Semantic Search, Is It The Future Of SEO?

November 15, 2013Hummingbird algorithm, SEO, Small Business Marketingfuture of search, Hummingbird algorithm, Is It The Future Of SEO?, semantic search, SEOPeter Marino

Entity search can be defined as an ‘answer engine’ and works by using ‘entities’ on a web page that are recognised by search engines to provide specific and well-defined queries. So, is it the future of SEO?

The Hummingbird Update

In September 26, Google had taken a step towards in becoming an ‘answer engine’ as the Hummingbird update came into play. Google is quickly implementing a semantic Web technology through updates, whilst still maintaining the main parts of its old algorithm, which is how Google plans to evolve from text links to answers. Google are not making huge changes overnight, but are gradually putting in place the ‘answer engine’ and will display more specific results for the user in order to give web users a better and improved experience.

The steps taken so far by Google to progress in this direction: the Knowledge Graph, the Voice Search and Google Now. These three ‘updates’ each provide answers for users and can even sometimes anticipate users questions due to the ‘entities’ used by Google as opposed to ‘keywords’.

Unstructured Vs. Structured Data

The previous two decades has been witness to the Internet, search engines, and Web users all being classed as unstructured data; meaning that the data gathered by search engines has been unorganised and/or unclassified. Therefore, only patterns within WebPages were able to be recognised (keywords), without any meaning attached to the pages.

This leads to structured data and semantic search:

Semantic Search is a way of classifying data gathered and searched for, through labelling every piece of information as an ‘entity’ — this can also be referred to as structured data.

Structured data provides very accurate product data, which is not only beneficial to the user, but also the retailers. The way this works is that search engines classify, understand and link the structured data aspects together to provide a targeted search result. Additionally, Semantic search will not only optimise retail products.

Have a look at schema types, which is the technical language that’s required when creating a structured Web of data and in which case becomes machine-readable.

An example of how semantic search data is used to identify and provide a more specific answer:

Mrs. Keller → subject → an entity

Algebra → object → an entity

Is teaching → predicate or relationship → links the entities

Links to Answers

When this logic is expanded in terms of technology being structured, using schema, which has the ability to answer our specific questions and queries without using keywords or anchor text links, web designers, SEO professionals and so on, have to get ahead of the game by making sure they implement these practices for their clients and for themselves. Ignoring these semantic updates will surely damage a website in terms of search results, as they will be simply left behind and then find it very difficult to catch up again, if at all.

Understanding vs. Indexing Data

Structured data will significantly improve a search engine’s capability to “understand” rather than pick out ‘keywords’ relevant to a users search query ‘index data’. This will provide a big breakthrough in terms of being able to receive accurate answers to questions when ‘asking’ a search engine.

Making Your Business Data & Content Visible With Semantic Markup

Using semantic markup now will enable a business’s data and even digital content (rich media video etc) to become very easily readable and accessible to search engines, which by the way will stand you in good stead. The changes are happening now and will continue, which will give businesses a head start in terms of being higher ranked within search engines, now and in the future.

Lisa Pollitt, the author of this article is an expert in the SEO field and has several years experience gaining vast knowledge in the industry and on white-hat SEO techniques.

5 Upcoming Social Media Events In Cool Locations

November 14, 2013Advertising events, Events, Social Media Marketingadvertising events, cool social media events, online marketing events, social media eventsPeter Marino

When you are involved in the online world professionally (who isn’t anymore?), it is important to keep up with certain things. Social media, especially in a marketing context, is a big one. The reason there are so many events aimed at social media is that it has become the primary means of promotion on the web.

But if you are going to go to one, you might as well go to the most interesting one possible. Different conferences have their own special charms. My own decision is usually based on the location where they are being held. There is nothing better than going out on the town in a cool place after a long day of lectures.

Obviously, “cool” is subjective. But here are my own five picks for upcoming social media events in awesome locations.

1. SES Toronto

The SES series is incredibly popular, and it is held all over the world. Chances are, you are going to find one of these puppies out there in a city you want to visit. This one is in Toronto, which happens to be one of my favorite all time locations. It will be held from May 14 – 16, 2014, so there are no real details on schedule or speakers. But every SES event attracts some of the leading powerhouses in the industry. It also sells out fast, so you will want to sign up for a reminder the moment tickets go on sale.

Location: Toronto, Canada; Marriott is the official venue.

2. NMX

New Media isn’t all about social media in the traditional sense. It does cover blogging, but also podcasts, web series and other forms of content that have become prevalent in recent years. It is also held in Las Vegas, Nevada, and in January from the 4 – 6, 2014. For those who don’t know, Nevada is a desert. So winter is a great time to go there, to escape from the cold while enjoying the slots. There are some great speakers this year, like Carol Cain, Heather Greenwood Davis, Patrice Yursik, Chris Christensen and Rob Barnett, among many others.

Location: Las Vegas, Nevada; Here’s good guide into Vegas hotels.

3. Social Media Marketing World

Being a social event, you are expecting plenty of opportunities to network. But you would be surprised by the number of events that forget this part of the equation. This one, held in sunny San Diego, is a good mix of sessions and chances to connect with fellow attendees and speakers alike. The schedule is full of social times. It is also a short conference, held March 26 – 28, 2014. So you don’t have to worry about being burnt out.

Location: San Diego, California; for some traveling info and help, try Go San Diego Card.

4. SMX

Next to Toronto, London is another of my favorite cities in the world. Perhaps it is a lifetime of reading Victorian literature, where all the most exciting scenes seemed to occur in London. But I suspect I am not the only one. Add that to the fact that they are hosting SMX, an massively popular annual multi-series, and you have a winner. The conference and International Search Summit are being held on My 13 – 14, 2014. Few details have been released yet, but you can register soon.

Location: London, England; Here’s the official accommodation site.

5. Ad:Tech

When you think of glittering cities, Tokyo has to be on the top of your list. Anyone who has walked through the streets has probably been stunned by the bustle activity, the bright lights, the overall tone that is a tech-friendly paradise. They are going to be hosting a part of the Ad:Tech series next year, though the date hasn’t been finalized. There are plenty of others in areas like Beijing, Sydney and New York. But it is worth waiting fort the Tokyo event, in my opinion.

Location: Tokyo, Japan

Do you have an event in a cool place you want to share? Let us know in the comments!

Michelle Fach is the social media enthusiast and community building strategist working from her home. You can see her tweet at @TekSocial

Creating an Easy Website: Tutorial for Web Design

November 13, 2013Web DesignAdam Prattler

Photo by Jeffrey Zeldman / Flickr

Are you wanting help creating an easy website tutorial for web design? We have you covered with a quick and simple look at everything you need to know (and do) in order to be successful in your quest to help others learn about designing for the Internet and mobile devices.

Steps to Create a Simple Website

Here are the basic steps you want to follow in order to create an easy to understand and use website using web design basics.

What Type of Site – The very first thing you need to do is sit down and think about what type of website you want to create. Are you just trying to get information out? does the information change often? Do you need ecommerce abilities? The more complex your website, the more work it’s going to take. You’ll also want to purchase a domain name at this point – keep it short and try to create a brand rather than use a generic keyword phrase.
Figuring Out Web Hosting – After you know what type of website you want to create – informational or interactive – it’s time to go looking for a web host. If you’re not expecting a lot of traffic (i.e. tens of thousands of visitors each day) then you’re probably going to be okay with basic shared hosting or cloud hosting. These usually cost anywhere from $3/month up to $10/month or more.
Choosing a CMS – Picking the right content management system for the type of website you want to build is important. The three most common choices are WordPress, Drupal and Joomla – in that rough order. The good news is that there’s a lot of help with all of these systems on the Internet if you look around.
Put it Together – You’ll need to log into your web host and setup the server, installing whichever CMS you choose. Most web hosts will allow you to do this with a single click. Once the server is setup correctly and your CMS is installed, you’ll want to take care of the basic details – like picking a theme and designing a logo, not to mention adding content to the website.
Release it to the World – Once you have everything in place and looking and working how you want it, the next step is to start to promote your website. There are many ways to do this online – some are even free. You’ll want to experiment with different forms of marketing so you can effectively let people know your website exists.

Following the simple steps above, you’re going to be able to launch your own website without any problems or headaches. If you have any other tips for creating a simple website easily, be sure to leave a comment below and let us know what you do to make the job easier. The good news is that it’s never been easier to get your own website up and running.

