Crenk

For a while now I have been running Adphilia and we are only a small site representation company that is slowly growing. We have spent a lot of time trying to source the right Advertising server to meet our needs, but we still haven’t been able to find the right one in my mind. We have toyed with using free ad servers like OpenX or Google, as well as corporate ad servers like Right Media or Doubleclick. This is a post which just outlines what we have found within the company.

Free Ad Servers:

Open X - OpenX is an amazing piece of software that allows medium and large website to control their inventory. It is cost effective because the software is free, however you need to think about the implications advertising will have on your hosting servers, because huge amounts of ad serving can mean very large bandwidth costs. I also find OpenX a little hard to understand when you are first using the serving, plus I’m sure the larger your sites are the more complicated it becomes.

Google Ad Manager - Google Ad manager is a great product but it is built specifically for small publishers. It has a great design and easy to use. The first issue is that you can only use this ad server for small sites, because it is not compatible with any larger ad servers, and you have to put ad code straight into the header of your site. Additionally, I really don’t like the fact that when you deliver your first campaign you have to set it all up the day before it is allowed to be start. Small but bloody annoying.

Corporate Ad Servers:

Zedo - Zedo is very professional company with some great customer service. However, with them we got caught on the first hurdle, cause they were very expensive compared to all the other companies. Possibly, this is due to the great customer service and the results they can bring your sites. However, if you don’t have a great sales team to match what they can offer, there isnt too much point.

DoubleClick - This company just amazes me. Doubleclick seems to be a mish mash of several individual sections of software that has been mashed into one tool. Instead of Trafficking, reporting, billing and account details all in one sections, they seem to have segmented them, thus making it very untidy. However, they are the worlds best ad serving tool and the most used.

Atlas - Atlas, I tried to contact 5 times and they have never even responded to the messages I left. So I didn’t even get past the pricing stage let alone using their service. Typical Microsoft!

After all of these experiments it didn’t really bring me to finding the ad server solution that I was after. Im wanting a piece of software that is easy to understand and us, which doesn’t cost the earth, preferably free and web based. Does anyone know of a solution that I should try?

This is a simple loophole that is now out in the open. Thanks to JohnChow and Techcrunch for letting everyone know about it. Im not even going to try it out now, cause im sure it will be fixed within 24 hours by Feedburner.

Searching is big business. Those listings on the right side of any Google search are there because someone paid money to advertise there. Same goes with the top 2 or 3 links. Google makes a lot of money off of these paid placements, which are there based on their dynamic search technology. Google has also come under fire for the way in which it ranks sites, called Page Rank, it is a top secret way they calculate what search results should be at the top for any given term, based on their algorithm that, some have suggested, is based on the number of in-bound and out-bound links from other sites.

Google is the killer app of this decade, no one is doubting that. It is so popular it has become a verb, people just say, “Can you Google this for me?” which is almost impossible to do with anything anymore. So what if a new search engine comes along and tries to flatten the playing field?

That is exactly what Cuil (pronounced Cool) is trying to do. They claim to index three times the number of sites Google does and display them in a three-across pattern. That alone is kind of unique for searches, as they have always gone vertically. They have also implemented tab searches, a kind of, well maybe if you were looking for camera you might also want to look for digital camera. The search engine works, that really isn’t a question, but why should I use it?

Google does so many things now, like simple and complex math problems, fast weather look-up, package tracking from UPS and other services, all the way to stock quotes and word definitions. For me, it has eliminated the need to go to specialized sites if I can just put a special query in the Google search bar in Firefox. Cuil is also missing an image search function, something even Microsoft and Yahoo have worked into their site.

Cuil has some cool features, like roll overs, drill-down menu’s and the tabbed feature mentioned earlier. They are taking on the proverbial 800 pound gorilla by going after Google too. My two cents say that Cuil will have a small cult following for a while but ultimately, this will only make Google stronger.

Over at Royal Pingdom they have a great article on the wonder things that can be found at Googles online store. Some of this stuff is a little strange, but why not try to cash in on your good brand as much as possible.

Google flashing yo-yo

Who doesn’t like yo-yos? Especially ones lit up by flashing lights…

Google crank flashlight

An emergency flashlight with an FM radio, siren, and cell phone charger. The whole thing can be charged by cranking it.

Google lava lamp

The classic Lava Lamp, Google style.

Google bike stereo speakers

Portable speakers you can place on your bike, which will of course also carry your MP3 player.

Google sonic rocks

Two powerful magnets to play around with. Seems like fun!

Google bean bag

It’s apparently exactly the same kind as the ones in the Googleplex.

