The US Department of Labor announced on June 6, 2018 that the United States had 6.7 million job openings and only 6.4 million workers to fill them.
The reason for this wide job gap was due to the fact candidates for the work simply didn’t possess the correct qualifications. The Department of Labor announcement went on to say that three million of these job openings were in the field of information technology.
This article will focus on the specific areas of information technology where these job openings exist.
Network administration
Websites, newspapers and magazines are filled with ads looking for qualified network administrators. Companies are looking for candidates who can function in the cloud and using servers on site. The problem faced by many organizations is the candidates who apply for these positions do not have the right qualifications. Network administrators need three basic certifications: CompTIA A+, Microsoft Certified system expert or Microsoft certified system associate and Cisco Certified Network administrator.
The certifications mentioned above involve fixing a computer, handling a corporate server and installing plus configuring routers.
The certifications listed above can be obtained in less than one year.
Cyber Security
The next area, which is experiencing high demand is cyber security. All networks are open to some type of cyber-attack. Cyber security professionals can also repair a network, which has been damaged by a cybercriminal.
The Certifications required for cyber security are:
CompTIA A+
CompTIA Network +
Cisco Certified Network Associate
CompTIA Security +
Certified Ethical Hacker
Linux Fundamentals.
The certifications listed in this program are completed in less than one year.
Database administrator is another area, which is receiving a great deal of demand. In this program employees are paid to organize, secure and backup a company’s information. The two popular database classes to take are Microsoft and Oracle.
A student can receive the database certification in less than one year.
Computer programming is another area receiving a lot of demand. Computer programmers are needed for gaming, application development and website backend functionality.
Computer programmers will receive their certification in one year.
Finally web developers are needed. Pew research confirmed that 75% of small businesses having less than five employees don’t have a functional website. If you become a web developer, you can be the person who builds it for them.
A career in information technology is only a telephone call away.
Call ABCO Technology between 9 A.M and 6 P.M Monday through Friday at: (310) 216-3067.
Email all questions to: info@abcotechnology.edu
Financial aid is available to all students who can qualify for funding.
ABCO Technology is located at:
11222 South La Cienega Blvd. STE #588
Los Angeles, Ca. 90304
Get one of those three million jobs. Get certified for information technology today!
Are you a US veteran, network administrator or a person who allowed their certifications to laps? Would you like to gain a big advantage over your IT competition?
If you answered yes to these important questions, The CompTIA Security + certification is for you.
The CompTIA Security + is gaining in popularity across the United States. Over two million companies are requiring the CompTIA Security + as a major requirement for network administrators.
The reason for this surge in demand for this certification is because of the massive increase in cybercrime. Cyber-attacks are a normal part of a network administrator’s business day. These attacks usually are made upon the corporate server, routers, attacks on individual work stations and in some cases hackers have been known to gain access through a device like a simple printer or fax.
On May 15, 2018 Banks in Mexico had to admit that cyber-criminals stole twenty million dollars due to hacking. In fact Money transfers had to be suspended for 24 hours so the crimes could be sorted out. Only one result came from this attack, more cyber security professionals were hired.
The US government is requiring all companies who contract with them, have a person on staff who is certified in cyber security. The last thing our government wants is to have important information fall into the wrong hands. News leaks dominate the news today. Cyber security is one solution to stop vital information from falling into the hands of the media. The CompTIA Security + is the certification most recognized by the US government.
What is needed to fight these attacks, is a qualified person who has certified cyber security skills. The CompTIA Security + is your credential, which will prove to employers that you can defend their network against a cyber-attack.
The CompTIA Security + is not a standalone certification. In order to receive maximum benefit from this certification, network administrators should have the CompTIA A+, Microsoft’s MCSE, Cisco CCNA and if the MCSE isn’t possible the CompTIA Network + will be sufficient to advance to the CompTIA Security + certification.
The CompTIA Security + is completed in 78 hours. While in class, you will learn the critical strategies you can employ to harden your network against all kinds of cyber-attacks.
In addition, the US Department of Defense recognizes the CompTIA Security + as a major proof of cyber security competence. In fact, the CompTIA Security + is a key part of a Department of Defense security clearance known as DOD 8140.
Veterans, persons working in network administration and candidates who have various degrees in the field of information technology will benefit from this information packed certification.
After completing the CompTIA Security +, many of our students move onto the Certified Ethical hacker, which provides all of the tools you will need for network penetration testing and defense.
You will receive access to over 600 tools, which will enable you to defend your organization against a cyber-attack. Cyber-security is big business in 2018. Students who train and become certified will be in demand. Jobs for cyber security professionals are listed in all 50 states. If you obtain this certificate, you can choose where you want to live. Most important, you will know that you have the earning power to receive a solid income so you can buy that house or car you’ve always wanted.
If you are interested in learning about cyber security, contact ABCO Technology.
Reaching our campus by telephone is easy. Call Monday through Friday between 9 AM and 6 PM. Our phone number is (310) 216-3067.
Email your questions to info@abcotechnology.edu
Financial aid is available to all students who qualify for education funding.
ABCO Technology is located at:
11222 South La Cienega Blvd. STE #588
Los Angeles, Ca. 90304
Become a cyber-security certified professional today!
Are you a network administrator who wants to gain a big advantage over your competition when applying for that dream information technology job you’ve always wanted?
If you answered yes to this important question, The #CompTIA Security + certification is the solution for you.
The CompTIA Security + is gaining in popularity across the United States. Over one million companies are requiring the CompTIA #Security + as a major requirement for network administrators.
The reason for this surge in demand for this certification is because of the massive increase in #cybercrime. Cyber-attacks are a part of a network administrator’s business day. These attacks usually are made upon the corporate server, routers, attacks on individual work stations and in some cases hackers have been known to gain access through a device like a printer or fax.
The US government is now requiring all companies who contract with the government to have a person on staff who is certified in cyber security. The CompTIA Security + is the certification most recognized by the US government.
What is needed to fight these costly cyber-attacks, is a qualified person who has certified cyber security skills. The CompTIA Security + is your credential, which will prove to employers that you can defend their network against a cyber-attack.
The CompTIA Security + is not a standalone certification. In order to receive maximum benefit from this certification, network administrators should have the CompTIA A+, Microsoft’s MCSE, Cisco CCNA and if the MCSE isn’t possible the CompTIA Network + will be sufficient to advance to the CompTIA Security + certification.
The CompTIA Security + is completed in 78 hours. While in class, you will learn the critical strategies you can employ to harden your network against all kinds of cyber-attacks.
In addition, the US Department of Defense recognizes the CompTIA Security + as a major proof of cyber security competence. In fact, the CompTIA Security + is a key part of a Department of Defense security clearance known as DOD 8140.
Veterans, persons working in network administration and candidates who have various degrees in the field of information technology will benefit from this high demand certification.
If you are interested in learning about cyber security, contact ABCO Technology.
Reaching our campus by telephone is easy. Call Monday through Friday between 9 AM and 6 PM. Our phone number is (310) 216-3067.
Email all questions to info@abcotechnology.edu
Financial aid is available to all students who qualify for funding.
ABCO Technology is located at:
11222 South La Cienega Blvd. STE #588
Los Angeles, Ca. 90304
Learn about an exciting career in cyber security today!
Do you know about the phrase “a perfect storm?” It’s that situation where unrelated factors combine and amplify together, all to create something horrible? That’s what is taking place with companies scrambling to hire CompTIA Security+ certified professionals. Factors about this certification include: a long legacy, a strong reliance across the industry, and changes in the current exam version in 2017 all form the perfect climate for anyone who doesn’t yet have this powerful certification. And one more factor remains, an upcoming surge in credibility, but more on that later. The bottom line is, if you don’t have the Security+ certification in 2018, you should get it now. But before you do, read about each factor in this article.
Long Legacy
The CompTIA Security+ certification is nearing its sixteenth year. For some people, 16 years is not a long time, but it means Security+ came before YouTube and Facebook. The very first iPod was released 11 years ago, as was the first USB flash drive. In terms of security certifications, Security+ predates ISACA’s CISM and Red Hat’s Certified Security Specialist.
In the information security field, 16 years seems a much longer time. Information security has matured a great deal in less than 20 years, seeing new focus on areas like identity management, risk management and governance. IT professionals familiar with keeping financial information secure will remember the Sarbanes-Oxley Act was enacted in July 2002 (hey—also less than 20 years old!). Indeed, a lot of ground was covered in the past 16 years. And the Security+ certification has lived through it all.
Industry Respect for Security+
Just because something is older doesn’t make it better. But in this case, maybe it does. I find the Security+ increasingly becoming a baseline. Take, for example, how the Security+ certification gets used as a prerequisite toward a higher level certification. The most well-used case is in Microsoft’s Certified Solutions Expert, where a person seeking their MCSE can use CompTIA’s Security+ as an elective. In fact, CompTIA is the only third-party option available to Microsoft MCSE certification seekers. For Microsoft’s security specialization, again, the CompTIA Security+ is an alternative to Microsoft’s own security courses. This kind of endorsement creates a considerable level of credibility for the Security+. This credibility comes unbiased, from both the private and public sectors.
The CompTIA Security+ certification is vendor-neutral. This means the certification is not biased, does not promote, nor heavily dependent on a strong familiarity of one vendor. This means when talking about identify management, for example, you are not going to miss a question because you aren’t overly familiar with implementing Cisco products. Nor are you bound to focus on one solution provider such as Microsoft.
Endorsement in the Public Sector
It’s not just private companies that leverage how popular the Security+ certification is. The public sector refers to it as well in defining job requirements and training. For example, the United States Department of Defense (DoD) has manual 8140.01M (last updated April 2015), which describes the training and certification requirements for all Information Assurance professionals within the DoD. That includes all the US military, the Pentagon, the NSA and the rest of the 3 million employees and service members.
The DoD manual describes the requirements of “IAT” or Information Assurance Technical personnel at particular levels within the DoD. In the manual’s words: “The IA workforce focuses on the operation and management of IA capabilities for DoD systems and networks.” Regarding Department of Defense information assurance technical and managerial personnel, there are three possible levels. The manual details experience and training requirements for all three levels. For example, an IAT Level 3 person is more qualified than an IAT Level 1 person.
But how does this manual (and DoD) regard the Security+ certification? According to the manual, an IAT Level 2 person “normally has at least 3 years in IA technology or a related area” to be considered qualified. However, if a person holds the Security+ certification, that person now meets the minimum requirements for IAT level 2 work.
Yes, the Security+ certification qualifies a person for IAT Level 2 work, a position for someone assumedly having “at least 3 years” experience. Bear in mind that even CompTIA does not require but only recommends 2 years’ experience before taking the Security+ exam. This is because the Security+ is designated as a “DoD approved certification” for IAT Levels 1 and 2, and IAM (management) Level 1 positions.
All told, there are noticeable shifts in how the industry—both private and public—valuate the Security+ certification. In every case, it seems to reflect a growing respect for the Security+, so I feel the investment spent in gaining the certification is bound to pay off.
Changeover in exam version
CompTIA is noticing that growing respect, too. Perhaps one response is their recent, complete makeover of the exam. Earlier in 2017, CompTIA released a new revision of the popular exam, the exam’s fourth version since its start in 2002. And the revision is timed with yet another “perfect storm” factor, to be explained later. It’s enough to say their timing was well-thought out. This can be good and bad news.
The good news, as we discussed above, is that CompTIA is continuing to improve upon the certification. The bad news, if you’re the kind of certification student that relies on notes and experience from past students, is that a new revision means new areas of study with completely new questions. Depending on the source, study guides could be edited and honed multiple times during one exam revision. In contract, a new exam revision means untested territory for study guide providers. In short, study guides of “today” are of little help for the exam of “tomorrow.”
To be certain, we’re talking about the same exam revisions. The new revision is SY0-401 and has been available to exam takers since July 2017. However, the expiring exam revision is called SY0-201 and is available to you until the end of the year, as noted per the CompTIA website.
Credibility Surge
Remember in the introduction I added another important factor, an upcoming surge in credibility? Let me explain.
In 2011, CompTIA announced they removed the “open-ended” trait from their three foundation certifications, of which Security+ is the most senior. What does that mean? In the past, if you got a Security+ certification, you keep it for life, regardless of any effort to upkeep or exercise it. No more “free ride” now.
This means holders will need to demonstrate their ongoing practice by recording a number of activities such as teaching, publishing, or attending conferences. This should sound familiar to many certification holders who already have to record their Continuing Education Units or CEUs. Now, Security+ becomes one more certification where you can apply the same conference.
Why do I consider this a smart move? Simply put, much more credibility is given to certifications kept up-to-date compared to ones given “for life.” Five years from now, you can be sure those certified as Security+ are dedicated to their trade. And so will employers.
In Summary—A Perfect Storm
Remember I called this the “perfect storm”? A perfect storm is what this is because of the timing of multiple factors. The factors include its legacy and the certification’s growing respect, the waning availability of the older exam revision, and the removal of the certification’s “open-ended” quality. All told, the timing for getting this certification couldn’t be better. Waste no more time and secure a good class to take this in demand job certification.
ABCO Technology offers courses in a program known as the cyber security engineer, which includes this certification plus five others.
If you are interested in a cyber security career, contact our campus by telephone between 9 AM and 6 PM Monday through Friday at: (310) 216-3067.
Email your questions to info@abcotechnology.edu
Financial aid is available to all students who qualify for funding.
If you can repair a computer, laptop or smart phone, you’ll have a job today! The CompTia A+ is the ultimate certification for a high school senior or teenager to enter the work force. The CompTia A+ is the best starting point for a career in the field of information technology.
Gone are the days of those easy to get summer jobs most high school seniors used to enjoy. In the work place of 2018, workers who have specific employable skills are hired. Those who are not trained to do a specific task, sit home watching TV or stream their lives away on the Internet.
The CompTia A+ certifies that its holder can repair all types of computers, install devices on a network and repair smart phones. Local Apple stores are constantly looking for young workers holding these skills.
The CompTia A+ can be completed in a standard course, which lasts 78 hours. The material is usually completed in five weeks. Students taking the A+ course pass two exams: 901 for hardware and 902 for operating systems.
It is important when taking this exam that you learn how to answer those simulation questions. Many of those self-study manuals can’t duplicate the new simulator questions found on the A+ exam. CompTia, like many vendors is moving away from the multiple choice format.
After passing both exams, students will be able to apply for the job of desktop technician, computer repair specialist or work for an information technology customer support center.
The problem today is that most companies report that it is very hard to find qualified young candidates. If you are between the ages of 17 and 24, this opportunity is right for you. Get trained and certified for A+ today.
ABCO Technology offers a comprehensive program for the CompTia A+. If you are interested in this opportunity, contact our campus between 9 AM and 6 PM Monday through Friday by telephone at: (310) 216-3067.
Email your questions to info@abcotechnology.edu
Financial aid is available to all students who qualify for federal education funding.
The field of network administrator is experience strong job growth. The question we are asked by many students concerns how to get started in the field.
The answer, which has helped hundreds of new candidates find fulfilling jobs is the CompTia certification path.
Benefits of CompTia
CompTia certifications are vendor neutral. A holder of a CompTia certification is qualified to work on any computer. The US government, all state plus local governments, private industry and the non-profit organizations recognize CompTia as an excellent gateway to employment.
CompTia certifications
The first CompTia certification we will discuss is the CompTia A+. This certification is granted when a candidate passes two exams: one for hardware and the other for installation, configuration and security of operating systems. The A+ certification applies to individual computers or workstations. Holders of the A+ install all other types of network service devices, which includes printers and faxes. A+ holders apply for the job titles of computer service technician, help desk specialist or help desk technician. All of these job titles are listed on the main job sites.
