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Hudson Horizons presents SEO friendly CMS

Tue, 06 Jan 2009 16:38:59 EST

Welcome back! In Part I of this post, I wrote about Dave Enge's valuable advice on why selecting a Search Engine Friendly Content Management System is so important. Here's a quick recap:

The Internet is composed of thousands of websites, which are composed of thousands of webpages, which are composed of millions of pieces of content. Perhaps your company has only recently begun integrating a CMS in your website, but the platforms themselves may have been designed when your SEO priorities were but a glimmer in a software developer's eye. Well, you get the point.

Choosing an inadequate CMS essentially shuts the door on hundreds of opportunities to enhance your visibility, page rank, and other invaluable factors for your website. Why risk that? On the other hand, CMS research can be time-consuming. Since we all know time = money, why not skip the research and instead, read a bit about the SEO Friendly CMS envisioned, created, and embedded by the team of expert developers at Hudson Horizons.

A major goal at Hudson Horizons is to provide a CMS that is truly search engine friendly and offers more for your business. We convert all dynamic pages into static content, making your website completely SEO friendly.

Our CMS generates URLs that are well-received by the search engines and will help increase your website's ranking. Because each URL reflects the content that's on that particular page, you can ensure a successful and relevant crawl every time.

Our CMS includes a Meta Tag Tool that allows you to easily update the individual titles, keywords, and descriptions for each page of your website. These items are inserted into the code of each page and will help increase your page ranking in the search engines.

Other features of our SEO Friendly CMS include:

100% Customization, 100% Access, 100% Guaranteed: Our Content Management systems are customized to fit any business, any size, in any industry. Our team can convert your existing website into a Content Management System if you don't already have one, giving you the full ability to manage pages, text, pictures, contact forms, news events, FAQs, products, services and much more. Because we don't work with third-party developers, we guarantee a 100% hand-coded system as powerful as it is efficient.

Simple to Use: We've crafted our CMS so everyone can benefit from it, not just high-tech developers. It's simple to use, and there's no HTML or coding required

Versatile Functionality: Own an e-Commerce website? We can customize your CMS to integrate with e-Commerce and shopping cart functionality.

24/7 Customer Support: As with all of our products, we guarantee the highest level of customer service.

Why you want a Search Engine Friendly CMS

Tue, 06 Jan 2009 16:32:51 EST

B2B and B2C Seeking CMS friendly with SEO, ASAP!

Sounds like a personal ad on Craigslist, doesn't it? Quite the contrary... listen up, website owners. This is an article you don't want to miss.

On Monday, Eric Enge posted a great article on Content Management Systems (CMS), and how important it is to "Choose Your CMS With Care."

"With Care..." what does this mean?

Well, Enge emphasized the significance of choosing a CMS that not only compliments your ongoing SEO campaign, but enhances it. Chances are your company spends a lot of time and money optimizing on and off page content. How frustrating would it be if an element of your site designed to boost efficiency, your own CMS, was actually working against your optimization efforts? Treason! And yet, it happens every day.

Below is a brief summary of three SEO elements Enge included in his article. They are very common and very useful in modern day SEO. But! Integrate a dusty, clunky, inefficient Content Management System into your website, and you could miss out on these opportunities, and a lot more.

Presenting: Eric Enge's three "dire consequences that can occur when you choose a CMS that's not search friendly."

1) "Massive duplicate content issues."

Certain Content Management Systems index the same page on your website under multiple URLs. From there, they might use these different URLs to point back to that same page. What's the drawback? Duplicate content. It's a waste of time for you AND for search engines- spiders crawling the same page for every different URL your CMS generates? I don't think so. All that extra time spent indexing duplicate content is time not spent indexing unique pages on your site, as Enge smartly points out.

2) "No control over meta data."

Other Content Management systems don't believe in giving you the option to create your own meta data. That's just nonsense. "Imagine every page of your site with the exact same title tag," Enge writes. "Title tags are the most important on-page SEO factor you have complete control over," so to choose a CMS that doesn't give you this freedom is absolutely absurd. Enge continues, "Imagine every page of your site with the same meta description tag." Though he highlights that meta descriptions don't have weight in page rankings, they do have a sway over browsers. These descriptions are some of the first things browsers see on the SERPs next to your link. Why give up a simple opportunity to reel in a web surfer for the sake of a controlling CMS?

3) "Dynamic URLs that change over time."

For search engines, crawling, ranking, and indexing websites is a continual process. Have you ever heard of a web spider sleeping on the job? As Enge points out, dynamic URLs are often changing. An inadequate CMS will not facilitate this, leading spiders to a 404 page, and leaving search engines stumped. Just as with duplicate content, your finicky CMS will require the spiders to spend extra time searching for the new URLs of your pages, and as Enge writes, "rediscovering the page could take months." Who's got that sort of time?

The Long-and-Short of it:

Enge mentions that if you've integrated a bogus CMS, comprehensive replacement is a possibility. A time-consuming, expensive possibility, but a possibility nonetheless.

Before you fall into that trap, take your time researching Content Management Systems before you integrate one into your website. Look for one that is SEO Friendly so it works with your structured, productive, and rewarding SEO campaign, not against it!

Not in the mood to do your homework on SEO Friendly Content Management Systems? Check out Part II of this post. It's all about the SEO Friendly CMS envisioned, created, and embedded by the team of expert developers at Hudson Horizons.

Google unveils AdWords Editor 7.0

Mon, 05 Jan 2009 17:06:25 EST

Over the past decade, Google has clearly made its mark on the search engine industry-- and over recent years, with its dynamic, useful web tools, Google has become a leading player in online marketing and advertising.

Google AdWords in particular is a very successful a Pay-per-Click (PPC) program that allows advertisers to create ads and have them displayed on the right hand of the Google search engine when certain keywords are entered by a user. Google AdWords also integrates with Google affiliate websites through their Google AdSense program.

