Going Universal: How to...

The following post was written by our SEO Channel sponsor Link-Assistant. It amazes me how many online optimizers ignore Universal Search. I’ve come across site owners who ask, “Hey, we are a flower retailer, how do we rank in the top 10?” And I’m like, “Jeez, you’re not even on Google Places”. Years ago, whether you owned a hotel, a newspaper or an insurance company, the way you optimized your site for Google was more or less the same. Remember the good old SERPs with a homogeneous mass of search results? Nowadays, times have changed. Today, the search results contain paid listings, specialized search results (Images, Videos, etc.), and what not. There is now more distraction for the searcher, and potential visitors may simply ignore your insignificant “normal” result and click on a flashy Shopping snippet or something similar. So, it’s a gigantic failure for many businesses NOT to think seriously of, say, Google Places or Google Videos. And here is why: Up to 70% of Google’s search results  include video snippets Over 30 % of search listings contain Images results According to Google, 20% of all searches are local , with that number being 40% for mobile Shopping listings are found in 18% of search results News snippets are present in up to 10% of all Google’s search results, etc. Besides, an ever increasing number of users search specifically within certain categories like Places or Images, because the searchers are becoming more and more aware of those. And, not only can Universal Search bring additional traffic to your site, but also help you break through tough competition in situations when it’s hard to outrank them in “normal” search results pages. The United States of Search It’s also important to understand that each Universal Search category is like a separate country with its own laws. So, if you use press releases to promote your product, this does not mean that your site will automatically show up on Google News or Google Products. In many cases, submitting your URL or product feed to Google is required for your site to appear in those categories. Here is a brief chart of each Universal Search section’s specifics and the main SEO tactics that can be used to rank higher in them. We did not include Google Maps, because, from an online business perspective, it is basically the same as Google Places. Neither did we include Google Flights nor Google Patents, since both these sections hardly ever make it to Google’s mixed results and are, in fact, highly specialized. Links for chart: 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 Who should optimize for Universal Search? It’s incorrect to assume that only photographers should optimize for Google Images or only bloggers should optimize for Google Blogs. Universal Search can be a huge traffic booster for a whole variety of businesses. As it is virtually impossible to provide recommendation for every single niche within this article, I will just outline the general strategy. Step 1 Take a minute to see what types of results appear in Everything for your target keywords. Make sure your business is also indexed in those categories (say, Google News). This would be your first step towards tapping into additional traffic sources. Step 2 Invest some effort to improve your site/listing’s positions in those particular segments of search. In many cases, this will require the actions that are not part of your usual day-to-day SEO activities (for example, getting a review from Zagat.Com). Step 3 Depending on your niche, think of the search sections that users may turn to to find information related to your business. For example, here is a video by Harbor Financial which ranks #1 in Google Videos for “how to file tax return”. However, what this vid essentially advertises is the TurboTax app. It’s that simple. Conclusion Leveraging different segments of Universal Search can help you drive floods of additional traffic to your site. En masse (if you tap into more than one type of search), that can become a significant portion of your overall traffic. Useful resources: How To Optimize Images For Search Engines, Social Media and People How to Optimize Your Videos for SEO David Mihm’s Local Search Ranking Factors About the author: Aleh Barysevich is Marketing Director and Co-Founder of Link-Assistant.Com, a major SEO software provider and the maker of SEO PowerSuite tools. Link-Assistant.Com is a group of SEO professionals with almost a decade of experience in Internet marketing. Check out our tips on how to optimize your site for Universal Search using Rank Tracker and get a copy of “SEO’s Roadmap to Universal Search Takeover” guide. THE VIEWS AND OPINIONS EXPRESSED HERE ARE NOT NECESSARILY THOSE OF MARKETING PILGRIM.

Pastebin Upgrades Servi...

