Ok, this is isn’t search related, but it’s too much fun not to cover. Gmail has released another Labs feature. This one is called Mail Goggles and it’s intended to help you avoid sending those late night or weekend emails that you’ll regret later.
When the feature is enabled, you have to answer simple math problems before an email will send during those most vulnerable emails-I-will-later-regret times.
Of course, if you’re having a perfectly sane moment but math isn’t your strong suit, you’ll need to break out your trusty calculator (or enter that math problem into Google search).
But at least now there’s technology that has your back in those weak moments.
Rushing into a search engine optimization initiative without properly planning your SEO strategy is setting yourself up for failure. In today’s natural search column, “What You Need to Know Before Committing to SEO,” Mark Jackson explains that to enjoy the fruits that SEO can provide your site, you need to be well organized and develop a plan.
The keynote speakers for Search Engine Strategies Chicago have just been posted to the website for the SEM conference. And check out the heavy hitters: Lawrence Lessig, the Professor of Law at Stanford Law School, is giving the opening keynote on Monday, Dec. 8; Bill Tancer, the General Manager of Global Research at Hitwise, is giving the morning keynote on Tuesday, Dec. 9; and Josh James, the President and Chief Executive Officer of Omniture, is giving the morning keynote on Wednesday, Dec. 10.
Thats quite a line up. Or, as my good friend Anne Kennedy, the Managing Partner of Beyond Ink and a member of the SES Advisory Board, says, whether youre a seasoned search maven or hopeful newbie, youll find speakers who share expertise, new research, horizons edge views and knuckles-in-the code tactics at SES Chicago.
Take Professor Lessig, for example. For much of his career, he has focused on law and technology, especially as it affects copyright. He is the author of Code v2 (2007), Free Culture (2004), The Future of Ideas (2001) and Code and Other Laws of Cyberspace (1999). He was also a columnist for Wired, Red Herring, and the Industry Standard.
According to a recent article by Kim Heart in The Washington Post, Professor Lessig is among the signers of a letter that went to the Barack Obama and John McCain campaigns. The letter was also signed by Craigslist founder Craig Newmark and Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales.
The letter asked the candidates to insist on using a new method to choose debate questions. While that job is usually left to the media host, the members of the Open Debate Coalition say they arent hard-hitting enough.
Instead, they want to let people submit questions, then vote on their favorites, over the Internet. The top 25 questions would have the potential of getting asked during the debates.
This cycles YouTube debates were a milestone for Internet participation in presidential debates, the letter said. But they put too much discretion in the hands of gatekeepers. Many of the questions chosen by TV producers were considered gimmicky… and never would have bubbled up on their own.
So, do you think what Professor Lessig says at SES Chicago will be on the mid-term? All I know is that I cant wait for the Q&A following his keynote.
The following day, Bill Tancer takes the stage. Hes the author of Click: What Millions of People Are Doing Online and Why It Matters.
Bill, who I’ve known for years, is the author of a weekly online column for TIME, The Science of Search. He is a frequent guest on CNBC, and has been quoted extensively in the press, including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, USA Today and Business Week.
Bill recently had a naked lunch with Andy Greenberg of Forbes.com. Hey, I didnt make this up. Click on We Are What We Google and read the article for yourself.
In the article, Bill is quoted as saying, What I find really fascinating is how much we tell search engines more than we tell surveys, more than our family members, more even than our priests or rabbis.
Are you skeptical of this claim? Bill backs it up with his analysis of searches beginning with fear of. It reveals search engine users are afraid of flying, heights, clowns, intimacy and death, in that order.
Looking at searches beginning with how to, he observes that the phrase how to tie a tie edges out how to have sex and how to kiss for the top spot.
And Bills analysis of searches beginning with why shows that most queries are related to school projects. But these fall sharply during the summer and Christmas holidays. During those periods, more existential questions like Why did she leave me? and Why did God do this to me? pop to the surface.
But wait! Theres more! The following day, Josh James is the keynoter.
James co-founded Omniture in 1996 and, under his leadership, it has evolved into one of the fastest-growing publicly traded software companies with more than 4,700 customers across 75 countries and over 1,100 employees. His market vision, leadership and entrepreneurial philosophy have enabled Omniture to achieve greater than 75% growth for more than five consecutive years, as well as to maintain customer retention rates of greater than 95%.
James is also the founder of Silicon Slopes a private sector initiative whose mission is to promote the interests of high-tech in Utah. A recent article by Tom Harvey in The Salt Lake Tribune said that the Omniture CEO was motivated to found Silicon Slopes in 2007 to change the misperception that Utah is A quirky state at the edge of the desert dominated by a single religion and defined by its far-right politics and weird liquor laws.
For example, Siliconslopes.com is sending out thousands of promotional posters this year that depict the Silicon Slopes running along the Wasatch Mountains from Logan to Provo, listing an array of high-tech companies with operations here, as well as ski resorts and signs pointing to Moab and other attractions.
While I havent met Josh James yet, I did interview Huw Roberts of Omniture earlier this year at SES London. Roberts talked about the importance of web analytics to effective search engine marketing for businesses of any size.
And Ive got to agree with Anne. Whether youre a seasoned search maven or hopeful newbie, youll find speakers who share expertise, new research, horizons edge views and knuckles-in-the code tactics at SES Chicago.
iPerceptions has released data showing which online advertising methods are most popular with consumers.
25% are likely to click on simple text ads
20% are likely to click on display ads follow
20% are likely to click on right banners
12% are likely to click on top banners
Video ads remain unpopular, with only 11% of consumers likely to click on them. But if you do use video ads, the audience segment most likely to click on them is the under 25 set, which account for 1/3 of the video ad watching audience
Jonathan Levitt, vice president of marketing at iPerceptions. Our research shows that inexpensive banner and text ads are still preferred among web consumers. By having a direct dialog with consumers, we are able to know with certainty what consumers want and expect from their online experience.
E-tailers rate SEO, site search, and email marketing as the most important e-commerce technologies when it comes to promoting their businesses, according to new survey data released by SLI Systems.
91% of the retail companies surveyed cited site search as critical, very important or important to their online businesses.
Of the retailers that have measured the impact site search has had on their businesses, 87% reported positive results.
54% saw an increase in sales as a direct result of adding new site search capabilities, while 44% experienced greater conversion rates and 40% cited better customer satisfaction.
Of the retailers polled, close to 60% said they would be likely to consider a hosted (SaaS) site search solution over a traditional installed application to reduce costs, lessen the strain on IT resources and make for more rapid deployment.
SLI Systems’ CEO Shaun Ryan shares why this data is important to understand in view of the upcoming holiday retail season: “Adopting proven technologies that can guide shoppers to a merchant’s site in the bustling world of e-commerce will enable retailers to deliver a better customer experience and ensure the holidays are fruitful.”
Rushing into a search engine optimization initiative without properly planning your SEO strategy is setting yourself up for failure. In today’s 
Thats quite a line up. Or, as my good friend Anne Kennedy, the Managing Partner of Beyond Ink and a member of the SES Advisory Board, says, whether youre a seasoned search maven or hopeful newbie, youll find speakers who share expertise, new research, horizons edge views and knuckles-in-the code tactics at SES Chicago.