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In This Issue:
Amazon's Search Engine
Amazon officially launched its search
engine
A9.com. A9 is the first search engine with
strong personalization features. It looks as if A9
has the potential to become a major search engine.
The A9 search engine tries to provide a new
search experience. A9 offers search results from
different information sources, which are presented
through selectable and adjustable columns (web and
image search, book text search, movie information
search, dictionary search, etc.)
A9.com is "a search engine with a memory" as it
returns results from the user's information, so
with every search, users will see results from
their own history, bookmarks, and diary. A9 also offers new features to manage online
search. For example, a search history is stored
and displayed to users anytime they are signed-in
either from home or from work. A9 offers a diary that allows users to record,
save and reference notes about any Web page they
visit. In addition, A9 offers a bookmark manager.
Linking is Queen
If content is king, then linking is the queen that shares his throne.
We have all heard about adding content to your site to give the search
engines fodder to consume. But the secret to luring the search engines
is the links to your site. Today's search engines look very carefully
and critically at who is linking to you, and what it is that they are
saying about you. A link from a leader in your industry carries a lot
of clout and means that your site is important. Two links from
industry leaders means your site is even more important. 100 links
from random Web sites, from industries you are not even related with,
means almost nothing. Thus, getting links is only the start; the
important thing is getting good links from quality Web sites.
To solicit sites you have to use a lot of elbow grease. Send out
personalized e-mails to these sites. Don't send out mass e-mails or
sp@m. Be friendly, and point out the benefits of linking to your site.
If you are lucky, maybe 1 in 3 e-mails will get a response. It is
frustrating and discouraging, but keep your spirits up. Many times a
site is perfect but they don't ever update it, so your site won't get
the link in because nothing ever changes on the solicited site. Don't
waste too much time on sites that haven't been updated in years. It is
also important to follow up. Until you get a flat out denial, keep
saying "Hi", and keep it personal. Keep track of who you have
contacted and what you have written or said because you have to make
it seem like they are the only person you are contacting. As soon as
they get a sniff that you are sending out a mass e-mail, or that you
are using the exact same approach with other sites, you will probably
lose their respect - and their business!
The full
article by Shawn Campbell may be found at
How to Spot Fraud
If you think an e-mail you received is a scam, one place to
check is the Urban Legends Reference Pages
list of
examples. However, these scams can come in thousands of
different forms. Here are seven more telltale signs of a scam:
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1. |
You don't know the person
who has sent you the message. |
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2. |
You are promised untold
sums of money for little or no effort on your part. |
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3. |
You are asked to provide
money up front for questionable activities, a processing
fee, or to pay the cost of expediting the process. |
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4. |
You are asked to provide
your bank account number or other personal financial
information, even if the sender offers to deposit money into
it. |
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5. |
The request contains a
sense of urgency. |
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6. |
The sender repeatedly
requests confidentiality. |
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7. |
The sender offers to send
you photocopies of government certificates, banking
information, or other "evidence" that their activity is
legitimate (these are fake). |
Here We Go Again - Google Update
Google is currently rebuilding its index. Rumor
has it that Google also tries to fight artificial link manipulation
with this update.
The problem with Google's current algorithm is
that many people don't link to relevant pages anymore. Many people
just link to web sites with a special PageRank and they only accept
links from pages with a special PageRank. This dilutes the quality
of the links and the quality of Google's search results.
What does this mean to you?
It's not important
to get as many links as possible. It's important to get links from
related web sites. The content of the other web site is important.
Which links are the right links for your site?
Ask yourself: Is the Web site related to your
site? Would it make sense for Web surfers if they linked to
you and you linked to them? Could visitors of the other Web site be
interested in your site? If you find a Web site you would want to
visit or your visitors would want to visit then link to it and ask
for a link back to your site.
Google changes its rules on a regular basis.
Although the rules regularly change, Google always tries to do the
same: it tries to find the most relevant pages for a special topic.
If you trade links with related pages and if these links are
relevant to your Web site visitors, your Web site will be one of the
pages that Google finds relevant because your Web site is
relevant.
New Sites
The following sites joined the HUEY Productions
family this month. We're sure they'll not mind if you click on their
link and check out their site.
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