Keyword Research Application for iPhone
November 21, 2007
I was one of the people that bought an iPhone on the day of launch in the UK and i have to say, i’m in love with it!
I’m not going to go on and on about how much i love it’s shapely curves, it’s classical elegance and it’s completely scratch proof screen (ahem!). Instead i’m going to share with you a little application i knocked together.
Keyword research for iPhone is here! hoorah!
I tried this out with a client just yesterday and they were completely amazed by it (some people eh?)
If you want to use our Keyword Research Tool for iPhone, simply point your iPhone browser to www.uberhype.co.uk/iphone - don’t forget to bookmark it for easy access.
By no means a feat of technical excellence, but it makes my life just that little bit easier. 
If you like it, share the news!
Pownce Invites
November 21, 2007
Is anybody still bothered about Pownce?
We’ll soon find out as I have 5 invites going spare.
If anyone out there would like an invite, just reply to this post in the form of a limerick rhyme. If you don’t know what a limerick is, shame on you!
Best ones will get an invite sent by yours truly, we’ll get to be friends and everything!
Here’s an example of a limerick:
There was a young man from Ealing,Who had an expectorant feeling,but the sign on the door said “don’t spit on the floor” so he looked up and spat on the ceiling.
Good luck!
First Rule of Facebook - You’ll Never Leave
November 21, 2007
That new millennial giant of social networking, Facebook, is in the news yet again only this time for negative reasons. It would appear they are to face an investigation by UK Data Protection watchdogs after one user tried to delete his account, only to be told he couldn’t. Facebook unlike other social networking sites such as Faceparty and MySpace allow you to deactivate your profile page but not delete it altogether, meaning that the information you submitted is invisible to other users but is still actually present on the Facebook servers.
I have to admit that it is entirely possible that MySpace has in fact started to operate a similar policy seeing as I have now tried ten times to delete my account on that site to no avail, others have complained of this too. Worrying developments, especially when you consider the head of the Information Commissioner’s response to the Register on this matter;
“Many people are posting content on social networking sites without thinking about the electronic footprint they leave behind. It is important that individuals consider this when putting information online. However, it is equally important that websites also take some responsibility.
“In particular, they should ensure that personal information is not retained for longer than necessary especially when the information relates to a person who no longer uses the site. Organisations can ensure personal information is effectively protected by complying with the principles of the Data Protection Act. We will be publishing research on the need for people to protect information of a personal nature online later in November.”
Facebook do make it quite clear in their somewhat creepy ‘terms of service’ that when a user submits information it is permanently stored. As this short excerpt from the Facebook ToS details:
‘By posting User Content to any part of the Site, you automatically grant, and you represent and warrant that you have the right to grant, to the Company an irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive, transferable, fully paid, worldwide license (with the right to sublicense) to use, copy, publicly perform, publicly display, reformat, translate, excerpt (in whole or in part) and distribute such User Content for any purpose, commercial, advertising, or otherwise, on or in connection with the Site or the promotion thereof, to prepare derivative works of, or incorporate into other works, such User Content, and to grant and authorize sublicenses of the foregoing. You may remove your User Content from the Site at any time. If you choose to remove your User Content, the license granted above will automatically expire, however you acknowledge that the Company may retain archived copies of your User Content.’
Facebook have denied any nefarious use of users’ information such as data mining and surveillance but many people are beginning to become wary of social networking sites and their collection and storage of personal information. If personal information was voluntarily given to a social networking site then what purpose would it surely serve if you no longer used the site? What possible use would that site have for that information? Facebook say that they keep past user’s profiles stored should that user decide to return and it’s probably as innocent as that. One thing is for sure if you really are uncomfortable with having your personal data stored away by websites such as Facebook and MySpace… don’t use them.
For more read this excellent article at Channel 4
(via The Register)
Barcamp Leeds
November 20, 2007
Last Saturday I took a wander down to the inaugural Barcamp Leeds event. After driving round in a circle for what seemed like an eternity, I finally found somewhere to park and made my entrance.
Things were already underway when I arrived, 4 separate sessions were being held and although I missed the start of them, I had a quick look at all 4. My fear with events like this was that the speakers would use the platform for nothing more than a glorified sales pitch. There was little evidence of this if truth be told and i sat in on a talk about some new mapping technology which looked very interesting indeed.
When the first round of sessions had finished, I managed to hook up with a couple of my friends, who happened to be hosting an SEO clinic later on in the day. Bizarre really, considering that after meeting at the recent(ish) Leeds Geek Up event, you would have sworn that they were mortal enemies!
Anyway, Dom & Mark I’m told did a fantastic job at helping some of the event participants evolve their SEO project plans. I couldn’t hang around all day so missed the clinic, and the Nintendo Gameathon, and the after event party (grrrr!)
I did manage to drop in on a session with Mark regarding Drupal. We have both been experimenting with various frame working and CMS platforms and are yet to find one that meets the needs of the designer, as opposed to the programmer.
After struggling to hear the Thai host (lovely guy, awful grasp of English pronunciation) do his best to extol the virtues of Drupal, I left the session no further forward. This is not a slight on the host who was a great chap but come on! We were trying to get our heads around some technical information and I’m afraid I just couldn’t understand what was being said.
