If you follow the tech news regularly, you must have noticed how the growing popularity and loyal fan base of Facebook has started to become a big threat to Google’s supremacy. Google, being the market leader in user base, could not accept the changing scenario and have launched a new search recommendation service named Google +1.

SEO was first properly utilized by Facebook. They launched their “like” button years ago to reap the benefits of social marketing. Soon, people started integrating the “like” button in their websites to give users options to recommend things they liked. However, Google +1 is changing the scenario and taking social SEO to a new high.

Using Google +1 button, you can reach billions of Google users. Let’s see how it works:

• If you already have a Google account, make your profile “public” at first. Once you log into your Google account and search for something via Google, the search result links will appear with a +1 button beside them.
• If you think any of those sites are really worth recommending, just click on the +1 button beside it. You can also visit a blog and share a resourceful article using the +1 button. However, in this case, the blog admin needs to install the +1 button in his site.

Simple!

Now, how is this any different from Facebook “like” button and the purpose it serves?

There is a lot of difference between Facebook “like” and “Google +1” button.

1. When you recommend a link by clicking the +1 button, all your friends will see that you have recommended a website/article. If your friends also recommend the site, you will see that recommendation as well. The statement will show, “you and Mr. X have recommended this site.”

Note, when I say “friends”, I don’t mean only your Google Plus friends; when you recommend a website, all your Gmail, Gtalk, Google Reader and other Google service contacts will see the recommendation. To be specific, even if you mailed someone only once in your life, he will see that you have recommended a particular website.

2. Google +1 stays for a long time. When someone likes a website on Facebook, his friends see the recommendation just for a few weeks and then it goes away as new feeds come in. However, when you recommend a site using the +1 button and your friend searches for the same keyword, he will see that you have recommended a site, even if it was done months ago.

This means, not only do your friends get an instant notification about the sites you liked, but if they search for the same keyword several months later, they will still see your recommendation.

The Google +1 button is a boon to online marketers. Earlier, SEO experts would pack keywords in their websites to make them visible in search results. Now, people have the power to choose and recommend sites which they think are good. Website admins need to pay more attention to the quality of their website design and content. Because, if their website’s design and content are not great and gets no recommendation from users, SEO experts can’t help them retain their ranking.

In the last few years, social media giants have eaten up an impressive ad market share that Google used to dominate in the World Wide Web. The main antagonist in this battle is certainly Facebook and their key weapon to snatch Google’s ad share is the “Like” button that can be found in almost every website. To counter attack Facebook, Google recently introduced their “+1” button. Actually, Google +1 button is more like bookmaking a site sharing it with friends. Google +1 and Facebook Like have a lot of similarities and dissimilarities as well. Here you will find some of them in detail.

Duration of promotion- That is a major advantage that Google +1 button has over Facebook. On Facebook, when you “like” a page or website, the “like” becomes visible to your friends via their News Feeds or via your Wall. The positive thing of this feature is it remains visible to a lot of people and they start checking the website you liked. But it’s only for a short period of time. Soon the “like” gets buried under the new updated posts.

The Google +1 button works completely different from the “like”. When you “+1” a website it not just appears in your Google profile but when your friends search something that you have already +1’d, they will see the page in the search results and that you have made it a favorite website. No matter if you have +1’d the website 1 month ago, it will still appear in your friend’s search result. First of all, that is a huge difference in the promotion duration compared to Facebook, and secondly the chances of clicking on the link increases when we see that our friends recommend a particular website.

Market coverage and compatibility- Facebook “like” button flooded the web world due to its easy installation process in any website. Webmasters realized the power and influence of social networks in search results and they have started adding the “like” button in their website to promote their service and product. Facebook “like” pages influence the search results in all major search engines such as, Google, Yahoo, Bing etc.

But Google +1 is not available for the webmasters at the moment and they can not add it in their website. Another major drawback of +1 is it’s not available in other search engines except Google and they are visible to you only if you have logged in your Google account. But don’t lose hope as Google have declared that soon the webmasters will be able to add the +1 button in their website. They will also be visible beside the Adwords Ads.

More natural traffic- Very soon Google +1 will become a tool for trustworthy recommendation for everyone. When you “like” a page on Facebook its only social media centric but when you +1’d a page in Google search result it means that you were searching for something relevant that you found on that page.
Google is using social media data for the search ranking for quite some time but now they are pushing for their own networking service +1 that can help them determine the search result and ranking.

Some people say that Google copied the Facebook “Like” in “+1 button”. The basic concept of these tow tools is undoubtedly same but the way they work is completely different and due to Google’s huge search market share we hope that the “+1” will soon steal the search ranking influence of “like” from Facebook.

Amidst wild speculations, Google has finally made it clear that it will no longer restrict it from showing censored results in Mainland China. Google.Cn is not available in mainland China as reported by Google itself and it is being redirected to Google.Com.Hk, where Chinese people would be able to get uncensored version of some so–called controversial search results. This decision is the ultimate outcome of a series of developments that have already trigged violent clashes between world’s most powerful search engine and Socialist nation. However, the tussle seems finally ends with the quit of Google from Mainland China. Though Google has not made it clear whether it is shifting from China altogether or not, but it is crystal clear that it is not willing to be bogged down under any pressure, no matter how powerful it may be.

