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fanfic-scribbles · 5 years

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Lunch Buddy: Chapter Eight

Masterlist

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Overall Story Facts:

Fandom: MCU Captain America/Avengers

Story Summary: Steve Rogers makes a friend. A prickly, generally people-averse friend, but they’ll both take what they can get.

Quick Facts: Friendship (/Eventual Romance) – Steve Rogers & Reader (leading to Steve Rogers/Reader) – Female Reader

Story Warnings: Reader-insert that verges on OFC, written in 1st person past tense

Chapter 8: Notice

Chapter Summary: Things change, but thankfully not the important bits.

Chapter Word Count: 1478

It was a really nice day. The sun was out but didn’t feel obnoxious, people weren't getting on my last nerve, and I had already put in my two weeks’ notice. Freedom was in sight, even from within the confines of my little cubicle.

Yet that wasn’t why I kept incessantly tapping my pen and failing real hard to get anything productive done. My screen looked like gibberish and I kept getting up and down from my desk in vain effort to expend some of my excess energy.

Even though the change in the air felt good, I worried most about my lunch breaks. Steve had liked to be at that café before he roped himself into my orbit; what if he didn’t want to leave it? I had run the numbers but getting there from my new job would barely be worth it. He had my number and wasn’t afraid to use it, he knew where I lived, but we weren't…like that. Even after our big mutual coming out, we never talked about it. We went right back to sitting quietly at lunch and occasionally harassing each other via sporadic text. I’d been through this before with closer friends– take away the foundation, and everything falls apart. And our foundation was…hanging out at lunch.

I was both relieved and disappointed when I walked into the coffee shop and he wasn’t there. About ten minutes later I regretted that disappointment when he walked in the door, got his coffee, and plopped down with a bright, “Hi.”

I picked at my receipt. “Hi.”

He was more subdued when he asked, “How are you?”

“Oh…fine.”

“Really?” He leaned in. “You don’t look like it. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” I shrugged like it really was nothing and sat up. “In fact…I’ve got a new job. I put in my two weeks this morning.”

“Oh.” He looked pretty surprised, just shy of shocked. Yeah, I hadn’t really hinted that that was a thing I was doing. Oops. “Congratulations?”

“Thanks,” I said. I didn’t know what to add to that, though. “It is a good thing.”

“A better opportunity?” Steve asked and sipped his drink.

“Kind of a lateral move,” I admitted. But then I thought of why I had gone for this new job and said, “Actually, yeah, it’s a…a better work environment.”

“Good,” he said.

“Yes,” I agreed uselessly.

“It’s just going to be better when you’re done with the move?” he asked.

“Well, yeah. That. And I’m…” I looked around, even though I still had a couple of weeks, and whenever I felt like coming by, because it wasn’t like I was fucking moving. But. “I’m gonna miss this place.”

“It is nice,” he said. “But it’s good to have a change of scenery sometimes.”

Oh. “Y-yeah, I guess.” I was a little…well, actually I was just crushed. He sounded so flat, so blasé. Was that an inevitable reaction or did he really want to pretend that night never happened and he was just humoring me in the meantime?

“Nat’s been teaching me how to be less conspicuous,” he said. “A new place will be a great way to start testing that out.”

I was getting so far into ‘this is it, this is the end’ panic that I had to reboot. It took so long Steve said my name like he was concerned, just as my brain came back online. “Really?” I asked. “You don’t mind? I mean, you don’t have to change just because I am.”

“I know I don’t have to,” Steve said and shrugged. “Normally I don’t make myself a regular anywhere. I don’t like being easily found. I stayed because I like the company.”

I stared at him. His smile grew slowly, but ended up broad. And a little cocky. “It figures that something heartfelt would break you.”

“I’d have thought you knew that by now,” I said and took a sip of my drink. “For the record, you have terrible taste.”

“I could use some more friends with some better self-esteem, that’s for sure,” he said. He rolled the cup between his hands. “So, are you just switching jobs for a change? Or did something happen?”

That was a weird question. “Who knew you would be such a gossi–” I stopped and considered how he had asked that question and I stared at him. He would not look at me and I felt a chill in the pit of my stomach. “You…are the worst interrogator ever.”

“I’m better when I don’t care about the person in question,” he said and lifted his head to look at me. That was…surprisingly dark but also kind of badass.

I set the distraction aside. “So you know?”

“I assumed.” He shrugged. “You don’t seem like you’d take well to being told what to do. Especially with something like that.”

I held my face in my hands. “How did you find out.” I knew, but I had to hear it to move past it. I wanted to murder my boss and his boss.

“They, uh…contacted me and used your name.” Steve leaned in and said my name again. “Are you okay?”

“This is really embarrassing.”

“You don’t have anything to be embarrassed about.” Steve snorted and sat back. “That Mark guy should be though.”

I took a deep breath and stopped trying to merge my face with my hands. “Mark?”

“That’s the name of the man I spoke with.”

Maybe my boss could live then. “Did he sound like an enthusiastic used car salesman?”

Steve tilted his head. “Bill Lumbergh with energy?”

I perked up. “You know “Office Space?’”

“Clint made me watch it when he found out you work in an office. He said it’d help me understand the life of a ‘wage slave.’”

“Huh.” I wanted to protest, but. “I wish I could tell you it’s not at all like that but…it kind of is.”

Steve grimaced. “I’d rather jump off Stark’s tower without a parachute.”

I rolled my eyes. I knew he was super-whatever but I was really starting to hate hearing him say shit like that. “We have got to get you some better hobbies. How do you feel about needlework?”

He smiled but lost it right away. “Um, but I didn’t mean anything by it. I’m sure it’s a great kind of job and you– you’re–”

I stared at him. He stopped and shook his head, and leaned in again. “I want you to know, though, that if it’s costing you your job, I’d consider it. Maybe if I talk to them they’d back off you, at least.”

“I appreciate it, but…” I flicked one of the bits of paper I had worried to tiny pieces. “I really don’t appreciate how it went down. It gave me a bad feeling and I’m glad I listened to it. I’m real pissed they went behind my back.”

“I’m sorry,” Steve said and I could tell he meant it. I wanted to set someone on fire just for that.

