Hey ho lets go

So Firefox 3has anew release candidate making news, suggesting that the browser is nearly done. May I suggest thatthe browser is nowhere near being done until the Mozilla Foundation drops itsfavoritism to Google and allow users to pick their own default search engine?And that Microsoft ought to be among those choices? Seriously, the entire Firefox+Google love fest is a joke. Let’s revisit alittle history here. Googlefought and fought topressure Microsoft so that no search provider was the default in InternetExplorer 7, arguing this was the best for consumer choice: "The market favors open choice for search, and companies should compete forusers based on the quality of their search services," said Marissa Mayer, thevice president for search products at Google. "We don’t think it’s right forMicrosoft to just set the default to MSN. We believe users should choose." Google got what it wanted. Internet Explorer has no default search engine. Ifyou upgraded to it, IE used … [Read more...] about Hey Firefox – Let Us Pick Our Own Search Engine!

share tweet share pin it e-mail share Mirror mirror on the wall, who’s the smartest speaker of them all? Amazon’s Alexa says she likes “all AIs.” Google Assistant can see the good in others, too, noting Alexas’s nice attributes, sexy blue lights and soothing voice. Apple’s Siri wouldn’t be caught dead answering that question. “Let’s talk about you, not me,” she says. In our latest Unwrapping the Secrets of SEO, we used the occasion of the release of Apple’s HomePod smart speaker to examine the increasingly crowded field and what it means for the world of search and content marketing. Unwrapping the Secrets of SEO And in this corner… Some 39 million American, or 16 percent, own at least one smart speaker, according to research from NPR and Edison Research. By the end of 2018, smart speaker penetration in Germany is expected to reach 26%, according to a global survey of … [Read more...] about Hey Google, Siri and Alexa, Who’s the Smartest Speaker in the Land?

Let’s say you have a manual penalty… not a nice way to open a post, I know, but it’s the reality for many site owners. What if Google shows you an example of one of your problematic links, and it’s one that sends you some really great converting traffic? What if, upon conducting a link audit, find that some of the “sketchy” links are ones that were editorially given? For example, here are a few of the pages linking to my site that get identified as being “dangerous” inbound links: One of my biggest sources for client referrals is this very site. It’s a high authority site that’s well respected, yet it gets flagged for me. Those links definitely send me converting traffic. I know it’s a tool and not a human that flagged them, but what if Google penalized my site and used these as examples of manipulative links? Stranger things have happened. What if you get dinged for comment and forum links, even though those were … [Read more...] about Naturally Generated Links? Hey, Google Might Still Hate Them!

The Google Phone rumors continue, whipping up afrenzy that some type ofannouncement about the Gphone is coming within days. It’ll be a phone! It’ll be an operatingsystem! It’ll be bundled software! And everyone is showing various photos that no onehas ever confirmed are pictures of an actual Gphone. Below, an updated timeline on all theGoogle Phone rumors we’ve had over the past few years, along with some perspective on why youare hearing so many conflicting things. Plus worry not, Apple fanboys, Google stillloves the iPhone. First, the timeline. I lied — it’s not below. It’s here:Gphone? The Google PhoneTimeline. That’s an article I did back in April, and now I’ve fully updated it toincorporate all the latest craziness. It made more sense to keep it all in oneplace. After you read the timeline, you’ll be confused. Don’t worry. Google’s a confusedcompany itself. It has multiple programs going on in general, so … [Read more...] about Updated Gphone Timeline & Let A Hundred Google Phones Bloom

I speak a lot about the ongoing battle for the heart and mind of the customer and the role that brand plays in this important fight. For all that chief marketing officers stress over their company's brand and often talk in terms of ownership, the fact is that a brand is bigger than any one person. It's bigger than executives, bigger than every employee. Taco Bell CMO Marisa Thalberg nailed it when she told an audience at our company's event last month that the community owns your brand. It's imperative to remember that CMOs and marketers are just the keepers of the brand - the "heavy lifting" is done by a brand's community, or "tribe," of customers, fans, influencers and advocates. I say "tribe" because great brands generate truly tribal feelings that define, inspire and empower. It's distributed brand ownership, and it's something you must work with, rather than against, to succeed. The power of large and inclusive tribes The B2C world is rife with examples of … [Read more...] about Hey, CMOs: Who owns your brand?