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Category: News

Five For Friday: Tweets Within Tweets, Foursquare Gets A Facelift, And More!

1. Personal Preferences Killed The Check-In
-Mashable

Once upon a time, Foursquare made “checking in” at a location cool. But as of its latest update on Wednesday (8/6), the app has completely removed that feature. Now, those who want to broadcast their location to their social media spheres can do so with Swarm, Foursquare’s spin-off app that debuted in May.

So what does that mean for Foursquare 8.0? Well, the app has a completely remodeled user experience: new colors, new logo, new layout, and new functions. Once you login, the app asks about your preferences (Are you into Pho? What about Chai Lattes?), then uses those preferences to provide recommendations just for you about places nearby. The app also provides filters to help you narrow down your findings. By using these filters and profiling users’ tastes, Foursquare has successfully become a more personalized version of databases like Yelp, and could potentially change the way people explore their cities. Pretty epic.

2. Get Your Google Reviews On Your WordPress Blog
-Blumenthals

For those with WordPress blogs and websites, there is now a plugin that allows you to share your Google reviews on your page! Google Places Review lets WordPress sites embed Google reviews in two ways: The free, basic version provides a widget in the sidebar showing up to 3 of your most recent Google reviews. The pro version, which is available for $20, provides up to 5 reviews on any page using short codes. The pro version also allows you to filter by star ratings, offers optimized widget caching, and includes a customizable feature for collapsing and expanding reviews. Presumably, posting your reviews on your site can help boost consumer confidence, while providing easy exposure to your good reviews. A recent study by Dimensional Research found that 90% of consumers are influenced by positive online reviews, so get out there and show the interwebs how great you are!

3. #Tweetception
-MediaBistro

For those who feel that retweeting simply isn’t enough, there was an interesting update from Twitter this past week: you can now embed a tweet within another tweet! All you have to do is copy and paste the URL of the tweet you want to embed, and then Twitter takes the wheel. The embedded tweet acts as a link that takes you through to the full version of that tweet (you can see my own #tweetception example below). The best part of this feature is that embedded tweets only use up the same amount of characters as any other shortened link, so you have roughly 115 free characters still left at your disposal.

If you want to get really fancy, the tweet-ception can go even further: you can embed a tweet that includes an embedded tweet into a brand new tweet (!) – and they all link together in a chain. For now, this feature only functions on twitter.com and the official Twitter iOS and Android apps.

4. Facebook Goes Down, So Does News Site Traffic
-Marketing Land

Last Friday (8/1), there was a brief Facebook outage that led to some interesting information. Chartbeat, a service that produces analytics for web publishers in real-time, announced that the overall traffic on news sites fell 3% during the downtime, which was ultimately less than an hour. What’s even more interesting is that the entrances to news sites via mobile devices dropped 8.5% during the outage, further proving just how important Facebook is to driving mobile traffic to online publishers. Another interesting factoid provided by Chartbeat shows there was also a “9% increase in homepage direct traffic,” meaning people look at homepages more when they don’t have Facebook to tell them what they should be reading. While all this information may seem fairly expected, it highlights just how powerful Facebook is as a news source.

5. You Can Now Delete Google Analytics Properties
-SEO Round Table

This week (8/5), Google made a quiet announcement on its Google+ Page stating that you can now delete Google Analytics properties within your various accounts. In the announcement, Google explains that this was not previously allowed due to how the accounts, properties, and profiles were all associated with one another. According to Google, they are “excited to bring this additional flexibility and consistency to our users, which is the first in a series of improvements to managing deletions in Google Analytics.” If you want to delete a property, all you have to do is go to the property settings within admin view, then click “Delete Property” at the bottom right of the page.

August 8, 2014
Five For Friday – Off With Your Map Packs: Google Changes Algorithm, Yelp Is An SEO Genius, And More!