“Don’t be,” I said, trying to make sure he knew I really meant it. “It’s not your fault, it’s theirs. And I’m…glad you’re coming with me.”

“Me too,” he said. He played with his hands like a three-year-old with better-than-average concentration. “By the way, I finished talking to my teammates about…about what we talked about. That night. You know.”

I did know. “How did it go?” I asked softly. “Do I have to beat up any Avengers?”

He grinned and lifted his head. His smile was so relieved he looked a little manic, but oddly boyish and charming. Lord help his future partner; they’d be wrapped around his thumb in about five minutes. “No,” he said. “It all went…fine. It went really well.”

“Good.”

“But now I’m a little sad that it did because I kind of want to see that.”

“You want to watch me get my ass kicked? Wow, what a friend.”

“I think you could yell some of them down,” Steve said. “But…they were all really good about it. Even Tony, once he knew I was serious.”

“That’s good. I’m glad,” I said and we settled into comfortable silence.

Naturally my alarm went off approximately two minutes later. I let out some of my frustration in a big sigh and started packing up.

“Two weeks,” Steve said like he was trying to be helpful.

“Fourteen days. Eighty hours.” I slung my bag on. And no overtime, god willing.

“Good luck,” he said cheerfully. Before I could leave he added, “If it helps, I’m going to lead them on. Until you’re in your new job. Just in case.”

“Worrywart,” I said and smiled. “But…thanks.”

“It’s all worth it to hear you choke that word out,” he said.

I threw my empty cup at his face and left him to laugh and enjoy his cubicle-free day.

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#steve rogers x reader #steve rogers & reader #captain america fanfic #avengers fanfic #reader insert #lunch buddy

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tpwkwrites · 6 years

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what if | h. styles

warnings: none

type: female reader insert

request: no

part two

“Okay, but what if I turned into Shrek twice a month for an entire day?” She chuckles at her own question. Harry rolls his eyes.

“Then I’d just have to be your Fiona.”

She squeezed his cheeks, making him open his eyes to her. She was leaning over him slightly, her hair framing her face, and her head blocking the harsh sun from his eyes. “You’d go ugly forever for me?”

one where Harry finally decides its time to marry you.

Harry doesn’t remember exactly when he’d fallen in love with y/n. He reckons it’s happened a few times since he’s met her.

When y/n, literally, stumbled into Harry’s life she was midway through university, studying sociology and psychology (and yes she’s tested Harry’s personality against her lecture notes. He’s a type two: the caring, interpersonal type – demonstrative, generous, people-pleasing, and possessive). Around this time is when he had first fallen in love with her. Their relationship was under wraps, no one knew but them. They liked it that way, maybe Harry a little more. He felt like he had her all to himself like he could get to know her in his own time.

See, how they would meet was Harry would wait until her dorm was officially closed to guests at night, and then he’d just sneak in. She’d given him an extra fob to get on the hall, and after shooting a quick here text, she would prop the suite door open for him. He would slip in, toeing his shoes off in the hall first, and make a beeline for her room before any of her suitemates could wake up.

On this one particular night, if he remembers correctly it was a Wednesday, when he stepped into the room she had the lights dimmed, dollar store candles lit, and a plate of minute microwave noodles accompanied by two glasses of orange squash. Harry remembers the shine in her eyes and the smile on her face.

“Wanted to get some takeout, but I didn’t have enough for everyone in the suite and I didn’t want to be that person, you know? So, like, I tried making some alfredo, chicken of course, but I burnt it. Still not sure how that happened, so, yeah.” She took a breath and smiled up at Harry. He felt his heart stomp in his chest. “Just know you’ve been busy lately so I want this to be your place to relax. Even if it’s just a little twin bed in the corner of Williams’ all-girls hall.”

And since then, she’d just continued to amaze him. When he turned twenty-four she got him a bouquet of pink roses and a spiral bound book with How To Fall in Love with Harry Styles sharpied on the cover. Inside was a note.

Harry,

When I met you, I was convinced you weren’t real. People like you don’t exist for people like me. But yet, you’re all mine. I don’t know much about love or soulmates, but I know that right now you are my everything, and I am so grateful. You’ve been around for twenty-four years today. I’m so lucky that I got to spend one of those years with you. To many more. And to you. Enjoy.

With all the love I can offer,

Y/n

Chapter 1: Get ready for smoothies, juice cleanses, Higgs and ridiculous amounts of yoga.

The smile on his face was embarrassingly large for the rest of the day. And every centimetre was for her.

Y/n is something Harry still can’t believe is real. Harry didn’t always believe that there was someone for everyone, himself included, but he was wrong. He was so wrong. Y/n is that one person who was so unusual to the natural order of things; who is his one exception.

Every time he looks at her all he can wonder is how far had she travelled. Years? Thousands of years? Lifetimes? All just to end up with him.

Once their relationship hit the press, Harry was certain it was all going to end. Though they never confirmed their relationship via social media, it was very obvious that they were a couple. Because of this, y/n had to pull out of in-classroom lectures and settle for online, which ended up putting her behind in her curriculum. Then came the harassment and stalking. Once people found out her dormitory, she had to move off campus. And unfortunately, so did her suitemates, as they were getting harassed for details of the couple as well. Harry thought the final straw was when she had to delete all forms of social media. Death threats, attacks, and abuse followed her everywhere, under every tweet, and under every Instagram post.

He sat her down one evening. They were at his place in London because, well, she hadn’t bought a flat and there was nowhere else for her to go, so. They were about to go out for dinner and Harry just knew that paparazzi were going to be hounding over him, especially since this is the first time he’s been out mid-tour break. He wanted to lay it down thick, give her a clean way out so she didn’t have to feel guilty or forced in any way.

“Harry, it’s nearly half eight.” He sighs, and she nods knowingly. In a hushed tone, she says, “is it your tummy again? I’ll cancel the reservation, we don’t have to go.”

