When the news started to break out about the death of Michael Jackson, Google feared that it was under attack as the number of people around the world searching for the latest news on the singer put immense strain on their systems. Read more »
The Government has outlined plans to get the UK on faster broadband by 2012, stating that it is as important as water and electricity – this will lead to more demand on online search results. Read more »
Only 10% of Twitter users generate more than 90% of the content, a Harvard study of 300,000 users found.
The Harvard study found that from 10 million users half of all users updated their page less than once every 74 days.
On a typical online social network, they said, the top 10% of users accounted for 30% of all production.
” Twitter is a broadcast medium rather than an intimate conversation with friends”
Bill Heil
This is an interesting study and does not tell us to avoid using Twitter within your search plan, but to consider how best to exploit this medium for up to date news when its wanted.
Starting at 05:00 am GMT this Sunday, Facebook will be allowing users to lay claim to “vanity” URLs. This means you can have a personalised URL for your Facebook Page (facebook.com/yourname). So instead of finding studio8 Search at the following search engine unfriendly URL:
You will now find us here:
http://www.facebook.com/Studio8 Search
This will be an excellent opportunity for natural search rankings and increasing relevant traffic to your website. On the downside this may also end up causing trademark issues for your brand.
How can I secure my Username, brandname, company services or product ?
Firstly you will need to create a Facebook page, you will then be able to choose your username just like a user selecting a username for their profile. Go to http:/www.facebook.com/yourpagename at 05:01am GMT on Sunday, June 14th and you will be prompted to choose a username for the Page you administer.
For registering your brand name we strongly recommend that you claim your vanity URL to help protect your brand.
http://www.facebook.com/help/contact.php?show_form=username_rights
Your Facebook Page must meet two requirements: it must have been live on Facebook prior to the May 31, 2009 cut-off date and have had a minimum 1,000 fans at that time.
This limitation is temporary. All Pages created after May 31, 2009 or that had less than 1,000 fans on that day will be eligible to claim usernames on Sunday, June 28, 2009.
Natural Search Rankings
The most direct benefit of vanity URLs however, is traffic via natural search. Facebook is the web’s largest social network and one of the most active content hubs. Newly created and old Facebook URL’s are treated with trust and authority by Google. In some cases almost as well as WIKI, LinkedIn and Myspace.
E.g. obama
As your website is always restricted to 2 URL’s per set of 10 search results, the Facebook vanity URL update will now ensure that your company’s brand name or your company’s products and service facebook page ranks high in Google. This in turn should help you to own more of the listings for your brand from any set of 10 natural search results, thus helping to send more relevant traffic through to your website.
With more and more apps being created for phones such as the iphone and blackberry a question has arisen about how these apps might overtake mobile search.
A company that sells pizza for example, could create an app that an iphone user downloads and everytime they want to order a pizza they go straight to that app and use it to choose and order their pizza. Or a company might design ‘pizza order’ an app that chooses all the nearest pizza shops near you.
This all sounds very nice, however there are many reasons why you will probably move to mobile search rather then rely on this app.
We move around now more then ever – thats why mobiles exist. You might be in another town or country where that app doesn’t have any retailers using the service – where do you go? Google or Yahoo.
The app is limited to one service, and everytime you want that service you have to click open that app, and are restricted should you then decide to order a video too – where do you go? Google or Yahoo.
The app gets designed well and you enjoy it for sometime, but the designer gives up on the idea and the technolgy becomes old and tired looking or doesn’t function as fast as search engines that are sure to evolve – where do you go? Google or Yahoo.
We could go on.
We are focused on mobile search and how it is evolving, allow us to optimise your site.
There is anticipation and specilation about what Apple will announce at the imminent WWDC.
Apple has already sold over 40 million iphones and ipod touches proving the use of mobile internet is playing an extremely important part in the use of search online as the real attraction to these communication devices like the blackberry is their ability to browse the internet.
Apple is rumored to be releasing a smaller version of the iphone, reaching out to an even bigger audience – we’ll just have to wait and see . . .
At studio8 search we focus not only on search for desktops and laptops, but also on the huge potential in mobile search.
Call us to discuss your site or drop an emaiil to info@studio8search.com
