Google has added a new feature to report an indexing issue directly to their search team. You can access this feature in the footer of URL inspection help document and indexing coverage report document. Google is “currently piloting this in the US only and it should be fully available to all in the US within a week or less,” the company said. Report an indexing issue. The feature is designed for those who need further support with indexing issues outside of the the Google “community forums and support documentation.” Where to access this. You can access this button, if you are in the United States, in the footer of the URL inspection help document and indexing coverage report document. This is what it looks like: What it asks for. “This form collects issues raised by site owners when trying to fix Indexing issues with their site in Google Search. A verified Search Console account is a prerequisite for site owners to report issues. Please visit the Google Search Central Help Community for general queries on How Search Works and to improve your site’s visibility in Google Search.” Here is a screenshot of the form: The form takes you through questions step-by-step in order to help you debug the indexing issue on your end before submitting the issue directly to Google. Why we care. One of the more common issues we have seen SEOs struggle with is indexing issues with Google Search. Most of the time, Google would say those issues are related to technical or quality issues with the website, but sometimes they can be issues with Google Search. In fact, we reported numerous confirmed indexing issues with Google over the years. This form gives both Google and SEOs a method to escalate these indexing issues with Google Search. The post Google lets you report an indexing issue appeared first on Search Engine Land. via Search Engine Land https://ift.tt/2R4QZtV
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For organizers forced to abandon conference centers for digital consoles, here’s the good news: The majority of marketers are ready to come back to in-person conferences by the start of 2022. But improvements in virtual conferences and lingering uneasiness about the pandemic will likely mean smaller shows at the outset. About 38% of the nearly 250 marketers we surveyed in March said it is extremely likely that they will attend an in-person show in the first half of 2022, while about 45% gave the prospect a moderate to somewhat likely possibility. The numbers shrink as you get closer to the present, with only 21% saying it is extremely likely they would attend in-person events in the fourth quarter of 2021 and an even smaller 17% saying it is extremely likely they’d attend in the third quarter. The results were part of the March edition of the Events Participation Index survey, which we have fielded regularly since the beginning of the pandemic to help organizers understand the attitudes of the marketing community towards conference attendance. The increased likelihood that marketers will attend in-person events soon comes as more employers lift restrictions on business travel. According to our survey, 23% of respondents said their companies already allow work travel. About 30% said their employers will lift restrictions in the third quarter, 17% said their employers will lift restrictions in the fourth quarter and 30% said their employers will not lift restrictions until 2022. Related: Marketers say COVID vaccines create hope for quick return of in-person events The responses should give organizers hope that in-person shows could succeed if held in the fourth quarter or early 2022, but they also suggest a percentage of marketers are still very unsure about their willingness to attend in person. In fact, 55% of respondents said they would only attend virtual events in 2021. Here to stayThe COVID-19 pandemic essentially shut down the in-person events and entertainment industry overnight, but it gave new life to digital events. The pivot also equalized experiences, as major trade shows and smaller regional conferences were generally reduced to video-based education and networking. It’s a medium that found an audience out of necessity, and it’s likely to stick around. About 92% of marketers who took our survey said organizers should keep offering virtual events even when in-person events return. And the reasons are not surprising. Most cited the ability to attend more events and to more easily integrate them into their schedules. Others cited safety during the pandemic and the lesser environmental impact of digital shows. But most often respondents cited the expense. “While we can only send one person to a live event based on costs, we can send a handful to online workshops,” wrote one respondent. While in-person attendance can cost a company four figures to send a single employee when you factor in ticket, travel and hotel, virtual events have largely been either free or far less expensive. The average cost for a virtual event ticket was $443 in the last six months of 2020, according to a study by event management company Bizzabo. Martech emergesThe pivot to virtual events gave a lot of momentum to software like webinar platforms, event management and registration, video and, of course, conferencing platforms. Some platforms had so much interest that waitlists formed. On24, one of the most established players in webinars and digital events, rode that momentum to an initial public offering in February. And Google’s Meet video conferencing platform went from being an afterthought to being updated and enhanced aggressively to keep pace with Zoom. But the surge in demand for virtual event tech hasn’t yielded any clear leaders. In fact, it highlighted the ingenuity of marketing teams in leveraging a range of different technologies to produce online events. In a recent survey of event organizers, Zoom was by far the most prevalent tech that respondents said they used or will use with 13% adoption, according to the CEIR Global Virtual Event Trends report. In the next highest percentage, 6% of respondents said they used a mix of internal resources to pull these off. Popular tools like On24, YouTube, Vimeo, and