A few weeks ago, ecommerce-guide.com reported that AdWords Editor 7.0 is ready, willing, and eager to help advertisers and site owners streamline their AdWords campaigns.

Google launched AdWords Editor 6.5 just two months ago, but already they are rolling out new features and enhancements with AdWords Editor 7.0. The new version allows users to download their account to their desktop, use a variety of tools to modify their campaign, and upload their new campaigns to the AdWords database.

According to ecommerce-guide.com, AdWords Editor 7.0 boasts a variety of new features including:

First page bid estimates: First page bid estimates for keywords, and not minimum cost-per-click bids, now take priority in campaigns.
Keyword Quality Score: A Keywords tab features each keyword in your campaign as well as its Quality Score
Keyword Opportunities locale: Keyword suggestions can now be filtered and specified by language and location
Campaign Targeting in the Data View: Track your targeting settings in specific new ‘Language' and ‘Location' columns
Absolute Versus Scaled Values: The Keyword tab now features a ‘Volume' column, which displays last month's traffic (absolute numbers) as opposed to scaled values

There are several other features not mentioned here, so for more information, check out the AdWords Editor webpage!

Phishers reel in passwords from phony Gmail messages

Mon, 05 Jan 2009 16:27:49 EST

Just earlier today, I wrote about the phishing threat bubbling over at microblogging web community Twitter. That's right, despicable phishers have been sending out phony email notifications to Twitterers, prompting them to visit a link included in the body of the email... the link leads to a phony Twitter site where visitors are asked to input their login and password information. And it's all downhill from there...

Last Tuesday Chris Crum reported with webpronews.com that phishers are also operating under the guise of Google Calendar event invitations.

"Be wary of any invitations that ask for your password," Crum warned, explaining that phishers are sending out legitimate-looking emails from addresses such as customerservice1234@gmail.com (the digits vary with each message).

Crum considerately included a snippet from one of the scam emails... have you recently received an email from "Google" that resembles the following?

"THIS Email is from Gmail Customer Care and we are sending it to every Gmail Email User Accounts Owner for safety. we are having congestions due to the anonymous registration of Gmail accounts so we are shutting down some Gmail accounts and your account was among those to be deleted. We are sending you this email so that you can verify and let us know if you still want to use this account."

Verify smerify... the email goes on to prompt readers to input their Gmail username and password. And it's all downhill from there.

Spammers, scammers, hackers and phishers have posed a problem for years. Identity theft has almost become a common term in our web surfing vocabulary. Thankfully, these troubling encounters have encouraged browsers to take extra caution when opening emails from unknown senders or submitting their personal information to suspect websites. Still, as Crum laments, "These phishers still manage to trick people."

ALERT: Twitter database has some phishy activity

Mon, 05 Jan 2009 15:47:43 EST

The Hudson Horizons team has recently become very involved with Twitter. Since we created our own account, we've been regularly microblogging to keep our clients and partners in the loop about our company events and projects.

On Saturday, the Twitter team updated its company blog to include a troubling protection message:

"If you receive a direct message or a direct message email notification that redirects to what looks like Twitter.com-don't sign in. Look closely at the URL because it could be a scam."

The screenshot below, also taken from the blog post, depicts a typical-looking Twitter page. But look closely-- see the URL address? It's a phony redirect link these phishers are including in their scam email messages:

The Twitter blog post continued, "We've identified a phishing scam directed at Twitter users and we don't want you to get tricked into giving your password to a scammer."

What's phishing? It's sort of like a sub-level of computer hacking, through which scammers attempt to retrieve sensitive information from web surfers, including account login information, passwords, addresses, social security numbers, credit card and banking information, and more.

Twitter maintained that the phishing threat they identified is being passed through phony emails. The emails have been carefully designed to look like legit notifications from the microblogging website.

Sometimes they include unassuming messages such as: "hey! check out this funny blog about you..." and a clickable link. Twitter explained that the link "redirects to a site masquerading as the Twitter front page. Look closely at the URL field, if it has another domain besides Twitter but looks exactly like our page then it's a fraud and you should not sign in."

If you've received a suspect email from Twitter, and if you're worried you may have submitted your account and password information to one of these phony sites, Twitter recommends you reset your password immediately to protect your account against hackers looking to spam your Twitter contacts.

Don't let spammers, scammers, phishers, hackers, trolls, or cyberbullies ruin your online experience! Educate yourself, protect your computer, and help keep the wonderful world of Web 2.0 technologies a safe and enjoyable environment!

Be on the look out for beta Window 7

Mon, 05 Jan 2009 15:11:30 EST

Recently, CNET reported that the leading software manufacturer, Microsoft, launched the first beta version of its upcoming operating system earlier than anticipated.

The platform, Windows 7, was scheduled to debut "in time for the 2009 holiday shopping season" and Microsoft even conducted a demo last month at the L.A.-based Professional Developers Conference. Sources maintained that many of the improvements Windows 7 boasts are very subtle compared to those made with the ground-breaking (and controversial) Vista operating system.

CNET mentioned that members of the conference walked away with "pre-beta copies of Windows 7 on DVD, as well as a 160GB Western Digital portable hard drive packed with code." But according to CNET, other traces of Windows 7 have been discovered by torrent trackers, and by ZDNet's Adrian Kingsley-Hughes who claims to have his own copy of the operating system.

His comments conveyed a general satisfaction, and CNET mentioned that he referred to Windows 7 as having a "solid and fast" functionality.

Other elements were not received in such a positive manner; for example, Kingsley-Hughes commented that the refurbished taskbar "is visually very interesting" but does not clearly distinguish between currently operating applications and shortcut buttons that are merely integrated in the toolbar.

Stay tuned for Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer's two cents on Windows 7, which is apparently on his speech agenda for the Consumer Electronics conference next week.

Page Titles and Pagination

Tue, 30 Dec 2008 22:32:02 EST

How to deal with proper Meta Tags when dealing with pagination?

This is a big dilemma we face on a constant basis, when you are dealing with several pages of the same data set how are you going to give it up correctly to the search engines.

