There have been multiple accounts of changes to Google's SERPs with regards to Universal Search, but the search giant admits to constantly tinkering with the algorithm and certain interface features in the aims of "improving the user experience."

But the newest change caught by the blogosphere is the shift to a double-paneled SERP (a la Ask-3D minus one pane), with the images, video or other non-text results lined up in a OneBox on the right side of the page. Silicon Valley gossip blog Valleywag notes that this new interface is remarkably like a design scheme AOL tried (and then ...Read the whole story...

Lisa Barone culls info from a recent MarketingSherpa seminar for this post on the best tests, design schemes and overall strategies for boosting the conversion power of landing pages.

Stats from MarketingSherpa's new Landing Page Handbook reveal that of the myriad steps you can take to impact a landing page's conversion rate, dynamically serving the on-page copy bumped up conversions by 68%. Giving users a sign that this new page contains the specific information that they were looking for -- even simple copy that says "you searched for 'x' on Yahoo" -- is an incredibly effective change.

Though ...Read the whole story...

Just days after Ask debuted its AskEraser search data anonymizing service, privacy advocates and industry insiders have said that it falls a bit short when it comes to eradicating user info.

Jason Lee Miller highlights a statement in the AskEraser FAQs that proves that while Ask attempts to get rid of the search data, it cannot force third-party providers of info like stock quotes, weather conditions, and paid search results (i.e. Google) to remove the user info from their servers.

Miller does more digging and finds out that Ask still keeps the search info (user or session IDs, ...Read the whole story...

Jonathan Mendez offers five reasons why landing page optimization (LPO) will take center stage next year.

Competitive pressures will force both SEM firms and digital agencies to work LPO into their suite of standard offerings, as the number of advertisers searching for those services will increase -- and LPO will become a critical part of overall marketing spend.

LPO technology will continue to improve, with dollars flowing from VC investors as well as new M&A activity in the space. Mendez also says that landing pages have become the "30 second spot" for the digital age, and as ...Read the whole story...

Did your client wait until the last minute to ask you to optimize their site for the holidays? Don't worry -- there are plenty of last minute shoppers, and SEO tips on how you can use to snag them! According to Stephan Spencer, you can still make some small changes that will impact their traffic and possibly sales.

The first is to add some new keyword-rich links to the homepage -- holiday-focused, anchor text that the engines can pick up and will drive those last minute shoppers to your "great gifts and goodies."

Revising your meta descriptions with ...Read the whole story...