Jeremy Smith says, “Google Analytics (GA) is an indispensable tool for gathering data that will help you maximize your conversions. As a bonus: It’s free. GA offers excellent reports that provide an overview of key metrics for a particular period. But the out-of-the-box reports won’t always fit your needs. So, fortunately, GA also allows you to create your own reports. Just click on “Customization” at the top of the home page screen, and you’ll be able to set up a report that shows you whichever metrics you want to see, all in one page”. 6 custom Google Analytics reports you... [...]

SBT team says, “There is a tendency within the digital sphere to uphold a future-oriented mindset. From social media to SEO, from algorithms to user experience, our approach and practices maintain a forecasting nature. Trends and methods are always observed and developed with the next step in mind and the future in sight, the end goal being to evolve with complexity and instinct matching that of users. How is search behavior changing? What will users respond to? How can we improve the digital practices that already exist? In what direction is search moving, and how can we stay ahead of the... [...]

Dr. Peter J. Meyers says, “It’s been almost two years (August 2014) since Google announced that HTTPS was a ranking signal. Speculation ran rampant, as usual, with some suggesting there was little or no benefit to switching (and possibly significant risk) while others rushed to sell customers on making the HTTPS switch. Two years later, I believe the data speaks for itself — Google is fighting, and winning, a long war. What’s happened since? If you only consider the impact of Google’s original HTTPS update, I understand your skepticism. Prior to the update, our 10,000-keyword... [...]

Ginny Marvin says, “Google announced it will be adjusting how Dynamic Search Ads are triggered over the next few months. The goal is to improve ad relevance on queries. From the announcement: For example, ads that point to a landing page about iced coffee makers will be less likely to show for less relevant searches like “iced coffee.” As the updates roll out, performance may fluctuate, says Google. You’ll want to keep an eye on the search terms report even more vigilantly than usual with DSA campaigns during the transition period to see how query matching is affected”. Google... [...]

Adam Dorfman says, “When checking into places on Google Maps, you may have noticed that Google prompts you to volunteer information about the place you’re visiting. For instance, if you check into a restaurant, you might be asked whether the establishment has a wheelchair-accessible entrance or whether the location offers takeout. There’s a reason Google wants to know: attributes. Attributes consist of descriptive content such as the services a business provides, payment methods accepted or the availability of free parking — details that may not apply to all businesses. Attributes are... [...]

Joe Shervell says, “As anyone familiar with Google Analytics knows, the platform has kept its keyword data hidden for some time. A number of years ago, it was possible to understand the exact words users searched to find your site, but in 2011, Google began witholding that information, and much of the data became ‘(not provided)’. Google claims this was a move towards greater privacy, on the basis that users’ website browsing habits are private and personal information. By a happy coincidence for Google, this move encourages web marketers to move towards Google Adwords in... [...]

Todd Saunders says, “To be honest, AdWords hasn’t changed much since its launch in 2000. And that’s coming from someone who spends all their time either advertising, testing, reading, or writing about all things PPC and SEM. Sure, AdWords has added a ton of capabilities over the years — from Gmail Ads late last year to extended display networks, ad extensions and reporting — but they hadn’t made all these options easier to use or more efficient to set up. It all just took more time, more manual work and more stress — that is, until Google began launching its line of dynamic feature... [...]

Cyrus Shepard says, “How fresh is this article? Through patent filings over the years, Google has explored many ways that it might use “freshness” as a ranking signal. Back in 2011, we published a popular Moz Blog post about these “Freshness Factors” for SEO. Following our own advice, this is a brand new update of that article. In 2003, Google engineers filed a patent named Information retrieval based on historical data that shook the SEO world. The patent not only offered insight into the mind of Google engineers at the time, but also seemingly provided a roadmap for Google’s algorithm... [...]

Brian Smith says, “Last month, Google released version 3.0 of its Google My Business API, which for those of us managing locations at scale felt like Christmas came early. Included in the update were a variety of new features, the most important of which were the addition of attributes for locations, the ability to indicate a preferred photo and the ability to match locations between Google Maps and Google My Business listings. While all of the changes are exceptionally useful (and although one shouldn’t complain about a gift), the fact remains that significant gaps still exist in the API... [...]

Ginny Marvin says, “On Wednesday, Google launched AdSense Labs to give publishers access to test newer features, kicking off with two Labs: Show fewer ads and Inline ads. The Show fewer ads lab lowers the number of ads shown to users by at least 10 percent. Publishers can, in turn, expect to see a drop in revenue, but a drop Google estimates will be “negligible,” or less than one percent of revenue, because the focus is on eliminating ads that are likely to be deemed of lower value to a publisher’s visitors. Inline ads are dynamically inserted mobile website ads sized 320×100. They... [...]