1. Upload 12 Second Videos Via Yelp’s iPhone App

As promised back in May, the roll-out of Yelp’s video review upload for iPhone users happened this past Monday. This update allows local businesses to add 3 – 12 second videos via the Yelp Mobile App. We don’t want you to get confused though, these videos aren’t your typical spam annoyance. These videos are more than just “video reviews”. They offer business owners the opportunity to give their visitors a short glimpse into what their company is truly about (the atmosphere, employee interaction, etc.), and all before ever stepping foot in the business.

While there is no determined roll-out date as of yet, don’t frown Android users. Your video claim to fame will be coming soon via Yelp’s Android app.

2. Moz Updates to Local Search Query Triggers 23.4% Drop In Google 7-Packs

MozCast has attempted to set their search query so that it accurately reflects what viewers are looking for. As a result, the seven map-packs originally provided in search results have now dropped an estimated 23.4% due to the Google Local algorithm change. Some queries, such as wedding makeup, train tickets, bed & breakfasts, etc., seemed to have actually lost local map packs all together.

We aren’t sure what other changes this update will bring to the table, but we do know that its impact on the search results for small, local businesses has substantially been affected. Overall, it is unfortunately resulting in decreased visibility. All we can do now is wait on the real world results of this update, and come up with a solution to advise our clients accordingly.

3. Yelp: Seo Genius or Manipulative Mastermind

Ever wondered how Yelp, the business review site less formally known as “online urban guide”, could possibly outrank Google in its own search results? Whether it be amazing SEO tactics, pure manipulation, or sheer luck, we suggest that you jump aboard the Yelp train. Go out of your way to claim, optimize, and actively manage your Yelp listing. Whether it is by encouraging satisfied consumers to leave positive reviews on the listing, or just making sure all your information is completely accurate and consistent, glam it up as much as you can.

Until further notice, a good SEO strategy is having a good Yelp strategy.

4. What Are You Really Exposing When Logging In Socially?

We all are guilty of it, signing into websites using social media. It’s quick, simple, and there are fewer logins to remember, right? Wrong. Logging in with social media basically allows anyone to access the map of your road trip through life. Any personal information you have throughout your social media accounts, whether it is public or hidden, can be accessed when agreeing to login socially. While this may not be as alarming to some as it is for others, it can be kind of creepy.

Whether it stems from attempting to save your precious time for something more valuable, or if it’s just sheer laziness, no one bothers to read further into what they are actually signing up for. Next time you decide to “Login With Facebook”, take a few minutes to login into the nifty Social Profile Navigator created by industry leading social login provider, Janrain. You’ll be surprised at the data you’re allowing these websites to see.

5. Where Do Your Consumers Leave Their Online Reviews?

Getting positive reviews can be a grueling task, but is ultimately worth it due to the positive effects it can have on your online visibility. Owner of GetFiveStars.com, Mike Blumenthal, strives to provide insight to local businesses and connect them with their consumers to ultimately create a strategy based on leveraging only positive reviews to increase their online visibility. Mike conducted a study to better understand what percentage of consumers actually take the time to leave reviews, as well as to find out where they prefer to leave reviews online. Out of the 2,671 respondents, a whopping 22.2% admitted to actually leaving reviews at least once a year. Then, they were asked where they preferred to leave their online results. Here are their answers:

There is no surprise that Google comes out on top, but take a look at who even trumped Yelp, the SEO mastermind and the top business review site. Without even having any designated section to place reviews for a business, consumers prefer leaving reviews on Facebook. Most consumers feel extremely comfortable when navigating through Facebook. Users are more likely to leave a review at their own free will because of Facebook’s non-threatening environment.

Although Facebook currently has no way of leveraging these assets in a concrete way, we believe that its popularity in the local review space on the web will continue to grow and remain a strong contender in the future months to come. We strongly encourage your business to partake in this natural (and free) SEO strategy — before competitors begin to catch on!

Image Sources:
Tumblr

August 1, 2014
Our Newest Influencers

New space, new team members. July has been an incredible month for Search Influence. If you’re interested in joining the SI crew, visit our careers page!

With all the extra space in the CBD, we continue to grow! Search Influence is proud to recognize its newest team members.

Brice Bathel – Junior Web Developer

Brice is originally from Marrero, LA and currently lives in Harahan. Brice went to Holy Cross High School and went on to attend LSU and UNO. He previously worked in programming home automation. Brice is interested in web design.

Clareen Ward – Junior Account Associate

Born and raised in San Francisco, Clareen came to Loyola University – New Orleans to study Mass Communication. Before joining the Search Influence team, Clareen worked in event planning for a local food and wine festival here in New Orleans. In her free time, she loves to travel, cook, and spend time with her family and friends.

Gabrielle Bethancourt – Junior Internet Marketing Associate

Born and raised in New Orleans, Gabrielle graduated from Tulane with a degree in English in May of 2013. She then spent 8 months teaching English in Spain and traveling through Europe. Although Spanish churros, Belgian waffles, and Italian pasta are all delicious, there’s nothing quite like gumbo and jambalaya. Gabrielle’s excited to be back home and joining the SI team.

Jamie Joyce – Junior Internet Marketing Associate

Jamie Joyce is extremely excited to join the Search Influence team. Originally from Nashville, Jamie is currently a rising junior at Tulane University where he is focusing on Communications. Before coming to SI, Jamie worked as a PR consultant for Ragusa Consulting in New Orleans. In his spare time, Jamie likes to go to shows, ride his bike, and explore the city.

Congratulations Brice, Clareen, Gabrielle, and Jamie! If you are interested in joining the Search Influence team, visit our careers page and send us your résumé.

July 28, 2014
Five For Friday – Get Your Workout On From Work, Weird Al Becomes Content King, and More!

1. Any Mac User Can Test OS X Yosemite Beta

For the first time in more than a decade, Apple will allow any Mac user to test OS X Yosemite before its full release. A public beta program will allow one million users to sign up and try the new features that come with Yosemite. The new OS is still under construction and will officially premiere in the fall. How can you be part of this beta test? Check out Mashable’s how-to for the one million curious Apple enthusiasts.

2. And The Emmy Award Goes To…

In addition to announcing its nominations for the Primetime Emmy Awards, the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences also released the nominations for Creative Arts Emmy Awards, with categories including Outstanding Commercial. Budweisers’ “Puppy Love” and GE’s “Childlike Imagination” lead the nominations. Check out the full list of nominees!

3. Here’s Why Weird Al Dominated Social Media This Week

Weird Al Yankovic’s latest songs are trending because of his partnership with different content studios (and, of course, for the content itself). Over the course of a week, he released a new music video, each produced with a different partnership or artist in order to promote his first album in three years, “Mandatory Fun.” Some of the partnerships include content portals such as College Humor, Funny or Die, and Nerdist.

4. Move Over Standing Desks, Cubii Is the Latest Office Must Have

Sitting can kill you! That’s why so many companies are investing in treadmill and standing desks. However, multifaceted office furniture can be extremely expensive and most companies are not willing to take in the extra overhead cost. Cue Cubii, the “Sitting Exerciser.” This pint-sized elliptical has been designed to fit under an office desk (you won’t bump your knees!) and also includes a companion app to track your workout.

5. Facebook Introduces “Save”

For those who hated endless scrolling in order to go back to that hilarious video on your NewsFeed, Facebook introduced their “Save” feature this week. Items saved by Facebook users will resurface on their NewsFeed. To learn more about this feature, visit Facebook’s official blog.

Image Sources:

RCA Records

facebook

July 25, 2014
Our New Home: The Floor Between 12 & 14

According to USA Today, Otis Elevators’ records indicate that 85% of elevators do not have the number 13. Generally, the building owner will omit the 13th floor by skipping from 12 to 14 or by naming it “12B” or any number of strategic means to avoid the unlucky 13.

