Thursday, November 1, 2012

Google Adwords Certification Exam Sample Test Question & Answers

Friday, October 12, 2012

Google Algorithm 2012 Updates Resource


Page Layout #2 — October 9, 2012
Google announced an update to its original page layout algorithm change back in January, which targeted pages with too many ads above the fold. It's unclear whether this was an algorithm change or a Panda-style data refresh.
It’s “Top Heavy 2″ As Google Rolls Out Update To Its Page Layout Algorithm (SEL)
Google Page Layout Algorithm Officially Updated (SER)



Penguin #3 — October 5, 2012
After suggesting the next Penguin update would be major, Google released a minor Penguin data update, impacting "0.3% of queries". Penguin update numbering was rebooted, similar to Panda - this was the 3rd Penguin release.
Google Penguin Update 3 Released, Impacts 0.3% Of English-Language Queries (SEL)
Google Released 3rd Penguin Update: Not Jarring Or Jolting (SER)


August/September 65-Pack — October 4, 2012
Google published their monthly (bi-monthly?) list of search highlights. The 65 updates for August and September included 7-result SERPs, Knowledge Graph expansion, updates to how "page quality" is calculated, and changes to how local results are determined.
Search quality highlights: 65 changes for August and September (Google)


Exact-Match Domain (EMD) Update — September 27, 2012
Google announced a change in the way it was handling exact-match domains (EMDs). This led to large-scale devaluation, reducing the presence of EMDs in the MozCast data set by over 10%. Official word is that this change impacted 0.6% of queries (by volume).
Google's EMD Algo Update - Early Data (SEOmoz)
The EMD Update: Google Issues “Weather Report” Of Crack Down On Low Quality Exact Match Domains (SEL)


Panda #20 — September 27, 2012
Overlapping the EMD update, a fairly major Panda update (algo + data) rolled out, officially affecting 2.4% of queries. As the 3.X series was getting odd, industry sources opted to start naming Panda updates in order (this was the 20th).
20th Google Panda Algorithm Update: Fairly Major (SER)
How Do You Know If Google Panda Or EMD Hurt Your Site? (SER)


Panda 3.9.2 — September 18, 2012
Google rolled out another Panda refresh, which appears to have been data-only. Ranking flux was moderate but not on par with a large-scale algorithm update.
Google Rolls Out Panda 3.9.2 Refresh (SER)
Panda Update 3.92 Rolling Out (Or Is It Panda 20 Time?) (SEL)


Panda 3.9.1 — August 20, 2012
Google rolled out yet another Panda data update, but the impact seemed to be fairly small. Since the Panda 3.0 series ran out of numbers at 3.9, the new update was dubbed 3.9.1.
Confirmed: Google Panda 3.9.1 Update (SER)
Google Panda Refresh On August 19th: Version 3.9.1 (SEL)


7-Result SERPs — August 14, 2012
Google made a significant change to the Top 10, limiting it to 7 results for many queries. Our research showed that this change rolled out over a couple of days, finally impacting about 18% of the keywords we tracked.
SERP Crowding & Shrinkage: It's Not Your Imagination (SEOmoz)
7 Is The New 10? Google Showing Fewer Results & More From Same Domain (SEL)


DMCA Penalty — August 10, 2012
Google announced that they would start penalizing sites with repeat copyright violations, probably via DMCA takedown requests. Timing was stated as "starting next week" (8/13?).
An update to our search algorithms (Google)
The Emanuel Update: Google Will Penalize Sites Repeatedly Accused Of Copyright Infringement (SEL)


June/July 86-Pack — August 10, 2012
After a summer hiatus, the June and July Search Quality Highlights were rolled out in one mega-post. Major updates included Panda data and algorithm refreshes, an improved rank-ordering function (?), a ranking boost for "trusted sources", and changes to site clustering.
Search quality highlights: 86 changes for June and July (Google)
Google’s June-July Updates: Site Clustering, Sitelinks Changes & Focus On Page Quality (SEL) 


