If you have been on Facebook in the last couple of days, you will most likely have noticed a new sidebar located in the top of the right-hand column. It is a single element that plays a part in the redesign of the whole newsfeed. Facebook has been met with all the usual resistance but this is true of every change they roll out. So what is left to do other than have a bit of a discussion about these changes and their implications?

The restructuring of the newsfeed is intended to show the most interesting or important stories, followed by a selection of the most recent underneath. This is more in the style of a newspaper showing the most important news above the fold with other news elsewhere, and is the first time Facebook has categorised our feed in this way. The negative side of this method though, is how and why Facebook choose the stories they show. Overall, this ‘Ticker’ like column in the top right corner of the screen has had a far from welcoming reception from most. Firstly people seem to be annoyed that Facebook cannot possibly calculate what constitutes ‘top news’ and secondly, people feel that it busies the page and is far too much.

I was reminded about the joke floating around that Starbucks are so plentiful they will soon start opening Starbucks within Starbucks. I also came across this glorious picture that sums up a similar consensus;

To more serious matters… what struck me about the changes, is that the new ‘top news’ box might bring more visibility to things such as ‘likes’, comments, shared links and various others. However, people have already come up with methods to hide or remove it because they don’t like it. When we consider that Google+ is actually very user orientated, they make all their updates and changes based on improving user experience, is it possible that in all their haste to keep up and maintain dominance, Facebook have rolled out a number of changes but forgot the most important thing; their users?

Will the development of Google + add another threat to the existence of Facebook?

Not so long ago, Facebook was the talk of the internet. Enabling you to connect with friends, post regular updates on your daily goings-on and upload images of unforgettable nights out on the town, Facebook was a place of refuge for teens and adults alike across the country. However along came Twitter a few years later with their 140 characters and just recently Google has announced its social media baby, Google + or Plus, that they hope will challenge the reign of Facebook as leader in the field.

Whilst I am confident that Facebook still has a future on a personal level and for businesses to use within an SEO campaign, the gauntlet has certainly been laid. Twitter is undoubtedly the stand out competitor and its popularity continues to grow whilst Facebook wanes somewhat. The figures don’t lie and in the month of May alone, 100,000 British users deactivated their Facebook accounts to take the total number down to 29.8 million.

This must be a worry to founder Mark Zuckerberg as this trend has followed across the world, with 6 million users logging off for good in the States too. Furthermore, with Google’s announcement of its version of a social media platform, the competition for users will only intensify.

Despite failed attempts at content sharing sites by Google before, the likes of Buzz and Wave don’t really warrant a mention, the hype surrounding Google + is certainly not going to be missed by the likes of Mr Zuckerberg. Furthermore, as Facebook leans towards arch rival Microsoft, Google will certainly see the battle as well and truly underway.

Google + incorporates many similar features to Facebook and in all honesty bears a striking resemblance. With specialised groups of friends, live feed streams and the opportunity to add images, Google has sneakily used the base for success and built from there.

Split into five sections, Circle, Sparks, Hangouts, Instant Upload and Huddles, Google + takes social media networking to a new level whilst incorporating certain features that have proved popular elsewhere;

Circle:

Allows you to group contacts into work, family, school etc so you can directly contact certain groups rather than forcing your updates onto everybody.

Sparks:

Acts in a similar way to an RSS feed (or Facebook news feed) by letting you input things you are interested in and pushing similar content in your direction.

Hangouts:

An inventive idea that features live video chats with up to 10 friends at once- an idea potentially gained from the ever popular Skype?

Instant Uploads:

Recognising people are always on the move, this features enables mobile uploads of images and videos directly to a private album on your account.

Huddle:

The fifth element is a group text feature, possibly designed following on from the success of Blackberry messenger, that lets you have large group chats through your phone with others on Google +.

It is still very early days for Google + and its threat to Facebook will only be seen over time. For now, I would certainly stick with Facebook and Twitter if you are looking to push your business in the social media direction as a side to an SEO campaign, but with Google’s firepower you never know. It could be a resounding success or follow some of its predecessors and disappear with a whimper!