Adam Prattler has researched how to make your own website and is good at explaining the process to others. That’s why he does so well content marketing online.

The Effects Of Social Media On Communication

November 13, 2013Business Tech, Small Business Marketing, Social Media Marketingsocial media and communication, social media good and bad, The Effects Of Social Media On CommunicationPeter Marino

Social media has become so deeply entrenched in our society that it’s almost impossible to remember a time where we weren’t checking Facebook every ten minutes or posting all of our dinners to Instagram. Social media has (in theory) brought us all closer together and has made our world a significantly smaller and more convenient place. But has it improved how we communicate with one another or has it distanced us from each other in a strange and profound way? Making communication via social media almost a surrogate for real, face-to-face conversation? There are two schools of thought on the matter and in this article we intend to explore both of them.

The Positives

Always available – Considering more than half of the western world now owns a smart phone or tablet, nearly all of us are constantly ‘on’, which means we’re always available and within reach. For most of us this is a good thing.

Workplace convenience – Social media in the workplace will make it far easier for employees to form friendships with one another and make lasting bonds with their clients.

Everything in its right place – The majority of social media platforms will now include options for collating all of your other social media profiles into one place so that communication between all platforms (email, SMS messaging, Facebook, Linked In etc. etc.) is seemless and convenient. Certain ‘apps’ such as the incredibly popular ‘WhatsApp’ also allow users to open ‘group conversations’, which means that creating separate groups for your friends, family and work colleagues is as simple as filling in a few boxes.

Connection – The sheer convenience of being able to link to information and access it in an instant is one of the primary reasons why social media has really taken off in the last ten years. Of course many might decry this constant connection as a negative point as could make it harder to distance ones self from their work lives when at home and vice verse. But the great thing about laptops, smartphones and tablets is that they can always be switched off!

Visuals – It has been proven that we respond more actively and positively to visual stimulus and sites such as ‘Flick R’ and ‘Instagram’ rely specifically on images to relate a message. The instantaneous nature of these sites can only be a good thing as it cuts through a lot of the ‘noise’ and gets to the point in an immediate and cathartic way.

Getting to the point – Especially with sites such as Twitter, which limit the amount of characters available per message, social media has made us all ‘get to the point’ with our communication. This means there is less pointless, protracted ‘small talk’ in modern communication in general.

Teaching – As a teaching tool, social media is still flexing its muscles but the potential is unmistakable.

The Negatives

Cyber bullying – A genuine problem that is endemic amongst all social media platforms and has resulted in a genuinely shocking amount of teenage suicides. Ten, even five years ago, schoolyard bullying generally began and ended just there, in the schoolyard. But social media has given vindictive, shallow minded and hateful children the platform to make the bullying a perpetual problem that follows victims home after school and into the weekend.

Quantity over quality – The amount of ‘spam’ advertisements that seep through social media platforms on a daily basis is infuriating but necessary as it’s this spam that keeps the sites free to use. However being bombarded with so much information makes it more difficult for us to see the wood for the trees so to speak and we can end up being pulled into a spiral of links that can bleed hours out of our lives.

Innocence – The internet in general is stealing the innocence from our children and social media is one of the primary facilitators of this loss. Twenty years ago, it would have been almost impossible for our young children to gain access to excessively violent material or hardcore pornography but in the 21st century, any child with even a cursory amount of internet savvy will be able to access stomach turning, potentially mind altering material with next to no hassle at all and social media provides a perfect platform from which to spread such inappropriate material.

Who are we talking to? – Social media allows its users to hide behind a veil of illusion which they can decide to stay behind indefinitely is they so choose. This is potentially damaging as it could cause certain individuals to grow more introverted and isolated as they delve further into these fantasy ‘personas’.

Conclusions

Ultimately, whether or not social media has improved or detracted from how and why we communicate with one another depends very much on your own opinions and your own experiences. It is irrefutably here to stay though, so on whichever side of the fence you choose to sit, you better get comfortable!

Because of social media we are much more connected which can be a blessing and a curse. It is important to allow people privacy and not abuse it, if you’d like to find more information please visit Insignia.