It was agreed though that Drupal seems to be aimed more at developers, it has a steep learning curve and isn’t really designer friendly. Light CMS seems to be the only option for the time being although I’m just not a fan of the pricing model.
Back to Barcamp; Mark won himself an iPod Nano the lucky so and so! After ringing him on the evening to find out how the clinic went and being berated for leaving early, it was decided that Barcamp Leeds was a resounding success.
That has to be good for
Roll on Barcamp 2008 - I may even stay for longer than 2 hours
META description
November 19, 2007
When you are greeted with a page of search results on Google, the
You have the ability to control that excerpt of text for your own listing through the use of
- If you are a market leader, tell them so
- If you have a special offer on, advertise it here
- Are you unique? tell people why
- Are you a local company, tell them where you are
- Do you offer next day or free delivery? It’s a huge selling point, get it in there.
Consider those companies that run Pay per Click ads. They have very limited space in which to sell their product or service. Many pay vast sums to professional marketers who are experts in writing short sales ads.
You don’t have the same constraints. Sell your features and benefits for all they are worth. Makes sure every page of your website has a unique
Manage Wordpress Through Your iPhone
November 19, 2007
Wphone is a cool new Wordpress plugin that enables you to manage your Wordpress blog with ease whilst on the move.
Wphone creates an option for you to replace the standard admin dashboard screen with one designed for mobile devices. The iPhone and other full html & css reading devices benefit from a sleek AJAX interface with slide out menus.
For those who don’t yet have an iPhone worry not, Wphone also comes in a light flavour, requiring no javascript to function.
At this time Wphone is compatible with Wordpress versions 2.1 upwards.
The Three ‘G’s of Traffic Generation
November 19, 2007
Here at Uberhype, we believe that all successful online traffic generation campaigns fall into one of three categories, the 3′G’s as we affectionately call them. When used appropriately, you will enjoy a wealth of extra visitors to your website:
- Guffaw!
- Gasp!
- Great!
Allow me to elaborate:
- Guffaw!
Comedy sells big time on TV and radio. Online, things are no different. Computers are generally used for work purposes, creating spreadsheets and other mind numbing tasks. What seems to break up that work day? It’s the email your mate sent with the link to a You Tube video or the ridiculous picture of an animal wearing a hat and shades. We need laughter in our lives simply because it makes us feel better inside. We are also more receptive to buying when in a happier state of mind.
How do we capitalise on that to bring ourselves traffic? Use comedy in our viral marketing.
The trick here is to know and appeal to YOUR audience. IBM have to appeal to a different audience than Pot Noodle for example. Make sure you get it right.
Fire up Photoshop or your video editing suite and make something humorous, making sure you are on message. Use viral marketing techniques to get your video seen and enjoy an influx of happy, ready-to-buy visitors to your website.
- Gasp!
Shock and Awe. Remember those two words used to describe the impending American air strike on
People react to things that shock and scare them; subsequently these quite powerful reactions embed themselves in subconscious. When used in advertising, it helps implant a brand or message into a consumer’s mind.
Leveraging the power of social networks, you can use this to your advantage. Make a blog post about something that is shocking, making sure again that you are on message and appropriate to your audience. If you can afford to be controversial than this is always a bonus 
Link to your blog from the social networks, make sure your title is snappy and your intro gives enough info for people to want to read your post.
Be prepared for comments though. If you are being controversial, expect to get some flack and make sure you are ready to answer. Never lose your cool though. Always graciously accept somebody’s argument or point of view (yes, even if it stinks!)
- Great!
Do ordinary things extra-ordinarily well. You may have the most boring product or service on earth but if it is exquisitely presented, people will appreciate it. If you are producing a viral video, make it the best viral video you have ever seen. Doing a Photoshop mash-up? Let people see how much care and attention went into it.
Great! Also works when you have something amazing to share, something unique. Perhaps you have created a tool that makes a web designers life just that little bit easier. Get that tool in front of the right eyes and you can be assured that grateful links and positive publicity will arrive in next to no time. Perhaps you have uncovered some news that nobody else knows about. Sure you could keep it to yourself, many do. However, if you are known as the source of Great! news and have people waiting with baited breath for your next post, that’s traffic that money just can’t buy.
The next challenge is to market to all three ‘G’s at the same time. How can you make someone laugh, shake with shock and shout Great! at the same time? When you figure it out let me know, there’s a fiver in it for you. 
Aaron Wall Versus Matt Cutts
November 18, 2007
Matt Cutts, head of Google’s web spam team has posted on his blog about the recent bout of anti-Google remarks coming from Aaron Wall’s SEO Book Blog.
Aaron has taken it upon himself to express his extreme distaste for some of Google’s recent decisions, namely a decision that left Aaron with a website stung by various penalties, unjustifiably according to Aaron.
Matt & the Google team have obviously picked up on these posts, proving that they do indeed read SEO blogs (think carefully about what you write people). It is rare that Google would react to claims made by individuals but Aarons posts seem to have upset the apple cart. Matt has broken his silence & asked his readers for advice on how to handle the situation via an online poll.
I don’t care very much who is right and who is wrong in this instance, but what is clear is that Aaron wins anyway. By being one of only a few that has managed to provoke Google into a response, he has elevated his status online yet again.
Aaron is a very talented online marketer. The net result of this little spat is that Aaron will be currently enjoying a very favourable traffic spike to his blog.