Google tumbling tower wooden block game

Build that Google tower as high as possible before it tumbles back down.

Google baby blanket

Want your toddler to get Googlified as soon as possible? Look no further than this.

Google Knol has officially launched and some already say it may be the Wikipedia “killer.” Google has defined the “knol” as a unit of knowledge. How long before this little item become a staple in our society’s day to day vocabulary? Webster’s anyone?

Google Knol is where YOU get to create your own “wiki” like page based on your expertise. The site’s definition is “an authoritative article about a specific topic.” For starters I’m not quite sure how authoritative an article can be if it’s written by the common user, but credential aside, there are a few aspects that may bring writers into the light.

For starters every Google Knol user is identified by their google email login, secondly, their posts are only editable by the user. Unlike Wikipedia where multiple users can change the same page, Knol relies on one editor per created page, and thus cuts down on the randomness of changes from others. Still it begs the question how long will it take before someone can game this system, and unreliable articles start to appear at the top of search results?

Currently users can create knols, but there are only a few to speak of. Trying to search for topics may prove less than stellar due to the lack of substance on the page, but I expect Google Knol to expand very quickly. There are those that dislike Wikipedia simply because the “everyman” can be an expert on anything as long as they create an account and are willing to spend to the time to edit another’s page.

Can Google overtake Wikipedia? Give Knol a try and share your comments here.

Google has once again taken another step in the right direction. The company has done everything from managing our email, our documents, manages statistics, mapping the earth, and now provides us even more detail with regards to directions. Along with driving directions, you can now get walking directions to any of your destinations via Google Maps.

When you plug in your start point and your end point you can change from step by step driving instructions to walking instructions. The site assumes an average of 19 minutes per mile, and may alter the route due to you being on foot. For example, one way streets are not a problem because you are not on foot, and any walking trails that exist may not cut completely across areas that would have otherwise been inaccessible with a car.

I don’t really see this application useful for locals. Chances are anywhere you wish to walk you probably already know, and any further, you might as well take car or other form of transportation. These addition definitely seems useful for tourists. Perhaps you want to map the distance from your hotel to a point of interest, or perhaps you’re at a convention and want a place to eat off-site, this little addition can make a huge difference.

I find it funny though that the beta warns people to “Use caution when walking in unfamiliar areas.” Kinda creepy, but a justified warning I think.

This feature is new, so the beta version may not be perfect, but despite it’s flaws, the addition definitely seems worthwhile.

For the last few months or so I have been using Google Ad Manager to control the advertising on Crenk. Currently the service is in private beta and you have to be invited to join. Up until a few days ago I was using the service, but since have dropped it and I just thought I would write a short article and let every know why.

The user interface within this very simple to use ad server is great. It is very easy to use and even easier to understand. Google Ad Manager has some great targeting tools which you would expect from Google. That all being said the one thing that is completely useless with the service is when it comes to implementing the ad tags into your site. Currently, the only ad tags they offer are in html code, so you need to add the code straight into your websites code and cannot add to another third party ad server. Thus, making it completely useless for the majority of people to use. I know the majority of small sites are able embed code straight into their site, but once a site gets quite large, you normally have several third party networks running. Thus, needing to control these networks with a high end ad server like Doubleclick or Atlas. This option is just not there with Google Ad Manager. I would definitely recommend it to small websites, but if you are either a large website, ad network, network of sites and anything else but a small single publisher, then Ad Manager is not for you!

ReadBurner is a unique service that shows and analyses what stories people are sharing. The stories currently seem to really be focused on Technology, but the service seems be growing and now integrates nicely with Google Reader, Netvibes and Newsgator. Thus, im guessing the service will increase to include more services, but then also move into different categories.

Readburner is getting used more and more because news consumption is still increading and RSS readers and start pages have made it easier to consume even more information. Readburner aggregated the most frequently shared content from these services to provide an overall feel of what everyone is talking about.

Readburner is a unique way to view the most popular stories from around the net and im looking forward to seeing how it improves.

From what I can recall, the Google start page was launched into beta more than two years ago and it had no official name. I instantly started to use it as that is about the time I really started to fall in love with RSS feeds and wanted / needed a better way to keep track of them. Since launching, many of the bugs have been worked out and a slew of new improvements for the service, which is, at the heart, an RSS reader, yet deliver so much more.

The official name for the web service is iGoogle, although no one really seems to know why and to access it you must point your browser to google.com/ig. Using this service for more than two years, I feel I can give it a fair review because I use it every single day.

Layout: By default, iGoogle is three columns wide and seems to hold an unlimited number of feeds vertically. There are now more than a hundred different themes for the page to skin them however you’d like, some will change dynamically based on your zip code, for sunrise / sunset as well as rain / snow / sun. Across the top are tabs; these are separate screens to help keep you organized. For example, I use one for Home tab; these are feeds and gadgets I use most. I also keep separate feeds based on interests, having one specific to Art & Photography, another for Celebrity Gossip, and so on. These tabs, help me keep everything separated yet still really easy to find and use.

Appearance: As stated above, there are themes available to skin the homepage to fit your liking. I use different skins for each of my tabs; this helps me quickly identify which tab I’m on just by visual. Recently, they’ve added a whole slew of artist’s themes by some very famous people and opened up the API to allow others to create and submit themes.

Use: You need a Google account to use iGoogle, not a big deal if you use Gmail already. Once logged in, you can add any site’s RSS feed by clicking the RSS logo on that page or, if using Firefox, the RSS icon in the address bar. You’ll be prompted as to how you want to use the feed, choose iGoogle Home Page and it will be added. To arrange the feeds in the order you want, simply drag them around. To move them into a new tab, simply drag that feed to the new tab. This is, by far, one of the simplest layouts I’ve used. There are also options to expand and collapse feeds and designate how many posts from any given feed you want displayed, default is three. The one feature I really don’t use is the ability to expand any particular feed and read it on the homepage. I don’t do this because the columns are a bit too narrow if there are photos in the blog post, they often get cut of. My preference has always been to read a blog post on that particular blog anyway.

More: There is an Add Stuff button on the iGoogle page that will show you the most used RSS feeds and Gadgets. Gadgets are simply things like dynamic weather integrated in, Quote of the Day, stock tickers, Gmail integration, etc. Personally, the only gadget I’ve found useful is the weather, but I have several friends that use Netflix and eBay widgets religiously.

I’ve tried a few dedicated RSS readers and a few other start pages but I keep coming back to iGoogle for the ease of use, clean design and easy customization. My current start page has 5 tabs and more than 100 total fees. Within minutes I can scan all of them and checkout articles that I might be interested in reading.

Try: www.google.com/ig

Let’s face facts, bloggers write, for the most part, so their articles can be read. They want them read for any number of reasons,

• Internet fame
• Potential to make money from ads
• Obsessed with statistics
• Conceited
• Enjoying knowing someone is reading what you wrote
• Etc.

Most of us enjoy knowing that someone is reading what we as writers spent time and energy to write, the side effects of money and fame can be nice as well, but how to achieve? One simple way that I’ve found is to ask people to view your site. But how? Where? Relying on Google search results can take time and not everyone reads your MySpace bulletins or the tweets you obsessively send via Twitter, digg.com isn’t working that well and neither is Stumble Upon, and it may not be in your budget to buy ad space on a more popular site right now, so what can you do?

Email blog owners who have written similar articles and let them know about the one you wrote. Yes, it’s that simple. Don’t do this with every article you write, pick your very best and send the links to the biggest and best blogs out there. Don’t ask them to review your site or link to it, simply let them know you have written similar material that they or their readers might want to use and you like their site. Be honest and don’t make it sound cheesy.

How do you find people with similar articles? Try Google Blog Search and look for articles written in the last week or month. Does this really work? Absolutely. I used this technique last week, here’s what I did and the results from it.

They filmed part of the Transformers II movie in my town last week and some co-workers got behind the scenes photographs of the set and a video. They gave me permission to blog about it, which I promptly did. Next, I did a Google Blog Search for similar sites and found the Transformers Live Action Movie Blog, the owners email is displayed on the left sidebar. This is the email I sent him:

I saw you recently published an article & photos regarding Transformers 2… wanted to share with you one my recent articles with more photos and a video (with more videos being edited now for publication).

Thought your readers might enjoy these: http://www.randomn3ss.com/2008/06/05/exclusive-filming-of-transformers-2-photos-and-videos/

That’s it. Within a few hours, they published this article that contains a link to my site’s homepage and the direct link to the article. More than 1,000 unique visits came to that specific article over the following 12 hours from the Transformers Live Action Movie Blog. I’d call that a success.

I’ve used this technique sparingly as not to become a burden on anyone, seem pushy or ungrateful for what others have done for me. Using this method though, I have successfully had articles linking to my sites on Lifehacker.com, GetRichSlowly.org, and several other very well known high traffic blogs.

I’d love to hear about some success stories from people who give this a try. Not every email you send will have great results, but it does work. Keep an open mind too when a fellow blogger approaches you with an idea or to share content.