickZ's author lineup.
Unfortunately, [his] first two columns are little more than a transparent attempt to sell his company's services. "
I'm going to stay out of this one. Suffice to say, that I hope that I am never accused of writing an article for the purpose of promoting my own company. When you put on your "article cap" there's no room for the "promote your own company cap". Andy Beal
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Icann Calls for VeriSign To Shelve Site Finder Service
The nonprofit group that oversees portions of the administration of the Internet asked VeriSign Inc. to suspend a new service that exploits the typographical errors Web users make as they are navigating the Internet.
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, or Icann, issued a statement late Friday that cited "widespread expressions of concern" about the technical effect of the VeriSign service on Internet use. Icann called on VeriSign to voluntarily suspend the service until technical reviews can be completed.
How can Microsoft beat Google
Fredrick Marckini takes a look at the impending search engine war between Google and Microsoft. In his article Marckini interviews marketing legend Jack Trout, who believes that Microsoft "should not try to claim its new search engine is "better," because that won't win. "The only way you beat Google is by being 'what's next.'"
Part two of the article comes next week where hopefully more will be discussed on Yahoo's efforts to beat Google. While MSN may have the history of being the "next big thing", Yahoo has the stronger Internet brand. Andy Beal
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Rival Sues VeriSign on Site Finder service
Popular Enterprises is suing rival Verisign for the introduction of it's service which redirects mistyped URL addresses. Popular filed a $100 million antitrust lawsuit. Andy Beal
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September 19, 2003
High Rankings Search Engine Optimization Forum
If you're looking for another forum to add to your list of daily visits, head over to Jill Whalen's High Rankings Search Engine Optimization Forum. Lots of topics discussed and Jill is always there to help out. Tell her I said "hi". Andy Beal
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Scot Wingo's Blog for ChannelAdvisor/eBay Scot Wingo, founder of ChannelAdvisor.com has decided that Search Engine Lowdown should be the first site his new blog links to. Many thanks Scot Andy Beal
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Who's smarter Google experts or Cornell University librarians?
In a study conducted by Cornell University, 24 questions were put to Cornell librarians and Google Answers, their fee based question answering service. Using a blind study, the results showed that Cornell offered slightly better answers than Google Answers. Andy Beal
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Microsoft going after Google
Microsoft Corp. may be the most recognized software company on the planet, but when it comes to searching the Internet, people are much more likely to "Google it."
It is developing search-related technologies to do everything from sorting through digital photos to combing through items scattered on your desktop computers.
CNN.com - Microsoft targets Google Andy Beal
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Prying Google seen as a risk
I know that Kalena Jordan is out of the office today, but I'm sure that she would be interested in this story out of New Zealand. Is Google taking steps to secure your privacy? Andy Beal
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Moreover to launch weblog search tool
Moreover Technologies, which offers news feeds to thousands of websites, announced a new tool that would focus on news from popular blogs. Andy Beal
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FindWhat merger with Espotting on the rocks?
Reuters is reporting that FindWhat is renegotiating the deal with Espotting after reviewing the company's financials.
FindWhat, based in Fort Myers, Florida, said that as a result of its review, it is retracting all statements it made regarding Espotting's historical and projected performance. It said the merger terms may be modified, or the merger might not take place. Andy Beal
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September 18, 2003
MSN continues to build own search engine
Microsoft decided back in February that it could be more successful if it built its own search engine instead of acquiring another company's technology.
"The decision to build or buy came down to our ability to innovate," said Kirk Koenigsbauer, strategy manager at Microsoft's MSN Internet portal.
"Our ability to innovate is predicated on our ability to own the platform," he added, a clear sign that Microsoft thinks it can only beat Google if it owns the technology.
At the core of Microsoft's decision is a belief that search technology is still in its infancy.
"Search engines are doing a good job but not a perfect job," said Koenigsbauer, adding most search results today "don't deliver the results people are looking for." Andy Beal
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Should you use commas in your keywords tag? Join the debate.
Head over to the Search Engine Forums and add your opinion on whether to use commas in your keywords tag. Andy Beal
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How To Choose Keywords Before they Skyrocket in Popularity
Interesting article from John Alexander explaining how to identify keywords that, while not yet popular, could be the next big thing for your company. Andy Beal
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MSN Expands Overture Ads
MSN has decided to fully embrace Overture by displaying sponsored ads as part of all its search engine results. Previously, MSN had shown Overture PPC ads for select search phrases only.
