For all the content creators out there – this week’s Fast Five is for you! It contains two articles on Google’s new ‘in-depth articles’ search results feature, how to make the most of Google+ and how to turn your company into an epic story worth sharing.

Discover great in-depth articles on Google by Inside Search
Google is now rewarding good quality long-form content with an ‘in-depth articles’ search results feature. So far the types of articles showing up in these results (only on google.com) are published by big brands and are between 2,000 – 5,000 words long.

How to Write the In-Depth Articles that Google Loves by Demian Farnsworth
Demian gives us the full story on how to make the most of Google’s new ‘in-depth article’ feature – along with Google Authorship and the latest Genesis Framework for WordPress.

11 Essential SEO Analytics App in Google Play by Albert Costill
This is a great list of Apps found on Google Play for Android devices. Want to research the competition on the go? Or check on a client’s or your own site ranking? There’s an App in this list for all those things.

Why Your Brand Must Tell a Compelling Story by Srinivas Rao
The making of a business, the story behind the people, these are all important aspects of marketing. This article explains how to re-write your ‘About Us’ page to make a real connection with your audience.

And finally…

How to Breathe Life in Your Google+ Profile by Jason DeMers
Jason has written some great tips on using the main features of Google+ and how to keep your business profile fresh.  Create a community, get together using Google Hangout, develop niche circles and share content with each of them.

Happy reading!

*Image courtesy of Threadless

From good old fashioned storytelling, to sci-fi style Google glasses, this week’s Fast Five has something for everyone.

Giving a Voice to Your Brand by Gianluca Fiorelli
Gianluca describes the ancient art of storytelling and how we can use its effect on the human brain to make an authentic connection with our audience. It’s a long post, but worth reading.

A Visual Guide to Keyword Targeting and On-Page Optimization by Rand Fishkin
Targeted keywords need to be considered when choosing a brand name, domain name, writing copy, internal and external links, image and meta tags, plus anchor text. Rand’s fantastic post covers all aspects of keyword optimization, complete with great resource links throughout.

Five Ways to Prove to the Client That Traffic Will Come by James Harrison
This post contains great resources to assist business owners, or digital marketing employees, with campaign planning and progress reports.

Hiring Virtual: Why Old Fashioned HR Doesn’t Work in the Digital World by Greg Moran
The job marketplace has changed – from the perspective of both employers and employees. It’s become more common for people to work from home and employers require skills – that perhaps weren’t necessary before. This is an overview of the changes to ‘Human Resources’ that have occurred, and will continue to occur, as a result of the communications revolution.

And for something different…

Top 10 Places That Have Banned Google Glass by Albert Costill
I couldn’t believe what I was reading when I came across this post. We really have entered into a science-fiction inspired age when Google-connected glasses are becoming available on the domestic market!

Happy reading!

*Image by Threadless

It’s mostly about social media this week, but there’s also some solid writing advice and a great list of SEO resources thrown in too.

How Many Social Buttons Do You Really Need? By Samuel Miranda
I’ve wondered about this for a while, so I was glad to see a post on the subject. Samuel gives us the run down on each of the major social media sites/buttons to help us decide which ones to target.

You Can Now Embed Posts From Facebook by Adam Morgan
Facebook have created the capacity to embed Facebook Posts in general web content and given a few organisations the chance to try it out. It’s only a matter of time before the rest of us are able to use this feature. Adam provides a picture of the concept, so we know what to look out for once the feature is more widely spread. Apparently once you’ve clicked on ‘Embed Post’, you will be given a code that you can place in a blog article. Great stuff!

7 Ways to Survive Gmail’s New Promotions Tab by Sonia Simone
Sonia’s advice is not to panic, but… we need to be smart about getting our messages in front of our best customers and prospects. This means not pandering to the great ‘middle’ but focusing on pleasing those who already like us.

Which Works Better: List Posts or Stories? Let’s Ask A New York Times Editor by Andy Crestodina
This one’s for all the bloggers out there who are in need of some inspiration. Apparently lists are good, but stories are better. Or, maybe a combination of both? Andy gets advice from the best.

And finally…

The 100 Best Free SEO Tools & Resources for Every Challenge – Interactive by Cyrus Shepard
The team at Moz have put together a great list of resources and shared it with their blog readers! Bookmark this one as a reference.

Happy reading!

*Image courtesy of Threadless