Ending the Myth of Online Anonymity, Once and for All

Posted on January 19, 2010 in Search Engine News

anonymous In the past few years, a tremendous amount of conversation has taken place about how safe our private information is on the Internet. I have always believed – and shared with everyone I meet – that everything we do online is findable, searchable, liable and forever.

In early December 2009, Google CEO Eric Schmidt gave an interview to CNBC. The moment I saw the interview, I was relieved to finally hear it come from the big horse’s mouth.

The myth of being anonymous on the Internet is dead. We need to stop assuming that our actions online exist in a virtual world where we can remain safe and anonymous.

Governments from across the world, in countries like US, China, India and Brazil, have asked for and even subpoenaed information from the search engines to track citizens doing everything from espionage, terror, murder, etc. And guess what? Search engines comply.

In fact, the internet has made it way too easy for people to get into trouble. Here are the top 3 culprits:

Email

This is by far the biggest way people slip and get hurt. It’s not just the average daily user that gets hit by bad decisions and lack of privacy. Politicians, Presidents and CEOs from Fortune 500 companies have fallen victim to the contents of their email accounts. Email accounts are easily “hackable.” Sensitive information should never be shared with email. Ever.

Precaution: Never use email to send out anything sensitive or controversial. Examples:

What you think of as a joke might be very, very offensive to someone else.
Emails + Office Romance = Guaranteed to end badly.
Emails have been produced as evidence in SO many trials for all kinds of crimes, including embezzlement, infidelity, violent crimes, etc.
The insecurity of your information becomes especially relevant when you opt to use Hotmail, Gmail, AOL, Yahoo, etc. Remember, they own all your information and it’s free for a very good reason. Anyone who has noticed that advertising has become especially relevant to them (yes, based on the content of your emails) knows what I am talking about. Also, the recent China – Gmail hacking fiasco shows that determined hackers can break into anything, anytime.

Search Engines

Everything you ever search for can and will be used against you… this almost sounds like a Miranda style warning. Unfortunately, nobody tells you this until it’s too late and you have gone too deep down the rabbit hole. All search engines keep some data on their users. According to a CNET Study, these are the main facts for each search engines.

Ask.com
Ask.com is the most protective of user privacy but sadly has a very small market share. Ask.com was the only engine in the CNET study that said it would not record what users type into its search engine. Ask.com also said it did not engage in behavioral targeting, which refers to the practice of offering advertisements based on previous searches.
Google
The 900-lb gorilla of search engines avoids behavioral targeting. After 18 months they perform a partial anonymization of users’ Internet Protocol addresses. Google also has shortened the lifespan of its cookies from expiring in 2038 to expiring two years from the last visit.
MSN
Microsoft is better on the anonymization front. Users’ internet addresses and cookie values are “permanently and irreversibly” disassociated from the search terms after 18 months. But Microsoft does engage in behavioral targeting,

Search terms have been used to convict dissidents in China, wireless hackers, and murderers. The legal can of worms that your search engine history can unload upon you keeps getting bigger everyday.

Precaution: When you use search engines, configure your browser (Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, etc.) to not permit them to place cookies on your computer. For advanced users: Route all your connections through a proxy server, such as Anonymizer, Tor or Black Box Search.

Social Media

I am in a perpetual state of shock about how much people reveal about their lives on Facebook! Social Media networks are a crucial stop for a large percentage of employers researching potential hires. All those “I hate my job, hate Tennessee, hate the parents and the whole world” status updates and Tweets are going to come with a heavy price. And you can bank on the fact that those risqué photos you took and posted on Facebook are eventually going to be viewed by more than just your “friends.”

Precaution: Be social without being too risky. Choose your friends wisely, and keep a tight hold on your privacy setting on channels like Facebook. A simple “think before you post” philosophy will go a long way for you. And remember what Grandma taught you back in the days of print media: “Don’t do anything you wouldn’t want published on the front page of the newspaper.” Because when you post descriptions of your behavior on the internet, that’s pretty much what you’re doing.

In the end, we are all responsible for our actions. Once you post things online, the proverbial arrow has been shot and nothing short of a miracle or sheer luck will help you get it back.

