New Google Search Update Could Spell More Trouble for Business Websites

If you don't update your business website very often, you may want to rethink your online content strategy.

A little more than eight months after unveiling "Panda,"an update to Google's search algorithm that puts a higher priority on high-quality content, the search giant has announced a new update that aims to provide users with "the most up-to-date results."

"Given the incredibly fast pace at which information moves in today's world, the most recent information can be from the last week, day or even minute, and depending on the search terms, the algorithm needs to be able to figure out if a result from a week ago about a TV show is recent, or if a result from a week ago about breaking news is too old," Google says in a blog postannouncing the big change.

This latest update is expected to affect as much as 35 percent of all searches on Google, the company says. The Panda update, which had businesses scrambling to stay maintain their search rankings, was said to affect 12 percent of searches.

Specifically, Google says the update will impact searches for recent events or "hot topics," regularly occurring events, and searches for information that changes often but isn't necessarily a trending topic or recurring event.

"This change better determines the level of freshness needed for each query and promotes fresher results accordingly," a Google spokesperson says. "We're continuously working to improve our search algorithm so that we provide users the most relevant answers to their queries."

"It seems to me that the biggest impact on small-business owners will be that, in some industries, it will be near impossible to get visibility with a small, rarely-updated website," says Matt McGee, executive news editor at SEO-focused news site Search Engine Land. "If the business is in an industry where there's regular news, where things change on a frequent basis, it looks like never-updated websites won't have much chance of being visible on a lot of queries."

One effective way for businesses to generate fresh content for their website is to create and frequently update a business blog, McGee recommends. You can write short, informative posts on topics such as industry news or new on your business's new products or services.

"Blogs have always been great SEO weapons," McGee says, "and this change only seems to emphasize the value of publishing quality content on a regular basis." 

http://www.entrepreneur.com/blog/220662

Matthew Gough, 10X Digital

3 Ways to Use Social Media for Product Research and Development

Are you looking for creative ideas for your next product or service?

Have you considered the wellspring of social media conversations as a source of product or service innovation?

Keep reading to discover how you can tap social media to enhance the development of your next great product.

Social Media for Product Research?

Yes, that’s correct… you can use social media-based conversations, feedback, comments, complaints and more as a source of research and development! This can be especially handy for smaller businesses that do not have big budgets for R&D.

Social media is not as planned or controlled as a focus group when it comes to research and development; however, with concentrated time and dedication you canuse these channels to your company’s advantage. And, ultimately, you can benefit the very people you’re polling about improved and new products and services.

Innovation does not have to be limited to just within your company walls, so consider getting started with the following three steps.

#1: Establish your roadmap

Ask yourself what you want to accomplish. Are you looking for feedback on how to improve a customer-service process within your company? Does an existing product have flaws or need a new look? Are you looking to develop an entirely new product or service? Do your customers have a need for a product or service that you have not thought of?

Establishing your goals before you begin the research will allow you to develop a roadmap for success. If you know what you’re hoping to accomplish before you start, you’ll set yourself up for keeping on track, correcting if you steer off track and of course restructuring or closing down the research if you’re coming up with nothing in the area you’re seeking.

Part of the roadmap of goals will need to include the arenas in the social sphere in which you will be conducting the research. Not every social channel may be the right avenue.

• YouTube may come in handy if you want people to watch a series of new product demonstrations.

Cisco is one of many companies using social media forms, including YouTube to spread the word about new products and services to not just customers, but their large workforce as well.

• Twitter may be useful if you need to reach larger numbers of your audience and receive quick feedback.

In 2008, Zappos asked their Twitter followers to help them rewrite the confirmation email customers receive upon placing an order with the company. They wanted to add more “pizzazz” to the piece, so they held a contest to encourage their followers to participate in the rewriting process. The company’s CEO prioritizes deep connections with the customers as a way to provide the products and services those individuals want and need.

• Creating a Facebook app would permit you means for social co-creation with your fans.

