http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/ My Web Design Source offers high quality graphic design, web development, and online marketing services for your business at affordable prices!<br><br>Our web site designers work directly with your project to create exactly what you want and your business needs!<br><br>So whether it's a basic website, online store, custom web application you need, or even just basic updates &amp; maintenance services, we're here to serve you.<br> Wed, 23 Jul 2008 14:10:07 -0000 Wed, 23 Jul 2008 14:09:14 -0000 http://images.mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/logo http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com 100 100 Businesses would do well to look at website elements such as internal links and quality of content to boost both usability and search rankings, it has been advised.<br><br>According to Mark Jackson of Search Engine Watch, usability and search engine optimisation (SEO) often cross paths, meaning that marketers could benefit from focusing on improving the user experience on their websites.<br><br>He suggested that companies look at practices such as including keywords in anchor text links and steering away from the misconception that making a website more user-friendly means less text and a greater focus on visual appearance.<br><br><a href="http://www.epiphanysolutions.co.uk/searchmarketing/18696038/Give-SEO-a-boost-with-better-web-usability">Read Full News</a><br><br>Resources for<br><br><a href="http://www.mywebdesignsource.com/">My Web Design Source</a><br> http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/56/Give_SEO_a_boost_with_better_web_usability Wed, 23 Jul 2008 14:09:14 -0000 On Friday, <a href="http://www.comscore.com/press/release.asp?press=2337">comScore</a> announced that Google retained its lead in the U.S. core search market capturing 61.5 percent of the searches conducted in June 2008. By and large, the press coverage focused on the fact that Google's share of core searches was down slightly from May, while Yahoo! and Microsoft's share of core searches were up slightly from the previous month.<br><br>But, farther down the comScore press release was data on the "expanded search queries" for June. This includes the top properties where search activity is observed -- like YouTube. And here's what comScore qSearch 2.0 found:<br> -- 7.3 billion expanded search queries were conducted at Google in June;<br> -- 2.5 billion expanded search queries were conducted at Yahoo that month;<br> -- 2.3 billion expanded search queries were conducted at YouTube and other Google sites;<br> -- 1.1 billion expanded search queries were conducted at MSN-Windows Live.<br><br><a href="http://blog.searchenginewatch.com/blog/080720-125451">Read Full News</a><br><br>Resources for<br><br><a href="http://www.mywebdesignsource.com/">My Web Design Source</a><br> http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/55/Is_YouTube_about_to_pass_Yahoo_in_expanded_searches Mon, 21 Jul 2008 07:55:16 -0000 <p>Last week, Amit Singhal explained that Google's search results are manually edited on an infrequent basis.&nbsp; Today, the Google Fellow explored some of the technological achievements that allow for manual interventions to remain so rare.</p><p>Some of the features don't extend much beyond spell-checking suggestions.&nbsp; These, frankly, fail to impress.&nbsp; Other things - like recognizing that "soccer" means different things in different countries, or that "dr" can be a person's title or part of a street's name - are only a small step up.</p><p style="font-weight: bold;font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2008/07/16/google-shows-off-its-search-know-how">Read Full News</a></p><p style="font-style: italic;">Resources for</p><p><a href="http://www.mywebdesignsource.com/">My Web Design Source</a><br></p> http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/54/Google_Shows_Off_Its_Search_Know-How Thu, 17 Jul 2008 10:27:03 -0000 <h2>Recently, Microsoft Live Search announced it was acquiring natural search engine Powerset. How the acquisition will effect both companies is yet to be seen but the implications are bright for both companies.</h2><br>Microsoft Live Search has been steadily in the third or fourth place for market share, behind Yahoo and Google, for years. The addition of Powerset’s <a href="http://www.powerset.com/">natural search languages</a> could enhance their profile for searchers because natural search brings additional queries to the table.<br><br><a href="http://www.bizreport.com/2008/07/live_search_acquisition_may_improve_search_possibilities.html">Read Full News</a><br><br>Resources for<br><br><a href="http://www.mywebdesignsource.com/">My Web Design Source</a><br><br> http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/53/Live_Search_acquisition_may_improve_search_possibilities Tue, 15 Jul 2008 09:10:02 -0000 <p>In a complaint filed last week with the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission, Internet giant Google alleged Bell Canada is violating Canadian law by slowing Internet traffic. Google is requesting the CRTC take action against Bell.