5 For Friday — Links, Stories & Posts For Your Weekend

February 24th, 2012 by Search Influence Alumni

Have You Been the Target of a Google Places Hit Job? —Search Engine Land
If your company is receiving mediocre/poor reviews on your Google Places page, it is possible that a competitor is sabotaging you. In order to determine if your review is spammy, you should check the source, the volume and validity of the reviewer, and the content of the review. Whether it is spam or a legitimate bad review, you should confront it head on.

We Can’t Wait: Obama Administration Unveils Blueprint for a “Privacy Bill of Rights” to Protect Consumers Online White House
President Obama released a “Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights” to protect consumers’ rights to privacy on the Internet.  The blueprint allows for users to control their personal information on the Internet, which in turn is supposed to maintain consumer trust in businesses. This “Bill of Rights” includes transparency, access and accuracy, and security.  What does this mean for SEO?

Facebook Launching New Premium Ads — Social Media Today
Facebook plans to launch its new approach to advertising next week.  This innovative style of social advertising incorporates user generated content by creating ads of posts from businesses.  These ads will target the friends of individuals who “like” that post.  Others will be able to “like” and comment directly onto these ads. Increased brand interaction will increase brand authority and visibility.

It’s Our First Pandaversary! SEOBook
Happy Pandaversary! Before Google’s Panda Algorithm, low quality link building farms increased site rankings.  As a result, content farms have dropped severely in rankings and YouTube, mainstream media, and big retailers have benefited greatly.  The infographic on SEOBook breaks down the impact, winners, losers, and recovery strategies post-panda.

Pinterest Marketing Tips & Tricks to Drive Targeted TrafficSearch Engine Watch
You’ve probably heard that recently Pinterest surpassed Google+ as a traffic source. Marketers, such as Steam Driven Media, are learning how to incorporate Pinterest into their marketing strategy. Through actively participating on Pinterest—pinning and repinning pictures regularly, using creative board names, repinning others images—companies can show new products and interact with their consumers.  What do you recommend for optimal Pinterest use?