Let us know what you think is going to happen in the social media world by leaving a comment below.

Top up Your Knowledge with a Detailed Examination of the Many SEO Techniques

As we are smack bang in the busy exam period for schools, we thought it was about time that we created a revision guide to study from in order to succeed in the wonderful world of SEO. With so many different elements that make up an SEO campaign, by reading this you may welcome features that your business is missing out on!

Firstly you must understand exactly what SEO is and how it is can be highly effective in aiding the profitability of your business.

The internet is a fantastic resource and can be used to find almost anything. From a single pair of shoes right through to a construction company to build you a new home, by simply inputting a few associated words into the search bar you are supplied with a seemingly endless stream of results. Successful SEO, or Search Engine Optimisation if you’re going for top marks in the exam, is designed to help a business get to the top of the search engine rankings for the particular keywords that it is optimising for.

With almost every business having some form of website, the potential to run an SEO campaign is available to the majority of them. Here are is selection of the onsite SEO techniques that can be implemented;

Keyword Selection: It is imperative to choose the correct keywords in relation to the business in question, whilst also making sure they are those that a significant number of people are going to search for. This will ensure that when a business does get to the top of page one, it is there for the relevant search terms.

Text and Content: Once keywords have been selected, the text and content of the website should be changed to incorporate these for maximum SEO effect.

Increase the Size of Website: As time progresses and traffic continually comes through to the site, additional pages and extra content can then be added to further improve the overall user experience.

On completion of the onsite SEO techniques, the next stage concentrates on building up off site search engine optimisation through the following techniques;

Link Building: This is a procedure that should be undertaken with great care to ensure that a collection of good quality links are being created. This is certainly an example of how quality, not quantity, rings true as poor quality link building can quickly see a business go in the opposite direction in Google’s rankings.

Article Marketing: Intertwined with the continued expansion of the site, the introduction of article marketing to a campaign is highly effective in developing internal and external links. Adding content to the site increases the number of areas a user can visit whilst external distribution of articles works at building wider links and drawing potential consumers in from further afield.

As time progresses and the implementation of both onsite and offsite Search Engine Optimisation continues, there are then other features that can be brought into the equation to further increase the chances of success;

Pay Per Click: Pay Per Click, or PPC, is an extension to an SEO campaign as it ensures that the business is advertised on the first page of Google’s rankings. As people search for the related key phrase of the business in question, an advertisement appears in the PPC section of the search engine and ultimately draws in interest. This technique can be particularly effective for competitive keywords that may take time to reach the top of the rankings.

Email Marketing: Email marketing, or eMarketing, is one of the most popular brand building and promotional tools available to a business. It offers the opportunity to advertise new products, latest news features and regular updates on services by sending out email type newsletters or e-shots to a business’ catalogue of clients.

Social Media: A Twitter profile and Facebook profile/page can be the perfect opportunity for a business to further promote its services on a grand scale. With the millions of people on both social media platforms, there is a whole new business to aim at. Focus should be made towards the advertisement of products and services in the quest to build the brand and draw potential business back to a website through the use of good quality links.

The features focused on within this revision guide are aimed at giving you a better understanding of the processes involved in a successful SEO campaign. Now why not test your friends, colleagues and business associates with a selection of questions you have created to see how much they know about the ever-changing world of Search Engine Optimisation?

If you`ve already heard about Google`s Plus One feature then I know you will be just weeping over the intended title pun. If not, then there`s a good chance you just wept anyway but more with confusion than anything else. Along with future improvements Google have devised another addition to their search engine repertoire but the question is will it be any good? Will it be of any use?

I like you, oh thank you, I like you too, no no, I like you more…..and so do they..

