The United States' Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is reportedly working on a search engine of sorts for the Deep Web in order to aid law enforcement against human trafficking.

DARPA's 3-year research program, dubbed as Memex, has been operating now for 6 months in coordination with 17 contractors and 8 partners. Carnegie Mellon was given a USD 3.6 million contract this year to partner with DARPA in the Memex project. And according to a research professor in its Robotics Institute, there is a huge potential in the program.

The term "Memex", which refers to Vannevar Bush's 1945 essay about a collective memory for humanity, is now going to be known as a tool for bypassing typical search processes in order to pinpoint users who create or spread illegal content in the deep web.

The mainstream webpages we can access through traditional methods compose what we call the Surface Web. Because of certain factors like ranking and advertising, results from leading search engines only account for around 10% of the Web. And according to some estimates, the Deep Web actually comprises 90% of the online world, with most of its content only accessible through Tor. The goal of Memex is to search through this Deep Web for signs of illegal activity.

The problem with the darknet is that the webpages in there are too fleeting -- content disappears even before authorities can check them. What Memex would do to solve this is to log the content and its source, then trace any personal information of the poster and map locations. This way, it will be easier to track online patterns that will aid law enforcement in uncovering illegal activities such as in the case of Silk Road.

Evidently, this won't be just useful in the field of law enforcement but can be also repurposed to be of use in the business sector and other fields like journalism.

DARPA program manager Chris White said in a post, "We're envisioning a new paradigm for search that would tailor indexed content, search results and interface tools to individual users and specific subject areas, and not the other way around. By inventing better methods for interacting with and sharing information, we want to improve search for everybody and individualize access to information."

It's no surprise that social media is a dynamic place and what's hot today could not be counted to work as effectively after 2 years. So as experts are predicting major changes in the social media marketing scene for 2015, we went ahead and created our own summarized version on stuff that they agreed will work:

Don't just focus on getting a huge following. Businesses online are totally used to the idea that building a massive audience on every social media platform is the primary factor in keeping an online presence that works. After all, sharing organic posts to a huge audience is the logical way to reach your target market right?

Well, not really. Feeds of social media platforms get crowded as more and more brands jump in so competing for users' attention is very difficult. Add to that the recent changes in social site's algorithms which decide what content users will get to see and it gets more difficult for you.

I think it's fair to say that your online success depends largely on your ability to create engaging content and spread it quickly (then keep it alive as much as possible). Considering that, maybe try your hand on ads being offered by the top social platforms and decide if you'd want to do that alongside your organic posts.

Creative content is still king. It's been said time and again that boring content and in-your-face promotional posts do not work -- that's still true today. This is something that's probably not going to change because user interaction largely depends on how interesting your posts are. Also, you'll drop from a feed if the social media platform decides your content is crappy so there's the added pressure to maintain quality.

Carefully take into consideration the type of content that goes well with a particular platform you're using. It's always best to make content which fits a social media site's strength. For example, using YouTube would certainly mean you'll have to maximize the use of the video platform and not just re-use content from your more traditional ad outlets like magazines.

Get someone who really knows what he's doing. Search for the top content providers from Twitter or YouTube and you'll understand why they have such a huge following. An easy way to do a campaign is to partner with them in creating content and leverage the number of their audience while you're at it.


The ever-changing social media scene won't run out of people who cry out 'FB is dead' and 'this or that is the next big thing'. Their arguments would sound legit but blindly following such sensationalists would endanger you. For all you know, it's just some bunch of inexperienced people posing as experts in the field who pronounced such a prediction. It's good to be an early adopter but it's better to maximize your social media campaign on what platform is popular today and then make the switch when it starts to slide.

These days, there is really just one thing that people will feel good buying on their small screens: apps. And what resulted from people's love for apps is this overpopulation in app stores which does not bode well for developers trying hard to get their creations discovered. Then the app install ad came into picture.

Unlike the classic banner ads which started during the dawn of the Internet age, app install advertisements are seen as more effective when it comes to mobile ad because:

- Apps are easier to buy. Almost all smartphone users have their credit card linked to their OS' app store so there's no need to input anything every time they feel like buying. With the wide range of apps, there's a big chance a user can find several that appeals to him or her. And since apps are priced cheaply and can be used instantly, many users are tempted to buy on impulse.