StreamYard were used or will be used by only 2% of respondents. In fact, out of the 100 tools mentioned, 80 were used by 1% or fewer respondents. Packing their bagsWhile virtual shows may have earned a place in the events world, marketers still expect to return to in-person experiences and are currently vaccinated or in the process of getting vaccinated. According to our survey, only 13 percent said they do not plan to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. When they do return, however, they expect changes to the in-person experience. Most respondents said they will want to see mandatory mask-wearing, sanitizer stations and better distancing. Others want organizers to request proof of vaccination from attendees. A few even suggested ensuring venues have the latest air filtering systems installed to remove contagions. All of these point to the central question for organizers: What will all of this cost? Organizers will need to weigh the impact of those expenses against the likelihood of smaller attendance numbers. “Don’t be greedy and pile lots of people in,” one respondent said. “Reduce the capacity so that everyone still feels safe.” Related video: A technologist’s guide to hacking virtual event production The post Most marketers expect to attend in-person conferences by early 2022 appeared first on Search Engine Land. via Search Engine Land https://ift.tt/3vpmugR Search Engine Land’s daily brief features daily insights, news, tips, and essential bits of wisdom for today’s search marketer. If you would like to read this before the rest of the internet does, sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox daily. Good morning, Marketers, today is National Superhero Day and that’s enough of a segue for me. It’s really not about the “super” part. This “holiday” made me think of the many kindnesses that I rely on daily to perform my job, which boils down to serving the search community. Every time I tweet a request for perspectives on breaking news or reach out to my network to see if anyone knows of a person that works in a specific vertical, I usually get what I need, thanks to the professionals that I am fortunate enough to write for — thank you very, very much. That’s my specific experience, and I’ve discussed with others why they do (or don’t) engage with potential colleagues on Twitter or LinkedIn. There’s just so much knowledge and experience and networking that you can tap into, and you can be that bridge for someone else that may really need guidance. So, if you see a post by someone and you’re in a position to help them along their journey, I hope you’ll choose to do so. It’s just good karma. Keep on reading for all the news and data you need to know today, as well as a music video that is sure to knock your socks off. George Nguyen, Reassess your ROI for better reporting and strategic insightsWhen it comes to measuring content marketing performance, almost half (46%) of B2B marketers consider determining ROI to be a top challenge, according to data from Ascend2 and KoMarketing. So, what are some factors that can enable you to effectively measure your B2B content marketing campaigns? The greatest proportion of respondents, 61%, said it was “establishing a reliable process/strategy,” followed by having a “high-functioning staff/resources” (40%) and “defining organizational goals” (38%). Why we care. Estimating your ROI can come down to a range of factors, which makes it even more important to get as precise as you can. What you’re telling stakeholders is going to affect the budget you’re given. So, if you’re not confident in your ROI estimates, take some time to pinpoint where the noise is coming from and isolate it so that you can also gain a better understanding of how your content performs, which can also tell you how to iterate on it or if it’s time to shift strategies. Will Apple’s App Tracking Transparency change the game for advertisers?It’s been about ten months since Apple first announced that apps will have to seek explicit consent from users if they want to track their activity across other apps and websites, but App Tracking Transparency has finally launched as part of iOS 14.5. You may recall that Facebook decried the new feature, even going as far as to take out ads in The Washington Post, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal stating that it was taking a stand against Apple on behalf of “small businesses everywhere.” It’s easy to see that Facebook is downplaying how Apple’s change affects its own business, but many small businesses do rely on personalized ads to reach audiences. iPhones accounted for 62% of all domestic ad impressions on Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and the Audience Network in March (up from 56% compared to the year prior), according to Tinuiti’s Q1 2021 Facebook Ads Benchmark Report. Android, on the other hand, accounted for 29%, which is actually a slight decrease from what it was in March 2020. Why we care. This discrepancy highlights the potential impact that App Tracking Transparency may have. “With Apple devices accounting for such a large share of ad impressions, it will be crucial for advertisers to quickly adapt to the new state of campaign optimization and management to succeed moving forward,” a representative for Tinuiti commented. Tracking down fake e-commerce listingsOne in five fake e-commerce listings came from just 3% of repeat offenders, a new study from brand protection company Incopro found. Eliminating this cohort of illicit sellers couldn’t prevent up to $78 billion in annual losses for brands. The study resulted from a statistical analysis of 1.5 million IP enforcements across over 750 brands. Incopro looked at 34 platforms, including popular marketplaces and social sites, and determined that a strictly enforced “three strikes” policy on offending fake posters would protect brands and consumers alike. Incopro makes two baseline recommendations for e-commerce marketplaces:
Currently, 68% of the selling platforms Incopro surveyed have some policy in place to root out repeat offenders. Only three of the platforms (Alibaba, Aliexpress and Taobao) go as far as banning the illicit sellers. Why we care. Why wouldn’t e-commerce marketplaces and social platforms want to build trust between sellers and consumers? As big brands focus more of their strategies on social commerce, they have to be assured that the environment is safe for their brand and not wasteful to their bottom line. Do you even love digital marketing if you haven’t recorded a song and filmed a music video about it?Catch Barry and Mordy’s chat on Clubhouse today. Our own Barry Schwartz will be joining Mordy Oberstein to discuss what’s new, what’s old and what you should know about SEO these days on today’s edition of Open Mic SEO. Listening to these two is equal parts enlightening and entertaining; if you’ve got the time, it starts at 10am ET on Clubhouse. Pointers for marketing on Reddit. Marketer Chantelle Marcelle tweeted a thread of notes she took during an AMA with Will Cady, Reddit’s head of brand strategy. It’s a great list of tips for those looking to leverage Reddit for branding or community marketing — my favorite tip is: “Don’t confuse critics for trolls. People who are taking the time to criticize usually are the people who care about what you’re doing the most. Even if you don’t have a good answer to share at that time, just acknowledging that you hear them can be hugely helpful.” The SEO Rapper. This time, it’s not Mike King (although I’m not sure Mike raps specifically about SEO). Check out this music video by Charles Lewis, simply titled “Digital Marketing” — the chorus is pretty catchy: “First build a site, next drive traffic, then get leads, see it’s not magic…” At first it was “disruption,” but at this point, it’s just table stakesYou’ve likely heard it before: years of digital transformation crammed into a 12-month span. Some of these changes have been more obvious than others; for example, numerous companies have instituted a permanent WFH policy. While the pandemic prompted many of these shifts, it was only one component of what we experienced in 2020. Employees, as well as the general public, now have increased expectations for companies to take up social and environmental causes. And, privacy and the fair treatment of workers in the gig economy continue to be important considerations for informed customers. In days long gone, these issues were most commonly championed by tech companies, but in Time Magazine’s piece “Every Company is a Tech Company Now. The Disruption is Just Beginning,” Edward Felsenthal, the magazine’s editor-in-chief and CEO, argues that these issues, along with the ability to rapidly evolve your business, have become table stakes for any large company. These entities wield an amount of influence unlike anything we’ve ever seen — I think most marketers would agree that the businesses they represent could go boom or bust depending on the changes that the Googles, Facebooks, Amazons and Apples of the world decide to implement. The main takeaway for me was that these companies could use their influence for good or bad, and sometimes both at the same time. Weighing out those decisions is something that every marketer should be doing: take Apple’s App Tracking Transparency for example. Will you be framing this to your clients in a way that villainizes Apple, or in a way that emphasizes why user consent is important? I believe that if we take part in this change, by engaging in discussions amongst our colleagues in the industry as well as with decision-makers at these multinational corporations, we’ll at least have done our part to nudge progress in the right direction. The post Apple’s App Tracking Transparency is live; Wednesday’s daily brief appeared first on Search Engine Land. via Search Engine Land https://ift.tt/3sTPD2g Google announces additional travel advisory notices in search and updates to its trip planning tools4/28/2021 Additional COVID-related travel advisory and restriction information will be shown in Google search, the company announced Wednesday. In addition, Google is also rolling out a revamped Explore section for its travel planning site as well as road trip support for Maps on desktop. More travel advisory and restriction information. When users search for flights, hotels or similar travel-related queries, Google will show travel restriction details (shown above) for their destination. This information can include whether visitors must provide their immunization records, proof of test results or whether they must quarantine once they arrive. Users that are signed in to their Google account can track travel advisories by toggling the “receive an email if this guidance changes” switch. When they do, they’ll be alerted when restrictions are added, lifted or reduced. These notifications are specific to the destination country, but information for specific states is also available within the U.S. These new features add to the travel trends and advisory notices Google rolled out in August 2020. The redesigned Explore section. The company also announced a revamped Explore section within google.com/travel. Users will now see more destinations on the map, like national parks and smaller cities, and Google has added the ability to filter destinations by interests (outdoors, beaches, skiing, etc.). The “Travel Mode” filter at the top of the map can also be used to see only cities with airports. When users select a destination, travel advisories and restrictions are also shown as well. Road trip support for Maps on desktop. Google Maps on desktop now supports road trip planning. After entering a starting location and destination, users can select from different types of places to stop at via the options at the top of the interface. This feature is already available on the Android and iOS versions of the Maps app. Why we care. Google has made itself a key player in the online travel sector through feature developments and acquisitions dating back to 2010, when it acquired flight information software company ITA Software to create its flight search engine. With this latest announcement, the company continues to solidify itself as an all-in-one travel planning tool that can help users comparison shop for flights, plan road trips and stay informed about travel