Nowadays, there has to be a “like” button on most things automated. Gone are the days of doing as you were told and dealing with it. With Google`s new Plus One feature which is rolling out in America (but has no defined released date yet for Europe and the UK) is basically a big fat tick option for those that wish to leave their opinion on a site or search they have found. Thus giving your stamp of approval for friends and colleagues to see you have personally approved the site. It`s a similiar tool to the “like” button used in current Facebook pages. It`s a clever function and helps to give the user the feeling of having more input and contributing to others` experience. The plus one scores are public and will be visible in search results and ads and could in theory make or break a site in terms of whether people continue to view the site. After all, there are some people who will base their opinions purely on scores and votes rather than making their own minds up. It could turn browsing into a popularity contest which could be detrimental to ecommerce sites in particular.

Rankings and social responsibility..

Google have stated that the plus one functions will be used in determining rank which takes the priority away from links a little bit, as surprising as this is to some in the industry, it seems that Google are trying to incorporate social feedback as part of the overall ranking factors. Having said that though, this is a fairly new feature being used in search results and it will be interesting to see whether users will embrace it or just consider it another umbrella with holes in it, that is to say it`s a nice idea but ultimately useless.

A question posed has been whether people will manipulate the social tool in order to abuse the system and get the result they want, especially if it is now a ranking factor by Google. Google it seems will determine rank based on more than just how many “likes” you have. As well as the obvious link building factors used, with Plus One they will also look at whether they are votes from real people, they will look at analytics and social sites in general for more information. In the future there could also be a Google Analytics Plus One feedback button which can be installed in your site code, giving users the option of giving you their “cool” vote. It does show however, that Google are leaning more and more towards social marketing influences and this could change how SEO is performed in the future.

With Love In The Air, Why Should Your Business Miss Out?

Yes, it’s that time of year again! The price of a bunch of flowers triples from the local florist and the colours of pink and red are in the window of every shop you walk past. February 14th is the day to celebrate love every single year and also a day in which the purchase of a soppy card and bouquet of red roses has become almost compulsory. However, I’m putting forward the idea that alongside showering your partner with love and gifts, why not consider buying your business a treat this Valentine’s Day?

For many running a business is a labour of love, so on the traditional day for celebrating love why should it miss out on a treat to show your appreciation? With a constant battle against competitors to take the step ahead and pull in more customers, a gift of an SEO campaign could do the trick.

Gaining that edge to push you towards the top of the Google rankings can provide you and your business with the perfect Valentine’s Day present.  With an assigned SEO consultant, a number of specialist techniques and tools can be utilised to offer the best chance of prolonged success for your business.

Article Marketing

Link building is a key feature of a successful campaign and with a dedicated team of content writers behind you your business can quickly expand its links across the World Wide Web. In addition to expanding external links to encourage readers of the article to click on the link back to your site, the articles also add interesting and informative text to your website to encourage visitors to stay that little bit longer.

Social Media

With the ever increasing growth of Twitter and Facebook, the opportunities to build contacts and connect with industry related businesses are almost endless. With regular updates on products and news through your profile as well as photos, testimonials and regular networking, you can quickly establish yourself on the social networking platforms and encourage more people to buy products from your website.

Pay Per Click

PPC has really taken off recently with more and more businesses discovering the advantages a successful campaign can bring. As people search for a keyword within your industry, the aim is for your advert to immediately appear and draw them in to generate the interest. With the everyday use of search engines to find a business, PPC will get your advert at the top of the page one for all to see.

Email Marketing

That long list of contact details you have stored away on your computer can now be put to full use. An attractive, stylish and information riddled email can be sent out to all of your clients on a regular basis to inform them of great deals, exciting news and any key dates coming up in your business calendar. Driving even more traffic through to your site, incorporating email marketing within your SEO campaign could really see your business soar.

Now I’m in no way encouraging you to forget about the fancy flowers and posh meal for your loved one this Valentine’s Day, but just reminding you not to forget about the important role that your business plays in your life. Treating it to a full SEO campaign this year could see you with a more successful business this time next year which in turn will allow you to buy your partner an even bigger bouquet of flowers. Everyone’s a winner!