Press Coverage

How Google’s search algorithm spreads false information with a rightwing bias

Rhea Drysdale, the CEO of digital marketing company Outspoken Media, did not see evidence of pro-Clinton editing by Google. However, she did note networks of partisan websites – disproportionately rightwing – using much better search engine optimization techniques to ensure their worldview ranked highly.

Trump’s day: Miss Universe, NATO obligations, and Clinton’s time off the trail

There is no proof that this is the case, though this theory has been circulating in some conservative circles. In June, the website SourceFed published a video that alleged to show Google proactively manipulating search results. In a Medium post, Rhea Drysdale, the CEO of Outspoken Media, a search engine optimization company, debunked this theory, noting that the video showed cherry-picked examples.

Donald Trump Pushes Debunked Theory That Google Suppressed Rival’s Bad News

The theory was debunked quickly by numerous news outlets, which pointed to selective examples and a basic misunderstanding of how Google’s algorithm worked. Rhea Drysdale, the chief executive of Outspoken Media, a digital company that specializes in search engine optimization, laid out the examples in a Medium post.

Did Google alter its search algorithm to suppress stories that portray Hillary Clinton in a negative light?

Chief Executive Officer of Outspoken Media, Rhea Drysdale joins Roe Conn and Anna Davlantes to talk about a report that Google is withholding search recommendations that would portray Hillary Clinton in a negative light, but allowing such searches for other political candidates.

Updated: Google Accused of Manipulating Search Terms in Favor of Hillary Clinton’s Campaign

Rhea Drysdale, CEO of Outspoken Media, has written a rebuttal of SourceFed’s claims in a post on Medium.

Drysdale shows counterexamples involving Donald Trump where popular search terms that make him look bad aren’t always Google’s top suggestion. She also shows that when typing “hillary clinton” into Google, “hillary clinton email” is one of the top suggestions. She argues that SourceFed’s methods were sub-par and produced inconclusive results.

“The story isn’t that Google favors Hillary Clinton,” she writes, “it’s that Google is a complex algorithm that presents information in many ways and at this point that includes artificial intelligence!”

7 Thought-Provoking Takeaways from #MozTalk Content Edition

What could be better than a charming pregnant woman? A charming, pregnant, wildly successful CEO who runs her own company. Rhea’s quirkiness shined through as she had everyone laughing, but also ferociously jotting down notes.

Rhea explained to the audience how Google understands human behavior better than ever before (and likely better than we do!). But why do people search for what they search for? This can be difficult to understand. Yet, when we create content around the “why” it becomes content that serves a real purpose. The problem is finding out the “why” isn’t always easy.

Six SEO Rules for 2016

Thus, original content is becoming more important than ever, says Rhea Drysdale, CEO of Outspoken Media Inc​​​​., a Troy, N.Y.-based SEO consulting firm. “The more original content that you can produce—whether it’s an image or a video, or long-form content, anything you can put together that’s going to justify someone wanting to read it or share it—the better.”

While articles with a “top five” list format often are clickable, Drysdale suggests using them sparingly. “People like things that they can quickly digest, but it doesn’t necessarily have much weight with search,” she says. “You have to make sure that whatever comes after the number makes sense and is useful.”

How to market your business the RIGHT way on the Internet

Make it look good on mobile: Google recently changed its algorithms to give mobile presence more weight when determining how sites rank in the search results. That means your website not only has to look good on a mobile device, but it has to function well on that platform, says Rhea Drysdale, CEO of Outspoken Media in Troy. People want a different experience if they’re viewing it on mobile device. “If you’re a local restaurant, if [the customer’s] on a desktop they might want to see the menu,” she says. “On the phone, they want your phone number and address because they’re about to arrive or want to make a reservation.”

Outspoken Media expanding beyond internet search marketing

Outspoken Media has built a business on helping clients improve visibility online. Now, the communications firm in Troy is broadening its services beyond internet search marketing as clients look to not only increase visibility online, but also to connect with specific audiences and increase visibility with more specific end goals.

On the Cover: Rhea Drysdale at Outspoken Media

One of the big challenges in this industry, as you can imagine, is the constant updates to technology and search algorithms — that secret code that dictates where your website lands in searches. The key to maintaining, Drysdale says, is to stay informed but also invest in a smart strategy. “A lot of companies flirt with that high-risk approach [of trying to game the algorithms], but we’re not that company,” she says. “We’re a conservative, long-term investment. A lot of people make SEO sound like hackers, but we’re much more financial advisers.”

Link Building Strategies and Tips for 2014

Is link building dead?

The question was top-of-mind at the recent Search Marketing Expo West (SMX) in San Jose, Calif. Links were a hot topic at the conference, thanks in no small part to the numerous changes Google made to its search engine algorithm during the past three years — changes that raised the questions of what still works in SEO practices and what can get you into trouble. “Link building is where we see people getting hurt the most” from Google penalties, said Rhea Drysdale, CEO of online reputation branding firm Outspoken Media.

Long-Term SEO: Sustainable Tactics, Strategies & Solutions

Rhea Drysdale, CEO of Outspoken Media, opened with, “It is up to you to manage the site from beginning to end. The strategies that you choose and tactics… all of that ultimately falls onto you.”

Drysdale said that website owners should focus on the big picture rather than short-term “vanity goals” (I like that phrase) or choosing shortcuts without weighing the risks. “Do no harm to the brand and let people know the risks,” she said.

She also pointed out that “human behavior forces algorithm updates.” The example she gave to support her statement was The Decay and Fall of Guest Blogging for SEO in Matt Cutts’ blog.

Which social network is best for your business?

“Take pictures of what makes your business unique, whether it’s an office perk (like the organic fruit we receive from The Fruit Guys), a conference you’re attending, or pictures of your team and/or products and customers,” said Rhea Drysdale, CEO of Outspoken Media.

Work Week: Capital Region entrepreneurs on what they wish they’d known at the start

“I’d tell myself to have more confidence and to trust my gut. I’d also tell myself to find a business consultant/mentor outside of the company who could guide my understanding of business fundamentals, legal concerns, accounting/cash flow, partnerships, and management experience (of people and projects). Lastly, I’d tell myself to not try to do everything at once. By breaking tasks into simpler quarterly goals and focusing on what’s important, not urgent, I can accomplish far more than running around without my head.”

The New Wave: The Capital Region’s Talented Young Entrepreneurs and Business Leaders

And if you’re going to be outspoken, then Rhea Drysdale suggests you be outspoken with her company. As a Capital Region young professional who has had a considerable amount of success with Outspoken Media, a boutique marketing consulting firm that specializes in fitting clients with customized integrated strategies to amplify their voice on the Internet, she is passionate about growing brands.

“We’re very transparent about we do,” she says. “Everything that we do is a custom approach, and in our industry that’s rare.”

Introducing Albany’s 40 Under 40, class of 2013

…For the uninitiated, the program honors 40 young business leaders. As the name suggests, they’re all under age 40.

The class of 2013 is the latest group of young, ambitious professionals to be honored in a Capital Region tradition that dates back 14 years. A Business Review advisory board picked the latest 40 from more than 500 nominations.

People on the Move: Sean Stahlman

“Stahlman oversees client services and provides strategic direction on client strategies. His primary objectives include developing, executing and reporting on SEO strategies for competitive verticals including retail, automotive, finance, insurance, health care and travel. Stahlman has 11 years’ experience with SEO (search engine optimization) and was previously with Razorfish in New York City.”

Google, You Autocomplete Me

“To know how to get out of something, it helps to know how you got into it in the first place. Rhea Drysdale, CEO of SEO firm Outspoken Media, outlined what goes into an Autocomplete result in a blog post. Drysdale guesses the ingredients in the secret formula are: search volume, personalization, short-term popularity, misspellings and variations, automated results, and a filter for things like hate speech.”

More Consumers Are Getting Tweet Revenge On Companies That Deserve It

Competitors also can misuse complaint sites to damage a rival’s reputation: “We have seen some instances where competitors are attacking each other with fake reviews,” says Rhea Drysdale, co-founder of Outspoken Media, which offers online marketing and reputation management services. Indeed, one guy offered services on a freelance job site to “write up to three negative reviews for you with three different profiles against your competition for $10.”