To be honest we are still working on perfecting the correct solution for Meta data and paging.

As of now this is the rule of thumb we follow:

Page Number 1 does not exist, when paging never change the title, description of keywords when you are on Page Number 1
When you start to page, change the page title to "Page Title Page #"
If you are an experience programmer, convert the page number to words, for example, "Page Title Page Two" might be a little better then "Page Title Page 2"
Try to template out the page description to include the page [page number in words] in the first sentence.
If you still utilize keywords in the meta data, Page [page number in words] should be the first keyword, followed by Page [numeric], etc.

We are still perfecting the solution but these are some ideas we have. If you have any ideas please let us know.

China seeks big jail time for hackers & co.

Tue, 30 Dec 2008 16:34:58 EST

Last Tuesday, the AFP reported that China is taking steps to "fight rampant computer data theft" within its cities. Pending amendments for its Criminal Law seek to deliver serious jail time to persons who hack into a variety of the country's networks- but the hackers won't be the only ones taking the brunt of these sentence...

Chinese parliament is looking to charge accomplices who supply software or other means to facilitate the cyber crimes and have them "face similar penalties" according to the China Daily media report.

Currently, the Criminal Law in China only covers "networks of governments, national defense or advanced science sectors" in hacking cases. If passed, the revised law, which was reread by the National People's Congress last Monday, would represent a new series of "legal tools" used to "crack down on increasing data theft from non-official computers in China," the AFP reported.

We read about identity theft, hacking, and spam settlements so often in the United States that it's easy to forget other countries are plagued by similar cyber assailants. But the China Daily reported that its citizens, just as many others around the world, have faced "rampant stealing of account numbers and passwords" particular from gaming and banking websites. It is this despicable hacking that led the public security ministry to propose these Criminal Law amendments in the first place.

The AFP included startling statistics on the magnitude of the problems in China: "more than 20,000 online gaming accounts with a market value of around 200,000 yuan (29,200 dollars) are stolen every day in the central province of Hunan alone," the article reported, citing official figures.

Commenting on the severe scale of the issue, deputy director of parliament's law committee Li Shishi stated: "We consider it necessary to define them as crimes."

I haven't heard yet when an official decision will be released as to whether or not the amendments have been passed... check back for more updates as China bravely soldiers forward in the battle against cyber crime and hackers.

33 Re-Branded Logos from 2008

Tue, 30 Dec 2008 14:32:01 EST

Our company is currently in the process of re-branding our logo. Along with our in-house design team and social media specialist, I have been brainstorming new logo ideas in addition to researching what constitutes a successful re-brand. During this process, we have remained conscious of the dilemma re-branding can create: as we move forward, we want to re-brand our business as a Web 2.0 driven Web Company, but we also want to keep integral features of our brand that have successfully distinguished us over the past six years.

One of our designers came across a valuable post discussing 33 Re-Branded Logos from 2008. If you scroll down the page, you will see some popular company names that have re-branded their logos in 2008. Some of these companies incorporated subtle logo changes, but you will notice that others have completely transformed their brand identity.

Check back for more updates, as I will continue to share our progress with the Hudson Horizon company logo re-branding process.

Hook customers with the goods, not gimmicks

Tue, 30 Dec 2008 12:21:48 EST

Do you sell products online through your own e-Commerce website? If so, then you have probably considered different company promotions and sales tactics to give your company an edge on the competition, encourage membership registration, and ensure customer retention.

In light of the holiday season, many e-Commerce websites have turned to their shipping policies to find room for adjustments that might enhance their business. As in many areas of life, when shopping online, the word "FREE" is often an attention-grabber... and a website that offers FREE SHIPPING to customers will surely turn a few heads.

But as Lena West, CEO of xynoMedia Technology, wrote about last Monday, there are often drawbacks to free shipping hidden beneath the veneer of that all too appealing word...

Don't get me wrong... I'm not suggesting that your e-Commerce website head in the polar opposite route of "free shipping" and charge your customers an arm and a leg. As West pointed out, shipping costs are a very important factor when customers choose whether to continue with checkout or flee the scene.

According to a 2008 survey conducted by PayPal and comScore, 43% of surveyed shoppers "said they abandon their shopping carts because of unexpectedly high shipping charges." In a similar survey conducted by Forrester Research, 61% of surveyed shoppers are more likely to conduct online transactions with an e-Commerce site that doesn't have high shipping charges.

On the flip side of the coin, there's the concern shared by many online sellers that their profits would dwindle if they facilitated free shipping to all customers. Some retailers compensate this by imposing hefty handling fees in lieu of shipping costs-but these charges can be equally off-putting to customers in the checkout line.

So where's the happy medium where customer satisfaction meets business profitability?

West recommends e-Commerce site owners strive to accomplish "modest revenues and low operating margins" over "high revenues and high operating margins" and I agree. It's the same thing as SEO and e-Marketing, to an extent... it's best to choose a carefully charted path that will successfully generate awareness and long-term retention rather than rely on cheap gimmicks that will create a fleeting buzz about your company only to have it vanish in the sea of websites two minutes later.

So, coming back to e-Commerce shipping cost tactics.... below are a few worthwhile alternatives to free shipping like the ones West described in her article. These alternatives are reasonable, responsible, and unlike some of the disadvantages that accompany "free shipping," are sure to please retailers and customers alike.

Consider looking into "intelligent shipping," an e-Commerce checkout technique that tailors each transaction based upon the customer demographics. This works best for returning buyers, or buyers that have created an account while registering with your e-Commerce website. When you know certain customer information, as West describes, such as "location, order size, loyalty, etc." you can create a more personable shopping experience that will encourage the buyer to return to your store.

Another alternative is "ultra low-cost shipping," which can start at a very low flat fee of, for example, $1.00. West suggests starting out here and perhaps going through a test phase of gradually increasing shipping fees until profits become compromised. By increasing in increments of $0.99, you can get your shoppers slowly acclimated to new shipping fees without intimidating them to the point of checkout abandonment.

