Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
- Should You Stop Optimizing for Certain Keywords?
A Cre8asite Forums member contends that optimizing for certain keywords isn't desirable any longer. The reason given is that people aren't ever searching for those keywords (even though it looks like a logical search term). He adds that there's no consistency in users' search patterns. The behavior differs from one searcher to another, which is entirely understandable. If I had 'optimised' the page for MY keywords I may have lost all those visitors and THEIR - Google Shows The Gay Pride Flag in Search Results
In acknowledgment of gay rights, Google has added an assortment of colors between the organic and sponsored results as seen below: This was first spotted by PingPongPie, but it looks like there's a lot of momentum given this implementation. My thought is that it has to do with Google being located in California and gay marriage finally becoming legalized, but I really don't know. It's just a guess. Interestingly enough, as per a Sphinn thread, - Learn the Google AdWords API with Video and Useful Documentation
On Google Groups, the AdWords API Advisor shares some videos and useful documentation on how to get the most out of the Google AdWords API. The documentation as provided by Google is at the AdWords API tutorial page, and there are 9 videos that can be viewed at your convenience to get more. They are: An introduction to the API and how you can use it An intro to web material within the API How - You Should Not See A Downgrade in Rankings From Link Building
A WebmasterWorld thread asks if it is normal to see a downgrade in rankings soon after conducting a link building campaign. In other words, a webmaster builds links to a site that ranks average. The next few days, the webmaster notices a drop in his rankings for the site. Is that something typical, only to see it go back up even higher the next few days? The answer is no. It is not typical to - Google AdSense Wacky Font Tests Continue
In May we first reported on Google testing out some new fonts for the Google AdSense ads. We then posted examples of Google testing comic sans font in their ad type, as you can see from the image at the right of this text. Most publishers were not happy with the extreme font change that was being tests on some publisher sites. Well, it appears these tests are getting more drastic. Reports come from WebmasterWorld - Google's Local Business Center for Google Maps is Bugging Out
Google's Local Business Center, the place businesses go to add or edit their local business listing at Google Maps, is having some major technical issues. A single post by Google Maps Guide at Google Groups really sums it up quickly: We understand some users are encountering system errors in the Local Business Center. We're working quickly to resolve these issues. Stay tuned for an update! Mike Blumenthal's blog has been recently covering some of the - Did Google Really Launch The Page Load Time Factor in AdWords Quality Score?
Last night, Google AdWords announced that the quality score now incorporates how fast your pages load. We have been hearing about this since early March and have even offered up advice on how to test your page load times. In early May, Google began displaying the page load time score in your keyword analysis portion of the AdWords console. Here is a screen capture of that. So we know that Google is tracking Page Load
Other Great Search Forum Threads:
- Gary Price of ResourceShelf wins SLA President's Citation, Sphinn
- 301 Redirect Explained, Sphinn
- @Googleguy - Yahoo Yellow Page Text Ads, Showing up as Google Backlinks, Search Engine Watch Forums
- Check your search box for XSS exploits, Sphinn
- LinkedIn Boosted By $53 Million Investment, WebmasterWorld
- Reddit Goes Open Source, Cre8asite Forums
- Referral for Firefox 3, WebmasterWorld
- Yahoo Introduces ymail and rocketmail e-mail Addresses, WebmasterWorld
