In Memoriam: Ren Warmuz of Trellian

The search engine marketing and domain industries lost one of its greatest minds over the weekend. Ren Warmuz, founder and CEO of Trellian, who was battling cancer for about a year, passed away on October 27 at age 45.

Trellian is a software company from Australia that launched in 1997. Along with his brother, David Warmuz, the company launched some great software and tools for both the search marketing and domain industries.

Their search engine submission software Submit Wolf has been used to submit millions of sites to search engines. In the mid 2000s they launched "Keyword Discovery," which is one of the top keyword research tools to date.

In 2008, they purchased AddMe.com, one of the pioneering search engine submission sites. During the late 2000s they went into the domain business with Above.com, offering services in domain registration, domain catching, parking, and auctions. Ren, who was a computer scientist, was the brains behind all of their products, while David runs the business side of things and is better known in the industry, attending many trade shows.

On Ren's passing, here is what David had to say on Above.com blog:

With tears in his eyes, after a fierce year long battle with colon cancer, Ren Warmuz, Trellian Founder and CEO, passed away just after 2pm 27th October 2013, age 45, surrounded by family and still fighting to the end.

The sheer pain endured throughout would have crippled most, but not Ren. Documenting his epic battle every step of the way on his blog http://www.mcrc4.com/ he leaves behind a legacy of research, alternative treatment options, genetic tests to insist on, diets and supplements beneficial for treating cancer not known to most.

I always considered Ren an absolute genius, and was fortunate to have him part of my life, not only just growing up together but working together since 1997. We made a great team, creating and releasing many ground breaking software and web applications.

It saddens me the most that Ren leaves behind his wife and two beautiful children, age 9 and 6.

Ren's work is far from over and a Ren Warmuz Cancer Research Foundation will be established to help others beat their "little mutants", as Ren called his cancer.

My best friend, my brother, you will be missed!

Your forever grateful brother.

David Warmuz

I met Ren only a few times, but he has had a great impact in my life. Submit Wolf was elemental when I launched my own company in 1998. I have great gratitude for him and David. My heart goes out to Ren's family. RIP Ren Warmuz.

Image Credit: Above.com

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New Search Engine Indexes Thousands Of Radio Stations With Artist, Song, Genre & Show Search Filters

A beta version of RadioSearchEngine.com launched this week after more than a year in development. According to its creator Michael Robertson, the site is the world’s first radio search engine, “There are other directories of A-Z lists of radio stations, but this is the first search engine where any song or artist can be located on stations playing from anywhere in the world.”

Unlike Uberstations.com where users search by a station’s location or call letters, Radio Search Engine offers multiple search features, allowing users to search by artist, song, music genre and radio show.

The site includes a list of trending songs and shows, along with a universal audio player. The fast-forward button on the audio player skips to similar songs, while the ‘thumbs up’ icon offers a list of similar stations and the ‘thumbs down’ icon takes users to a new station.

Robertson says his site indexes thousands of radio stations worldwide evenly split between Internet-only stations and simulcasters that transmit their AM/FM stations online. Radio Search Engine also has an API that developers can use to build mobile apps, Web players, search engines and any other audio application.

The following video recorded by Robertson offers an overview of his newly launched search engine:

Google App Indexing: Google Can Index & Link To Content In Your Android App

Google announced that they can now index the content within Android apps. The mechanism for doing so, they call, is app indexing.

App indexing allows webmasters to connect pages from your web sites with specific content within your Android app. This enables Android smartphone users who have your app installed to open it directly from relevant mobile search results on Google.

Here is a picture of it in action:

For example, a webmaster who has a recipe website and an Android app can benefit from this. When a Google searcher on a mobile device is shown one of your recipes as a search result, they will now be able to open that result directly in your app if they have it installed.

This currently works on the Google Search App version 2.8+ for Android 4.1+, and in mobile browsers on Android if the user is signed in. Plus, Google is only testing this with a select number of publishers. If you want to be included in this test, fill out this form.

Technically, to get this working, you need to configure both your website and your app to define the relationships between them. This is done by:

(1) Annotating app links for each page on your website (or through sitemap) that can be opened in your app to specify how the page’s content can be opened in the app.

(2) Adding intent filters for deep linking in your app manifest to specify how to reach specific content inside your app.

For the deep technical documents on how this works, see this page.

Report: Basic Local Optimization Steps Boosted Google Visibility By 179 Percent

Digital agency and technology provider SIM Partners released�a report (registration required)�discussing how use of several basic Local SEO tactics can dramatically improve visibility on Google.

The study involved 315 US business locations. These are not independent, small businesses. SIM Partners typically works with national-local businesses that have national brands but local offices, hotels or stores. According to the report all the locations used bulk upload verification.�However, the principles and tactics should be applicable to local SEO for SMBs as well.

The objective was to “boost the local rankings of priority keyword and city combinations.” According to SIM Partners, at the beginning of the study “only 26 percent of their combinations ranking [ranked] in any of the top seven positions, with only 8 percent of combinations ranked in the top two positions, prior to optimization.”

There were 4,149 keyword/city combinations examined or tracked in the study.�After the tactics described in the report the firm said local rankings were improved dramatically:

After optimization, targeted combinations indexed in the top seven positions on the SERP increased 179%; top two positions increased 399%; third through fifth positions increased 97%; and targeted combinations not indexed in the top seven positions decreased 62% (from 74% of all targeted combinations to just 28%).

The firm employed the following local optimization tactics to accomplish these results:

Create custom business descriptions for each locationAdd additional information including photos and videos to the listing Identify and remove duplicate listings on Google and other sitesIdentify third-party sites that are respected by Google and within the appropriate vertical . . . Create and optimize third-party listings.Continue modifying each listing to rank for both long and short tail search terms

The final tactic: “continue modifying . . . ” was really just a regular monitoring of listings/results and continuing application of the foregoing principles.

It’s also important to note that these results were achieved over a six-to-nine month time frame. That implicates setting client expectations accordingly.

Pinterest Adds Related Pins for Better Discovery

Pinterest is adding "related pins" to users' home feeds, in a bid to improve its discovery features and pin-based recommendations.

The pinboard-style photo-sharing website realizes that it is currently difficult for some users to find pins that they like, so it hopes the new related pins will sort out the problem.

"One of the things we hear from pinners (like you!) is that it sometimes takes some work to find fresh pins you love," the company said in its blog. "To make things a little easier, we're going to start delivering a selection of recommendations called 'related pins' right to your home feed."

The new related pins will be similar or linked to posts that users have already saved or liked across Pinterest. The pins will also come with a thumb up and thumb down feature so pinners can give feedback and improve the relevance of the pins over time.

If the user is unhappy with some of the recommendations, they can rate the pin by hitting the info icon. Pinterest will then remove this pin from the feed and will avoid showing similar content in the future.

Pinterest says that the new related pins are different from promoted pins, which are essentially promtional ads for businesses.

This article was originally published on ClickZ.

The SES agenda focuses on aligning paid, owned and earned media to help you drive quality traffic and increase conversions.

SES Chicago is coming up!Book your pass to SES London
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Report: Basic Local Optimization Steps Boosted Google Visibility By 179 Percent

Digital agency and technology provider SIM Partners released�a report (registration required)�discussing how use of several basic Local SEO tactics can dramatically improve visibility on Google.

The study involved 315 US business locations. These are not independent, small businesses. SIM Partners typically works with national-local businesses that have national brands but local offices, hotels or stores. According to the report all the locations used bulk upload verification.�However, the principles and tactics should be applicable to local SEO for SMBs as well.

The objective was to “boost the local rankings of priority keyword and city combinations.” According to SIM Partners, at the beginning of the study “only 26 percent of their combinations ranking [ranked] in any of the top seven positions, with only 8 percent of combinations ranked in the top two positions, prior to optimization.”

There were 4,149 keyword/city combinations examined or tracked in the study.�After the tactics described in the report the firm said local rankings were improved dramatically:

After optimization, targeted combinations indexed in the top seven positions on the SERP increased 179%; top two positions increased 399%; third through fifth positions increased 97%; and targeted combinations not indexed in the top seven positions decreased 62% (from 74% of all targeted combinations to just 28%).

The firm employed the following local optimization tactics to accomplish these results:

Create custom business descriptions for each locationAdd additional information including photos and videos to the listing Identify and remove duplicate listings on Google and other sitesIdentify third-party sites that are respected by Google and within the appropriate vertical . . . Create and optimize third-party listings.Continue modifying each listing to rank for both long and short tail search terms

The final tactic: “continue modifying . . . ” was really just a regular monitoring of listings/results and continuing application of the foregoing principles.

It’s also important to note that these results were achieved over a six-to-nine month time frame. That implicates setting client expectations accordingly.

#SMBMSP59: What You Need to Know about Location-Based Social Media for Business

On Halloween you expect to see costumes, candy, spooky decorations and�.bacon?! Yes you read that correctly. At this morning�s Minneapolis and St. Paul Social Media Breakfast there was bacon. And bacon costumes. Several of the TopRank team opted for their own unique costumes like Gumby, Wayne (from Wayne’s World), a hunter, and Steve Jobs.

With the surge in apps with location-enabled features�Foursquare, Facebook, Yelp, Instagram, and Twitter to name a few�it�s no surprise that this month�s breakfast delved into best practices for incorporating location-based (or location-aware) apps a part of your social media strategy. Presenter Christopher Lower of Sterling Cross Communications used case studies & success stories to offer advice to attendees. Here are 16 key takeaways our team gleaned from the presentation:

Brian Larson:

1. Location based marketing is not simply checking-in on foursquare. Due to the sensitive nature of some services (e.g. medical related services), marketers can be more effective at driving engagement if they use their physical environment (e.g. waiting room) to interact with their target audience.

2. Robots are coming! �Eye-See-You� mannequins which actually �see� shoppers and can provide recommendations are already �working� in select malls in Canada. So look twice next time you stroll through a department store.

 
Ben Brausen:

3. The first ever swarm badge unlocked in Minnesota was at SMBMSP #24 – Social Media & Retail at the Rick Bronsen Comedy Gallery at the MOA.

4. Foursquare was far from the first location-based social app but it has been the most successful so far with over 40 million users worldwide and 4.5 billion check-ins.

 
Nick Ehrenberg:

5. Augmented reality is the next trending technology, already demonstrated with apps like Layar and Google Glass. As the technology becomes more available and user-friendly, our mobile devices will simply become an extension of ourselves.

6. Search in Foursquare differs from regular Google or Yelp services, in that everyone gets different results based on their previous check-ins. There�s nothing static about it.

 
Jesse Pickrain:

7. When mobile users visit a standard site (non-mobile, no responsive design) and has a negative experience, 61% never come back and 40% go to a competitor�s site. In other words, more businesses should be prioritizing mobile-friendly sites.

8. Are QR codes dead? Absolutely not – especially among 40 – 60 year olds, which is surprising. Marketers who have taken QR codes out of their arsenal should consider putting them back in. You can also get creative by rotating the back end to deliver a new customer experience each time a QR code is scanned.

 
Eliza Steely:

9. Making sure you interact well and in relevant ways with your customers without creeping them out is key. Personalizing deals can help encourage them to make a purchase they�ll enjoy.

10. My generation is a little lost: only 14% of the American population knows what the yellow pages are, only 1% uses it to find businesses�.and people take selfies at funerals.

 
Katie Bresnahan:

11. Retailers are making it a point to adapt to the world we live in – with more and more locations adding wi-fi capabilities in-store. This has not fared as well for retailer Barnes & Noble, where they have become a showcase for customers to view the book in-person, then check major online retailers such as Amazon for cheaper prices.

12. It�s not just phones – social interaction and check-ins are now possible with Google Glass and Samsung Galaxy Gear Watches – soon we may see contacts (that go IN YOUR EYE) that are vision-responsive and in addition, our clothing could be capable of knowing where we are and how we�re feeling!

 
Emily Bacheller:

13. Did you know that Foursquare has robust back-end analytics? Use Foursquare to learn who your most valuable customers are, their favorite products and what your peak business hours are.

14. Remember in Minority Report when Tom Cruise walks into the Gap and the robert salesperson recommends products for him based his eye-scan? Yeah, that�s now a real thing with mannequins programmed to do facial scans.

 
Alexis Hall:

15. Location based apps like foursquare also serve as valuable search engines. 94% of websites are not mobile friendly. If a business does not have a mobile friendly website then they must leverage mobile apps in order to be found from a mobile device.

16. QR codes are immensely popular with the 40-60 year old demographic. So although marketers may be tired of talking about QR codes, consumers are very interested. Mix up the types of content delivered via a QR code scan in order to keep consumers scanning. The potential for an incentive, like a discount, can be a great way to drive sales in the hospitality industry.

Essentially there are a few unique things location-based media can bring your business:

Customer service opportunities that allow you to go above and beyond expectations and provide customers with deals (and experiences) they’ll use, remember, and rave about onlineDeep backend analytics to help you schedule happy hours, promotions, and maintain (or remove) items from your product list

A big thank you to Christopher Lower and the audience members who asked such intriguing questions! As well as Mykl Roventine and the Social Media Breakfast MSP volunteers & sponsors.

How have you used location-based social media to interact with customers?

 

Google Webmaster Tools Now Highlights Security Issues

Last week at Pubcon, Google's Matt Cutts said that Google was working on the next generation of hacked site detection during his keynote. Google has announced some updates today in the way they communicate with webmasters.

There is a brand new section within Google Webmaster Tools that now offers a portal for "Security Issues" to allow webmasters to not only be alerted when they have a security issue or evidence that a site has been hacked, but also give more detailed information on the nature of the issue.

The new Security Issues area will list sites and pages that Google believes has been hacked with malware or spam. It will include specific URLs, including the problem code snippets from the site if relevant, and the date Google last detected the issue. The date will be especially helpful if a site is attempting to clean up from a mass hacked site problem, and need a check to see if the problem really has been fixed.

Google will also detail the type of malware, such as whether it was a website template injection, a SQL injection, or a malware code injection. If it was a spam issue, they will include sample URLs which contain the spam, with the alert of it being a content injection.

Having this level of details about the type of issue will go a long way to helping webmasters, particularly those who are in the novice side of webmaster skills, to determine how the issue happened, and what they need to look at in order to fix it. Some webmasters with a WordPress blog might not be able to tell the difference between an SQL injection or if it was an injection coming from a template or plugin.

When available, webmasters can then click the specific issues to get even more details, such as exact code snippets Google has detected as well as the recommended actions on how to fix the spam or malware issue. It also reminds users to fetch a page as a Googlebot, in case the spammy content has been hidden through CSS, if they aren’t able to see it on the page when they look at it.

Lastly, it is easier for webmasters to request a review once they have cleaned up any spam or malware issues. On the same Security Issues page, there is a button where webmasters can easily request a review.

This is especially helpful because sites with malware have a "This site may harm your computer" warning alerting potential visitors that Google advises searchers to not visit the site. So after the webmaster checks a box confirming the issues have been fixed, the review request can be submitted.

This new change to Webmaster Tools will definitely be helpful to all webmasters who have faced having to fix a site after it has been hacked, especially for those who might not be as tech savvy as others, and then make it easy for a site to recover in Google.

The SES agenda focuses on aligning paid, owned and earned media to help you drive quality traffic and increase conversions.

SES Chicago is coming up!Book your pass to SES London
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How to Maximize Sales and ROI on Black Friday and Cyber Monday in 7 Steps

On November 24th, 2011, more than $52 million was spent on Cyber Monday. According to IBM’s Smarter Commerce division, the 2012 Cyber Monday was the largest online shopping day in history, posting a 30.3 percent increase over the same day in 2011. Last year, Black Friday sales topped $1 billion, which was up 26 percent from 2011.

This trend is poised to continue to skyrocket, making Black Friday and Cyber Monday vastly important for online retailers.

In 2013, we’ve seen several major changes in the SEO landscape, such as Google Hummingbird and updates to Google’s Penguin algorithm. In this article, I’ll discuss how to interpret these changes, and what you need to do to maximize sales and ROI on Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and beyond.

Step 1: Create Unique Landing Pages for Your Deals

Create a unique landing page for each of the specific groups of products that will be on sale. Make sure you do your keyword research to know exactly which keywords to focus on.

One example might be adding the keyword "Black Friday online" to the page’s title tag and header tags, to ensure your pages have a chance of being served up in search results for similar keyword queries.

This strategy follows my advice from "How to Get Ranked for All Your Niche’s Keywords," which I suggest you read if you’re unfamiliar with the basics of SEO, identifying keywords, and ranking for them.

Step 2: Make Your Site Mobile-Friendly

Next, make sure your website is mobile-ready, as a growing number of people are shopping from tablets and mobile phones. In fact, according to Morgan Stanley analysts, mobile will surpass desktop usage by 2015. Google has already spotted and adapted to this trend; that’s the main reason behind its rollout of the Google Hummingbird algorithm. For more information on why Google Hummingbird means mobile-friendliness is more important than ever, see my article "Google Hummingbird: A Mobile Content Marketing Strategy Just Became Essential".

A proper responsive design will make it easy for people to purchase products on your site, regardless of which device they use to do so. For more in-depth information on how to implement responsive design, see my article "Responsive Design & Mobile SEO: Best Practices for 2013".

If your site isn’t ready for mobile, some of your buyers will move on to a competitor whose site is ready for the mobile environment. In fact, according to the Interactive Advertising Bureau, 61 percent of visitors who visit a site that isn’t mobile-friendly will move on to a competitor’s site.

Step 3: Check Your Existing Rankings, and Analyze Your Competitors

SEO professionals can give you a good idea of what keyword phrases buyers will focus on. One example might be "[product name] 2013 Black Friday sales". Here’s a great article that will help you identify your keywords: "E-commerce Holiday SEO Keyword Optimization: 6 Keys to Success".

Once you’ve identified the keywords for which you want to appear in search engine rankings on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, it’s time to analyze where you currently stand. My favorite rank checking tool is MySEOTool, but there are other options available as well, such as the Firefox Rank Checker plugin.

Once you have a good understanding of where you currently stand, look for "low-hanging fruit." Identify what pages on your website already rank in the top 2 or 3 pages of search results for your keywords. Those are going to be your best targets for SEO optimization, as they provide you the best chance of moving up to the first page, where you’ll achieve the visibility that allows you to capture that search traffic.

Take the rank checking process one step further and analyze which of your competitors are outranking you, and visit their websites to try to figure out why. Are they doing something better than you? At a glance, you can pretty quickly assess these elements:

Is their website design better than mine?Is their website mobile-friendly?How often do they update their blog?How active are they in social media channels like Facebook and Twitter?What sort of content are they publishing? Is it text-based or visual-based?What’s the size of their audience? How many followers and Likes do they have?

By assessing these elements for each of your top competitors, you should be able to get a good idea of your own business’s strengths and weaknesses.

Step 4: Perform a Website Audit

Sometimes it’s the technical things that will hold your site back. There are several common major issues that I see holding clients’ websites back in the rankings:

Poor on-site SEO elements (e.g., title tags, meta descriptions, etc.).Duplicate content across the site (or worse, across domains).Poor mobile-compatibility.

For an excellent resource on identifying and resolving onsite SEO errors, refer to this on-site SEO guide. Also, be sure to check your Google Webmaster Tools to see if it’s reporting any crawl errors.