Panda 3.9 — July 24, 2012
A month after Panda 3.8, Google rolled out a new Panda update. Rankings fluctuated for 5-6 days, although no single day was high enough to stand out. Google claimed ~1% of queries were impacted.
Official: Google Panda 3.9 Refresh (SER)


Link Warnings — July 19, 2012
In a repeat of March/April, Google sent out a large number of unnatural link warnings via Google Webmaster Tools. In a complete turn-around, they then announced that these new warnings may not actually represent a serious problem.
Insanity: Google Sends New Link Warnings, Then Says You Can Ignore Them (SEL)
Google Sends Out New Batch Of Unnatural Link Notifications (SER)


Panda 3.8 — June 25, 2012
Google rolled out another Panda data refresh, but this appeared to be data only (no algorithm changes) and had a much smaller impact than Panda 3.7.
Official Google Panda Update Version 3.8 On June 25th (SEL)
Google Panda 3.8 Live: June 25th & Refresh Only (SER)


Panda 3.7 — June 8, 2012
Google rolled out yet another Panda data update, claiming that less than 1% of queries were affect. Ranking fluctuation data suggested that the impact was substantially higher than previous Panda updates (3.5, 3.6).
Confirmed: Google Panda 3.7 Update (SER)
The Bigfoot Update (AKA Dr. Pete Goes Crazy) (SEOmoz)


May 39-Pack — June 7, 2012
Google released their monthly Search Highlights, with 39 updates in May. Major changes included Penguin improvements, better link-scheme detection, changes to title/snippet rewriting, and updates to Google News.
Search quality highlights: 39 changes for May (Google)
Google’s May Updates: Inorganic Backlinks, Page Titles, Fresh Results & More (SEL)


Penguin 1.1 — May 25, 2012
Google rolled out its first targeted data update after the "Penguin" algorithm update. This confirmed that Penguin data was being processed outside of the main search index, much like Panda data.
Google Releases Penguin Update 1.1 (SEL)


Knowledge Graph — May 16, 2012
In a major step toward semantic search, Google started rolling out "Knowledge Graph", a SERP-integrated display providing supplemental object about certain people, places, and things. Expect to see "knowledge panels" appear on more and more SERPs over time. Also, Danny Sullivan's favorite Trek is ST:Voyager?!
Introducing the Knowledge Graph: things, not strings (Google)
Google Launches Knowledge Graph To Provide Answers, Not Just Links (SEL)


April 52-Pack — May 4, 2012
Google published details of 52 updates in April, including changes that were tied to the "Penguin" update. Other highlights included a 15% larger "base" index, improved pagination handling, and a number of updates to sitelinks.
Search quality highlights: 52 changes for April (Google)
Google’s April Updates: Bigger & Tiered Index, Document Ranking, Sitelink Changes & More (SEL)


Panda 3.6 — April 27, 2012
Barely a week after Panda 3.5, Google rolled out yet another Panda data update. The implications of this update were unclear, and it seemed that the impact was relatively small.
Confirmed: Panda Update 3.6 Happened On April 27th (SEL)


Penguin — April 24, 2012
After weeks of speculation about an "Over-optimization penalty", Google finally rolled out the "Webspam Update", which was soon after dubbed "Penguin." Penguin adjusted a number of spam factors, including keyword stuffing, and impacted an estimated 3.1% of English queries.
Another step to reward high-quality sites (Google)
The Penguin Update: Google’s Webspam Algorithm Gets Official Name (SEL)
Google Penguin Update Recovery Tips & Advice (SEL)
Two Weeks In, Google Talks Penguin Update, Ways To Recover & Negative SEO (SEL)


Panda 3.5 — April 19, 2012
In the middle of a busy week for the algorthim, Google quietly rolled out a Panda data update. A mix of changes made the impact difficult to measure, but this appears to have been a fairly routine update with minimal impact.
Google Mocks Me For Missing Panda 3.5 (SER)


Parked Domain Bug — April 16, 2012
After a number of webmasters reported ranking shuffles, Google confirmed that a data error had caused some domains to be mistakenly treated as parked domains (and thereby devalued). This was not an intentional algorithm change.
Dropped In Rankings? Google’s Mistake Over Parked Domains Might Be To Blame (SEL)
Updated: Google Update April 2012? Over SEO Penalty? (SER)


March 50-Pack — April 3, 2012
Google posted another batch of update highlights, covering 50 changes in March. These included confirmation of Panda 3.4, changes to anchor-text "scoring", updates to image search, and changes to how queries with local intent are interpreted.
Search quality highlights: 50 changes for March (Google)
Google’s March Updates: Anchor Text, Image Search, Navigational Search & More (SEL)


Panda 3.4 — March 23, 2012
Google announced another Panda update, this time via Twitter as the update was rolling out. Their public statements estimated that Panda 3.4 impacted about 1.6% of search results.
Google Says Panda 3.4 Is ‘Rolling Out Now’ (SEL)


Search Quality Video — March 12, 2012
This wasn't an algorithm update, but Google published a rare peek into a search quality meeting. For anyone interested in the algorithm, the video provides a lot of context to both Google's process and their priorities. It's also a chance to see Amit Singhal in action.
Video! The search quality meeting, uncut (Google)


Panda 3.3 — February 27, 2012
Google rolled out another post-"flux" Panda update, which appeared to be relatively minor. This came just 3 days after the 1-year anniversary of Panda, an unprecedented lifespan for a named update.
Google Confirms Panda 3.3 Update (SEL)
Confirmed: Google Panda 3.3 (SER)


February 40-Pack (2) — February 27, 2012
Google published a second set of "search quality highlights" at the end of the month, claiming more than 40 changes in February. Notable changes included multiple image-search updates, multiple freshness updates (including phasing out 2 old bits of the algorithm), and a Panda update.
Search quality highlights: 40 changes for February (Google)


Venice — February 27, 2012
As part of their monthly update, Google mentioned code-name "Venice". This local update appeared to more aggressively localize organic results and more tightly integrate local search data. The exact roll-out date was unclear.
Understand and Rock the Google Venice Update (SEOmoz)
Google Venice Update – New Ranking Opportunities for Local SEO (Catalyst eMarketing)


February 17-Pack — February 3, 2012
Google released another round of "search quality highlights" (17 in all). Many related to speed, freshness, and spell-checking, but one major announcement was tighter integration of Panda into the main search index.
17 search quality highlights: January (Google)
Google’s January Search Update: Panda In The Pipelines, Fresher Results, Date Detection & More (SEL)


Ads Above The Fold — January 19, 2012
Google updated their page layout algorithms to devalue sites with too much ad-space above the "fold". It was previously suspected that a similar factor was in play in Panda. The update had no official name, although it was referenced as "Top Heavy" by some SEOs.
Page layout algorithm improvement (Google)
Pages With Too Many Ads “Above The Fold” Now Penalized By Google’s “Page Layout” Algorithm (SEL)


Panda 3.2 — January 18, 2012
Google confirmed a Panda data update, although suggested that the algorithm hadn't changed. It was unclear how this fit into the "Panda Flux" scheme of more frequent data updates.
Confirmed: Google Panda 3.2 Update (SEW)
Google Panda 3.2 Update Confirmed (SEL)


Search + Your World — January 10, 2012
Google announced a radical shift in personalization - aggressively pushing Google+ social data and user profiles into SERPs. Google also added a new, prominent toggle button to shut off personalization.
Search, plus Your World (Google)
Real-Life Examples Of How Google’s “Search Plus” Pushes Google+ Over Relevancy (SEL)


January 30-Pack — January 5, 2012
Google announced 30 changes over the previous month, including image search landing-page quality detection, more relevant site-links, more rich snippets, and related-query improvements. The line between an "algo update" and a "feature" got a bit more blurred.
30 search quality highlights - with codenames! (Google)
Google Announces “Megasitelinks,” Image Search Improvements & Better Byline Dates (SEL)

Getting On-Page SEO Right in 2012 and Beyond

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Should You Be on Pinterest? [Infographic]

Images are becoming an essential part of our content marketing strategy. Images are more engaging than text, they are easier to consume and they attract more social media shares.

