A client forwarded an email with this subject line. This was from a well-known local online marketing company.
The email is full of statements that are either false, not new, or deceptive, like these:
Google “Caffeine” is their most significant application change since 2006.
True but very misleading, since “Caffeine” is a rewrite of their software for better efficiency and is not supposed to majorly affect rankings.
Faster sites will show up higher in search results and slower sites will find it harder to rank.
False. This was a rumor that Google has specifically stated is untrue.
Fresh Content – If a site does not have this, it is perceived as out-of-date or abandoned.
Misleading. This mainly affects how often Google returns to your site to adjust rankings, not what are your rankings.
Quality Links – in and out – are a must. And they Must be Relevant.
Per Google, inbound links are at most 20% of your ranking, so that is seriously an exaggeration. Outbound links are almost irrelevant.
Real-time results for Integrated Social Media content will have prime position on search pages – similar to a live RSS feed as seen on social sites such as Twitter.
Many social media sites are now being picked up in real-time by Google. In most categories they don’t have any advantage over other websites. If you’re looking for a plumber, why would a Tweet be more important than a plumber’s website?
Relevant Content Rules, as always.
Well they got that much right.
So if a reputable company with a big name can put out such misinformation, no question about it, when it comes to Internet Marketing: Let the Buyer Beware.