- Tracking installs is convenient. Compared to conversions of mobile adverts promoting stuff meant to be bought offline, conversions for install ads in apps are way easier to measure. This is a huge advantage because advertisers would naturally want to at least see some evidence of ROI on their advertisements in order to continue. Typically advertisements' conversions will be difficult to keep track of since there's no way to know if one of those led to someone buying the product from the grocery. With app install ads though, there are the social media sites and SDKs that can accurately measure when one of their ads led directly to an install.

Google realized the importance of advertising on mobile devices early on. In 2009, it purchased the ad giant AdMob for USD 750 million. A year after, Apple has followed suit with its acquisition of Quattro Wireless that they relaunched as iAd. Unfortunately for Facebook, it did not see the huge shift from desktop to mobile earlier so they only made efforts on mobile advertising in 2012.

But since selling ads alone would be inadequate -- after all, in order for users to download the app, developers have to make it known to the public first -- Twitter and Facebook created a strategy on app ads as they both do not have OS like Google and Apple. Their aim is simple: to offer quality tools and services for developers to start a connection that could eventually lead to buying ads. Now, Twitter has its MoPub, which tracks all apps on a phone in order to effectively target ads, while Facebook has its Parse.

As for Google, it seemed like it grew complacent with gaining the AdMob platform, which is a bit understandable as it has no need to rush like Twitter and Fb -- all they need is to improve their ad conversion. And sure enough, earlier this year, Google has launched improved app install ads that effectively utilizes its data trove concerning apps that people buy, use and download for free. It could eventually join Twitter and FB in providing app engagement ads based on various data it can collect from users.

With the inevitable overcrowding in app stores, app install ads would surely be more significant and evolve into new forms such as engagement ads. A good example of this is Facebook's video ad from LiveRail which shows how useful or fun an app is. Another one is the launcher app of Android that shows contextual home screens and customized recommendations of apps a user may need.

About Us

At Logicgateone Corp., everything we do is customized to every client we work, which requires thorough consultation to ensure that we are on the same page and we understand your expected results. We usually advise clients to sign up for this complete SEO package but if you really need help on certain avenues of SEO, we have detailed each of them for you.

We are a full service SEO Company that specializes in organic Google Search Engine Optimization Services based in Subic Bay, Philippines. If you would like to see your company website ranked on page 1 of Google then you should contact us for a free SEO quote.

Let's go back in time this Christmas and do the groove of the 1970's greatest hits.

Fix your hair, jump on your suit and dance on the funky music.

Come and join us in our Christmas Party!

Bing and Yahoo has now joined Google in its willingness to scrub search results following the "right to be forgotten" ruling last May.

Bing, Microsoft's search engine, has rolled out its removal request function last July which allows European nationals to submit "right to be forgotten" requests but has only started the actual removals.

A spokesperson from Microsoft said, "We've begun processing requests as a result of the court's ruling and in accordance with the guidance from European data protection authorities. While we're still refining that process, our goal is to strike a satisfactory balance between individual privacy interests and the public's interest in free expression."

Reputation VIP, a French reputation management company responsible for the site forget.me which helps users make deletion requests on search engines, confirmed that Bing has now started to respond and implement requests for link removals.

Meanwhile, Yahoo whose search engines is really 'powered by Bing' naturally followed suit. According to their spokesperon: "In response to a May 2014 decision by the Court of Justice of the European Union, European residents can request that Yahoo block certain search results in Europe. Requests can be submitted through our intake form. We will carefully evaluate each request with the goal of balancing the individual's right to privacy with considerations of the public's right to information."

Currently, only European residents can ask search engines to stop from coughing up results related to their name. The controversial ruling by the EU's Court of Justice, dubbed as the "right to be forgotten", requires search engines to remove links to content that are "inadequate, irrelevant or no longer relevant, or excessive in relation to the purposes for which they were processed and in the light of the time that has elapsed". It was made when a man from Spain filed a lawsuit against Google regarding the removal of links connected to his name.

When the ruling gained public attention, Google was promptly flooded with removal requests. According to its Transparency Report it got over 174,000 "right to be forgotten" requests as of November. It is the primary affected party in the ruling as it commands around 90% of all the search requests, compared to the combined shares of Yahoo and Bing. More than 70% of the deletion requests sent through Forget.me is for Google but apparently, only a third of those is granted.

At present, link removals are being done only in local version such as google.co.uk and not on the main site google.com. Data regulators from Europe are expecting that Google and the others will eventually apply such removals globally as well and are pushing for the implementation of link removals on all the relevant domains of the search engine.

The group of privacy regulators in Europe has already published a set of guidelines two weeks ago, to serve as standards on how search engines ought to manage the "right to be forgotten" requests. The new guidelines are expected to be met unfavorably by the leading search engine firms and by privacy advocates. The privacy regulators formed from 28 European countries drafted 13 guidelines that, though not binding, will be utilized by the data protection department of each involved country whenever needed.

As Christopher Graham, UK data commissioner, said: "The polluter pays, the polluter should clear up. Google is a massive commercial organisation making millions and millions out of processing people's personal information. They're going to have to do some tidying up."

About Us

At LGO, everything we do is customized to every client we work, which requires thorough consultation to ensure that we are on the same page and we understand your expected results. We usually advise clients to sign up for this complete SEO package but if you really need help on certain avenues of SEO, we have detailed each of them for you.

We are a full service SEO Company that specializes in organic Google Search Engine Optimization Services based in Subic Bay, Philippines. If you would like to see your company website ranked on page 1 of Google then you should contact us for a free SEO quote.

Facebook doesn't seem to be worried about losing advertisers. Their announcement last week regarding newsfeeds just made everything official for business owners: no more freeloading.

Well, actually they said it was the users themselves who are saying they don't want promotional posts on their news feeds. And Facebook being the user-loving social network that it is, readily heeded their request.

Starting January next year, posts from brands that their algorithm deem as too promotional won't make it to any feed.

According to Facebook's survey of half a million users, they would rather not have 'promotional' posts cluttering their newsfeeds. Apparently, users complained of many junk posts in their feeds and asked to see more updates from their personal friends on that space instead.

"What we discovered is that a lot of the content people see as too promotional is posts from Pages they like, rather than ads. We're responding to what people want to see," Facebook said on its blog post.

Obviously the average user would prefer to see more content from their friends (the reason they signed up in the first place) but this spells bad news for brands on Facebook.

"It's a clear message to brands: If you want to sound like an advertiser, buy an ad," said a media analyst from Altimeter Group.

For the last 2 years, they have been tweaking the algorithm which is responsible for choosing what a user sees in his/her feed, in a bid to cut back on 'junk' posts. So this is yet another blow for businesses who are just getting used to the EdgeRank (the algorithm that decides which supposed organic posts of a brand will eventually show up in a user's feed). If previously they were highly doubting whether their posts ever reach the eyes of users, now they are sure they won't.

Fortunately, the announcement came with some guidelines on what their algorithm will deem too promotional:
- posts that just push people to purchase something or install an app
- posts that entice people to enter sweepstakes and other promotionas with no real context
- posts that just rehash the same content from advertisements

As a result, companies will obviously be obliged to avail of Facebook's advertising system. Talk about subtle arm-twisting. It won't be a surprise if their ad prices suddenly increased, too. (Case in point: In the last quarter, Facebook reportedly increased their ad revenue by 64%, ergo their ad prices also increased by 274%, compared to last year's prices.)

Companies might get skeptical that Facebook could be deliberately pushing them towards paid ads -- and no one could blame them. It's is rather hard to swallow that the expected increase of ad revenue is just a very fortunate side effect.

Facebook vice president Brian Boland insisted that these changes, contrary to popular belief, are simply to make their users happy and not to rake more profits from the expected increase of ad revenue.

So if Facebook is nudging brands away from organic posts to traditional advertisements, does this mean users are going to get bombarded with equally annoying adverts? The rest of the Facebook users might find assurance in their statement that "this change will not increase the number of ads people see in their News Feeds."