VitaminWater sourced their latest drink flavor from participants on the company’s fan page. They offered fans the opportunity to combine their favorite flavors into a winning idea that would benefit the company with low-cost crowdsourcing and product development, and the fans with not only the chance at the $5,000 prize for the winning flavor, but creative input into a brand they value.

Jonathon Meiri, creator of Superfly.com, shares how his business discovered they could harness the power of social media for product innovation.

“Around the time that we launched (mid-May), we set up Facebook fan pages for Superfly as well as for various elite flier groups. We wanted to facilitate interactions among users of a particular frequent-flier program and get a sense for where their pain points would be. In our case, it’s like being invited to one of the elite airline lounges and sitting in on a conversation between two elite travelers, understanding their pain, and then building the products to solve it.”

Read the entire blog post here  http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/3-ways-to-use-social-media-for-product-research-and-development/

Cloud Computing 101

This is an excellent piece on cloud computing in a digestible format-

In a remarkably short time, cloud computing has emerged as a hugely important evolution in the way that

businesses and individuals consume and operate computing. It’s a fundamental shift to an operational

model in which applications don’t live out their lives on a specific piece of hardware and in which resources

are more flexibly deployed than was the historical norm. It’s also a fundamental shift to a development and

consumption model that replaces hard-wired, proprietary connections among software components and the

consumers of those components with lightweight web services and web-based software access.

Download the entire paper here.

This is one to watch!  One supermarket was buying keywords for their competitors search terms.  This will set the mold on how this is viewed in future cases.  I often get clients asking if this is 'legal'... the short answer is it depends on how much you are willing to spend to defend it.  Matthew Gough, 10X Digital.

Original Article from the Times Union:

The Capital Region's supermarket turf battle has moved to new territory -- federal court in Albany. Golub Corp., owner of Price Chopper supermarkets, last week filed suit against the cooperative that owns ShopRite, the grocery chain that recently opened in Niskayuna and is planning other stores across the region.

Golub alleges that a ShopRite online marketing effort infringed on copyrighted trademarks. That's because Google, Bing and other online search engines returned ads for ShopRite when users entered terms such as "Price Chopper & Albany." Golub alleges that ShopRite's owner, Wakefern Food Corp., paid for trademarked keywords to ensure those ads would appear. As anyone who has shopped online can attest, the world of Internet advertising is still wild and woolly. And it isn't difficult to find examples of online searches that bring up a rival company's ad. But Golub alleges its rival took that tactic a step further, because the text of the ShopRite ads allegedly contained words such as "Price Chopper flyer." Therefore, Golub contends, consumers who thought they were clicking on a Price Chopper promotion were taken instead to ShopRite's website. "We think it's highly deceptive," Price Chopper spokeswoman Mona Golub said Monday. "It's using Price Chopper's established name to redirect a consumer to another site that happens to be a competitor to Price Chopper." Karen Meleta, a spokeswoman for ShopRite, said she would not comment on the lawsuit because Wakefern had not received a copy of the complaint. But Meleta said Wakefern became aware of the search engine advertisements only when a Capital Region media outlet called about them last week. Wakefern immediately told its advertising agency to pull the promotions, Meleta said.

"It was not in keeping with our practices," she added.

ShopRite opened its Niskayuna location earlier this month and has aggressively promoted the store, luring throngs of curious shoppers. The store says it is offering a level of service and merchandise that's unmatched in the region. But Price Chopper, with deep local roots, and Maine-based Hannaford have each indicated they will be just as aggressive about defending their Capital Region market share. So perhaps a dispute over marketing and advertising strategies shouldn't be surprising.