Well, I don’t believe in superstitions — black cats crossing my path, walking under ladders, breaking mirrors, or the 13th floor of any building. (If this were a reasonable discussion, I would argue that floor 12B really is the 13th floor by another name).

Search Influence has outgrown our beloved Oak Street office and, after months of searching, we finally found an office that has the space we need with room to grow. On Monday morning, we had our first workday in our new office space: the 13th floor of the Exchange Centre (cue the scary music).

From Humble Beginnings

With this recent move, we have done some reminiscing, looking back on the offices that once were. Our first true office space was on Jackson Avenue, and I have to be honest and say that it wasn’t all that beloved. It had a slightly funky smell and strange characters walking the halls, but it did redeem itself with some of its quirky charms.

Funny story. While at the office one Saturday, we went into the storage closet for something and — absolutely true — there was a woman sleeping in our storage closet. She was living in our storage closet. She even had a microwave, so she had indeed set up house. We tip-toed our way out (didn’t want to wake her up) and called the building owners to deal with the squatter.

A great part of Jackson Avenue was the BadNinja9 production office across the hall. This really was the production office for Dorian Dardar’s own film starring his Dorian Hudson character as zen master/detective/life coach. He interviewed all manner of fascinating people in his office for the film, including barely clothed young ladies, which happened more often than you would think.

I can’t make this stuff up.

We laugh looking back, but Jackson Avenue did have a very real impact on the growth of the company. Angie and I shared an office that was actually the conference room, so we were intimately involved in just about every meeting, every discussion — everything. We all grew to be a close group in that space, and those close quarters have paid off, translating into a deep level of trust and a shared knowledge among the team that we may not have achieved in a larger work area.

As bizarre as the Jackson Avenue office was at times, it really cemented those work relationships that act as the foundation of this team.

Our Beloved Oak

We outgrew Jackson Avenue after 1 year — really after 4 months, but we were lucky to be able to take over a lease that had ended prematurely. All along, we’d been eyeing a newly renovated building that housed a wine bar and had the space to allow us to all work and grow.

We coordinated with the owner of Oak Wine Bar, building out the unused upper floors of her building. An office over a wine bar, what’s not to love about that scenario?

It seemed like it took forever (only because we were so anxious to get into the new space). When it was finally completed, it was beautiful. The space was clean and bright — wood floors, original fireplaces and windows. It managed to be both modern and historic at the same time.

As much as we love the Oak Street office for its physical space, we also have a tremendous amount of affection for what Oak represents in the history of Search Influence. It was on Oak that we reached a pivotal point in the business. It was from that open and inviting space that we matured as a group and really grew into our own.

From Oak, we were able to start truly giving back to the community. We began providing free seminars for local businesses and started our work with nonprofits such as Youth Rebuilding New Orleans, The Audubon Institute, New Orleans Wine & Food Experience, and Hogs for The Cause. We have always wanted to give back directly to NOLA, and we had reached a point where we are finally able to devote time and energy to it.

Also while on Oak, we were listed in Inc 500, which ranks the fastest growing private companies in the United States. At #418, we were incredibly excited to be one of 18 companies in the Greater New Orleans area to be recognized (of which we were the only residents of New Orleans proper). Honestly, I will never be not-excited about that honor.

Our years on Oak represent our greatest growth, as a company and as a team. The last three years are an unforgettable time in the history of Search Influence. So, we leave Oak with a bittersweet goodbye.

The 13th Floor

After months of searching for new space, we found a few options for our next great adventure. We chose the option with the most square footage and a great downtown location: the 13th floor of The New Orleans Exchange Centre on Gravier Street.

The Exchange Centre houses a number of New Orleans’ finest, including mature and start-up, technology firms such as TurboSquid, Archon Information Systems, Carrollton Group, Kickboard for Teachers, and many more businesses, tech and non-tech alike.