If you're insistent on claiming your e-Commerce website offers "FREE SHIPPING," then perhaps you can offer the feature as a promotion correlating to the total order size. West provided the clever example of a company with an average order size of $90; to encourage more sales, you can offer "free shipping on orders over $100 to increase your average order size." This appeases both buyers and sellers alike.

Looking to ensure customer retention to keep your company ahead of competition? Why not offer free shipping as a reward for loyal customers, or for recently registered customers? Nothing says "I appreciate your business" more than a personal perk for the shoppers themselves.

These are but a handful of alternatives your e-Commerce website can implement rather than the cheap trick of free shipping, which could harm your profits or your reputation in the long run. Remember, as with any facet of operating a business online, the road to success is one of careful, consistent attention to upcoming trends and tried-and-true traditions alike.

Interested in leaving some of the e-Commerce headaches to the professionals? Check out the e-Commerce Website Solutions designed by Hudson Horizons. Contact us today to benefit from our Web 2.0 experience in everything from Order Fulfillment Services to Online Payment Solutions, and get your business to the top of its game.

2008 Holiday e-Commerce: a success story!

Tue, 30 Dec 2008 12:21:04 EST

Last Friday, Lauren Shepherd reported with the Associated Press that popular e-Commerce marketplace, Amazon.com, had a very merry holiday indeed.

Company Spokeswoman Sally Fouts proudly referred to Amazon's performance during the holiday season the "best ever." Yes- Amazon.com boasted a 17% increase in orders on its "busiest day," with more than 6.3 million recorded items ordered, compared to 5.4 million items on its "busiest day" in 2007. Shipping progress saw an impressive 44% increase, with an estimated 5.6 million items shipped on the "busiest day" compared to last year's 3.9 million.

The hottest items in the Amazon.com shopping carts this holiday season, asShepherd reported, appeared to be the Nintendo Wii, the 52' Samsung LCD HDTV, and the ever-popular iPod touch.

While Amazon did not include specific net profits in this company announcement, Fouts commented that the company would include detailed results in its upcoming fourth-quarter earnings report.

Scott Devitt, an analyst with Stifel Nicolaus & Co., attributed Amazon's success to its recently revamped layout and an overall "vast infrastructure that allows for faster, more reliable shipping."Sucharita Mulpuru, an analyst with Forrester Research, commented that "the current economy is favoring discount retailers, both online and offline." What's this mean? Well, while this report from Amazon is encouraging for its own company progress, it doesn't necessarily indicate a trend that e-Commerce sites in general are stealing the in-store retail competition. After all, prices still matter, folks- and while e-Commerce sites can boast things such as free shipping, there's often room for a catch...

Amazon is typically a very reliable site for online shopping, but if you choose to browse in other cyber boutiques, make sure you read the fine print so you don't get slammed with handling fees or high shipping costs. Otherwise, the local mall may be the best bet for you!

Do you own an e-Commerce website, and long to attract customers with the appeal of "FREE SHIPPING"...? There might be more useful ways to draw traffic to your store and ensure customer satisfaction all in one. Check out yesterday's post to learn how to hook customers with the goods, not gimmicks.

Toot your company horn 24/7 with Twitter

Tue, 30 Dec 2008 12:20:49 EST

Just yesterday, Hudson Horizons joined the Twitter community. We created a personal account and have been "micro-blogging" on this and that ever since... and now you can follow us on Twitter to find out more.

Already, I'll admit, these little "tweet" 140-character updates are a bit addictive. Our company is at an exciting point right now where we are constantly evolving. Twitter seems to be the perfect social channel to house all of this activity and spread the word about Hudson Horizons.

Many of our clients own and operate their own e-Commerce websites where they showcase and retail all sorts of items-from pharmaceuticals to stationary, from fresh produce to window treatments, and everything in between.

In addition to being a website development company, we're also an e-Commerce site with fully customized products including our innovative

...and as a member of both the e-Commerce and web development community, we understand how innovative tools such as Twitter can enhance a website's visibility, popularity, and productivity.

David Miller posted an interesting article on InternetNews.com about the different kinds of companies and organizations that are using Twitter, a free microblogging service, to enhance their web presence. Below is an overview of the companies he discussed and the ways they are benefiting from this sweet tweeting social tool.

The Red Cross. That's right-Twitter isn't just for on-the-go socialites. Miller quoted Claire Sale, an interactive media specialist with the distinguished Red Cross medical company, as she explained that the Red Cross began using Twitter "to get info out to the public and the media."

Sure, a lot of companies are using Twitter for the same thing. But when it comes to the urgent nature of Red Cross communications, Sale commented that Twitter has "been most successful in disaster response, like the recent wildfires in California." Miller reported that presently, the Red Cross has over 3,000 persons following its Twitter "tweet" microblog posts.

Dell Computers. Miller smartly pointed out that many retail companies, such as Dell, regard the instantaneous nature of Twitter tweets as "an effective way of communicating with consumers." Would you believe that this free social tool is responsible for the computer company's "$1 million in revenue over the past year and a half through sale alerts..."? Remarkable!

By following Dell's frequent tweets, which typically feature messages about sudden sales and clearances, customers can stay up to speed on their favorite electronics and easily click through to the Dell Home Outlet Store website to make their purchases.

Jet Blue. Soaring in the sky with Twitter tweets? You bet. Airline Company Jet Blue offers "real-time discounts" through Twitter and sometimes, as Miller reported, is capable of "even offering tickets or adding flights" if it notices a good amount of Twitter followers are in sudden need.

What's more, JetBlue is using the social tool as a sort of customer satisfaction platform when it "monitors Twitter for comments about the company, responding quickly to compliments and complaints, and following its customers."

So as you see, folks-Twitter, like so many other social tools, may have been created for strictly social circles, but it has so much to offer a plethora of groups, organizations, communities, and yes, even businesses.

