Cuil.com wanted to be a Google killer. Unfortunately they shot themselves in the foot yesterday when their site crashed after nerds from all around world rushed to review the new search engine that claimed to index more pages than Google.More unfortunate for cuil.com was the fact that the results were just not that good. I did a quick search for pages I knew ranked will because I did some SEO work on them and found nothing. Numerous bloggers have also commented on the quality, as well.Additionally perplexing to me was the way that webmasters could submit a website crawling on their search engines. Apparently webmasters are supposed to send an email saying, “Please crawl my site, http://www.marketingbreakdown.com.” That doesn’t seem to efficient to me.On the positive side of things – the site still has some big potential. Key stake holders include former Google engineers, Anna Patterson, Russell Power and Louis Monier. The site also promises to respect privacy by not to retaining users’ search histories or surfing patterns.
Category Archives: Search Engines
New Marketing Ideas: Don’t Buy the Media, Be the Media
July 25, 2008 – 1:29 am
[digg=http://digg.com/business_finance/Don_t_Buy_the_Media_Be_the_Media/blog]Gone are the days when all advertising exposure must be purchased. Many progressive marketers have found great success spreading their message across new mediums.And I am not necessarily talking about creating a viral video. Success can be had by reaching 1,000 targeted customers, as opposed to 1,000,000 random web surfers.Here are a few examples of how reaching a targeted audience has evolved:OLD IDEA: Buy a magazine ad.NEW IDEA: Write your own magazine that your existing and potential customers will find interesting.OLD IDEA: Take out a series of radio ads.NEW IDEA: Start a podcast on subjects related to your business and make it interesting enough that people will find value in paying attention.OLD IDEA: Take out a series of television ads.NEW IDEA: Start your own television channel on YouTube and connect with other users who will help you promote your channel.OLD IDEA: Purchase banner ads online.NEW IDEA: Create a Facebook application that brings value to your potential customer base.Later, I’ll discuss the factors that I believe determine whether an online media campaign will be successful or not.
Google Trends: Anticipation is Key to Blogging Success
July 17, 2008 – 3:07 am
Google Trends is a simple tool. It tells you the highest search engine keywords and shows the stories related to them.A couple days ago, I did a test. On another blog, I wrote about a topic with a keyword that ranked high on Google Trends.As it turned out, the results were nothing spectacular. They also weren’t bad, but it’s clear to see, if you want to get good results it is much better to anticipate than to react.How to Anticipate Google Trends:
- Blog about upcoming events. Immediately following a big event or big show, people go looking for information based on conversations had at the water cooler.
- A slight extension of the last point, but weighing in on a reality television show is a sure fire way to attract an audience.
- Don’t shy away from people who are controversial. People and celebrities who are train wrecks (Amy Winehouse, Britney Spears) will continue to hit the news, although following A-listers is extremely competitive and not recommended. Surprisingly politicians are an easy target because of their loyal following both for and against. Just be careful you say though.
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