Facebook seems to be moving farther away from social marketing and turning into a place to buy traditional advertisements. If so, then it's too bad as it will surely stifle creativity in doing subtle social marketing.

They might mean well for the users in general -- they want to give users more pictures of their friends' dinner and family trips, we get that -- but what about those users who are deliberately keeping tabs on businesses? Surely they're not going to be forced to endure personal pictures of their 'friends' when they came there to hear from companies?

Get off from your chair and grab a pillow to hide from those creepy scenes that will freak you out.

Look who's behind you!

Come and join us this Halloween!!!

Remember the simpler SEO of the past? Take advantage of today's tools and resources to tell engines about your content.

We all reminisce of the time when SEO was much simpler. From its traditional content-driven goal, SEO has gradually evolved into an integrated content-SEO structure where content is no longer a separate aspect in the process.

Whereas a different set of people handled the content and another took care of the optimization process through the use of properly placed keywords here and there, today the two separate tasks have become essentially one.

Eventually, content reigned supreme over the SEO process. "Over-optimized" content and questionable tactics used in link-building, lost out in the battle for respect and credibility among users. People realized that great content should be recognized and accorded "valuable shares and trustworthy inbound links".

Content SEO Technicalities
Today, content optimization has grown more technical. Having merged the SEO and content silos to produce high-quality, search-friendly content, we need to look at how both users and machines access content.

Whether people use a smartphone, a tablet, and or a PC desktop, a good user experience has become an effective yardstick in search engine optimization, together with semantic markup that allows search engines to understand the meaning of your content more readily.

It is true that search results can be deemed better now than several years back and the search experience is much more advanced; however, the content-SEO convergence has become much more technical.

What Is High-Quality Content?
Setting aside varying opinions on the meaning of the term "quality content", we come up with this general definition: original, purposeful, and correctly-optimized information or media that people and search engines are driven to read, view, and share.

Qualitative content is fresh and informative. It is useful, interesting, and engaging. It incorporates valuable keywords naturally based on SEO best practices. It is an article you start by scanning but end up reading to the end - the kind of blog post you bookmark and return to over and over again. If it is designed for a particular persona, then you really have a winner.

Why Create Quality Content?
Engaging content improves online visibility. When web pages are properly optimized, search engine bots are able to find and read them more easily, improving your chances of having them rank your pages. The higher up you are in the results pages, the more organic traffic you will attract, and the more leads you will generate. More leads result into more sales and business.

Then, there is the indirect advantage of having a quality-content/SEO strategy in place. Increased traffic, a lower bounce rate, and a higher click-through rate indicate to Google that readers like your material, which they see as a vote of confidence and trust. In fact, these could be useful ranking factors. The search engine also considers page views, return visits, time on site, and other metrics.

User engagement is vital, no matter how you view it. You cannot generate leads through search unless you provide search engines what they need. You will never convert traffic (regardless of how you funnel it) if you are not publishing material that really appeals to prospects and gets them visiting, sharing, and purchasing, which inevitably also affects search engine optimization.

Proper Link-Building
Effective link-building is another essential reason to make high-quality content the groundwork of your digital strategy. Businesses, marketers, and bloggers search for solid, interesting information that reinforces the foundation of their own materials. Those links not only push targeted web traffic, but also move on link juice (authority) that can improve rankings.
Moreover, there are the links that are built when people share your posts, images, and videos on social media. Each time your quality content is shared, links are made that point to your website pages and transmit their popularity to search engines. Generally, the more backlinks you have, the more dependable you become. Social signals are a factor in Google's algorithm.

Even the outbound links in your social media profiles count. A well-written profile that compels readers to visit your website can only enhance your SEO strategy. However, nobody will click the links if your profile content is drab and uninteresting. Furthermore, Google and other search engines may overlook pages that are not sufficiently descriptive and/or optimized.

Keep on top with quality content & SEO
Understanding the mechanics of search and the goals of the search engines provides the leading edge in SEO. Yesterday's SEO was simplistic; whereas today, it has so many resources, tactics and tools it can utilize to help users keep on top of their game.

Remember, the constant in SEO is the experience - and that experience arises from the quality of content a brand creates and how it delivers that content.