</p><p>Google, the biggest search engine on the Internet, says Bell and other Internet service providers want to be Internet gatekeepers, deciding which Web sites go faster or slower and which won't load up at all, taking the freedom of choice from millions of users and putting control into the hands of the corporate bosses.</p><p>For example, search engine company X could pay Internet service provider Y to guarantee its search engine opens faster than Google does on your computer. That would pretty much spell the end for Google, or any website that was outbid.</p><p>"Bell claims its throttling of peer-to-peer applications is a reasonable form of network management. Google respectfully disagrees. Network management does not include Canadian carriers' blockin... http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/52/Big_business_wants_to_control_your_access_to_the_Internet Mon, 14 Jul 2008 11:25:20 -0000 <h2>Google has become just another fat, happy, and even arrogant company.</h2><br><p> <a href="http://www.pcworld.com/tags/Google+Inc..html">Google</a> went from startup to behemoth in record time. But there are increasing signs that Google has become just another fat, happy, and even arrogant company, no longer the lean, industry-changing giant of the past. And that spells good news for Microsoft. </p> <p>There are numerous signs that Google has lost its mojo. Let's start with the way it treats its employees. Google has prided itself on the many perks it offers those who work for it. The pact has always been clear: Google will treat you like a king, if you in turn work long, hard hours. That free food, after all, is fuel for those willing to work harder and longer hours.</p> <p> <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/05/business/05nocera.html">An eye-opening article in the New York Times</a>, though, shows those days are gone. In it, Joe Nocera details how Google has decided to nearly double the cost of day care for its employees, who have complained bitterly about the change. </p> <p> The story reveals a surprisingly high level of arr... http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/51/Why_Google_Has_Lost_Its_Mojo Tue, 8 Jul 2008 07:58:22 -0000 <p class="storybody">Google is rolling out two new offerings that let advertisers more precisely target people who will likely be receptive to their products. </p><p class="storybody">The new products will replace Google's AdWords pay-per-action beta, a program that will be phased out by the end of August as the company integrates technology from DoubleClick, the advertising and Web publishing network it acquired in April 2007 for US$3.1 billion. </p><p class="storybody">One product is the Conversion Optimizer, a tool designed to manage how much an advertiser will pay for a "conversion," the goal the advertiser wants to achieve from a consumer, such as signing up for a newsletter or buying a product. </p><p class="storybody">Web ads have traditionally been sold on the basis of impressions (the number of times an ad is displayed) or clicks (the number of times a viewer clicks on it) but conversions typically represent more value for an advertiser than impressions or clicks. </p><p class="storybody">Advertisers naturally also want to pay the least amount possible for an ad. The <a href="http://www.google.com/adwords/conversionoptimizer/howitworks.html" target="_blank">Conversion Optimizer</a> is an a... http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/50/Google_changes_tack_on_pay-per-action_offerings Thu, 3 Jul 2008 09:19:52 -0000 As marketing strategies span multiple media channels and tactics, there is an abundance of data driving the need to integrate, visualize, and analyze results quickly and efficiently. Marketing dashboards provide an effective vehicle for tracking actual versus planned marketing campaign performance metrics. Additionally, they provide a foundation for communicating goals, objectives and results across the organization.<br> <strong><br> Success lies in understanding the relationship between data</strong> <p>Advertising success lies in understanding the relationship between media channels and how the advertising engages consumers or prospects. Somewhere in your media ad serving, Google reports, Web site-tracking tools and customer transactional databases you have all the data points you need. But how do you unlock the knowledge in this data? The answer: find the right marketing campaign dashboarding and analytics partner.</p> <p>Dashboards have recently seen an increased resurgence in the market, especially from a corporate... http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/49/10_Steps_to_a_Superior_Online_Campaign Wed, 2 Jul 2008 10:08:59 -0000 <p>Many companies could be missing out on sales by not maximising their websites or online marketing campaigns, worrying new findings have shown.</p><p>The survey, commissioned by Crafted Media, reveals that 88.8% of those surveyed believe online marketing to be either very or quite important, with 75.6% rating non online advertising as important.</p><p>Despite this, almost two thirds (60%) of companies said they spend less than 25% of their overall marketing budget on online marketing techniques. </p><p>The survey also shows that whilst 83% of people think their website is an effective marketing tool, less than two thirds (60%) monitor traffic to their website and under half (39.5%) optimise their websites using Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) techniques.