Sanjay Putrevu, a marketing professor at UAlbany, said the dispute between Price Chopper and ShopRite carries risks for both companies.On one hand, Putrevu said, Price Chopper's decision to sue could amplify the ShopRite ad, making more shoppers aware of the chain's presence in the region. But, he added, it's also possible some shoppers could be turned off by the ShopRite ads, particularly if the chain continues to run them -- which, of course, it has indicated it will not do. Mona Golub, at Price Chopper, said the company will continue with the lawsuit, though the advertisements have been discontinued. Price Chopper believes it and its customers were harmed by the ads. Indeed, the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court asks for damages that include "profits derived by ... any of the wrongful acts" alleged by Price Chopper.

Internet marketing experts on Monday said the law on Internet trademark violation claims still seems unsettled, meaning that many in the industry will be watching the Price Chopper suit closely.

Rhea Drysdale, co-founder of Outspoken Media, a Troy firm that specializes in Internet marketing, noted that companies who feel their trademarks have been violated in the text of an ad also can appeal directly to Google and other search engines for relief. "In my mind, the responsibility is on Google to monitor that." Drysdale said.

Read more: http://www.timesunion.com/business/article/Legal-cleanup-in-online-aisle-2234594.php#ixzz1bp0rUda7

Innovation & Entrepreneurship (it is the environment I thrive in)

I am a big fan of the entrepreneurship that has fueled the growth of America.  Connecting the dots between thoughts, ideas and actions; recognizing the true opportunity to get out of our own way and let go-that is the environment that I thrive in.  Innovation is exciting.  We cram ourselves down in our personal and professional lives over a period of time and begin to embrace the notion that mediocrity is acceptable.   It’s not acceptable.  You only get one go around on this planet and life is not a dress rehearsal.  So do your best work.

I take this approach in my business life.  How can we create a better product, a better service?  How can we do it different than our competitors? How can we dominate a market?  What does the customer REALLY want?  What dysfunction do we have in our company, our department, and our minds that are holding us back from going big?  What are the things that are sitting right in front of us that we simply cannot recognize?

Last night I watched a piece on Steve Jobs on 60 Minutes, he was a true innovator.  If we all reach for that and fall short we are doing pretty damn well.

Matthew Gough, 10X Digital

Content Marketing is KING!

When it comes to marketing strategies, content marketing has just been crowned king, far surpassing search engine marketing, public relations and even print, television and radio advertising as the preferred marketing tool for today's business-to-business entrepreneur.

Late this summer, HiveFire, a Cambridge, Mass.-based internet marketing software solutions company, surveyed nearly 400 marketing professionals about the state of the business-to-business, or B2B, market, and discovered that marketers are retreating from traditional marketing tactics such as search marketing and have made content marketing the most-used tactic in their brand-enhancing tool box. Fact is, according to HiveFire's B2B Marketing Trends Survey Report, twice as many B2B marketers now employ content marketing as they do print, TV and radio advertising, according to the survey.

So what exactly is content marketing? It's the creation and publication of original content -- including blog posts, case studies, white papers, videos and photos -- for the purpose of generating leads, enhancing a brand's visibility, and putting the company's subject matter expertise on display. HiveFire's researchers found that an impressive 82 percent of B2B marketers now employ content marketing as a strategy in their marketing programs. Coming in at a distant second place is search engine marketing at 70 percent, followed by events at 68 percent, public relations at 64 percent and print/TV/radio advertising at 32 percent.

Seventy-eight percent of respondents said driving sales and leads was the top marketing goal of their organization, followed by boosting brand awareness and establishing or maintaining thought leadership (both at 35 percent). Another 28 percent said their primary goal was to increase web traffic and 24 percent said it was to improve search results.

Part of the popularity of content marketing is its ability to generate qualified leads while engaging prospects in a branded environment without busting the budget. Nearly half of the content marketers interviewed said they dedicate less than a third of their budgets to such marketing expenditures. In addition to frugality, B2B marketers also believe most of their customers and prospects are online, which is why they're focusing their marketing efforts on the Internet.

