Marketing Pilgrim

It appears Google needs to take Google Trends attacks more seriously. Just six months ago Trends was displaying a Swastika as one of the top searches for the day. Yesterday’s trend showed a plane flying into the Twin Towers:

Google’s statement on such attacks is as follows:

The Hot Trends list is automatically generated by machines and algorithms that detect hot or breaking queries. In this case, it appears that the html code for this query was posted on a popular internet bulletin board, which led to quite a few people searching to find out more about this symbol. The Hot Trends list reflected that surge due to people searching with this query.

Perhaps its time to allocate a few more resources to prevent these types of messages from being spread.

Update: Both parties settled the case in mediation today.

As consumer review sites continue to gain popularity, they appear destined to play an important role in the public perception of any businesses’ online reputation.

That is, unless the consumers screw it up for themselves.

You see, over the past few months I’ve noticed a growing trend of consumers making vague, petty, or downright defamatory complaints. Apparently, I’m not seeing things as CNET reports that a Yelp user is being sued by a chiropractor who claims his review is defamatory.

The lawsuit, filed February 25, 2008, alleges that Biegel [the chiropractor] has suffered loss of reputation and business as a result of the review and seeks punitive damages. According to the lawsuit, the review allegedly contained false statements and inaccuracies that suggested Biegel was dishonest and accused him of fraudulent billing practices.

By Carrie Hill

In a somewhat confusing set of events Google has been awarded the use of their country-specific brand, Gu Ge, by Chinese courts.  Bejing GuGe Science & Technology Corp was ordered to pay Google 100,000 yuan or about $14,624 in the suit and to relinquish the brand to Google.

According to a Reuters report from 2007, Bejing GuGe initially filed suit against Google for alleged trademark infringement.  It’s unclear when the turnaround came and Google filed the countersuit against Bejing GuGe. 

Articles I found offered conflicting information. It seems the trademark timeline in question was pretty rocky.  One source indicates Google filed their initial trademark paperwork in January of ’06 while Bejing GuGe filed for their trademark in March 2006.  Another article indicates Google filed for the trademark in November of 2006. 

With Google and other search engines continuing to roll out personalization updates, it is becoming increasingly difficult for SEOs to get an idea of their true ranking position. A personalized search result page can look completely different than the results a ranking tool would provide.

André Scholten wrote a guest post on Yoast explaining how Google Analytics users can get a better idea of where they rank for specific keywords. Although users will not be able to get the exact position, they will be able to figure out what page of the SERPs they rank on.

How do you do it? Google Analytics allows you to create custom filters for your analytics data. In this case, an advanced filter. I don’t want to steal André’s thunder, so head over to Yoast and read how you set it up.

Barry Schwartz reports that an old WebmasterWorld thread has been revived with data on how long it took Google to reassign the PageRank of the URLs he had redirected.

According to Barry, the author had set up a new URL structure and had redirected the old URLs to the new ones using a 301 redirect. If you have ever done this with a client, you know the next thing that happens is their PageRank disappears and they call you frantically at 2am wondering what went wrong.

In an effort to help us better prepare our clients for the impacts of moving a page (or site completely), the author put together the following timeline:

• October 2nd - Site migration and 301′s implemented

Want unprecedented insight on social media from Walmart, The Home Depot, Allstate, H&R Block, Mayo Clinic, Sharpie, Procter and Gamble, and the U.S. Coast Guard?

How about advice on measuring ROI, managing teams, legal issues, B-to-B, working with agencies and creating great content?

If you answered “yes” to the above you need to register for BlogWell’s January 22nd event in Chicago! This is the best opportunity available for anyone looking to get started or improve their corporate social media efforts. Learn from the world’s top companies who are already doing it well. Get practical, how-to advice, a lesson on tricky disclosure issues, and loads of ideas and examples for just $200.

$200 is a bargain, but if you use the discount code “TrackurRocks” you’ll save another $30! Huzzah!