Verisign to Make Fixes To Site Finder Service
Looks like Verisign has come under attack for launching its new Site Finder service which redirects mstyped URL requests.
"The new VeriSign service infuriated many network operators, though, who say it has disrupted the functioning of e-mail and other applications. Among the complaints about the VeriSign service is that it hurts the ability of Internet service providers to block "spam" sent from Internet addresses that don't exist -- a common technique normally used to stem the flow of junk e-mail. Internet service providers and software groups have developed patches that prevent the VeriSign service from working on their networks."
It also appears that hackers have seen the new service as a great opportunity to bombard Verisign with malicious mistypes forcing the system to overload.
"A VeriSign spokesman said the company experience a "denial of service" attack on its Web site on Tuesday, in which hackers use computers to bombard Web sites with traffic in hopes of overloading them." Andy Beal
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IBM unveils new search engine
As part of it's continuing development process, IBM has launched a new super search engine capable of extracting minute data from 25 million pages a day from the Internet.
If memory serves me correct, didn't IBM give Bill Gates his first big break? I wonder if Bill might be calling on the execs at IBM to see if they can borrow the technology for MSN's new search engine. Andy Beal
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Overture moves into Spanish market
Overture continues its expansion with an announcement that it will open operations in Spain.
"Overture forecasts international operations will bring in $125 million in revenue this year and $300 million next year. Overture anticipates its international operations will break even this year.
Overture faces competition in Europe from both archrival Google and local player Espotting, which was acquired by FindWhat.com in June. Google mostly relies on its own local sites for distributing its paid listings in Europe. It signed away Ask Jeeves UK from Espotting in May, and also boasts a number of smaller deals such as those with ISPs BT OpenWorld and NTL in the United Kingdom."
MarketingSherpa Working On New Edition Of SEM Buyers Guide
Thanks to Danny Sullivan for giving Search Engine Lowdown credit for breaking the news that Marketing Sherpa is releasing a new edition of the SEM Buyers Guide. Andy Beal
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Five common search engine mistakes
Framesets, flash, keyword stuffing and more are discussed in this Computer Weekly article. Andy Beal
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September 16, 2003
Ask Jeeves takes a hit from analysts
Ask Jeeves took a big hit today when investment analysts took a swipe at their stock price and company future.
"Even though Ask Jeeves has won raves for improving the site's search functionality (mainly due to its 2001 acquisition of Teoma), nearly half of Ask Jeeves' revenue in the second quarter came from a paid placement partnership with Google.
According to Ask Jeeves' most recent quarterly filing with the SEC, the partnership is scheduled to terminate in September 2005, but both companies have the right to terminate it as early as September 2004.
In addition, traffic at Ask Jeeves declined 8 percent during June and another 8 percent in July before picking up slightly in August.
"Ask Jeeves is continuing to struggle to get traffic. The perception is that Ask Jeeves is for Internet newbies and Ask Jeeves needs to get rid of that image," said Gary Stein, an analyst with Jupiter Research."
Ouch! Ask Jeeves does have the "newbie" stigma they created for themselves. The wanted to occupy the niche of being the search engine for dummies. Now that the search engines have grown up, they are a step behind. My guess is that they will drop the "Jeeves" altogether and re-brand as "Ask.com".
Inceptor names new CEO
Inceptor today named Vic Odryna as CEO and promoted Michael Sack to Executive VP & CTO. Andy Beal
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SEO for Lawyers Justia.com launches a new SEO advice center for law firms. Andy Beal
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VeriSign to take a piece of "junk" traffic
Next time you misspell a domain name you may end up at Verisign's new Site Finder service. The service is designed to capitalized on the 20 million incorrect queries every day. In partnership with Overture and Inktomi, users who enter the wrong address will be presented with search options similar to that offered by Microsoft.
"VeriSign's service will trump both AOL's and Microsoft's because Site Finder operates the master registry of names ending in .com and .net and, as such, is the ultimate arbiter of what Internet users see when they type an address ending in one of those extensions."
