Twitter Automation and Search News

April 7, 2010
 

Kicking off the show, Bruce, Susan and Virginia take a look at the new search user interface Google is rolling out. At the beginning of the year, Bruce predicted a UI change to the Google search results, though he says he didn’t expect a change like this. Susan criticizes the interface as too busy and cluttered. Search expert and former Googler Vanessa Fox shares the impact of the changes, which include location auto-detection, a “nearby” feature, and time filters and vertical search options that change based on the query.


Tracy Falke, who runs Content, SEO, SEM, and Social for Freestyle Interactive, a UK-based communications agency, then talks to Virginia about how to automate Twitter while maintaining a human touch. Tracy explains the types of tweets that work best for automation, and the Twitter situations that require human intervention. She also outlines an actionable strategy for responding to negative feedback on Twitter. Finally, they look at the cutting edge of location-based and the bleeding-edge of augmented reality applications, and how businesses can extract intelligence about their customers.

Then Virginia, Susan and Daerick Gross explore some of the recent headlines in search and social. YouTube has redesigned its site in an effort to increase stickiness. Related videos are much more prominent, and information of the current video is less prominent. Facebook has also changed some aspects of its network with the introduction of Community Pages and the shift of “Become a Fan” to “Like.” Many marketers feel that the added option is more confusing than helpful for businesses.