Do you own an e-Commerce website? Why not consider using Twitter to keep your customers in the loop on spur-of-the-moment sales, sudden close-out prices, discount shipping promotions or member registration free-bees? In this day-in-age, everything... especially the Internet... is all about speed! So tweet your heart out, and spread your company message now!

Don't Forget the 301 Redirect

Wed, 24 Dec 2008 12:01:43 EST

We ran into an interesting problem this week: a client was having issues getting certain pages of its website indexed in Google. The pages would resolve fine, the meta data was accurate, but for whatever reason these pages would not index in Google.

We examined the code and found that the links were actually implemented as Redirects. After further research we realized that this handful of redirects failed to tell the browser 301 Permanent Redirect. We changed around the coding to accomodate for this... it will probably take a couple of days for Google to index these pages but at least we were able to fix the problem.

Long story short: if you are using redirects, make sure that you have a return a response status or you will run into the same indexing problems with Google. Incorrectly programmed redirects can cause SEO issues.

Here is a great resource for correctly setting up the 301 redirects.

The first step towards Search Wiki opt-out feature

Tue, 23 Dec 2008 12:40:04 EST

On Wednesday, Michael Arrington reported with TechCrunch that Google’s latest feature, Search Wiki, will most likely be able to be “turned off” in the near future.

Arrington’s brief but ground-breaking post came after he spoke with Google’s Vice President of Search Product and User Experience, Marissa Mayer, at the Le Web conference in Paris.

After explaining his discontent with Google’s recently released feature, Search Wiki, the ball seemed to be in Mayer’s court to defend or at least justify the tool. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Search Wiki, it’s a new aspect of Google search results… here’s a quick overview:

Search for a keyword or keyword phrase
See the typical Google SERP for that query
(But now) have the ability to:
- Remove what YOU deem irrelevant results
- Bump superior results to the top of the page
- Leave text comments on each link to remind of you why you like or dislike that website
- View other users’ comments, etc.

In this regard, there are many elements about Search Wiki that lend themselves to the concept of “peer-editing…” but peer-editing universal search results? Not quite yet… your personal rankings will only affect your personal SERPs and only when you are logged into your Google account.

While Mayer maintained that Search Wiki “has a minimal visual impact and that many users are finding it useful to move search results around on the page,” Arrington responded with his discontent over the fact that Google Search Wiki lacks an integral opt-out feature.

Mayer allegedly responded that “a toggle button to allow users to turn the feature off” will be available by the first quarter of the fiscal year. Keep an eye on your Google SERPs over the next few weeks if you're interested in seeing this story unfold in real time!

New cyberbully case brought to Missouri courts

Mon, 22 Dec 2008 15:03:39 EST

You may recall the tragic case in Missouri of 13-year-old Megan Meier. In 2006, she committed suicide after receiving through the popular social networking website, MySpace.com, what she believed to be cruel messages from a 16-year-old boy. The profile for the so-called Josh Evans turned out to be a bogus account created by a former friend, the mother of the former friend and a young co-worker.

The appalling degree of cyber cruelty that surrounded this case led state legislators to revise its harassment law so that as of August 28th, the law prohibited all stalking and threats made through electronic communication, including social networking sites, email, and SMS messages.

Missouri was the first to jump on board with these revisions, but according to said Naomi Goodno, associate professor at Pepperdine University School of Law, an estimated 45 states "have updated their laws to address harassment through electronic communications."

In Missouri specifically, several harassment cases have been filed since the passing of these cyberbully amendments, but because the cases are not categorizes by "type of communication method," it is unclear how many are rooted specifically in electronic means.

On Saturday, the Associated Press reported on one case that is-- the recently filed lawsuit against Nicole Williams, a 21-year-old resident of Meier's home county in St. Charles, Missouri.

Williams will appear in court on January 8th 2009 to face a charge of one count of harassment. Allegedly, she sent cruel text messages to a 17-year-old girl back in November of this year. The bitterness apparently stemmed from a supposed "physical encounter" shared between the 17-year old and Williams' boyfriend. The AP confirmed that authorities have reported "the two were just talking."

The Associated Press disclosed that in one such threatening message, the 17-year-old girl was addressed as "pork and beans" while in others, she was threatened with rape. Williams denied involvement, and insists rather that acquaintances used her phone to send the messages.

Melissa Doss, spokeswoman for the St. Peters police, commented that the "17-year-old had eggs, thumbtacks and a can of baked beans thrown on her car," but maintained that Williams is assumed not to be related to the incident.

The revised harassment law has sparked some controversy in the legal community. William's defense attorney, Michael Kielty, snubbed the changes, referring to them as "bad law." The AP quoted him as expressing, "It's probably one of the worst written laws I've seen in my career."

He more or less deemed the changes unnecessary and exaggerated, claming that harassment has always existed through threats "face to face or [passing] notes in school." This type of schoolyard harassment, Kielty commented, is "not criminal. It might be mean-spirited, but it's not criminal."

On the flip side of the coin, the prosecuting attorney in Williams' case, Jack Banas, commented that the amended harassment laws could enhance cases against individuals who choose to threaten persons "in unusual ways." Likewise, Missouri Senator Scott Rupp affirmed that the law is "making people more aware of what they say online."

Awareness is key... either to prevent us from falling into dangerous situations on the Internet or to prevent others from engaging in dangerous behavior against us. Personally I agree with Kielty in the sense that the amended harassment laws might be a bit of a stretch, but I also agree with Banas and Rupp: sometimes you have to set a drastic example in order to see some results.

Getting a little more social with Yahoo! Mail

Sun, 21 Dec 2008 12:14:14 EST

On Monday, the Associated Press reported that in an attempt to keep its head above water, search company Yahoo! is revamping the features of its email service-- smartly integrating, as many web services have, tools to beef up its social presence on the Internet.

Co-founder and CEO Jerry Yang outlined ideas for such enhancements back in January of this year... and as the AP comments, just about a year later, the project is finally underway.