We moved in over the weekend, and our management team really pitched in to have the place ready for work first thing Monday morning. And 13th floor notwithstanding, there were very few glitches to work out. But as with anything new, it takes some getting used to. Even with the hiccups, the Influencers have been great. Everyone is pumped up and settling in. It feels good.

It’s an incredibly professional space (it even has a reception area). All of the walls are lined with wide, open windows that look out on the surrounding CBD. Most exciting of all, with more than four times the square footage, we’ve really given the team room to spread out and keep growing. We plan to do even more amazing things at our new address.

Yes, it’s the 13th floor, and for us, 13 is a very lucky number.

Image Sources:
Thanks to Dwayne Bent for the elevator buttons photo.
The 935 Gravier Image was provided by The Exchange Centre.

July 23, 2014
Five for Friday – LG Hires Bros to Build Brand, Your New Favorite Robot & Google Sees the Future of Eye Care

1. LG Teams Up With Bro-tastic YouTube Network for Content Marketing Campaign
– Advertising Age

YouTube famous stars known as Dude Perfect are getting more than just views from their unbelievable, athletic trick shots. They have already acquired advertising leads with brands such as Pringles, Nerf, and as of this week, smartphone maker LG.

LG hopes that by standing behind these bros, they can extend their reach to younger audiences and hopefully create some competition for other dominating brands in their industry.

Incorporating this “jaw dropping” content may boost LG’s brand recognition, but stealing market share from Apple may be a bit of a reach.

2. Say Hello to the Robotic Personal Assistant of Your Dreams
– Entrepreneur

Meet Jibo, a robotic personal assistant created by Dr. Cynthia Breazeal, a Boston-based professor and entrepreneur. Jibo is a “family robot,” designed to interact with your household, take photos and remind you of important events.

Having had a strange personal experience with Siri, I’m a bit skeptical of personalized interaction with a computer. Jibo seems to break the mold, but will this technology continue a pattern of diminishing personal interaction in today’s culture?

3. Novartis, Google to Develop Contact Lenses to Monitor Blood Sugar
– Mashable

Google is currently joining with Novartis, a Swiss pharmaceutical research and sales company, to develop smart contact lenses. These lenses, expected to make their debut as early as next year, will be equipped with blood glucose monitors and autofocus for troubled vision.

“The promise here is the holy grail of vision care, to be able to replicate the natural functioning of the eye,” Jimenez said in the Bloomberg report.

As if being “the holy grail” of the internet was not impressive enough, Google is taking it a few steps further and improving health care and the quality of life as well.

4. Prototype Improves Mobile Typing by Ditching the Keyboard
– DNews

Are you fed up with ineffective, awkward mobile and tablet typing methods? Well, a startup based in Austin, Texas is in the early stages of creating a nonexistent keyboard to solve that #FirstWorldProblem.

Just as the name implies, the AirType project’s goal is to create a system allowing the user to type freely with no restriction but the mobile sensors around your hands and knuckles. Not only does this keyboard (or lack there of) allow you to type freely, it will also adapt to your activity and begin recognizing your habits, like voice recognition for your hands.

5. Retargeting Is Flawed; the Future Is Pretargeting
– Digital Next

What if ads were designed to service needs that we don’t even know we have? Retargeting will soon be a thing of the past, the future of advertising is our future behavior.

Most are familiar with retargeting efforts, taking products and services we already recognize and driving marketing for those brands. Marketers are beginning to refocus their goals to be more predictive and create wants and needs we may have in the future. The more information consumers divulge, the more predictive marketers become.

Image Sources:

Niek Beck, Moms contact

July 18, 2014
Five for Friday – Google Launches Click & Drag for Maps, A New Twitter Record, & Pinterest Gets Even Easier!

