Written by Kaye Neylon

Google Wallet Gets an Upgrade

Google has made a string of announcements at its I/O Conference this week, the latest being the advancement in its Google Wallet and an update that no one predicted was coming, users of Gmail sending money via Google Wallet to via email.

As the video below helpfully explains, Gmail will display a dollar-sign icon for Gmail Google Wallet attachments. Users then click the icon and are able to transfer money via Google Wallet. The recipient doesn’t need to have a Gmail address and the big bonus point… you can also receive money!

So, if you break your leg right before a skiing holiday, don’t sweat it! Because Google has your back!

The Benefits of Gmail & Google Wallet

Users don’t need to use Google wallet, they can also pay using a credit or debit card for a small fee for each transaction.

Unfortunately, for Gmail’s loyal user-base outside of the U.S. this Gmail addition isn’t available to you just yet!

Security Risk?

Google claims user’s transactions via Gmail are encrypted and stored on its secure servers and transactions are monitored to prevent fraud and identity theft. What has been named ‘Google Wallet Purchase Protection’ covers 100% of “eligible unauthorized transactions.”

It would appear this is a pretty simple way to make payments to friends and family online for items and holiday’s, but will it take off?

Google Wallet was introduced in 2011, but it is yet to go mainstream. Its failure to launch was partly due to consumer resistance to mobile-based transactions and fraudulent activity, but also because of a lack of awareness and mCommerce development and deployment. As with Google+ though, Google is stomping its gigantic Gmail footprint to help further the technology’s acceptance.

Do you think Gmail Transactions will take off? Would you transfer money this way?

Written by Kaye Neylon

Google Plus, Take Two

Prior to the update, Google+ was at best crowded with the intention of appearing appealing to its users. Following a pretty nifty facelift from the designers behind the world’s second most popular social network, we’re left impressed with the new layout.

The new fresh faced layout is exactly that, fresh! We haven’t seen something so slick since the upteenth timeline change from Facebook, but with that in mind, how will the design make a difference in way Google+ users actually interact with the platform?

Face-to-Face with the new Interface

For one, the new layout makes it a lot easier to understand what page you are currently interacting with and the sidebar navigation system displays an easy to digest flow of buttons which take you to each section of Google+.

The new navigation does make Google+ a lot more user friendly which can only be a good thing as Google is hot on the heels of Facebook for the No.1 spot in social networks.

The biggest feature after the new interface is the Hangouts standalone app which is available on the web and will be made available for iOS and Android platforms later this week.

Hangout Reloaded

What the new Hangouts system allows users to do is make free video calls to friends and family and host their own Google+ Hangout, once a privilege reserved for celebrities and high profile politicians (Barack Obama’s Hangout attracted one of the highest audiences earlier this year).

Here’s a sneak peek at what Google+ Hangouts will look like for iOS users.

Google’s Senior VP of Engineering, Vic Gundotra, had this to say about what he hopes users will do with Google+ Hangouts App.

“People matter. The new Hangouts app will focus on conversations, rather than contacts. Contacts are still available with a single tap, and they’ll be ranked by Google according to how often you talk to or chat with those contacts.”

Google’s timing was, as ever, impeccable as they released a promotional video for the new Hangouts App. The ad focuses on just how much Google+ wants Hangouts to be used to connect family and friends so they never have to miss out on anything.

Re-edit

Much like Facebook users will edit images using external apps such as Instagram or other third party apps to edit images before posting on their timeline, Google+ wants its users to find everything they would need right within Google+ itself.

A pleasant feature is the photo enhancer which gives users the options to edit and enhance images before posting or tagging.

#Hashtag #Usage

Some consider hashtags exclusively for Twitter users but Google+ now likes you to incorporate hashtags in your updates so it makes other users easy to find your content. So remember to use your hashtags next time you update your Google+ because Google likes this!

#Summary

In bullet list form, these are the changes Google+ has made to your Google+

How do you use Google+? Do you like the changes Google have made or perhaps you think there are still areas for development? Leave your comments in the box below!

Written by Kaye Neylon

Google Penguin 2.0

There’s much speculation as to the version of the next Penguin update, Google’s head of Spam – Matt Cutts, has informed Twitter followers that Penguin 2.0 will be the next version released but not for several weeks. But how will this affect SEO agencies and their SEO efforts?

Called the “true Penguin 2.0″ by Cutts, the update is expected to continue the devaluing of link spam originally initiated by the Penguin 1 update released in April 2012. Cutts explains the purpose of the original Penguin update (version 1) was to “weed out” those sites that attempt to exploit Google’s search algorithms.

Deeper and more Impact

In a video released from Google earlier this week (which you can watch below), Cutts indicated that the highly anticipated change of Penguin 2.0, “will go deeper and have more of an impact than the first version of Penguin update.” Understandably, following the effect of the first Penguin launch which affected a large amount of search queries, led to a worldwide outcry from webmasters.

How you can prepare yourself for Penguin 2.0

1. Understand your websites link building profile

Since the first Penguin update, Google has spent the majority of its time gathering a huge amount of data through link removal requests submitted through Google Webmaster’s Disavowal tool.

However, Penguin 2.0 is expected to be especially sophisticated in its understanding of what constitutes ‘link spam’. As Google puts it, link spam are “links between pages that are there simply to get those pages to rank higher in search results”.

If you’re concerned about the links pointing to your site, you can use trusted tools such as Majestic SEO to understand the types of sites that are linking to your business.

Should you see low value backlinks or links which originate from spam sites, you must do your best to have them removed as soon as possible, Webmaster’s Disavow tool can help you do this. Or, speak to our SEO team today for more information and a free analysis of your site to see where you can improve your rankings.

Natural links and their parameters

There are variety of different methods that can be used to identify which of your links are link spam but you should avoid building links that:

1. Come from sites built exclusively for the purpose of SEO

2. Use overly-optimized anchor text

3. Come from “adult” websites

4. Come from sites that are irrelevant to your business

If you have built these types of links in the past, now is the time to remove them or disavowed before the launch of Penguin 2.0 in the forthcoming weeks.

Relationships with reputable sites

This may sound like an abvious one, but so many businesses forget how vital this step is to enhancing and optimising your site n Google’s eyes.

No business wants to lose traffic so the best way to avoid suffering from future Google algorithm changes is to focus your link building efforts on building backlinks from other reputable websites. Google mathematics indicate that one high quality, relevant backlink from an industry authority website is worth more than hundreds of low value spam links. Bear this in mind!

Creating useful and engaging content is one of the best ways to acquire relevant backlinks from other sites, link building tactics such as guest blogging can still generate great backlinks but it’s worth remembering that the search factors involving those links could change in the next Penguin update.

Penguin 2.0 or 4?

Below is an overview of the Penguin updates to date and how, according to Google, those have affected search queries so far

Penguin 1: April 24, 2012 (3.1% queries affected)

Penguin 2: May 26, 2012 (less than 0.1%)

Penguin 3: Oct. 5, 2012 (0.3%)

How have Penguin and Panda updates affected your site previously? How do you think Penguin 2.0 will affect your site in the forthcoming weeks?

Written by Kaye Neylon

Data Tracking on another level

One computer-security expert in Australia has designed an application that allows anyone see the exact locations of the last three Wi-Fi access points used by an Apple iPhone or iPad . Such information which could be used to locate where the iOS device user lives.

The Melbourne-based researcher, Hubert Seiwert, has designed the app which has been rather appropriately named ‘iSniff GPS’, and is now freely available for anyone to download and use. iSniff GPS combines three different Apple iOS features in order to function.

Seiwert has calmed any concerns that none of the features will pose any threat to users privacy on their own, but when combined could tell strangers a lot about them.

“This could be used to locate … where people live. It’s a real cause for concern for iOS users.”

Seiwert gave a speech at while attending the BlackHat security conference in Las Vegas. You can see the presentation below.

Written by Kaye Neylon

An Endless Fountain of Knowledge?

Well to put it bluntly, no. Google receives 500 million new search queries every day, these are queries which Google has never searched for before. Hard to believe but the figure direct from Google itself indicates the growth of search queries from users as the demand for information grows at an astonishing rate.

Google processes 100 billion queries each month and returns your results no more than a microsecond later. However, up to 75 million times a day, Google’s search engine has to think harder to give you a result as the queries have never been seen before by Google.

Hunger Thirsty

Google has continued to have the very same issue every day for the almost 15 years, just about as long as the company has existed, according to John Wiley, Google’s the lead designer for Google Search. Wiley says the process of trying to know and understand more to reduce the 15 percent of new, previously unread or unheard queries needs to be solved and quickly!

Google crawls 20 billion Web sites every day in search of new data that it can turn into results for search queries and begin to chip away at the 15 percent of new search queries it receives daily.

Databases and Entities

Google’s Knowledge Graph forms a vital part of Google’s mission to reduce the percentage of unseen queries, and provide actual answers rather than lists of links. The Knowledge Graph uses a vast database that understand entities such as people, events and topics and even more impressively understands the connections between them.

Google’s Knowledge Graph essentially acts and functions a lot like the human brain and has more than 570 million entities and a staggering 18 billion facts about connections between them, by Google’s count.

15 to 1

The current 15 percent of never seen before queries that Google receives daily and the promise of Knowledge Graph’s 1 percent solution, Google has seemingly found its solution!

If you would like to know more about how to appear in Google SERPs (Search Engine Result Pages) contact our SEO Manager today and let’s put your business on the Google map!

Written by Kaye Neylon

The Jump Factor

Google’s capacity to store all of your files will jump by thrice that of what it is currently. Google said on Monday (may 13th), that it’s storage/cloud service will be rising from 5GB to 15GB shared across Google+, Drive, and Gmail.

Google made the announcement hours before the ‘Google I/O developers conference’ which begins this week. The changes were announced in Google’s blog and were said to “roll out over the next couple of weeks,”.

There’s even better news for businesses using any of Google’s Apps as you will see your storage across Google Drive, Google+, and Gmail go up from 25GB to 30GB.

The new vast amount of storage space will give people who use Google’s services a generous storage capacity, more than that of any other free online-storage market.

Competitor Analysis

Google’s biggest competitors, Dropbox, currently offers free subscribers 2GB of storage, while Apple’s iCloud, SugarSync and Amazon Cloud Storage offer 5GB for free and leading the pack is Microsoft SkyDrive who gives users get 7GB of storage for free.

The announcement followed a Google Drive update which allows users to save files from the Web directly to the Drive. Google Drive’s latest announcement is seen by many as a bid to dominate the Cloud market as the new 15GB storage puts Google in the lead by over 100%

It’s Free but what’s in it for Google?

The 15GB of free storage is undoubtedly a game-changer in the Cloud market. The question remains, why did Google do it?

“Do no evil,” is Google’s mantra but how does this work in the business of making money? It’s quite simple, Google offers you more storage, this is because there is something that extra storage helps you do that will help Google make more money!

What that is, is anyone’s guess as Google is letting nothing slip.

It’s entirely possible that Google will reveal at its I/O developers conference that Google Drive or Google+ will incorporate a more multimedia heavy approach. Or perhaps it’s simply because Google can give you 15GB so it will.

Either way, the likes of DropBox, iCloud and Amazin Cloud will be shaking in their boots as Google’s announcement makes Gmail, Google+, and Google Drive that much more appealing to serious Cloud services users.

Which Cloud service do you use?

It will be interesting to see which Cloud service reigns supreme over the forthcoming months, but let us know which Cloud service you preffer to use and why in the comment box below or tweet us your answer here.