The new Site Finder could generate more than $100 million a year in profits for Verisign. Andy Beal
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Hacker ordered to live with parents
Not strictly search engine related but I had to laugh when I saw the headline for this article by CNN - CNN.com - Hacker ordered to live with parents - I think I'd rather serve the jail time. Andy Beal
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September 15, 2003
Google testing new Adwords layout
Google appears to be testing a new layout of their sponsored Adwords listings. We noticed this format when speaking with a website owner about their Adwords campaign. I suspect that Google is testing the click-thru rate and effectiveness of the new ads before fully switching to the new look.
Ask Jeeves placed ads on porn related sites
The Wall Street Journal reported that Advertising.com had used Ask Jeeves online ad campaigns for high profile clients, only to find some of the ads ending up on adult content websites. Companies such as AT&T, Dell and Home Depot discovered their ads appearing on ABCSearch.com, a search engine that included a lot of adult content.
"Advertising.com officials said they had entrusted an Internet-search company, Ask Jeeves Inc., Emeryville, Calif., with placing ads for some clients, including Home Depot, on a variety of sites. "We were relying on Ask Jeeves to protect us," said Gar Richlin, chief operating officer at Advertising.com. "We're not doing any [further] business with Ask Jeeves at this point in time as a result of this."
Ask Jeeves's main business is operating the Ask.com search site, but the company's ad-sales force sells space for other companies' sites as well. A spokeswoman for Ask Jeeves , Alexa Rudin, said the sites used by her company were specified in a contract with Advertising.com. She added that Ask Jeeves has been pruning the list of sites where it places ads to remove the less appealing ones. On Thursday, she said, Ask Jeeves stopped placing ads on ABCSearch."
The ads in question were sold on the basis that they could appear anywhere on a network of sites affiliated with Ask Jeeves. Andy Beal
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Free META Tag Builder
If you are looking for a free meta tag builder head over to scrubtheweb.com. While the tool does NOT optimize your tags or help get better rankings, it can save time when it comes to creating tags. Andy Beal
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Search Engine Organization needs to answer some questions.
As much as I would like to offer my full support to the new Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization (SEMPO), I am reluctant to at this time for a few good reasons. If any of the board of directors for SEMPO read this, perhaps they can email me the answer to these questions and I will publish them to our readers:
* Why should a company pay $5,000 to be listed alongside an SEO that uses spam techniques that would ensure a penalty against any website and potentially harm the reputation of SEMPO and the industry? The first time a Fortune 500 company selects an SEO firm, based on their membership with SEMPO, and gets their website banned by Google, SEMPO will lose all credibility.
* Why should a company pay $5,000 to be included as a Circle Member when all of the board of directors for SEMPO arbitrarily "gave" themselves that level of membership for free? Which leads me to my next question;
* Who exactly is SEMPO promoting? The search engine marketing industry or those companies that makes up the board of directors. Ever since the inauguration of SEMPO, I have seen little to promote the industry but a lot to promote the board of directors own companies.
SEMPO has the potential to be successful and represent the industry well, but the biggest problem our industry has always faced is not the lack of understanding of what it is we do, but the continued use of spam tactics by unethical SEOs. I have spoken to few CEOs and VPs of Marketing who did not understand the benefits of SEM/SEO, but I have spoken to countless that have been burned by companies that used doorway pages or cloaking. I hope that SEMPO can find balance and bring order and recognition to the industry, but unfortunately until I see evidence that membership brings value to our company's efforts, I will have to sit in the sidelines and wait. Andy Beal
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September 14, 2003
Triangle Tech Journal
Thanks to the Triangle Tech Journal for publishing my article on starting a search engine marketing campaign in time for Christmas. Andy Beal
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September 13, 2003
LookSmart Settles Class Action Lawsuit
LookSmart today emailed all customers who initiated a listing between May 98 and April 02, offering a settlement to the filed class action lawsuit.
"The Plaintiffs allege that during the Class Period, LookSmart represented that for a "one-time payment" it would list customers' web sites in the database indefinitely, and that LookSmart breached the agreement when, in April 2002, it required customers to begin to "pay-per-click" pursuant to a new program. In their Complaint, Plaintiffs assert claims for breach of contract, breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing, and violations of the Business & Professions Code."
The settlement includes the continuation of the free clicks already offered by LookSmart as well as a $50 payment which eligible customers can claim via anonline claim form. Andy Beal
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September 12, 2003
Ask Jeeves co-founder runs for California Governor Garrett Gruener, co-founder of Ask Jeeves has spent over $750,000 on his campaign to be elected to governor of California.