</p><p>Only 9% said they implement Pay Per Click (PPC) advertising campaigns, with almost a third (32.8%) admitting they do neither – meaning they could be missing out on website sales and/or enquiry opportunities.</p><p style="font-weight: bold;font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.utalkmarketing.com/pages/Article.aspx?ArticleID=10877&#x26;Title=Businesses_failing_with_their_online_marketing">Read Full Article</a></p><p style="font-style: italic;">Resources for</p><p><a href="http://www.mywebdesignsource.com/">My Web Design Source... http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/48/Businesses_failing_with_their_online_marketing Tue, 1 Jul 2008 02:58:38 -0000 <p>If you're going to Google yourself, you first should make sure no one is watching.</p> <p> It can be embarrassing if you're caught running your own name through Google's search engines. Others might think it egotistical that you keep track of how often you're mentioned out there on the Greater Internet. What if the searches don't turn up much? Worse yet, what if there are more mentions of people with the same name as you?</p> <p> Such searches can feel like a measure of popularity, similar to the number of times you were pictured in your high school yearbook. A low number of search "hits" might make you feel unpopular and unloved. You might be tempted to put your name on more Web sites to get your numbers up, sort of like the graffiti "artists" who proclaim their existence on public buildings and railroad cars. That's just sad.</p> <p> I confess that I Google myself regularly. I have solid, business-related reasons for doing so. I'm searching for reviews of my books and I'm checking on Web sites where m... http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/47/Steve_Brewer_Google_is_like_high_school_all_over_again Mon, 30 Jun 2008 06:08:11 -0000 <h2>'How-to' computer sites offer guidance on knitting, blackjack, kissing</h2>Terri Rossman considers herself a visual learner. So when the 52-year-old marketing professional wanted to learn a new knitting stitch, she turned to the Web.<br><br> "I searched for 'knit bobble stitch' on <a href="http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/economy-business-finance/google-inc.-ORCRP006761.topic" title="Google Inc." class="taxInlineTagLink" id="ORCRP006761">Google</a> and I found a video of someone doing it," said Rossman, who lives in the Detroit area. "It was perfect for me."<br><br> The Web has become the place where people go to learn new tricks. Traffic to sites like eHow.com and WikiHow.com have doubled over the past year, according to figures from ComScore Networks, while startups such as Howcast.com and Findhow.com, a search engine to find "how-to" content, are entering the field.<br><br> Want to learn how to count cards at a blackjack table? Go to eHow. Interested in dating a flight attendant? Howcast has a video with some advice. Want to create the cat-eye look favored by singer <a href="http://www.baltimoresun.com/topic/entertainment/music/rock-roll-music/amy-winehouse-PECLB000358.topic" title="Amy Winehouse" class="taxInlineTagLink" id="PECLB000358">Amy Winehouse</a>? Several videos on YouTube can help.<br><br>"I saw with Google and then YouTube that people are reall... http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/46/Look_it_up_on_screen Thu, 26 Jun 2008 09:29:06 -0000 <p>There may be problems, but many companies see their future on the web, says Alex Turner</p> <p>AN INCREASING number of online businesses are suffering from high-profile difficulties. This month has already brought problems for Sainsbury’s and Cotton Traders.</p> <p>Sainsbury’s lost up to £1m a day last week as data capture issues forced the supermarket group to take its online store offline, while clothes retailer Cotton Traders admitted to a significant security breach in January.</p> <p>However, many businesses are boosted by their online sales, with some notable successes away from the high street.</p> <p>Birkenhead-based Park Group has offered a Christmas savings scheme for 40 years, mostly using agents to rely on traditional social networks of family, friends and colleagues to grow its business.</p> <p>But recently it has enthusiastically embraced opportunities online. Customers and agents can now place orders and manage their accounts online, which improves customer service and reduces costs.</p> <p>Park chairman P... http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/45/Online_trading_is_still_the_way_ahead Wed, 25 Jun 2008 09:22:57 -0000 Directory submission services are a great way for your website to attain considerable online popularity. This is done by submitting the URL of your website to hundreds of excellent site directories, for the purpose of increasing its exposure in a specific category. Normally, people flock to directories to gain easy access to a number of sites, and you can benefit from this by making your website accessible in these directories.<br><br>When you submit your site to a directory, the name and URL of your website will come up during directory searches for a particular category. The websites in these directories are ordered according to groups, making it easier for internet users to find the specific site that they are looking for. Along with exceptional website content, appropriate keyword placement, and effective online marketing efforts, directory submissions will help your website achieve higher levels of long-term publicity and credibility.<br><br><strong>The Clear Advantages of Directory Submissions</strong><br><br>One of the... http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/44/Improving_Your_Link_Popularity_With_Directory_Submissions Thu, 19 Jun 2008 14:38:53 -0000 <strong>Vertical search Marketing</strong> also known as the niche marketing is the next big thing in SEO, as by now every webmaster tries to target the main or high traffic keywords for their websites, leaving apart the low traffic keywords but VSM says that you should target low traffic keywords first and then the high traffic keywords. Let’s take an example that how these things will actually get settled, suppose I own a SEO or Web Design Company in Las Vegas and I have a website related with this, then I will start my website’s initial promotion with the keywords like Las Vegas seo or web design Las Vegas and concentrate on these low traffic keywords rather than going straight for relatively high volume keywords like Nevada seo or web design Nevada or seo usa or even more high traffic keywords like seo &amp; web design.<br><br><a href="http://www.promotionworld.com/se/articles/article/080618verticalsearchmarketing.html">Read Full News</a><br><br>Resources for<br><br><a href="http://www.mywebdesignsource.com/">My Web Design Source</a><br> http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/43/Vertical_Search_Marketing Wed, 18 Jun 2008 08:25:37 -0000 “We’ve come a long way, baby” claimed a high-spirited pop idol not so long ago, following up on the claim with an equally upbeat track. And so we have…in the world of Internet Marketing too. From the age of information (think glorified electronic brochure) on the web to the world of snappy online transactions…we’ve now moved into the age of an experiential and social Internet, all great leaps in a relatively short space of time. <br><br>Hotel eMarketers can lay claim to that cheery phrase too, as far as marketing and distributing hotel rooms on the internet is concerned, in spite of the traditional, people-centric nature of the industry. But despite the eMarketer code to boldly go where no other hotel marketers have gone before, very few venture into the fuzzy world of online marketing beyond rooms. <br><br>There’s lots more to promote beyond rooms in a hotel, of course. The biggest being the exciting range of Food &amp; Beverage outlets that hotels feature today. And then there are ancillary services... http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/42/Hotel_eMarketing_-_Beyond_Rooms Tue, 17 Jun 2008 02:33:24 -0000 <p style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; ">Starting an online business is a very large undertaking. The key to making it work for you is getting your name out there and educating your target audience about your product or service. Hundreds of new businesses are popping up every day on the Internet. Your goal is to get yours noticed above everyone else's. So, how do you do that?<br></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; ">&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; ">Article marketing offers many advantages for the online business owner. Some of these include:<br></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; ">&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; ">* The ability to attract search engines and increase your site's marketability. Search engines determine the value of your site by the number of useful links pointing to it. This is how your site climbs positions in the search engine rankings.<br></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; ">&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; ">* Promotion through article directories dramatically increases traffic to your website. Your articles are used by other websites, printed in e-zines and featured in newsletters.<br></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; ">&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; ">* A free method of reaching thousands of buyers interested in the type of product or service you are offering. Once y... http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/41/Advantages_of_Article_Marketing Mon, 16 Jun 2008 10:53:08 -0000 by <a href="http://community.zdnet.co.uk/profile/0,1000000564,2000577360b,00.htm">Chris Butler</a> I actually regard the above statement as a little redundant.<br> <br> Social networking as a non-technological concept has been present in business since the first cave man wandered over to his mate Ugg's cave and said something like 'Hi, shall we hunt some big hairy foodie stuff together and flog it to the lot in the next valley?'<br> <br> Facetious maybe but a fair supposition. Social networking just 'is' and in a business context it is essential.<br> <br> With regard to the recent explosion in technologically driven social networking for business I genuinely believe there is some confusion. I am however happy to concede that this confusion exists in my own mind. I am always happy to listen and learn so please help me out.