Written by Kaye Neylon

The Three Variables

Facebook’s EdgeRank is created using algorithms which determine what appears in each users news feed and why, this comes down to three variables…

Affinity

In a nutshell, this is the relationship between the viewer and the creator. The closer the relationship between the two the higher the affinity score! As selfish as this sounds, this is a one-way relationship which means the more you interact with another Facebook user the more likely their content is to appear in your news feed and not the other way round.

Weight

There are three types of content posted onto Facebook and any smarty pants fan of social media marketing will know they are:

1. Video/Photos

2. Links

3. Plain Text

The heavier the weight of the initial post, the higher the score. It’s also worth noting that the more engagement a post (be it video, photos or plain text) receives the higher the score it will receive, despite the initial weight of the post.

Time Decay

This is almost entirely dependent on the number of times your page’s fans log onto Facebook (although recent figures suggest users aged 18 – 30 log onto the social networking site up to four times a day).

The older the post, the quicker it decays. Facebook use this method to maintain freshness in each users news feed.

The Infographic Explanation

Will you be implementing Facebook’s EdgeRank into your social media marketing strategy? Do you think EdgeRank is the tool all social media marketers have been waiting for?

Written by Kaye Neylon

Advertising revenue in 2013

Facebook’s year has gotten off to a pretty good start as they have revealed that almost a third of its advertising revenue made during the first quarter of 2013 came through its mobile platform as they announced profits of £140m.

The announcement also boasted that the social network giant made around £80bn through its advertising revenue during the first quarter of this year as well as a rise in mobile advertising sales.

Facebook also revealed an total of 751m users through mobile, bringing the total to 1.11bn monthly active users. The recent figures indicate a 23 per cent increase when compared to the same period in 2012, of which 665m are daily users.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg addressed the news and declared that the platform had become “a mobile company”.

Ironically, prior to the rapid growth from its mobile revenue it was the mobile platform itself that had been a real source of worry for Facebook investors around its IPO (Initial Public Offering) as some worried that it had no strategy to generate revenues from mobile.

Zuckerberg admitted late in 2012 that there had been mistakes along the way to establishing Facebook as a mobile platform:

“There is no doubt we had a bunch of missteps on this. But we’ve transitioned now and we are a mobile company.”

Facebook has around 665 million daily active users but nearly 200 million people who do not own computers are still active on Facebook, with people opening their app as many as 15 times a day.

With the recent launch of Facebook Home, the mobile future is looking fun. Don’t believe us, here’s they’re latest TV ad which features a goat. What more could you possibly ask for!

Written by Kaye Neylon

1. Google Plus is the World’s No. 2 Social Network after Facebook

Google+ launched in September 2011 and less than two years later, the Facebook-alternative network has flourished to become the No. 2 social network worldwide. Rather unsurprising considering Google own most of the web, but an impressive stat non the less!

2. Google Plus can aid your SEO

One of the SEO benefits toy our site is your pages can be indexed in Google search results, which means your Google+ pages will show up in the results. This is positive exposure for your brand and offers a better chance of people finding your content! If your site is optimised correctly, Google could display your brand keywords.

3. Google Communities

Google+ Communities are discussion based forums surrounding a specific topic or trend. The reason why they are regarded as of greater importance in comparison to other forums is how the discussions are indexed and displayed in Google search results. Google+ communities allows you to tap into niche communities and find out their thoughts, views and opinions which is a great way of market research!

4. Google Hangouts

Google+ Hangouts are a pretty impressive feature (even Barack Obama thought so when he held his own Google+ Hangout earlier this year!). The Hangouts give you the ability to video conference up to 9 people plus yourself and during the Hangout you can also switch back and forth between your desktop monitors to do real-time collaboration.

Scheduling a Hangout is easy to set up and people can be added to the conversation via an emailed link. It’s this kind of simplicity that has made Google+ Hangouts a big hit, a feature definitely worth exploring!

If we’ve sparked your social media interest, here’s a video to explain how you can get started!

Have you used Google Plus for your business? Let us know your experiences in the comments box below!