Marketing Land publishes new research on tweet indexing in Google search results. Google Maps rolls out handy “click and drag” update. Why your content needs images to get the attention of engaged readers. The most talked about World Cup game breaks a Twitter record. Big brands begin testing a new way to interact with Pinterest followers.

1. Twitter A-Listers Are More Likely To Have Their Tweets Indexed In Google Search Results
-Marketing Land

It’s official: your tweet will never be on Google search. A study by Stone Temple Consulting reveals that Google will likely only index your Tweets if you have over one million followers. After analyzing 963 Twitter accounts, the study found that tweets from accounts with a million+ followers were indexed 30% of the time. As the number of followers increased, so did the indexing percentage. Although there were a very small percentage of tweets indexed by Google from accounts with fewer than a million followers, the amount is negligible compared to Twitter’s heavy hitters.

On the bright side, we can all rest assured knowing the wit and wisdom of Kanye West in 40 characters or less is only a quick Google search away.

2. Click And Drag To Measure Distance In New Google Maps Update
-Search Engine Journal

Do you often take the road less traveled, only to be frustrated by not being able to measure just how far you’ve gone? Relief has arrived! Google announced a Google Maps update this week that allows users to click and drag to measure distances.

Google might call me a perfectionist, but I’ve already thought of five practical applications for the new feature:

1. Settle the argument whether you or your friend lives closer to your favorite hangout, and see if it’s truly in the middle (shortcuts finally included).

2. Calculate how long it will actually take to detour from your road trip to see the world’s largest ball of twine.

3. Get an accurate distance when Google’s driving directions fail because you know Maple Street is closed for repairs but it insists on sending you there anyway.

4. Enjoy your next run (or bike or leisurely stroll) sans Nike app and still be able to calculate how far you went.

5. Answer the age-old question: how far would it be if I wanted to walk in the shape of my name through this park?

3. Use Images (Not Just Words) to Turn Your Distracted Visitors into Engaged Readers
-Copyblogger

It’s an adage as old as time: a picture is worth 1,000 words. Pamela Wilson makes the very relatable analogy of the oversaturation of words in content marketing to an overstimulated child (if you don’t have kids, think about the one throwing a temper tantrum at the park last week). We are visual people, so why aren’t we incorporating images while producing content online more often?

Her tips vary from basic (remember to actually use images and not just words) to creative and insightful (doctor up a purchased stock photo to make it more unique). Much like the sight of an image itself, lost in a sea of text, the blog is refreshing in its take on reaching your audience through content production.

4. Germany’s Stunning World Cup Win Over Brazil Is The Most-Tweeted Sports Game Ever
-TechCrunch

The spirit of Brazil’s soccer team wasn’t the only thing broken after Tuesday’s World Cup match against Germany; the game was the subject of 35.6 million tweets, breaking the record for the most-discussed single sports game on Twitter. At the peak of the Twitter fury was Sami Khedira’s goal against Brazil to bring the score to 5-0 Germany, which resulted in 580,166 tweets per second.

The record replaces this year’s Super Bowl, which garnered 24.9 million tweets.

5. Pinterest Makes It Easier to Follow E-commerce Brands
-Adweek

Pinterest has been busy working towards winning the title “Big Brand’s Best Friend.” Following the release of its API in November, they’ve now tweaked the “follow” button to make it easier for consumers to connect with eCommerce sites.

Currently being tested by Wayfair, Whole Foods, ModCloth, and GoPro, the new “follow” feature improves user experience by pulling in the company’s latest pins in a pop-up window instead of taking the shopper off-site.

As a lover of Pinterest, I say bring it on! Anything that lets me connect with my favorite brands quicker and more easily is a winner in my book.

July 11, 2014
An Influencer’s Dispatches From Tour

In May, Search Influence allowed me to take off for about a month to pursue playing guitar in a touring music act. Here are some of the highlights of my trip:

Lexington, KY – In Kentucky for derby weekend — it turns out that everyone there is incredibly nice and Mint Juleps rule.

