Capitalsal Web Marketing Solutions Bloggy Blog Blog

How does the Facebook Algorithm work?

2011-08-17T16:57:00.000-07:00

By Kelvin Newman from Econsultancy.com

The ultimate guide to the Facebook Edgerank algorithm

EdgeRank is one of the most important algorithms in marketing. Despite this, very few people have heard of it and fewer still can claim that they fully understand it.

EdgeRank is the name of the algorithm which Facebook uses to determine what appears in their users’ news feeds. The news feed is Facebook’s ‘Killer App’. There is a plethora of information available to Facebook users, and the newsfeed is the order in which it appears.

It determines which of your connections is the most important to you and thus appears most frequently, and which kinds of content should appear higher than others. For anyone seeking to market a product or service on Facebook it’s essential you understand how this algorithm works.

Understanding the rules of the algorithm and changing your tactics to reflect the system can make the difference between a business changing campaign and an embarrassing failure. Yet despite this huge importance very little has been written about the algorithm.

CONTINUE AND READ MORE HERE

The Joy of Stats

2011-01-25T19:53:00.000-08:00

Hans Rosling says there’s nothing boring about stats, and then goes on to prove it. A one-hour long documentary produced by Wingspan Productions and broadcast by BBC, 2010. A DVD is available to order from Wingspan Productions. Director & Producer; Dan Hillman, Executive Producer: Archie Baron. ©Wingspan Productions for BBC, 2010

Click here to watch the video.

Double the Value of Your Online Testing

2010-11-10T18:22:00.000-08:00

I just watched a great Webinar put on by Dr. Flint McGlaughin (Director of MECLABS Group) on MarketingExperiments.com

In summary, the Webinar talks about the 'Testing Cycle'. Not just from a marketing standpoint, but also in a scientific/psychological one. The 3 phase Testing Cycle progresses from Radical Redesgins, Focused Variable Clusters, and finally, Single Variable Testing. The benefits, limitations, context-specific insights, and meta-theoretical insights are also discussed in this 'gold mine'.

You can watch the video, Double the Value of Your Online Testing by clicking here.

Thank you for the FREE Webinar!

If you are wondering how you can improve your Website, then contact Capitalsal to test it!

How to install Google Analytics into Facebook Fan Pages

2010-10-28T21:56:00.000-07:00

Thanks Kevin!

What is your Keyword rank score called? ...Quality scores for Google.

2010-07-13T11:16:00.000-07:00

A "Quality Score" for Google is a dynamic metric assigned to each of your keywords. It's calculated using a variety of factors. A quality score measures how relevant your keyword is to your ad group and to a user's search query. The higher a Keyword Quality Score(KQS), the lower it costs per click(CPCs), and the better its ad position.

Google and other players of the search network, calculate it every time your keyword matches a search query. The QS helps ensure that only the most relevant ads appear to users.

Contact Capitalsal to discuss how you can improve your Quality Score.

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Free Website Search Engine Submission Tool

2010-05-17T19:39:00.001-07:00

How the President of the United States used Metrics to win the election

2010-05-17T12:51:00.000-07:00

I came across this video and thought the viewers of this blog would think it's interesting how Barack Obama's marketing and media specialists used new media and Web Analytics to get an edge on the competition.

Web Analyst Archetype

2010-05-06T16:48:00.000-07:00

I was doing some qreading(quick reading) and came across an article about archetypes of Web Analysts and how using tools such as GA(Google Analytics) or coremetrics is only one facet of the business. Basically many say that s/he needs to be well rounded in fields other their specialty, allowing them tap into personas, psychs, and commonalities of their clients.

One thing that I would like to mention is that the "Archetype" of the future Web Analyst that is discussed in other posts, is that s/he is a hot commodity in limbo these days. At least in 2010.