Yahoo! Mail boasts an estimated 275 million users. As of Monday, a small group of members was allowed to test the functions, which should be ready for the public within the next few weeks. After that, all members will be given the opportunity to register their accounts with popular social networking websites MySpace and Facebook. Over the past few years, these two networks have grown immensely in fan-base, functionality, and everything in between.

By integrating their Yahoo! Mail account with either of these social networks, Yahoo! users will be able to make new Facebook friends, get in touch with old pals on MySpace, and enjoy the same give-and-take of information these networks encourage daily.

Enjoy searching your inbox for specific messages based on keywords? Yahoo! is also hoping to expand this concept by hosting an application "developed for finding photos stored in their mailboxes."

Another new element of Yahoo! Mail set to unroll this week is the freshly opened platform to third-party developers. We have seen successful examples of this employed by (once again) Facebook, MySpace, and Google's iGoogle homepages. Introducing third-party programmers to create and compete with their dynamic widgets allows users to fully customize their pages and enjoy them in a whole new way.

Lastly, the Yahoo! toolbar will be seeing some improvements too, including a popup notification feature with friend activity alerts, new incoming mail, and other information as well.

Yahoo VP John Kremer commented on these enhancements with an optimistic outlook: "We hope opening up Yahoo mail will have a game-changing influence on the industry."

Google removes shiny beta label from Chrome

Fri, 19 Dec 2008 12:07:35 EST

On Thursday, the Associated Press reported that popular search company Google is propelling its protégé web browser, Chrome, into the real world.

Launched in early September, Chrome quickly became popular, boasting more than 10 million international users. After a short but successful 100 day test period, and despite Google's reputation for keeping noteworthy features in beta for what seems like ages, the web browser is now officially considered "one of the guys." The AP commented that this shift emphasizes Chrome's "importance to the Internet search leader."

Yes, Chrome does seem to be an integral tool for Google in the ongoing web browser popularity contest-a competition dominated by Microsoft's Internet Explorer and Mozilla's Firefox. Currently, IE has a sweet 70% stake in the web browser industry, Firefox has 20%, and Apple's Safari browser has about 10%. The AP reported that Chrome has... 1%.

But by removing the beta label, Google hopes to boost Chrome's brand name and the popularity of its suite of online applications. The AP reported that just such applications are "supposed to run more smoothly and quickly in Chrome."

Thanks to improvements made during testing, Google is confident that Chrome will continue to attract users with enhanced stability and security, better quality for playing video and audio, rapid page load time, and a variety of bookmark and privacy controls.

Interested in trying the new Chrome for yourself? Check out Google's homepage for Chrome to download the browser today.

Monetize your domains with new AdSense feature

Fri, 19 Dec 2008 11:41:18 EST

Listen up, website operators! This new feature from AdSense could be right up your alley.

On Thursday, Loren Donelson, a Product Manager with the Google AdSense team, posted in the company's official Inside AdSense blog about a new feature in AdSense that is essentially turning empty space into new opportunities.

What's that? You're not familiar with how AdSense works?

Basically the program uses Google's sneaky spiders to crawl the content on your webpages. From there, it matches relevant ads and implements them in your pages-- supplying your readers, customers, and browsers with useful links related to your site.

What this new feature allows you to make a little money from advertisements AdSense embeds on undeveloped domains. So figure, it's called... AdSense for Domains!

On the flipside of the coin, the feature delivers useful information to browsers when they come across these undeveloped domains. As Donelson explains, it's a bit more exciting to see a relevant ad rather than "empty pages or 'page not found' errors."

AdSense for Domains will also feature relevant links and search results on these pages, and Donelson commented that the company will most likely "add other useful information in the future."

Donelson also commented that AdSense for Domains delivers "additional opportunities to find their customers" and that the advertisements have an impressive conversion rate. Some advertisers have even relayed to Google that they have "found domains to be an effective way to reach their users."

Like many of the search company's products, AdSense for Domains carries the Google seal of approval with an efficient network kept in checked regularly. If this sounds interesting, I recommend checking out the program policies set by Google AdSense to make sure your campaign complies with them.

Also like many Google products, for the time being AdSense for Domains will only be available to advertisers in North America as an English-language platform. In the coming months, I expect, the platform will open up to more countries and be available in more languages.

Are you signed up with AdSense? If you want to activate AdSense for Domains and start monetizing your domains, log in to your AdSense account and check out your status under the AdSense Setup tab.

Lavasoft releases new security software

Fri, 19 Dec 2008 10:48:59 EST

I recently wrote about Microsoft's leap into the free computer security package industry with its streamlined software, Morro. According to Microsoft, Morro is geared towards eliminating harmful spyware and computer viruses, and because it's free, can be used by just about anyone to clean up their system.

The perks about free security software obvious, but let's not discount the software packages you pay for. While they are often a bit bulkier on your hard drive, they generally offer more comprehensive protection against a variety of computer threats.

On Monday, Neil J. Rubenking reported with PC Magazine that Lavasoft, a Sweden-based computer company, has just released a new "standalone" computer protection program called "Anti-Virus Helix."

The software is priced at a friendly $23.95 for a 12 month subscription. Like similar software, it's engineered to identify and remove viruses, spyware, worms, Trojans, rootkits, bots, and other threats that may have set up shop in your computer over the years.

Helix also features "real-time protection" to fend off viruses in the future. Users can choose a special schedule for virus scans, and have their computer checked daily, weekly, or monthly.

Many computer threats are passed through malicious file attachments from emails sent by nasty hackers. Addressing this concern, Helix has a feature called MailGuard that scans new emails and any file attached to it. If there's something harmful, it's removed before it reaches your computer.

Countless other threats arise from scam websites prompting users to download certain files. Helix's WebGuard protects against these threats by scanning file downloads and preventing them from being installed if a virus is identified.

According to the Lavasoft, Helix can offer top notch protection without the pesky disadvantage many bulky security programs carry: hogging up your memory storage space and bogging down your system functionality.
Lavasoft transformed the spyware protection industry with its acclaimed Ad-Aware antivirus program, and thanks to the company's award-winning Avira software, Helix looks to be a promising antivirus program indeed.