Two specifically Points  – are your products visually appealing and does your business have the resources to offer quality photos?

Are you on Pinterest Infographic

Friday, March 16, 2012

The Google Panda Update, One Year Later [Infographic]

One year ago, Google launched its “Panda Update” designed to filter low quality or “thin” content from its top search results.

After the infographic, you’ll also find more information about the Panda Update ranging from in-depth analysis of how it works, “winners and losers” and well as recovery tips.


”The


Panda: The Timeline

Panda Update 1.0: Feb. 24, 2011
Panda Update 2.0: April 11, 2011 (about 7 week gap)
Panda Update 2.1: May 10, 2011 (about 4 week gap)
Panda Update 2.2: June 16, 2011 (about 5 week gap)
Panda Update 2.3: July 23, 2011 (about 5 week gap)
Panda Update 2.4: August 12, 2011 (about 3 week gap)
Panda Update 2.5: September 28, 2011 (about 7 week gap)
Panda Update 3.0 : October 19, 2011 (about 3 week gap)
Panda Update 3.1 : November 18, 2011 (about 3 week gap)
Panda Update 3.2 : January 18, 2012 (about 8 week gap)
Panda Update 3.3 : February 27, 2012 (about 6 week gap)

Sources:

http://searchengineland.com/google-panda-update-112805
http://www.seomoz.org/google-algorithm-change

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

What is AuthorRank? [Infographic]

AuthorRank is Google’s attempt at “fusing the web of people with the web of documents and creating a more savvy view of Internet influence.”
 
For the average writer, marketer or content producer, AuthorRank presents a great opportunity for personal branding, but also makes us individually responsible for the quality of work we produce. Evaluating the quality of content is Google’s job, and moving into the future it’s clear Google seeks to evaluate the substantive quality of authors. By understanding AuthorRank now, authors can establish themselves and their aggregated body of work as worthy of being ranked.

AuthorRank Infographic AuthorRank Infographic 

A Visual Guide to Rich Snippets

How do you see rich snippets evolving in the future?

Rich Snippets Guide

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Social Media for Small Business: What You Need to Know

Every business, big or small, may feel like they’re missing something if they don’t include social media as part of their marketing strategy. However, there are several aspects that a business should consider first before taking the leap.

Below are three elements of social media campaigns that could help establish your online channel.

Customer Interaction

Social media promotes a two-way interaction between you and your customer. Therefore, doing it right will gain you a more engaged audience; while doing it wrong can damage your brand. Keep this in mind: customer and non-customers can answer easily and in a very public forum in social media. Hence, it’s recommended that you identify your most loyal customers. Feel free to ask for their suggestions about the most ideal content that you could share in your social media campaign.

Maintaining Online Presence

Initially, having a dedicated Facebook or Twitter page for their brand makes business owners excited. But they didn’t know is that social media campaigns require constant update. Although it can become a chore, a regular update is a surefire way of attracting your audience’s attention. Social media campaigns are not an instant and a winning marketing solution. It will take weeks, months or even years to build up an established and loyal fan base who are really interested with your brand. If you can’t devote enough man-hour time per week on your social media campaigns, the best thing you can do is focus on just one channel first. Additionally, plan what content you’re going to share in advance.

Informative and Entertaining Content

While the goal of creating social media campaigns is to attract customers and revenue, the content that you’ll generate should not depend solely on that objective. People choose to be a fan or a follower of a particular brand in order to be informed or entertained. Using social media only to highlight your business’ latest deal is impractical for acquiring loyal, interested and relevant followers. Unless you share informative and entertaining content to your fan base, you have a slim chance of engaging your target market.

Social media enables owners of small businesses to interact with their clients at a very personal level. However, reaching your target market and keeping them hooked to your products is not an easy task. Bottom line: knowing your customers’ needs and how you can deliver it is definitely a rewarding and cost effective addition to your business’ marketing strategy.

Article written by: Maricris Libo-on
Ref: http://dailyseotip.com/social-media-for-small-business-what-you-need-to-know/2076/