Google Authorship: What it was and Why it Failed

Back in 2011, Google's social network Google+ launched. In addition to the network, they initiated an "Authorship" feature, which seemed to tie to Google+ as a ranking signal assistant to social media influencers in Google search.

As of August, however, Google decided to end its Authorship program. 

What was it?
Authorship allowed content creators to connect their blog posts, articles, videos, and other content to their Google+ profiles. Google search results would then display said creators' profile photo next to  their content with a “rich snippet.” This verified the authors of posting original content and proving ownership their of it.

It was idyllic, in theory.

Why did Google Authorship Fail?

• Low Adoption Rates: Apparently, of the Top 50 Most Influential in Social Media, only 30% had set up an Authorship connection. A survey conducted later by Barry Schwartz found an even lower adoption rate of 9%. What's more, 17 of the 50 were already gaining traction from the the rich snippet author result without the use of Authorship. Although Google made a step forward in surfacing worthwhile content, not enough people knew about (or knew how to work) the Authorship program.

•  Low Value: John Mueller, of Google Webmaster Tools, stated that the presence of Authorship snippets (think the little blue check mark on a Twitter bio reflecting a "verified" account)  was making little difference in a user's click behavior on search result pages. 

My thoughts? 
A few reasons I think Authorship didn't bode well overall is because of the time needed to learn implementing something called "rel=author markup usage." Authors may have not found Authorship very important or influential, didn't want to create a Google+ profile or give *too* much information to Google. Maybe they simply didn't have knowledge of or experience with SEO (search engine optimization). Rather, they focus on consistency in use of keywords and phrases across their platforms and messages. Maybe that is the real moral of the story here.

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"A blog well worth reading..."

This week I'll be exploring three different blog styles, providing an example of each and analyzing their content:

1. Per this week's lecture, Pandora is a professional blog that focuses on the company's news and features. It acts as a supplement to their music streaming and automated music recommendation service. It is unique because its posts are sorted in one of five categories: The Pandora Story, Pandora Innovators, Inside the Collection, From the Artists, and Listener Experience. This allows for a plethora of writers and dynamic content. The blog initially reflected its brand as they published news about their latest product enhancements and company milestones in product and technology leadership, but has become much more interactive since March 2014, when Tom Conrad stepped down as Pandora's Chief Technology Officer. 

These days it's updated on a regular basis, shares the latest updates to the site and services like "Pandora Radio Comedy." Beyond its services, it keeps users apprised of interesting information about featured and lesser known musical artists. I appreciate how they include a Weekly Curator's Pick that showcases the newest music and genre station highlights on Pandora. Unlike its music-streaming site, there aren't any advertisements on the blog. Their content, though, acts as advertisement for their users to research the featured artists and potentially (legally) purchase the artists' work. 

To be honest, I'm not even sure how I stumbled across Pandora's blog. There isn't a direct link anywhere on the main interface, nor does it show up high on Google search - you will most likely find links to their Facebook or to the similarly named bracelet site. The blog is well integrated, however. They engage their audiences on social channels like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+, and Youtube. They've created hashtags like #WhiteboardWednesday and use it across its platforms to stay consistent and build anticipation with followers. Avid music listeners, fans of underground artists or opinionated users are usually the people to read and comment on their blog posts.

According to this week's lecture, Pandora runs a relatively successful blog - posts are published often; the blog is linked to their Twitter account and conversely, Twitter streams updates to their blog; they create original content and have the longevity that's made them successful. What I would love to see is a subscription option to their content on the main Pandora page, and labels being used on their individual posts. I think both would positively affect their SEO.

2. Event Manager Blog is a group blog - a collaborative hybrid of different authors that provide centralized content. It is the number one blog worldwide for event professionals, covering topics such as event planning, social media and events, event technology, event trends, event inspiration but also destination management marketing, hospitality marketing. What makes them unique is how they offer professional advice, reports, and tools to alleviate one of the most stressing professions in the world. There are ads listed on the site for Wordpress themes and event solution software. They are building brand credibility by having relationships with these similar-industry businesses. I really enjoyed their "Inspire Me Now" section in between advertisements on the right side of their page. It allows for quick sharing options and provides high visibility for (perhaps) less popular posts.

As the number one blog worldwide for event professionals, it's obvious they're going to show up high on any search engine. Any kind of question/topic related to event planning, or a few good keywords will drive traffic to the blog. General interests or specific items pull people in to read their articles. You can "like" them on Facebook right on their homepage and subscribe to their newsletter, as well. Both of those channels draw people back to their blog for further reading. It makes sense as to why they're so successful as a blog - they truly love the idea of staying connected to their readers and don't isolate them on their blog. In my opinion, they've successfully covered all of their bases - there isn't anything that immediately draws my attention as "missing." 

3. Lifehacker's motto is "tips and downloads for getting things done." They make for an interesting type of blog. For the sake of this assignment, I will refer to it as a news blog. I say this because it has several authors contributing, each specializing in specific subjects, allows someone to be followed, and I often find their blog content being shared on channels like Twitter and Facebook. The blog posts cover a wide range of topics including: Microsoft Windows, Mac, Linux programs, iOS and Android, but I know them best for general life tips and tricks. The staff updates the site more than 15 times every day, with reduced updates on weekends.

The blog lives up to the brand of "getting things done" in a world that thrives on efficiency. It shares tons of information and content that could be useful to any reader. It's not the best designed blog, but you can find tips on how to get rid of garlic breath, how to find father's day deals, or a how-to guide on social media customer service (how fitting!). I think it's safe to say that it's their integrated presence on social media channels and constant posts that drive traffic to the blog and gets people to read their content. There is information to be consumed about any and every interest/subject.

Lifehacker is a successful blog because it's updated very often, shares posts via social channels, and is renowned for its original and useful content. I think it'd be most helpful if the articles' subject categories were listed at the top of the page. This is simply for aesthetics and organization, rather than an endless scroll. There are advertisers on the site. I have State Farm ads pictured here on their homepage. I don't think I have State Farm in my cookies, but I'd be interested to see if it changes based on my browser history. (Update: It doesn't - now it's showing Verizon ads, also not in my browser history, and that leads me to believe that these are placement ads paid for by the actual companies.)

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Swamp Head Brewery - Website Analysis

To follow up on my post from last week, I'm analyzing Swamp Head's website and how they incorporate brand consistency within this particular platform.

I find their website has leveraged a nice blend of push and pull marketing techniques. While on their homepage (and with minimal clicks), you are able to access their list of beers, get information about the brewery and find the latest posts to their company blog, "Swamplog."

There is obviously a lot of push happening on the website. The amount of information you can derive is almost overwhelming. An example of how the website allows push and pull to happen simultaneously can be found on their list of brews in the tasting room. The consumer gets multiple things at once - displayed information about the products and pricing (push). Meanwhile, the map in the corner, operating hours and address provides the information the consumer needs in deciding whether to make the trip to the brewery (pull). Combining push and pull in this way "reinforces key branding and retailer objectives" (S2 Customer Insight Blog).

It's interesting how they also use the site as a touchpoint for e-commerce. On the same page as their brew list, you can find out about purchasing Swamp Head merchandise like t-shirts and hats.

The content on the website is fresh. It lists their latest blog posts and upcoming Swamp Head events they'll be attending, sponsoring, and serving their craft beer. Within their blog content, they include share buttons, but an RSS feed option is not available. This leads me to believe that their blog updates are not as consistent as they are on other social media channels. They include outbound links, but there is a lack of categories and labels being used to assist in finding similar posts in their archive. With a quick Google search, I did find a Wordpress blog by the same name, but the content on the Wordpress blog was inconsistent to the Swamplog that's made available on their website (the last post was in March). Although there is a follow button available, no categories or labels are used. This explains why the Wordpress blog was found on page two of the Google search. A little help with keywords in either blogging platform could fine-tune SEO and help them show up for the right search terms. Since blogs are a great tool for pull marketing, I would especially like to see them improve in this area.

I was initially concerned about how mobile-friendly the website would be because of all the information that is packed on the full site. Luckily, the mobile site is very user-friendly. It allows for easy navigation, integrating scrolling features and swiping options throughout (see photos below). There were more photos than text which is always helpful with shorter attention spans, and they provided easily-digested answers to consumers' questions. You can access all of the same information and social buttons as you could on the full-site, too. 

One feature I touched on in my previous post, is Swamp Head's brand consistency throughout their design and social media content. According to the Brand Consistency for Website Navigation, Social Media and SEO slideshare, incorporating brand consistency means they're working toward an honest identity and being consistent with that identity. The desire for consistency in customer service, product quality and marketing practices is apparent from the owner, Luke Kemper, in this interview where he attributes success to "running a business that is ethical." He says, "...[when you] treat people fairly and try to do the right thing, people notice." His mindset and passion for brewing a high quality beer set the tone and personality that comes across in the brand on their website and other platforms. 

If there's anything that I learned from this analysis it's that no matter how great their social media engagement is, Swamp Head still has areas that can be improved upon. Its push and pull marketing techniques help visitors find valuable content on their website and contribute to their branding. Their website's navigation, consistency in information across its blog(s) and website, and SEO keywords could all be fine-tuned to make them more visible in the right places. 

Sources:
S2 Customer Insight Blog: Push and Pull Maketing (graphic). (n.d.). S2 Customer Insight Blog. http://s2customerinsight.com/blog/push-and-pull-marketing/

Brand Consistency for Website Navigation, Social Media and SEO. (2011, July 26). Brand Consistency for Website Navigation, Social Media and SEO.  http://www.slideshare.net/lizhenderlong/brand-consistency-for-website-navigation-social-media-and-seo

Richardson, W. (2013, March 19). Luke Kemper - All About Beer. All About Beer. http://allaboutbeer.com/luke-kemper/

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