Philadelphia, PA – A great place to enjoy buffalo wings as well as other “lowbrow” delicacies.

Brooklyn, NY – Got to do a cool radio interview in a studio overlooking the East Village!

Baltimore, MD – Spooky!

Detroit, MI – Cheap houses!!! Saw a deer — in downtown.

Grand Rapids, MI – We played with a relatively successful band in Philly that was on tour as well. They were great, and their drummer and I got along really well. We had a funny conversation about “The Sopranos” after noticing a pastel portrait of Chris Moltisanti hanging in the green room of the venue. A week later, we were playing in Grand Rapids, when I get flagged down by someone in the parking lot. It was the drummer from the band in Philly. It turns out he was from Kalamazoo, and he and his friends drove an hour to come see us in Grand Rapids. If that wasn’t cool enough already, he and his band paid the venue owner for the funny Sopranos painting and drove it all of the way from Philly to give it to me in Grand Rapids.

Milwaukee, WI – Ate cheese while looking over the lake. Very yummy/pretty.

Fargo, ND – Was cold.

Portland, OR – Homecoming show for me, it was really great seeing all of my friends and family. It was one of our best shows on tour. Coincidentally, a transformer blew up during our “encore” song, plunging the club and surrounding neighborhood into darkness, which prompted an epic drum solo in the dark. It was really fun and such a strange coincidence, everyone thought we orchestrated it.

San Francisco, CA – COFFEE HERE WILL MAKE YOU RUN THROUGH A BRICK WALL; ALSO, GOOGLE GLASS!!!

Los Angeles, CA – I get why they call it City of Angels, The Big Orange, La-LA Land, Shaky Town, and Tinseltown (specifically applies to Hollywood).

Los Cruces, NM – Got to experience a breathtaking lightning storm sort of like this one.

Marfa, TX– Was originally developed to accommodate a speculative oil boom, then bought by Swedes once the oil ran out faster than expected. Additionally, all of the weirdos who emanated the weirdness in Austin moved here once Austin’s tech boom priced them out. As result, this is a super weird little art town where every single business doubles as an art gallery. Also home of this.

Austin, TX– Next level food scene.

Houston, TX– Definitely a pretty big place! Rothko Chapel was cool?

So there you have it! Also – let it be known that the Ford Aerostar is a fine piece of machinery. I highly recommend it to anyone who is in the market for an affordable and trustworthy van.

July 3, 2014
5 for Friday – G+ On Your Phone, Teens On Facebook, & Tips For Powerful Images

1) CNBC: This 17-Year-Old Website Devastated By Google’s Panda Update – Search Engine Roundtable

Once upon a time, there was a woman named Linda Stadley. Her recipes brought so much joy to her and those around her that she generously decided to share them with the Internet. So she created www.whatscookingamerica.net, and for 17 years her recipes reigned supreme. She lived happily ever after until Google unleashed its mighty Panda 4.0 paw and ended her domination of the search engine results page faster than you can say Jack Robinson. Users everywhere weep for her loss of traffic.

…that website though. The writer of this article says it all with his closing statement, “I feel bad but the site does need a facelift.” Well, yeah. This article speaks to the very nature of Google updates: even though they may not make everyone happy, the goal is to help all users find the best information first. Let’s be real here. This site lacks a lot of the features that make a website useful to users looking for recipes (like reviews, for example); therefore, more useful websites will get better rankings because they give people more of what they’re trying to find. Google would probably reply with something along the lines of “sorry we’re not sorry.”

2) Google My Business iPhone App Now Available – Blumenthals

Do you want Google all up in your business? You’re in luck. Google just released the My Business iOS app (as discussed by Mary Silva). The noteworthy features (for both the iOS and Android app) include the ability to edit your business listings and view local insights. Missing from this app is Google Analytics and Adwords Express. You can also access all the features of your Google Plus account. JUST WHAT WE’VE ALWAYS WANTED, said no one ever. The thought behind this was probably something along the lines of, “hey wait a minute, no one seems to be posting to their Google Plus account, maybe they would if they could do that on their phones?” We will see Google, we will see.