Email Newsletters: Best Practices for Small Businesses

According to Lisa Barone, co-founder and chief branding officer of Outspoken Media, Inc., the only acceptable time to add people to an email list is after they have confirmed through a double opt-in. Any other means of populating an email address book is invasive and unethical, such as using an email address after a customer has registered for your site or entered a contest. Barone warns that it’s even bad practice to add peers or colleagues to an email list after they gave you a business card, for instance.

Top 10 Small Business SEO Tips for Link Building

One way to get a backlink to your small business website is to create original, worthwhile content that contains an anchor text or other link to your site, and to offer that content to another site. For example, [Outspoken Media CEO Rhea Drysdale] suggested, offer to write a guest post on a blog relevant to your industry and add a backlink to your site in the post.

Top 100 Social Media, Internet Marketing & SEO Blogs – 2011

Reputation Management and Your Online Persona

[Outspoken Media CEO Rhea Drysdale] answers a few questions about how to keep your personal branding managed. Proper responses and analysis are key in keeping your online persona where you want it.

Discussion: Bettering the Reputation of the SEO Industry

…industry heavyweights like Lisa Barone from Outspoken Media have chimed in with some well thought-out feedback as to things we SEOs can do to improve the perception of our industry. Others, though, think it’s a waste of time and effort to worry about educating the masses when plenty of SEOs are doing quite well for themselves.

How to Use Social Media To Build Your Brand

“Lisa Barone, co-founder and chief branding officer at Internet marketing agency Outspoken Media, [explains] “Brands that have the best success use social media to form relationships with people. It’s about helping people by answering their questions or jumping into a conversation. Once they know you, they’ll subscribe to your blog or newsletter. Once they make that step, it’s a lot easier to market to them — and they’re a lot more open to being marketed to.”

The Case for Being Honest

“‘A visitor’s inbox is their trusted zone. And when you appear there on a regular basis, providing good content, you enable them to trust your brand and what you’re offering,’ author Lisa Barone of Outspoken Media writes.”

Meet The 25-Year-Old Who Saved “SEO” From Being Trademarked

Back in April 2008, Jason Gambert began his attempt to trademark SEO. But last week, Gambert’s claim was formally blocked. That wasn’t due to a big company or industry group fighting it. It came down to a few individuals in the SEO industry, with ultimately one woman —  Rhea Drysdale — who fought to the end using her own money and time to beat it.

20 Best Marketing And Social Media Blogs By Women

“Rae [Hoffman] is the CEO and cofounder of Outspoken Media along with Rhea Drysdale, and Lisa Barone, and these ladies don’t mess around. If you’re looking for advice in marketing, reputation management, SEO, link mapping and beyond, you’ll find a no-holds-barred approach with these exceptionally talented group. Outspoken indeed.”

Google vs. China: Free speech, finances or both?

“It’s a move that, in the past, has been highly criticized,” said Rhea Drysdale, who handles search-engine issues for Internet marketing company Outspoken Media. “As a search marketer myself, it’s not something that we’ve really agreed with.”

Racist Obama image shines light on Web searching

“When negative search results arise on the Web, they recede quicker for some people than for others. Rhea Drysdale, who handles online image issues for Internet marketing company Outspoken Media, said that the offensive picture of Michelle Obama will fade quickly for a simple reason — there are so many other images of her on the Internet.”

In Defense of Godin, Google, and Open Systems

“Faster than you can say “brandjacking,” bloggers, usually in love with the kind Mr. Godin, cried foul. Posting discussions about brands without their permission? Lisa Barone of Outspoken Media called it “hostage taking.” TechCrunch said Godin was forcing brands to “unlock” their pages for a price.”

A Makeover for Your Google Results

“Next, I contacted Rhea Drysdale, a search-engine-optimization expert at OutspokenMedia.com. Ms. Drysdale explained that I needed to focus on linking my online presences to each other — that is, my Twitter page would link to my LinkedIn page, which would link to my biography on my book-publisher’s site. These interlinkages are key to understanding Google’s page-ranking system.”