Everyone’s favorite way to share thousands of pages of sensitive information (and dump PHP code that you might use later) has upgraded to what it’s calling version 3.1. This new version, in addition to some cosmetic changes, includes one major upgrade: private pastes . The system currently supports public and “unlisted” pastes – two types excellent for anonymous sharing – but the private pastes require users to create an account with the service. Private pastes are truly private while unlisted pastes simply don’t show up in search results or on Pastebin’s popular paste list. “These privates pastes are only visible for the users when he is logged into his account. Others are not able to view this item, even when they have a link to it. This is a new added layer of security that many users have been requesting for a while,” said Pastebin owner Jeroen Vader. Pastebin is also currently under a fairly major DDOS attack by an unnamed botnet . Apparently nearly 20,000 unique IPs are flooding the site with traffic and the company is literally banning all botnet traffic, a virtuous if quixotic effort. “The attack is still going on at this moment, and shows now sign of slowing down just yet,” said Vader. “Who is behind this, and what their motives are is unknown to us. It would be great if someone would speak up, but we do not expect that to happen.”

Foursquare Rolls Out Ne...

This morning, Foursquare launched an updated version of its “Explore” feature for both its iPhone and Android applications. The new version brings over several of the features already available through Foursquare on the web , including filters, photos in search results and the ability to change your location. After updating your mobile app, you’ll see the improvements in the “Explore,” section, Foursquare’s local guide which is augmented by your friends’ recommendations and visits as well as other Foursquare users’ tips and comments. Like a mini local search engine, you can search for venues by category (“coffee,” “nightlife”), name, or even something very specific, like what  food you’re in the mood for (“tuna,” “burgers”). You can also tap “Specials” to see just those venues offering check-in or mayor discounts. Starting today, you’ll now be able to use the new filter button (at the top right on iOS or bottom right on Android) to narrow your search results by options like “New to me,” places you’ve already been, “Both,” or, alternatively, you can choose to see those places your friends have tried. You can also use Explore to find recommended places in areas outside your current location, as determined by your phone’s GPS. You can either type in a location or drag the map around, then pinch or tap to zoom into new neighborhoods. Although still sometimes overlooked by those who just use Foursquare as a checkin service/social network, Explore represents a key new direction for the location-based startup. The idea, as Foursquare founder Dennis Crowley explained last month when Explore arrived on the web, is to try to “make local search much smarter…it’s based off what you and your friends actually do, where you go and when you go.” And, for obvious reasons, local search is much smarter when you can actually use it while on the go. The new Foursquare apps are out now, check the appropriate app store for the update.

TripIt Owner Concur Bac...

Travel and expense management company Concur revealed in its earnings today that it made an undisclosed investment in Room 77, a comprehensive and personalized search engine and review site focused exclusively on finding and booking hotel rooms. Room 77, which officially launched in public beta in February, has collected and indexed data on more than 500,000 hotel rooms in 2,500 properties and also crowdsources reviews and ratings from travelers. The site provides travelers with specific details about each hotel room at a property, including the room category, square footage, bed type, elevator proximity and if it is a connecting room. For each room, Room 77 also generates a virtual Room View, simulating the actual view from that room’s window using Google Earth-enabled technology. The company also recently added the ability to book rooms on the site. Room 77 will reveals prices directly in search results, from Orbitz, Expedia, Travelocity, Priceline, Hotels.com, Cheaptickets and others. You can compare pricing for multiple room categories in grid view, which allows you to see what the next category room includes and for how much more that will cost you. The startup was founded by Brad Gerstner (who is also founder and CEO of Altimeter Capital, former CEO of National Leisure Group and a current Orbitz board member), and has raised $13.5 million from General Catalyst Expedia and Zillow founder Rich Barton, Erik Blachford (Former President and CEO of IAC Travel); Hugh Crean (Former President and CEO of Farecast; GM of Bing Travel); Bob Pittman (Founder of MTV); PAR Capital Management; Sutter Hill Ventures; and Felicis Ventures. This isn’t the first investment for Concur in a travel-related startup. Concur put $5 million in flight price tracker Yapta and invested $40 million in online travel site Cleartrip. Concur also acquired TripIt, and GlobalExpense in 2011.

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