About Mitch Albert

Mitch Albert has been a Master SEO trainer with the Search Engine Academy since 2004. Mitch offers small hands-on SEO training workshops in Los Angeles and Orange County California. Mitch provides website and SEO consulting services for new and existing websites.

Google Places is Replaced with a New Google+Local Tab #SEO

June 22, 2012 By 3 Comments

Google Places is Replaced with a New Google+  Local Tab

Google has just announced that Google Places will be phased out and replaced with a Zagat infused Google+ Local tab, the tab can be found underneath the Games button.

Google! & Google Places

 

 

 

When you click on the tab, you will receive recommendations based off of previous reviews of your circles and Zagat ratings. If you recall Google and Zagat had a merger about a year ago. Remember the days of the 1-5 star ratings? Well they are gone and have been replaced with the Zagat 30 point system. If you take a look at the Local Tab the layout is about as close as you can get to Yelp, you can enter in what you are looking for including the city.

Here is a brief overview of some of the changes.

  • The appearance of a “Local” tab within Google+
  • The integration of Zagat
  • The integration of Google+ Local pages across Google. Mobil, search and maps.
  • Static Places now give way to Google+ Local pages.
  • Google’s 5 star ratings are replaced by the Zagat 30-point rating scale.

Below is an example SERP for “Sushi near Palm Springs.” The top screenshot reflects the Old Google Places look and feel. And the second is the new Google+ look and feel.
Old Google SERP

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Google SERPS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Add +1 to your pages to help your site stand out

Let visitors recommend your content on Google Search and share it on Google+. Click Here for the Google+1 button

The Search Engine Academy teaches you how to do keyword research, writing content for the web, advanced search engine optimization (SEO) techniques and other subjects to make you the best SEO specialist you can be. Take a look at our SEO training schedule or locations to see how convenient it is for you to get SEO trained and certified through Search Engine Academy.http://www.searchengineacademy.com/workshops.aspx

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Filed Under: Local Search, News Tagged With: ,

New Mobile App Helps Traveler’s Report Unfair Airport Screening. SEO Workshops | SEO Training #SEO

June 12, 2012 By 1 Comment

New Mobile App Helps Traveler’s Report Unfair Airport Screening

You are right – this has nothing to do with SEO Training, SEO Classes or SEO Workshops. What do you think of the way the TSA screens you at the airport? Anti-discrimination action has found its way into mobile apps for iPhone and Android phones. 

The FlyRights app is a new great App that offers air travelers a way to record the details of incidents of perceived discrimination during screening directly to the Transportation Security Administration. The app is not just focused on racial profiling, the app includes a reporting page that walks users through the type of discrimination they feel they were subjected to including gender and ability, in addition to ethnic, religions and racial the app also includes a way to memorialize all of the relevant information right after it happens. So, if you are a nursing mother you can report if you encounter challenges getting breast milk through the screening process, or if you are a passenger with disabilities you can report if you feel you have been mistreated or scrutinized unfairly. 

The Associated Press reports that the app got use after it went live a few days ago with two reports being filed. The first came from a woman who said she felt humiliated by a TSA screener who pulled her aside when she revealed she was carrying breast milk. The second was filed by a man who felt he received unfair treatment because of his religion. The TSA reports, however, that they only get a few dozen complaints of airport profiling a year. Nico Melendez  of the TSA states.”TSA’s diverse workforce is committed to treating each traveler with dignity and respect throughout the screening process,” “The TSA does not profile passengers on the basis of race, ethnicity or religion.

The TSA has a mobile website and an iPhone app, MyTSA, that provides users with airport wait times and guidelines. So if you ever have a problem with TSA at a airport you might want to use a app like this, don’t get me wrong the TSA has a hard job. 

The Search Engine Academy teaches you Social Media, along with Keyword Research, Writing Content For The Web, Advanced Search Engine Optimization (SEO) techniques and other subjects to make you the best SEO specialist you can be. Take a look at our SEO Workshop schedule or locations to see how convenient it is for you to get SEO trained and certified through Search Engine Academy in one of our SEO classes.http://www.searchengineacademy.com/workshops.aspx #SEO

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Filed Under: Article Marketing, Misc, Mobile Marketing, News Tagged With:

Microsoft’s Bing Gets A Fresh New Look | Webmaster Tools #SEO

June 5, 2012 By 3 Comments

Microsoft’s Bing Gets a Fresh New Design

Well, like some people did, you think Microsoft’s Bing was dead and only Google offered Webmaster Tools?  Well it isn’t – Bing just received a new makeover in May. You will notice a fresh new design to make it easier for you to find the results you want faster in Bing. Over the last few months, Microsoft has run a lot of experiments to determine how we read web pages so they can deliver the link we’re looking for. Based on that feedback, Bing has made there webpages easier to read by removing unnecessary distractions, and making the overall experience more predictable and useful. According to Sally Salas “This refreshed design helps you do more with search and gives us a canvas for bringing future innovation to you. The results themselves are cleaner. Removing the “left rail” and minimizing the header raises the level of consistency and predictability while making it easier to scan the page and quickly find the information you want. Increasing the space between lines improves readability and optimizes the page for touch devices.  Putting all our result annotations and social data in one consistent spot makes the page easier to use and understand. The new experience is more than skin-deep. You will also notice faster page-load times and improved relevance under the hood. After all, our goal is to help people spend less time searching and more time doing. And changing how we look is the next big step in doing just that.” 

Bing’s Old Look

Old Bing

Bing’s New Look

New Bing

Well, I for one love the new Bing. Bing also has webmaster tools that are  similar to Google’s Webmaster tools. Don’t forget to sign up for Bing’s Webmaster tools http://www.bing.com/toolbox/webmaster They are offering a $50.00 search ad credit for Bing and Yahoo. And don’t forget to upload your Sitemap(s) to Bing. #SEO

Search Engine Academy teaches you more social media, along with keyword research, writing content for the web, advanced search engine optimization (SEO) techniques and other subjects to make you the best SEO specialist you can be. Take a look at our #SEO training schedule or locations to see how convenient it is for you to get SEO trained and certified through Search Engine Academy.http://www.searchengineacademy.com/workshops.aspx

 

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Twitter will help with your Business Internet Marketing #SEO

May 18, 2012 By 2 Comments

Twitter will help with your Business Internet Marketing

My last post was about Facebook for business, but let’s not forget about Twitter. Twitter is also an important social media site for your business. It doesn’t matter if you sell products or services, Tweets will work for you. Twitter is a great way to reach your prospects and customers in real – time and help with your websites search engine optimization (SEO) and Internet Marketing.

The nice thing about Twitter you can broadcast the latest news about what is going on with your company and interact with your customers in real-time, it can also serve as a customer service tool for your business. Did you know that in a week business users send a billion tweets. Yes i said billion.

Don’t forget Twitter allows you to send short text messages 140 characters in length, called “tweets,” to your followers & friends.

Twitter is a perfect way to engage & connect with your followers & friends, to ask a question and get a response to your question.

If someone asks you a question, you will need to respond right away. If you receive a negative tweet respond to it right away and try and turn it into a positive exchange. This will go a long way. Don’t forget you don’t know who is reading the exchange.

As we teach our students at the Search Engine Academy you need Killer content and perhaps a free offering for your followers to re tweet it.

To sign up for your Free Twitter account go to. https://twitter.com/signup

Search Engine Academy teaches you more social media, along with keyword research, writing content for the web, advanced search engine optimization (SEO) techniques and other subjects to make you the best SEO specialist you can be. Take a look at our SEO training schedule or locations to see how convenient it is for you to get SEO trained and certified through Search Engine Academy. http://www.searchengineacademy.com/workshops.aspx

 

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Filed Under: Insights for Search, Local Search, News, SEO, SEO Blogging Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Creating a Business Facebook Page To Boost Your Online Presence #SEO

May 4, 2012 By Leave a Comment

If you thought Facebook was not that big of a deal for your business – think again. If you have a business, it should also be on Facebook. Facebook has over 700 million accounts and is still growing every second. Why not leverage an opportunity to get in front of more of your target audience?

What is a Business Facebook Page? How is it different from a Personal Page?

So how is a business page different from that of a personal page? This is what Facebook has to say. “Profiles (timelines) represent individuals and must be held under an individual name, while Pages allow an organization, business, celebrity, or band to maintain a professional presence on Facebook.”

You may only create Facebook Pages to represent real organizations of which you are an authorized representative.

In addition, Facebook Pages are managed by admins who have personal Facebook profiles (timelines). Pages are not separate Facebook accounts, and do not have separate login information from a profile (timeline). They are merely different entities on your site, similar to how Groups and Events function.

Once you have set up a Page within your profile (timeline), you may add other admins to help you manage this Page. People who choose to connect to your Page won’t be able to see that you are the Page admin or have any access to your personal account.

Now with that said, follow the steps below to create your business Facebook page.

 1. Go To https://www.facebook.com/pages/create.php to begin setting up your business page. You will see six options; most businesses will select the second option titled “Company, Organization or Institution.”

Facebook for Business

 2. Now follow the instructions, and Facebook will walk you through the rest of your setups to create your business or company Facebook page.

If you need help or have any questions click on the link below to get answers from Facebook personnel. http://www.facebook.com/help/?faq=12320#!/help/?page=175

Don’t forget that business Facebook pages will help your website rankings when it comes to Search Engine Optimization, link building and your internet marketing.

Search Engine Academy teaches you more social media, along with keyword research, writing content for the web, advanced search engine optimization (SEO) techniques and other subjects to make you the best SEO specialist you can be. Take a look at our SEO training schedule or locations to see how convenient it is for you to get SEO trained and certified through Search Engine Academy.

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Filed Under: Duplicate Content, Insights for Search, Misc, Pay Per Click, PR Web, SEO, SEO Blogging, Video for SEO, Workshops Tagged With: , , , , , , ,