Finally, the survey shows that "content curation" -- which is defined as the process of finding, organizing and sharing content -- continues to gain strength as a top marketing strategy, up 17 percent from six months ago. Seen as a way for marketers to fuel their marketing programs, content curation does have its problems. Nearly 70 percent of content curators say lack of time hinders their efforts, with 66 percent saying a lack of original and quality content is a major drawback. Another 38 percent say difficulty in measuring results is the stumbling block and 37 percent say lack of staff to do the work is the hindrance.

Despite these issues, the survey makes clear that content marketing is only going to become more important going forward, whether you market to other businesses or to the public at large.

Good Read!  Matthew Gough, 10X Digital

Remembering Steve Jobs

Exactly two weeks after the death of Steve Jobs, Apple closed its store doors for a few hours today in remembrance of its fearless co-founder and leader.

Perhaps more poignantly, Apple has set up a very simple “Remembering Steve” web page, where you can view the tributes sent to rememberingsteve@apple.com in streaming format. According to Apple over a million written homages were collected in the past fourteen days.

If that number seems like a lot, consider how many people own and love Apple products … Just a few that crossed my path while I was watching the page, below.

“I was strictly a PC guy five short years ago, but because of Steve Jobs’ tireless efforts, innovative vision, and commitment to bringing the best technology to the forefront, he converted me to the Apple ranks. Hoping his legacy lives on and on.”

“I am 25 years old. I feel like a person in the 60′s with Marilyn Monroe or John F. Kennedy. They are people you never met felt so close too. Seeing apple produce and revolutionize the technology industry and seeing steve jobs lead it all you almost have a connection with him. For 6 years I have been watching the keynote presentations with steve on stage. It is so sad that inspirers will not seeing him on stage anymore and be apart of apple. He will be truly missed. But what a legacy he leaves behind. What a legacy.?”

“Dear Steve, Thank you for all that you brought into this world, you not only changed the way we use our computers, but the way we see life. I will stay hungry and foolish for as long as I live, and someday we’ll meet up there. Thank you for being in our lives. You will always be remembered and loved.”

“don’t really notice how much steve has had an effect on all of us until you stop to think about it. until you unlock your iPhone or open your macbook or boot up your iMac. i don’t just use apple products because they work so well or are flawless in design, i use apple products because steve got it.”

For Me as a music lover, I bought the first IPOD.  I still have it, although it no longer works it is sort of this little treasure of innovation that I keep on a bookshelf in my home.  It is thick and clunky with a small screen (AND not touch screen!).  I remember getting the first iPhone when it came out and being amazed that I could keep a computer and a my entire 5000 song library of songs in my pocket.  For all of that, thanks Steve-

Matthew Gough, 10X Digital

Internet Trends Report 2011 WEB 2.0 Conference

This fact-packed presentation compiled by KPCB partner Mary Meeker explores and examines the significant trends shaping the Internet today. Backed by hard data and decades of technology analysis, Mary posits that the mobile revolution is still in its infancy and poised for tremendous growth. Her presentation also zeroes in on the newest breakout trends driving e-commerce, including the rejuvenating effects of local commerce, the global race to adopt mobile devices and apps, and the latest innovations in online payments. The evolving social space comes under Mary’s scrutiny as well. She observes that social networking is proving to be not just a powerful engagement model, but also a pervasive new wave of opportunity that spans the online experience. View the full presentation for a look at the digital trends that surround us in today’s increasingly mobile, social world.


To View the Report go here  http://www.kpcb.com/internettrends2011

7 Steps to a Culture of Innovation

A great article on Inc.com, something that everyone should read and take what they will from it.  The real issue is that companies and business leaders don't think about this enough, put it on their quarterly planning goals and foster this as part of the company culture by and large.

http://www.inc.com/articles/201106/josh-linkner-7-steps-to-a-culture-of-innovation.html

Redefining Reference Checking- Chequed.com

Some really awesome stuff around chequed.com, redefining reference checking and making the screening process both predictive and automated.  Take a look at a recent Chequed.com video...  comments are welcome!