restrictions. This is likely to keep users within Google’s ecosystem, which makes it more difficult for Google’s competitors in the travel industry. As is the case with many of these user-oriented updates, there may also be trickle-down effects for marketers as we must leverage the platforms that our audiences use (in this case, Google) to market to them. The post Google announces additional travel advisory notices in search and updates to its trip planning tools appeared first on Search Engine Land. via Search Engine Land https://ift.tt/2R6yMvI Let’s admit it: we as marketers have fewer and fewer ways to reach customers and lead them to a purchase decision. Yes, social media and digital marketing opened up a new world, but they also made our audience less impressionable to cookie-cutter marketing tactics. They got tired of clichéd slogans, learned how to use ad blockers, and developed banner blindness. The main drive behind purchase decisions has always been the sense of belonging: people choose brands that represent something more than just a product. Today, authenticity is the biggest selling point. Building trust is a slow process. Luckily, there’s another way to connect to your audience and it doesn’t require years of marketing effort – influencer marketing. According to the State of Influencer Marketing 2021 report, 90% of marketers believe influencer marketing to be effective. The same report discovered that finding influencers remains the most significant challenge for those who run campaigns in-house. In this article, we will go through the tenets of influencer marketing and explain how to find the right influencers with the platform’s native capabilities and marketing tools. What is influencer marketing?Influencer marketing is the process of employing content creators to reach your target audience, raise brand awareness, and drive traffic to your website. Influencer marketing solves the main marketing challenge of all times: establishing the relationship with your audience. Influencer marketing is one of the best tactics social media has to offer as:
Notably, even one influencer campaign can have long-term effects for the exact reasons listed above. The best influencers understand and convey your values, tone of voice, and public image. That’s why identifying influencers you want to work with is an extremely important task. Types of influencers on social mediaWhether your aim is finding Instagram, Facebook, or LinkedIn influencers, they are usually grouped by follower count:
The bigger is not always the better. Upfluence reports that micro-influencers have a higher engagement rate across social platforms. The smaller the community is, the more attention an influencer is able to pay to each follower they have. Thus, people are more willing to engage with them. The audience size is not the only factor to consider during your search for potential influencers. Identifying influencers that will be right for your brand is 70% of your campaign’s success. There are several free and paid ways to find social media influencers:
How to find influencers on social media using native search optionsSome people start influencer search by Googling a list of influencers in their industry. However, most YouTube and Instagram influencers’ rankings are likely to be limited to macro-influencers. Here’s what you should do instead. First of all, you need to choose the social media platform you’re going to focus on. Social media platforms can greatly affect your search results: finding Instagram influencers is very different from opinion leaders on LinkedIn. The choice of the social media platform should be based on your marketing goals. Now it’s time to research your niche. Look up which influencers have collaborated with your competitors, check what hashtags they use and who they tag in their posts. Use these hashtags to identify social media accounts that post relevant content. Go through this list and analyze their social performance: the number of followers, engagement, content they post, etc. You can also use free social media analytics tools such as Squarelovin to get these metrics — they will analyze any social media account’s public metrics. In the end, you will have a short list of important influencers for outreach. Manual search requires quite a lot of time combing through social accounts to find The One. As an alternative, you can turn to a talent agency and give them a list of requirements for a potential influencer. They have access to databases of influencers they manage and will facilitate all your collaborations with them. Logically, this collaboration will cost you more since the agency gets a cut too. Another way to find influencers is through a social media monitoring tool such as Awario, Buzzsumo, Upfluence, or Talkwalker. While they are not strictly tools for influencer marketing, most of them offer a free social media dashboard dedicated to influencers research. How to find influencers with social media analytics toolsSocial media analytics tools such Talkwalker or Awario look for influencers based on selected parameters and organize them in an easy-to-navigate list. They find conversations relevant to your niche and analyze the social media accounts behind them. As a result, you get the list of influencers in your niche ranked by how popular they are and their relevance to your brand. This way, you won’t spend a second on an irrelevant social media account. The first step is to determine the keywords to find relevant accounts. Step 1: Keywords searchSince social listening tools find influencers based on the content they post, you need to think of words and phrases your potential collaborators use. For example, let’s say you want to promote a platform for website design. The keywords for your search can be divided in the following groups:
It’s a good idea to look up your competitors’ accounts and check what kind of hashtags they use as well. You can also try using a free keyword research tool such as Uber Suggest or RankTracker for inspiration. Step 2: Monitoring keywordsNow set up monitoring. The more keywords you have, the better since it will ensure that the tool finds all the relevant influencers. Most tools give you more settings to choose from, including:
If you realize that your monitoring settings are too broad and bring you unrelated information, you can always change them or try Boolean search for laser-focused monitoring. Step 3: Working with resultsSocial media analytics tools usually give you two distinct ways to work with the collected data:
To get a comprehensive list of influencers in your niche, the second option works the best. The tools I mentioned provide you with influencers reports that rank the social media accounts by the size of their audience, their relevance to your niche, and additional parameters such as sentiment. You are free to try looking for influencers via the mention feed, where you have all the individual conversations and posts. Various filters allow you to customize it only to see posts from people with a particular audience size, which is extremely helpful for finding micro-influencers. You can instantly see what exactly those influencers have to say about your topic — which gives you a perfect opening line for your outreach strategy. Step 4: Choosing the right influencer for youTo narrow down your list to the best of the best, you need to answer the following questions:
A social listening tool can help you answer these questions too! Create an alert with the influencers’ name and see what people are saying about them on the Internet. Tips for a perfect influencer campaign
Often, influencers facilitate a connection with a new audience for your brand. That’s why it’s extremely important to choose influencers wisely. From finding Instagram Influencers to collaborating with Twitch streamers, these useful tips will help you improve your marketing strategy. The post How to find the perfect influencers for your brand: A quick and easy way appeared first on Search Engine Land. via Search Engine Land https://ift.tt/3dXWrHS Your opportunity to learn elite, actionable search marketing tactics is here: SMX Advanced is happening for the first time since 2019, and it’s never been easier or more affordable to attend. Secure your All Access pass now for just $199 and join us online June 15-16. The agenda is live and ready for you to explore! Programmed by the Search Engine Land editors, this experts-only, tactic-rich training experience features senior marketers from Under Armour, T-Mobile, and more exploring the latest, most sophisticated SEO and PPC topics and trends, including…
… and so much more. You’ll also unlock a brand-new, two-day User Experience track, live Q&A with speakers (Overtime!), forward-thinking keynotes on changing consumer behavior, engaging community meetups, and more. For 15 years, more than 75,000 search marketers from around the world have attended SMX to learn performance-enhancing tactics, make game-changing connections, and further their careers. Don’t miss your chance to join them online for the only professional training experience created by advanced search marketers for advanced search marketers. Super Early Bird rates expire next Saturday, May 8 — grab your All Access pass now for just $199 or bundle with a live, hands-on workshop for just $299! Psst… The more the merrier at SMX. Attend with your team to unlock up to 20% in savings! The post Advanced. Actionable. Virtual. See the SMX Advanced agenda now! appeared first on Search Engine Land. via Search Engine Land https://ift.tt/3tWpeC5 Search Engine Land’s daily brief features daily insights, news, tips, and essential bits of wisdom for today’s search marketer. If you would like to read this before the rest of the internet does, sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox daily. Good morning, Marketers, and why do you love Search Console? It’s definitely a trove of data for search marketers — whether you’re in charge of content, technical SEO, or even advertising. You can understand what’s going on with your site in Google’s search results all in one place. Plus, there are always new reports and data tools popping up — like the new Core Web Vitals report under Experience. Google’s Search Console is a go-to tool for SEOs, PPCers, and more. And we want to know what your favorite Search Console features are and why. How do you use them? What makes them your favorite? Give us all the details in our latest two-question survey for a chance to be quoted on Search Engine Land. Carolyn Lyden, Google officially dropped Q&A on Google in search resultsGoogle is officially removing the Q&A on Google feature from Google Search. Just to be clear, this does not impact the Google Question Hub feature, but it does impact some searchers in India who have submitted questions and/or answers using the Q&A on Google feature. “The feature was only available in India for a select set of topics, and users who submitted answers were notified so they can download their contributions via Google Takeout,” a Google spokesperson told Search Engine Land. Google Ads announces steps for smooth transition as Apple’s ATT goes liveWith Apple’s App Tracking Transparency policies going live yesterday, iOS users will now be prompted to accept or decline sharing data across apps. Because of these changes, Google is updating the way they report and measure conversion information for ads service on iOS14. Here are some of the details for advertisers promoting web-based conversion goals:
The support piece by Christophe Combette, Group Product Manager, Google Ads also dives into how advertisers that are promoting iOS apps may see changes as well. 68% of consumers feel better about buying products from companies that include LGBTQ representation in digital adsThis year, GLAAD partnered with P&G to release the first-ever “LGBTQ Inclusion in Advertising and Media” study, which measures the attitudes of non-LGBTQ Americans to exposure to LGBTQ people and images in the media. The survey was conducted online by Cint from November 20 to December 3, 2019 among 2031 non-LGBTQ Americans ages 18 and over. The main findings from the study include the following:
Using artificial intelligence, Pattern89 predicts that LGBTQ ad creative will increase engagement in 2021. In fact, the rainbow emoji has gained popularity in digital ads by 1022% since 2018. “The findings of this study send a strong message to brands and media outlets that including LGBTQ people in ads, films, and TV is good for business and good for the world,” said Sarah Kate Ellis, President and CEO of GLAAD. Shimon Sandler on building and growing your search marketing agencyShimon Sandler has worked at some of the most recognizable brands in our space, including with Kevin Lee of Didit and at Viacom/MTV, amongst other spaces. He also started an agency and sold it, and now has started another search marketing agency and is growing that one. Barry spoke with Shimon about his history in the search space, dating back to the early 2000s. But in our two part interview we also spoke about tips on how to build and grow your search marketing agency, and the ever so important – how to keep your current customers and keep them spending money. Algo update chatter, searchers looking for nostalgia travel, and how to A/B test with Google OptimizeSEO: Local SEO and search communities chatter about weekend algorithm updates. Starting around Friday, April 23rd or so, there seems to have been an unconfirmed Google Search ranking algorithm both on the web search results side and the local search results side. There is chatter in the SEO forums, coupled with the automated tracking tools picking up big changes, it does seem like we had some sort of unconfirmed update. PPC: Travel searches take off: Searchers crave safety and nostalgia. As vaccination rates increase, workplaces reopen, and restrictions begin to loosen, we’re beginning to see a growth in travel and vacation searches. But there’s still a lingering hesitancy in planning these trips. In a recent survey Microsoft Advertising conducted, 48% of travelers considered safety and safety regulations as top factors that defined their vacation planning. That’s why when we look at reasons for upcoming travel, many are going to revisit places they know and love, and reconnect with loved ones because they’re all presumably safer choices. CRO: How to create a redirect test in Google Optimize. In this video from Google Analytics, learn how to create a redirect experiment in Google Optimize in three easy steps: how to use a URL as a variant, decide who should see your test (targeting), and determine what to measure (picking an objective). The beginner’s guide to information architecture in UXInformation architecture is all about organizing the things people need from your site in a way that makes them easy to find. The idea is to reduce the barriers that prevent a seamless experience in using a site to reach a goal — whether the goal is to get more info, sign up for a newsletter, call to speak to someone, or make a purchase. “Time is the most precious resource people have. We live in a world where people expect to find a solution to their problems with the least amount of effort. When finding information becomes too complicated or too slow, there’s a risk that people will simply abandon it. And when people abandon an app or a website, it’s more difficult to bring them back. This is where information architecture design plays a key role,” wrote Nick Babich. This ultimate guide to IA from Adobe explains the cognitive psychology behind the practice of organizing website information including how Gestalt principles, mental models, and cognitive load affect how users have positive and negative experience on the web. While content may be what gets people to your site, the information architecture and UX is what gets people to stay. The post Search Console: Is it every marketer’s favorite tool?; Tuesday’s daily brief appeared first on Search Engine Land. via Search Engine Land https://ift.tt/3sX5EUU As Peter Drucker famously said: “If you can’t measure it, you can’t improve it.” These are words every digital marketer lives by. But this is only half true. You need to understand what is measured and how it is calculated to be able to take action. Google gives a Quality Score for each keyword. It affects the CPCs, ad rank and impression share you will get. It will define how profitable your campaign can be. Although Google gives general guidelines on how to improve it, it never revealed how this score is calculated in detail. We analyzed campaigns from over 15,000 advertisers worldwide using SEISO Google Ads campaign optimization tool and have deconstructed its secret formula:
Back to basics: What is the quality score?The Quality Score is how Google assesses the quality and relevance of your keywords regarding your Ad copies, your landing page, and ultimately, the user. The Quality Score takes a grade from 1 to 10 and 10 being the highest. Google will apply a bonus or penalty to the price paid per click for this specific keyword depending on the score. Simply said, the higher your Quality Score, the lower your cost per click. To decide the ranking of your ads in the Search Engine Result pages, Google checks the bids and the Quality Scores of all competing ads and ranks them. Max CPC X Quality Score = AdRank To improve your position on the page, you have two possibilities: increase your bid or improve your Quality Score. This is why it is key to improve your score in order to minimize your CPC. The secret sauce, what goes into the recipe?As officially stated by Google, three components enter in the indicators of the Quality Score: Click-through rate (CTR), Ad Relevance and Landing Page Experience. Each one can be rated: below average, average or above average. Average means the average score compared to your competitors who bid on the same keyword. The real trick is to understand how much weight is given to each indicator? Is this weighting static or does it depend on verticals or pages? Is there a relationship between keywords in an adgroup? We analyzed 15 000+ Google Ads accounts and retro-engineered each indicator’s weight and its impact on QS. And remember this is calculated for each keyword, disregarding its match type of your keywords. Show me the math: How is the quality score calculated?The first thing to understand is that the Quality Score is constructed as the sum of its indicators’ values. You start with 1 – the lowest possible value – and from there add the other points of the QS. The values are pretty straight forward and presented below: It almost seems too simple for Google who is known to be using complicated models. This model has been battle-tested across thousands of accounts for more than two years now. To put it in practice, we can check the score with the following example: For ’Assassins creed Valhalla PS5’
