Show archive of September 2009
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SEO Conferences, Training & Best Practices
September 30, 2009
SEO best practices are foundational touch points of SEO knowledge, and the starting point for many successful search marketing campaigns. When SEO “Best Practices” Are Bunk was published earlier this month, it raised more than one eyebrow. Susan, Virginia and Daerick Gross — who makes his SEM Synergy guest host debut — debate the merits of SEO 101 and SEO best practices, concluding that best practices contribute to the communication, cooperation and knowledge so vital for search engine optimization.
Learning best practices, along with both foundational and advanced concepts of Internet marketing, is the focus of conferences and training courses. Chris Hart, director, Eastern region operations at Bruce Clay, Inc., talks to Virginia about SEOToolSet Training, being presented in New York in October. The SEO training course establishes foundational guidelines of search engine optimization and helps maintain the focus of marketing goals for an online business. Bruce Clay’s SEO training at SMX East offers an opportunity to extend SEO knowledge and experience, as well.
Then Daerick, Susan and Virginia look forward to next week’s Search Marketing Expo East, taking place in New York City October 5-8. One of the major advantages of conference attendance is face-to-face time with experts at the top of their field. Those who are able attend Q&A sessions like Ask the Search Engines, Ask the Link Builders and Ask the SEOs are sure to uncover some golden nuggets of Internet marketing. -
Hyperlocal Growth & Marketing Opportunities
September 23, 2009
In the ever-changing online landscape, trends and buzzwords come and go. But the emergence of hyperlocal communication and content online is likely here to stay. Hyperlocal content refers to the local social activities of Internet users. With anyone and everyone reaching publisher status, there’s been an increase in hyperlocal activity. From photo uploads, to classifieds, to geotagging and social networks, the hyperlocal movement is changing the face of the Web.
Ben Saren, CEO of local review and recommendation site CitySquares, and Internet strategist Martin Canchola, join Virginia to talk about how businesses can optimize their hyperlocal presence. Ben explains how a small business owner can maintain a presence on multiple social networks. Martin examines the challenges and benefits for small businesses entering online communities. The discussion also explores the competition between journalism and hyperlocal bloggers. 
Ben Saren
Martin Canchola
Then Michael, Susan and Virginia look at some news stories surrounding the growing hyperlocal scene. Yahoo! Local Neighbors is a message board for every town in the USA. Users can sign up to receive email updates or subscribe to RSS feeds for each area. The service is a great platform for small business owners looking to enter community watering holes. Meanwhile, news organizations are testing the hyperlocal waters, with The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times about to launch local editions in San Francisco and The Washington Post shutting down its hyperlocal experiment. -
The SEO Hierarchy of Needs
September 16, 2009
The SEO Hierarchy of Needs has proven to be a helpful resource for marketers looking to explain to clients the tiered priorities of search engine optimization. Bruce, Susan and Virginia discuss other applications for the diagram, including how it can be adapted to individual tactics as well as other Internet marketing disciplines. Check out the interactive SEO Hierarchy of Needs or the downloadable PDF for more information.
Speaking of needs, Topher Kohan, SEO coordinator at CNN.com, talks to Virginia about the technology we need to do our jobs and live our day-to-day lives. In Tech Torture with Topher, Topher tests just how hard it is to go a week without different technologies. He’s tried everything from living off an iPhone to not having access to tech outside the 9-5. It’s a fascinating study of our ultra-connected tendencies.
Then Paula, Susan and Virginia consider the differences between the old and new worlds — of marketing, that is. As the Internet revolutionized our lives, it revolutionized marketing as well. One common stumbling block of the transition has been attempts to directly translate traditional marketing efforts online. In truth, there are many major differences between online and offline marketing, best practices for each, and what the goals, metrics and expectations are for each. -
E-Commerce Marketing & ad:tech Chicago
September 9, 2009
Bruce returns to the office after a week in the Midwest attending ad:tech Chicago. He discusses his experience at the digital marketing event with Susan and Virginia. Offline-online integration and audience engagement were two major themes at the conference, while there was little awareness of search engine marketing and optimization. Bruce noticed a disconnect in the way that people apply their traditional marketing knowledge to the online sphere.
Dr. Ralph Wilson, editor and publisher of one of the largest resources for Internet marketing and e-commerce information, Web Marketing Today, has been developing, studying and applying Internet marketing best practices since 1995. He talks to Virginia about holistic online marketing, small business e-commerce marketing, the challenges of PayPal, as well as his recommendations for e-commerce marketing for the holidays.
Wrapping up the show, Paula Allen makes her SEM Synergy debut. Paula, Virginia and Susan look at some of the Internet marketing success stories of late. Twitter, ever the source of creative marketing campaigns, shows how community engagement can work online. A recent trend to bring viral marketing strategies to traditional platforms like TV and print, such as that seen in the SnakesOnACane.com campaign, has been controversial. Only time will tell how well such viral marketing might work in the long run. -
Analytics with Experts
September 2, 2009
Bruce presents a special episode of SEM Synergy dedicated to analytics with some of the experts. In interviews with Avinash Kaushik, Jim Sterne and Daniel Waisberg, Virginia and the guests take an in-depth look at forward thinking in the Web analytics field.
Avinash Kaushik, author of Web Analytics: An Hour A Day and the Analytics Evangelist for Google, and Daniel Waisberg, head of Web analytics at easynet Search Marketing and Chair of Marketing of the Web Analytics Association, have co-authored a two-part paper for SEMJ.org. In part one of “Web Analytics 2.0: Empowering Customer Centricity” (pdf), they look at current best practices of Web analytics. In the upcoming part two, Avinash and Daniel propose the pioneering concepts of the customer-centric Web Analytics 2.0.
Jim Sterne, Chairman of the Web Analytics Association and Founder of the eMetrics Marketing Optimization Summit, is getting ready for eMetrics Washington D.C. in October. The conference line up reflects the needs of today’s marketers working in tough economic circumstances. People are looking for practical and hands-on tips for making analytics work for them. Value is also being assigned to the measurement of conversion assists and measuring offline efforts.