Step 5: Optimize Your Website Speed

If your website loads slowly, it can adversely affect your organic search rankings as well as your users' experience. Research has shown that 25 percent of people will leave a site that takes more than four seconds to load. Here’s an excellent tool from Pingdom that will instantly tell you your website speed, and identify specific scripts or files that are slowing it down. Try to get your website load speed under 2 seconds.

Step 6: Test, Test, and Retest

Split (A/B) test your site to make sure usability is optimized. PPC campaigns can be a great way to find high-converting keywords that you should focus on for SEO.

Use analytics to figure out which keywords and pages are converting the best. Test different calls to action to see which ones convert the best for different types of traffic.

Step 7: Align Your Social Media Strategy with Your High-Margin Products

Consumers searching the Internet for special deals also turn to social media for their research. With more than 35 percent of Americans owning a smartphone, one-third owning a tablet, and 85 percent of Americans owning a mobile device, this means that sites like Twitter and Facebook are going to be vital sources of information.

This is because, according to MarketingCharts.com, 55 percent of social networking consumption occurs on a mobile device, and according to Adobe.com, 71 percent of people use mobile to access social media. Hashtags like #blackfriday and #cybermonday will be common. The hashtag #cybermonday was the most popular hashtag at 6.4 percent on Cyber Monday 2012. Be sure your social media staff knows how to use hashtags to join the conversation Twitter.

Typically, days before Black Friday, most major retailers have started their social media promotions in full force. This means you need to work out your social media marketing strategy well in advance to be prepared.

For in-depth help on building and executing a successful social media initiative to supplement your SEO campaign, see these articles:

How to Execute a Successful Social Media Marketing InitiativeThe 5 Best Tools for Measuring Social Media PerformanceA Good Social Media Marketing IDEA: Identify, Deliver, Empower, AmplifyConclusion

Black Friday and Cyber Monday are right around the corner. If your site isn’t ready, your competitors are going to enjoy the success that you should have been. It isn’t too late to prepare your website and optimize it for a profitable holiday season.

Image Credit: Vanderelbe.de/Flickr

The SES agenda focuses on aligning paid, owned and earned media to help you drive quality traffic and increase conversions.

SES Chicago is coming up!Book your pass to SES London
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Microsoft Provides More Clarity On Bing Ads Microsoft Account Sign-In

Last week, users began seeing prompts to set up Microsoft account log-ins for their Bing Ads accounts. Some users expressed consternation about the changes and log-in errors they were experiencing when trying to postpone the new process. Today, to mitigate customer angst and make the process as seamless as possible, the Bing Ads team posted an updated FAQ and announced a change to the 2-step verification requirements on the Bing Ads community blog.

The first point made clear in the post is that the new sign-on process is not required for existing users before the end of the year. Upon sign-in, users can click the “Remind me later” link to skip the set-up process for linking a Microsoft account to their Bing Ads account.

New users will be required to use an existing or set up a new Microsoft account, just as Google requires a Google account when setting up an AdWords account.

Once you do switch over to using a Microsoft account, you’ll need to use it to access Bing Ads Editor as well. Be sure you have the latest version (v9.10) downloaded.

Important Change To Support 2-Step Authentication For Older Microsoft Accounts

Some users using an older Microsoft account no longer have access to the email and phone number used as security proofs when they set up the account. New security proofs typically take 30 days to go into effect. Acknowledging the problems that delay can cause for Bing Ads customers during the holiday retail season, Microsoft announced it is waiving two-step verification temporarily:

To prevent customers from being locked out of their accounts during this critical holiday period we are temporarily removing the two step verification security measure [until] mid-2014 when the Microsoft account transition is completed.� During this time, you are encouraged to add multiple security proofs to your Microsoft account to prevent being locked out of your account in case your phone number or alternate email address changes.

Impact For API Users

Microsoft also published an update about the sign-in process on the Bing Ads API blog today explaining the transition to OAuth for new Bing Ads customers. Existing customers will still be able to sign in via the API with their Bing Ads username and password even after they switch to using a Microsoft account to log in via the web and editor.

The most significant change initiated last week is that new customers who sign up for Bing Ads via the Bing Ads website will only have a Microsoft account and will not be provisioned a Bing Ads user name and website. Managing the accounts of such users via the Bing Ads API will require the use of OAuth for authentication.�� A less significant change is that existing Bing Ads users will be asked to optionally associate a Microsoft account to their Bing Ads account. Once an existing Bing Ads user associates their account with a Microsoft account, although they will no longer be allowed to use their Bing Ads username and password to sign in to the Bing Ads website and editor, they can still use these credentials to sign in via the API.

Both blog posts contain more details on the process if you are prepared to move forward. If you are a current Bing Ads customer and want to wait on transition account logins, you can do that until after the holiday season.

Google Webmaster Tools Now Highlights Security Issues

Last week at Pubcon, Google's Matt Cutts said that Google was working on the next generation of hacked site detection during his keynote. Google has announced some updates today in the way they communicate with webmasters.

There is a brand new section within Google Webmaster Tools that now offers a portal for "Security Issues" to allow webmasters to not only be alerted when they have a security issue or evidence that a site has been hacked, but also give more detailed information on the nature of the issue.

The new Security Issues area will list sites and pages that Google believes has been hacked with malware or spam. It will include specific URLs, including the problem code snippets from the site if relevant, and the date Google last detected the issue. The date will be especially helpful if a site is attempting to clean up from a mass hacked site problem, and need a check to see if the problem really has been fixed.

Google will also detail the type of malware, such as whether it was a website template injection, a SQL injection, or a malware code injection. If it was a spam issue, they will include sample URLs which contain the spam, with the alert of it being a content injection.

Having this level of details about the type of issue will go a long way to helping webmasters, particularly those who are in the novice side of webmaster skills, to determine how the issue happened, and what they need to look at in order to fix it. Some webmasters with a WordPress blog might not be able to tell the difference between an SQL injection or if it was an injection coming from a template or plugin.

When available, webmasters can then click the specific issues to get even more details, such as exact code snippets Google has detected as well as the recommended actions on how to fix the spam or malware issue. It also reminds users to fetch a page as a Googlebot, in case the spammy content has been hidden through CSS, if they aren’t able to see it on the page when they look at it.

Lastly, it is easier for webmasters to request a review once they have cleaned up any spam or malware issues. On the same Security Issues page, there is a button where webmasters can easily request a review.

This is especially helpful because sites with malware have a "This site may harm your computer" warning alerting potential visitors that Google advises searchers to not visit the site. So after the webmaster checks a box confirming the issues have been fixed, the review request can be submitted.

This new change to Webmaster Tools will definitely be helpful to all webmasters who have faced having to fix a site after it has been hacked, especially for those who might not be as tech savvy as others, and then make it easy for a site to recover in Google.

The SES agenda focuses on aligning paid, owned and earned media to help you drive quality traffic and increase conversions.

SES Chicago is coming up!Book your pass to SES London
3 keynotes, plus over 60 sessions Super Saver rate ends Nov 1

How to Maximize Sales and ROI on Black Friday and Cyber Monday in 7 Steps

On November 24th, 2011, more than $52 million was spent on Cyber Monday. According to IBM’s Smarter Commerce division, the 2012 Cyber Monday was the largest online shopping day in history, posting a 30.3 percent increase over the same day in 2011. Last year, Black Friday sales topped $1 billion, which was up 26 percent from 2011.

This trend is poised to continue to skyrocket, making Black Friday and Cyber Monday vastly important for online retailers.

In 2013, we’ve seen several major changes in the SEO landscape, such as Google Hummingbird and updates to Google’s Penguin algorithm. In this article, I’ll discuss how to interpret these changes, and what you need to do to maximize sales and ROI on Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and beyond.

Step 1: Create Unique Landing Pages for Your Deals

Create a unique landing page for each of the specific groups of products that will be on sale. Make sure you do your keyword research to know exactly which keywords to focus on.

One example might be adding the keyword "Black Friday online" to the page’s title tag and header tags, to ensure your pages have a chance of being served up in search results for similar keyword queries.

This strategy follows my advice from "How to Get Ranked for All Your Niche’s Keywords," which I suggest you read if you’re unfamiliar with the basics of SEO, identifying keywords, and ranking for them.

Step 2: Make Your Site Mobile-Friendly

Next, make sure your website is mobile-ready, as a growing number of people are shopping from tablets and mobile phones. In fact, according to Morgan Stanley analysts, mobile will surpass desktop usage by 2015. Google has already spotted and adapted to this trend; that’s the main reason behind its rollout of the Google Hummingbird algorithm. For more information on why Google Hummingbird means mobile-friendliness is more important than ever, see my article "Google Hummingbird: A Mobile Content Marketing Strategy Just Became Essential".

A proper responsive design will make it easy for people to purchase products on your site, regardless of which device they use to do so. For more in-depth information on how to implement responsive design, see my article "Responsive Design & Mobile SEO: Best Practices for 2013".

If your site isn’t ready for mobile, some of your buyers will move on to a competitor whose site is ready for the mobile environment. In fact, according to the Interactive Advertising Bureau, 61 percent of visitors who visit a site that isn’t mobile-friendly will move on to a competitor’s site.

Step 3: Check Your Existing Rankings, and Analyze Your Competitors

SEO professionals can give you a good idea of what keyword phrases buyers will focus on. One example might be "[product name] 2013 Black Friday sales". Here’s a great article that will help you identify your keywords: "E-commerce Holiday SEO Keyword Optimization: 6 Keys to Success".

Once you’ve identified the keywords for which you want to appear in search engine rankings on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, it’s time to analyze where you currently stand. My favorite rank checking tool is MySEOTool, but there are other options available as well, such as the Firefox Rank Checker plugin.

Once you have a good understanding of where you currently stand, look for "low-hanging fruit." Identify what pages on your website already rank in the top 2 or 3 pages of search results for your keywords. Those are going to be your best targets for SEO optimization, as they provide you the best chance of moving up to the first page, where you’ll achieve the visibility that allows you to capture that search traffic.

