So someone as busy as Google's Head of Webspam has to take time out of his day to answer questions on Google's Webmaster Central support group regarding a SPAM Notification sent to Sprint: http://productforums.google.com/forum/#!topic/webmasters/K_Ck1vIeDfM/discussion When are they going to sort out their communications?  They could just fix the bloody stupid messages they send out, but [...]

1. Google may be releasing algo updates which don't impact all sites at once. Online chatter seems to indicate changes happening on various dates in May, and it strikes me that no one is able to tie this down. If I wanted to screw with SEOs one of the things I'd change was updates which [...]

I wonder if they'll ever get back into search?  Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made on the Richard Hearne Google+ profile.

It seems that the latest theories abounding on WebmasterWorld are that "thin" is the new "black" Google's WebSpam team are certainly succeeding at confusing SEOs, but they are failing miserably at rewarding webmasters who are genuinely trying to fix their past transgressions. Sadly Google are also helping to create an increasing volume of tin-hat theories [...]

 They show offers which are US only, and then I discover their Offers site – more shite. I go to /offers/ and they list "Your Favourite Brands".  No idea where they pull this shit from, but apparently I have 13 favourite brands. All are US brands, absolutely none of which I've ever visited or interacted [...]

#3 is a 1-page WP site http://www.bangkokflorist.net/.  No contact details, no products, no address.  Surely Google can do better than this? Embedded Link bangkok florist – Google Search Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made on the Richard Hearne Google+ profile.

 Definitely find myself squinting a lot more since yesterday… Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made on the Richard Hearne Google+ profile.

I know now why humans love lists so much – sequentially consuming information is far easier. After a few hours of looking at 2 columns here, with little in the way of consistent break-points, I'm really missing a single column flow of information. I'm not sure who this was tested on, but for me personally [...]

 It looks tremendous, and I'm really amazed at what's becoming possible in the browser these days. I can see this sort of application improving development cycles. A really interesting application from Mozilla.  Still Alpha, but if it blends a number of new web techs very well: Embedded Link Mozilla Labs : TowTruck A service for [...]

Nice useful list of common usability issues to watch out for: Embedded Link Usability checklist | Userium | Catch common usability problems before user testing. Userium – Usability Checklist – Simple, research based, usability checklist, which can be used to catch common usability issues on websites before doing user testing. By fixing obvious usability problems [...]

Interesting to see where this one goes: Embedded Link Negative SEO vs. MattCutts.com – Martin MacDonald my opionions on: Negative SEO vs. MattCutts.com post updated May 14, 2013 Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made on the Richard Hearne Google+ profile.

OK does anyone else notice that the up/down arrow keys now control the sub-nav on the left (Home, Profile…). What moron decides to hijack keys which are needed to scroll the page?  Even if this is a test it's bloody moronic. Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made on the Richard Hearne [...]

Good to see some SEOs can see through Google's smoke and mirrors: Embedded Link Twitter / CygnusSEO: Will 2013 be the year negative … Instantly connect to what’s most important to you. Follow your friends, experts, favorite celebrities, and breaking news. Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made on the Richard Hearne [...]

Kinda gives away that 1.1 and 1.2 were merely hand tweaks.  So does this mean that if you're hit by Penguin 2.0 you'll be dead for a year or more at the best? At least we know now that starting a new site is the way to go.  Or maybe just go black altogether… Google+: [...]

Here we go: Google+: Reshared 4 times Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made on the Richard Hearne Google+ profile.

This is a very elaborate scam: Embedded Link Exposed: How online fraudsters dive deep into IATA processes to secure payments The classic Nigerian bank account email scam is as old as the internet itself and pretty much remains about as sophisticated as your average Saturday night reality TV show. Google+: View post on Google+ This [...]

Still on the hunt for an ace WordPress developer who knows the WordPress API well and understands how to integrate plugins. If you know someone who fits the above please let me know! Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made on the Richard Hearne Google+ profile.

Weird. Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made on the Richard Hearne Google+ profile.

It's kinda sad so few people understand that Google uses time as a major factor in spam detection. New sites can rank well very quickly using spam techniques that Penguin targets, but Google cant use short term signals as this opens the door to NSEO. This is being further compounded by Google not refreshing Penguin [...]

Interesting Penguin info – blog comment spam to be hit hard by Penguin 2.0? Embedded Link Twitter / seosteve: @google @mattcutts … Instantly connect to what’s most important to you. Follow your friends, experts, favorite celebrities, and breaking news. Google+: Reshared 1 times Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made on the [...]

