Category: Bing

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Bing Webmaster Tools Offer Real Help for Understanding Your Website

In the last few weeks Bing has upgraded its webmaster control panel from insignificant to significant. In fact, in many ways Bing Webmaster Tools make Google Webmaster Tools appear superfluous.

In the new Bing interface here are some new things you can now do:

  • Link Explorer. You can now review backlinks for your own Bing verified site or for pages on a competing website.
  • SEO Analyzer. Get real page specific help highlighted for you with recommendations.
  • SEO Report. Bing will even create a report for you of which pages in your site need code help for better optimization.
  • Canonical Alerts. Bing will let you know if it finds a problem in your message box.
  • URL Removal tool. Don’t like a URL? Get rid of it from the Bing index tied to your site.
  • Keyword Research. Bing integrates a keyword search tool in their site helping you to focus on optimizing your website for better search terms.

Personally I find many of the tools very user friendly and helpful. I think Bing has done a wonderful job at integrating these new tools into their webmaster control panel and making them highly understandable and helpful for website owners and site webmasters.

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Have You Looked at Bing Local?

So many business owners are focused on Google+ Local, (previously called Google Places) that they forget that Bing has a great local program too. In fact, in this recent study consumers chose Bing Local over Google Maps for local searches.

“Bing tied for the top spot with both Superpages and Yellowbook, both of which belong to the Yellow Pages collection of directories. Google Maps wasn’t far behind at fourth and Yellowpages rounded out the top five.” Read the full article. 

Bing has a very nice local portal and like Google has created a page for your business already, you just have to claim it and update it. Just this past month Bing teamed up with Yelp to create even more relevant results for it’s local search engine which will simply improve its future results.

For now, I recommend claiming your Bing Local listing by going to the free Bing Business Portal. The service is free and allows you to add pertinent business information, special promotions and even create a free mobile website. It offers more options and features than the stripped down Google+ Local page now offers.

Bing is also focusing on localized searches in their search engine just like Google. With a small effort on your part, you can grab your Bing Local page and potentially reap some very nice top local placement exposure that can drive desktop and mobile traffic your way.

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Microsoft adCenter Name to Be Updated?

I follow adCenter on Twitter and noticed that this past week they had announced the new name for their service is Bing Search Advertising. Interesting… as a Microsoft Advertising Accredited Professional, I wonder when adCenter will be changing their name and the adCenter program will be updating their professionals badge.

Here are a few of the  names I might recommend to them:

Bing Accredited Professional

Bing Advertising Certified Professional

Bing Advertising Accredited Professional

It will be very interesting to see what happens to the program in the months to come. Personally, I feel that adCenter is a good program. I like the interface and they have picked up many of the tools that AdWords has that make account management easy and serve ads better like inline editing, broad match modifiers, and radius targeting.

In the weeks to come, we’ll be updating our own adCenter services to offer a bundled program with AdWords. In the meantime, you can review more information about adCenter advertising and our account management programs.

 

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Bing’s New Local Business Portal is a Winner

The Bing Local Business Portal may not have gotten your attention, but I am here to say that you really need to check out this very smart and innovative new tool.

Here’s why:

  • Create your local listing on Bing.com. You create a business page just like you do in Google Places. The listing will be shown in Bing local searches on Bing.com typically above the organic searches.
  • Create your own unique mobile site right in the portal. Mine is http://bbp.ms/vawigk. Make sure you grab your own link when you create yours as it is hard to find in the control panel after it has been made.
  • Create deals, events, and promotions and even unique QR codes for your deals online.
  • When you create a deal, Bing will post the deal right on to your Facebook page when you select to do so.

You can set up your own page here: http://www.bingbusinessportal.com to find out all that this new Bing Business Portal can do visit their FAQ page. It all starts with claiming your listing and then updating your business information as appropriate. You will need to verify yourself as the business owner once by phone PIN or regular mail, but once set up you have full access to all the tools.

With localized searches and a mobile presence an important tool to being found online today, this application is free to use and really worth a careful look. Bing has done a very nice job making this local site a valid business tool, not just a placeholder page.