Friday, September 21, 2007

Google Blog Search hit with spam and Yahoo continues log-in consolidation

While finally getting around to doing some analytics and 'just search' on some client websites, I couldn't believe the amount of website scraping that is going on, mostly likely to confuse and/or have sites excluded from search engines. This is nasty business and I have no hesitation in saying "Use the search engine spam reporting tools". It's going to take all of us to keep this place clean ... if that's possible. Maybe we need a new coordinated trade organization to do just that? If one doesn't already exist, I might just promote it.

Another 'nasty', which actually resulted in one of OUR blogs being delisted, are these outrageous randomly-generated blogs filled with keywords and little or no content. Every time one gets delisted, another appears in the same space.

MSN's Live search (which just got a facelift this week) was a MESS with these blogs but seems to have made great progress. Now it's Google's blog search. Try a blog search on a competitive market on Google Blog Search and you'll see tons of these 'random blogs'. Luckily, the REAL blogs for each 'interest area' that we checked still seem to be listed at or near the top. The solution, (and yes, our "unique SEO and Tech Blogroll' will premier right here this week) is a good Blog SEO technique anyway. Link your blog to other blogs in the same interest space. Hook up on Technorati as well.

Finally lately, I think malware is probably driving me more nuts than someone who gets paid for getting rid of it (Yes, Matt Cutts). Brand new computer on our network. 2 days. Pop-up heaven.

We like ccleaner (or Crap Cleaner) .. but it's not for everyone. (Watch out for the sneaky pay-for downloads and ads that don't look like ads on their site ... and toolbars that install by default ... all of that aside, this is a GREAT tool for a quick clean-up!). Anti-virus and Adware programs still just don't cut it.

So off to the post headline ... No big secret that Yahoo, MSN, and Google have been busy on the acquisition front. They are FINALLY starting to consolidate user log-in's, further eliminating 'duplicate identities' and better 'authority' and 'trust ratings' for websites AND blogs.

The latest is MYBLOGLOG.com, one of Yahoo's better acquisitions, which moved today to 'allow' you to consolidate your log-in. One less password to remember and a more legitimate history of who actually owns what. The downside? Unfortunately, many Flickr (another Yahoo company) applications still don't recognize consolidated log-ins, so be careful when switching.

Suggestion of the week ... for what it's worth. While it may be a 'small profit center', it's time for Flickr to offer Flickr PRO for FREE. There's tons of free photo sites out there and it's probably only a matter of time before Google's Picasaweb.com begins to catch up and I doubt seriously this would be a major hit to Yahoo's bottom line ....

Finally ... our vote for the absolute best Internet recognition and integration exec of the month.
Rupert Murdoch and News Corp. Despite the intense Facebook hype lately (watch this ... Facebook IS on the move), MySpace, Fox, Fox Sports, and all of the other entities in the News Corp portfolio have been cutting cross deals with just about everyone. The Dow Jones acquisition is icing on the cake.

It's amazing to watch to major US TV networks trying to keep up ... and already making mistakes?

Enough for this post. Beautiful weekend here in the Poconos. Come on up to Pike County PA and breath some fresh air :)

-- Charlie Anzman Sept 21 2007

No comments: