Interesting Articles
SEO Tip: Underscore or Dash in URLs
March 21, 2011 | 
Author Ever wonder whether you should use a dash versus an underscore in your URLs? Following is the definitive answer given by the almighty SEO guru Matt Cutts.
Recently we recommended to a client that they change their web site URLs from ‘keyword1_keyword2′ (using underscore) to ‘keyword1-keyword2′ (using dash).
You are wondering why right?
Well according to the almighty Matt Cutts, the master of how Goggle interprets your site on the web, he recommends using dashes for Google.
In his article, “Dashes vs. Underscores“, if your URL reads ‘keyword1_keyword2′ Google will only return that page if the user searches for ‘keyword1_keyword2′ (which almost never happens).
If however your URL reads ‘keyword1-keyword2′, that page can be returned for the searches for both ‘keyword1′, ‘keyword2′, and even ‘keyword1 keyword2′.
So there the answer is, in dash vs underscore, dash is the clear winner.
Posted in 
Your customers know the answers to a surprising number of your marketing problems. Why not ask them?
Ever wonder why visitors abandon your website, or why it has not grown like you thought it would? Do you get tons of visitors to your site but never seem to make a sale or have the user opt in to your newsletter? How often do you feel like you are banging your head against the wall trying to improve your web site? The answers to those questions might be easier to get than you think, just ask your visitors for their input.
We have all seen online surveys, from all star voting to who had the best dress at the oscars. You would be surprised just how many people will give you just the information you have been looking for. There are tons of survey add ons for blogs and websites, we have found one of the better ones to be Survey Monkey, but look around for the one that suits you best and start getting some data on what might not be working with your site.
Simple Example
Create your free online surveys with SurveyMonkey, the world’s leading questionnaire tool.
Are people able to find their way around your website?
While working on a client’s website today, we pulled out an old “must have” book, Don’t Make Me Think! by Steve Krug. The title says it all: the people that visit your site want to feel comfortable when they arrive.
Let us quote Krug:
“…as far as is humanly possible, when I look at a Web page it should be self-evident. Obvious. Self-explanatory… I should be able to “get it” — what it is and how to use it — without expending any effort thinking about it.”
For instance, if you want to give folks the opportunity to get in touch with you, make it obvious — put a big “Contact Us” or “Email” button, or your phone number big and bold on your homepage. Don’t make your visitor hunt for it, click on one page, then another, and then have the poor soul pull out a magnifying glass to find what she needs in a tiny font at the bottom somewhere. Remember, as important as you think you are, there are literally thousands of websites in your business category. If you frustrate your visitors, they’ll bolt for a more accommodating web destination.
Another point to remember is to keep your navigation simple. The internet has a certain rhythm to it. People click, click, click on sites and every time they do, they look to the left expecting to see a navigational menu. If it’s not there, they’ll look under the header. If it’s not in either of those places, people sweat and have to start thinking — and what’s the title of Krug’s book? That’s right, Don’t Make Me Think!
There are exceptions to the last point. If you have a really, REALLY cool-looking site, you can get away with hiding your menu items behind splotches of artwork scattered all over the place (like an Easter egg hunt). Our company’s first site was like that, and someday we’ll likely bring its core back from the dead as a new and improved template for a lucky client. In that rare instance, the site’s identity is both informational AND vastly entertaining. But in most cases, keep it simple.
These web development “golden rules” remains the same no matter if you are in Worcester MA, Providence RI, Montreal or Mumbai.If you’d like to learn more of Steve Krug’s thoughts, visit sensible.com
The Importance of social media
John DiPietro came across an interesting article talking about the importance of using social media
“It wasn’t that long ago that C-level executives would snicker at the IT guys experimenting with a silly thing called “e-mail.” Why, they would ask, would you send someone an electronic message when you could pick up the phone, or simply have your secretary write and hand deliver an office-wide memo?”
Study shows Advergames influence consumers
This is why companies are spending time and money developing interactive brands.
A recent study found that food manufacturers’ use of “advergames” — online games that companies use to boost traffic to their Web sites and promote their brands — may indeed influence kids’ eating choices.
When researchers had children play advergames that focused on cookies and chips, the kids wanted those same foods afterward. But when the games featured fruit and orange juice, the children tended to want those foods for a post-game snack.
This article from Newsweek, 2005 was right on target about the future of advergames.