Harry rubs his forehead gently, shutting his eyes. “No, y/n...I just...“

She sends him a smile. “H, everyone gets an upset belly. And you know I won’t judge you. Now come on. I’ll get the electric blanket and turn on Forrest Gump.” When she turns to leave the front room, Harry grips her arm a bit tighter to get her attention. She looks at him, a bit bewildered, before taking a seat again. “What’s going on?”

Harry thinks, at that moment, her eyes are the most beautiful they’ve ever been. Filled with wonder, longing, and fondness. He wants to savour that look because he’s not sure if he’ll get it forever.

“This is your out.” He says it after a deep breath and with what y/n recognised as his this-is-very-serious voice. “Out of me. Out of us. You’ve got nothing but–but shit since media found out, and all because of me. Don’t let me and my life ruin yours. So, there. This is your out. I won’t be mad at all. I won’t mention you in interviews or press. I won’t even contact you if that’s really what you want.” His hand drags through his hair, tangling it further. He hasn’t looked at her yet, he’s afraid to. “I love you, y/n, and if it takes you leaving then...then okay.”

She grips his hands before nudging his head up to hers. She’s got a smile on her face and water in her eyes.

“Thank you,” is what she says. Harry can nearly feel his lungs collapsing and he can nearly hear the crack dividing his heart in two.

He nods. “Well, I suppose–“

“–but no thank you.” The confusion on his face makes her giggle. “I’m far too in love with you Harry, it’s going to take more than a few cameramen and aggressive women to push me out of your life.”

And he’s beaming again.

So now, after a year and a half of dating, Harry had decided that he was going to marry her. It was simple really. He couldn’t possibly count the number of times a day he thinks of her. Or how many times he’s dreamed of her. Or how many times he’s seen her face and thought wow, that girl is all mine.

He went to his mum first. She, of course, cried. Big, fat, ugly, but very happy, tears. Her baby boy was getting married. Goodness. Then there was Gemma, who was more than pleased. Since she had met y/n she’d fallen in love with her too. It was impossible to not love her.

Telling her family was fairly easy as well. Sure, in the early days of their relationship her parents were a bit skeptical of them being together, Harry to be more specific. To be frank, they thought he was a bit too much for her. But they came around to the idea of having him around and might have even fallen for his charm as well.

All that was left to do now was ask.

The ring he’d gotten was a combination of their two favouritecolours. His, champagne and hers, emerald. The ring was emerald cut with white diamonds around the gem. It was her, it screamed her. It would be a pity to not have it adorning her fourth finger on her left hand.

He chose the 5th of May to ask for her hand in marriage. It was the sunniest of days in London, his back garden had been freshly cut a couple of days ago, and the groceries were just delivered. She was out getting petrol in Harry’s Range Rover. When he came home she surprised him with a five-day getaway to Chewton Glen’s Treehouse Hotel and Spa. Because they were leaving so early she’d thought it would be a good idea to fill up now. While she was gone Harry cut fruit, made sandwiches, made a pitcher of squash, and mixed a greek salad. He wanted this whole thing to be perfect. He wanted her to brag about this for the rest of their lives together.

He grabbed the softest blanket and the basket he’d whipped up and set up an area in the back of the garden, under some trees. The ring was burning a hole in his trousers.

She came back and stood on their deck with the cutest of grins on her face. Her bounce down the garden was quick, unlike the kiss she’d given him once close enough. “All this for me? What for?”

Harry pushes some hair from her face, tucking it gently behind her ear with the rest. Her face nuzzles into his palm and he could nearly burst. “Jus’ cause I love you.”

Lunch was amazing. They spoke about songs Harry had written, papers y/n had written, and then they moved to stranger topics. Like, what ifs. What if the earth just opened up and decided to eat us? Or what if you got locked in an elevator for five hours? He had his head on her lap. She was gently massaging his face, sometimes straining her back so she could kiss him.

“Okay, but what if I turned into Shrek twice a month for an entire day?” She chuckles at her own question. Harry rolls his eyes.

“Then I’d just have to be your Fiona.”

He barks out a contagious, boisterous laugh. “I’d flip the world upside down for you.” She kissed him. Soft and sweet. Just how she is. Harry cleared his throat. “What if I asked you to marry me?”

Her movements stopped and Harry felt her body tense a little. “What?”

Harry rocks up on one knee, sliding the ring from his pocket. Her hands fly up to her mouth and Harry chuckles nervously, a heat spreading over his cheeks.

“What if I told you there were over 100 billion stars in the sky, and not one of them shines as bright as you? Or what if I told you there were poems and songs that could make me cry, but none of them could ever move me like you do? And what if I told you that all I ever want to do is love you and be yours for the rest of our lives?” She’s wiping tears from her eyes hastily. “Y/n, will you marry me?”

A loud sob racks through her body and Harry smiles, sniffling lightly along with her. “I’m sorry,” she mumbles, wiping her eyes even though the tears kept coming.

Harry chuckles and grabs her hand. “It’s okay.” He pulls her hand closer, pushing the ring towards her finger.

Suddenly, she yanks it back, and that’s when the air starts to get cold. London’s sunny May 5th quickly became a chilling Antarctic winter.

“No. I’m sorry.” She walks away.

Now Harry is left wondering where he went wrong.

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forlawfirmsonlymarketing · 4 years

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YouTube’s Organic Visibility Tops Wikipedia in Google SERPs via @gregjarboe

When Searchmetrics presented Slide #14 in their “2019 SEO Year-End Review” presentation, you could have knocked me over with a feather.

That’s when I discovered that YouTube has steadily (and stealthily) increased its organic visibility in Google’s SERPs over the past two years and recently surpassed Wikipedia for the #1 spot.

Stop the presses! That’s significant information. So, why did Searchmetrics bury their lead? Because they told the story of how the SEO industry changed during 2019 in chronological order. In fact, YouTube reaching #1 was the fourth topic covered in the on-demand version of their webcast. Now, I realize that Google’s core updates on March 12, June 3, and September 24 deserved to be covered in a 2019 SEO year-end review. And so did Google’s BERT update on October 24. But, none of these stories are “new” news to SEOs. Ironically, this meant that the most newsworthy information followed a third section on “industry trends.” But, from a journalist’s perspective, YouTube edging past Wikipedia in organic visibility in Google SERPs is the most important “news you can use” in 2020.