Chinese Government, as expected, has retorted soon after Google made it public that its Chinese version will no longer available. However, it is the apartheid of the Chinese government, which is squarely responsible for the untimely exist of Google.Cn from Chinese market. Recent cyber attack on Google, which was aimed at stealing information about some Chinese social activities, has ultimately snowballed into a violent ideological clash between Google and China. This is what has prompted Google to take such drastic decision.

Given the enormity of the Chinese Internet market, experts are quite dubious about Google’s latest move. But there is not a shadow of doubt that Google has shown its character by not willing to kowtow to Chinese authority over this controversial issue. It seems that Google’s decision to move to Google.Com.Hk is smart and simple solution to an apparent complex problem. However, what will happen if Chinese authority bans users from opening Google.Com.Hk. Will not be a blow to Google? Is Google ready to skip this emerging Internet market? Wait few days more and you will get all the answer that you will need.

Google has finally taken the gauntlet of challenge thrown at it by the two behemoth social networking sites that are lately challenging its dominance in virtual world by launching its much-discussed social integration and messaging tool named Google Buzz. Those of you, who have even passing interest in social networking, will struggle to resist yourselves from logging in your respective Gmail account to get a clear  view of things. Its interface is cool and its features are powerful enough to woo netizens to get hooked on to it, but still you will feel that there is something missing in it. Yes, you got it right. It lacks innovation, which has over the year has become synonymous with Google service, be it Google Wave or Google Analytics or whatever it might be. Now, here in this article, we will try to sort out those features that make you elated about it.

Privacy Settings Instantaneously: This is something that you can only expect from Google. Besides allowing you to set status of your profile either private or public mode, Google Buzz is giving you a unique opportunity to specify the status of post instantaneously. People whom you have approved explicitly will only be able to view private posts and this is something really awesome about Google Buzz.

Location-Based Posting: Location has always been treated with importance by Google and Google Buzz is no exception to this rule. As Google uses location as a powerful medium to generate relevant results, location has retained its importance in its byproduct – Google Buzz.

No More Account Creation: Here Google has hit the bull’s eye. Users are becoming increasingly apathetic about creating new profile in new sites as thousands of social networking are rolling out every day and thereby making it a monotonous thing. Google knows it very well and this is the reason why it has integrated Google Buzz with Gmail to get instant followers and to promote it smoothly. It is notable that it has not promoted Google Buzz in its main page of search engine rather it relied on Gmail and it seems, as far as the trend is concerned, it works really well.

Fullscreen Media Viewing: Though there is nothing new about sharing pictures or uploading videos as far as the concept of social networking is concerned, Google Buzz has somewhat polished and modified these ideas a little bit by enabling instant full-screen media viewing which is certainly unique of its kind feature.

Buzz is just being launched and it has miles to go before coming to a conclusion about its future. However, one thing is dead certain that Google Buzz has succeeded to create a buzz in the web industry, which people will keep remembering even after the buzz stops.

It seems that people at Google never sleep because they never run short of delivering something that we have not even expected from them. People keep buzzing about it and before we start loosing our interest in it, it comes up with another product or feature that is equally amazing and useful. Now, this is time of SideWiki. It seems that we have heard something similar to it. Yes, that was SearchWiki and now it is SideWiki. Before we start differentiating SearchWiki from SideWiki, lets check out some of its crucial features:

Image Source – Google.com

An Easy Way to Find Information
Tired of following the same patterns for garnering information? Just check out this amazing tool – Google SideWiki that will let you to share the tips of others who have sought the same information before. Just open any website you like and you will be able flip through the comments posted by other (you have to download the tool from www.google.com/sidewiki/ obviously). This is not the end; Google SideWiki is also offering you a unique and equal opportunity to contribute in the same fashion by commenting on a website. You just need to have a Google account for this purpose and nothing else is required.

Areas of Concerns
Google SideWiki is undoubtedly a great initiative for giving importance to the feedback of the users. But here lies the main concern. What if some unscrupulous people start manipulating the result of SearchWiki for getting traffic? Is there any rule or regulation to regulate the comments that will be posted through this tool? Google has not discussed much about it and therefore, we need to waits for few days more for assessing its impending impacts.

Difference Between SearchWiki and SideWiki
The main objective of SearchWiki (http://www.webguru-india.com/blog/search-wiki/) is to personalize the search result whereas sharing information regarding a website is the main aim of launching SideWiki. Furthermore SideWiki is a toolbar but SearchWiki is not.

The Ranking of Entries In SideWiki
Google has taken a very systematic approach in giving ranking to entries that are posted or will be posted in SideWiki. Here, Google is using an algorithm for ensuring better rankings for best entries based on its usefulness and the quality of the post.

Not much has been disclosed about the diverse aspects of SideWiki. Probably, it will take some time before we would be able to analyze its various features properly.