People are only "starting" to realize the value in a Web Analyst, which means that more education/teaching needs to happen for this to grow. (There's an opportunity here) Remember technology is about speed and productivity. If everyone were up to speed, then everything would be faster right? You could move along with advances and take a holistic approach to learn from your mistakes...Good luck!

It takes time for that time to come; where everyone understands what needs to be understood. It can and will happen though! In other words, a collective consciousness. It's important for the WA(Web Analyst) to broaden his or her horizon to be able to apply metaphorical filters to the data and then communicate it effectively to each department. This is when the Web Analyst begins to use a different "play on words" and also passes through language barriers, becoming a "language barrier ninja".

Contact Capitalsal to hire a Web Analyst

About Facebook Tracking Metrics

2010-04-16T12:11:00.000-07:00

Facebook is the epitome of New Media and how people are engaging with each other. From status updates, videos, pictures, to warm birthday greetings, Facebook has become a staple to many lives in the 21st century. The website also allows for advertising and a marketplace to tickle your wallet. How can you track Facebook though?

The follow are Facebook tracking metrics:

-Number of members in a group
-New members who joined per day, per month, per year
-Ratio of new members to people who left the group
-Ratio of who are your facebook friends vs. who are not
-Activity on wall posts and discussion boards (Content, requests, time, date, etc.)
-Members who also accepted invitations to join your event(s)
-Links posted in your group back to your blog/website (These should have parameters so that they can be assigned in your analytics

To added to post here is a link to see Facebook Statistics.

Click here to join Capitalsal's facebook group.

Best Search Engine Ranking Factors

2010-03-03T19:06:00.000-08:00

I came across an article that seomoz.org articulated, which included a great composition of SEO or Search Engine Optimization metrics. These stats allow you to see what are the search engine ranking factors and how to get your website to make the cut.

Complete Rankings Data

The following ranking factors were rated by our panel of 72 SEO experts. Their feedback is aggregated and averaged into the percentage scores below. For each, we’ve calculated the degree to which the experts felt this factor was important for achieving high rankings as well as the degree of variance in opinion, estimated using the standard deviation of the contributors’ answers. Thus, factors that are high in importance and low in contention are those where experts agree the most that the factor is critical to rankings.

Top 5 On-Page (Keyword-Specific) Ranking Factors

1. Keyword Use Anywhere in the Title Tag
66% very high importance

2. Keyword Use as the First Word(s) of the Title Tag
63% high importance

3. Keyword Use in the Root Domain Name (e.g. keyword.com)
60% high importance

4. Keyword Use Anywhere in the H1 Headline Tag
49% moderate importance

5. Keyword Use in Internal Link Anchor Text on the Page
47% moderate importance

Read more about Search Engine Ranking Factors by SEOmoz.

Visit Capitalsal for seo consultation.

Omniture Summit Stats

2010-01-05T17:56:00.000-08:00

Example of measuring conversion goals

2009-12-29T16:35:00.000-08:00

Quick conversion guide

The best way to visualize how you can measure the conversion goals is to think of the page that the user will see when s/he fills out a form etc. and then gets redirected to a "Thank You" page. The "Thank You" page is the goal, whether they entered your site through the home page or through another page from an organic listing(the ones you don't pay for) in search engines.

The following are the conversion goals for a Medical office or Health Care Institute etc.:

-Newsletter Subscriptions

-General New Patient form

-New Patient History form (THESE THREE ARE YOUR "NEW PATIENT CONVERSIONS")

-Payment Policy Form

-Auto Injury Questionnaire Form

-Contact Us Form

-Product Checkout/Thank you pages

-Online store registration

-3-D spine simulator

-Wellness topics Print conversion

-Email conversions (opened emails; monthly newsletter)

Web Design and Development

2009-11-18T00:14:00.000-08:00

Capitalsal is equipped with the knowledge and skills to create a Website, develop individual web pages, improve the appearance of web pages, and add functionality, interactivity or dynamic features to web pages.

Capitalsal focuses on the most essential topics needed to establish a compelling web presence for organizations.

To learn more click here.

Web Analytics Association Search Engine

2009-11-16T00:08:00.000-08:00

I came across a useful tool that is a custom search engine for 'everything' web analytics.

Click here

Cheers to the creator, Stephane Hamel.

Tribal Leadership

2009-10-06T12:20:00.000-07:00

I came a cross this video on facebook but it belongs to a group I belong to, which is TED. Ted.com is a great website that brings new ideas and perspectives to the reader through articles and video. There is a plethora of knowledge and wisdom that comes from its speakers and insight. David Logan speaks of "Tribal Leadership" in the video below.

David Logan studies how people communicate within a company -- and how to harness our natural gifts to make change within organizations. He looks at emerging patterns of corporate leadership, organizational transformation, generational differences in the workplace, and team building for high-potential managers and executives.

He's the co-founder and senior partner at CultureSync, a management consulting firm, and works with Fortune 500 companies, governments, and nonprofits. Much of CultureSync’s work is derived from a ten-year study of over 24,000 people published at Tribal Leadership (2008), which shows how organizational culture evolves over time and how leaders can nudge it forward.

He teaches management and leadership in the USC Executive MBA, and is also on the faculty at the International Centre for Leadership in Finance (ICLIF), endowed by the former prime minister of Malaysia, and on the Foundation for Medical Excellence in Portland.

The Easter Seals Drop Zone Event Vancouver 2009

2009-09-30T13:56:00.000-07:00

Since 2005, more than 2,000 superheroes have joined the exclusive Superhero Club for Easter Seals, raising more than $2.8 million dollars for kids with disabilities across Canada. Easter Seals Drop Zone is the first event of its kind in Canada!

I was fortunate enough to be involved in this charity event, which was for a great cause. The 70 'Superheroes' from Vancouver raised over $225,000 this year, and now these children will be able to enjoy themselves with happiness and laughter.

I encourage you to take the leap and share in the joy of giving BC's children abilities. Better yet, all across Canada in your nearest city. Check out The Drop Zone.

Here is a video of my experience...the video is only 4 minutes long but it took me about 10-15 minutes to gather the courage do do the rappel, as I'm afraid of extreme heights! We rappelled off a 20 story building(Axa Building) downtown, Vancouver, BC, Canada.

Mac Alarm Clock Pro 9.1.7

2009-08-19T00:41:00.000-07:00

I came across an app that I've wanted to use for a awhile now and I think its a great tool for a mac user.

Here's a quote from the site, "With the sheer amount of functionality Alarm Clock Pro offers, it can easily integrate into nearly every aspect of your life. Speak or display favorite inspirational quotes randomly throughout the day, or even send them as text messages to your cell phone! Have important reminders, or even birthday cards, e-mailed to contacts."

You can download Alarm Clock Pro for Mac for free here.

Do you have twitter? Follow Capitalsal on twitter.

Link building for your website

2009-08-13T08:04:00.000-07:00

A great way to improve your chance of getting people to your website and having a higher ranking in the major search engines is to have a 'quality link score'. That means that, say Google, looks to see how many website(s) link to your website. Going further, Google doesn't really care about links from websites that have a lower quality link score than you.

When it comes to link building, it is ideal to get linked in from websites that have a higher score than you. If your at the top, your doing something right!

A few good practices to get your name and contact information about your company out there, is to register accounts at local business listing websites and/or find out what competitors have listed in.

To do this go to Google.com. Type in, links://www.yourcompetitorswebsite.com then press enter or click search.

These results will show all links that are going to that website. Saying that, now you can use these links to see what local listings they are listed in, so you can do the same.

This is a strategy that all companies should do anyway, even if they don't have a website up yet, because of the fact that you can get your contact information out there...and wait a minute.....its free.

Cheers,

AL

Contact Capitalsal for search engine optimization and web design/development services.

Trip to the moon

2009-07-20T15:54:00.000-07:00

40 years ago today, on July 20th, 1969, the human race landed on the moon for the first time. Richard Branson, business mogul, has a company trying to develop spaceships that will take you to space and back for a small fee. In the millions actually. The project is called Virgin Galactic.

"WHAT IS VIRGIN GALACTIC?

Virgin Galactic is a company owned and established by Richard Branson's Virgin Group to undertake the challenge of making private space travel available to everyone and by creating the world's first commercial spaceline.

Virgin will own and operate privately built spaceships, based on the history making SpaceShipOne . These spaceships, which are currently under construction, will allow affordable private sub-orbital space travel for the first time in history and give you the opportunity of being amongst the very first private astronauts."

Read full article on Virgin Galactic here.

Internet mogul Google came up with Google Moon. Google Moon allows you to view the moon and get charts/data that was taken in the past. Similarily, Google has released Google Earth, and Google Mars.

These robust pieces of software allow us to see something that people 40 years ago could not even fathom.

Clients say, "Make My Website Better...

2009-07-17T15:46:00.000-07:00

Search Engine Optimization Services for your web site are the cornerstone to your Web Marketing lifespan. Are you doing business on the World Wide Web?

Let Capitalsal Web Marketing Solutions increase your visibility in the major search engines. Capitalsal has the experience and knowledge needed to help your business convert search engine traffic. Increase your traffic with Capitalsal.

What is Internet Marketing?

Internet marketing is the component of marketing that deals with the planning, pricing, promotion, and distribution of your products and services online. Good internet marketing strategies clearly communicate a company's unique selling proposition, or the unique collection of benefits that creates value for its customers.

Everything you do to promote your business online is Internet marketing. Internet marketing includes but is not limited to website design and content, search engine optimization, directory submissions, reciprocal linking strategies, online advertising, and email marketing.

Successful marketing on the Internet is not just about advertising your website in Google, Yahoo, or buying banner ads on other websites. Without a quality product or service and a well developed website, a banner ad, for example, would do you little good.

To succeed online, you must develop a comprehensive plan that includes the following:

1. A solid business model and great product or services

2. An effectively designed website with sales as an objective

3. An online marketing strategy that suits your audience and fits your budget

Contact Capitalsal for all your Internet Marketing needs!

SEO Fun with friends

2009-07-10T00:53:00.000-07:00

People ask me how to pick the best keywords for their website....

So i usually respond with the answer that there are many ways...in fact some call it an art.. And at the end of the day, why not have some fun with your friends while doing it???

So you are going to need a bottle of wine, yes wine,....maybe a few depending on the fish ;) and you will also need a sticky note pad, accompanied by your friends of good character...

The object is two ask each friend, it doesn't have to be in order, have fun, a keyword or search phrase they might use to find your website when searching google or yahoo. Write each keyword or search phrase on the sticky note and then smack it on a wall somewhere. Try to get as many as you can.

Thank your friends for the help and in time pick out the best ones, top 10, and "stick to those guns."

Take care,

AL

778-231-5193

***Note: Please drink responsibly and don't drink and drive.***

Cool HP-Invent Commercial

2009-07-10T00:46:00.000-07:00

HP - invent from Tom and Matt on Vimeo.

Follow Capitalsal on twitter at Capitalsal's twitter page

Propaganda?....Google Twitter Search Engine Secret Leaked

2009-06-16T17:06:00.000-07:00

Check out this video I found through who I follow on twitter. Follow Capitalsal on twitter here.

Doing research when you apply for a job

2009-03-10T16:19:00.000-07:00

The Way Back Machine...

I having been involved in the Internet since it started, well at least since 1995, and it really became a tool of information. I can recall an interview I had quite some time ago and the company sounded professional on the phone, but when I looked at their website, it was only one page with their logo and said "under construction". OK, fine, some companies would put that up if they are building a new website...but what if that company has been around for 3-4 years, and is a web marketing company? To me, red flags come up and something is definitely sketchy here!