How to Optimize Your Videos for YouTube & Google

Now, to use this news, you’ll need to optimize your videos for YouTube as well as for Google. I’ll tell you how to do that, but it isn’t that simple. First, you need to optimize your videos for YouTube’s algorithm. And, as I mentioned last year in my post, “Why You Must Unlearn What You Know About the YouTube Algorithm,” it’s hard to boil that down when YouTube’s algorithm works one way when videos are brand new and another way when they are more than six weeks old. As a quick recap, optimizing your metadata (the titles, tags, and descriptions for your content) matters less once YouTube has more data on watch time (the amount of time in aggregate that your viewers are watching your videos). Second, you also need to optimize your videos for Google’s universal search algorithm. And, as SEOs know all too well, Google made 3,234 “improvements” to search in 2018 – an average of almost 9 per day. Although most of these changes were minor, Google occasionally rolls out major algorithmic updates (like the three core updates in 2019) that affect search results in more significant ways. But, there is some high-level guidance that I can share with the SEO community.

1. Create Great YouTube Content for Both the YouTube & Google Audiences

The key to success is to create great YouTube content for both YouTube and Google audiences. And, the biggest difference between them isn’t demographic or geographic. It’s psychographic. Your YouTube audience is twice as likely to be early adopters, agreeing that “I am among the first of my friends and colleagues to try new products.” And your YouTube audience is 1.8x more likely to be influencers, agreeing that “people often come to me for advice before making a purchase.” Now, you generally need your primary audience to discover, watch, like, share, and add comments to your video content on YouTube before your secondary audience will see it in a Google SERP. The exceptions to this process are compelling commercials or funny skits on TV that people hear about from their friends, family, or colleagues and then go searching for on Google as well as YouTube. For example, if you analyze YouTube’s list of Top Trending Videos of 2019 (USA), then you’ll quickly see that all but two were uploaded by popular YouTube Creators (aka early adopters and influencers). But, let’s take a closer look at the two exceptions, which also appeared on TV. One is “We Believe: The Best Men Can Be | Gillette (Short Film).” As the video’s description says:

“Bullying. Harassment. Is this the best a man can get? It’s only by challenging ourselves to do more, that we can get closer to our best. To say the right thing, to act the right way. We are taking action at https://gillette.com/en-us/about/the-best-men-can-be Join us.”

Uploaded on January 13, 2019, the video is 1:48 long, and has more than 33 million views and 807,000 “Likes,” making it the fifth most liked video of the year. And, as you can see below, it ranks #1 in Google.

The other is “R. Kelly Interview Cold Open – SNL.” As the video’s description says:

“Gayle King (Leslie Jones) interviews R. Kelly (Kenan Thompson) about the allegations leveled against him.”

Uploaded on March 10, 2019, this 7:36 video has almost 15.9 million views and 233,000 “Likes,” making it the ninth most liked videos of the year. And as you can see below, the YouTube version ranks #1, the version on NBC.com ranks #2, the Facebook version ranks #3, and the Dailymotion version ranks #4 in the Google SERP.

In other words, you need to create great YouTube content or great TV content that is also uploaded to YouTube if you want it to appear in Google’s SERPs. And, although many brands and media companies create TV content, they seem to be afraid or unable to create the kind of great content that popular YouTube Creators, Gillette, and SNL created in 2019. There are other steps that you should take to optimize your videos for YouTube and Google.

2. Create Descriptive & Accurate Metadata & Thumbnails

Now, I don’t need to tell SEOs that YouTube is the world’s second-largest search engine, behind only Google. But, did you know they have different algorithms? The goals of YouTube’s search and discovery algorithm are:

“To help viewers find the videos they want to watch, and to maximize long-term viewer engagement and satisfaction.”

So, before or after you’ve created great YouTube content that maximizes viewer engagement and satisfaction, you should:

Conduct Keyword Research

Conduct keyword research to find what your target audiences want to watch on YouTube or discover on Google. I recommend using one or both of the following tools: Google Trends This tool has both Google and YouTube search data going back more than 12 years. This enables you to see if there is existing YouTube search interest as well as Google search interest in the keywords, terms, and phrases that you plan to use to write optimized titles, tags, and descriptions for your video content. And don’t be surprised to discover that search interest trends on YouTube are different than they are on Google. Keyword Tool & Its Sister Keyword Tool for YouTube Both use the autocomplete features on Google as well as YouTube to generate highly relevant long-tail keywords. While there are lots of other keyword tools for Google, you want to identify terms and phrases that will help your videos get found on both YouTube and Google. So, that narrows your list of tool options fairly dramatically.

Use Compelling Titles for Your Videos That Accurately Represent the Content

How do you make a video’s title compelling? Well, ask yourself, “If it showed up in a search, would my target viewer click on it?” Now, basic YouTube SEO advice recommends that you should include relevant keywords in your title. The study by Justin Briggs that I wrote about last year found that this advice was still valid. But, an analysis of text-based targeting came to a more nuanced conclusion. The study, which looked at 3.8 million data points across 100,000 videos and 75,000 channels, found that:

90% of high ranking videos had some had some variant of the keyword in the title. So, exact match keywords help, but they aren’t required.

There is a relationship between title length and ranking performance. Most titles on videos ranking in the top 20 positions averaged around 47-48 characters, with the highest-ranking YouTube videos having titles 20-40 characters long.

Write Detailed Descriptions Using Video SEO Best Practices

The same study by Briggs found that there is a positive relationship between broad match keyword usage in descriptions and ranking. However, with only 75% of top 20 results using some broad match variant in their description text, it was not as essential as including your keyword in your title. But, it is still highly recommended. Briggs also found that a lengthy and more robust description was advantageous, but only to a point. The sweet spot seemed to be between 200 and 350 words. Beyond 350 words, average rank performed worse on average. Now, only the first few sentences of your description will appear in search results or above the fold on a watch page – so make them count!

Use a Comprehensive Number of Related Video Tags

Although Google does not use the keywords meta tag in web ranking, YouTube uses tags to help viewers find the videos they want to watch. And, the YouTube Search and Discovery team says that the influence of tags is variable based on different factors, such as how closely the tags are related to each other on a topic. In the past, YouTube has recommended using the whole 270-character limit. And Briggs found the sweet spot was around 200 to 300 characters. So, it seems that the more data you give YouTube in the keyword tag field, the better a video performs in YouTube search and suggested videos. YouTube also seemed to prefer 2-4 word phrases over many single word phrases when Briggs compared this to the optimal number of unique tags used to achieve the character count. Tag performance was highest between 31 and 40 distinct tags, which may suggest it’s better to target multiple moderate-length keywords than it is to use very short or very long keyword phrases.

Create Thumbnails That Accurately Represent Your Content

Although it doesn’t impact ranking, you should also create thumbnails that accurately represent your content. Thumbnails show up in different sizes and formats all across YouTube and outside of it on Google. You need to make sure you’ve got a strong, vibrant image that pops no matter what size it is. This can encourage a viewer to click on your video even if it’s ranked below another one.

3. Keep Viewers Watching with Video Best Practices

Once viewers have discovered your video, you need to keep them watching it – if you are going to rack up enough watch time to rank well on YouTube as well as appear in Google. This means you need to be an effective editor. Create a compelling opening to your videos to hook viewers right from the start, as well as maintain and build interest throughout the video. To do this, you need to master the storytelling techniques that I wrote about in my October 2018 post entitled, “6 Lessons In Video Storytelling You Can Learn from Indian Brands.” So, how long a story should you tell? Before October 2012, I would have said about 2 to 3 minutes long. But, based on the importance of watch time in YouTube’s ranking algorithm, I now recommend that you create great content that is longer than 4:30, but shorter than 16:00. In fact, the study by Briggs found that “duration,” or how long a YouTube video is, had several surprising impacts on ranking and viewer behavior. He said:

“A lot of creators struggle with how long they should make a video, and this data helps answer that.”

Briggs found viewers tended to like longer, but not too long, videos. For example, the videos that were most effective at converting views into likes were those between 10 and 16 minutes long. Videos less than 5 minutes long tended to get a lower percentage of positive reviews, and videos longer than 16 minutes started to see a decline in engagement. His study also found that short videos were typically rated very poorly. In general, videos less than a minute did very, very poorly concerning positive reviews. Positive sentiment improved with every minute up until about 4 minutes, where it evened out. But, how does duration influence rankings? Briggs found that YouTube’s algorithm seemed to follow the audience. The algorithm appeared to rank videos less than 2 minutes notably worse, but this evened out after about 4 minutes. He also found that a video’s duration helps a lot to drive incremental watch time up until about 4.5 minutes, but it only helps a little after 4.5 minutes. However, it didn’t decline. It continues to rise, so if you’re trying to maximize watch time, do not shy away from 10+ minute videos. Also, there is no decline in sentiment, rank, or views for videos beyond 10 minutes. This point is vital, because watch time is a significant ranking factor. While there is a retention curve associated with video duration which describes how users typically “fall off” throughout a video, longer videos can drive incremental watch time, even if they become less efficient at doing this with each additional minute. In simple terms, a 5-minute video might get more views than a 10-minute video, but the 10-minute video is more likely to accumulate a substantial amount of watch time to make up for that. In the study by Briggs, 10-minute videos had about 15% more watch time than those that were 5 minutes. And Briggs saw 10+ minute videos ranking well in YouTube search. In fact, the average duration of videos that ranked in the top 5 positions was 11 minutes and 44 seconds, and there appeared to be a positive relationship between video length and ranking.

Now, you can’t fix the duration of your existing videos retroactively. So, you’ll need to start creating a higher percentage of longer videos going forward. You should also build your subscriber base. Subscribers are your most loyal fans and will be notified of new videos and playlists to watch. In addition, the study by Briggs found that larger channels with higher subscriber counts also had higher rankings than those with fewer subscribers in their niche. He said:

“There is a positive relationship between subscriber counts and rankings. While this might be a ‘channel authority’ style signal, it’s important to think of subscriptions as a CRM / distribution list. Channels with larger subscriber counts have a useful tool that drives views through browse features, personalized recommendations, and notifications.”

Briggs added:

“It’s also suggestive of an inherent, engaged audience that can seed videos with a baseline level of views from viewers that are prone to have better retention and longer session durations, driving up watch time relative to channels with less brand affinity. It may also be suggestive of a higher likelihood of binge-watching and playlist usage, which can help seed videos with better co-watch data to power video recommendations.”

You should also engage your audience. Online video is an inherently social medium. Involve your audience in your videos, encourage comments, and interact with your viewers as part of the content. In addition, leverage other social media, especially Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

4. Organize & Program Your Content

Build Long Watch-Time Sessions by Organizing Themed Content Using Playlists

ou can use your own videos, other videos, or a combination of both. This not only creates another asset that can appear in YouTube search results and in Suggested Videos, it also increases the watch time of videos on your channel and across YouTube.

Create a Regular Release Schedule and Publish Videos More Frequently

Releasing content frequently on a recurring schedule keeps your audience’s interest and impacts YouTube’s algorithm. This means you need to develop a programming strategy.

If You Can’t Beat Them, Join Them

Although it’s relatively new “news” that YouTube.com has steadily (and stealthily) increased its organic visibility in Google’s SERPs over the past two years and recently surpassed Wikipedia.org for the #1 spot, most of the best practices for video SEO were published almost a year ago. So, why haven’t more SEOs taken advantage of this significant trend? Well, I suspect there are several possible explanations. For starters, YouTube videos started appearing in Google universal search results back in May 2007, but only 500,000 out of the 3 million SEOs in the world mention “video SEO” in their LinkedIn profile today. So, five out of six SEOs around the globe still don’t think video SEO is part of their job. In addition, many organizations put SEO and YouTube marketing in different silos in the org chart and even different locations around the country. So, there is little informal collaboration between the two. Finally, as I mention above, many brands and media companies seem to be afraid or unable to create the kind of great content that popular YouTube Creators, Gillette, and SNL created in 2019. So, let me conclude by giving you another option: Sponsored videos. According to Tubular Labs data, 180,000 brands have sponsored 1.3 million videos in 400,000 campaigns created by 115,000 content partners. In other words, if your organization or client can’t or won’t create the kind of great content that popular YouTube Creators do, then sponsor their next video. For example, Sam’s Club sponsored a video entitled, “Real Life Trick Shots 3 | Dude Perfect.” Uploaded February 25, 2019, this video is 3:42 long, and it has 69.5 million views and 1.5 million “Likes.”

