Taking web security and user-friendly design to even greater heights, Google introduced its newest update to the reCAPTCHA application programming interface (API) on December 3rd, 2014. Many web users will recognize reCAPTCHA as the security feature that prompts an individual to verify that he or she is "not a robot" by interpreting text within a digital image. And for all of those who have ever failed to differentiate aRead more
The Google My Business app was designed to make it easy for business owners to stay in touch with customers, directly from a smartphone. Available for Android and iOS, the app enables users to update business info across Google's suite of products. Google recently updated the app to give business owners the ability to see and respond to online reviews. The change was reported in a blog post onRead more
Google's search algorithm is almost constantly changing. One of the search engine's most recent changes, termed Panda 4.1, went into effect at the end of September, announced on the Google+ page of Pierre Far, and shared by Matt Cutts, the Googler in charge of web quality, web spam, and search optimization. The original post notes that the update affected somewhere between 3% and 5% of search queries, often improvingRead more
Google Inbox, Google's new email app and successor to Gmail, debuted October 22 with a new approach to email messaging. Intended to be "the inbox that works for you," the app—available for Android and iOS—is similar to Gmail, but with a few new key features that help make email less burdensome. For example, messages with a similar subject are automatically bundled together, and high-priority messages are highlighted, helping preventRead more
We've all seen it: Google is changing how they display search results. The moves are subtle, but they my have a big impact on organic and paid search campaigns. What's changed? For starters, font size is larger and titles are no longer underlined. A big yellow "Ad" label has replaced the traditional box around paid ads. There are many smaller changes — click here for the full list. HowRead more
Maybe you're the leading wombat breeder in Milwaukee. No? Use your imagination. Regardless of your business, it helps to know what brings people to your website. Do people type "Milwaukee wombats" into Google? "Pets on Dearborn Street"? Google Analytics used to tell you what works best, but that's changed. You still get visitor numbers, but you won't know what they typed. Since most traffic comes from "long tail" searchesRead more