Take the rank checking process one step further and analyze which of your competitors are outranking you, and visit their websites to try to figure out why. Are they doing something better than you? At a glance, you can pretty quickly assess these elements:

Is their website design better than mine?Is their website mobile-friendly?How often do they update their blog?How active are they in social media channels like Facebook and Twitter?What sort of content are they publishing? Is it text-based or visual-based?What’s the size of their audience? How many followers and Likes do they have?

By assessing these elements for each of your top competitors, you should be able to get a good idea of your own business’s strengths and weaknesses.

Step 4: Perform a Website Audit

Sometimes it’s the technical things that will hold your site back. There are several common major issues that I see holding clients’ websites back in the rankings:

Poor on-site SEO elements (e.g., title tags, meta descriptions, etc.).Duplicate content across the site (or worse, across domains).Poor mobile-compatibility.

For an excellent resource on identifying and resolving onsite SEO errors, refer to this on-site SEO guide. Also, be sure to check your Google Webmaster Tools to see if it’s reporting any crawl errors.

Step 5: Optimize Your Website Speed

If your website loads slowly, it can adversely affect your organic search rankings as well as your users' experience. Research has shown that 25 percent of people will leave a site that takes more than four seconds to load. Here’s an excellent tool from Pingdom that will instantly tell you your website speed, and identify specific scripts or files that are slowing it down. Try to get your website load speed under 2 seconds.

Step 6: Test, Test, and Retest

Split (A/B) test your site to make sure usability is optimized. PPC campaigns can be a great way to find high-converting keywords that you should focus on for SEO.

Use analytics to figure out which keywords and pages are converting the best. Test different calls to action to see which ones convert the best for different types of traffic.

Step 7: Align Your Social Media Strategy with Your High-Margin Products

Consumers searching the Internet for special deals also turn to social media for their research. With more than 35 percent of Americans owning a smartphone, one-third owning a tablet, and 85 percent of Americans owning a mobile device, this means that sites like Twitter and Facebook are going to be vital sources of information.

This is because, according to MarketingCharts.com, 55 percent of social networking consumption occurs on a mobile device, and according to Adobe.com, 71 percent of people use mobile to access social media. Hashtags like #blackfriday and #cybermonday will be common. The hashtag #cybermonday was the most popular hashtag at 6.4 percent on Cyber Monday 2012. Be sure your social media staff knows how to use hashtags to join the conversation Twitter.

Typically, days before Black Friday, most major retailers have started their social media promotions in full force. This means you need to work out your social media marketing strategy well in advance to be prepared.

For in-depth help on building and executing a successful social media initiative to supplement your SEO campaign, see these articles:

How to Execute a Successful Social Media Marketing InitiativeThe 5 Best Tools for Measuring Social Media PerformanceA Good Social Media Marketing IDEA: Identify, Deliver, Empower, AmplifyConclusion

Black Friday and Cyber Monday are right around the corner. If your site isn’t ready, your competitors are going to enjoy the success that you should have been. It isn’t too late to prepare your website and optimize it for a profitable holiday season.

Image Credit: Vanderelbe.de/Flickr

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Microsoft Pilots “Hero Ads” For Branded Search Queries On Windows 8.1 Smart Search

Today, Microsoft unveiled a new ad unit for branded search called Hero Ads. The new units are appearing on select exact match brand queries in Smart Search on Windows 8.1. Consider these ads as the front window or as David Ku, Microsoft VP of engineering referred to them, “a brand’s effective home page on the search results”.

The ad units occupy the entire initial frame of results on Smart Search and offer rich visuals and navigational sitelinks. In the Range Rover example below, there are links to allow users to take a specific action such as Request A Quote, Schedule a Test Drive or navigate to informational content� including Features, Performance and Design.

David Pann explained at the Bing Ads Next event in Redmond, WA today that Microsoft is piloting Hero Ads with about 20 advertisers, including The Home Depot, Walt Disney World,� RadioShack. He explained, Hero Ads provide “a new richer experience that allow advertisers to offer a more compelling result for consumers.” He added, that the test “shows how we are are thinking about evolving the search experience.”

“We expect to be piloting this over the next 6 months, get feedback to see how and when it gets built into the Bing Ads platform,” said Pann. “Feedback so far from consumers has been positive but limited because they are only being shown to a slice of Smart Search traffic.”

Users can swipe to find standard search results, as seen in the result below for “home depot” Update: Microsoft has clarified that the Hero Ads do not take up the entire search window and that standard search results are visible on the screen to the right of the Hero Ad.

These ads are only being displayed on a subset of exact match brand terms. Pann acknowledged that, “Over time we may start to think about how this would expand to nonbrand and non-exact match terms.” For now, the focus is on the brand experience.Raj Kapoor, Director of Local Engineering, was emphatic, “This is definitely not a banner ad or harkening back to that. That’s not what we are are doing. What we are doing is being very mindful that ‘you are looking for an entity’ and introducing visual elements that consumers would be looking for.” The options available in the links will depend on the vertical. Adding that the early focus group testing was positive, Kapoor said, Hero Ads are “now in production because of early promising feedback from both marketers and consumers”.Coincidentally, Microsoft’s Hero Ad roll-out comes less than a week after Google introduced its own ad test for brand queries with banners that replace the standard text ads on Google search results. It shouldn’t be surprising that both companies are experimenting with new ways to appeal to brands — and their marketing budgets. They are also both reflections of a move toward more visual search experiences.

Microsoft says it will be looking at customer engagement and click-through rates on the Hero Ads and standard search results when the ads are displayed. The pilot is free to beta testers now, and the pricing model will be determined based on results.

The 4 Levels of UX Design

Most people misperceive user experience (UX) as something you simply add to the site after it has been designed. That's just putting lipstick on the pig. Or, as they say in Maine, "you can't get there from here."

Good UX design actually starts before you even build something. Consider the four levels of UX design.

1. Objective

Define observable and measurable business and user objectives, such as conversion rates, to gauge the success of the site. As Lewis Carroll put it: If you don't know where you are going, any road will get you there.

Defining the objectives sounds easy, but you would be amazed at how many companies have no established objective. I've yet to work on any project (out of 250+) that began with an established, codified objective.

2. Strategic

Define the direction the site should take. President Kennedy set a direction for the country in the 1960s to put a man on the moon. You could ask anyone at NASA – an astronaut, an engineer, a manager, a janitor pushing a broom at 3 o'clock in the morning – "what are you doing here?" and they all had the same answer "We're going to the moon." That singular vision kept everyone on the same page of the playbook and it worked.

Finding your UX strategy isn't that easy, especially for a non-UX person. My main goal is to get my clients to agree on a "going to the moon" statement that defines their product.

For instance, when designing the Proflowers website back in 1997, we conducted some observational user research. Instead of watching guys buy flowers online, we visited brick-and-mortar flowers shops to watch men buy flowers.

Interestingly, every online florist required the users to build a bouquet. C'mon. What do guys know about building bouquets? No surprise that the e-florists sold mostly roses.

When we visited the flower shops, we discovered that guys don't need flowers, they need a last minute gift to keep them out of the dog house. When asked by the clerk what they needed, they didn't say, "a bouquet of Dendrobium Orchids, please." They would say, "I forgot my wife's birthday and need a nice bouquet to get out of the doghouse." With that, we defined the Proflowers strategy as: "Proflowers doesn't sell flowers. They sell occasions."

That single statement drives every tactical decision in the company to this day. Their website doesn't force users to build bouquets, just identify the occasion and select from the bouquets provided by Proflowers in each category. Proflowers is a $750 million company and has one of the highest conversion rates, 15 years running.

Implementation-wise, they've made some mistakes, but having the right strategy overcomes some of those mistakes. No amount of implementation perfection can overcome a poor (or non-existent) strategy, though.

3. Tactical

Design the site to achieve your strategy. Understand how users expect to perform their task and designing the UI to meet that expectation. This includes navigation structures, usage models, best practice approaches, etc. This is the step where task optimization should occur.

Once you have a clear strategy, you need to apply good tactical design. Some common tactical approaches include:

Knowledge Design: Avoid relying on user knowledge and instead guide the users based on your knowledge of the domain. Much of Proflowers' success is based on the fact that users rely on Proflowers to suggest appropriate bouquets for each occasion. Your user persona should indicate what knowledge your user will have at the beginning of a task. You will need to analyze what knowledge that user will need in order to succeed. The difference is the knowledge gap that your UI will have to bridge in order for your users to succeed. Building knowledge into a design is no simple task, but it's the difference between a site that merely treads water and one that wins medals.Engagement: Create emotional investment that makes it hard for the user to abandon your site. Getting the user to create something of personal or emotional value on the site (e.g., create a logo design for T-shirts, design a business card, calculate the cost of insurance) goes a long way to building emotional value. This has to be a commitment-free tool. Asking the user to register, first, will make them leave. Give them something for free that creates value, then you can get them to commit to your site.Task-Optimization: This is the most critical aspect of design if you want to achieve world domination. Your UI must not interrupt users when performing their task. Again, it must be invisible. Avoid mimicking existing processes. These processes are largely due to limitations of previous technologies. By failing to optimize the users' tasks, you're really just automating current frustrations.4. Implementation

Most people think of UX only in terms of this last step, putting controls on a page. That's like saying developers write code and graphic artists draw pictures.

The UX designer does a number of things at the implementation level besides just move buttons around on a screen. One of the key design paradigms is to avoid instructions at all costs.

Affordances: Instructions are a symptom, not a solution. A UI should be invisible to the user. Otherwise it interrupts their line of thinking and creates frustration. It's important that you drive the design to take advantage of the users' understanding of what you would naturally do with a control. Avoid custom controls. Users don't know how to use them and the middle of a task is no time to learn how to use a new control. If your UI requires instructions, you have failed.

