Official Google Blog: Encouraging people to contribute knowledge

The web contains an enormous amount of information, and Google has helped to make that information more easily accessible by providing pretty good search facilities. But not everything is written nor is everything well organized to make it easily discoverable. There are millions of people who possess useful knowledge that they would love to share, and there are billions of people who can benefit from it. We believe that many do not share that knowledge today simply because it is not easy enough to do that. The challenge posed to us by Larry, Sergey and Eric was to find a way to help people share their knowledge. This is our main goal.

Link: Official Google Blog: Encouraging people to contribute knowledge.

Guide to Twitter as a Tool for Marketing and PR

In a previous post on MyBlogLog tips, I had mentioned a series of social media marketing posts Online Marketing Blog will be publishing where many of the tips will actually come from the community they’re about. Our next post in that series is about micro blogging phenomenon, Twitter.

At first I balked at the idea of Twittering like many others but eventually signed up (leeodden) and have been tuned in ever since. Like blogging, there are many mis perceptions about the productivity potential for Twitter. Those unfamiliar will often say, What’s up with: “My flight is leaving”. “We landed”. “Getting in cab. Etc?”. Trust me, there is a method to the MicroMedia madness as both an individual and a commercial communications tool.

Link: Guide to Twitter as a Tool for Marketing and PR.

Adobe Taps Yahoo to Sell Ads in PDF Documents - ClickZ

Files published in Portable Document Format aren't the most plentiful pages on the Web, but they represent a pretty large available audience. Adobe says it has distributed approximately 500 million Acrobat readers globally, which are used to read everything from archived versions of print magazines to regional newsletters to instruction manuals. Now the software giant is eager to determine whether the documents can join in the digital advertising jamboree that's powered so much other free content.

In a deal with Yahoo, Adobe has begun offering publishers the ability to monetize their PDF files with contextually targeted text ads. While it admits ignorance regarding the size of the market opportunity for such ads or their ideal surroundings, a beta program launched today aims to get some of those answers. IDG InfoWorld, Wired, Pearson's Education, Meredith Corporation, and Reed Elsevier are among the first to offer up their subscription and legacy PDF formatted content for free under the test.

"We don't know which [content types] will dominate," said Kurt Garbe, Adobe's entrepreneur in residence, advertising. "We've looked at a cross-section during the pre-beta. Certainly the reprint market is a very big potential market."

Link: Adobe Taps Yahoo to Sell Ads in PDF Documents - ClickZ.

AOL debuts new platform for video ads

AOL has introduced a video ticker developed with media services firm PointRoll.

The video ticker is a graphic banner ad that is integrated within a streaming video at the bottom of the video player. When clicked, the ad expands while the video pauses and the video ad runs within the viewer. Unclicked ads disappear after 15 seconds, leaving the branded text link. The new video ticker ads will run across the AOL Network of premium video content in the AOL Video media player platform.

Link: AOL debuts new platform for video ads.

Now Google Knows Where You Are

Some cell phones are GPS-enabled, and Google will use this for very accurate positioning. For cell phones without GPS, positioning is determined based on cell tower triangulation and Google Maps, accurate within 10 city blocks.

Link: Now Google Knows Where You Are.

Press Release SEO Tips

Many search marketing tactics come and go, but one channel of promotion that has steadily evolved is the practice of optimizing press releases for search engines. While it’s true that the future of the traditional press release has been up for debate over the past few years, wire services and the web sites they syndicate content to continue to produce results for the clients of savvy public relations professionals and online marketers.

Link: Press Release SEO Tips.

Facebook Defangs Beacon to Appease Privacy-Wary Users - ClickZ

Since Facebook introduced its Beacon program earlier this month, the data sharing initiative has met with mounting opposition from users, 55,000 of whom have joined a MoveOn group protesting the initiative.

In response, Facebook has now changed the way the program is set up to give users more control over which of their online activities are visible to their friends. The new approach somewhat reduces Beacon's potency for Facebook partners like Fandango, Overstock.com and eBay, which in theory will experience fewer referral-based visits. But it preserves the essential structure of the program.

 

Link: Facebook Defangs Beacon to Appease Privacy-Wary Users - ClickZ.

IAC to increase agreement with Google

IAC, which owns Ask.com a Web search engine, said that it would extend and broaden its agreement with Google to provide sponsored listings for five more years.

“They [Google] are clearly the market leaders and their remarkably efficient operation will greatly benefit Ask.com and our other internet properties,” said Barry Diller, the IAC chairman and chief executive officer, in a press release.

Link: IAC to increase agreement with Google.

20+ million travellers sharing stories » SlideShare

TripAdvisor's Brian Payea on finding places where your customers are talking online and how to start a relationship with your potential visitor during the evaluation period.

Link: 20+ million travellers sharing stories » SlideShare.

Also check out our ChatterGuard service.

Online reviews very influential in offline purchase decisions: Study

A recent study has indicated that consumers were willing to pay at least 20% more for services receiving an "Excellent", or 5-star, rating than for the same service receiving a "Good", or 4-star, rating.

Link: Online reviews very influential in offline purchase decisions: Study.

Visit: ChatterGuard.com to find out what people are saying about your hotel.