The next CompTia certification is the CompTia Network +. The network + states the holder is qualified to install, configure, back up and secure corporate network servers. The Network + is a strong step toward the job title of junior network administrator.
The third CompTia certification we will discuss is the CompTia security +. This certification is a certificate for cyber security. Holders of the Security + know how to secure a network. This course is now a major require for employment in any company who has data to protect.
Our final CompTia certification is the CompTia Linux +. Linux is an open source operating system. Linux has many flavors or versions, which makes it difficult for cyber criminals to attack. In addition to Linux having different flavors, those flavors can be modified, which makes the job of cyber crime very difficult. The CompTia Linux + is required for many companies who use Linux as a background operating system.
#ABCO #Technology teaches each certification listed in this brief article.
Call our campus between 9 AM and 6 PM Monday through Friday. You can reach us at (310) 216-3067.
Email your questions to: info@abcotechnology.edu
Financial aid is available to all students who can qualify for funding.
ABCO Technology is located at 11222 South La Cienega Blvd. STE # 588 Los Angeles, Ca. 90304
If you are a desktop support specialist, network administrator or network engineer, the #CompTIA Security + certification is the one to get.
As #cybercrime continues to increase due to changes in technology, demand for network professionals who have cyber security skills continues to increase.
In 2018 companies are putting their money where their mouth is with respect to #CyberSecurity . Chase bank told investors during their most recent conference call that the bank will be spending one billion on cyber security in 2018.
Bank of America along with hundreds of national banks also are following Chase Bank’s lead in ramping their spending for cyber security.
The certification, which appears to have the greatest value is the CompTIA Security +. This certification provides a strong foundation for cyber security. Holders of this certificate understand how to protect a network, harden devices against cyber-attacks and educate employees about cyber security.
When you hold the CompTIA` Security +, you will be aware of the fact that even your printers and fax machines plugged into your network need to be hardened against cyber-attacks.
#Cybersecurity professionals understand the standards of encryption and the best ways to implement them so important work will get done.
The CompTIA security + can be completed in less than six weeks or in one week if you can stand the fast pace of a boot camp.
#ABCO #Technology offers a complete program for cyber security. Call our campus between 9 AM and 6 PM Monday through Friday. You can call us at: (310) 216-3067.
Email your questions to: info@abcotechnology.edu
Financial aid is available to all students who can qualify for funding.
ABCO Technology is located at: 11222 South La Cienega Blvd. STE # 588 Los Angeles, Ca. 90304.
One of the biggest challenges parents face in 2018 is the fact that jobs for millennials or teenagers are very hard to find.
The reasons are simple.
First of all the #US is moving toward a #skills oriented economy and teenagers or millennials haven’t had the opportunity to train for a skilled job.
Second the skills based economy with political pressure is artificially forcing wages higher than the market will bear. The higher wages forces teenagers out of the conventional restaurant jobs, which they have held for the past 100 years.
The solution to this challenge is to train your son or daughter to ensure they have an employable skill early in life.
One skill, which has high demand and job growth is computer repair. When we talk about computers, we are talking about laptops, iPhones and iPads. All of the mentioned devices will breakdown. The device itself could malfunction or simply be dropped.
A training course and certification, which trains millennials to compete in the computer repair field is the #CompTia A+. Training for the CompTia A+ or a course in computer repair can be accomplished in approximately 78 hours.
After the training is completed, the candidate passes two exams to obtain the CompTia A+ certification. These exams are: 901 for hardware, which covers the building of a computer and 902, which covers all of the operating systems, which can be installed on that computer. The CompTia A+ also covers setting up a small network, installation of printers and installation of online faxes.
Employers are looking for young people who can fix computers. Jobs come in many forms. Websites including Indeed and Glass door have many listings for young candidates with the A+ computer repair certification.
#ABCO #Technology teaches courses in networking and cyber security. Our school is ideal for the teenager who wants an employable skill. The CompTia A+ is a major part of this training. Call our campus between 9 Am and 6 PM Monday through Friday at: (310) 216-3067.
Email all questions to: info@abcotechnology.edu
Financial aid is available to all students who qualify for funding.
ABCO Technology is located at: 11222 South La Cienega Blvd. STE # 588 Los Angeles, Ca. 90304
There is an old saying, which dominates the marketing and search engine industries. This saying states “content is king.”
Content comes from information. If content is king, then information is power.
The question of how to use this information begins with its storage and access. Information is stored in columns, rows and tables, which makes up what information technology experts call a relational database. The term relational means one piece of information relates to another. This information must be easily accessible, have the flexibility to be manipulated into a report and the presentation should be in such a way that other relationships can be drawn from that information.
One occupation, which has the job of making all of this activity take place is that of an Oracle database administrator. Oracle, handles the nation’s largest databases including those from the US government, major educational institutions and Fortune 1,000 companies. Google uses a customized version of Oracle for its search engine.
#Oracle #Database administrators are responsible for the accessibility, security and safety for a company’s information.
This includes client records, financial data, product information and all other documents needed for an organization’s successful operation. Oracle database administrators do not have to possess a four-year college degree. The person entering into this occupation must be well organized, enjoy categorizing information and have a passion for making that information accessible to those persons who need to use it. Security is also a major concern. The database administrator will become proficient with Oracle’s database security protocols and procedures.
The Oracle database administrator is accomplished when students train and pass two Oracle certification exams. The first exam a student must successfully complete is that of Oracle Certified Associate. The #OCA is usually completed after eight weeks of training in an accredited Oracle class.
The final exam, which is the Oracle Certified Professional, which carries the title of database administrator is usually passed after three additional months of training.
Oracle database administrators are experiencing a wide variety of job openings throughout the country. The job sites of Indeed and Glass door show the average salary for Oracle database administrators at approximately $93,000 per year. As you gain experience in this occupation, your salary will increase. Oracle has specialized databases, which include Oracle financials, Oracle medical and Oracle biological. Students can specialize in one of these databases after passing the Oracle certified Professional exam. Naturally specializing in a specific field will mean an increase in salary.
If you are interested in training for this exciting career, contact #ABCO #Technology. You can reach our campus between 9 AM and 6 PM Monday through Friday at: (310) 216-3067.
Email your questions to info@abcotechnology.edu
Financial aid is available to all qualified students.
#ABCO #Technology is located at: 11222 South La Cienega Blvd. STE #588 Los Angeles, Ca. 90304
Database administrators are in demand, train and certify for a job today!
Google has withdrawn ratings from Adwords extensions. So you will no longer be able to add these to your ads. Why are they taking this action and does it signify a wider problem with ratings? More importantly, does this mean local results or seller ratings
#Google #AdWords allows you to add something called extensions to your ads. Extensions are additional pieces of information that are free to add and can boost your click through rate. Some examples are:
•Sitelinks •Call outs •Structured snippets
If you’re not already using extensions, then you should be! It’s a great way of increasing CTR (by around 10%) and at a point where more advertisers are using them than not, you’re going to be hit increasingly hard if you’re not using them.
Unfortunately, like many things with Google, you can suggest what you want them to show but they decide whether or not they want to show it.
Reviews Extensions
Google didn’t source these reviews themselves. You added them, linking to the source, and the Adwords team just reviewed them before they were allowed live.
Although Google have given little reasoning behind why they have removed them, it seems it might just have been a badly designed system.
For a start on Google’s part it has got to be resource intensive, with team members having to click through, find reviews with matching text and approve. Although it’s likely this was partially automated, if even only a tiny percentage required manual review then it would be a large drain on resources.
This brings us to the next issue: legitimacy. Could you just make the reviews up? Well yes, you could. If you wanted to add a fake review to your site, then include it in the site link there is little Google could do to tell. This is the problem with pretty much all reviews and leads me on nicely to the final point.
Was the review representative? The reason why we trust a review from an unknown source is that it correlates with many other reviews. With this system you could just cherrypick whichever review you wanted, so even if the product is terrible someone, somewhere, is bound to like it and leave a good review. Which you can then legitimately use in your adwords extension.