Microsoft taps the iPhone app store with Seadragon

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 15:48:42 EST

On Monday, Brennon Slattery reported with PCWorld that popular software manufacturer Microsoft has recently developed its own application for the iPhone mobile device.

The brand new photo viewing application is called Seadragon, and for the time being is only available to iPhone and iPod touch users. The application is free to use, and once it's downloaded, users can view high-resolution photos thanks to the iPhone's top-notch graphic processor.

Slattery explained that Seadragon boasts a "deep zoom" feature, orchestrated by the iPhone's famously comprehensive touch screen. The zoom functionality allows users to "get very up close and personal with thousands of pictures."

Indeed, the variety of high-resolution stock photos already included in Seadragon's library- combined with the impressive quality of the device's graphic and speed capabilities-combined with the iPhone's sizable 3.5 inch screen has this photo Microsoft application turning heads.

Lastly, Slattery reported that users can beef up their iPhone photo inventories by adding pics from Microsoft's Photosynth program or from popular photo-sharing websites such as Flickr.

Hasbro walks away from crossword crossfire

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 15:47:03 EST

You may recall back in 2007 when popular social network Facebook opened up its platform to third-party developers. The developers instantly introduced their games and applications to the Facebook community, and in effect made Facebook even more socially dynamic.

One such game was Scrabulous, an interactive crossword puzzle game. It quickly became "one of the most popular applications on the social networking site Facebook," providing more than 600,000 users with the chance to challenge their friends to virtual crossword battles.

The application was created in India by Rajat and Jayant Agarwalla; the Calcutta-based brothers claimed "they created [Scrabulous] after they could not find an online version of Scrabble that they liked." A lot of trademark muss and fuss cropped up thanks to Hasbro, the manufacturer of the actual Scrabble board game.

Hasbro claimed that Scrabulous was an unlawful rip off and requested that Facebook remove the program from its inventory. Surrendering to the higher, corporate power, Scrabulous was revamped and reintroduced to the Facebook platform as "Wordscraper" this past August. Still, the lawsuit lurked in the background, until now.

On Monday, the Associated Press reported that after quite the lexicon-based controversy, Hasbro officially dropped the lawsuit against the Agarwalla brothers this past Friday. Mysteriously, as the AP maintained, the documentation filed with New York's U.S. District Court did not cite a specific explanation for the case abandonment.

It appears, however, that after recognizing the copyright complaints from Hasbro, changing its name from Scrabulous to Wordscraper, and revamping its game rules, Hasbro "agreed to withdraw the lawsuit."
The Agarwalla brothers contend that the outcome is more or less ideal; it increases diversity among crossword Facebook games, giving users more options for game play, and also sidesteps the expensive formalities that often accompany lawsuits.

So it seems for now that this matter is settled, though no official comments have been released from either Hasbro of the developers of the original Scrabulous. Until then, you can keep those big brains active with SCRABBLE by Electronic Arts or Wordscraper by the Agarwalla brothers. Happy spelling!

Now social butterflies can climb the SERPs too

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 15:47:03 EST

Greetings! YOU are currently surfing around a blog, one of the many tools nestled in the wonderful world of social networking. Blogs are social because they encourage frequent updates, peer-generated content, conversation through comments, and revolve around interaction: you write something so someone else will read it.

In that regard, blogs are an example of a social venue you can use to get your message out there, and spread it around across the Internet. That "message" can be anything, from great dining out tips, to commentary on recent films... even a message promoting your company website, products, or services.

Enhancing my site through socialization? That's right. Say hello to S.M.O.

Social Media Optimization is a growing phenomenon, and has advertisers, e-Marketers and website owners alike turning their heads towards the buzz. And what IS the buzz?

You can boost your website's visibility and recognition in search engine algorithms based on strong and healthy S.E.O (Search Engine Optimization). But did you know you can also climb up in SERP rankings thanks to your social activity online?

Search engines are constantly updating their algorithms to give weight to new, influential factors that make a website really stand out. In response to the Internet's recent social boom, search engines are beginning to take user-generated ratings of websites into account when they compile rankings.

What does this mean? If you generate a lot of buzz about your website through social channels and features, people may begin to spread your link around to their friends. They may even post positive feedback here and there. Google, Yahoo!, MSN, and other search engines might pick up on this, and your website might get bumped up a notch or two in their SERPs... obviously, if your site is creating such an exciting buzz on the Internet, it's probably worth seeing.

Just as there are helpful tips and tricks for successful SEO, there are special techniques in social media optimization that can really benefit your website. That's why members of the Hudson Horizons team plan to listen in on this Social Media Webcast on Monday, December 15th. Registration and participation are both free, and the seminar looks to be quite informative.

Here's the 411:

Conversational Marketing: How to Develop a Successful Social Media Strategy
Presented by Dave Evans
Monday, December 15 @ 3pm EDT, 12pm PDT

Event description:

"Social media skill is a "must have" component in the savvy marketer's toolbox. Easier said than done, right? In this one-hour webinar, author and social media expert, Dave Evans, will cover the practical steps that you can take when developing the social dimensions of your overall marketing program. Whether you are part of a Fortune 500 firm, run your own business, or lead the outreach effort for a non-profit organization, you'll find value here as Dave dives into readiness, planning, execution, and measurement."

If you're interested in learning from this tutorial, I suggest you register for the Conversational Marketing Webcast today!

Morro please! Microsoft to offer free security

Fri, 12 Dec 2008 15:35:51 EST

On Monday, Aaron Ricadela reported with Business Week that popular software manufacturer Microsoft is taking one of its software packages off the shelves, so to speak.

For the past two years, Microsoft has dabbled in the computer security industry, offering a virus protection program known as OneCare for its PC users. For an annual fee of $50, users could sleep soundly without fear of viruses or malware plaguing their computers-though the product never really caught on.