Do not have a website that is under construction for the public to see unless you are "testing" it. On that note, testing is another story with functionality needed and value in place. If the company has been around for 3-4 years and makes this mistake at this stage of its business life cycle then something is not congruent with the integrity of the business. 'For every breathing day we experience, it is 1 Internet Year. Every day with a website that is under construction is a years worth of business on the Internet.'

I find it important to do your due diligence when you apply for a job and research the company that you hope to work to get information on the history, culture etc. I honestly couldn't believe the progress of the company and still see this mistake so I used a tool called "The Wayback Machine". The Wayback Machine allows your search what a website looked like 5 years ago or however long Yahoo tracked the information of the website. You could actually check out what eBay looked like when they first started 1995 and click-through to see the steps and progress that they made. The Wayback Machine has over 85 billion pages indexed.

So I researched the company and found out that they have had this website as under construction for over 3 years, and it was only one page. Now in eMarketing there is White-Hat Marketing and Black-Hat Marketing. White-Hat Marketers are the 'good guys', you could say. And Black-Hat, well these marketers will do anything to make a buck. These are the people who manipulate the system to try to get a quick advantage but usually fall hard under the fists of Google and Yahoo. Spam, fake blogs, click-fraud,...these are the culprits. It turned out that this company was working under an alias and totally lost its integrity in my books.

So again, do some research on the company your applying for because you deserve the best when it comes to your career.

To access the Wayback Machine click here.

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Sign up for Capitalsal Web Marketing Solutions Facebook Group! Click here

"Search Engine Optimization, or SEO is that it the practice of optimizing a web page or a whole web site in a way that would make it more search engine friendly. This is done primarily to effect a higher ranking in search engine result pages and increase web traffic."

Amazon Kindle 2, the next generation wireless reading device

2009-02-10T15:19:00.000-08:00

Imagine you could have an electronic book that would replace paper, update you with the top news papers of the world, and can holds over a thousand of your books all in one slick hand-held package. It's also another great way to go Green.

Here's the scoop:

The Kindle 2 is as thin as a typical magazine and lighter than a paperpack, the new Kindle has seven times more storage and now holds over 1,500 books. It has a longer battery life and faster page turns. An advanced display provides even crisper images and clearer text for an improved book-like reading experience. Kindle 2 even reads to you, with “Read to Me”, our new Text to Speech feature.

With the Kindle 2, Amazon kept everything readers love about the original Kindle; the convenience of reading what you want, when you want it, the immediacy of getting a book wirelessly delivered in less than 60 seconds, and Kindle’s ability to “disappear” in your hands so you can get lost in the author’s words. The Kindle Store has over 230,000 eBooks available.

Kindle 2 is available for pre-order starting today for $359 here and will ship later this month. They also have a wide variety of Kindle accessories available, including new covers from Cole Haan, Patagonia, Belkin and more.

New Features & Enhancements

Slim & Lightweight: Just over 1/3 inch and 10.2 ounces

Books in under 60 seconds: Get books delivered in less than 60 seconds; no PC required

Improved Display: Reads like real paper; now boasts 16 shades of gray for crisp images and text; even reads well in bright sunlight

Longer Battery Life: 25% longer battery life; read for days without recharging

More Storage: Take your library with you; holds over 1,500 books

Faster Page Turns: 20% faster page turns

Read-to-Me: Text-to-Speech feature means Kindle can read every book, blog, magazine, and newspaper out loud.

No Wireless Bills: No monthly wireless bills, data plans, or commitments. Amazon pays for Kindle’s wireless connectivity so you won’t see a monthly wireless bill.

Large Selection: Over 230,000 books, plus U.S. and international newspapers, magazines and blogs available

Low Book Prices: New York Times Best Sellers and New Releases $9.99, unless marked otherwise