The momentum is building. In a recent U.S. Association of National Advertisers survey, 9 percent of companies said they had advertised via videogames in the past year, and 13 percent plan to in the future. Corporate giants like Nokia, and even the U.S. Army, have produced advergames.
Google grabs 66.4% of web searches in May
As iTitans continues to focus on providing the best possible search engine optimization for our clients, it’s crucial to note that Google continues to be the dominant search engine choice among web surfers. According to comScore, Google had 66.4% of web searches during May, with Yahoo at 16.6% and Microsoft’s Bing at 10.8%. With Google hoarding two-thirds of search engine traffic, iTitans suggests a continued SEO focus on Google. Yahoo and Bing cannot be ignored — after all, they have most of the remaining one-third traffic. But a company’s search engine optimization strategy has to zero in on Google first, with secondary efforts pointed toward its two main competitors.
Those two competitors, as has been reported for months, will be joining forces sometime in late 2010 or early 2011 as they attempt to take down the Google behemoth. At that time, Bing will be powering Yahoo’s backend search, with Yahoo’s American publishers and advertisers on Microsoft’s AdCenter structure as well.
For more explanation of the May rankings, please visit eWeek.com
So how does Google work?
Click on the excellent graphic! Courtesy of ppcblog.com , it shows in very detailed fashion how Goggle works its magic. If you’re a web designer, or own a company website, this is a great research piece to save to your hard drive.
The key to successful search engine optimization is understanding how Google looks at your site in comparison to your competitors’ sites. Did you know, for instance, that roughly 80% of your site’s Google ranking is determined by the number and quality of backlinks you have? Also, do you know what the “soft spots” in your competition’s approach are (i.e. what in-demand keywords are they not targeting)?
There’s a method to Google’s madness. Learn more about it, apply an effective long-term seo campaign, and you’re on your way to boosting your site’s traffic and profitability.
Support groups for people with gaming addiction?
This came to mind recently as I found myself going back numerous times a day to my Facebook page to check status on my game apps. Had I been attacked in Kingdoms of Camelot, did I get that hammer I need in Frontierville? The list goes on and on, I find myself playing final rounds of Family Feud to help out my friends, launching siege weapons for Castle age and wading through pages of notifications and friend requests. When you add in some other sites I love like Newgrounds, Pikagame, and Kongregate, it’s a wonder I ever get anything done. So out of curiosity I took a look to see if there were gaming addict groups and I guess you can say there are quite a few of them. olganon.org came up at the top of the list so I took a look through it ,and a few others, and was surprised by the number of people involved in these support groups. Nice to know I am not alone.
So where am I going with all this? My gaming addiction aside, this reaffirms my thought that gaming is an effective medium to deliver a message, brand, etc to a consumer. We are chomping at the bit for more games daily, I find a new one I love at least once a week. I guess the hay day of the TV commercial is behind us, I don’t ever remember using up this much of my time looking for the newest Doritos ad, though I do love those Mr. T World of Warcraft spots.
75% of us research online before shopping in stores; more…
The internet has forever changed our shopping habits. In the old days, people would flock to the mall and do their product research there: they’d see an item on the shelf, pick it up, read the label, and learn what the item (promised it) could do.
Those days are increasingly over…
Deloitte commissioned a survey of 1052 consumers in early May about their thoughts on the economy, their spending habits, and usage of mobile and web platforms to enhance their shopping experiences. A few points jumped out at us.
The survey found that 33% of consumers are shopping more online than they did a year ago. Even more significant to us is that 75% of shoppers now research online to check out store, product and pricing information before or during their in-store shopping.
Additionally, “half of consumers say that an online product review has influenced their decision to buy a product (51 percent) – or to not buy a product (50 percent).”
To read more about the survey, including how shoppers use social networks and mobile platforms, visit Deloitte.com
“got milk?” advergames promote healthy habits
got milk? is at it again! You know got milk? best from their famous “milk moustache” print campaign that has been going on for years. Well if you want to add a little fun to your day, you should definitely check out the got milk? advergames on their website.
The homepage and games feature top-notch creative. There are six amusing colored characters who each star in an advergame. The games promote healthy habits. For instance, in the “Muscles Game”, it’s your job to supply horses Slav, Igor and Sergie with chocolate milk as they sweat through a workout at the gym. Each advergame has links to health tips and studies.
The California Milk Processor Board created the got milk? campaign in the early ’90s, and it spread nationally in the following years. Their efforts here show the power of advergames to educate the public about the importance of a healthy diet, exercise and lifestyle.