I've never seen so much subdomain spam in Google: https://www.google.ie/search?q=mcdermott+pool+cue&hl=en&source=lnt&tbs=ctr:countryIE&cr=countryIE&sa=X&ei=EqWOUZ71CpOB7Qbo2YDYDA&ved=0CBYQpwUoAQ&biw=1440&bih=799 – #1 and #2 both spam https://www.google.co.th/#q=mcdermott+pool+cue&hl=en&source=lnt&tbs=ctr:countryTH&cr=countryTH&sa=X&ei=o6WOUb_COMmw7AaD0YGoDQ&ved=0CBQQpwUoAQ&bav=on.2,or.r_cp.r_qf.&bvm=bv.46340616,d.ZGU&fp=df01afe18861cc9e&biw=1440&bih=799 – all 10 results are spam from same spammer, using 2 domains http://www.google.co.uk/#q=mcdermott+pool+cue&hl=en&source=lnt&tbs=ctr:countryUK%7CcountryGB&cr=countryUK%7CcountryGB&sa=X&ei=5qWOUZOLA4iu7AbFxYC4Ag&ved=0CBUQpwUoAQ&bav=on.2,or.r_qf.&bvm=bv.46340616,d.ZG4&fp=3bd076e9ccc6ec86&biw=1440&bih=799 = #4 and #5 are spam I've never seen so much spam in Google.  All using subs.  Worst results I've seen in yonks. Google+: View [...]

I'm looking for a new WordPress developer/s to help me build out upcoming sites. Projects generally include: * single and multisite set ups* custom plugin development for things like bookings, events etc.* multilingual setups using WPML* payments integration* api integrations* frontend js development Happy to work with experienced freelancers or agencies who can work to [...]

Interesting if you're involved in a domain rebranding: Embedded Link Domain name change leads to 20% drop at HomeAdvisor Switch from ServiceMagic.com to HomeAdvisor.com leads to organic search traffic drop. IAC underestimated the challenge from switching its ServiceMagic business to a new domain name, the company dis… Google+: Reshared 5 times Google+: View post on [...]

So apparently if you have a manual action revoked but site still affected by algorithmic penalty you get this message: "We've now reviewed your site. When we review a site, we check to see if it's in violation of our Webmaster Guidelines. If we don't find any problems, we'll reconsider our indexing of your site. [...]

I think Amazon are really pushing their luck with the cookie-cutter placeholder pages for unreleased products. I searched for [archos tv connect] and see this page at #4. You can see that it's not even in the correct product category under Amazon's site: www.amazon.com › … › Car Electronics › Car Audio › Satellite Radio‎ [...]

Q. Why not tell people exactly what’s wrong with their site, to the degree you can do this and especially when it involves some specific URLs, when notices go out? We’ve significantly improved our webmaster messages over time and we’ll continue to look at ways to make the messages more concrete and actionable. Q.) If [...]

"[...] here's the nub that many people are missing: Penguin overnight created NSEO.  I'm working with a few clients trying to fix Penguin (which Google are not refreshing).  In nearly all cases the damage was done by third party agencies. What's stopping me hiring these same agencies to "promote" my competitor?  It will take time [...]

Chrome 28 (dev channel) seems to have lost the old launcher – you now only have 4 top options, and there's no Recently Closed option Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made on the Richard Hearne Google+ profile.

So no sign of the 1 year anniversary update for Penguin? Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made on the Richard Hearne Google+ profile.

Similar to "PanguinTool" (how did they misspell that?  I couldn't resist and had to register the correct spelling), here's another tool that uses a simple GDOC to show the same results. More detail here, and quite a nice little tool for identifying potential algo hits: Embedded Link The Delegator® AlgoSleuth Tool With the Delegator® AlgoSleuth [...]

This is something I wanted to do many years ago (I registered and still hold formalytics.com), and I'm fairly sure whoever does this really well will become huge. After all, forms are the single biggest interaction method online: Embedded Link Form Analytics, Web Form Optimization | Formisimo Formisimo is an advanced form analytics tool that [...]

Truly horrible payment error handling by +Etihad Airways . So after filling your password on 3DS they give you this.  Did they take the payment?  Did they save the booking?  A really bad Ux fail there. Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made on the Richard Hearne Google+ profile.

Has anyone tried Pulse as a Google Reader alternative? Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made on the Richard Hearne Google+ profile.

Well worth the read: Reshared post from +AJ Kohn Why You Need To Understand Google's Obsession With Time To Long Click The internal metric Google uses to determine search success is time to long click. Understanding this metric is important for search marketers in assessing changes to the search landscape and developing better optimization strategies. [...]

Create a support ticket and add the office as followers: Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made on the Richard Hearne Google+ profile.

This is a nice deck on data visualisation Embedded Link Data visualization: Be understood My eMetrics Summit SF presentation. Includes data visualization tips, correlation analysis and a goat. Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made on the Richard Hearne Google+ profile.

Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made on the Richard Hearne Google+ profile.

Of course this is being reported out of context, but we all know that sound bites can sway perception.  IMO Google has a very serious communications problem currently with the whole Disavow Tool: “How does Google deal with disavow requests and what’s the difference between that action and manual link penalties?” At the moment, nothing [...]

I wonder how high this will go – but.com Embedded Link NameJet For domaining or for your business needs, get the best aftermarket domain names for sale today! NameJet provides premium and expiring domain names through domain auctions and backorder services. Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made on the Richard Hearne [...]

Some very interesting discussion around 2 major Penguin issues in yesterday's SEO Questions hangout: Dumb SEO Questions 27. – Can I buy a domain that used to have spam on it and still rank? Dumb SEO Questions 27. – Disavow tool a placebo or not? Google+: View post on Google+ This post was first made [...]