Google’s aim with this change is to make the user experience much more enjoyable and find the content they are looking for more easily.

The upshot is that if you have a lot of ads on your site on the top part or “above-the-fold” (The part visible when the browser opens a page) and the user has to scroll down to reach the actual content, or the majority of the site’s initial screen space is ads, Google will determine that this is not conducive to an enjoyable user experience and as a result, such sites may not rank as highly going forward.

This algorithmic change does not affect sites that place ads above-the-fold to a normal degree, only sites that go much further to load the top of the page with ads to an excessive level or that make it hard to find the actual original content on the page. It will tend to impact sites where there is only a small amount of visible content above-the-fold or relevant content is persistently pushed down by large blocks of ads.

Google claim that this change noticeably affects less than 1% of searches globally. If your website has been affected by the page layout algorithm change, consider how your web pages use the area above-the-fold and whether the content on the page is obscured, at the bottom of your page or otherwise hard for users to discern quickly.

If you decide to update your page layout, the page layout algorithm will automatically reflect the changes as Google re-crawls and processes enough pages from your site to assess the changes.

This change is just one of the over 500 improvements Google expect to roll out to search this year.

Micrositez is a Digital Agency.

Users of the platform have been using the domain yourblogname.blogspot.com for some time, but Google will now redirect this to a domain based on your location, so instead of .com at the end of your blog, you’ll see .uk or .au, etc.

This move will allow Google to filter content on a country by country basis, and block content that would be illegal to view in certain locations. The idea is to remain within the limits of the law in countries Blogger operates in, while still permitting freedom of expression within your own domicile. In the current climate, any increased internet censorship is viewed with a certain suspicion, and there are already concerns that some oppressive legal systems will use the rules to prevent access to information and restrict freedom of communication.

For now, to avoid the redirect when viewing blogs, follow the blog address you are looking for with “/ncr” (NCR stands for No Country Redirect). This will take you to the .com domain, and the US English version of the blog you are trying to view.

Other blogging sites, such as Tumblr, could see an increase in traffic as a result of this move, as users move their content and blog posts to less restricted services.

Micrositez Digital: Glasgow web agency.

Most people with a Facebook profile will be unfamiliar with IPOs (initial public offerings) and the financial ins-and-outs of the company, but this move from Facebook is significant.

How much?
Facebook is expected to sell of a 10% stake in the company for anywhere between $7.5billion and $10billion. If they achieve this price, the total value of Mark Zuckerberg’s dorm room brainchild will be £75billion to $100billion. That makes this offering the biggest tech stock market floatation since Google. Crucially, it cements the social network’s position as an essential tool, just as Google has done with search.

Who benefits?
The biggest beneficiaries will, of course, be the current owners. Founder Mark Zuckerberg holds the largest share in the company, which could be valued at up to $24billion from May. Other early investors expecting big investment boosts include Sean Parker (Napster co-founder), Dustin Moskovitz (Mark’s old college roommate), Eduardo Saverin (Facebook co-founder) and Russian tycoon Yuri Milner.

What does it mean for users?
Firstly, as a public company Facebook would be under more scrutiny and obligated to be more transparent. What this also means, is that there is likely to be increased use of personal information on users in order to maximise profits for shareholders. Personalised ads could expand and be based on your friends’ likes, and more targeted advertising is likely to be encouraged. Because there will now be an obligation to please new part-owners, more priority could be given to revenue making operations in the company instead of innovation. Google were a victim of their own IPO success in this manner, as their previous boast that staff could spend 20% of their time on anything they wanted had to be pushed aside, and Google labs was closed off to “devote more resources to high-impact products”.

Micrositez Digital is an award winning web agency.

Twitter’s CEO, Dick Costolo defended the every changing micro-blogging platform, at the AllThingsD media conference in Laguna Nigel, CA, yesterday stating: “There’s been no change in our stance or attitude or policy with respect to content on Twitter.”

The CEO was standing up to challenges made towards the company on their announcement that some countries could find tweets censored in the interest of government compliance. Some felt this was a foolish move on behalf of Twitter, with many criticising Twitter for selling out to the corporate machine over the new censorship policy, losing its authenticity and interfering with freedom of speech.

Costolo went on to add, “What we announced is a greater capability we now have. Now, when we are issued a valid legal order in a country in which we operate, such as a DMCA take down notice, we are able to leave the content up for as many people around the world as possible, while still operating within the local law. You can’t operate in these countries and choose the laws you want to abide by.”

The new policy does seem to give a greater platform for freedom of speech, and could open the door for Twitter in places like China and Iran where they are currently blocked.

When a tweet is censored it won’t necessarily be blocked from the world, only hidden from the countries that by law require such.

But this wasn’t the only matter, the companies CEO found himself defending at the conference.  Given the significant changes Twitter have made recently, the micro-blogging label seems a difficult one to pin down these days; given the multitude of information, search value and news content it provides us with each day.

 

Costolo’s response: “We are in the media business, but we’re not necessarily a media company.”

He went onto explain that they do distribute content, and traffic, but do not create their own.

His words also seemed to echo that of a similar interview held with co-founder, Jack Dorsey at last week’s DLD conference. “Twitter’s business model has been in development for quite some time, and it works.”

Of course in between now, and then Twitter has also acquired the social news curation service Summify, which Jack said would help Twitter in “delivering relevant content to people.”

Micrositez: Digital Agency Glasgow offering Web Design solutions.

The most notable thing about Pinterest is its growth rate; between September and December 2011, total unique visitors increased by 429%. The majority of these unique visitors are female (80% according to Google Ad planner) and between the ages of 25-44. Experian Hitwise analysed Pinterest activity, and stated that their users fall into three of their “Mosaic” lifestyle segments, Boomers and Boomerangs, Babies and Bliss and Families Matter Most. More information on these segments can be found on Experian Hitwise’s site, but in relation to Pinterest the pattern that emerges is that of a female user base with an interest in family life, food, activities and the home. There are also a lot of wedding-related “pins”, from users treating Pinterest as a wedding planning tool or scrapbook for saving ideas for an as-yet-imaginary wedding day.

So what does this have to do with marketing? Rather a lot actually. Referral traffic to five speciality apparel retailers rose 389% from July to December 2011, as users followed the links on pins of interest which sent them directly to retailers. For home, lifestyle, apparel and wedding retailers in particular, there is real potential in Pinterest and the spending power of its users. Some US brands such as Nordstrom and HGTV Start at Home have established a presence and a sizeable following. As users follow and re-pin pictures of desirable items, the potential for more traffic and sales increases. The visual scrapbook style of Pinterest is almost catalogue-like, and inviting to users (see Nordstrom’s pins below).

Now that Pinterest is available as a timeline app in Facebook its reach is likely to increase even further as pins start appearing to Facebook friends as well as Pinterest followers. Should your brand be establishing itself on Pinterest? If you’re in home or apparel retailing, it might be time to decide when – rather than if – Pinterest becomes part of your marketing strategy.

Micrositez Digital is an award winning digital agency.

Over the last eight years Facebook has grown, and won the hearts of millions of users. With over 800 million active users now, Facebook and it’s owner are far from shy when it comes to breaking records. Last September Mark announced during the F8 developers conference that the company had broken the record for the number of people logged on a site at any one time. Over 500 billion users helped them break that record, and today another record was broken by one American woman, and 107 of her friends.

Cathy Matthews, from Sacramento achieved over one million comments in response to her post, which she and her friends from an online gaming community set a challenge to.

Speaking to local news, Cathy commented; “I’m not a spring chicken anymore, and I really haven’t done anything phenomenal.”

Cathy and her friends have submitted their achievement to the Guinesss book of records.  Although it is believed that the group have more than doubled the amount set by the previous record holder. They have yet to hear back.

