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CRO and SEO: SEM Civil War

Written on April 4, 2010 by admin

Filed Under: Advertising, Object, chat, marketing, seo

Posted by Kate Morris

civil war n. A state of hostility or conflict between elements within an organization.

Alright, so search marketing isn’t really an “organization” but there is a certain hostility within its ranks. It’s the war of the acronyms and funding. For years there have been articles, studies, and conference panels surrounding the debate of paid search versus organic search. That rivalry is rather ancient now considering the new kids on the block: CRO, SMO, and LPO. Who will win the war? Simple. If any one side wins the war in your organization, you are the loser.

Did Google Ignore an Italian Takedown Notice?

Written on March 8, 2010 by admin

Filed Under: marketing

The verdict on the Italian YouTube court case verdict seemed pretty clear: sentencing Google execs to jail time for an invasion of privacy in a video posted (by someone else) on the UGC site was, well, “absurd,” as we said two weeks ago.

But some new evidence is coming out that may just justify at least the “guilty” verdict from the Italian court—since that’s all the Italian judge released (i.e. he didn’t publish his reasoning). According to TechDirt, there are now reports that Google may have ignored a takedown notice on the video.

…Oooooor not. While Google Translate is woefully inadequate in translating the Italian article intelligibly, it appears that the takedown requests in question (if they exist) might actually be from users—i.e. people without legal standing—via the site’s feedback form. Although that could certainly alert the company that inappropriate content had been submitted by a user, it’s a far cry from an official legal filing.

It’s also hard to tell because Google hasn’t apparently responded adequately to requests from the prosecution to provide copies of any legal takedown notices (although I believe the article says they have provided a copy of one such filing: “Google Inc. has sent not only evasive replies on the comments made [on the video page] but also on removal requests (having produced only one on that SB)”). Furthermore, the EU has no guidelines on what constitutes a sufficiently fast response to a legal takedown notice (or even a clearly defined process for filing takedown notices).

Still, it hardly makes sense to sentence executives who probably never saw any takedown notices (whether or not they were filed), didn’t abuse the child in question, didn’t tape said abuse and didn’t post the video, to jail time for invasion of privacy. TechDirt points out a fine for ignoring (or losing) a takedown notice would be a far more appropriate penalty.

What do you think? Did Google receive a takedown notice? Who should be punished, and how?

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Did Google Ignore an Italian Takedown Notice?

Bing Hopes 3-Month UK Ad Campaign Can Wipe Away 10 Years of Sucking Wind

Written on March 8, 2010 by admin

Filed Under: marketing

I don’t remember what Microsoft’s search engine share was, when I left the UK in the summer of 2000, but I’m pretty sure it was a lot better than the current anemic 3%.

According to the Guardian, Microsoft would love for Bing to recapture those glory days and is willing to spend the rest of its natural life next 3 months trying to claw it back.

The three-month campaign, which includes three TV ads created by the agency JWT, starts on Wednesday and uses the strapline “Bing and decide”. The ads aim to show that Bing simplifies the “information overload” that accompanies the results of many searches.

The TV campaign will run solidly for a month and then in two-week bursts until mid-June. It will be backed by a digital campaign across Microsoft’s network and on media including social networking websites.

Three whole months, huh? Way to lay it all on the line Microsoft. You lose market share over a 10-15 year period and expect to win it all back by reaching consumers while they’re watching Coronation Street?

Of course, I know that Bing’s ad campaign won’t run for just 3 months–just this particular push–but consider this: Google achieved 90% share in the UK via word-of-mouth. Bing has been available to UK users–albeit in beta–since June. If they felt that Bing was truly revolutionizing search, they would have pushed the needle already. Right?

Originally posted here:
Bing Hopes 3-Month UK Ad Campaign Can Wipe Away 10 Years of Sucking Wind

Warning: Marketers Are Watching Your Children

Written on September 9, 2009 by admin

Filed Under: marketing

Companies that sell software to monitor your child’s online activity are double-dipping by selling the collected data to marketers, according to AP.

Not every software provider is engaging in the practice, but EchoMetrix Inc’s Sentry and FamilySafe brands are called out in particular. Because the software “listens” to the instant messenger conversations of kids, it’s able to package that information for marketers interested in learning of the latest trends of this young demographic. While this immediately sounds alarming, the companies claim there is no risk to the privacy of the children being monitored:

The company that sells the software insists it is not putting kids’ information at risk, since the program does not record children’s names or addresses. But the software knows how old they are because parents customize its features to be more or less permissive, depending on age.

That’s all well and good, but didn’t AOL anonymize its search data? That worked well, didn’t it?

With the software costing up to $50 a year, you’d think there wouldn’t be the need to get greedy, but with such little data available on the “under 13″ age group, marketers are willing to pay big bucks for such data.

If you’re using such a service, you should look for any option to “opt out” and always read the software’s terms and conditions carefully.

So, what do you think of this? As a marketer, are you intrigued or outraged? Parents, what say you?

(via)

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