The sum makes 3.75 points rounded to a quality score of 4 For ’+ ratchet + clank + ps5’
The sum gives a to a quality score of 8 Now it makes sense to say that the average score is six and not five. We therefore deduce that the standard QS, let’s say rather “neutral” is not five but the sum of the average score + 1. An average keyword will score: 1 + 1.75 + 1 + 1, 75 = 5.5. The Quality Score being an integer value, this will be rounded to 6. Checking all keywords can be a lengthy process. An easy way to start is to use insight tools such as SEISO Google Ads analyzer report to assist you in the understanding of where you stand. So what? 3 key take away points
How to improve the quality score of your Google Keywords?Keep in mind that a high-quality score is Google’s way of saying that your ad is meeting the needs of their users. The more you meet the needs of your potential customers, the more they’ll be satisfied with the Google ad experience, the less Google will charge you for the click of the ad. This is a virtuous circle. Now that you know where to focus your efforts, you can use tools to help you in the optimization process. 1) For Click Through Rate, you’ll first need to exclude unnecessary keywords. Continuously find and exclude irrelevant search terms that waste your budget. Secondly, you will need to refine your match types to avoid showing yourself on irrelevant requests. For example, with a broad targeting on the keyword “car” you will be displayed on the query “engine maintenance.” That won’t fit with your offering if you are a car dealer. 2) With regards to the Landing Page Experience: Mobile experience and page speed are two of the most important items to look after. Another symptom of issues is the bounce rates on your pages that can reveal low relevance of the content and the page with regards to the expectation of the users. The toolset offered by Google with page speed on one hand and analytics on the other is perfectly suited. Now you know how Google defines the Quality Score for your keywords. Always keep in mind that improving the Expected CTR or the Landing page experience will have twice the impact on quality score points as other actions and should be your priority. But this is only true to a certain extent; once you are above average, there is no benefit. Key Actions:
Are your Google Ads Campaigns optimized? To test SEISO for free TODAY, click on this link: www.seiso.io/en The post Google Ads: The Quality Score formula revealed! appeared first on Search Engine Land. via Search Engine Land https://ift.tt/3aIzFlg You’ve got customer testimonial examples and you’re ready to use them. But if you add a testimonial to your page... The post Steal These Testimonial Examples: 6 Designs to Highlight Your Expertise appeared first on Copyblogger. via Copyblogger https://ift.tt/3u5TsTz You got into Harvard Law? What like its hard? World Intellectual Property Day; Mondays daily brief4/26/2021 Good morning, Marketers, and today is World Intellectual Property Day, A long time ago in a galaxy far away, my first job out of college was as a legal assistant (I, in fact, did not graduate from Havard Law, but humor me). And when I wasn’t scanning every piece of paper that came into our office, I was researching patents. This meant a lot of my day was spent in Google’s patent search perusing industrial patents for particular materials (and then printing them out and scanning them again, I’m sure). If you haven’t checked out this variation of Google’s search engine, it’s actually quite interesting (I say now as I am far removed from my legal assistant days). When you search for something (say, toilets), you can see the results by filing date (most toilet patents were filed between 2001 and 2004 — the heyday of toilet innovation). But you can also get an idea of the top assignees and inventors (the true visionaries in toilets, I’m looking at you, Kimberly Clark). So go search for something fun this morning on Google patent search and see the origins of some of your favorite things (and also check out the riveting names that engineers give for everyday things like Furby, — remember those? — aptly named “interactive animated character”). What better way to celebrate World Intellectual Property Day? Carolyn Lyden, How to gain value from broken backlinksWhen many digital marketing professionals think of link building, their minds jump to the standard outreach process. These methodologies can be quite effective, yet the ROI is largely out of your control. Fortunately, there are some highly effective link-building tactics that give marketers more control and serve both users and website owners. These strategies rely specifically on broken backlinks. Contributor Corey Patterson outlines his method for increasing organic traffic and ranked keywords for his travel/tourism-related client — even during the COVID-19 pandemic: “Ultimate Whale Watch and Snorkel saw a 171.2% increase in organic traffic and a 257.2% increase in organic keywords ranked year over year.” How did he do it?
The broken backlink issues that affect virtually all sites at some point or another offer marketers creative link-building opportunities. Paying attention to these potential links could make a huge difference in your campaigns. Facebook announces new tools for Business Suite ManagerAccording to an Ipsos study from last November, video viewers cited Instagram and Facebook as the most popular video platforms for connecting with brands. Last week Facebook announced In-Stream momentum stats, as well as topic targeting options within Facebook In-Stream video, testing of Instagram Reels Ads, and other ad experiences in Facebook Stories to increase opportunities for brands to better engage with relevant audiences. What’s new?