Micrositez: Web Design

Apple has been surging ahead in the tech industry for some time, but how have they managed to so spectacularly outperform their rivals? One simple answer: the iPhone. The iPhone is now Apple’s key product, and accounts for over 50% of the company’s revenue.

Apple sold 37 million iPhones this quarter, which is a mind-boggling figure. This surpasses last year’s Q1 sales (16 million), and the previous quarterly record for iPhone sales in Q3 2011 (20 million) combined. A large proportion of that has come from enterprise customers, as RIM’s Blackberry handsets lose their hold on business customers.

What does all this mean for Apple competitors? As quick as tech media are to suggest the next big thing in mobile or consumer electronics, the fact is that no other tech firm has come remotely close to that kind of earning power. Facebook may be a behemoth of social media, but its $250million 2011 Q4 earnings look paltry compared to the cash that Apple are bringing in. Google’s recent quarterly earnings posting of $2.71 billion was impressive, but classed as a “disappointment” by shareholders. Despite Android’s impressive growth in mobile, Google does not control the hardware of their mobile product, which means that growth is shared with manufacturers like Samsung, HTC and Motorola.

It appears to be the case that Apple is so far ahead of the competition, that it’s not going to be possible for other companies to catch up financially. Apple’s limited (but highly desirable) product line could be seen as a key to their success, but may leave space for companies to compete in terms of variety and innovation instead of profit.

Micrositez Digital is an award winning digital agency.

Clicking the notice takes the searcher to more information on Google’s Help Center, and a link is also provided on the blog for webmasters who feel their site has been unfairly labelled as compromised.

This interesting update has been mostly ignored however, as most users are concerned with what has appear on the official Google blog today; a privacy update. The update, which Google say Is designed to provide a more seamless experience for Google account holders across their various products is explained here:

Essentially, your preferences will be shared across search, social, mail and other activities, making it easier for Google to determine what you mean when you search for certain terms. The problem is, as Facebook have learned, that users are none too happy when their privacy is tampered with, especially when there is no facility to opt out. If you hold a Gmail, Google+, Youtube, Google Docs or any other account, this will affect you.

Google’s position is outlined in their blog:

“Finally, what we’re not changing. We remain committed to data liberation, so if you want to take your information elsewhere you can. We don’t sell your personal information, nor do we share it externally without your permission except in very limited circumstances like a valid court order. We try hard to be transparent about the information we collect, and to give you meaningful choices about how it is used—for example our Ads Preferences Manager enables you to edit the interest categories we advertise against or turn off certain Google ads altogether. And we continue to design privacy controls, like Google+’s circles, into our products from the ground up.”

It’s another controversial move from the search giant, who are already dealing with a lot of heat online after the launch of Search Plus Your World and forced signup to Google+. Is it possible that users will take their data elsewhere?

Micrositez Digital: Web Agency Glasgow.

The result of this work can be found at focusontheuser.org. From there, users are encouraged to click and drag a button to their bookmarks bar, and this button can then be used to alter search results. Or, as the team call say “try a more relevant Google”. It works by using Google’s own relevance measure to determine which social content should appear in the People and Pages section of search results. So the social results better match the most relevant and popular social locations for search terms. It doesn’t exclude Google+, but it does categorise it more accurately according to how relevant it is.

The name of this bookmarklet?

the "don't be evil" button

If this phrase sounds familiar, that’s because “don’t be evil” is the informal corporate motto of Google themselves, and an ironic reminder to the company that perhaps they’ve slipped from that ethos with their promotion of Google+ above all other social networks.

It’s an interesting project, and it could become very popular. Search engine users value relevancy over anything else, and if they’re given the tool to get it, why wouldn’t they use it?

Micrositez Digital: Web Agency Glasgow.