And, as you can see below, it ranks #1 on Google.

In other words, if you can’t beat them, join them. More Resources:

Image Credits In-Post Image: Searchmetrics All screenshots taken by author, December 2019

https://www.businesscreatorplus.com/youtubes-organic-visibility-tops-wikipedia-in-google-serps-via-gregjarboe/

#googlesearchranking #localseo #onlinemarketing #dailydoseofmarketing

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your-iron-lung · 7 years

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Mixed Up 10 | The Pirate Song |

Chapter Word Count: 2208

Pairings: Zoro/Sanji

Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance

Chapter Warning: Strong Language

Previous Chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9,

Next Chapter: 11

The tension that surrounded the front-desk was so palpable that it was keeping customers from entering or leaving the store. A few had tried to overcome their uneasiness by attempting to walk past the duo under Zoro's soul-chilling glare, but were so perturbed and consumed by dread that they gave up and continued to circle dumbly around the store until they felt it was safe enough to pass. Nami and Sanji were oblivious to the anxiety as they stood leaning over the counter, watching Zoro gleefully as he mutely munched away at the sandwich Sanji had brought him for lunch.

The two of them looked absolutely delighted as they conspiratorially leaned together, already at ease with one another despite only having met once before. Knowing that they were waiting for him to make the first move, Zoro took his time eating, slowly consuming his food with all the lackluster of a grazing farm animal. None of them mentioned or even seemed to notice the apprehensive customers that had a formed a line outside the door, waiting to come inside.

Swallowing down the last bite of his sandwich, Zoro finally spoke.

"Well, I'm glad you two are fucking happy about this."

In an instant the thick, atmospheric cloud of tension snapped and dissipated as a collective sigh of relief arose from the customers who felt they were now free to leave and enter.

Zoro slouched back in Nami's rolling chair, swiveling around discontentedly in his seat to cast his seething glare between the two of them, ignoring the sudden influx of people that circulated past them. Nami laughed a bright, jubilant laugh that Sanji took to liking immediately. He then felt compelled to laugh along with her as he leaned across the counter to level Zoro's glare with a mirthful look of his own.

"I bring you food and business, and this is what I get in return? Death threats and empty promises? I expected better from a, uh, hang on-" Sanji paused in his tirade to grab and begin flipping through the Super-Star! Guitar's instructor profile booklet the front-desk counter offered its guests. He found Zoro's page at the back quickly, snickered at the unflattering photograph of him, and read aloud from the quick biography and pretended not to be impressed with what he read. "-From a '3 time Bass Guitar Monthly cover story performer, who's use of the 3-necked bass 'Santoryu' has made favourable impressions across the country.' See here, I thought you were supposed to be a professional."

"I am," Zoro snarled, sitting up to snatch the booklet away before Sanji could read anything more about him. "And my threats are anything but empty."

Rolling his eyes and snatching the booklet back, Sanji said, "I'm sure you're all bark and no bite, but I wasn't talking about your lame death threats, idiot."

"Then-"

"The art show," Sanji replied flippantly, scouring through the booklet to inspect the other instructors and paused over Brook's page. "Usopp's art show is tomorrow; you haven't even tried to make an effort to get me any more involved in that."

"Wow, really?" Nami said in a tone that was so disapproving, several patrons were stricken with a severe sense of inadequacy that would haunt them for the rest of their day. She hopped and twisted onto the countertop so that her legs were dangling on Zoro's side and kicked out at her associate, who easily rolled out of reach in her chair. "I told you to take him!"

"I was!" Zoro said angrily, scooting around in the wheeled chair as Nami continued with her attempts at harassing him. "I still am! The damn thing hasn't happened yet, so get off my ass about it."

"That may be, but I still don't know where the hell it is, or what time it starts, or what the fuck being a fake bodyguard even entails," Sanji said flatly, closing the booklet and setting it aside before it could offer him further distraction.

Rolled all the way against the far wall, Zoro planted his feet firmly on the ground and crossed his arms, frowning harshly at the both of them.

"It starts at 7," he began, narrowing his eyes at Nami when she stuck her tongue out at him. "We have to get there early, though, so we can help set up, so I'll come by at 4."

"That's really fucking early, are you that incompetent with directions?"

"Fuck you," Zoro bit out. "He wants me to pick up some prints at his place beforehand so we have to leave early enough to get that shit done, asshole. Does that cover it?"

"No," Sanji said, amused with how easy it was to irritate him. "Where is it, what do I have to do, etcetera?"

"Hey, Zoro!"

Behind Sanji, a young teenaged girl waved enthusiastically at the grumpy looking punk, prompting Zoro to stand up and ignore Sanji outright as he went to great his next lesson.

"Been practicing?" Zoro questioned as he lead her away, looking back over his shoulder to sneer nastily at both Nami and Sanji.

'Rude fucker,' Sanji mouthed after him as he left, earning a hasty and discreet middle finger in response that made him snicker.

"Don't worry about the details too much," Nami said as she slid off her perch to retake her seat behind the counter. Sanji turned back towards her as she began to organize her desk. "All you really have to do is dress formal and look imposing to keep Usopp from shitting himself."

"Easy," Sanji said, striking what he hoped was a dashing, yet imposing form.

"Sure." Nami smiled. "The hard part for you is going to be getting along with Zoro the whole night."

"Bastard," he said, slumping.

Giggling, Nami reached across to where the printer was situated on her left and grabbed a piece of paper from its tray.

"Anyway," she said as she began to write on it. "I'm going to go ahead and give you the directions to the place since Zoro's probably going to make you drive."

"Asshole," Sanji commented lazily, leaning over the counter to watch as she wrote. "What's 'OperationUtopia'?"

