ppc

Paid-search spending on the rise

Paid search is the Web's latest sector bouncing back from the recession.

Spending on paid search in the U.S. grew 14 percent in the second quarter and 11 percent in the first quarter, compared with the same periods in 2009, according to a report released Tuesday by SearchIgnite. The company, which offers search optimization and online media services, found that the latest numbers for pay-per-click (PPC) and other types of paid search signaled the strongest growth for the sector since the fourth quarter of 2008.

"Search has bounced back from recession level lows and is poised for … Read more

Buggy search bar

tyBit Unified Search is a toolbar that lets users search multiple search engines at once for a variety of different things. Although we love the idea in theory, in execution, it leaves something to be desired.

We first ran into trouble when we found that the version of the toolbar that was available from Download.com was not compatible with the version of Firefox we were running, or with our version of Internet Explorer. This resulted in some error messages and other general annoyances before we got the program updated and running, at least in Firefox. There we were greeted … Read more

How Does The Pre's Size Stack up?

For those that haven't had the chance to pick up a Pre and really see its size first hand, this is for you. In the pictures below from left to right you will see the Apache, (Sprint - WM 6.5) G1, (T-Mobile - Android) Touch Pro, (Sprint - WM 6.5) Diamond, (Alltel - WM 6.5 recently added) And finally the phone we all know and love, the Palm Pre. (Sprint - WebOs)… Read more

Recession: The best thing for SEO

So here we are, one quarter down and recession to go. Recession has become an unfortunate but popular topic in 2008. Some people follow strict definitions of what qualifies technically as a recession while others speak purely from opinion--or maybe they are speaking from the pinch they are feeling in their wallets. For most, they could care less what you call it; labels don't make the impact they are feeling any better or any less painful.

In most industries, when things slow, something has to go. Will that be cutting back on seemingly frivolous expenses, going to fewer industry shows, reducing ad spending, or worse, cutting jobs? Like many industries, search marketing firms are considering these choices as well, and rather hoping that this slowing, downturn, recession, or whatever you want to call it, actually presents more opportunities than hard choices.

Only time will tell, but I like to think the feeling that search marketing firms may be able to find opportunities during these trying economic times are spot on. But don't think this will just be a slam dunk--every opportunity also presents challenges.… Read more

No. 1 in Google may not be enough

Google's new teleportation, its search-within-search function, is getting mixed responses, at least from some site owners, who may be remembering occasions when teleportation in the Star Trek transporter went wrong. Earlier in the month, Google introduced the teleportation functionality as a way to better help searchers find information within a site by providing a search box below the snippet of the top listing, which performs a "site:" search on the domain of that listing using the additional search terms the searcher added in.

The "site:" advanced query is quite familiar to those within the search … Read more

Sprint releases EV-DO Rev. A upgrade for HTC Mogul

The HTC Mogul is about to get fast...real fast. Today, Sprint released a software upgrade that brings an EV-DO Rev. A upgrade to the Windows Mobile smartphone, making it the first such handset in the United States. EV-DO Rev. A is an evolution of EV-DO which boosts download speeds from the 400Kbps-to-700Kbps range to 600Kbps-to-1.4Mbps range, while upload speeds will average about 350Kpbs to 500Kpbs (compared with EV-DO's 50Kpbs to 70Kbps). In short, you're going to get faster Web browsing, e-mail, and downloads--that is, if you're lucky enough to live in a coverage area.

According … Read more

Sprint Mogul by HTC officially unveiled

Man, if I were a Sprint or Verizon Wireless customer, I wouldn't be the happiest camper in the world. After all, the CDMA faithful have had to sit back and watch for the past few months, while their GSM counterparts at T-Mobile and AT&T got one new smart phone after another. Yet, things are starting to look up--for Sprint subscribers, anyway. Today, the carrier announced the Sprint Mogul by HTC, the long-awaited successor to the Sprint PPC-6700. It sports a thinner design, Windows Mobile 6 Professional Edition, a better camera, and more memory. Yet, we have some … Read more

New Sprint Treo 750 could be just days away

So, there I was, on the phone with a Sprint rep, chatting about my cell phone bill and the possibility of signing a new, two-year contract, when something funny happened: I got to hear about a couple of rumored new phones that hadn't been officially announced. The rep suggested I apply my $150 signing bonus to the new Treo 750, which was, "just days away."

I have the Sprint PPC 6700, an HTC device, and have been eagerly anticipating its successor, which is supposed to be slimmer and offer better battery life. So, I asked, "Any … Read more