Yahoo Directory Ending, Panda Update, Converting Visitors, Speedlink 40:2014

Hi everyone, hope you all had a great and productive week! Once upon a time, there was a web property where “everyone” wanted to be listed on. Among other things, it was good for SEO and was one of the top sources to get found on the web. That web property was Yahoo Directory. Recently, Yahoo officially announced that it’s killing off the Yahoo Directory. An end of an era that perhaps really had ended some time ago.

Here´s what Yahoo´s SVP said…

Directory: Yahoo was started nearly 20 years ago as a directory of websites that helped users explore the Internet. While we are still committed to connecting users with the information they’re passionate about, our business has evolved and at the end of 2014 (December 31), we will retire the Yahoo Directory. Advertisers will be upgraded to a new service; more details to be communicated directly.

Panda Update Rolling Out This Weekend

Google´s Pierre Far announced that earlier this week a slow rollout of an improved Panda algorithm was deployed. Expecting to complete the rollout by early next week, he further mentions that this will result in a greater diversity of high-quality small- and medium-sized sites ranking higher. Now that´s good news. Kinda tired of seeing only “mega-brands” up there, haha.

How Some Companies Succeed at Converting Visitors yet Fail to Earn Great Customers

“It’s easy to think that conversion is the end goal for most marketing teams, but any business that relies on customer loyalty needs to take a it a step farther. In today’s Whiteboard Friday, Rand explains a few of the reasons that people we thought were new customers often decide to leave.”

And as usual, in no particular order: