Google+ It's Already Good For Rankings

Google+ hasn't even been around 6 months yet, and it's considered a major player in the social media realm. It regularly draws comparisons to both Facebook and Twitter. But, Google+ does have one thing going for it that currently Facebook and Twitter doesn't: it's good for rankings... in Google. Imagine that.

At the BlogWorld Expo in L.A., Alltops, Guy Kawasaki and Human Business Works President Chris Brogan had a very interesting discussion about all things Google+.

During the session, a question was raised "Is there now connections between google plus and search rankings?" Brogan stated that:

"Google doesn't index all of Facebook right now. It's a lost cause for SEO, they're also no longer indexing Twitter. Google does index anything publicly for Google+"

It should be noted that Facebook doesn't allow it. Kawasaki chimed in that this is probably a direct result of the relationship between Facebook and Bing.

If you Google Chris Brogan's name, you'll see his Google+ stuff shooting up the rankings. The same holds true for anyone. When you post something publicly it'll begin working for you, he states "It's a Google thing".

Source- webpronews

Google+

Social networking has grown steadily in scope and importance over the last decade, and over the past few years, Facebook's position as the top dog of social networking services has been solid and unquestioned. Enter Google+. Google's attempts to step into the realm of social networking have been plentiful and almost undeniable failures, but Google+ is undoubtedly their strongest showing yet, and has the best chance of success. It is growing steadily in popularity, but how well does it work and what sets it apart from its competitors?

Social Networking, Google Style

Google has a long, tumultuous, and mostly unknown and ignored history with social networking. The following is a rundown of their previous attempts.

Orkut: As far as I am aware, this is Google's earliest and (until now) most successful attempt at a social networking platform. It didn't ever gained much popularity in the United States, but it is huge in Brazil to this day, and it also has a following in India and other various countries.

Open Social: Launched in 2007, it's not technically a social network in and of itself. Open Social is Google and MySpace's attempt to create a common programming interface that can be applied across several social networks, allowing programmers to easily integrate these networks into websites and other applications. This has largely been drowned out by Facebook.

Friend Connect: Launched in 2008, Friend Connect was Google's next attempt at a Facebook or MySpace style social network, but it took the approach of using various open standards (including Open Social) to create this network across different types of accounts and websites. I had not even heard of it until I started researching for this article.

Google Lively: This was Google's attempt to create Second Life style 3D environments that could be installed onto any website, where users could log in with their personas and interact with each other. It only lasted for a few months before it was discontinued in 2008.

Google Wave: This was a communications format that was intended to combine features from e-mail, message boards, and social networking schemes to enable a conversation-style information exchange (or wave) that could include various type of media added by various networked contributors. Google has basically abandoned the project, but it still exists under the name Apache Wave.

Google Buzz: A social network that has been integrated into Google's e-mail service, Gmail, since 2010. It allows people to share information with one another in a social networking format right inside the Gmail interface. Ironically, Google Buzz has barely generated any buzz at all.


Circles

Circles are the core concept of Google+, and the key feature that sets it apart from its competitors. Anybody you wish to communicate with goes into one or more of your "circles", or groups of people you know. You can have a circle of friends, a circle of co-workers, a circle of family members, etc, and nobody but you can see what circles you have or who is in them. Then when you write a status update, you also choose which circles to share it with. This makes privacy a breeze, a fact that sets Google+ firmly apart from Facebook, where privacy settings are terribly complex to manage and seem to change every few months. Even better, when you're setting up your personal information in Google+, there is a place in every field to specify with which circles that information is shared. For example, I have my phone number set up to only be visible by friends and family, but I have my profession set to be visible by all my circles. It's a snap. Then when you go to look at status updates that others have posted (which is in an interface similar to Facebook in basic appearance), you can filter the information by circles with just one click. It works extremely well, and you can color me impressed.

Hangouts

Another unique feature in Google+ is the concept of a hangout. A hangout is basically a video chat room, where you can invite friends and talk freely amongst each other. Webcams are becoming very widespread, and are even built into laptops and netbooks. It sounds great, but it is not without its setup. To even get started with hangouts, you are asked to download and install the "Google Voice and Video plugin", and then you have to find a fríend who is on Google+ (and is in one of your circles) who is willing to do the same thing. However, once you're done with all that, the streaming video seems to work flawlessly so long as you have a good internet connection. Even through the limited resources of a netbook, I didn't run into any hiccups. Once again, I'm impressed.

Missing Features

With all of its clean look and smooth operation, there are some features that are conspicuously missing from Google+. Most notably as of the writing of this article, Google+ lacks any way to set up an account for a business or organization (called "Pages" on Facebook). In fact, Google is actively taking down standard user accounts that are set up for organizations. They claim that they are working on some sort of platform for business accounts, but demand is high, so they risk alienating new users if they take too long. Another conspicuously absent feature is a way of setting up an event, or any sort of calendar entry for that matter.

Conclusion
Google+ is definitely a top-quality effort by Google to break into the social networking field, but only time will tell whether it can topple Facebook from its position as top dog in the pack. For my money, though, it has a good chance. It doesn't have all the features yet, but with its clean interface, simple no-brainer privacy, and fun methods of interaction, I highly recommend checking it out.

Article Source- SiteProNews

Google PageRank And +1

Let me start off by being very clear. Google is not getting rid of PageRank in favor of the +1 button. Google is, however, looking at the data from the +1 button as a signal of content quality, and +1s will no doubt continue to be largely coveted by webmasters and content creators web-wide.

Will +1s become more important than PageRank? 

It's been pretty clear since Google first announced the +1 button (even before they announced Google+) that the feature was designed to send Google signals for quality content. It was essentially billed as a way for web users to tell Google when a piece of content is good enough to be a good search result.

Wired is running a story now saying that Google has confirmed its plans of turning the button into "a crowdsourcing tool that helps re-order search results and fight web spam".

"Google will study the clicks on +1 buttons as a signal that influences the ranking and appearance of websites in search results," a Google spokesperson is quoted as saying. "The purpose of any ranking signal is to improve overall search quality. For +1's and other social ranking signals, as with any new ranking signal, we'll be starting carefully and learning how those signals are related to quality."

Of course it is unwise to place too much emphasis on just a single ranking signal. At least that's what Google would have webmasters believe. They're tossing around very similar language with regard to the +1 button ranking as they historically have when people worry about PageRank too much: "There are more than 200 signals that we use to determine the rank of a website, and last year we made more than 500 improvements to the algorithm."

Just as you've seen plenty trying to boost their PageRank through black hat tactics, it does not seem unreasonable to assume that these same people will try to exploit the +1 button. A major weapon against this that Google has is its strict Google+ account name policy, which has been a bit controversial thus far.

It became clear in recent days that Google+ is all about identity as far as Google is concerned. Eric Schmidt drove this point home, as discussed here. While this makes sense for a variety of reasons (including the potential integration of Google+ with products like Google Wallet), it also makes a great deal of sense in that it shows Google exactly who is +1ing what, which should in turn help them enforce any policy (current or future) concerning abuse of the button for gaming search.

In terms of white hat tactics, you may do well to consider things like this research comScore just shared. +1's now mean more sharing of content to the actual Google+ network - people's circles, which should (in theory) translate to increased traffic from Google+ itself. So, it may help to know about the kinds of people who are using Google+, as opposed to Facebook, for example. comScore's data looks at those searches containing the Google+ and Facebook brands. It's probably not exact, but many of those searching for Google+ content are likely going to be users of the service.

"The most striking differences between Google+ searchers and Facebook searchers are in Age and Income level," says Eli Goodman, who leads the business development team at comScore. "Google+ searchers overwhelmingly skew towards 18-34 year olds. Clearly Google+ is a popular brand with the younger segments, and good knowledge for Google to have as they develop their acquisition strategy and evolve their user base. Since Facebook is a much more mature brand in the social networking space, their search audience falls closely in line with the search population at large."

"The income skews are even more distinct, essentially polar opposites of each other," he adds. "More than 32% of Google+ searchers have a household income of $100K or greater, compared to 23% of Facebook searchers. Google+ is definitely off to a fast start in reaching the most desirable income segments, which may make it more attractive to advertisers."


Google's quest for quality

In terms of Google using the +1 button as a way to combat spam, this also goes hand in hand with another new(ish) announcement from Google that it is calling upon users to report scrapers in some new algorithm testing.

"We are asking for examples, and may use data you submit to test and improve our algorithms," the company says on a "Report Scraper Pages" form, found here.


This followed another recent announcement from Cutts about a major refresh to Google's spam reporting process.

Google seems to be putting more emphasis on quality of results than ever before (I haven't even mentioned the Panda update in this article…or the domain blocking tools Google launched this year). It does appear that Google's grand social plan with Google+ is a major factor in that, and is sure to have everyone clamoring for +1s, which will not only provide a boost in ranking signals for content, but potentially traffic from the social network itself. And you can bet that WHO is +1ing things matters, just like with PageRank - WHO you're getting links from matters.

Between things like Google's emphasis on identity with Google+ itself and the authorship markup it's pushing(which links people to their Google profiles), it's clear that who you are matters in the Google world, and that also means that it matters who THEY (the people +1ing your content) undoubtedly matters too. Build your personal brand.

About the Author: Chris Crum has been a part of the WebProNews team and the iEntry Network of B2B Publications since 2003. Follow WebProNews on Facebook or Twitter. Twitter:@CCrum237 Google: +Chris Crum

Nurture Leads With Email Marketing

According to MarketingSherpa, 70% of your leads will end up buying something from you or one of your competitors, but they won‟t do it right away! Companies that build relationships with their leads over time have the greatest success in turning leads into customers by staying top-of-mind until the lead is ready to buy.

Lead nurturing is the process of developing that relationship with your potential customer by sending targeted, relevant, and valuable messages to them in a timely manner. The end goal is to get your leads to “raise their hand” and self-select into further engaging with your business. Forrester Research found that companies that excel at lead nurturing are able to generate 50% more sales-ready leads at 33% lower cost-per-lead.

Email Marketing Best Practices:


List-Building
Create opt-in opportunities. Make sure your lead forms allow your website visitors to enter their email address and opt-in to receive your messages.

Give people a reason to opt-in. Whether it‟s a landing page for an ebook or an email newsletter subscription form, make sure you give people a compelling reason to opt-in. What‟s so valuable about your ebook? What interesting and unique information will they receive in your email newsletter? Be explicit and phrase the benefit(s) in terms of your recipient.

Would I be upset if I didn‟t receive your message? Only send messages to people who have explicitly opted in. You can follow the extreme principle of Seth Godin‟s Permission Marketing: Would your recipient be upset if they didn‟t receive your message? If yes, you should go ahead and send your email.

Sending


Stay relevant. What was your lead interested in? Did they download your “5 Tips for Using QuickBooks to Manage Your Business” ebook? Or did they read your blog article on “How to Get Your Business Listed in Google Places”? Send them an email with more resources targeted to their interests.

Get personal. Use a name and email address in the “from” line of your email that your recipients will recognize. Personalize the message so the recipient remembers how and why they came to your website. For example, start with “You recently checked out our ebook…” or “Thanks for subscribing to our blog!”

WIIFM? At the end of the day, make sure that your message adds value. Get into the mind of your recipient and ask, “What‟s In It For Me?” (WIIFM) Are you emailing them just to tell them how great your product is? Or are you offering to help solve a problem they‟re facing? Make the value clear in both the email body and the subject line.

Don‟t rely on images. Many email clients don‟t load images automatically, so if your email is one large image, your recipient won‟t have any idea what it‟s about! Use images as supplementary (clickable) content in your email, and make sure you have enough text to communicate value.

Be consistent. You want your recipients to expect and look forward to your messages. Whether you send your messages daily, weekly, or monthly, pick a schedule and stick to it.

Don‟t let the law get you down. Brush up on CAN-SPAM regulations to make sure your email practices comply.

Lead nurturing is all about developing relationships with your leads, so keep in mind that this does not have to be limited to email communication. Think about how you can communicate with your leads via social media or another platform they use.

Exotic and lovely beaches of India- Your dream comes true

India is a lovely destination for the tourists and the country is proud to have some of the best beaches in the world. Apart from beaches, there are many other tourist spots you can see this country. Keeping in mind the variety of places in this country, this is a hottest destination for the travelers on the face of the earth. Because of the marvelous beaches of India, the country is truly called incredible spot.

The beaches in India are the natural wonders. You can find all the three effects like the sand, sun and sea. Many travelers want to have a perfect sun tan on these beaches.  With time, they become beach lovers and some of them stay in this country for a longer time. You can also have different types of water sports on beaches in this country.
There are some beautiful beaches located in India in the states of Karnataka, Kerala, Goa and Mumbai city. When it comes to having a trip of beaches India, you have many.

Some of them are mentioned below-

Varkala beach

Varkala is a famous beach located in the south India state Kerala. It is located 42 km from city of Thiruvananthapuram. The sunset on beach really makes you spellbound and you can feel the vastness of the Arabian Sea. You will come across coconut palms, old shops and hotels as you go on travelling across the beach. This is famous because of the scenic brilliance. There is a hill with a mineral water flow and is said to have the properties of medicine. Besides this, there is also an ancient Hindu temple dedicated to god Ayappan and Hanuman.  Even the non Hindus visit this temple.

Marari becach

This is a beautiful beach of Kerala. Marari is actually a village of fishermen. The tourists explore the beautiful backwaters on landing at this place and his beach is not located far from Allepey. You will be really amazed to see the natural beauty of this place and this holds a significant place in the list of beaches India.