<br> <br> There are many sites out there, some of which you can argue are purely about networking socially. Facebook, Bebo, MySpace etc. There are also some amazingly good sites aimed at the business user (and note my careful differentiation) LinkedIn and Ecademy spring easi... http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/40/The_future_of_social_networking_in_business. Fri, 13 Jun 2008 04:47:14 -0000 <p>Gardening is often used as a way of embracing a simpler life away from the chaos of the modern world, but that doesn’t mean it’s behind the times. More garden retailers are using technology to build communities and open new channels of communication with customers. From advice forums to blogs and podcasts, gardening is reaching out to a switched-on digital demographic. </p> <p>Bricks and clicks is the buzz term in retail at the moment. Last week, market analyst Verdict published a report showing that online retail was defying the downturn with a growth rate 10 times higher than the retail market as a whole. Physical locations, Verdict was keen to highlight, are far from dead, but to thrive and take advantage of the £14.7 billion online retail market, it recommends that retailers complement store sales with an online offering. And in a climate of declining consumer confidence, online retail outlets, like their physical counterparts, are looking to ensure loyalty by offering punters a shopping ... http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/39/FEATURE_Caught_in_the_web Thu, 12 Jun 2008 03:47:37 -0000 <em>Gareth Edwards, asociate eBusiness consultant at the B2B Centre, takes a look at how you can go up against the web's big boys and win.</em><p><br>A website called <a href="http://www.ideasforthekids.co.uk/" target="_blank"><strong>IdeasForTheKids.co.uk</strong></a> recently came third in the BT Excellence Online Awards in the "Best Kids Website" category; not bad for an SME based in Coventry. Since they are a B2B Centre member and client we were very pleased to hear of this success but the scale of the achievement only really comes into focus when you consider that first and second places went to the <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies" target="_blank"><strong>BBC CBeebies</strong></a> and <a href="http://www.disney.co.uk/" target="_blank"><strong>Disney</strong></a> websites respectively. </p><p>So how can you play David to your sector's Goliaths? How about a combination of nifty business and marketing thinking and making use of some key eMarketing techniques – just like some of the B2B Centre's heroic clients.</p><p><strong>How do you compete?</strong><br>When B2B Centre consultants start working with clients to help them improve their websites or online businesses our initial questions aren't "What web tools are you using?" or "What platform is the s... http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/38/How_to_compete_with_the_big_boys_online Wed, 11 Jun 2008 02:02:50 -0000 <p>We all know the difference between advertising and PR. Advertising is when you tell people how good you are and PR is about getting someone else to do it.</p> <p>PR works best if you get someone trusted to do the praising - like a journalist for instance!</p> <p>Consumers know adverts are designed to sell something and editorial comment has no such agenda, and that is why PR is ultimately more powerful than advertising. Advertising you pay for, PR you pray for, as the saying goes.</p> <p>Online, we have the same choice. We can pay to have a link at the top of Google or try and get one there by merit. But which links do consumers trust most?</p> <p>Of course there are a lot of people who don’t know the difference!</p> <p>Google gives them a little clue by giving the top three links a yellow stained background if they are being ‘sponsored’. But many users will just click on the top link whatever the background colour.</p> <p>In the UK, 80 per cent of us prefer to click on the free ‘organic’ listing, highlighting our mistru... http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/journal/item/37/Searching_for_the_best_bit_of_PR_on_Google Tue, 10 Jun 2008 09:19:53 -0000 My Web Design Source offers high quality graphic design, web development, and online marketing services for your business at affordable prices! Our web site designers work directly with your project to create exactly what you want and your business needs! So whether it's a basic website, online store, custom web application you need, or even just basic updates & maintenance services, we're here to serve you. http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/links/item/2/httpwww.mywebdesignsource.com Sun, 6 Apr 2008 17:51:55 -0000 My Web Design Source offers high quality graphic design, web development, and online marketing services for your business at affordable prices! Our web site designers work directly with your project to create exactly what you want and your business needs! So whether it's a basic website, online store, custom web application you need, or even just basic updates & maintenance services, we're here to serve you. http://mywebdesignsource.multiply.com/links/item/1/My_Web_Design_Source Sun, 6 Apr 2008 17:49:05 -0000