SEO Blog

Michael Arrington at TechCrunch notes Google is testing a search results page format that encourages users to vote for the validity or value of each listing. A plus or minus symbol beside a listing pushes that listing up or down in overall results. Beneath listings, a comments section allows users to post reviews or personal comments about each reference.

Apparently the system, which is not visible in Canada, finds inspiration from the Digg social network which allows its users to vote for articles and other media posted by its enormous user-base.

It is unknown if individual user votes can or will affect Google’s overall sites rankings or if Google will ever roll such a system in to any of the search results it provides. Chances are, the number of votes necessary to have an impact will only be seen by the largest and most popular websites.

It is also worth noting that Google already has a user-vote system that has a direct effect on search engine rankings. Google tracks every click-through from its search engine results pages. By comparing the number of clicks a specific listing gets to the time each user spends at that URL, Google can determine if users really think a site is valuable or not.

In less than a week, one of the most timely search conferences, SMX Local & Mobile, will be held at the JW Marriott Hotel in downtown San Francisco.

With the recent introduction of the iPhone3G and the imminent introduction of the Blackberry 3G, search users are going to be accessing search engine results from mobile devices more frequently. Mobile users tend to be looking for results near the location they are conducting their search query from.

Local search placement has been an important priority for search engine optimization and marketing specialists for several years however the 3G standard has fostered a far wider wave of mobile device adoption.

Organized by industry conference veteran Chris Sherman, SMX Local and Mobile has a great line up of speakers, including many of well known thought-leaders in the realm of mobile search.

“SMX Local/Mobile promises to be a great show! Chris Sherman has pulled some of the top thought-leaders in the industry to help prepare attendees for the future of web marketing. People in-the-know are emphatically proclaiming that we have hit critical mass with mobile web access. Is your website ready?” Cindy Krum (moderator and speaker, SMX Local & Mobile)