“It’s just sad because we were documenting young people’s music from all around the globe,” Guillaume Decouflet, co-founder of Masala said. “For a lot of people, it was music they wouldn’t have been able to discover elsewhere.” Decouflet is now trying to “salvage” the Masala archive, using Google’s own Reader tool to dig up old posts. Other banished blogs have taken similar steps. Living Ears, It’s a Rap and Pop Tarts have relaunched at new URLs, generally without any older material.

It’s noticable that the blogs concerned have re-launched using their own hosted copies of WordPress. They have learnt a hard lesson about content ownership.

If you place your content on someone else’s platform then you have given them control over that content. It doesn’t matter if this is Blogger, FaceBook, Ning or Twitter, you must always realise that there is a risk involved.

Of course there are advantages to handing off control to a third party; convenience and cost, especially in high volume sites. There may just be a marketing advantage, using FaceBook to host your group opens it up to a larger audience. Twitter offers a unique channel that rewards your time. But always weigh up the pros/cons in making this strategic decision. If your business is based on this model, as was the case for these music blogs, then I’d argue the risk is too great.

If these music blogs had been banned by Google for DMCA abuse the worse they could expect would be exclusion from the index. In time they could have resolved the problem and recovered from the position. As it stands they have been hit too hard, losing years of content, links and branding. Make sure you don’t learn this lesson the hard way too.

** Evicted by malias one of the artists who make their work under a Creative Commons license at Flickr – thank you!

For example, ICANN has already launched regional extensions, such as .eu and .asia. Unfortunately these domains have not been supported by Google. There is no Google.eu or Google.asia portal. That has left these domains with little advantage over other available TLDs such as .com, .net or .org.

At the moment Google ties domains, subdomains or site sections to one particular country. This is done with key indicators such as extension, hosting location, link profile, webmaster portal settings or language. While you can search in Google.it for Italian language pages you can not determine if those sites are geographically based within Europe. The SERPs include Italian language pages from businesses around the world or those from within Italy. This reality for .eu seems to run contrary to the branding on the EuroID site, as seen here on the right. An .eu domain does not give access to all European countries anymore than a .com would.

As a European address is required for .eu registration the searcher could find regional businesses by adding the site:*.eu parameter to their query, but this is unlikely to enter mainstream use. But again, without the search space being supported by the search engines there will be less movement towards the .eu in the first place. Orders now are largely due to cheap .eu prices compared to local country extensions or defensive registrations against cyber-squatting.

There are good reasons for searchers to shop by region, rather than ordering internationally. Europeans don’t have to pay import tax on their items and would benefit from the European Union’s consumer protections laws. There are environmental benefits in reducing transit times. In fact, launching creating a virtual search engine based limited by .eu domains may have been a better brand idea for the Europeans than their dubious Quaero project.

You can see the conflict between Google and ICANN again on the matter of .us domains. ICANN envisioned General Top Level Domains (gTLDs) such as .com, .org and .net to be a shared space for all countries. However Americans have adopted .com as their own extension. This no doubt has an effect on the sales of the lesser branded .us domain. Google has certainly had their hand in this development by refusing to support the .us extension with its own portal (Google.us).

The question is, will Google support any of the new TLDs that ICANN is planning to launch on the market? Will we see Google.hotel or Google.shoes in the future? Without a search space, these extensions have less chance of becoming viable businesses. On the bright side, these new TLDs create exciting opportunities for virtual search. Hopefully ICANN and the companies backing these new domains will start taking these points into consideration.

After all, countries already hire PR firms to raise their profile abroad. The Russian government hired U.S.-based PR agency Ketchum in 2006 to spruce up its image in the West for the remainder of its G8 presidency. They indicate that they were also working on the Internet.

Russia is fairly thinly resourced on the communications side, so they need a whole range of support: advice on how the Western media operates, logistical support, technical support, drafting materials, web materials, and things like that.

There’s certainly a lot of work to do for the team handling French online reputation. Not only this latest event but looks like they have barely touched the ‘French cowards‘ SERPs.