Leaving behind the competitive market of bulky, subscription-based security programs offered by companies such as Norton, MacAfee and AVG, Microsoft is "joining the free security software push" with its new, streamlined program "Morro."

Morro is geared towards eradicating the malicious software and viruses that have given Microsoft brand computers and products a bad rap. The bigger picture of this project, as Ricadela points out, is to "get more PC users to deploy antivirus and antispyware software" in general, so they can surf safer and preserve the quality of their computers.

It's wonderful that Morro is free, so more people across the country can have the opportunity to defend themselves against malicious computer viruses. However, there are, as Ricadela describes, pros and cons to free security packages such as Microsoft's Morro.

PROs:

They're free
- obviously, you save money and don't have to deal with the hassle of an annual subscription fee for computer protection
They're compact
- combine many of the same security features as the bigger products into a smaller package
They're space-savers
- Because they're so compact, they take up less space on your hard drive.
- They won't slow down your computer, making them ideal for tiny laptops stripped down to their essentials, as well as older computers already packed with clunky software.

CONs

They're selective
- Free security packages often only tackle viruses transmitted through email, and don't always defend against viruses contracted from web surfing-including downloading corrupt files or clicking through to dangerous, phony websites.

John Pescatore, an analyst at market research company Gartner smartly commented that "Morro and other free products may be adequate for some consumers, but don't provide comprehensive protection."

A good rule of thumb if you're considering switching from a Norton or MacAfee security program to a free program such as Morro is to take a moment to gauge your security requirements.

If you don't typically loiter around dodgy websites, and if you're very careful about ensuring the quality of the files you download, then a streamlined, free security program may be all you need.

But if you are a sucker for too-good-to-be-true spam websites, or if you want to keep your family computer unquestionably safe for your kids, then perhaps you're better off shelling out the $50 per year for total coverage.

AdWords now allows alcohol-related advertisements

Wed, 10 Dec 2008 00:00:00 EST

On Monday, Amanda Kelly with the Inside AdWords crew posted in Google’s official AdWords blog that the popular online advertising platform is opening up its doors (and morals) once again.

A few months ago, AdWords lifted its ban on gambling-related ads in the UK by imposing carefully crafted policies and regulations to make sure its ads were responsible and reputable. Last fall, the platform permitted responsible and reputable advertisements for beer in America.

Now, after having received plentiful feedback from advertisers, Kelly explained that the AdWords policies have been recently adjusted to “permit the advertisement of hard alcohol and liqueurs that target the U.S.”

AdWords is imposing some legitimate regulations for the controversial product—namely, “advertisers must promote the information about hard alcohol and liqueurs that their websites contain, such as recipes and brand messages.” In contrast to the permitted beer ads, which can directly promote specific brands,” AdWords will not post advertisements that “directly promote the sale of hard alcohol and liqueurs.”

Instead, Kelly explains that an ad marketed for “individuals searching for helpful and relevant alcohol-related information” would be acceptable.

I.E.: if you own an alcohol-retail website, you can’t boast, “CLICK HERE FOR GREAT SAVINGS ON ABSOLUT VODKA!”

But you would be able to advertise a recipe for White Dream Christmas cocktails, which incidentally include 1 oz. amaretto, 1 oz. heavy cream, and 1 oz. (Absolut?) vodka.

Just as we’ve seen adjustments made to gambling and beer ads, Kelly maintained that Google “plans to expand this updated alcohol policy to other countries in accordance with local regulations are expected in the coming weeks.” So if you own or operate an alcohol-based e-Commerce website, check back for more updates.

Yahoo! investors still push for make-up with Microsoft

Wed, 10 Dec 2008 00:00:00 EST

On Wednesday, Andrew Vanacore reported with the Associated Press that “Another Yahoo investor seeks Microsoft search deal.” When last we left the seemingly unquenchable drama between software manufacturer Microsoft and search company Yahoo!, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer vehemently rejected all rumors that his company would continue to pursue a total acquisition of Yahoo!, but remained open-minded to the possibility of a search-related deal.

Amicable business advice has been brought forth by a number of investors, namely Mithras Capital, the company with a small stake in Yahoo! that attempted to persuade Microsoft to take another stab at purchasing the floundering search company, and Carl Icahn, whose original plan for Yahoo! involved clearing the search company’s nine company directors and replacing them with a fresh new board of his choosing.

Now, it looks as if yet another big-time shareholder is putting in its two cents on how the companies should conduct future business. Ivory Investment Management distributed a letter to Yahoo! on Wednesday, conveying its desire for the search company to “make amends” with Microsoft concerning its response to acquisition proposals; many frustrated shareholders believe Yahoo! acted hastily and selfishly to Microsoft’s plentiful and overly generous bids.

Ivory Investment is currently in control of 1.5 percent of Yahoo! shares, and apparently contends Yahoo! is still capable of convincing Microsoft to “pay $15 billion for its search operations.” The investment company believes that if this transaction were to be achieved, Yahoo! could expect to “nearly double its current stock price to at least $24.”

The AP points out that Ivory Investment’s estimations may be “debatable.” Despite this, analysts, experts, and Yahoo! in general appear to share the same notion that some form of cooperation between Yahoo! and Microsoft would be ideal; Clayton Moran with Stanford Group commented it would be “Yahoo’s best bet.”

Moran continued to almost chastise Yahoo!’s inaction, which has come to be regarded as almost characteristic of the search company: “The pressure should be mounting for [Yahoo!] to talk [to Microsoft] because there is no good explanation for them not to be doing so at this point.”

While no comment has come yet from Yahoo!, it is encouraging that as recently as last week, Ballmer continues to be “interested in exploring a search deal with Yahoo” with the underlying motivation to give search company Google some healthy competition.

After nearly a year of squabbling back and forth over stock value, acquisition details, and everything in between, could Microsoft and Yahoo! finally be headed towards some sort of joint operation? Stay tuned for more details as this story unfolds…