Sep
14

Google Instant Review in an Instant

google instant

Google Instant will forever change the way we search. While not a major change, it has altered the way we will search for things online. When I first tried out Google Instant, I began typing in a search phrase and found that the initial results were not what I was looking for. This caused me to backspace a few words and change my phrase before ever hitting enter.

Before, I would have finished my query, hit enter, scanned about 5-6 articles and then decided if that was what I was looking for. Instead, I am saved a few seconds (while not significant, it will add up over time and make searching online more efficient) and able to fine tune my searches more effectively.

There are debates over the effect that Instant will have on SEO value. Quite frankly, I think we all knew that SEO was ‘going out of stye’ for awhile now and Instant may be the tipping point to make that happen. However, I think Google Instant can help marketers better fine tune SEO so their pages show up just as fast and high up in the results list. It may make it a bit more difficult to optimize a site for all the variations of a similar search, but we can at least try, right?

Overall I think Google Instant will be good for searchers. We will save time, learn to refine our searches, and improve SEO on each page we create.

What are your observations of Google Instant? How do you think it will affect SEO?

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Apr
08

Millennials Experiencing Instant Internet Fame

internet spotlight

Who will be the next Internet sensation to sit in the spotlight? This spotlight seems to alternate almost every week, finding a fresh new piece of talent to focus attention on for the world to see. This blog post idea came to me when I tweeted a question to my followers asking them what they wanted to read about in regards to Millenials/Generation Y consumers.

Jennie White, writer for Boston Innovation responded,

jenniewhite @KristinEDziadul I’ve been interested in #geny and their views on fame. It seems like we’re under the impression *anyone* can be famous. Who’s to blame? YouTube? Facebook? @shitmydadsays?

I believe that with the emergence of social media and video sharing, almost anyone can become “famous” on the Internet today. A quick Google search for top YouTube stars resulted in a Wikipedia article on the Top YouTube Personalities. Some of these personalities included Amber Lee Ettinger, an American actress, Internet celebrity, and model. She created the YouTube video “I Got a Crush… on Obama”. Then there is the web-based comedy duo, Smosh (Anthony Padilla and Ian Hecox), the infamous Gary William Brolsma who created an impersonation dance to the song “Dragostea din tei” called the Numa Numa Dance, and even pop music star Justin Bieber.

This list alone demonstrates the fact that Internet stars are ever prominent and it is quite easy to gain stardom just by getting out there in non-traditional ways, generating content on a consistent basis, and creating buzz around what you do on the videos.

Social media sites can also be to attribute for this view on quick fame. I have encountered many people on Twitter who have well over 100,000 followers (Boston Internet marketing sensation Chris Brogan being one of them). Other people unlike Chris try to use ‘puffery’ words in their bios to make themselves seem more prominent than they really are and try to spam people to follow them just to get big, but it does work! With the rise of Internet technologies today, and people spending more and more time on it — Millennials spend upwards of 8.5 hours a DAY on the Internet — then it is no wonder why people can become so big so fast on the Internet.

Some may say this is a bad thing since it may give people big heads and make them something they are not, but it is also a way for people to interact with others, get their word out there, and if people like it, then hey, they deserve the attention!

I came across an article by the New York Times titled ” Internet Fame Is Cruel Mistress for a Dancer of the Numa Numa.” The authors, Alan Feuer and Jason George stated, “with the Internet, humiliation – like everything else – has now gone public. Upload a video of yourself playing flute with your nose or dancing in your underwear, and people from Toledo to Turkmenistan can watch.” True, if you set yourself up for humiliation, you sure will get it!

This is where I draw the line. I think those with true talents that want to broadcast it on the Internet in hopes of getting noticed by the right people truly deserve the fame, but others who just upload videos for the sake of it to either get laughs or receive laughs should know what is coming.

In Jennie’s tweet to me, she also mentioned the Twitter account @shitmydadsays. Just take a look at that account and some of the recent tweets he has put up and you’ll see why that guy became so popular on Twitter. Although it is a strange concept, since information is racing across the Internet at the speed of light, things like this are bound to get picked up.

The rise of video has certainly become a trending theme for Generation Y today since we are seen as the “Me” generation who wants to be the focus of attention, loves technology, and likes to be socially active. For instance, I have been seeing an increasingly large number of people on Facebook sending simple videos to friends, even just to say hi.

In general, I think the quick rise to fame that is now available using many Internet tools, such as YouTube, Facebook and Twitter, can be a good thing for those that deserve it and have true talent. For instance, if a talented singer wants to get noticed by record labels in Nashville, TN but may not have the means to do so personally, they could turn to YouTube and social media to spread their talent and start generating buzz. However, for those who are just trying to make fools of themselves or put other random content out there, well I guess we will still be amused by them, and they can rise to fame, as statistics show (Numa Numa dance, for example).

What do you think of this hot issue?

Jan
12

Geographic Portability of Social Media

Going somewhere? Geo-locate it on foursquare!

Have a good/bad review of a restaurant or business? Post it on Yelp.

Want to post a funny video? You Tube it!

Need to post a new photo album from your phone? Log onto Flickr.

Then there is Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, and LinkedIn to connect more personally with friends, family, co-workers and they can be linked to the above sites for further sharing of information.

With the evolution of the smart phone, all of these capabilities are so easy to do. When I am out somewhere, I can easily update my Facebook status, check for friends on AIM, look up an e-mail, watch a You Tube video, and check on the status of my blogs on WordPress. It is amazing what smart phones can do today, and since Generation Y consumers are always armed with their technology 24/7, all of this is easily possible.

Generation Y also prefers to communicate via text message or e-mail much more than the traditional telephone call. It is amazing to think that just a few years ago, we were so used to picking up the phone and dialing the memorized number of our friend or family member. I guarantee most people don’t even know their best friend’s cell phone number anymore. We have become so dependent on our phones and computers to save and process everything for us.

Generation Y consumers are the fastest growing segment of people in the workforce today, reaching above 70 million in number. This offers a great opportunity for marketers since this niche thrives on portable technology 24/7 and is entering the workforce, therefore earning some disposable income.

Companies are capitalizing on the need for more technology and apps because of the significant increase in its usage. Since there are already many applications being added to smart phones that can relay messages to Twitter, will Twitter then become just a platform where other applications post their collected data? It seems that technology is heading that way.

Other social media sites have been recognizing significant changes in the past few months. Facebook’s founder Mark Zuckerberg announced this week that Facebook’s security is becoming less of an issue with the emergence of people openly posting information on the Internet. Twitter is realizing that their account numbers have been dropping since 2008 and they may need to rethink their strategy with the emergence of related technologies. LinkedIn is finding ways to get members more involved with the site since it has traditionally been a background social network site that professionals rarely checked. With all of these changes, I think we will see significant developments and transformations with social media even within the next year, and be certain that Generation Y consumers will be the first to try it and spread the word.

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