Technorati Tags: French, Henry Thierry, ORM, WorldCup

Hosting infrastructure in the US is large-scale, reliable and often cheaper than local providers in developing countries. The Planet states that 42% of their customers are located in international markets. On the other hand local servers are often faster for local users and have less chance of network interruption.

Will Google’s move towards site speed as a ranking factor push international SEOs to ask for local hosting? Patricio Robles over at eConsultancy seems to agree,

The location of your host could also be a consideration. An offshore host, for instance, might be at a disadvantage here, especially if it doesn’t have good peering.

However Richard Hearne at RedCardinal makes some good points against this argument on Twitter.

RedCardinal: @nickwilsdon You’re assuming they’ll test locally, but that’s not how this will work from my understanding. (status link)

RedCardinal: @nickwilsdon I think 2 things worth looking at: Page Speed (likely they’ll use these metrics), and Adwords QS page speed. (status link)

RedCardinal: @nickwilsdon server location will probably be normalised – otherwise this would never work (status link)

I think Richard’s right and he’s backed up by the notes Google has released on how site speed is tested in regard to Adwords Quality Score.

We evaluate your load time relative to the average in your server’s geographic region. If your website is hosted on a server in India, for example, your landing page load time will be compared to the average load time in that region of India. This is true even if your website is intended for an audience in the United States.

There is still an advantage in good local hosting if you can get hold of this, especially if it out-performs the average in the region. As Matt Cutts suggests, users don’t want slow websites. However the emphasis for this new ranking factor will likely be on the page speed metric rather than loading time and the physical location of the server.

** High Speed train by lrargerich one of the artists who make their work under a Creative Commons license at Flickr – thank you!

Underneath each submission there is an add button, as you see below. Click this to add this person to your network.

Then turn network filtering on, using the option at the top of the ‘Hot or Not’ or front page.

You then have your news filtered according to the submitters you want to follow. Less noise, more signal. You can also see this view of the site by default in the My Network tab. Here you can see who is in your network and who has placed you in their network (i.e. following you).

Here are 20 top-quality submitters from my network that you may want to follow. You can also do this from the link on their profiles.

1. Sebastian X
2. ViperChill (Glen Allsopp)
3. Matt McGee
4. Ruud Hein
5. Chris Winfield
6. Hugo Gill
7. Tamar
8. JillWhalen
9. Danny Sullivan
10. Onreact (AKA Tadeusz Szewczyk)
11. Everett Sizemore
12. graywolf (Michael Gray)
13. Brian Chappell
14. richardbaxterseo (Richard Baxter)
15. Matt Siltala
16. Dave Davis
17. incrediblehelp (Jaan Kanellis)
18. St0n3y (Stoney deGeyter)
19. kevgibbo (Kevin Gibbons)
20. AgentA (Alec Green)

Free free to add me to your network also (Nick Wilsdon)

If you’re submitting great material on Sphinn, please add a link to your profile in the comments below. I’m always on the look out for quality submitters to follow, especially outside the usual circles.

It may help you too. Getting yourself onto the network of regular Sphinn members raises your visibility within the platform. It shouldn’t guarantee votes but it will get your submissions read by more users.

You have to wonder if they checked the mailing without the images being shown (default usually). Writing out the full word “Bullet” in the ALT tags is going to take a few seconds longer – but trust me – you give the reader a whole different perspective on the information.

Technorati Tags: email, Email Marketing

AFAIK this is a first time Twitter has appeared in the world of Dilbert. Goes to show how far the service is progressing into the mainstream. A recent report by eMarketer suggests that Twitter user numbers could exceed 26m in the US alone. Global estimates have been put at 35-45m current users. Even with the hype, the platform has gone from a niche social site to a global player.

Coming back down to earth though, Dilbert is probably closer to the reality for most bosses who jump on the Twitter bandwagon. If you’re not already getting Scott Adam’s masterpiece through your email each morning, then sign up here.

Technorati Tags: Twitter

[Search for "wp_list_pages" - one of the functions of WordPress]

[Search for "limitations of google analytics" - spotted by TalentGurus]

[Search for "html anchors" brings up w3.org]

In all cases Google is picking up the internal in-page navigation (HTML anchors) and pulling it into the SERPs. All site examples here are large, popular sites so this feature, as with site search box, maybe reserved for such cases. However this is definitely something to experiment with. In-page navigation is a bonus for usability so this could be a win-win tactic.

Also worth noting that Google has recently been experimenting with Breadcrumb navigation in their SERPs too.

Update: This new feature is explained over at the Google WebmasterBlog by Raj Krishnan (Snippets Team).

There are a few things you can do to increase the chances that [these links] might appear on your pages. First, ensure that long, multi-topic pages on your site are well-structured and broken into distinct logical sections. Second, ensure that each section has an associated anchor with a descriptive name (i.e., not just “Section 2.1″), and that your page includes a “table of contents” which links to the individual anchors.

Technorati Tags: Google, SEO, SERPs, Snippets

1. Ensure Your Domains Have Accurate WHOIS records

Sounds simple but you wouldn’t believe how many domain registrations have been made using the wrong details. Too often the domain vendor would slip their own details into the owner or administrative details. The person who dealt with the “internet” would register company domains with their personal email then move onto a new job a few months later.

Incorrect records can cause a nightmare when you come to update or transfer the domain in the future. The owner/admin email holder can transfer the domain away.

Ensure that your details and email are on the administrative and owner contact fields of the domain. Running a WHOIS check will help but the contact email addresses can only be seen through the private panels of your domain provider.

2. Make Sure You Own Your Domains Legally

It may come as a surprise but WHOIS records are not proof of domain name ownership. Make sure you have access to the account with the domain registrar and have printed off invoice receipts for your registration.

3. Setup Your Own Domain Expiry Reminders

Don’t put all your trust in your domain provider. They may drop the ball or fail to contact you for the renewal. Registries have little sympathy once you have lost your domain, nor does the domain speculator who snapped it up.

Setup expiry reminders on your chosen calender application, use a birthday reminder service like HipCal or a dedicated domain tool like URLPad. Make sure you have reminders on 2 different email accounts, in case one fails.

4. Backup Your Sites – Regularly!

Again many rely 100% on their hosts for this. For WordPress sites you can backup the whole blog or just the database on regular periods and send it to a newly created Gmail account. Cpanel, Plesk and other control panel systems usually provide backup facilities for your whole site – use them. Software like SyncBackSE (Windows) or Filezilla (Windows, Mac and Linux) will help you maintain a synchronized copy of your files on your local computer.

Make sure you keep a few copies of your backup. An external Icy Box and a few old hard disks is an effective & low cost solution.

5. Invest In Decent DNS

Too many low grade hosts have their name servers placed on the same box as their hosted sites. If the server goes down, so do the name servers which can result in many hours of downtime, even after the server itself has come back online. That downtime is expensive for your business.

For a small fee you can buy a high quality DNS service or you may find the DNS at your registrar is sufficient. These name servers should update very fast across the internet, be backed up and have a fallover system.

This move will give your sites some security against long periods of downtime. In situations where your host has failed completely you can also switch the traffic to another provider.

6. Own Your RSS Feeds

Service at Feedburner has been rocky in recent months. Alternative services such as FeedBlitz and PostRank are waiting in the wings. Other services may come in the future. The lesson here is to make sure your RSS feed is delivered on a URL you control. That will let you change providers without loosing valuable subscribers.

Make sure you use a service which lets you create a CNAME record to point their branded URL towards your domain. Both FeedBurner and FeedBlitz allow you to use your own domain name.

7. Buy Your Vanity and Brand Domains

It makes sense to grab the COM/ORG/INFO/NET versions of your company domain name and any key brands you have developed. If you have plans internationally then also grab these extensions in your target countries. Domain registration fees are nothing compared to the legal fees you run up reclaiming these.

On a personal level, register your name domain (firstname+surname.com). Keyword domains have a natural advantage in ranking for these terms – ensure they are under your control.

8. Start Filling Your Vanity or Brand Results

Defend against online reputation attacks by filling these SERPs with your own entries. These results will defend you against low level ORM attacks and targeted link building can make them even more powerful.

Finding good sites for this is not hard, look for authority sites where you can place your profile. Here’s a couple of good site lists to start your efforts.

9. Control Your Short URLs

The recent death of the Zi.ma service was a wake up call for everyone using a shortening URLs service. If the service fails, then all those links fail, leaving you with no way to redirect that lost traffic. If you using short links in link building efforts or for affiliate marketing then you need to roll your own solution.

These are many URL shortening scripts on the market, for a small fee GentleSource ($29), PlusPHP Short URL Script ($59) or for free, e.g. Shorty

10. Use Your Own Domains For Email

Defensible email means using your own domain rather than a branded service. If you use Gmail then use your own domain name with them or sign up to Google Apps. Yahoo Mail and Microsoft Live Mail also offer services using your own domain.

Like your RSS feeds, this approach would allow you to switch providers without loosing your email address.

11. Keep Your Content On Your Own Domains

Always build content on your own domains, otherwise you’re at the mercy of the service provider. They may offer to export your data but that often means loosing links, traffic and historical trust that you’ve built up over the years.

So roll your own blog installation rather than using a hosted blog solution like WordPress.com or Blogger. Also keep it in mind when using third party sites like Squidoo, Google Knol or Twitter. These sites are useful but never forget that this material is most strongly defended on your own domains.

12. Set Up Malware Alerts

If Google, Firefox or IE flags your site as containing malware they will stop their users viewing your site. This can be as devastating as a hosting failure. The sooner you know about this the better.

Make sure you get early alerts on Google’s blacklist from Google Webmaster Center or SerpGuard.com. You can also set up Google Alerts for known malware keywords, as detailed here by Patrick Altoft.

** Hurricane Ike Prep by Cayobo one of the artists who make their work under a Creative Commons license at Flickr – thank you!

WhosTalkin.com is a social media search tool that allows users to search for conversations surrounding the topics that they care about most. Whether it be your favorite sport, favorite food, celebrity, or your company’s brand name; Whostalkin.com can help you join in on the conversations that you care about most.

Joe Hall asked me to beta test the system and aside from a few minor issues my first impressions are very positive.

The Interface and Controls

Top marks for making this simple and intuitive. Steve Krug would approve. My first choices are limited to a single search box, which gathers results from all their sources.

You can then drill down results by each source, listed on the left. These range from Twitter, Technorati to Bloglines and YouTube. Simple enough. My only complaint here would be the need to operate two scrollbars, one for the menu and another for the results. Even with the site at full screen, the design is limited by a fixed height. It would be good if scrolling could be limited to one controller only.

The Results

A quick vanity search on “Nick Wilsdon” produced 210 results. Although I monitor this search in Google Alerts, there were several new results for me here. To be fair to Google Alerts, my free account only returns results to a certain depth.

WhosTalkin should have an advantage over GoogleAlerts by querying the sites direct, but this advantage will depend entirely on the quality of each API. If they manage to provide a more comprehensive picture without charging, it will do very well. Clearly this could become another useful tool for ORM monitoring.

Other Features

The WhosTalkin team are considering or already working on a range of paid subscription services to compliment the free system. On their list are plugins for WordPress, iGoogle and Firefox. The must-have function for me is RSS feeds for selected searches.

With a hat tip towards my industry collegue Brian Carter, adding feeds from WhosTalkin.com and Google Alerts into your iGoogle desktop would make an excellent D.I.Y. monitoring tool.

Overall this is an excellent mash-up and will prove useful to anyone monitoring their online reputation. There’s still room in the market for ORM search engines, provided they return better results than their competitors. WhosTalkin.com seems to be succeeding on this point.

You can follow the progress of WhosTalkin on their blog. They don’t have a launch date at the moment, beyond “very soon” but Joe is open to beta test requests on the system.

Technorati Tags: ORM, Reputation Management, Search Engines, Social Search, WhosTalkin