Google Kicks Off 2010 With "Click to Call" PPC Ads

Posted on January 5, 2010 in Mobile Marketing, Search Engine News

Google announced today that they are offering “Click to Call” ads to be displayed on mobile phones. We have always been very bullish on mobile phone marketing. It looks like things are finally setting up for the US market.

The Scoop

Your location-specific business phone number will display alongside your destination url in ads that appear on high-end mobile devices. Users will be able to click on your phone number just as easily as they click to visit your website.

Questions & Answers (From Google):

How will phone numbers appear in my ads?

Based on the customer’s geographic location, the closest phone number and business address will appear as a fifth line of ad text when the ad appears on mobile devices with full HTML browsers (eg, iPhone, Android, Palm WebOS).

Where will I be able to see the results?

You’ll be able to view calls from your ads in your AdWords account. From your Campaign Summary page, to to the “click type” segment option under the “Filter and Views” dropdown.

How will I be charged for phone calls I get from my ad?

The cost of a click to call your business will be the same as the cost of a click to visit your website.

What actions should I take?

If you’d like your ads to show location-specific phone numbers when displayed on mobile devices, make sure that your campaign is targeting iPhones and other mobile devices with full HTML browsers, and that you have included phone numbers with your business addresses in the locations under your Campaign settings. If you would prefer your ads not show phone numbers, simply remove the location extensions from your ad campaigns or un-check mobile devices under the Campaign Settings tab.

What’s Next?

Let the campaign testing begin. Yahoo might have flunked at everything search, but they do have a very good mobile marketing platform that they use in Japan. Google’s success factor depends on wireless and data connectivity of phones, willingness of advertisers/owners to test out the new platform, and the tracking and reporting of these ads.

Ask any search engine marketer, and he will tell you how hard it is to convince clients to spend on PPC, let alone test out a new service. A few early adopters will decide the future of this service. We are looking forward to testing this out on our clients. Stay tuned for results in the coming months…

Evisionary’s Top 10 Posts in 2009: Did You Catch Them All?

Posted on December 27, 2009 in Analytics, Hospitality & Travel, Online Branding, Search Engine News, Search Marketing, Website Design & Usability

With 2009 coming to an end, it’s a good time to round up the top 10 posts of the year. Here are the posts that were most read, discussed, and emailed in ’09:

We plan to send some awesome content your way in 2010, so stay tuned!

Happy New Year!

Content Management Systems: Does Your Website Really Need One?

Posted on December 3, 2009 in Website Design & Usability

tablet

Content management systems (CMS) have been soaring in popularity over the past few years, and website design companies are eager to push it to their clients. Sometimes it’s the business owners and managers who feel they have to have a CMS with their new website. But a CMS is not always necessary, nor is it always the best solution.

What Can a Content Management System Do for You?

There are pluses and minuses to having a content management system on your site. Here are the positives.

Full Control

You have full control of your website 24/7. You are never at the mercy of your design firm or someone who is technical to make website changes. If you can use email and a word processor (MS Word, Google Docs, etc), you can change the content on your website.

Flexibility

Your website can be changed from any computer. Most content management systems have a web-based interface that can be accessed from anywhere in the world. All you need is internet access and you are in control. Imagine having the power to change content from the beach on your vacation! (I don’t recommend doing that during your holiday… but you get the point.)

Multiple-Level Access

Sophisticated content management systems let you assign different levels of access to different departments in the organization. This is particularly helpful for a big business in which several different departments work together on creating content.

Content Version Control & Safety

Multiple developers on a website can sometimes overwrite content causing extra work and tremendous stress. Most Content Management Systems include revision control to prevent this problem. Also, if you website ever needs to be rolled back to an earlier version, with a decent Content Management System it’s easy to do this.

Overall Ease of Content Management

Adding new pages, changing current pages, and even removing pages is easy. You are never at the mercy of developers to make these changes to the website, and the content can be managed at multiple points by multiple teams.

What Problems Can a CMS Cause?

All that sounds great. But make sure you know about the following negatives before making your decision to spend more for a CMS.

Security Threat

Anytime you decide to add a CMS to your website, you are making it more vulnerable to online threats. Anyone with access to the CMS can login, and sometimes even save the login information on a public/shared computer. This can lead to situations where the wrong type of people can wreck your entire website with a few clicks.

Bulks Up the Website

CMS system adds a lot of bulk code to a website. Think of it like an big overcoat you put over an otherwise skinny website. This excess code can lead to several problems at a later stage, especially when it comes to troubleshooting problems. In addition, a simple CSS website will always load faster than a CMS website.

Search Engine Optimization Challenges

A CMS can introduce search engine optimization challenges such as:

Complicated URLs: URLs with wildcards( !@#$%^&) are not preferred by search engines. Make sure you have the ability to customize them to match your SEO strategy.
No Access to Meta Tags: Sometimes CMS’s are entirely missing this option. Meta tags need to be used and refreshed periodically to keep up with website SEO targets.
Duplicate Content Issues: Search engines don’t like duplicated content. Because a CMS has so many access points (for design files and content), version control can be a problem.
301 Redirect Barriers: Redirecting non-existent pages can be a big hassle with CMS systems. So can properly implementing Robots.txt.

Design Inflexibility

CMS-based websites cannot be design- and functionality-heavy. A CMS website must rely on templated pages, where content fits within designated areas accessible by users. Designers have to work within this framework when they are designing (or redesigning) the home and internal pages of your website. You can almost spot templated CMS websites. On the other hand, static CSS websites (without CMS) give designers the freedom to be creative with their design. Properly done coding is clean and uncluttered, making subsequent revisions to the layout much easier.

Cost, Maintenance and Troubleshooting

CMS websites cost more than static websites, as all the extra coding has to be paid for. Additional billable hours are also required for template design, site testing, browser compatibility, etc. Then it takes time to train your staff on using a CMS properly so that they don’t wreck the look of your website.

CMS programs, like any code, will need updates, maintenance and troubleshooting. The cost of maintaining a CMS can sometimes end up being more than the cost of a website redesign.

In conclusion, any investment made in a CMS should be carefully thought out. Buying something that sounds like a no-brainer at the time of purchase can end up being a real drain on your resources a year down the line. Content management systems are a blessing when used the right way, but can also be a curse if you get it for all the wrong reasons. As a broad rule, I’d say that if you only make changes to your website once a month and have a website under 50 pages, a CMS may not be right for you.

Google Making It Harder for Hotels to Rank Organically

Posted on November 29, 2009 in Hospitality & Travel, Search Marketing

Barriers to Hotel SEO

We are noticing a new trend with some of the high-volume, competitive keyword searches for hotel locations.

Organic listings have been pushed down by PPC and map listings for the majority of the competitive, city-based keyword searches like “hotels in new york,” “hotels in las vegas,” hotels in San Francisco,” etc.
Online travel agents and affiliate programs are dominating Page 1 results. The brand update (AKA “Vince Update“) that I talked about here in previous posts seems not to have benefited hotels.
Results may vary for different cities. But for a search like “hotels in london,” at least a few more hotel websites need to show up.

Here’s a diagram of the SERP (search engine results page) for the keyword phrase “hotels in london.”

GoogleHotelSEO

It’s not like London has any shortage of big brand hotels. Marriott, Hilton, Starwood and Intercontinental run some pretty big, star-rated and centrally located hotels in the London area. Why is it that none of them are ranking organically?

London nights.com, Expedia.co.uk, Tripadvisor.com, Booking.com, and Londonhotels.com are all resellers of rooms. They are websites, and not actual physical hotels; in my opinion, actual hotel websites should be ranking higher for a location-based term like “hotels in london.”

Why is Google serving these results?

What happens when you don’t rank, but you want visitors for the highly competitive keywords to find you? You buy keywords from Google! In the example above, Crown Plaza and Radisson Hotel are buying PPC ads to be there. So we understand that Google, like any business, wants to increase their revenue (which means selling more ads).

However,Google has achieved their dominant position by delivering relevant results. If they improve their SERPs by showing actual hotels for location-based searches, I believe this will benefit both hotels and searchers.