What is “the fold”?

“The fold” comes from printed newspapers (remember those?). In a printed newspaper, the prime real estate is on the front page, above the place where the paper is folded in half.

At a news stand, stories that are above the fold are visible without any manhandling on the part of the consumer. Stories that are above the fold are also typically the only ones you can see (before buying) in newspaper vending machines.

On the web, “above the…

Creating effective web content involves artfully balancing usability and search engine optimization. Viewing content through the lens of your audience is a great first step. On the Web, your audience consists of both website users and search engine bots or “spiders”. Let’s take a look at some of their unique attributes, as well as corresponding content development methods.

Microsoft fully launched Bing (which replaced Live Search), on June 3, 2009, following the release of a preview version on June 1, 2009. Its launch was accompanied by a global media frenzy, including a reported $100 million marketing and advertising campaign.

I originally assumed that Microsoft’s hopeful slogan, “Bing, then decide” encouraged the public to try it out before making up their mind about whether or not to make the switch from Google as their primary search engine. When I became…