Kovallam beach 

Kovallam is a famous beach of Kerala and is famous for famous rock cuts. These are called rock capes. This beach attracts many tourists from across world for herbal massage, sun bath and cultural activities.

Gokarna beach – Karnataka

It is a marvelous beach and reflects the ancient days of Goa.  It is located in the small town of north Karnataka.  The people celebrate the holidays with a greater religious zeal at this beach.

The Mahabalipuram beach

This is a popular beach on the east coast of India. It is famous for its cool surroundings and you will feel as if the nature is embracing eternity.

Baga beach –located in North Goa

You have all the triple effects of sun, sea and sand on this beach. There is beauty of palm leaves and fresh coconut splendor.

Palolem beach in south Goa

It is a very beautiful beach in south Goa. It has a dense forest of coconut palms. It is an attractive destination in India beach list.
You can visit theses along with family and friends and spend some few nice days. Enjoy the taste of volleyball and sunbath on beach.

Himalayan Trekking – A journey of life

Himalayas are called the pride of India and world.  There are many mountaineers who are being attracted to these peaks from different parts of the world. If you plan to go to the Himalayas, there is lot of adventure. Apart from this, you can also have a sports activity. If you are interested in the later option, you must go for trekking. It is safe and will also provide pleasure to you. In Himalayan trekking, there is no need of much technical skills compared to the other adventure sports.

If you really want to enjoy the Himalayan trek, you should have a strong pair of legs. When you go for this sport, it will provide you a good opportunity to see different awe inspiring sites in this region. When you are on the expedition, you will have the opportunity to enter different villages in the belt and have a stay with the local villagers in the villages located in the foothills of the Himalayas. The villagers of these belts are not aware of the outside culture. When you mingle with these people, it will be altogether a different experience. When you are in the Himalayan belt, you will really be aloof of mechanical life of metropolitan cities.

When it comes to the Himalayas trekking, you must remember that the Himalayan belt has different routes and it depends on your will from where you want to go. When you are in such a tour, you should categorize yourself in groups. There can be short treks, long treks, treks based on high altitude and much more.

When you go for Himalayan trekking tours, you must select the regions you want to cover. The popular Himalayan belts for trekking range from Jammu and Kashmir to Utarakhand. If you are going for trekking in the district of Ladakh, you can go in the regions like Zanskar valley, Nubra valley, Suru valley, Markha valley. Then there is Kangra and Kullu valley in Himachal Pradesh. All these valleys are beautiful destinations for trekkers.

Nepal a fascination for trekkers

Nepal is a fascinating destination when it comes to Himalayan trekking tours. When the trekkers travel his nation, they come across some fabulous monasteries and many mountain villages. It is really a fabulous experience.

Tibet- destination for trekking.

You cannot deny the fact that trekking in Himalayan belt is a real mystical experience. When you will pass through his region, you will really be stuck with the wonderful experience. When you go to Tibet as a trekker, you will come across valleys known as Spiti and Lahaul.  Because of the political reasons, this region is generally isolated. These are beautiful trekking zones with pastures and broad valleys and high altitudes. This is an exotic place and a must go destination for trekkers.
Before you go for the Himalayan trekking, check all parameters and it also includes your health. Take expert advice.  You should have lot of determination to go for high altitude trekking.

Some Information on Google SandBox

   At the beginning of 2004, a new term appeared among SEO experts – Google SandBox. This is the name of a new Google spam filter that excludes new sites from search results. The work of the SandBox filter results for virtually any phrase of sites that have high-quality unique content and which are promoted using legitimate techniques.

   The SandBox is applied only to the English segment of the Internet; sites in other languages are not yet affected by this filter. It is assumed that the aim of the SandBox filter is to exclude spam sites – indeed, no search spammer will be able to wait for months until he gets the necessary results. However, many perfectly valid new sites suffer the consequences. So far, there is no precise information as to what the SandBox filter actually is. Here are some assumptions based on practical SEO experience:

   - SandBox is a filter that is applied to new sites. A new site is put in the sandbox and is kept there for some time until the search engine starts treating it as a normal site.

   - SandBox is a filter applied to new inbound links to new sites. There is a fundamental difference between this and the previous assumption: the filter is not based on the age of the site, but on the age of inbound links to the site. In other words, Google treats the site normally but it refuses to acknowledge any inbound links to it unless they have existed for several months.

It is hard to say which of these assumptions is accurate; it is quite possible that they are both right.

 The site may be kept in the sandbox from 3 months to a year or more. It has also been noticed that sites are released from the sandbox in batches. All sites created within a certain time period are put into the same group and they are eventually all released at the same time. Thus, individual sites in a group can spend different times in the sandbox depending where they were in the group capture-release cycle.