Typically keywords convey intent, but Aleh Barysevich believes in a new signal to support conversions. Barysevich provides insight on how to avoid blindly optimizing campaigns by learning how a searcher's intent can influence the search engine results pages, and how to optimize a Web site so it returns the correct results. He begins by analyzing keywords, touches on verticals and location, and moves into voice search. Read the article here.

Weather influences searches and purchases. Mia Brennan and Joy Barberio delve  into the data per region to track how regional click trends in the same sample set of outdoor-related verticals can differ. They point to a map where, in red, the Pacific and Mountain regions don't see the same paid-search traffic declines from March 2012 to March 2013 as other locations with warmer climates. The mid to east regions observed a steep decline in traffic, and, for some clients, a drop in conversion rate. Read the article here.    

Rand Fishkin takes us through a few examples of what he believes are better user experiences, removing clunky actions that should drive more conversions, earn more links, and get more social shares. In one example, he points to embed codes for videos that can drive links, especially to content people are likely to put on their own sites. The problem, he tells us, arises when marketers make it a multi-step process, especially on mobile. Read the article here.

Google announced enhanced AdWords campaigns this week, allowing mobile bid adjustments per Ad Group level. That change, along with data from Google and Nielsen, make Kevin Lee rethink mobile search. In the study, Google asked users to report their post-search actions. It turns out that three in four searches trigger additional actions. Lee explains it in more detail within the post, and then suggests actions to take based on the new way of thinking and data. Read the article here.

WikiLeaks has developed a searchable database, the Public Library of United States Diplomacy (PLUS D) containing more than 1.7 million diplomatic records including the Kissinger Cables spanning from 1973-1976, which partly covers the leadership of Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. The documents are said to contain information about U.S. involvement with fascist dictatorships, under Franco's Spain and others.

Content might increase the number of visitors to a Web site from search engines, but unless the content provides information about or related to the products carried on the site, the visits will not turn into conversions. That's what happened to one company after buying articles from from a writing service promising high-quality content on the company's targeted keywords. Moaz Abu Goush takes us through the case study and provides tips on what type of content to provide site visitors to help them make the decision on whether or not to make a purchase, and how to support consumers after …

The southern California coastline remains littered with boats that human traffickers abandon after bringing those who want to illegally cross borders into the U.S. Google will award a $3 million grant as part of its Global Impact Award program to a trio of anti-trafficking organizations, along with its tech expertise through its Google Ideas task force, teaming with Palantir Technologies and Salesforce.com to build a data-sharing platform that will enable officials to search and identify global patterns on how the human-trafficking trade operates and how to better protect the victims, reports Bloomberg.

The IAB released findings Thursday from a study on how consumers use finanical apps. It turns out that 83% of respondents know their bank offers a mobile app, three out of four are aware their bank has a mobile-optimized Web site, and 58% of respondents say they have used their bank’s mobile app. Aside from banking apps, less than 20% of respondents report having each of a variety of apps for investment planning, budgets or even financial news. InMobi and Viggle also particpated in the study.

Looking for some new SEO tools? Kristi Hines tells us about five that you might know about, which she explains work well for businesses on smaller budgets. She uses them for keyword research, competitor research, local search, and link building. One of the tools, Link Detox, identifies healthy, suspicious and toxic links. Read the article here.

When Marissa Mayer first took the role as CEO, a lagging mobile strategy was one of the sagging services brought to her attention by Yahoo employees. Now Bloomberg reports the company's deal maker, Jacqueline Reses, is looking for M&A targets related to mobile. Mayer recently put her in charge of talent management and mergers and acquisitions, following her hire in September 2012. She aims to make Yahoo a more "attractive" place to work.