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Archive for the ‘Search’ Category

Swicki, The Tagcloud Search

24 Feb 2006

Swicki is a living search engine that can be tailored to your blog, site or community. The setup is very easy to do, it only takes three simple actions and you’re in. First you customize your swicky, then you train it and lastly, you add it to your site.

That looks like this:

You can choose for a ‘narrow’ version too, to fit it in the sidebar of your blog or site, and there’s also a wide version that could be placed at the top or bottom of the page.

A swicki is a natural extension of personal publishing on the web. Just as you can create a webpage, blog, or podcast, now you can publish a community powered search engine, tailored to produce only the targeted search results that you and your community want!

A swicki shows a buzz cloud of what is hot in your community and makes it easy to find the best content, news and info on the web.

I’m not quite sure about the possibilities this swicki thing has when it comes to a decent site search, but I’ll give it a try. If it makes sense and returns what I want to search for, I’ll probably integrate it.

Get your own swicki, right here.

UPDATE: The swicki search isn’t up to date at all. I hope it’ll change because of its activation on this site, but as for now, it still lists files from the previous blog that have been removed over a month ago… Their cache really needs an update.

 
1 Comment

Posted in 2.0 +, Blogging, Search, Tools

 

7 Principles Of Marketing For Google

23 Feb 2006

Nathan points to Niall Kennedy, who has posted pictures of a few signs from Google, including “The 7 principles of Google marketing”.

They are:

  • Results must be trackable
  • Promote trial
  • Let others speak for you
  • Data. Not hype.
  • You’re smart. And your time matters.
  • We’re serious. Except when we’re not.
  • Big ideas move us
7 Principles
 
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Posted in Marketing, Search

 

The Sopranos on GoogleMaps

18 Feb 2006

The Sopranos is a television drama on HBO about a Mafia family in Northern New Jersey. It has enjoyed five very successful seasons, with its sixth season currently in production with 12 new episodes premiering on March 12, 2006. In August 2005, HBO announced it was also producing eight “bonus” episodes that would debut in January, 2007. It is currently believed that those eight bonus episodes will be the last of the series. [from Wikipedia, read more there]

Now HBO is coming up with some new stuff, to make the entire story more trackable and to fit it even better in everyday life. With the interactive Google Maps plugs, you’ll be able to pinpoint the exact locations of the crimescenes and story plots.

Sopranos

Nathan writes:

In ten days, HBO plans to go live with a Google Maps mashup that will help viewers track the actions on the Sopranos. There will be markers on the map that correlate to key plot points, and clicking on them will bring up a popup with information on the episode, including video clips. Its an interesting way to promote the show.

I’m so glad there’s going to be another series of this brilliant story. Actually, I think it would be very cool if there would be a movie about it too. There’s more than enough footage and the writers have proven that they have the imagination to pull this off. I’d buy it for sure. It’ll be on top of my list. I’m counting down the days to see this Google Maps mashup and find out all the things about the new shows. I can hardly wait.

The Sopranos

Watch the trailer of the new season :
Visit HBO’s Sopranos Section
Check out a load of other clips of The Sopranos in HBO’s archive

 
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Posted in Interactive, Marketing, Search

 

AOL UK Mediaspace

17 Feb 2006

AOL improved its UK Mediaspace and profiles it as the ultimate place to be to start your research on ‘everything digital media’. An interesting link on that page is the Web 2.0 section, where I’ve found Mike Butcher’s ‘Web 2.0, The Marketing Nightmare’ keynote.

With new and greatly improved features, UK Mediaspace is your daily resource for digital media. You’ll find everything you need to research, plan and deliver compelling proposals and strategies for your brands. There’s also a wealth of analysis, ideas and insights to inform and inspire you. Everything on UK Mediaspace is free for you to use. Simply take what you need to benefit you, your colleagues and your clients. It’s the ideal tool to help you achieve the results you really want. Take a minute to sign-up for UK Mediaspace now and customise your account. It makes the service very easy to use and ensures you feel the maximum benefit.

In his keynote, Mike Butcher talks about the savvy Consumer 2.O, in which he points out the power of search and the trend of the researching consumer. Indeed, regular marketing tactics seem to fail and more and more consumers turn to search engines to perform research about the products they want to purchase. Word of Mouth and reviews take over from the banners that promote consumer goods. Reputation and trust, powered by the Web 2.0 of social software, has the potential to have far a reaching impact on the worlds of media and marketing

The point of view of eBuyers nowadays is being formulated like this:

It’s communities which are the new feature here. Now, when I want to buy something, I don’t just buy the product, I research what other people have to say about it. If I find one on ebay, again, I don’t just buy it, I see what everyone had to say about the seller first.

In very large part I ignore all “spin”. I avoid adverts, I look for trusted sources, I hunt down the smart view, the community of souls looking out for my interests, and I after theirs. [...]

Assuming most people check the home or work PC instead for now, and that the perfect Google phone turns up soon, that means it is going to be harder and harder to “spin” products and services to the average punter. [...]

The average punter is getting connected. Really connected.

Check out AOL UK Mediaspace
Check out the 2.0 zone
Read Mike Butcher’s ‘Web 2.0, The Marketing Nightmare’ keynote. (.doc, 23 kb)
Or read the article at NetImperative.

 
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Posted in 2.0 +, Marketing, Search, Trends

 

AOL Has The Most eBuyers

17 Feb 2006

DM News writes:

Searches conducted on AOL were most likely to lead to online consumer purchases in January, according to a new WebSideStory index. This may reflect a difference in the demographics of people visiting various search engines.

Median conversion rates :

  1. AOL : 6.17 percent
  2. MSN : 6.03 percent
  3. Yahoo : 4.07 percent
  4. Google : 3.83 percent

“With portals rich in content and services, AOL, MSN and Yahoo may tend to appeal toward a more buyer-friendly demographic,” Ali Behnam, senior digital marketing consultant at WebSideStory, said yesterday. “Google, meanwhile, may appeal to more browsers — those with less of an intent to buy.”

Read more on DM News – via [Marketing VOX]

 
1 Comment

Posted in Advertising, Marketing, Search

 

Search & Win With MSN

14 Feb 2006

MSN Search has Search & Win competition going on until February 28th, with absolutely stunning prizes between digital cameras, televisions and snowboards :

Look for a “MSN Search & Win” in the title of one of the sponsored results and then click the link to win instantly.

Two ways to enter.

Method #1: Access the MSN Search and Win Promotion website online at http://www.msnsearchandwin.com. Conduct a Web search on the word or phrase that is pre-populated or enter your own word or phrase in the MSN Search module provided on the promotion website. Click the “Search” button to begin the Web search process and to display the results.

Method #2: Conduct a Web Search using the MSN Search module available at http://search.msn.com or other channels of MSN.com. When the Web Results of your Web Search are displayed, click the “MSN Search and Win” link located in the “Sponsored Sites” box on the Web Results page presented to determine if you are a winner. If you receive a message stating, “You are an Instant Winner” you win the prize indicated, subject to prize claim and verification.

Check out the prizelist here – Go Search & Win ! – via [Philipp], [SEW]

 
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Posted in Campaigns, Marketing, Search

 

Microsoft Goes Mobile

13 Feb 2006

Microsoft is now the proud owner of MotionBridge, a Paris-based company that specializes in mobile search.

From C|Net:

“The emerging field of mobile search is strategically important and crucial to delivering on our vision for Windows Live of providing a seamless and rich information experience for individuals and businesses across devices,” MSN corporate vice president Christopher Payne said in a statement. “With MotionBridge, we are excited to continue to offer mobile operators the tools to maximize the value of their content and data networks, and provide a powerful search engine for mobile users.”

Comments from TechDirt:

Microsoft seems to be taking the slow and steady approach, both with online search and additional mobile offerings. That doesn’t necessarily mean they’re playing catch up — just being methodical, if history is any indicator. So, while Google and Yahoo may jump out to the early lead, it will be interesting to see if Microsoft becomes a disruptor as a late, but powerful, entrant.

I agree with Mike, based on a conversation I recently had with Kris Hoet over at Microsoft Benelux. It’s not about who’s first. It’s all about who delivers the solid app that serves all the users and cashes in. Microsoft is known for its quiet market entries, only to take over the market share from others with a robust service. I can’t wait to see where this is going to lead to. Stay tuned for this one !

MotionBridge

 
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Posted in Corporate News, Mobile & VoIP, Search

 

Customizing Google Menu Tabs

12 Feb 2006

With Kamambe you can choose which menu tabs you want to view above the Google search box. You can also add new tabs. It works reasonably well, and updates will come as I receive feedback. Currently it works with english-based Google sites.

Kamambe

Requirements:
Firefox 1.5 and the Greasemonkey extension.
(You will need to install the extension before the script will work.)

Once the greasemonkey script has been saved to your computer, open it in Firefox (drag and drop it into the browser), and then click the Install button that appears (if you don’t see the button go to Tools -> Install This User Script). Reload any open Google pages and you will see the script in action.

Credits: Jason Schramm from Shiwej, who’ll most certainly discuss this plug on his next show on Radio Firefox.

 
1 Comment

Posted in Search, Tools

 
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