"It's the venue the show gets held at," she replied, handing the piece of paper over to him once she finished detailing the instructions. "It's really hard to find because it's so underground, but Zoro's been there before often enough that if you can at least get him in the general area he should be able to recognize it. But that might be giving him too much credit."

"I'll be sure to jog his memory if he needs a reminder."

He gazed over her neat handwriting before folding the piece of paper until it was small enough to fit in his pocket. He looked back to Nami, who sat twisting in her seat with the sweetest smile he had ever seen gracing her gorgeous face and thought momentarily about asking her out on a dinner date.

Instead, he returned her smile with a charming one of his own and asked for her number.

"You think you're real smooth, huh?" she teased as she pulled out another piece of paper from the printer and tore it in half, writing her number down on one of the halves and handing it over to him. "That's just in case Zoro gets you guys really and truly lost."

"Of course, mon Cherie," Sanji cooed, happily noticing that she had adorned the little scrap piece of paper with hearts. "And now I must sadly take my leave of you, but you can expect many a call or text from me later!"

"Uh-huh, buh-bye now Sanji."

Nami winked at him as he gathered together the containers he'd brought their food in and turned to leave. Sanji's heart fluttered as he bowed before her and then left through the door, ignoring how many people were struggling to get in and out.

As he strode down the sidewalk back towards his car, and even through the rest of his day, Sanji felt wonderfully happy. With the weight of not knowing where to be and what to do the next day lifted from him, he proceeded to get the curtain rods he'd been denied the night before and spent the rest of the day texting Nami off and on, learning various things about both her and Zoro in the process.

He was surprised, though not very, to learn that they had been in a band together a few years ago, though they had since been put on an indefinite hiatus. She wouldn't tell him why, but suggested he check out their music and had given him the name of their band and a link to their old soundcloud.

When he got home and fixed the rods above the windows in his bedroom, he pulled out his laptop and set it up in the kitchen so he could listen to their music while he prepared dinner. Rolling up his shirt sleeves, he entered in the link Nami had sent him via phone, and pulled up the Mugiwara Menace's soundcloud profile.

Glancing through their track listings, Sanji found himself unsure of where to start, and wondered if he should ask Nami what her opinion on where to start was- decided he didn't want to bother her with his indecisiveness- and eventually settled for listening through their discography in the order the songs had been uploaded. With his laptop placed off to the side on the counter, he hit play on the first track and then began to work through his dinner routine.

As the song started to play, he paused and glanced back to his laptop screen, scrutinizing the band's profile picture when the sounds he thought they'd be playing didn't exactly line up with what he thought their punk band would be like.

Along with Zoro (who looked like a younger, dorkier version of himself), and Nami (who was as cute and beautiful as she was now), a third man stood between them that Sanji didn't recognize. Wondering if this was just someone Sanji hadn't met yet, he was startled to see that the band had just over 5,000 followers. For a band of only 3 people to exist within a genre that was as atypical as punk was- to have that many fans was impressive.

Below the picture, a caption read that they were the pioneers of a new punk genre they'd proudly labeled 'Parrot-Punk', which was what was apparently being played for him now.

Snorting at the idiocy of the genre they'd given himself, he wondered what the hell he was getting into when the song he'd selected got over its calm intro. It started out quietly but soon crescendoed into a loud, punkish roar that filled and consumed his apartment with a catastrophic beat that still managed to follow an organized rhythmic pattern. He quickly turned the volume down to something that wouldn't blow his ears out and then tried to resume cooking.

For the most part, it sounded like the same generic punk sounds he'd heard before, but with an odd mixture of instruments he wouldn't have expected a punk band to make use of- and then the vocalist began to sing.

He wasn't sure why, but he'd assumed that Nami's voice was the one he was going to hear shouting out the lyrics, and was taken by complete and total surprise when he realized that the singer was Zoro.

Sanji's first instinct was to laugh.

Zoro's voice was low, rough, raw, and clearly not intended to sing with, but it didn't stop him from bellowing out the words to the song in a manner that was so impactful it made Sanji slowly stop what he was doing entirely.

The song was jaunty and sounded like a rowdy sea-shanty reinvented into an angry anthem of anti-establishment. The overall tune of it sounded happy and carefree, but when he listened to the lyrics he understood just how misleading the tune really was.

There were so many individual components to the song that Sanji initially wasn't sure what he was meant to focus on first. He tried to listen to the song as a whole, and found himself overwhelmed with all the different aspects the song had going for it. The guitar was accompanied with a violin that jilted around the thick, heavy, resounding bass line that thudded in time with the sharp percussion, leading Sanji on as the track progressed towards its end.

It was, he had to admit, very well composed and put together; it went well beyond what he thought Zoro's song-writing capabilities could be, and wondered which one among them was the one who'd actually written it. He stared down at the forgotten ingredients he had splayed before him and doubted his initial ability to be able to make fun of Zoro's singing.

He let the song finish and stood in momentary awe before he decided that he wouldn't be able to concentrate on cooking and listening to the music at the same time. He bookmarked the band's soundcloud and then shut his laptop before finishing his dinner, wondering how his tomorrow would play out and what impact getting into their music would be.

#zosan fanfic #zosan fanfiction #zosan #zoro/sanji #one piece fanfiction #one piece #punk au #modern day au #slow burn #mixed up

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deniscollins · 5 years

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Did You Vote? Now Your Friends May Know (and Nag You)

Political science research has shown that people turn out to vote in higher numbers when they think their family and neighbors are observing their civic behavior. If you were a manager, what would you do, send a remember to vote email to: (1) nobody, (2) all employees, or (3) employees who haven’t voted in previous elections? Why? What are the ethics underlying your decision?

My dentist, a registered Republican, did not vote in the last midterm elections, in 2014.

But the owner of my local bookstore, a registered Democrat, did vote then. So did my accountant, who is not registered with either party.

I know these details not because the dentist, the bookseller and the accountant volunteered to share their voting histories with me. I found out from VoteWithMe and OutVote, two new political apps that are trying to use peer pressure to get people to vote Tuesday.