3) Wait A Minute. Facebook Is Still A Big Hit Among Teens? – Marketing Land

Facebook hasn’t been poisoned by moms and businesses? What?! As it turns out, Facebook is still popular with teenagers. Forrester Research released a report revealing that 75% of Facebook users ages 12 to 17 use Facebook once a month, with 28% of this age group claiming to use Facebook “all the time.” Of course, numbers don’t always give the whole story. Yeah, these kids are logging on, but are they actually using Facebook? Who’s to say these kids using Facebook everyday are not just scrolling through the newsfeed absentmindedly? Well, this may be the case, because a niche study reveals Facebook lost to Instagram for the most engaging platform.

There’s a lot to consider here. For one, how will this trend change in the future? Have teens just been classically conditioned to check their Facebooks like a hopeless romantic checks Craigslist missed connections? Do more engaging platforms have more of an advantage in retaining and attracting new users? Time will tell.

4) Net Neutrality Protesters Arrested At Google HQ – Techcrunch

Well, this is a fun one. A group of activists in favor of net neutrality were arrested for protesting outside Google Headquarters. What were they doing there, you ask? The group calls for Google to “stand with us in support of an Internet that is free from censorship, discrimination, and access fees.” The group asked Google, among other demands, to change their homepage for a day to include a link to the FCC petition. You may be thinking, ‘but Google isn’t exactly the bad guy here trying to end net neutrality for all, why are they protesting there anyway?’ And you would be thinking correctly. According to this article, Google declined to comment on the arrests. I can’t blame them, as it seems these protesters might have a classic case of misdirected rage.

5) The 8 Types of Images That Increase the Psychological Impact of Your Content – Copyblogger

Quality images matter because they increase user experience. Yes, we know this. The advice in this article seems rather obvious, but there’s something to take away here. Specifically, what makes an image useful? This article proposes eight different types of images that provide users with the information they need. The top eight being: stock photos, screenshots, charts and graphs, personal photos, still frames from popular movies and TV shows, infographics, custom art, and comics. I would like to point out that most of these (except stock photos) could and maybe should fall under #7 “custom images.” I feel this article missed out on the opportunity to highlight the way that custom images serve more of a functional purpose for marketing than non-custom images. An infographic, comic, or screenshot that is custom and directly relevant to your business would obviously be more useful to users than one that is not.

June 27, 2014
Our Influence Grows!

As Summer starts, the SI team continues to grow. This month, we welcome three new faces to Search Influence!

Caroline VanDyke – Junior Internet Marketing Associate

Originally from Newport Beach, CA, Caroline came to Tulane University to study Political Science and International Development (and eat her way through NOLA). Before coming to SI, she worked on policy research for the Cowen Institute and had an article published on Huffington Post. Caroline is a current events junkie and foodie which makes New Orleans a great place to call home!

Harrison Galante – Account Associate

Originally from New Jersey, Harrison moved to New Orleans in 2009 to attend Tulane University. Before joining the Search Influence team, Harrison worked at a Local SEO firm in New York, but the New Orleans bug is a hard one to kick. He loves to travel, brew his own beer, and practice Yoga. Harrison is extremely excited to be a part of New Orleans’ budding tech scene!

Nina Hymel – Junior Internet Marketing Associate

Nina is originally from Destrehan, LA, but she just moved back to the area after attending Loyola University in Chicago. She graduated with a double major in English and Communication. Before Search Influence, Nina worked as a public relations and business development intern at ASC Communications in Chicago.

Welcome Nina, Harrison, and Caroline! We all look forward to working with you. If you are interested in joining Search Influence, visit our career page.

June 24, 2014