Google Web Alerts

Anyone know any good research uses for them?

[internetheaven]

I've just signed up for Google Web Alerts for my main keywords, anyone got any good research uses for it? I figure most people will be using them for tracking purposes only but I intend to use them to watch my competitors (mainly spammers and cloakers) bounce around the top 10 to track algorithm shifts.

[vrtlw]

They certainly help me in locating new link partners.

[internetheaven]

I sure hope you're not working in my sector cause I hate people that email me wanting links to them. I build links to sites that I find appropriate to my users and that have proven themselves reliable and relevant. I can't understand people that expect me to link to them just because they ask me to.

Most of them are asking for links because they are new and the number of new sites that just simply aren't there the following month is just appalling. Also, if you're having to go out looking for links chances are you don't deserve them ....

Any other uses people can think of other than bugging other hard-working webmasters?

[alika]

What I get are news and press releases, not new sites listed in the sector.

[goodroi]

News alerts help me track the marketing campaigns of my competitors.

[Fearless]

"What I get are news and press releases, not new sites listed in the sector. "

That's what I get, too. I set up both news and web alerts for our name and the competitors name. Get "news" not web content. He launched a web site and web alerts never said a thing.

Weird results, too. Sometimes veryyy strange stuff....

[Teknorat]

Web ALerts are great for monitoring keywords if you're lazy and finding linking partners blah blah blah.

[SlyOldDog]

I signed up for it for "location hotels"

And I got some news article once a week about something like Mike Tyson having been at "location" and having bitten off some "hotel" receptionist's ear.

I unsubscribed. It was no use to me. It needs much more customization options.

[pleeker]

My experience matches alika's and Fearless' - nothing but news alerts.

Is anyone successfully receiving alerts of new web sites in the main SERPs?

[graywolf]

I use it see who's moving in/up

[internetheaven]

I've received a couple of web alerts now and all it does is p**s me off. It is recommending sites for the keywords I've chosen and every single one so far has been cloaked or spam. How in the hell are these sites ranking so high when there are hundreds of other legitimate, well written, highly PageRanked, highly linked to web sites ranking under them? It doesn't make any sense.

All I can see Google Web Alerts doing is showing how bad Google's algorithm is doing, roll on MSN!