Finally, you might be clicking on an ad for a product but for the sitelinks reviews, Google encouraged you to utilise those which reflected the site as a whole:
Reviews should focus on your business as a whole, as opposed to a review about a specific product or service. This makes the reviews relevant to just about all of your ads.
So you the user could well think that a general review such as “Absolutely excellent, will be purchasing again” is about the specific link they see in the ad. But it’s not, it’s about the site as whole and may be validating an otherwise awful product.
Does this mean there is a wider problem with reviews?
Reviews themselves have come increasingly under attack. If like myself you use shopping sites such as Amazon and have been doing so for a while, you’ll have seen what I mean. There are so many fake reviews, paid-for reviews, and reviews created by third-party companies paid to create them.
This problem has been created by the effectiveness of reviews, if customer is purchasing a third party product through your site you’ll want to make sure that the best products are shown first. This means using reviews to help weight products in how you rank them. Which in turn means vendors are more and more incentivized to have the best reviews possible. Which is fine, except that not all vendors have great products, but they still want great reviews.
So what’s the solution? What about other ratings-based extensions?
Reviews as part of AdWords extensions are in principle a great idea, but there some real fundamental issues with these which need to be resolved. AdWords needs to strike a balance between what the advertisers – who are after all paying for that advert – want to display and what is a fair representation for the consumer.
These means really they should be looking at a more independent source of reviews or way of gathering these. This is what they do with both seller ratings and consumer ratings.
Seller ratings are an automated (opt out) extension which look like this:
These are shown on search network text ads, or as an abridged version in Google shopping results. Seller ratings show a star rating and text snippet which they gather from a long list of third party review sites and they only show in certain circumstances;
In most cases, seller ratings only appear when a business has 150 unique reviews and a composite rating of 3.5 stars or more.
Consumer ratings are another automated extension and are taken directly from Google customer surveys which they ran for specific industries. So, these will only appear on certain results where they have data:
Google also use a star rating in reviews within local results and although having these linked to a Google account negates some of the problems, they are still pretty open to abuse. Many businesses only have a small number of reviews, meaning just one or two added from friends or family accounts might be all that’s needed to influence a consumer’s decision.
AdWords needs to use a service which is more long standing with a large number of reviews already present and which have their own controls in place to ensure these are legitimate, much like they do with their seller reviews extension. However, even dedicated review sites have massive problems with this. Like the guy who made his shed the top rated restaurant on trip advisor. In short you can’t trust reviews.
Adverts fall under advertising guidelines in both the UK and US where if ads are misleading they have to be removed. Publishers who regularly break these rules or are deemed to be not doing enough to prevent misleading ads can be fined. So AdWords must adhere to a higher standard than the sites it would be taking the source content from, hence the potential problem.
So was Google right to remove them and will we be seeing them again?
In my opinion reviews are becoming less of a trustworthy metric. The ability of bad actors to place them has far outstripped that of companies to ensure they are legitimate. This might be down to the cost / benefit being vastly different from both sides. For an individual company a set of good reviews could be the difference in zero revenue for a product, or $1000’s. So spending several hundreds or even thousands just on ensuring they have good reviews is well worth it. For a review site though, they simply cannot afford to spend anywhere near an equivalent amount on checking the reviews for an individual product. In short there is a lot more total effort going into making fake reviews than there is in removing them. Google tries to negate this with automated extensions by using a wide variety of sources, or their own survey results which they have more control over.
The way the Reviews extension was implemented in AdWords was pretty much asking for trouble. Then again, while there are better ways, I still don’t think there are any that are ‘good enough’. We’ll have to wait and see what Google does in the longer term and if it decides to make any changes in the organic results or to the other automation tools on their site.
#ABCO #Technology teaches courses for E-commerce and web design. Contact our campus between 9 AM and 6 PM Monday through Friday at: (310) 216-3067.
Email your questions to: info@abcotechnology.edu
Financial aid is available to all students who can qualify for funding.
ABCO Technology is located at: 11222 South La Cienega Blvd. STE # 588 Los Angeles, Ca. 90304
