NEWS
Wix vs WordPress? Mueller Says Solve Content Issues
Someone tweeted their intention to build a Wix site to test how well it ranks for local search compared to WordPress. John Mueller responded with a series of helpful suggestions, emphasizing that platforms that take care of the technical are ideal for small business owners.
Wix Versus WordPress
The initial tweet was about creating a test between Wix and WordPress.
Rob May (@robinlmay) tweeted:
“Going to get and build a @Wix site and see if I can get it ranking in some local city (here) for #SEO related services (as a test against WordPress) – just to see if it will work. Will take all appropriate steps/measures for best practices. Huh. Wonder how that will go?”
Tests Can Be Misleading
One of the things about SEO tests is that they are subject to interpretation. In other words, the meaning of the result cannot ever be known because the conclusions reached are only guesses about what is going on at Google.
Without a complete understanding of how Google ranks a site, the conclusions reached are strictly limited by the amount of understanding the person interpreting the results has.
Data is objective. The interpretation of that data is subjective.
Mueller alluded to this in his response:
“Test sites can be hard to use as… tests. Put the same effort in as you would with a real site.”
Test sites can be hard to use as… tests. Put the same effort in as you would with a real site.
— 🍌 John 🍌 (@JohnMu) February 15, 2021
Rob May agreed, tweeting:
“Absolutely John. Absolutely! Think I’m looking at it from “clients side”. New business/idea. Do they need full out WordPress 10K build if they are testing a business idea? Perhaps a less expensive option to start and help budgets along on the marketing. Would Wix be that option?”
Mueller responded that the technical side of SEO is increasingly less important than the content side of it.
“The more small business sites I see, the fewer I see with technical SEO issues, and the more the issues lie with the content (stale, duplicated across multiple sites, incorrect, low-quality, etc). CMSs tend to get most technical things right (or “right enough”) nowadays.”
The more small business sites I see, the fewer I see with technical SEO issues, and the more the issues lie with the content (stale, duplicated across multiple sites, incorrect, low-quality, etc). CMSs tend to get most technical things right (or “right enough”) nowadays.
— 🍌 John 🍌 (@JohnMu) February 15, 2021
John Mueller followed that tweet with this observation:
“What I recommend to small businesses is: never self-host, avoid plugins, buy your domain name, use a simple & reliable platform, use 2-factor authentication, have 2+ people internally who can update your site’s content, get local SEO help.”
What I recommend to small businesses is: never self-host, avoid plugins, buy your domain name, use a simple & reliable platform, use 2-factor authentication, have 2+ people internally who can update your site’s content, get local SEO help.
— 🍌 John 🍌 (@JohnMu) February 15, 2021
Uncomplicated and Reliable
Simplicity is always the stumbling block for many small businesses. A chef cannot be expected to also be a WordPress expert. During a pandemic the restaurants that are surviving are the ones that can take orders online.
Taking the complexity out of the online presence is super important for small businesses who can’t always afford to have an IT person on staff.
WordPress Versus Wix
The challenge in the original tweet was WordPress versus Wix. Which platform is ideally suited for small businesses?
WordPress for Small Business?
WordPress is slowly working toward becoming a platform that allows publishers to focus on content and less on code. Their Gutenberg publishing technology, currently still in development, is designed with non-coding publishers in mind.
But Gutenberg is still a work in progress. Full Site Editing (FSE) capability is scheduled to be released on June 2021.
The version of Gutenberg to be released in June is what is known as a Minimum Viable Product (MVP). An MVP is a release that has all the features necessary to be useful but not in a complete state.
The development of the different WordPress Gutenberg features is split between different groups working on the different projects.
“Knitting each project together creates a vision of the minimum viable product (MVP) for FSE. Together they outline an architecture that allows the expression of a full theme using blocks and an editor capable of customizing that theme.
The MVP should make it possible to build a version of the Twenty Twenty-One theme, using only blocks, without any coding knowledge.”
Clearly, WordPress is not an out of the box solution. A small business owner must think about structured data, hosting, updating the WordPress software including plugins and themes.
Wix Handles the Technology
Wix, on the other hand is expressly designed to take the hurt out of creating a web presence for local businesses.
I asked Mordy Oberstein (@MordyOberstein) , the Wix Liaison to the SEO community why Wix might be ideally suited for small businesses.
He answered:
“Wix does a lot in order to provide its users with the proper defaults so that our site owners can focus on running their businesses and growing their online presence.
This takes the form of anything from not allowing multiple canonicals for the same URL to converting images to WebP automatically (when appropriate) to providing out-of-the-box markup for various page types. The latter is a perfect example.”
Self-serve or Managed
For web hosting there are thousands of different options. But out of all the options they are actually just two kinds. Self-managed and managed.
Self-managed is cheaper because the customer updates the server software, uploads new software and so on.
In a managed environment the customer pays extra so that the hosting company takes care of all the little details that come with managing a hosting environment.
Creating a web presence has not yet reached the same level as managed or self-managed. In most cases, particularly with WordPress, a small business owner is looking at self-managed solutions.
That quality of self-managed is what Rob May was looking for from Wix, in addition to seeing if it could rank well.
He related that his agency deals primarily with WordPress but he wanted to test if Wix could handle the technical parts of a web presence in order to create a more frictionless experience.
When someone asked Rob if he was against WordPress he answered no.
“Not against it. Our agency operates in WordPress primarily (and Shopify). I just want to see if I can get a basic Wix site ranking – easier without dev help, plugins, – keeping it simple, light and hopefully fast/mobile responsive and what that timeline and outcome will look like”
Structured Data
An increasingly important aspect of ranking well in Google, particularly for small businesses is structured data. Structured data communicates a great deal of information that can result in rich results.
I asked Mordy about how Wix handled structured data and he explained:
“When Google updated their requirements for Event Structured Data to include the offers.priceCurrency property there was nothing Wix users needed to do, we already included this property in our out-of-the-box markup.
As such, Wix business owners running paid events could focus on the business of running paid events without having to worry about their appearance on the SERP as a rich result.
In terms of Structured Data, Wix users can add custom markup, in JSON-LD, to any of their static pages with ease. We automatically create out-of-the-box markup for dynamic pages related to products, events, bookings, and beyond.
Currently, the out-of-the-box markup we create can be overridden by using our recently renamed development tool, Velo, so that SEOs who want to add custom properties can.”
Rob May was optimistic about his test. Wix has a lot to offer in a fairly managed web platform. Anything that can handle the technology side will free the small business owner to focus on their business.
“Yep. Will be giving it a go, but the test will revolve around speed and load time, mainly for images as Ecomm sites usually have many that impact across various plugins which impact rendering and load time. Still need to work out some details. Want a real site to give it a go!”
Keep an Open Mind
In all things it’s important to keep an open mind. There’s a lot to recommend about WordPress. It’s the top choice for building an online presence. It has a huge ecosystem of paid and free options that can make most any online business a reality.
Wix on the other hand frees the small business person to focus building a business as opposed to building a website.
Looking forward to seeing the results of Rob’s test.
Citation
Read the original discussion here.
NEWS
OpenAI Introduces Fine-Tuning for GPT-4 and Enabling Customized AI Models
OpenAI has today announced the release of fine-tuning capabilities for its flagship GPT-4 large language model, marking a significant milestone in the AI landscape. This new functionality empowers developers to create tailored versions of GPT-4 to suit specialized use cases, enhancing the model’s utility across various industries.
Fine-tuning has long been a desired feature for developers who require more control over AI behavior, and with this update, OpenAI delivers on that demand. The ability to fine-tune GPT-4 allows businesses and developers to refine the model’s responses to better align with specific requirements, whether for customer service, content generation, technical support, or other unique applications.
Why Fine-Tuning Matters
GPT-4 is a very flexible model that can handle many different tasks. However, some businesses and developers need more specialized AI that matches their specific language, style, and needs. Fine-tuning helps with this by letting them adjust GPT-4 using custom data. For example, companies can train a fine-tuned model to keep a consistent brand tone or focus on industry-specific language.
Fine-tuning also offers improvements in areas like response accuracy and context comprehension. For use cases where nuanced understanding or specialized knowledge is crucial, this can be a game-changer. Models can be taught to better grasp intricate details, improving their effectiveness in sectors such as legal analysis, medical advice, or technical writing.
Key Features of GPT-4 Fine-Tuning
The fine-tuning process leverages OpenAI’s established tools, but now it is optimized for GPT-4’s advanced architecture. Notable features include:
- Enhanced Customization: Developers can precisely influence the model’s behavior and knowledge base.
- Consistency in Output: Fine-tuned models can be made to maintain consistent formatting, tone, or responses, essential for professional applications.
- Higher Efficiency: Compared to training models from scratch, fine-tuning GPT-4 allows organizations to deploy sophisticated AI with reduced time and computational cost.
Additionally, OpenAI has emphasized ease of use with this feature. The fine-tuning workflow is designed to be accessible even to teams with limited AI experience, reducing barriers to customization. For more advanced users, OpenAI provides granular control options to achieve highly specialized outputs.
Implications for the Future
The launch of fine-tuning capabilities for GPT-4 signals a broader shift toward more user-centric AI development. As businesses increasingly adopt AI, the demand for models that can cater to specific business needs, without compromising on performance, will continue to grow. OpenAI’s move positions GPT-4 as a flexible and adaptable tool that can be refined to deliver optimal value in any given scenario.
By offering fine-tuning, OpenAI not only enhances GPT-4’s appeal but also reinforces the model’s role as a leading AI solution across diverse sectors. From startups seeking to automate niche tasks to large enterprises looking to scale intelligent systems, GPT-4’s fine-tuning capability provides a powerful resource for driving innovation.
OpenAI announced that fine-tuning GPT-4o will cost $25 for every million tokens used during training. After the model is set up, it will cost $3.75 per million input tokens and $15 per million output tokens. To help developers get started, OpenAI is offering 1 million free training tokens per day for GPT-4o and 2 million free tokens per day for GPT-4o mini until September 23. This makes it easier for developers to try out the fine-tuning service.
As AI continues to evolve, OpenAI’s focus on customization and adaptability with GPT-4 represents a critical step in making advanced AI accessible, scalable, and more aligned with real-world applications. This new capability is expected to accelerate the adoption of AI across industries, creating a new wave of AI-driven solutions tailored to specific challenges and opportunities.
This Week in Search News: Simple and Easy-to-Read Update
Here’s what happened in the world of Google and search engines this week:
1. Google’s June 2024 Spam Update
Google finished rolling out its June 2024 spam update over a period of seven days. This update aims to reduce spammy content in search results.
2. Changes to Google Search Interface
Google has removed the continuous scroll feature for search results. Instead, it’s back to the old system of pages.
3. New Features and Tests
- Link Cards: Google is testing link cards at the top of AI-generated overviews.
- Health Overviews: There are more AI-generated health overviews showing up in search results.
- Local Panels: Google is testing AI overviews in local information panels.
4. Search Rankings and Quality
- Improving Rankings: Google said it can improve its search ranking system but will only do so on a large scale.
- Measuring Quality: Google’s Elizabeth Tucker shared how they measure search quality.
5. Advice for Content Creators
- Brand Names in Reviews: Google advises not to avoid mentioning brand names in review content.
- Fixing 404 Pages: Google explained when it’s important to fix 404 error pages.
6. New Search Features in Google Chrome
Google Chrome for mobile devices has added several new search features to enhance user experience.
7. New Tests and Features in Google Search
- Credit Card Widget: Google is testing a new widget for credit card information in search results.
- Sliding Search Results: When making a new search query, the results might slide to the right.
8. Bing’s New Feature
Bing is now using AI to write “People Also Ask” questions in search results.
9. Local Search Ranking Factors
Menu items and popular times might be factors that influence local search rankings on Google.
10. Google Ads Updates
- Query Matching and Brand Controls: Google Ads updated its query matching and brand controls, and advertisers are happy with these changes.
- Lead Credits: Google will automate lead credits for Local Service Ads. Google says this is a good change, but some advertisers are worried.
- tROAS Insights Box: Google Ads is testing a new insights box for tROAS (Target Return on Ad Spend) in Performance Max and Standard Shopping campaigns.
- WordPress Tag Code: There is a new conversion code for Google Ads on WordPress sites.
These updates highlight how Google and other search engines are continuously evolving to improve user experience and provide better advertising tools.
Facebook Faces Yet Another Outage: Platform Encounters Technical Issues Again
Uppdated: It seems that today’s issues with Facebook haven’t affected as many users as the last time. A smaller group of people appears to be impacted this time around, which is a relief compared to the larger incident before. Nevertheless, it’s still frustrating for those affected, and hopefully, the issues will be resolved soon by the Facebook team.
Facebook had another problem today (March 20, 2024). According to Downdetector, a website that shows when other websites are not working, many people had trouble using Facebook.
This isn’t the first time Facebook has had issues. Just a little while ago, there was another problem that stopped people from using the site. Today, when people tried to use Facebook, it didn’t work like it should. People couldn’t see their friends’ posts, and sometimes the website wouldn’t even load.
Downdetector, which watches out for problems on websites, showed that lots of people were having trouble with Facebook. People from all over the world said they couldn’t use the site, and they were not happy about it.
When websites like Facebook have problems, it affects a lot of people. It’s not just about not being able to see posts or chat with friends. It can also impact businesses that use Facebook to reach customers.
Since Facebook owns Messenger and Instagram, the problems with Facebook also meant that people had trouble using these apps. It made the situation even more frustrating for many users, who rely on these apps to stay connected with others.
During this recent problem, one thing is obvious: the internet is always changing, and even big websites like Facebook can have problems. While people wait for Facebook to fix the issue, it shows us how easily things online can go wrong. It’s a good reminder that we should have backup plans for staying connected online, just in case something like this happens again.