However, #SPYW as it’s known on the twitter feed isn’t just be a matter of concern for SEO experts. The changes will also impact the way Pay per Click campaigns are formed too.  Here are a few areas we should expect to see affected by the new feature, which I have separated into a pros and cons list.

Positives:

• Ability to align Google+ images with PPC ads
• More visuals added to search results means greater need for Product extensions
• PPC being used more to position the latest and greatest

Concerns:

• PPC ads will be overshadowed by eye catching Google+  results
• Brands being overhauled by their celebrity ambassadors
• Recently added extra ad space overshadowed by Search+

Ultimately the biggest battle with SPYW, for PPC strategists, will be the battle for clicks. Now when users conduct a search Google will present them with a mix of social and search information fused together. Despite the backlog of complaints made against Google and this new feature, by unhappy rivals. Both paid search teams, and businesses will have to keep in mind some of the above pointers in moving forward with any PPC strategy.

Micrositez is a digital marketing agency offering PPC.

Christians Against Poverty

Free debt counselling and advice services for those seeking financial help.

The Eden Project

Community development and work with young people, reducing social exclusion.

Sowing Seeds Ministries

Supporting former offenders and addicts, and helping integrate them back into the community.

If you would like to show your support, the single, titled “Holy Spirit Song” is available to download now on iTunes and Amazon.

Micrositez Digital: Web Agency.

The change specifically applies to positioning of ads on a page, giving reason to their actions Google announced in yesterday’s webmaster blog;

“We’ve heard complaints from users that if they click on a result and it’s difficult to find the actual content, they aren’t happy with the experience.”

They say; “rather than scrolling down the page past a slew of ads, users want to see content right away. So sites that don’t have much content “above-the-fold” can be affected by this change.”

For many websites placing ad’s above-the-fold has been a popular choice for many website owners as ads have proven to monetize well at the top.  Websites will need to be mindful of today’s news moving forward, and make changes where necessary to avoid being kicked similarly to many who fell short during last year’s Panda Update.

Google says that although the changes will be noticeable, the percentage of searches this affects globally is less than 1%.

If you own a website, or help maintain one then there are a few things you can do to make sure your website doesn’t fall into Google’s ‘top heavy with ads’ category.

1. Make use of Google’s browser size tool
2. When placing ads make sure they’re relevant, and placed beside relevant content
3. Watch the video below for Google’s tips and recommendations on ad placement, and increasing revenue on content rich sites.

Micrositez Digital is a Internet Marketing Agency offering SEO, and Web Design Services.

The initial partners include some familiar names like Zynga, Pinterest, Ticketmaster and Rotten Tomatoes. Facebook has confirmed they will start approving new apps from developers straight away.

Some Open Graph features were already in use, and users have been sharing their music activity through apps like Spotify, and their news habits through social reader apps. These features were already using frictionless sharing to update users’ timelines, and the new apps will work in the same way.

The difference with the new apps will be the range of activities users are now able to share. Facebook’s ubiquitous “like” button has been criticised in the past, and even Mark Zuckerberg has admitted that it has limitations for users and marketers alike. The new Open Graph apps can use frictionless sharing to update activity on other sites. For example, for e-commerce sites a user can update that they “want” or “own” a product, and this will be shared to their timeline. With the range of apps available there is a lot of potential for reported activities, and users’ timelines will soon share what they “read”, “cooked” or “ate” on their timelines.

The idea of frictionless sharing is to turn the timeline into a type of noticeboard where users an update all types of activity. Some people are concerned that it could mean more corporate updates into already crowded newsfeeds, or that it could be the very definition of oversharing. Facebook users are not known for keeping their opinions on such changes to themselves, so we will soon be able to see how well the changes have gone over.

Micrositez Digital: Web Agency Glasgow.

Yang had been serving on the board of directors, and held the unofficial title of “Chief Yahoo”. He was CEO of the firm from June 2007 to January 2009, but resigned to make way for Carol Bartz. Carol was then famously fired over the telephone in September 2011.

