Just noticed something significant for webmasters that have dynamically-generated Web pages. Those pages used not to have PR but it seems that the latest update from Google has changed that. Dynamic Web pages are now put on the same footing (or almost) as static Web pages.

Matt Cutts sent a note to the Search Engine Journal giving a brief explanation of what went on the past few days with the PR update. Indeed, paid links were the main targets.

See: Matt Cutts Confirms Paid Links & Google PageRank Update

Well, that’s not coming from me, but from Jamie Harrop, who guest posted on John Chow about the latest PR update from Google.  Interesting mention in that entry about Google making a mistake by penalizing influential blogger Darren Rowse at ProBlogger.net.  ProBlogger, which went down from PR 6 to PR 4, is back up at PR 6.

See: The PageRank Ripple - PageRank Is Dead!

In the past few days, a number of webmasters reported a decrease in the page rank of their websites/ blogs.  This is following warnings (for a while now) from Google that it would crack down on paid links.  The funny thing is that some sites who have seen their PR decrease did not sell links.  What conclusion can we derive from this?

This PR update or readjustment did not only affect paid links but the way links are weighted by Google in general.  In other words, since Google’s main concern is to provide better search results, its ultimate goal is to allow for accurate linking between sites.  Paid links are only part of the problem, albeit a visible one.

The rate someone is willing to pay for a link depends largely on its PR value and the traffic it can bring.  With this recent change, those rates are bound to be affected.  Paid links will probably remain as search engines still base themselves on link networks to come up with their results.  As long as this remains true, paid links will stay.

That being said, let’s see if those sites that lost some PR will also lose traffic.

Most search engines have evolved from only offering searches for “text content” to now offering searches for images, videos, blogs, news, etc. Good SEO should stay in tune with the evolution of the Web, which is in big part influenced by search engines, responsible for connecting users to content.

For some topics, optimizing images can reap major rewards. For instance, if you do a search for “paintings,” the top of the results page will show 3 images. Imagine if you could get your image to be one of those 3. Those results rank even higher than “traditional search results.”

The following article gives some basic and simple tips to optimize images: Optimizing Images Deliver Online.

The perception of threat is often a sign of vulnerability. The more vulnerable you are, the more you will take an active stance at “protecting” yourself. Google must feel very vulnerable to what it perceives as “unethical” linking practices for cracking down so hard on them and sending out so many mixed signals aimed at confusing webmasters. Is this a sign that its algorithm is heavily dependent on link networks connecting websites to one another? Probably. This is actually no secret as Google itself mentions it in its Webmaster Guidelines.

Networking with others is essential in building one’s visibility, in the real world and online. Now that Google wants to regulate this basic aspect of human interaction, what should we take out of it? Is the online giant with such humble beginnings taking itself too seriously… to the point of now wanting to police people online, setting out guidelines as to what is acceptable and what is not?

Search engines are dependent on websites because those same websites are at the essence of their own existence. Most websites are now dependent on search engines because of the immensity of the Web, yet the necessity to attract traffic. Is this a case of one versus a bunch, but the bunch is unorganized and indecisive, while the one stands strong as a single entity?

* Jennifer Laycock, from Search Engine Guide, wrote an interesting article on this issue. Please click here to go to the article.

David Reich, Interim Executive Director (IAOC), asked me to spread the word on the Fall 2007 season of “This Week on IAOCblog.com:” 

The International Association of Online Communicators (IAOC) has just begun the Fall 2007 season of the popular educational blog show, “This Week on IAOCblog.com.” The program is free and open for PR, marketing and online communications professionals, educators and students, as well as anyone interested in discussing hot topics and trends in Internet marketing communications.

The Fall season kicked off September 24 with guest blogger Peter A. Gloor of MIT’s Sloan School of Management, who blogged about analyzing workplace communications. The season continues Oct 15 with computer communications expert Dave Taylor answering that menacing question: Is it okay to get paid to blog?

The blog show features a different guest blogger each week. Our guests are renowned professionals, educators and authors in the field of online communication.

Here is the Fall lineup:

October 15-19, 2007
GUEST: Dave Taylor, Blogsmart, Ask Dave Taylor
TOPIC: Is It Okay to Get Paid to Blog?

October 22-26, 2007
GUEST: Ted Demopoulos, Blogging for Business
TOPIC: Should CEOs Blog?

October 29-November 2, 2007
GUEST: Dianna Huff, Marcom Writer Blog
TOPIC: Writing Search Engine Friendly Copy

November 5-9, 2007
GUEST: Lois Kelly, Foghound
TOPIC: Conversational Marketing: Mood over Matter?

November 13-16, 2007
(Nov. 12 is Veteran’s Day)
GUEST: Shel Horowitz, Ethical Marketing Expert
TOPIC: Blogger’s Code of Ethics: News or Ruse?

“This Week on IAOCblog.com” takes place at http://www.iaocblog.com/. For more information, please visit this site or contact dreich@tulane.edu.

Starting ventures or projects online have their rewards and difficulties.  One of the major hurdles is to create a space for oneself amongst all the competition.  How to get noticed when there are literally billions of websites out there?

The subject of this entry is not to discuss how, but “when.”  Most projects start with a hope.  A hope to make it someday…  That hope, however, becomes reality when from “soliciting” attention, people come to you to offer partnerships or to present themselves.  Of course, your responsibility as the owner or webmaster is to always increase the visibility of your site, but as people came to me, that was the triggering point for me in telling myself… “well, this project of mine is starting to show potential.”  Potential because others, in addition to myself, are starting to see “something.”

When you receive validation, that is a real morale booster.

For those looking to diversify or considering dropping Adsense/ Yahoo’s Publisher Network, WidgetBucks came up with an interesting pay-per-click program which is supposed to produce $3 to $6 CPM versus the $2 CPM for traditional ad networks.

The account is very easy and fast to set up and the ads look pretty nice compared to the text ads normally associated with pay-per-click programs.

Microsoft is known for being one of the, if not the major player in the software world. Yet, with Google entering the field by offering products online and free of charge, that led Microsoft to readjust its business model.

vs.

From CDs that most people buy to install their programs, Microsoft will slowly shift towards “software delivered as a service.” This means that consumers will not necessarily have to pay for the cost of the software upfront. Instead, Microsoft will earn revenues through many streams, such as subscription revenues, transaction revenues (like PayPal, for instance), or ad revenues. Don’t we love those advertisers?

Microsoft Powers Up for Change, Telegraph.co.uk