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hakia has updated their Search Box, which is a site search feature you can place on your website. The biggest change is the ability to search multiple domains. Here’s a mockup, via the hakia blog:

Another update is the highlighting of the semantic relevant words in the results:

Search box is available for free, up to 30,000 searches per day.

Related Reading:
hakia Launches Personalized Search Feature
Meet the New hakia
hakia Calls for Librarians to Contribute Credible Web Sources

With six weeks to go before SES London 2009, it’s time to build a business case for going to the definitive event for UK and European marketers, corporate decision makers, webmasters and search engine marketing (SEM) specialists, including pay per click (PPC) advertisers and search engine optimization (SEO) consultants.

Yes, yes, I know there’s a recession on both sides of the pond. I read The Economist. (I loved the article in the print edition on December 30, 2008, which reminded us that Alfred Kahn, one of President Jimmy Carter’s economic advisers, was chided in 1978 for using the “R†word. So, Mr Kahn, in his next speech, replaced the offending word, saying, “We’re in danger of having the worst banana in 45 years.â€)

So, how do you make the business case that you need to go to an SEM conference during the worst banana since 1978?

I would argue that it is penny wise and pound foolish to miss SES London 2009 just because we’re in a recession. In fact, it’s probably more important to go now than ever before.

So, what makes Search Engine Strategies London a not-to-be-missed industry event? And what makes it particularly important for people who have attended in the past to make a return visit this year?

First, SES London 2009 is the place where the search industry gathers to chart the year ahead. The pace of change in this industry hasn’t slowed down. This search industry keeps reinventing itself at an amazing pace and last year’s cutting-edge program already is dated in some areas. You can’t afford to be left behind.

Second, it’s where you can learn how to calculate the ROI of your search marketing efforts from top search experts. Now, I’m just one of the 48 conference speakers who will be making presentations at SES London 2009. And I plan to share some case studies of how optimized press releases generated:
• $200 million in B2B leads for Symmetricom’s chip-scale atomic clocks,
• More than $2.5 million in ticket sales for Southwest Airlines, and
• Almost 1.3 million searches for “florists†on SuperPages.com.

I’ll also explain how combining blog outreach with press release optimization generated:
• A record 450,000 unique visitors to The Christian Science Monitor in 24 hours,
• A record 88,000 entries into Parents magazine’s cover kid photo contest, and
• A record 1,100 attendees to the Wharton Economic Summit.

Now, I think I’m supposed to say, “Past performance is no indicator of future success.†And I should disclose that SES became a client about 14 months ago.

But check out the list of speakers who will be presenting at SES London 2009. I know most of them. I’ve heard many of them speak at previous Search Engine Strategies conferences. And I know they have similar success stories to tell.

If you want to hear more than 200 of their success stories from 2008, just go to SESConferenceExpo’s Channel on YouTube. Or watch the three SES London 2008 Roundup Reels below.

So, can your organization really afford to skip SES London 2009 just because there’s a recession? Missing a not-to-be-missed industry event would be penny wise and pound foolish. Skipping the event because you went last year would be “bananas.â€

Now, you could simply cut your print magazine, print newspaper and other offline advertising budgets. But that isn’t going to grow your business online and it isn’t going to help you weather the storm any better than your competitors.

The only way you can do this is by learning the SEM strategies, PPC tactics and SEO tips that generate a measurable marketing ROI. And then you need to keep learning what’s coming next in the constantly evolving world of search, and how you can profit from those changes.

And where can you do that? You already know where I’m headed. You can learn all this by going to SES London 2009.

It’s Christmas Eve. If you’re in need of a last minute gift, might I suggest gift cards? You won’t be alone, contrary to reports that gift cards are on their way out. At least, that’s according to new data on gift card searches released by Hitwise.

Sure, there’s been a dip in searches, but gift cards are very much alive.

Besides, this data doesn’t even include the number of people going directly to a website and ordering a gift card. That’s what I do. I’ve bought e-gift cards for Apple iTunes, Amazon.com and Southwest Air without ever conducting search.

But those conducting searches reveal an interesting trend: searching for discounted gift cards that can be found via Craigslist. Sometimes people get or purchase gift cards they won’t use so they sell them for less than the value of the card on Craigslist.

An analysis of search terms “breadth” shows just how popular this trend is:

Want to win an American Express gift card? Then take the Search Engine Watch Readership Survey and enter to win a $200 gift card.

Related Reading:
Bill Tancer of Hitwise Analyzes Economy on SES Webcast
Keyword Research from Hitwise

The Music Companies versus YouTube debacle continues to unravel one bit at at time. Now, Silicon Alley Insider is reporting that Warner, Universal, Sony and others are in talks to create their own Hulu-like site for music videos.

The music labels are “only” making a max of $25,000 per month off of ad revenues from YouTube. But that’s only half the story. The real money is made from a pay-per-play licensing deal.

To be making this kind of direct money off of music videos, which have only been used as a marketing tool up to this point, is a big shift in the music industry.

