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YouTube or Self-Host? The Ongoing Video Debate

It’s really no secret at this point that online video is taking off – it’s very rare these days that you log on to a popular website and don’t see options to view some video content. And why wouldn’t it be popular? It’s fun, it’s engaging and it’s a whole lot better than reading through a bunch of text on a page.

But if you’re a marketer or a business owner, did you know that the way in which you implement your videos can greatly impact the results that they achieve for your website? It’s true – and there are two main choices that you have based on what kind of results you are looking for: host the video on YouTube or Vimeo or another public video sharing site, or host the videos on your own domain.

Here’s a quick breakdown of the pros and cons of both these major Web video implementation tactics.

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What NOT to do When Writing a Press Release

The quickest way to kill a relationship with the news media is by sending a bad press release. In addition to good grammar, a press release should be newsworthy and pique a reporter’s interest. Keep in mind, that a reporter’s mailbox is flooded with press releases from other companies and non-profits on a daily basis. Therefore, you want your release to stand out from the bunch.

Here are five things NOT to do when writing a press release.

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Technology Then and Now – A Look Back at The 90’s

Believe it or not, there was a time before the iPhone, Facebook and Twitter existed. In fact, there was even a time before YouTube, Instagram and even Pinterest! As hard as it is to remember what it was like 15-20 years ago, each of these technologies and social media networks we use every day were something else in our lives. Since I love the 90’s (as everyone else should) and love to reminisce, I think it’s time to take a trip down memory lane and remember what life and social media was like back then!

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Announcing Google’s Structured Data Markup Helper Tool

Just when we marketers and online businesses alike think that Google just hates us and has forgotten all about our hard-working existence, they go and release something like they did yesterday – the Structured Data Markup Helper Tool.

You’ve probably seen search results that look a little something like this:

Complete with a yummy-looking image of some ooey, gooey chocolate chip cookies and a 5-star recipe rating, along with the first several ingredients needed to make these little delights. Or you might have seen something like this:

How convenient – a list of events happening in the city of Philadelphia this weekend, all from the same website, appearing naturally in my Google search results.

These kind of search results are considered rich snippets, meaning these websites are returning query results that contain additional information rather than just the title and meta description of the page that ranks for the query. The results with all of this additional information tend to stand out from the rest of the “normal” organic search results, meaning they can help a website increase click through rates and keyword rankings in the long run.

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Google Penguin 2.0: What the Future Looks Like For SEO

Penguin 2.0 is finally here! As Google’s latest attempt to combat spammy websites and black hat SEO tactics, this algorithmic update is said to be more comprehensive than the first Penguin update. However, unlike its Panda counterpart, Penguin 2.0 will focus primarily on backlink patterns, anchor text and poor link building practices.

According to Matt Cutts, websites that visitors naturally want to explore and share its content should not be negatively affected. Cutts urges that webmasters and practitioners of white hat SEO continue doing what they’re doing as Penguin 2.0 rolls out. However, with big algorithmic updates come big changes for SEO. Here’s what you can expect.

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