Yes, this is another article about Bing. But I’m going to take a different spin. Instead of doing another expert review of the quality of the results and the cool interface like all the other search geeks (I use the term with affection), I want to review Bing the way that normal people will. So I’m going to take off my search expert hat and approach Bing from the perspective of the average user, who has very different concerns and motivations than the average search expert—starting with the fact that they don’t give much conscious thought to them at all. Because let’s face it: while every search geek in the world has been checking Bing out this week, our moms don’t even know it exists yet.

(Read the full article on Search Engine Land, here: http://searchengineland.com/bing-a-google-killer-get-real-20510)

With Google dominating the US search industry popularity contest, it’s easy to forget about lesser-known search tools and enhancements.  For example, here are a few that regularly make my life easier and my search experience more useful:

1) Google Preview (Firefox plugin)

Google Preview, despite its unilateral name, works for both Google and Yahoo search results. This little plugin inserts a thumbnail screenshot image of the search result page, making the results list dramatically easier and faster to scan. Here’s how it looks in Google:

It also adds in a “popularity rank” bar, which draws on Alexa ranking data. I largely ignore these rankings, and they can be turned off entirely in the Google Preview preferences.

Here’s the link: Google Preview Plugin for Firefox

2) Showing more than 10 search results per page in Google

(Read the full article…)

One of the big “a-ha” moments many of our SEO clients experience occurs when we talk about how websites, serving as virtual stores, differ from their brick and mortar cousins.

The simplest and most basic difference comes from the fact that brick and mortar stores generally have one “official” entrance while websites, through the virtue of search engine indexation, can be “entered” at almost any point.

Say a searcher is looking for, let’s just go out on a limb here, “sour cream”. (Known here in the UK as “soured cream” – a fact I recently discovered.)

In the online world, a searcher would simply type the query into Google for example, and Voila!, millions of web pages (4.08 MM to be exact)  having something to do with “sour cream” would show up.

In the “real world”, however, the pattern is different. A shopper would generally enter through a store’s main entrance and begin the “search”. In my case it was Tesco, here in Swansea last Sunday, when I was shopping for “sour cream” (we were craving chicken fajitas).

With brick and mortar stores, people are familiar with the concept of browsing, knowing that while most stores have a similar organizational pattern (e.g. products requiring refrigeration are generally located together, as are breads, vegetables, wine), it can still take a while to “learn” that organization when one is a new shopper at that store.

For example, my “sour cream” experience at Tesco on Sunday took more than 45 minutes. At first I browsed for the “soured cream” myself, then I asked for help from an employee who took me to the “salad cream” section (salad cream appears to be a mild mayonnaise people put on their salads), then I browsed some more on my own, then I asked another employee who helpfully said it was in the “milk” section. Once there (again), I frantically examined each shelf on the “milk” aisle until I found the sour cream. All this took place whilst also hearing the countdown to the store closing time and fearing our chicken fajitas would not, in fact, include the critical ingredient.

In short, there’s an element of patience and perusal associated with brick and mortar shopping – until, that is, you learn exactly where the sour cream is and can make a beeline for that aisle the next time you need it.

Online shoppers are not that patient.

(Read the full article…)

View related topics: client-expectations, search-engine-rankings, SEO, seo-success, Web Usability

I’m not a big fan of TV. But my wife and I decided to cancel our satellite TV service effective next week, so I’ve found myself watching more TV than ever recently, trying to squeeze the most out of my remaining days. I guess Cinderella was right: You don’t know what you got ‘til it’s gone.

Anyhow, my wife and I cracked up the other night at a TV commercial that’s had me laughing ever since. The commercial involves two characters: a guy and a llama. The guy (who looks suspiciously llama-like himself) chews on a Starburst, which makes him look exactly like the llama chewing cud (or whatever llamas eat). Then you see the guy’s arm feeding the llama a Starburst, which it continues chewing. Then when the shot switches back to the guy, you see a llama’s arm (Leg? Paw? Hoof?) reach up and feed the guy a Starburst. It’s unexpected and funny, which makes it memorable. I’d argue that it’s a rare example of a TV ad that does a brilliant job of branding.

It did this by appealing to multiple senses. Most TV ads use both video and audio, thus playing to our sense of sight and sound. This ad went further by playing off the unique chewiness of Starburst candy in such a funny way. It was easy to imagine being the funny-looking guy, chewing the candy yourself (touch), savoring the flavor (taste) and inhaling the aroma (smell) with your llama-esque nose.

The essence of branding

Branding has been on my mind a lot lately because I just finished reading “Buyology: Truth and Lies About Why We Buy” by Martin Lindstrom. It’s a fascinating book that provides great insight into how branding really works in the minds of consumers. It also explains how most companies get branding wrong by continuing to focus on stale advertising tactics and logo design instead of engaging consumers’ senses and emotions. The author conducted research using brain scanning technology to see how consumers really react to various types of stimuli associated with brands. It’s a very compelling read that yields some eye-opening takeaways about how human beings are wired.

… Read the full article on Search Engine Land >

I’m one of four authors now writing the Just Behave weekly column on Search Engine Land. In a sure sign that I really suck at this whole social media thing, it only now occurred to me to cross-post that on my own company’s blog. Better late than never, though. So here’s a quick summary of the two columns I’ve written so far, with links over to Search Engine Land for the full articles. As always, all constructive criticism is welcomed.

Wagging the Long-Tailed Dog: Search Behavior & The Economy

As the head of a search agency, I admit that I was somewhat bemused at first by this whole financial crisis we’re having. Don’t get me wrong; I don’t like seeing people suffer, and it hurts to see the impact that a slowing economy is having on many of my friends and neighbors. But as a longtime critic of traditional media and promoter of Search, I couldn’t resist feeling a little smug knowing that traditional ad budgets were about to be cut and the move to online media accelerated as advertisers started focusing more heavily on ROI. Given that Search accounts for almost half of online media spending, that trend would be a good thing for Search and, selfishly, my company – right…? The big picture search trends aren’t going to change dramatically. More people will continue to search more often no matter what, so what could possibly go wrong?

Full Article…

Two Little Things That Make A Big Difference

A lot of the focus in the search marketing world—both paid and organic—is on the technical and quantitative side. And that’s understandable, given the technical background of many of the practitioners and the perception that those elements are relatively easy to control. But many search marketers do themselves and their clients a disservice by not taking a more balanced view, arming themselves with the tools that a solid understanding of the search user experience (SUE) can provide.

With all the talk about how to achieve high rankings, the right growth curve to target for inbound link counts, PageRank shaping (which always makes me think of Suzanne Sommers, like she’ll be pimping the PageRank Shaper as the next Thigh Master), eking out higher Quality Score, and the like, it’s easy to lose sight of the role that actual users play in determining the success of our search campaigns. But user experience considerations often play as large a role as any of the other topics that search marketers regularly discuss. The trick is figuring out where to focus your attention.

To provide a shortcut, here are two quick tips on SUE issues that don’t get a lot of attention yet have a big impact on results. The first tip focuses on how to increase organic traffic by achieving a higher CTR on your organic search listings. The second discusses how to reduce the bounce rate on your site by ensuring a good first impression.

Full Article…