Universal makes tens of millions on YouTube and they expect to make even more next year. Overall, they expect to make $100 million next year from all of their agreements with various sites.

Since Hulu keeps NBC content on just two sites - Hulu and NBC.com, why would Universal want to restrict their offering to just one site?

Pulling from the world’s largest online video site means less exposure to millions of people. YouTube had 100 million unique visitors in October. Those visitors are concert-goers and merchandise-buyers.

Another factor is how YouTube is no longer just a video streaming site, but a bonafied search engine. YouTube is starting to pass Yahoo in searches conducted. On an anecdotal note, my son conducts searches via YouTube frequently. He hates reading; watching video is a much easier way for him to learn.

Bailing on YouTube would be pulling an entire, effective marketing channel. So, here’s my final warning to the music companies. The numbers speak for themselves.

After writing about how Universal Music is making tens of millions from YouTube this year, I was surprised to see Warner Music withdraw from YouTube.

Round up the usual suspect for the reasons why they’ve bailed: Warner Music wants more money from the advertising revenue being brought in.

Nevermind that YouTube has been struggling to monetize itself. Nevermind that the music industry is struggling since the fall of the cd and the rise of the mp3.

Nevermind the current crappy economy.

Warner wants more money. They didn’t get it, so they bailed on the money they were getting. In a time where CEOs are begging Congress for money to stay afloat, this seems like a stupid move.

But with other licensing deals expiring soon, we may see this scenario repeated like a bad version of Groundhog day.

If companies want to abandon an online video site which is starting to generate more searches than Yahoo and saw a whopping 100 million visitors in October, fine. But they’re shooting themselves in the foot, big time.

via Media Memo

Related Reading:
YouTube Rolls Out HD, Niche Landing Pages
Online Video Wins the 9-5 Hour, Weekdays
YouTube Attracts 100 Million U.S. Online Video Viewers in October 2008

comScore’s November 2008 search engine rankings are out and Google remains at the top, gaining on its share while AOL is the only other one to make gains, albeit slight, month-over-month.

November’s searches were down 3% from October, likely due to the elections being held at the beginning of the month. But unfortunately, the decline corresponds with online retail sales for the month.

By the way, YouTube is still giving Yahoo a run for its money:

E-consultancy has just issued an Online PR Industry Benchmarking Report, based on a survey of 300 UK marketers and PR professionals who work for both in-house company teams and for agencies.

Among the key findings: A surprisingly large percentage of retained PR budgets are being spent on Online PR. Company respondents report that 39% of their PR activity is online whilst agencies report that 47% of their clients’ retained fees come from online PR.

The results also show that when companies outsource Online PR to agencies or specialists, 51% of companies are using PR agencies but a significant percentage are using search marketing agencies (29%) and web development agencies (22%) to develop and deliver Online PR strategy.

Deeper in the report was another interesting news nugget: “Agencies and specialists should note that levels of client satisfaction are not encouraging and they may need to improve their Online PR knowledge and offering. A fifth of clients (20%) are very satisfied with their agency?s level of Online PR knowledge, 28% are moderately satisfied, 19% are neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, 15% are mildly dissatisfied and 13% are very dissatisfied. Equally, clients recognize that their own knowledge could be improved with 49% saying that their Online PR knowledge is good and 12% poor.”

So, where can PR agencies and clients go to improve their online PR knowledge?

As I mentioned a week ago in my post, “Half of British and Irish Marketers Use SEO for PR Purposes,” all marketers need to do is attend Search Engine Strategies London, February 17-19, 2009.

Since then, some of the speakers at SES London 2009 have been posted to the site. And, yes, I should disclose that I’ll be speaking at the “Online Video Update - The Next Wave” session on Tuesday, Feb. 17, the “News Search SEO” session on Wednesday, Feb. 18, and the “Beyond Linkbait: Getting Authoritative Mentions Online” session on Thursday, Feb. 19.

But there are a number of other sessions at SES London 2009 that PR agencies and clients should attend to improve their online PR knowledge. This includes:

– Universal & Blended Search
– SEO Through Blogs & Feeds
– Video & Podcast SEO
– Link Building Basics
– Keywords & Content: Search Marketing Foundations
– Brand & Reputation Management
– Search Term Research & Targeting
– Duplicate Content & Multiple Site Issues

Now, if some of these terms aren’t familiar to PR people yet, well that’s why they need go to the conference. I’ve been combining SEO and PR for almost six years. And during one of my presentations at SES Chicago 2008, I shared five case studies of press releases that generated a measurable ROI:
– $200 million in B2B leads for Symmetricom,
– $2.5 million in ticket sales for Southwest Airlines,
– 1.3 million searches for “florists†on SuperPages.com,
– 450,000 unique visitors to The Christian Science Monitor,
– 88,000 entries into a photo contest for Parents magazine.

So, I think that SES London 2009 is exactly the right conference to attend to improve your Online PR knowledge and offering. And who am I to make such a bold claim? I’m the guy in the photo above with the sock puppet on his hand at SES London 2008. The one on the left. (Have I disclosed that SES London is a client?)