There was a widespread rumor that Yahoo and Microsoft were engaged in finalizing a deal that will empower them to put up a brave fight against Google’s continuous offensives. Finally, this rumor appears to be true, as Microsoft has ultimately managed to cajole Yahoo into signing in a pact that will allow Microsoft to get full control of Yahoo! Search, the third most influential search engines besides Google and Bing. In return, Yahoo will act as the one and only advertising sales representative of both the companies.

This deal is being termed as revolutionary by both the companies. Actually, Yahoo was finding extremely difficult to retain its market share and in fact, virtually struggling in the online marketing industry. On the other hand, Microsoft was humiliated in Google hand after launching its much hyped decision search engine – Bing. It has almost become desperate to increase its market share but finding it extremely difficult to achieve this goal single handedly. This agreement, according to Mr Ballmer, CEO of Bing, will provide better service for both the users and the consumers, as it will promote innovation and increase turnover at the end. There is no doubt in the fact that developers at Yahoo will no longer needed in Yahoo and they will either be transferred to Microsoft or they might be offered pink slips. This merger will definitely boost market income and increase efficiency at workplace that will play the role of a catalyst in countering the challenges of Google. Check out for more details on this deal.

Have you notice the newest feature of Google Webmaster tools? If not then you need to view the latest inclusion “Linked From”. This will enable a webmaster to point out the page where the wrong URL is placed without making an extensive search. Previously, Webmasters could only get the report of “not found” errors but they were not in the position to locate the origin of the problem or to fix the problem. Therefore, the errors remained unchanged and the source of the errors went undetected. However, thanks to this addiction in Google Webmaster Tools, now webmasters can find out the source of the “404 pages” or “Not Found” urls easily. Besides that, this feature is giving them an opportunity to rectify these problems without wasting a long time. One just has to click on the link “Linked From” for locating the origin of the error and then work accordingly.

(Image Source : Google.com)

The hype and speculations is all over with the launch of “SearchWiki” by Google. This is new feature offered by Google to its millions of users, which will enable them to edit, delete, add, comment on a website. In short, now a user can change the SERP of Google according to his requirements. As a matter of fact, Google is trying to become more personal to its users by giving them the liberty to make changes in the SERP. If you have not noticed this feature, just login to your Gmail account. After logging-in your Gmail account, you have to search something in Google. Cross sign, comment sign, arrow sign will emerge along with each website. Each sign has a special function for example “Cross Sign” is used for deleting a website, “Up Arrow Sign” is used for promoting the position of a website etc. You can comment on a particular website by clicking on the “Comment Sign” as well.

Some of the important aspects of SearchWiki are elaborated below:

• This is more of less similar to that of social bookmarking.
• A user can view the opinions of others as well.
• Google is most probably trying to give more importance to the viewers feed backs.
• SEO executives are going to face more challenges in near future.
• This feature can be manipulated by unscrupulous people to promote their websites.

Happy 10th Birthday……..G1O1OGLE

Fast and easy dissemination of information gives way to effective communication. In the world of web technology, more and more ways have been devised to ensure smooth and effective communication in the web community.

Today, websites are trying to work out new ways in order to become more and more search engine friendly as well as user friendly. An interesting and informative website get good links from the web community. These links help the web robots to crawl your website. The more degree of links the more user and search engine friendly. However, the method of building up XML Sitemap has become a useful means to help the web robots to index websites effectively.

What is a XML Sitemap?

An XML Sitemap consists of a list of URLs of a website that are to be crawled by the web robots of the search engines. The Webmaster submits the XML Sitemap in the search engines. He or she includes various information about each and every URL of a website such as changes or inclusion of new pages, the last time a web page changed and so on. This process helps the search engine robots to easily index the web pages effectively.

Advantages of XML Sitemap

Creating XML Sitemap is very much useful. The benefits of XML Sitemap are mentioned below:

1. In case, a website has huge “database” of resources which are linked poorly, the web robots are unable to index properly. Hence, XML Sitemap guides the web visitors to all the web pages in a website.
2. If the website is made in Ajax or Flash then the search engine robots are unable to access the content. Here also , the XML Sitemap proves very friutful.

Some Tools for Creating XML Sitemap

• Sitemap Generator [Java Web Based]
• Google Sitemap Gen [Python]
• SiteMapBuilder.NET Windows application [.NET]
• Site Map Builder [Web Based]
• Drupal XML Sitemap [PHP]
• Google Sitemaps Code Snippets in ASP [Server Side ASP]
• Gsitemap [Windows]

Ways to create XML Sitemap

Get detailed and easy explanation of creating XML Sitemap.
• Enter the domain name of a website in the XML Sitemap tool
• Select options in the format
• Copy the entire content delivered by the tool
• Upload the newly created XML Sitemap in the web server
• Go to search engines. Here, we will visit Google search engine
• Go to Google Webmaster Tools
• Add the website in the webmaster tool
• Click on the Sitemap section
• You need to add the Sitemap of your website.
• Choose the type of Sitemap. There are four formats namely general web sitemap, mobile sitemap, code search sitemap and video sitemap.
• Enter the page name
• Click on the button below to approve it

In case of general web sitemap addition, you can manually add new pages in the Html file and then select the ‘Resubmit Selected’ option in the Sitemap section. So, if want to make your website more search engine and user friendly then make most by creating XML Sitemaps.