Yang’s place on the board of directors at Yahoo had been a divisive issue, with criticism from some employees and shareholders. Yang was believed to have been instrumental in blocking takeover attempts on the company, and a barrier to potential buyers in future. One notable shareholder, Daniel Loeb, wrote a scathing letter to the Yahoo board in November, criticising Yang’s continued presence at Yahoo and gossip about his supposed negotiations with private equity firms.

Since Jerry Yang’s resignation was announced, stock in Yahoo has rallied and speculation on the future of the company is a major talking point on tech news sites today. It is believed that his departure could open negotiations for a sale of the company, or some of its Asian assets, or that a whole new strategic direction for Yahoo is on the cards. Either way, it’s doubtful that Bing or Google will be quaking in their boots just yet.

Micrositez Digital is an award-winning digital agency.

This confirms that Wikipedia will go ahead with a planned protest on Wednesday. In an unprecedented move, the world’s 6th most-visited site will “go dark” to raise awareness of their opposition to the proposed Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and PROTECT IP Act (PIPA). Anyone attempting to access any of the English Wikipedia pages will be greeted with something that looks like this.

Wikipedia has never attempted a blackout on this scale before, but the Italian Wikipedia did close down in October 2011 to protest changes to libel laws. Link-sharing site Reddit will join the protest with a similar blackout.

The reason that Wikipedia, Reddit and others are so concerned about SOPA and PIPA is that they impose additional responsibilities on websites to thoroughly monitor their content for copyright infringement, and suggest harsh punishments where the law is broken. Wikipedia’s stance, which is outlined on their site, is that PIPA and SOPA “have the potential to significantly change the way that information can be shared through the Internet.” The SOPA initiative/action statement on the site today continues: “It is the opinion of the English Wikipedia community that both of these bills, if passed, would be devastating to the free and open web.”

The protest itself has met with plenty of criticism. The Guardian reported that Dick Costolo, CEO of Twitter, tweeted that he thought Wikipedia’s plans were “foolish” and “silly”. (Although he has since stated on his twitter feed that he is in support of Wikipedia’s plans). Costolo has reassured users that Twitter will not be participating in the blackout.

Whether the protest will have any impact remains to be seen, but surely some of the 23 million unique daily visitors to English Wikipedia’s sites will be at a loss on Wednesday.

Micrositez Digital: Web Agency Glasgow

The big story this year is television. Last year saw a big push in 3D enabled televisions (that were notable by their absence this year) but this year was all about smart TV. Speculation is rife about the impending launch of Apple TV, and whether it will impact the television viewer as much as the iPhone impacted the mobile phone user. Not to be outdone, Google TV was a big presence this year, as Samsung, Sony, Sharp and LG displayed new OLED and super-thin hardware that could one day appear in our living rooms.

Despite plenty of hype before the event, ultrabooks failed to make any real impact or headlines. There were plenty on show, but many similar products from manufacturers, with nothing standing out from the pack. Surprisingly, streaming and media services were on everyone’s lips, as manufacturers take note that consumers want devised that will allow them to stay connected and control their own content, regardless of the type of device they use.

As far as innovation goes, you can’t get more forward-thinking and Minority-Report-like than gesture control. This technology is still in its infancy, but was still one of the most talked-about technologies at the event. Intel’s booth with gesture controlled television was a big hit, and PrimeSense (developers of the Kinect sensor for Microsoft) spoke openly of their belief that gesture control replacing touch on many consumer devices. Expect to see a lot more of this at the 2013 show, as the next generation of gesture control devices really wow us.

Micrositez Digital is an award winning digital agency.

We’re fortunate to have worked with Sno – providers of group ski holidays and all inclusive ski holidays – for some time now, and have enjoyed working toward making their site the premier online destination for ski holidays. Their ski holiday deals make it easy to take advantage of the wintry weather, and are available to book now at www.sno.co.uk.