The apps are to elections what Zillow is to real estate — services that pull public information from government records, repackage it for consumer viewing and make it available at the touch of a smartphone button. But instead of giving you a peek at house prices, VoteWithMe and OutVote let you snoop on which of your friends voted in past elections and their party affiliations — and then prod them to go to the polls by sending them scripted messages like “You gonna vote?”

“I don’t want this to come off like we’re shaming our friends into voting,” said Naseem Makiya, the chief executive of OutVote, a start-up in Boston. But, he said, “I think a lot of people might vote just because they’re frankly worried that their friends will find out if they didn’t.”

Whom Americans vote for is private. But other information in their state voter files is public information; depending on the state, it can include details like their name, address, phone number and party affiliation and when they voted. The apps try to match the people in a smartphone’s contacts to their voter files, then display some of those details.

The data’s increasing availability may surprise people receiving messages nudging them to vote — or even trouble them, by exposing personal politics they might have preferred to keep to themselves. Political campaigns have for years purchased voter files from states or bought national voter databases from data brokers, but the information has otherwise had little public exposure outside of campaign use. Now any app user can easily harness such data to make inferences about, and try to influence, their contacts’ voting behavior.

“You want to use that gentle social pressure around voting,” said Amanda Coulombe, general manager of organizing at NGP VAN, a campaign technology company for Democrats, “but really making sure you are balancing that with not freaking people out.”

The apps could also have unintended consequences, said Ira Rubinstein, a senior fellow at the Information Law Institute at New York University School of Law who studies voter privacy.

For one thing, he said, people could use the apps to create contact lists of acquaintances, strangers or public figures they do not like and maliciously publicize their voting histories. As a hypothetical example, he said, religious leaders might be outed for registering with a political party whose platform runs counter to their institution’s doctrine.

“I don’t think there are any particular safeguards to prevent people from just assembling a contact list for more malicious purposes, acquiring this information and using it to harass or coerce people,” Mr. Rubinstein said.

The apps’ developers say they are simply democratizing access to these public records.

The apps are free for consumers to use. But OutVote, which received seed funding last summer from Y Combinator, a well-known start-up accelerator, also works with political candidates and groups that pay fees to use the app as part of their campaigns. VoteWithMe was developed by the New Data Project, a nonprofit founded by Obama administration appointees.

Anyone can use the apps, but executives say they hope to improve voter turnout particularly among young Democrats. The VoteWithMe app, for instance, is preset to show likely Democrats among a user’s contacts. Users must change the app’s settings to see the voting histories of all of their contacts. Some Republican political apps also enable consumers to send scripted messages, but do not show their contacts’ voting history.

Political science research has shown that people turn out to vote in higher numbers when they think their family and neighbors are observing their civic behavior. The VoteWithMe and OutVote apps simply automate that surveillance and social pressure.

“The message is going to be coming from someone that not only knows who you are but knows that you didn’t vote last time,” said Mikey Dickerson, the executive director of the New Data Project, who served as chief of the United States Digital Service under President Barack Obama. “We are trying to engineer a situation where there is a social expectation that they do vote.”

Lily Jampol, a diversity and inclusion consultant in San Francisco, downloaded the VoteWithMe app last Monday. By Tuesday afternoon, she said, she had sent dozens of text messages to people in her contacts.

“I’ve been optimizing, trying to wrangle for people who I think will be most affected,” said Ms. Jampol, a behavioral scientist.

The apps also distinguish engaged voters from wayward ones.

If someone in your contacts list has a perfect voting record, OutVote identifies him or her as a “super voter” and displays an emoji of a smiley face with red hearts for eyes next to the name. For those “woke friends who vote,” it suggests sending a message saying: “I know you’re gonna vote on November 6 DUH, but make sure to remind your friends too!”

Both apps display election years that people have skipped with a big red slash next to their names. OutVote marks voters who missed elections with a sad-faced emoji dripping a tear.

To test the apps, reporters at The New York Times created a mock contact list of politicians and celebrities with their names, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses and workplaces and other data about them. The results suggest how easy it can be to use the information to pry into someone’s personal life.

Among other things, the apps indicated that Senator John Thune, the South Dakota Republican who recently led hearings on consumer privacy, and Senator Dianne Feinstein, the California Democrat, each faithfully voted in every general, primary and municipal election dating back to 2004.

They also reported that Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a New York Democrat running for the House, did not vote in the last midterm elections in 2014. Nor did Alyssa Milano, an actress and activist who recently posted a video on Twitter urging her followers to vote.

A spokesman for Ms. Ocasio-Cortez said that she was purged from the New York voter rolls in 2016 and that he was looking into 2014. Ms. Milano said, in a message sent via her publicist, that she was dealing at the time with severe postpartum depression after the premature birth of her daughter.

By inspecting data that the apps harvested from our contacts, The Times also found that they took more personal data than required to match voters — such as the workplace and email address of Senator Ted Cruz, the Texas Republican.

After queries from The Times, VoteWithMe and OutVote each said they had eliminated some types of data that their apps were harvesting. In subsequent testing last week, The Times found that VoteWithMe no longer collected email addresses, street names and numbers, or company names. But OutVote continued to do so. Mr. Makiya of OutVote said the app had stopped collecting social profile data but needed the email addresses to match voter files.

For the midterm elections, OutVote is also working with Vote.org, a nonprofit organization that tries to increase voter participation, on a nonpartisan app.

That app allows users to send messages asking contacts to vote — without displaying those contacts’ voting histories. It also collects data on users’ contacts and matches them to voter files to help Vote.org track whether people who received messages were more likely to vote than people who did not.

Debra Cleaver, chief executive of Vote.org, said the app was part of an experiment to determine the efficacy of such digital social pressure tools. It might turn out, she said, that it takes messages from several friends to get someone to vote.

The app’s news release, however, did not disclose that users would be part of an experiment, nor did the descriptions of Vote.org’s app in the Google Play and Apple app stores. A Vote.org spokeswoman said the app’s privacy policy informed users that the group may use their data to measure the effectiveness of its programs.

“No one really knows whether peer-to-peer technology has been successful this year,” Ms. Cleaver said. “I think we should be cautiously optimistic but realistic.”

#Voting

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