Local search site Citysearch has launched an application for the iPhone and iPod touch.

Citysearch is touting the following features for the app:

Unfortunately, the implementation leaves a lot to be desired. The top listing for Food using My Location is a catering business based out of a nearby home. Another listing is an independent coffee shop that no longer exists.

Shopping was worse. The top results didn’t include anything from nearby Brier Creek, a very popular shopping area in North Raleigh where I live.

The app looks fantastic. I like the dark background and light colors that don’t make my eyes strain. But hopefully Citysearch will improve its results to make the app more useful.

Related Reading:
Citysearch Rebuilds Site with a More Social, Local and Mobile
MapQuest Partners with Citysearch for Comprehensive Search Results

So you stopped your banner ad campaigns a long time ago because the click through rate sucks and the conversion rate was even worse?

The problem is - you might be leaving money on the table.

In a couple sessions at SES, I’ve been hearing about how banner ads can drive people to search. So while they may not be clicking on your display ads and converting off of them, they may send people to a search engine to find your product or service.

What you’ll want to do is set up the banner ad and then watch your analytics to see if you have increased searches and if those searches are related to the banner ad. You’ll want to take all of that into consideration when creating your landing page, bidding on keywords in paid search, and writing the paid search ad.

The only caveat I would add is to place your display ads carefully. Social network users have said they don’t find the ads targeted to them, so other content networks may prove more successful.

Related Reading
Microsoft Top Display Advertiser for June 2008
Online Publishers Turning to Ad Networks to Sell Unused Inventory
AdBrite Adds CPC Option for Banner Ads
Google AdWords Display Ad Builder Gets Four Updates
Q Interactive Launches Display Ad Network with Predictive Behavioral Targeting

It takes a little effort to spot the ten top stories from the first day of SES Chicago 2008. That’s because some of them appear in Google News or Yahoo! News, some in Google Blog Search or Technorati, and some on YouTube. And I didn’t even try to monitor Twitter.

So, if you are trying to keep up with all the news coming out of the event, here’s my take on the top ten stories from Day 1:

Google AdWords Launches iPhone and G1 Options (Plus Mobile Marketing Tips from SES!)
Nathania Johnson of Search Engine Watch reported that Google has launched AdWords options that will be visible on the iPhone and G1. Both devices have web browsers that display full HTML. And since around 95% of all mobile searches are conducted on the iPhone (according to today’s Mobile Search panel at SES Chicago), today’s announcement opens up a brand new opportunity for search engine marketers.

Larry Cornett Yahoo! Universal Search
Dr. Larry Cornett, VP of Consumer Products for Yahoo! Search, spoke on the Universal & Blended Search session. He gave an overview about universal/blended search results across the major search engines: Yahoo, Microsoft, and Google. He also shared a some new search user research about universal search results with Byron Gordon of SEO-PR.

SES Chicago: Igniting Viral Campaigns
John W Ellis of the Web Analytics World Blog wrote, “My favorite session from Day 1 of SES Chicago was Igniting Viral Campaigns.â€

SES Chicago Highlights: Search Industry Update
The Search Engine Strategies session “Search Industry Update” was an informative session especially if you need to convince those holding on to the marketing purse strings on how big the effort needs to be.

Legal Considerations for Video SEO – Interview with IP Attorney Mark Rosenberg
Grant Crowell of ReelSEO interviewed Mark Rosenberg, and intellectual property attorney and Search Engine Strategies Chicago conference speaker, who shared the important legal issues that both companies and Video SEO professionals needto consider, especially before they even get started with making and promoting video content online.

SES Chicago Winds of Change
Lee Odden of the Online Marketing Blog, writes, “Today kicks off another Search Engine Strategies conference, this time in the windy and bleeping cold city of Chicago. Change has been in the air for SES.â€

Live Blogging Day 1 at SES Chicago
Jeff Woelker is attending SES and will be live blogging the conference.

Nixed Presentation for SES Chicago Mobile Search Battle Update
Bryson Meunier of the Natural Search & Mobile SEO Blog writes, “For the Mobile Search Battle Update panel, we have elected to present in a more panel-based format since there will only be three speakers.â€

WebProNews Heads to Chicago for SES!
WebProNews is covering the Search Engine Strategies show in Chicago. At least, they hope to cover the show this year. They write, “As of the time of this writing, it is 14 degrees in Chicago and calling for snow showers on Monday, December 8 right at the time of our departing flight. We are determined to get there though since we have lots of exciting coverage to bring you!â€

Speaking at SES Chicago
Dave Naylor, more commonly known as DaveN, is speaking at two sessions at SES Chicago: SEO Tools on Tuesday and Black Hat, White Hat & the Best Kept Secrets to Search on Thursday. Writes Dave, “I’m making it a flying visit. Arriving on Monday afternoon and flying back out on Thursday evening, so that I can be back in the office for Friday afternoon if I manage to get some sleep on the flight back.â€