Brands will lose Gen-Z over poor UXGen Z is between 6 and 24 years old, and they are digital natives. As such, they have over $140 billion in spending power, and over 40% of Gen Zers purchase more than half of their clothing items online. Not only that, but a US-based DWW survey found that 70% of parents consult their Gen Z children in deciding what to buy. How can e-commerce and advertisers capture and keep this growing audience of digital spenders? By investing in a seamless user experience from ad to landing page to checkout to delivery. Gen Z shoppers are not brand loyal and will move on when they have a poor online shopping experience. “More than one-third (38%) of Gen Zers say they allow a brand just one second chance to fix a mistake before switching to a rival. About three quarters (74%) of survey respondents said they’ll find another retailer if an online store is out of stock, while 37% have abandoned a purchase or posted a negative review because of a poor digital shopping experience,” wrote Robert Williams for MarketingDive based on data from Sitecore. What is a good UX for online shopping youths?
Other findings in the survey suggest that Gen Z shoppers want fast and free delivery and ecommerce experiences that work perfectly on a mobile device. Argentina loses Google domain; Random citizen buys it for $5It’s every SEO or website manager’s worst nightmare: forgetting to renew your domain. We all remember the hullabaloo when Marketo forgot to renew their domain and a kind citizen bought it for them (so bad guys couldn’t). Well, apparently it happens to the best of us… even to Google. “On Wednesday night, an Argentinian purchased ownership of the country’s Google domain for a mere 540 Argentine Pesos which, according to today’s exchange rate, equates to $5.81 USD. The domain apparently became available after its previous ownership expired the same day. This caused a temporary closedown of the search engine google.com.ar,” wrote Utkarsha Laharia for Newsweek. So, if you needed a quick reminder this Monday, go check to make sure your domains auto-renew. On the hunt for something new in 2021? Here are the latest career opportunities in searchHead of SEO Operations @ Builtvisible (London based w/ flexible working available)
Associate Director, Paid Social @ Metric Theory (USA – remotely or in offices nationwide)
Senior SEO Strategy Manager @ LoveToKnow Media (remote)
Paid Marketing Manager @ Remote (remote)
Enter a job opening for an opportunity to be featured in this section. Organizing user data, Facebook’s News Feed changes and UX + SEO = BFFOk, this is a long, not a short. But it’s worth the read. How do you organize the data you get from your users (searchers, website visitors, customers, etc.)? You can’t just amalgamate it all together in one blob — but have to analyze the nuances of each individually and use those pieces to paint a picture of your product or service. “If it were art, we’d be painting a picture with hundreds of subtle hues, not simply mixing every paint together to end up with a giant, toneless splodge of data.” Facebook launches a series of tests to inform future changes to its News Feed algorithms. After being grilled by lawmakers about the role that Facebook played in the attack on the U.S. Capitol, the company announced this morning it will be rolling out a series of News Feed ranking tests that will ask users to provide feedback about the posts they’re seeing, which will later be incorporated into Facebook’s News Feed ranking process. UX and SEO: How UX design can help with SEO concerns. To rank against competitors, you need to ensure your site’s safety, mobile responsiveness, and navigation structure are addressing the human needs of your users. UX and SEO share a common goal: provide users with a satisfying response to their query, then convert that positive engagement into clicks, sales, and sign-ups (ideally at a high rate!). The relationship between humor and curiosity“Life would be infinitely happier if we could only be born at the age of eighty and gradually approach eighteen,” wrote Mark Twain. Next time you’re working on a project and suffering from a severe lack of interest in it — try watching a funny video. It could help spark your inquisitiveness. In this newsletter piece from Hidden Brain, the authors make the connection between having a good laugh and curiosity. “Laughter is seriously good for you. Yet the older we get, the less we do it. The average four-year-old kid laughs 300 times a day. ‘It takes the average 40-year-old two and a half months to laugh that many times,’ behavioral scientist Jennifer Aaker said.” Somewhere along the way in our careers we decide to prioritize being buttoned up professionals and decide that humor has to hit the road. As a result, we become more predictable and more specialized — meaning we stop caring about things outside that specialization. More spontaneity = more humor and more humor = more curiosity beyond our comfort zones. “Humor requires observation and a curious mind, yet our adult lives demand professionalism and focus. Maybe the key to scaling our way back up the humor cliff is to more deliberately approach life the way we did when we were kids – with more playfulness,” the author concludes. The post ‘You got into Harvard Law?’ ‘What… like it’s hard?’ World Intellectual Property Day; Monday’s daily brief appeared first on Search Engine Land. via Search Engine Land https://ift.tt/32SALq4 |
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