Rumors are that if elected he will kick both Yahoo and Google out of California and give every household access to a British butler who will answer any question they have, even the stupid ones. ;-) Andy Beal
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Overture Inks Homestore to Search, Contextual Ad Deal
Overture announced Homestore as the latest client to use their contextual ad service. Overture's paid listings will appear on non-real estate searches on Homestore's network of real estate sites.Overture Inks Homestore to Search, Contextual Ad Deal Andy Beal
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T-Online and Overture continue dispute
T-Online could face fines from a Frankfurt court if they fail to comply with an injunction that requires them to reinstate Overture's search listings on their website. Andy Beal
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Advanced Searching with AltaVista
Want help searching at AltaVista? Head over to About.com and read this excellent guide. Andy Beal
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Marketing Sherpa to release 3rd edition of Search Engine Marketing Buyers Guide Marketing Sherpa has sent our surveys to the top search engine marketing companies as it prepares to launch its 3rd edition of the popular but controversial guide.
While the guide is not endorsed by any major website or organization, it is often referred to by companies seeking to find the best SEO provider. In the last edition, some companies felt as though the reviews were misleading, so hopefully Marketing Sherpa will get it right this time.
The deadline for SEO companies to submit their information is September 19th. No news yet as to when the guide will be released, but look for it before the end of the year. Andy Beal
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September 11, 2003
Avoiding submission software
I can't say that I always agree with Andrew Goodman, but this time he certainly hits the nail on the head. Read his rant from July and take his advice (and mine) and don't buy any software.service that claims to automate your submission process. A piece of software cannot get you to the top of the search engines. A quality SEO company can. Traffick | Minding the Search Engines' Business Andy Beal
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The Right Keyword Phrases Bring Customers
Jill Whalen has an article on SearchEngineGuide.com that explains why you need to have targeted keywords on your website. The Right Keyword Phrases Bring Customers Andy Beal
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CNN.com - Get ready for another wave of Net IPOs - Sep. 3, 2003
More speculation that Google may issue an IPO soon.
"The best examples are Google and Salesforce.com. Google, less than five years old, now powers more than 200 million web searches per day, employs over 1,000 people, and by many accounts (though not its own; it won't comment) is nearing $1 billion in annual revenues, with hundreds of millions in profit. Salesforce.com, the Siebel Systems competitor that makes online tools for managing the sales process, is younger than Google and smaller, but growing rapidly. Benioff says that the company is in its second profitable quarter and that sales, which have been doubling annually, are running at a $100-million-a-year clip. Neither company is allowed by the SEC to discuss it, but many investors and techies expect both to go public within a year. " Andy Beal
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Will your content deliver to the search engines?
If you are looking for a great tool to check the keyword density of your website head over to SearchEngineWorld.com and use their Keyword Density Analyzer.
Plug in the URL of the page you wish to analyze and then select the parameters to check. The analyzer will then show you the most dominant one, two and three word phrases on that page together with the percentage of density. There are other, more in-depth density checkers, but this is the easiest to use. Andy Beal
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Photocopying the Internet
Ever discover a great new site and wish there were a way to save a copy of the site with your own notes. Well, N-Liter allows you to do just that; make copies of the web complete with your own notes and highlights.
You can download a free trial or purchase the software for less than $15 and add it to your Internet Explorer toolbar. This is a great little tool for anyone who conducts research online.
Inside Search Engine Strategies, 2003
If you're interested in reading my inside look at SES in San Jose but can't find the different links for the different days, head over to Sitepoint where you will find an exclusive "all in one" article.
While you are there, be sure to take a look around at the resources they have. Sitepoint is aimed towards webmasters and has some excellent articles and forums that are geared towards those of you who already know what a meta tag is. Andy Beal
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September 09, 2003
The Web Robots Pages
Looking for information on the use of robots.txt files or robots meta tags? This site has all the answers. The Web Robots Pages Andy Beal
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Happy Birthday Search Engines
While Google celebrates its 5th birthday, its easy to forget that there are plenty of other search engines that have lasted more than 5 years. These include:
Yahoo
Infoseek
Lycos
Excite
AltaVista
Ask Jeeves
Search Engine Watch takes a closer look at those search engines that have stayed the distance and those that have fallen by the wayside. Andy Beal
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