For instance, how often have you reached for a door handle when leaving a building and pulled on it only to realize the door doesn't open that way. Then you see it, the little sign that says Push. If something as simple as a door requires instructions, then there's something inherently wrong with that design. While technically, yes, you can push on a handle, our intuitions and expectations are so strong that we don't even bother to read the instructions until it's too late.

Putting a flat panel on that door invites the only correct action, to push. The user can succeed at that task without even realizing that they've done it. No instructions necessary.

Designing UI's isn't as simple as doors, but you can successfully design complex UI's that require absolutely no instructions. If the users know their task, they can use your designs. That's the value of including a good UX person on the design team.

The basic point is that UX is more than just putting lipstick on the pig. It's something that must be done long before you write any code or add any graphics.

Note that the door handle created a negative user experience while the flat panel created a neutral experience. UX design isn't always about "delighting" the users. Sometimes it's just about avoiding any negative experiences.

More importantly, UX design is always about helping the user achieve their objective and solve their problem. Regardless of how pretty your site is, if the user can't solve their problem, your design has failed.

Summary

Hopefully, you'll think differently about your site's UX design heading forward.

The strategic and tactical aspects of UX are foreign to most folks, hence the typical "lipstick on a pig" approach they call UX design. Knowing a few key things about strategy and tactics makes the difference between designing a struggling site and a successful one. The examples and tips above illustrate successful approaches to UX design that you can apply to your site.

One important design approach is incorporating your domain knowledge into a design to help your users succeed beyond their own level of knowledge or skill. This is where many sites fail.

Any site that relies on highly variable user knowledge can only achieve equally variable success, or failure. Identify ways you can guide users to solve their problem and your site will see immediate benefits.

Additionally, providing a commitment-free tool that allows users to create something of personal value increases the emotional engagement a user has with your site. This engagement dramatically increases website conversions.

Don't relegate UX to a minor add-on at the end of the project. You need to start with UX before writing any code or designing any graphics.

The SES agenda focuses on aligning paid, owned and earned media to help you drive quality traffic and increase conversions.

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Bing Hero Ads Turn Ads Into Landing Pages on Windows 8.1

Bing Ads has announced a brand new ad experience today at its Bing Ads Next event, called Hero Ads. The new ads are a very visual ad unit within Windows 8.1 Bing Smart Search and are a great integration between Windows and Bing Ads.

The goal of the new Hero ads is to combine user intent, branding and task completion for consumers. From an advertiser perspective, it enables advertisers to get all the most important and relevant information before consumers, with plenty of call to action.

Hero Ads are very visual ad formats and essentially the ads look to be like a landing page, rather than an advertisement by Bing. Hero ads are currently part of the Windows 8.1 user experience with Bing Smart Search.

One of the example brands that Bing Ads showed off to attendees of Bing Ads Next this morning in Redmond was Land Rover. In addition to a large high resolution photo of one of their vehicles – the "All New Range Rover Sport" in this example, gives consumers plenty of choices of what to click, all with pretty significant calls to action.

The calls to action, complete with arrow icons pointing to each were:: request a quote; schedule a test drive; locate a retailer; build and price. Then further to the right, you see links to: features, performance, design and customize each with a small thumbnail image to each. The overall ad experience looks very good as it is very visual yet contains all the key links for consumers.

Hero ads are only displayed for users searching for specific brands in Windows 8.1 Bing Smart Search. So the ads won't display for someone searching for "cruise lines" but would display Hero ads for "Norwegian Cruise Line".

The ads do look like high level landing pages, but when asked why Bing doesn't simply send users directly to the Land Rover landing page instead, Melissa Mackey of Gyro said "Land Rover hasn't done as good as a job on their landing page," which many people agreed with.

"Hero ads are great opportunity for advertisers to maximize brand impact though a visually rich search experience for consumers," said Lisa Raehsler of Big Click Co., who also attended Bing Ads Next. "The ads also create a more useful experience. For example, an ad could contain your calls to actions 'request a quote', but then also visual site links that drive to deeper information like features or spec sheets. Since the ads are served in the Windows 8.1, we get to "move out of the box" and take PPC to a next level and reach new audiences."

Bing Ads is running Hero ads as a limited pilot with multiple big brands, also including Walt Disney World, Jaguar, Home Depot, Norwegian Cruise Line, and Radio Shack. They are running for brands where they know consumers tend to take a specific set of actions, as many people do when searching for a vehicle or booking a cruise.

Hero ads are currently being run as free of cost during the consumer testing phase.

During the limited pilot, Bing Ads will be scrutinizing metrics for consumer experience and get feedback from both advertisers and consumers. Specifically, they want to test how consumer satisfaction changes with hero ads. They also want to determine whether it should it be a total ad experience or a hybrid of ad and search when serving Hero ads.

The SES agenda focuses on aligning paid, owned and earned media to help you drive quality traffic and increase conversions.

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Matt Cutts: Larger Websites Don't Automatically Rank Higher on Google

Webmasters have always gone by the rule that the more pages you get indexed on a website, the better it is for Google. Not only do you have a larger website overall, but you can also capture a lot of long-tail search traffic from visitors who end up on one of those many internal pages.

But does Google really bring sites higher or better if the website has more pages indexed in the search results? This is the topic of the latest webmaster help video.

Does a website get a better overall ranking if it has a large amount of indexed pages?

Google's Distinguished Engineer Matt Cutts said that a website with a large number of pages won't automatically rank better than others. So adding more pages to your site won't help your home page automatically rank better than smaller sites.

However, Cutts said that a site with more pages will naturally get more traffic because each of those individual pages can also rank for their own set of search queries, increasing the overall opportunity for sites to gain visitors.

Cutts stressed how links also contribute to rankings, something that a larger site often has more of naturally.

"Now typically if the site does have more pages, it might have more links pointing to it, which means it has higher PageRank," Cutts said. "If that is the case we might be willing to crawl a little bit deeper into the website and if it has higher PageRank, then we might think it's a little bit of a better match for users queries.

"So those are some that factors involved, just having a big website with a lot of pages by itself does not automatically confer a boost but if you have a lot of links or a lot of PageRank, that is leading to deeper crawling within your site, then that might be the sort of indicator that perhaps sites would rank just a little bit higher," Cutts said.

So once again, while having a large site is great, those inbound links are still going to play a key role in rankings, much more so than a larger website.

"Again just having the number of pages doesn't give you a boost though," Cutts added. "It might give you a few more opportunities, but normally the only reason you get that opportunity is because we see more links to your website so we are willing to crawl a little bit deeper and find more pages to index.

Bottom line: a larger website doesn't automatically give you a higher ranking, but the aftereffects of having a larger site, such as having more pages and more potential for someone to link to your site as well as getting overall search traffic on those internal pages, does help.

Having a large site is great, but once again you need to ensure that you have inbound links to your site in order to help it rank and get higher PageRank.

The SES agenda focuses on aligning paid, owned and earned media to help you drive quality traffic and increase conversions.

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Social Video ROI: Relationships That Convert

Many marketers assume "social video" mostly means sharing on YouTube, Facebook, and other social networks. What's forgotten? The "social" part.

To successfully incorporate video into your search marketing, you really need to create a experience that's first and foremost about building personal connections. That means genuinely listening, engaging, and helping others in ways that turn visitors into followers, users into contributors, critics into evangelists, and individuals into communities.

But social video can't be helpful if it can't be sustainable as a business model. That's why social video needs to be treated like a financial portfolio – nurturing relationships like one nurtures stock investments, carefully qualified and continually measured against pre-set performance goals so you see a tangible return on investment over the long-term.

What is "Social Video?" What Should it Really Mean?

We need to start with how we choose to define "social. I regard social as a personal investment into genuine relationships for shared value.

The next step from there is "social business" – a term often used to describe the evolution of modern business through technology and consumer culture, and worker relationships. That is how I came to my definition of "social video" – the blending of video into genuine relationships for shared value.

Too often, video is still treated as a broadcast tool with expectations of short-term transactions, rather than a true engagement tool for building meaningful connections.

You should no longer ask, "How do I create a viral video?" Instead, you should ask, "How can I create value and build trust with my audience?"

"Video is one of the greatest ways to help personalize the brand and create a trusted experience," according to Frank Eliason, SVP of Citibank and author of "@ Your Service – How to Attract New Customers, Increase Sales, and Increase Sales Using New Customer Techniques." "We tend to trust humans, not some corporate logo; and video is the best way to do that on a scaled basis."

Externally, video is used to communicate to broad audiences, often designed to bring a human touch to a brand. It's a great way to share insight into your company, share thoughts, and add value to your customers without intruding into their conversation.

Internally, larger companies are using video to create more nimble, interconnected teams. Work groups now live in a very different environment. Today, people use video to speak with each other across the globe, for knowledge management and collaboration.

Here are some other strong business reasons for why search marketers should be doing social video:

Video is the most powerful communications tool on the web. It invites more engagement with audiences, and drives the social signals with Google for augmented search results.Video enhances storytelling. People are moved by stories; and video is better at storytelling than text, graphics, and audio combined.Video augments both the rational and the emotional. Some audiences are persuaded more by logic and instructional content; others are motivated more by strong feelings of passion that are either positive or negative.Audiences now expect it. Your audiences are likely creating and sharing their own videos, and want the brands they follow to do the same with them in mind.Social Video Tips for Every Professional MarketerMake it a real commitment to personally engage with your audience. Anything advertised as "social" should come with a promise. It's not just putting out video content regularly and consistently to where your audience is; it's a promise to listen and personally engage with individual followers and subscribers (i.e., conversation), and to provide mutual value for what you share. Simply placing repurposed ads on your website or YouTube channel isn't going to cut it.Be transparent and believable. Zappos has always lead the way but that's because social fits within their existing culture. Mistakes happen in social when brands like to portray themselves as something they are not. That means, think about what your existing business culture is like, and have your video content be a natural representation of that same culture.Always start with being helpful. The best video you can create is never going to make up for poor customer experience. The best companies winning in social media aren't doing so because of a marketing or PR message. They are winning because their products and experiences live up to their brand promise. If you do social video without reviewing, acknowledging, and demonstrating a serious attempt to fix those issues, your online video will just invite conversations from upset customers that you aren't giving them attention like you should.Use it to learn about, acknowledge and correct your mistakes. "My favorite example will always be the a Domino's pizza response to crisis on YouTube a few years back. That is the power of video where the CEO is speaking from the heart," Eliason said. One thing you should never do is ignore someone who puts up a video genuinely expressing their bad experience with your brand. "They care enough to talk about your brand, so that tells me they are passionate. If they did not care they would not say anything."Acknowledge interesting videos, not just interesting people. "Some of the famous instances over the years. I worked for a cable company [Comcast] and at one point there was a video of a technician sleeping," Eliason said. "The person who put that video up had posted two videos, ever. Let's face it, it was just good content. It was just something we enjoyed watching – so we watched it over and over again.Social Video Strategy in 3 Simple Steps: Start Soft, Then Get Hard

The word "social" in media should never be an excuse to avoid showing measurable business outcomes; nor should social be measured under the exact same metrics that apply to direct marketing and traditional advertising.

The key part is demonstrating causality – connecting the dots between the "soft" metrics of engagement towards the "hard" metrics of transactions and financials. Here are three simple steps how you can achieve that:

Set measurable performance goals. Before starting any video campaign, have a clear objective of what you're looking to accomplish that will be a positive business value. Set a budget for your spend and time investments, and how you plan to get in the positive column with sales and revenue over a period of time. Think anywhere from 6-18 months, and be ready to measure intermittently so you can see your progress toward your goal.Know the social metrics that really matter. Go beyond views and shares. Focus on the metrics show sustainable engagement – audience retention and completion of video views, subscribers, clicks on calls-to-actions and soft leads (like filling out a short form or becoming an email newsletter member). Social business pros already understand that word-of-mouth marketing is a proven connection between traffic and sales,Create a scorecard and regular report system. This means assigning different values to different social metrics. Once you have data coming in, you can start to see how many of the soft metrics it takes to generate the hard metrics. From there you have a benchmark for ongoing and future campaigns, and you can use the numbers to compare performance over the past week or month, and measure growth.Screw Viral, Tube Responsibly!

Social video is most apt to be successful for your business when you stop thinking about "going viral" and really focus on being useful.

Think of social video less like a megaphone and more like a customer specialist or concierge, building interesting and helpful video content that acknowledges their needs and wants; and personally engage with audience members individually around the video experience. You'll see how good will with a responsible business plan behind it leads to social video success.

You can catch Grant speaking at SES Chicago 2013 on November 5 on the panel, Unlocking the Secrets of Mobile Video: YouTube, Instagram, and Vine.

The SES agenda focuses on aligning paid, owned and earned media to help you drive quality traffic and increase conversions.

SES Chicago is coming up!Book your pass to SES London
3 keynotes, plus over 60 sessions Super Saver rate ends Nov 1

Dear Google Rivals: Do These New Proposals Solve Your Antitrust Concerns? Love, The EU

Three years into its investigation of Google over antitrust issues relating to search, the European Union took another step closer toward a likely resolution, asking Google rivals and other third-parties to review a settlement proposal. Notably, the general public wasn’t invited to participate.

The news comes via several�reports today. The European Union’s Competition agency posted nothing on its website, though the move follows on what it promised to do earlier this month.

The Wall Street Journal�and Reuters say�that 125 companies have been asked to comment on the latest proposal, including all those who commented on the last one. The proposal would show three sets of results from rival search engines under Google’s own “specialized” or “vertical” search results, with rivals bidding against each other for placement.

In the latest revision, the minimum bid price has been reduced to three EU cents, from 10 EU cents. Companies would also have the right to opt-out of inclusion in individual Google search services. They could be in Google’s main search engine, for example, but stay out of Google Images.

The Register notes that the EU has decided feedback on the proposals from rivals is important but not from the general public. Rivals given a look at the proposal are forbidden from discussing it. The public isn’t invited to review the proposal.

That’s in stark contrast to the US Federal Trade Commission, which concluded its investigation earlier this year and noted that the goal was to protect competition, not competitors. While competitors lobbied for the investigation itself, and proposed changes all during the process, the FTC seemed to conclude that any changes should be made to benefit consumers, not competitors.

The EU, with this latest round of reviews focused on asking for competition feedback, gives the appearance that it is more concerned about protecting competitors rather that competition or consumers themselves.

Companies have four weeks to respond. Then, presumably, the EU might make a final decision on wrapping up its investigation that started in November 2010. If not, potentially the investigation could continue on into 2014.

More background on the investigation can be found below:

EU Goes Public With Google Antitrust Proposals, �Market Test� FAQs, April 25, 2103Google�s New European �Antitrust� Search Results: Here�s What They�ll Look Like, April 25, 2013New Concessions From Google Seek To Avoid EU Antitrust Penalties, Sept. 9, 2013New Google Antitrust Offer A �Significant Improvement� Says EU, Oct. 1, 2013

Study: Google Adds 1,200 Search Sites & 750 ISP Client Networks In Less Than A Year

A study published by researchers at the University of Southern California unintentionally discovered Google has dramatically increased the number of sites and ISPs it uses to serve client queries.

According to the findings, between October 2012 and July 2013, Google increased the number of locations serving its search infrastructure from less than 200 to more than 1,400, as well as growing the number of ISPs it uses from a little over 100 to more than 850.

From the study:

Most of this expansion reflects Google utilizing client networks (such as Time Warner Cable, for example) that it already relied on for hosting content like videos on YouTube, and reusing them to relay – and speed up – user requests and responses for search and ads.

“Google already delivered YouTube videos from within these client networks,” said the study’s lead author and USC PhD student Matt Calder, “But they’ve abruptly expanded the way they use the networks, turning their content-hosting infrastructure into a search infrastructure as well.”

After creating� a way to track and map Google’s servers, the USC research team’s original intention was to study the relationship between Google’s server locations and its clients. The researchers claim they “just happened” to be researching Google’s search infrastructure when the company made its move to expand its search sites in ten months time.

The study was presented last week at the SIGCOMM Internet Measurement Conference in Spain. The research team behind the findings said Google’s strategy has a number of benefits, “Users have a better web browsing experience, ISPs lower their operational costs by keeping more traffic local, and Google is able to deliver its content to Web users quicker.”

(Image credit: University of Southern California)

Study: Google Adds 1,200 Search Sites & 750 ISP Client Networks In Less Than A Year

A study published by researchers at the University of Southern California unintentionally discovered Google has dramatically increased the number of sites and ISPs it uses to serve client queries.

According to the findings, between October 2012 and July 2013, Google increased the number of locations serving its search infrastructure from less than 200 to more than 1,400, as well as growing the number of ISPs it uses from a little over 100 to more than 850.

From the study:

Most of this expansion reflects Google utilizing client networks (such as Time Warner Cable, for example) that it already relied on for hosting content like videos on YouTube, and reusing them to relay – and speed up – user requests and responses for search and ads.

“Google already delivered YouTube videos from within these client networks,” said the study’s lead author and USC PhD student Matt Calder, “But they’ve abruptly expanded the way they use the networks, turning their content-hosting infrastructure into a search infrastructure as well.”

After creating� a way to track and map Google’s servers, the USC research team’s original intention was to study the relationship between Google’s server locations and its clients. The researchers claim they “just happened” to be researching Google’s search infrastructure when the company made its move to expand its search sites in ten months time.

The study was presented last week at the SIGCOMM Internet Measurement Conference in Spain. The research team behind the findings said Google’s strategy has a number of benefits, “Users have a better web browsing experience, ISPs lower their operational costs by keeping more traffic local, and Google is able to deliver its content to Web users quicker.”

(Image credit: University of Southern California)

31 Top Marketers Agree: It’s Time to Rethink Your Content Marketing – Free 214 Page eBook from Linkdex

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Starting as a public relations firm with SEO skills in 2001, we’ve always had to create content for clients whether it was press releases, newsletters, case studies or graphics and diagrams for newsrooms and events.

In 2008 we made a major shift to what I call “SEO Plus” and focused a lot more on content. In fact, we were named the #1 content marketing blog that year by Junta42 (now Content Marketing Institute).

Fast forward to 2013 and the momentum of converged search, social media, public relations and content is unmistakable. SEO vendors and agencies are realizing marketing is the business we’re in, not just SEO.

One of those companies,�Linkdex,�is a marketing SaaS platform that brings content, search, social and PR components together in one service to help companies perform better marketing. This applies to service models that want to evolve from SEO to SEO plus, from PR or content marketing agency to integrated marketing agency. The same goes for departments within a company that want a platform to help integrated components of search, social media, content and PR.

To bring marketers and agencies the insights they need for this evolution towards more coordinated search, social, PR and content marketing, Matt Roberts and the Linkdex team reached out to 31 industry experts and created a 214 page eBook: ReThink Your Content Marketing.

Sometimes eBooks like this include the same list of names and insights, but I think you’ll find this one pretty refreshing. You’ll see why when you check out the list of international search and content marketing experts as well as the titles of their contributions covering strategy to tactics to measurement:

Joe Pulizzi (@joepulizzi) : ForewordLee Odden (@leeodden) : The Speed of ChangeBas van den Beld�(@basvandenbeld) : The Role of Content in Modern Day MarketingRick Ramos (@ricktramos) : 7 Reasons Why Content Marketing is the New BlackMatt Roberts (@Linkdex_Matt) : Use Content to Supercharge Your Organic MarketingRob Garner (@robgarner) : If You Have a Website, Then You Are Already a Real-Time PublisherAndrew Smith (@andismit) : What Can Content Marketing Learn from PR? And Vice VersaDanny Denhard (@dannydenhard) : Creating the Perfect Cocktail: Do PR, Social, SEO and Content Mix Well TogetherNick Garner (@nickgarner) : Organic Marketing Driving Social InfluencePhil Mackechnie (@akcamiwik) : Breaking Down Internal SilosRobert Rose (@Robert_Rose) : Be Remarkable or FailKevin Gibbons (@kevgibbo) : Creating a Multichannel Content Marketing StrategyPaul Roetzer (@paulroetzer) : The Art and Science of Content Marketing CollideMichael Brito (@britopian) : Transforming Your Brand to the Next Media CompanyAnn Handley (@marketingprofs) : Does Your Content Convey Honest EmpathyDarren Fell (@TeamCrunch) : With Content, You Reap What You SowHannah Smith (@Hannah_Bo_Banna) : Why You Need Great ContentStuart Tofts (@StuartTofts) : How to Use Content to Diversify and Strengthen Your Online MarketingMelissa Rach (@MelissaRach) : What Makes Content GreatSonja Jefferson and Sharon Tanton (@sonjajefferson – @sjtanton) : The Year That Content Grew UpSusan Genelius (@susangunelius) : Great Content is Shareworthy ContentSuzanne Fanning (@SuzanneWOMMA) : Content is No Longer KingHenneke Duistermaat (@HennekeD) : How to Write Great Content and Become an Influential WriterAvinash Kaushik (@avinash) : The See-Think-Do FrameworkSimon Penson (@simonpenson) : Content Strategy (Make Your Ideas Your Friends)Andreas Ramos (@Andreas_Ramos) : The Hub-and-Spoke Model of ContentChelsea Adams (ChelseAdams) : 5 Fresh Ways to Use Content Marketing as Lead GenerationJonathan Alderson (@jonoalderson) : Measuring the ROI of Content MarketingStephen Lock (@stevejlock) : Frameworks to Audit, Measure & Maximise Content Marketing ROIGerry McGovern (@gerrymcgovern) : Quality Content Means Measuring Outcomes, Not InputsKristjan Hauksson (@optimizeyourweb) : Content Impacts on a Global Scale

I’d be surprised if you’ve seen a free eBook this substantial on the topic of content marketing from so many thought leaders and practitioners. This is a necessary read for a lot of online marketers, from SEOs who still think content marketing is a link building tactic and that “more is better” to public relations practitioners that really need to get on the digital marketing track fast and in a meaningful way.

When you check out the ebook you can get a demo of Linkdex too if you like – totally up to you. Just make sure you dig in to the strategic to practical insights from all the search, social media, public relations and content marketing pros that contributed to the eBook. Then make sure you share it with your marketing and PR networks.

Once you read this eBook, here are some of the next steps and key questions to ask that I recommend in Chapter 1, “The Speed of Change”

What business goals could you solve with more useful and meaningful content?Who are the target audiences your business needs to connect with? What do they care about? What are their goals?Develop an editorial calendar that takes into account how each target customer segment discovers, consumes and acts on information during their buying cycleBuild search, social media and media optimization best practices into your content planning and promotion efforts so your brand can “be the best answer” where ever customers are lookingContinuously analyze key performance indicators and business outcomes to optimize the performance of your content marketing investment

Once you make the shift from content as a tactic to content as useful and meaningful information designed for specific customer groups and objectives, you’ll be on your way to more efficient and effective online marketing programs.

If you were going to contribute a short tip to a content marketing eBook like this, what would it be? �What’s one piece of advice you think is most important?

Gamification in Marketing: Lessons from the Khan Academy Website

In 2011, my family and I spent a year in a remote region of South Africa. My children homeschooled and I was nervous about being their math teacher, until we discovered KhanAcademy.org. Through our experience with their site, I learned valuable gamification tips marketers can use to better connect and answer their website audience’s needs.

If you’re unfamiliar, the site offers thousands of short videos designed to help visitors learn math, science, economics, history, and dozens of other subjects on their own. Founded by former hedge fund manager Sal Khan, the Academy offers free learning material to students worldwide. A registered non-profit, it is supported by the likes of Google, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Oracle.

Most of the math videos at Khan Academy are less than five minutes long and come with exercises by way of sets of ten problems, to test proficiency in that topic. Students can use an online scratch pad to arrive at their answers, which they enter in a box to the right of the problem.

A correct answer produces an immediate happy face, as well as movement on the multicolored progress bar. Do the problems quickly enough and the site rewards you with a “Picking Up Steam” badge worth 100 points, which you can share with your friends via email, Facebook, or Twitter.

My kids aren’t particularly math-phobic, but the subject has definitely not been as much fun as Facebooking, watching agonizingly slow-streaming Modern Family episodes on Hulu, reading, or even doing nothing. So I was shocked to witness them spending hours doing Khan Academy problem sets.

They loved the mouse-controlled scratchpad, even though a pencil and paper is much easier. They loved the “Correct! Next Question…” button with a smiley face. They loved the progress bar, the popup rewards, and the accumulation of points and badges. They even loved the tension at that moment when they entered their answer, knowing that an incorrect response would reset their current streak back to zero.

My kids became slightly addicted to math.

As a professional who helps people make money with their website, I was intrigued. What makes this site so successful—more successful than most of the math teachers and live classroom settings of which I’m aware?

Several brilliant features jump out at me, such as the clear and useful content, the engaging personality of the host and teacher, Sal Kahn, and their strategic use of technology to serve function, rather than dictating it.

But the most powerful elements are instant feedback and cumulative rewards, two of the fundamental elements of game design.

Basically, Khan Academy’s math program is a video game, where the content happens to be solutions to equations. Instead of blowing up aliens or driving cars through urban war zones, players race against time to solve problems correctly.

Each answer is immediately scored right or wrong. Correct answers get happy faces and accumulate points. Mistakes get round yellow sad faces, but you still have to get the answer right before progressing to the next problem. You can ask for a hint (that resets your streak) or watch the video that covers the topic you’re practicing (no penalty for that).

Users immediately know what they did well and where they messed up. Compare that to your typical math test in high school; by the time you got the corrected test back, you couldn’t remember, much less care about, the questions and answers.

The positive feedback builds on itself cumulatively, so the stakes increase with each correct answer. Instead of fading or zoning out, as I did so many times in long math classes, my kids get more engaged and determined as their streak increases and they have more to lose.

When they achieve milestones, they are invited and encouraged to share their success with their Facebook community. Most of these milestones are predictable: you need so many energy points to win each level of badge, beginning with the meteorite badge. That’s in keeping with motivation theory: give people a clear path to success.

But Khan Academy also offers Black Hole badges (legendary and unknown, they are the most unique Khan Academy awards). Just as animal trainers discovered that unpredictable rewards sprinkled in with predictable ones increased dedication and speed of learning, Khan Academy tantalizes students with the promise of a “legendary and unknown” treasure, to generate fanatical devotion and commitment. Students aren’t just doing math; they’re engaged in an epic quest.

You’re probably not teaching math. What about instant feedback and cumulative rewards is applicable to your website?

1. Apply Operant Conditioning to the 'Tiny Conversion' Opportunities on Your Website

Operant conditioning means you reward behaviors and outcomes that please you and either punish or ignore outcomes that do not. The big outcome most website owners want is a lead or a sale, but focusing on that level is like trying to get your seal to balance a beach ball on his nose solely by rewarding him when he balancing the beach ball on his nose. You could wait a long time for that to happen by itself.

Instead, the seal trainer focuses on mini-outcomes that precede, predict, and lead to the big outcome. Touching the ball with his nose, not flinching when you chuck the ball at him, etc.

On your website, treat every visitor engagement with a button, link, form, and scroll bar as a micro-conversion, a mini-outcome leading to the desired one. Every click should be rewarded. Children like badges. Seals like herring. What exactly does your visitor want at the moment they click the “learn more” link? Figure it out and give it to them.

The delicious irony about operant conditioning is its mutuality. More than you training your visitors, if you’re willing to pay attention, your visitors will train you to give them what they want.

2. Begin With a Gentle Slope

Putting cash in an envelope is extremely hard. Writing a check is very hard. Giving an unknown online merchant your credit card number is hard. Giving someone your email address and phone number is pretty hard. Even an email-only form will meet with resistance.

Don’t lead with those micro-conversions unless you’ve already built a relationship of trust with your visitor. Yes, people buy within a few minutes of landing on Amazon, Etsy, and eBay, but you’re none of the above. Unless your brand or prior relationship has already earned their trust, save those forms of engagement for later in the sales process.

What are the “meteorite badge” equivalents on your website? Watching an introductory video as a reward for clicking the play button? Landing on a page with helpful resources and links? Getting useful data from an online calculator? Viewing high-res images of your products?

3. Include Small Rewards in Your Opt-in Form

Once you think they’re ready to give you a way to stay in touch in exchange for immediate value (like giving their email in exchange for a free report), use a form that includes some gamification features.

The most common is feedback about the visitor’s success or failure in completing each field of the form. As the visitor tackles the field, they receive the equivalent of either a smiley face or a sad face. Here’s an example from the signup form for RememberTheMilk.com:

It may not seem like a big deal, but I found myself wanting to convert the red Xs into blue checkmarks, both when I first signed up for the service, and just now when I purposely left fields incomplete to generate the screenshot.

The small rewards are not meaningful enough to get me to do anything I don’t already want to do. It’s not like you could use checks and Xs to get me to sign up for the Miley Cyrus Online School of Dance. Yet they grease the skids and provide tiny momentum boosts that can keep me going in the face of momentary hesitation or unanticipated interruption.

