Internet Marketing News – Search Engine Marketing

It’s always fascinating to read Google’s various blogs, if only because they’re always ahead of the curve. As Internet marketers, it’s important to know what’s on their mind, what new initiatives they’re trying, and how they’re tweaking existing services.

A few days ago, Daphne Dembo, Engineering Director, wrote a post about the way in which Google goes about meeting the challenges of international search. She writes, “Our goal is to make Google’s search be relevant to all people, regardless of their language or country.”

She talks about the process that Google goes through when providing search support for a language, from consulting with Google employees who are native speakers of other languages to “training” the company’s language model by exposing it to a large collection of documents written in that language. Daphen talks about the process of spell corrections, diacritical marks, synonyms, compounding, and stemming – some of which are familiar to English speakers and some which are not.

In today’s global economy, it’s important to embrace international marketing and at least consider offering your website in a variety of languages. Reading about Google’s process gives everyone food for thought.

For students at any level, writing an opinion paper is high on the list of assignments that determine what your final grade will be. In an age when resources are, literally, at your fingertips, the quality of your research is going to depend on your ability to navigate the web links. This article will provide a brief map that will help you use web links most effectively to find the information you need. The first thing you need to know is what categories of information are available.

Categories of Information Available via Web Link

1. Reference Materials

Perhaps you’ve already been thinking about how much you already know about the topic you’ve chosen. If your own knowledge is skimpy, however, looking at background information, brief articles about issues, or even overviews will help you define the problem and determine where it stands in society. One thing you’ll be able to pin down is the vocabulary specific to the topic. You’ll probably also be able to figure out who the stakeholders are on the issue. Some places to find these: encyclopedias, political sites, summaries, and sites that have to do with this issue. This may be a good place to find some useful summaries.

2. News Sites

These are sites that will inform you about how relevant your issue is. There will be information, for instance, about legislation on the issue, if relevant. Also, where is the issue being dealt with in the world? Web links to news sites can help you maintain relevance. A discussion of an issue that is no longer relevant anywhere in the world is not likely to be very effective.

3. Law and Legislation

If there are laws relevant to your topic, you certainly want to include that information. Also, there are always good pro-and-con arguments in the debates that occurred before the law was enacted. You can use legislative sites, databases, and guides to find this information.

4. Data

Refutation is an important segment of any opinion paper. You are going to need data not only to back up your position but also to refute the opposite one. You can find these in scholarly journals, white papers, conference proceedings, and research papers. Also look for statistical sources and government reports.

5. Advocacy Sites

Don‚t shy away from looking at the opinions of others when you are determining what your own is. A good place to find these is on the web sites of groups that advocate a particular position. Look also at web links to newspapers and magazines and go to their opt-in pages.

In contrast to the doom-and-gloom forecasting in the media, Microsoft recently announced the results of a study of more optimistic small business owners (many of whom, we assume, engage in Internet marketing and advertising). Commissioned by Microsoft Live Small Business and Elance, the study found:

“…nearly 60 percent of small-business owners believe that 2009 will be as good or better than 2008, while 37 percent are worried about 2009 but believe their businesses will weather the current economic storm. Despite it all – and staying true to their entrepreneurial spirit – 86 percent of business owners state that they are happier running their own business over working for someone else.”

The ears of Internet marketers and advertisers perked up when Microsoft recently announced it had inked a deal with Verizon to deliver mobile search and advertising. The agreement, which runs for five years, will hit the consumer market in a few months via Verizon Wireless feature phones and smartphones.

According to the company’s press release:

The addition of Microsoft’s mobile search and advertising services enhance the long-standing strategic Verizon-Microsoft relationship. Under the five-year agreement, Microsoft will manage search and display advertising on Verizon’s Mobile Web service, creating a one-stop integrated way for advertisers and ad agencies to reach mobile consumers.

There was no word about the terms of the agreement, but the press release went on to say:

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said, “Mobile search and mobile advertising offer tremendous opportunities for innovation and growth, and Microsoft is in a unique position to deliver a fully integrated, voice-enabled solution for Verizon’s customers. We are confident that our advanced mobile search and mobile advertising technologies will help consumers get the most out of their mobile computing experience and help advertisers reach consumers who are on the go more effectively.”

Incoming search terms:

• verizon internet marketing

Some who follow Internet marketing would say that former Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang overstayed his welcome, but it looks like he’s finally vacated the chair for good. Yahoo! recently announced that Carol Bartz will take over the CEO spot. She comes from Autodesk, where she was Executive Chairman and, prior to that CEO. In a statement issued by Yahoo, Chairman Roy Bostock said:

“We are very excited to have Carol Bartz leading Yahoo! into its next era of growth. She is the exact combination of seasoned technology executive and savvy leader that the Board was looking for, and we are thrilled to have attracted such a world-class talent to Yahoo!. She is admired in the Valley as well as on Wall Street for her deep management expertise, strong customer orientation, excellent people skills, and firm understanding of the challenges facing our industry. Carol meets all of the criteria we set for the search and is the only person to whom we offered the job. The Board is united in its view that her energetic and decisive leadership style, coupled with a proven track record of driving growth, operational excellence and shareholder value, is exactly what Yahoo! needs to get back on a path toward achieving its full potential.”

We’ll see where her leadership takes the company, and wish her well.