Here at Micrositez Digital, we’d love to book one of their group ski holidays ourselves, but we’re too busy working toward great results for Sno.

Micrositez Digital is an award winning digital agency.

Our partnership with Excel Clothing, the online designer clothes store, began in 2011. After seeing their site – which specialises in designer labels like Hugo Boss UK and Tommy Hilfiger UK – thrive in partnership with us they have decided to stick with Micrositez Digital.

As an online retailer with ambition, Excel Clothing knows that our partnership can help them become the go-to site for must-have designer items, like Barbour Jackets. Their collection of high-quality brand-name apparel is available now at: www.excelclothing.com.

Micrositez Digital: SEO and PPC.

Today, Facebook dominates the social landscape, and has infiltrated popular culture to the point that the brand, like Google, peppers people’s speech as a verb:

“I need to find a car hire company, I’ll Google it”

“I don’t have her number, I’ll just Facebook her”.

The growth of Facebook has been well documented, and recent figures now suggest that the social network could hit the 1 billion user mark this year. Local big players in countries around the world are being usurped one by one, from Hyves in the Netherlands and StudiVZ in Germany to Orkut in India. Mark Zuckerberg’s creation now has unparalleled global reach, and that makes it an incredibly attractive platform for advertisers. Facebook controls approximately half of all social media traffic in the UK.

But this figure indicates that Facebook is in decline here. Recent figures are suggesting that Facebook’s share has fallen by more than 7% in the last year, and analysts are suggesting it has reached saturation point. Social media users in the UK are gaining a reputation for being a fickle bunch; MySpace’s dominance a few short years ago was shaken by Bebo, which then stepped aside for Facebook. Now, Twitter, YouTube and even Yahoo! Answers are showing considerable growth. Meanwhile, Google+ isn’t in the top 10 social networks in the UK yet, but it is growing incredibly quickly.

So how do you keep social media users in the UK interested in your online social media presence?

The important thing is to watch and engage with the movers and shakers on the social media landscape. The popularity of niche social networks and forums like Moneysavingexpert and Pinterest, and even local social networks such as KILTR, make social networking in the UK a different experience. Make sure your business establishes a presence in these networks before your friends start to explore them as well. It’s a lot of work, but there are big rewards for those who invest in this kind of brand awareness.

Micrositez Digital is a Social Media Agency.

As an example, Search Engine Land used the search term “music” to measure the impact of the nee social integration. The search as done using the chrome browser in incognito mode, meaning that Google had no access to personal data when amalgamating the search results. These results turned out to be quite interesting. The results area on the right hand side immediately listed the most popular musicians on Google+, Britney Spears, Snoop Dogg and Mariah Carey. Despite this being a people and places recommendation there was no mention of any of their Twitter accounts. And what about other musicians? Katy Perry has broken many Billboard chart records in the last year, and has a huge loyal online fanbase (over 40 million fans on Facebook alone), but her absence from Google+ means an absence from Google’s people and pages results.

A search on the top music suggestion – Britney Spears – immediately prompts the user to select her Google+ profile. Ignoring the suggestion still prompted at least two Google+ links on the front page, and four links to Google-owned YouTube. Her twitter account languishes in 10th place, and her Facebook (with over 16 million fans) isn’t even on the front page.

Feeling a little mischievous, they searched for Facebook. The top people and pages result is Mark Zuckerberg; but it is his Google+ account. This account has never been updated, and this raises some questions on the relevancy algorithm of this feature.

Today, some tech news sites and blogs are speculating that Google could face antitrust legislation over the changes, but it remains to be seen whether this will come to pass.

What this indicates, is that having a Google+ account is more relevant and essential than ever for businesses who want to succeed online. In order to be noticed, companies will not just want their website to appear near the top of Google search results, but to attract users with a Google+ page link. Remember, if your business isn’t considering a Google+ presence, your competitor probably is.

Micrositez Digital is a Social Media Agency.