Your website may not be as popular as Khan Academy, but you can still employ elements of game design to engage and encourage your visitors to ramp up their interactions.

The SES agenda focuses on aligning paid, owned and earned media to help you drive quality traffic and increase conversions.

SES Chicago is coming up!Book your pass to SES London
3 keynotes, plus over 60 sessions Super Saver rate ends Nov 1

31 Top Marketers Agree: It’s Time to Rethink Your Content Marketing – Free 214 Page eBook from Linkdex

Post Sponsored by Linkdex

Starting as a public relations firm with SEO skills in 2001, we’ve always had to create content for clients whether it was press releases, newsletters, case studies or graphics and diagrams for newsrooms and events.

In 2008 we made a major shift to what I call “SEO Plus” and focused a lot more on content. In fact, we were named the #1 content marketing blog that year by Junta42 (now Content Marketing Institute).

Fast forward to 2013 and the momentum of converged search, social media, public relations and content is unmistakable. SEO vendors and agencies are realizing marketing is the business we’re in, not just SEO.

One of those companies,�Linkdex,�is a marketing SaaS platform that brings content, search, social and PR components together in one service to help companies perform better marketing. This applies to service models that want to evolve from SEO to SEO plus, from PR or content marketing agency to integrated marketing agency. The same goes for departments within a company that want a platform to help integrated components of search, social media, content and PR.

To bring marketers and agencies the insights they need for this evolution towards more coordinated search, social, PR and content marketing, Matt Roberts and the Linkdex team reached out to 31 industry experts and created a 214 page eBook: ReThink Your Content Marketing.

Sometimes eBooks like this include the same list of names and insights, but I think you’ll find this one pretty refreshing. You’ll see why when you check out the list of international search and content marketing experts as well as the titles of their contributions covering strategy to tactics to measurement:

Joe Pulizzi (@joepulizzi) : ForewordLee Odden (@leeodden) : The Speed of ChangeBas van den Beld�(@basvandenbeld) : The Role of Content in Modern Day MarketingRick Ramos (@ricktramos) : 7 Reasons Why Content Marketing is the New BlackMatt Roberts (@Linkdex_Matt) : Use Content to Supercharge Your Organic MarketingRob Garner (@robgarner) : If You Have a Website, Then You Are Already a Real-Time PublisherAndrew Smith (@andismit) : What Can Content Marketing Learn from PR? And Vice VersaDanny Denhard (@dannydenhard) : Creating the Perfect Cocktail: Do PR, Social, SEO and Content Mix Well TogetherNick Garner (@nickgarner) : Organic Marketing Driving Social InfluencePhil Mackechnie (@akcamiwik) : Breaking Down Internal SilosRobert Rose (@Robert_Rose) : Be Remarkable or FailKevin Gibbons (@kevgibbo) : Creating a Multichannel Content Marketing StrategyPaul Roetzer (@paulroetzer) : The Art and Science of Content Marketing CollideMichael Brito (@britopian) : Transforming Your Brand to the Next Media CompanyAnn Handley (@marketingprofs) : Does Your Content Convey Honest EmpathyDarren Fell (@TeamCrunch) : With Content, You Reap What You SowHannah Smith (@Hannah_Bo_Banna) : Why You Need Great ContentStuart Tofts (@StuartTofts) : How to Use Content to Diversify and Strengthen Your Online MarketingMelissa Rach (@MelissaRach) : What Makes Content GreatSonja Jefferson and Sharon Tanton (@sonjajefferson – @sjtanton) : The Year That Content Grew UpSusan Genelius (@susangunelius) : Great Content is Shareworthy ContentSuzanne Fanning (@SuzanneWOMMA) : Content is No Longer KingHenneke Duistermaat (@HennekeD) : How to Write Great Content and Become an Influential WriterAvinash Kaushik (@avinash) : The See-Think-Do FrameworkSimon Penson (@simonpenson) : Content Strategy (Make Your Ideas Your Friends)Andreas Ramos (@Andreas_Ramos) : The Hub-and-Spoke Model of ContentChelsea Adams (ChelseAdams) : 5 Fresh Ways to Use Content Marketing as Lead GenerationJonathan Alderson (@jonoalderson) : Measuring the ROI of Content MarketingStephen Lock (@stevejlock) : Frameworks to Audit, Measure & Maximise Content Marketing ROIGerry McGovern (@gerrymcgovern) : Quality Content Means Measuring Outcomes, Not InputsKristjan Hauksson (@optimizeyourweb) : Content Impacts on a Global Scale

I’d be surprised if you’ve seen a free eBook this substantial on the topic of content marketing from so many thought leaders and practitioners. This is a necessary read for a lot of online marketers, from SEOs who still think content marketing is a link building tactic and that “more is better” to public relations practitioners that really need to get on the digital marketing track fast and in a meaningful way.

When you check out the ebook you can get a demo of Linkdex too if you like – totally up to you. Just make sure you dig in to the strategic to practical insights from all the search, social media, public relations and content marketing pros that contributed to the eBook. Then make sure you share it with your marketing and PR networks.

Once you read this eBook, here are some of the next steps and key questions to ask that I recommend in Chapter 1, “The Speed of Change”

What business goals could you solve with more useful and meaningful content?Who are the target audiences your business needs to connect with? What do they care about? What are their goals?Develop an editorial calendar that takes into account how each target customer segment discovers, consumes and acts on information during their buying cycleBuild search, social media and media optimization best practices into your content planning and promotion efforts so your brand can “be the best answer” where ever customers are lookingContinuously analyze key performance indicators and business outcomes to optimize the performance of your content marketing investment

Once you make the shift from content as a tactic to content as useful and meaningful information designed for specific customer groups and objectives, you’ll be on your way to more efficient and effective online marketing programs.

If you were going to contribute a short tip to a content marketing eBook like this, what would it be? �What’s one piece of advice you think is most important?

Leap Motion and the Future of Gestural Search

When the Leap Motion Controller debuted to the general public this past spring, response was lukewarm at best. Tech journalists grudgingly admitted it might be cool for gaming, if nothing else.

Among average consumers, the awareness was and remains next to zero. Mention Leap Motion and the response is likely to be "Leap what?" and, once you have explained, "you mean like Tom Cruise in Minority Report?".

Only the most hard-core design and tech nerds seemed to see the potential. But with the release of HP's new ENVY17 laptop, all that is about to change.

It's understandable that Leap didn't make a big splash at first.

The introduction of the product was fairly stealthy and promotional efforts were clearly targeted towards the designer and developer community, the people most likely to tinker with the SDK and come up with ideas for using the platform. This wasn't a bad strategy. After all, the initial success of the iPhone was due in no small part to the legions of Apple fanboys eager to fill up the AppStore with their ideas.

So far though, Leap Motion's AirSpace store boasts only a little over 100 applications creating a chicken/egg scenario for the product as it attempts to take off in earnest.

In order for people to adapt to Leap and to the concept of gestural interfaces in general, there needs to be applications that make gestural navigation fun and useful. And, of course, the functionality needs to be integrated into multiple device platforms.

The hardware integration is coming; the HP Envy laptop is just the beginning. Expect to see Leap navigation built into kiosks, connected televisions, gaming systems, kiosks and digital out of home displays everywhere you look within the next year.

There's little doubt that once the functionality is there, the developer community will explode with ideas, and many of these will be search-centric in nature. For example:

Wayfinding and Information Retrieval in Public Places

Hotels, airports, malls, and other public spaces will benefit from enabling visitors to manipulate and navigate large-format map display from a distance, zooming in and out on details and changing orientation simply by pointing.

Interactive Campaigns

Marketing campaigns delivered via large-format digital signage will become much more interactive by virtue of gestural sensitivity. Imagine the benefits of consumers being able to click through videos and images, play games, search through content etc. all while remaining at a distance and without requiring physical contact with screen.

The current Leap Motion hardware has a limit of roughly 8 cubic feet but over time, hardware limitations will no doubt extend to greater distances which will extend this capability to even bigger versions digital signage such as city billboards, sports arena jumbotrons, and even movie screens.

Business Presenting

First, there's the obvious benefit of doing away with the PowerPoint clicker once and for all. Now you'll just be able to point! But the uses of gestural navigation in presentation scenarios actually has much richer potential.

In internal business meetings, the ability to change and manipulate elements on the fly will make for more collaborative and dynamic workflows.

In formal, public scenarios, the enhanced ability to interact with one's content, unencumbered by ancillary hardware promises to add to the presenter's sense of ease and comfort in sharing their material.

Television

TV is probably the most obvious use case because who wouldn't love to get rid of their remote control? But while flicking through your channel selections by hand from the sofa is compelling for consumers, there's even more potential for brands.

We know that many consumers are watching television with smartphones and tablets in hand but the integration of gestural interactivity is the catalyst that will break through the fourth wall into our living rooms.

When you can Like or +1 a product directly within a commercial, click to get info, click to buy – by hand, at the spur of the moment, without getting up or picking up another device – we'll have truly realized the potential of interactive television.

Final Thoughts

Admittedly, few of these scenarios are right around the corner. There are hardware and integration limitations to address, little usability hurdles and major privacy issues that will need to be thought out for many use cases.

For example, it's all well and good that you can point to Like a product on a billboard several feet away but how will you log in to your account on a screen that all can see? Most likely some form of location and/or hardware based authentication will occur with the Leap-enabled interface verifying your identity via an app on your phone, smartwatch, Google Glasses, etc.

But these are barriers that will be surmounted before long. Leap is just the beginning.

The SES agenda focuses on aligning paid, owned and earned media to help you drive quality traffic and increase conversions.

SES Chicago is coming up!Book your pass to SES London
3 keynotes, plus over 60 sessions Super Saver rate ends Nov 1