Google Crusher: Private Blog Networks

Hi guys. It's been a while I've just been so busy lately. So, what's new in SEO these days? Well, at this point in time what's working is something called private blog networks. Some of you may be familiar with this concept already, but there are nuances to it that you may not have heard of.

The guys over at Source Wave have done a great video showing some of the tips and tricks as it relates to blog networks and how to set them up cheaply. You can see the video below. Make sure to take it all in as this video does in fact highlight some of the considerations one needs to make when using PBN's. Hope you guys enjoy it!

Duplicate Content and Google: Matt Cutts Discusses what you need to know

We've all heard of the duplicate content penalty, but what is it really? In this interesting video from Google's head of webspam Matt Cutts, he explains some of the nuances regarding duplicate content. One interesting point to note,is that he acknowledges that about 25-30 percent of information on the web is actually duplicate content. He also talks about clustering as a solution to some duplicate content issues. Check out the video below and don't forget to let everyone know what you think in the comment section as well.

Guest Post: Creating Content that Drives Traffic to your Mobile Site

With Google’s new algorithm Hummingbird having been introduced recently, the way we now approach SEO has changed a little. It doesn’t mean that things have completely changed and all that hard work pre-Hummingbird is going to waste, it just means that mobile is no longer simply a channel of your SEO strategy. Mobile has become a central focus of SEO strategy, making website owners and operators ask whether their site is up to scratch in terms of quality of content, design and the overall usability of the site. If you currently manage your own website and social networking profile, perhaps now is the time to consult an online marketing company like Optimising to help you navigate these new changes and developments in the world of Google and SEO.

We talk about mobile sites because this mode of viewing content is becoming more and more common for people’s media consumption. Over half of Americans own a smart phone, meaning their access to media is almost always through that little screen or even tablet. A well-designed website says to Google that you are a legitimate business. To achieve your full potential on mobile, you need to offer your customers full features in a limited space. The best way to do this is to concentrate on how you organise your content. There are various design considerations that need to be taken into account to produce a high functioning mobile site, like the length of posts, white space, use of visuals and the ability to share on social media.

The debate around the kind of content continues over each change of Google’s algorithms. Longer content is obviously great for SEO but it isn’t exactly what customers want. They want specific and succinct answers to their questions that are answered in around a paragraph or more. Seeing as how the modern trend is writing posts around 1000 words long, this doesn’t satisfy the taste of those looking for a quick response, especially on mobile. An alternative is to create short introductions to your articles that are placed at the start of your long form articles, but only use the extended, descriptive introduction on your mobile sites where users are more likely to only want that information.

One of the most important pieces of information not to forget is the importance of engaging in social media with your customer and client base. If you are sharing your content and other things through a social networking platform, be prepared to engage with those who engage with you. Don’t just put it out there and wait for the likes to roll in. Respond to questions and give the people what they want!

Ivy Delfin works in online marketing, specialising in enhancing mobile internet sites. You can find her on her google plus page here.

LG G Pad 8.3 Unboxing

LG have recently released the LG G Pad 8.3. It will be available to US customers from November 3rd, and is already available for pre-order. Aaron from Phonedog did an unboxing with this tablet and you can see it in the video below.

In terms  of specifications, the G pad isn't looking too shabby. It's got a quad core 1.7 GHz processor on of course an 8.3 inch display. It runs on Android Jelly Bean 4.2.2 with 2GB of RAM and a micro SD slot for up to 64 GB of storage.

The G Pad has a display resolution of 1920*1700 pixels, which works out to be 273 ppi. While this is definitely a great display, it's not at the highest end of the spectrum. Considering that it costs 350 bucks, that's a bit disappointing.

It has a 5 megapixel back facing camera, which also takes 1080p video. In terms of battery size, this tablet has a 4600 mAh battery which gives about ten hours of normal use before needing to recharge. In terms of features, LG have included a few neat ones with this tablet. Firstly, there's Q Pair which allows Android phone users to connect with the G Pad and answer phone calls as well as texts.

In addition to Q Pair, there is also a feature called KnockOn, which allows the user to tap the screen twice to lock it and tap it twice again to unlock. This does make things a little more convenient.

So far, the G Pad does look to be quite a good tablet. It just doesn't justify it's high price tag, for now at least. Maybe as more users put the G Pad through its paces, more will be uncovered.

Google Glass Update XE 10

Google released their update for Glass a little more than a week ago and following the trend of other updates, named it XE10. This update is not as large as XE9, but does bring with it some interesting new features.

Firstly, it has the ability to inform you of mass transit features near your location. Things like where to change trains and how far is the next bus stop are now added in Glass. In addition to this, Glass users can now tap links in Google Glass. This has been a big problem for many glass users for a while now, so it seems that Google are indeed working on customer feedback.

There's also the addition of Avatars in messages and comments, which is pretty useful. Further to these updates, coders have also found files related to double blink detection in the Gaze folder. This could mean the use of double blinking as a selection mechanism in future Google Glass updates. Guess we'll just have to wait and see how that one pans out.