1) Think of a Keyword as a Recommendation. When a visitor types in a search query (keyword search) in a search engine bar, Google is recommending sites. SEO friendly sites are created to support ranking for more long lists of relevant keywords (short tail and long tail) and are selected based on a combination of keyword research, competitive factors and overall business goals.
Google has more than 240 algorithmic elements (that they don’t share;) Getting sites to rank requires many things, but most importantly good site architecture, good content, a competitive link profile, and (more recently) social signal.
2) Google Gives “Recommendations” to Sites based on Relevance and Trust. The latter is achieved over time. Sites may or may not achieve every keyword in the list, but the goal is continued work on and off page to reach that goal.
3) Local Search is Different from Natural Search. Google Places has a different algorithm with different rules. It’s an important but separate strategy.
4) Long Tail Search Queries are Important. One of the less understood terms for keyword selection is long tail keywords. Long tail keywords are important as they maximize conversion rates. These are terms that are longer than one or two words and often have stronger intention than more general, higher volume keywords. One of the core concepts in the marketing world is the 80/20 rate. This concept defines that 20% of your clients make 80% of your business. Though long tail keywords will only provide about 20% of your traffic, it may statistically be 80% of your leads and sales conversion. (This isn’t always true, but it’s a guideline that helps clients understand the value of the long tail.) Being more specific, hence less frequent, long tail keywords can go on indefinitely so that the sum of all of them can eventually exceed the combined searches of most common keywords. Let’s take an example. Someone is looking for shoes can type “shoes” in a search engine. That person will have to sieve through some 198 million pages in Google to get to the shoes really wanted. Let’s look at the long tail keywords based on the assumption that the person knows what type of shoes is being looked for (infographic from Marketing Sherpa):
“red shoes” – 94 million results
“red sport shoes” – 7 million results
“red mizuno sport shoes” – 312 000 results
“red mizuno men sport shoes” – 215 000 results
As the query gets more precise, the competition gets lower, hence making it easier to rank on the product. Along with that, as the person knows specifically (deeper intention) what shoes are being targeted, the probability of selling this product or service to that person is getting higher. Long tail keyword traffic is lower but brings more qualified traffic in, maximizing conversions. This means that long tail = better conversion.
5) Keyword Research is One Part of the Overall Search Strategy. Lists includes short and long tail terms to reach the high volume search as well as the less frequent but more conversion-valuable search terms. Additionally, terms should be funneled to the pages that are most relevant to that query (not all keywords should go to the home page).
6) Marketers Use Search Ranking Tools to Define Rankings. Prior to personalized/local and universal search, every visitor saw the same results for a search query. Now the algorithm varies those results based on a number of other factors including personalization, region, past searching history, etc. To define for the client where a search query/keyword is ranking, we use tools. (Like RankChecker and SEOmoz.org). These tools allows us to share an aggregate of how the keywords are ranking (though not every searcher sees the same thing) it’s a good guideline of ranking performance. Rankings can also change daily so week to week focus is on traffic and lead performance and we review keyword ranking and improvement once a month.
7) There are Other (More Important) Performance Metrics. Rankings are one element of our performance metrics dashboard. Rankings get us awareness and traffic, which acquire leads, which generates business. Obsessively monitoring ranking is a waste of precious time. Look at those reports once a month, but focus analytics time on visits and how traffic is using the site and if they’re converting to revenue.
SMX Advanced is always a favorite and sessions this year were full of fantastic advice and guidance from the pros.
Here are Top Ten Takeaways for 2011
10. Search is growing up. The New Periodic Table of SEO gives the SEO uneducated a starting place for understanding search. Search changes so rapidly that there isn’t an education equivalent to traditional marketing or PR. Yet there is enough complexity to the discipline that it can’t be summed up in a two sentence pitch. This table helps people relate concepts of SEO to a medium they already understand. This could be the year people quit thinking about SEO as a black art. Maybe. Business owners, spend time with this table to help you better understand the search conversation.
9. Paid Search forecasting provides competitive advantage. Provide forecasting for one adgroup, monitor and share findings with other groups.
8. Social is becoming more integrated with online marketing strategies. It’s common for each tactical resource to go it’s separate way and come back to the table touting success. Online marketers are doing a better job of sharing objectives and reporting on collaborative goals. Make one goal this quarter that requires collaboration between social and other online goals.
7. Defining personas contributes to conversion optimization. Create an exercise where you define and research 4 personas that are your customers. Define 4 tactics for better reaching each persona. Understand what that user wants to do and help them do it.
6. Search marketers are researchers. Vanessa Fox pointed out that a great deal of research has to be done to prepare the customer for understanding personas. Utilize in-house and external resources to help fill out your research.
5. Facebook matters to SEO. Be sure to use Share and Social Plug ins. Use your brand name in the link, send posts back to your website.
4. Keyword research requires good tools. Google Instant, Trending and Contextual (for PPC) are great ways to get deeper into your keyword research.
3. Social impact on search is evolving. Though authority links have been the cornerstone of search, trust is becoming more relevant. Mostly because it can’t be faked. A trust graph is more important than a link graph.
2. Anchor text over-optimization does exist. Keyword-rich anchor text has provided strong signal for search. However, if it’s over used it doesn’t look natural. Always ask yourself as an SEO, “If this didn’t help with rankings, would I do it (because it’s good for the end user).” If the answer is no, don’t do it.
1. There’s no technical substitute for relationship building. Online marketing is a complex discipline and relying on others in the industry for sage advice, research and experience sharing is one of the powerful ways search progresses. SEOmoz launched their 2011 Search Ranking Factors today and, as always, it is chock full of amazing correlation and survey data. Both are necessary for seeing the big search picture. Getting to know people in the industry takes time and commitment. Learning from their gifts and talents provides exceptional insight. Each show I learn a little more about some of the great people who make this industry so fascinating. Whether you’re a business owner or search practitioner, next show make it a goal to learn 3 new things about 3 people you admire. Those could be your best takeaways yet.
I went to the inaugural SMX Advanced 2007 in Seattle and I’m excited to be going to my 5th straight show tomorrow for SMX Advanced 2011.
What’s New/Different:
Though marketers were beginning to dabble in social, mobile and local these tactics have their own algorithms and rules. SMX Advanced hosts the best and the brightest for these sessions:
*Sessions on Social, Marty Weintraub’s group at AimClear will be sharing great tips and case studies at their exclusive Facebook Session
*Sessions on Mobile, Greg Sterling moderates this session on the SoLoMo revolution
*Sessions on Local, Will Scott and David Mihm sharing Hardcore Local SEO Tactics
*Last couple of years, Bing has been hosting the Tuesday night party and it’s become a favorite.
What’s The Same:
*”Give it Up” Session (Now called Mega Session), Panel of industry favorites including Bruce Clay, Vanessa Fox, Stephen Spenser and more sharing guarded tips and tricks.
*Great SMX Bash at the Bell Conference Center
*Session attendees are primarily advanced search marketers so the panels are enormously helpful and revealing
*I’ll still be wearing the White Coat (thanks for noticing Claire Schoen;)
Thanks in advance to the SMX and Third Door Media teams for what’s sure to be a great show.
OTBC & SEMpdx
I love doing hot seat site reviews. It’s such a great opportunity for businesses to get expert advice on their site for a lot of online marketing topics. At yesterday’s OTBC (Oregon Technology Business Center) reviews the SEMpdx crew covered 4 topics:
* On page SEO
* Off page SEO
* Social Media
* Site Usability & Conversion
The three sites we reviewed were great and all had wonderful ideas and received some exceptional advice.
The sites reviewed were:
* Valerie Antoinette - International Business Development
* Accumulus – An automated recurring billing system
* Membean – A vocabulary tool to help improve SAT and GRE scores
My topic was Site Usability & Conversion. We did a 90-minute review, but here are top 8 takeaways for the topic.
1. Pay attention to load time. Google cares about this and so do your customers.
2. Don’t launch videos without user prompting. It’s rude;)
3. Use strong calls to action, tell the visitor what to do (otherwise they’re not likely to do it.)
4. You’re solving a problem. Tell people how you’re doing that up front.
5. Offer something to get something (Download a White Paper, or do a Free Trial to get the lead and start the conversation with your potential customer.)
6. Pay attention to your lead acquisition content. Once people give you an email address or sign up, create expectation about what’s next.
7. Use language your customer is using. Don’t say “Recurring Customer Automation” when your customers say “Automated Recurring Billing”
8. Remember that usability and conversion is taking care of the visitors you already have. Driving new traffic is important, but you can really move the needle when you pay attention and convert the visitors you already have.
I had the honor of coordinating an event for SEMpdx last week with past Kodak CMO, author, celebrity marketer and change agent, Jeffrey Hayzlett. He captured the essence of engaging in social media, first and foremost with his passion, then with practicality.
“With social media everything has changed. It’s not about ears and eyeballs anymore, it’s about hearts and minds. Companies need to be radically transparent, listen to their customers and deliver a relevant and timely message.”
What does it mean to be radically transparent? Kodak was in denial about their business model and accepting that digital would be their business driver rather than film that had established and distinguished the company was their step towards delivering the products their customers wanted.
“We took a company that was selling a product that no one wanted–film–and we turned it around. What Kodak had to offer was about hearts and minds–we had the only product people would run into a burning building to save. We made memories. So we took a company that made film and turned it into a company that makes and preserves memories.”
Here’s a clip about Kodak and The Winds of Change from the beginning of his presentation.
Do take an opportunity to hear Jeffrey speak, but in lieu of that, here are five pieces of advice:
1) Buzz is not sales.
2) Passion is not substitute for planning.
3) Ask the question “Is your business really breathing?”
4) Be bold. Make mistakes.
5) Be concerned about ROI (return on investment), but also be concerned about the other ROI (return on ignoring). Just because it’s hard to quantify, doesn’t mean it isn’t important to your business success.
Read Jeffrey’s interview at SEMpdx Blog.
Check out Jeffrey’s inspiring book, “The Mirror Test”.
Would love to hear about how your company is being radically transparent.
Just read a great blog on restaurants trying to be more ecofriendly by Katie Robbins, author extraordinaire of Saveur and The Atlantic fame.
It struck me how passionate foodies are about their environment. As I’ve learned more about the impact of my filet-mignon-grilling obsession, I’ve bargained to do my part in being more ecofriendly with the understanding that my beef eating days aren’t over by a long haul. This article illustrates that every effort helps. Can we do more? Of course. Are smaller efforts meaningless? Absolutely not.
In a perfect world our food would only become food when it fell off the bush that was naturally grown, organically sourced and uninterrupted by its’ environment in any way. Since that’s not likely to happen, creating understanding and livable tactics for improving the process is a step in the right direction.
Search is another topic that must heed this “everything is possible, but not likely” scenario most businesses face when developing SEO strategies. There is so much a business can do about SEO that it is easy to get lost and frustrated in day to day efforts. In longing for the resources to do everything and all of it perfectly, it’s important to make impact daily and keep moving forward.
Here are some ideas for impacting your business daily with search:
*Choose a strategy for the quarter and don’t let it go: I make it a habit to keep my weekly dashboards for clients in one long writeboard on BaseCamp so I can go back every few weeks and make sure we didn’t leave strategies on the floor, always circle back, execute and define takeaways. It’s okay that not every strategy will work, but define success or failure so you don’t waste time later. (For Earth Day, make just one commitment and live that strategy for 3 months. Check out Green Tips on GenGreen.)
*Let partners help you define and execute strategies: Though I’d never recommend letting Google define your adwords strategy, their Opportunities Tab shares great ideas for new keywords, bidding strategies and other tactics for improving account performance. Take advantage of it. (For Earth Day, look to sites like Green Living for inspiration, no need to reinvent the wheel.)
*Monitor and share your success: Our client recently went through a site redesign which doubled conversion, enormously impacting revenue. As we created strategy for improving paid and natural search efforts for the quarter we took a moment to celebrate that success. Though it can be all about the journey, getting there can be its own reward. (For Earth Day, pat yourself on the back for buying only cage free eggs. Make some Pavlova and be thrilled at the happiness eggs can bring.)
(I’ve been neglecting my blog to work on a book “Sustainable Online Marketing”. Would welcome guest blogs about SEO/SEM and of course, food;) Cheers to you on Earth Day.
In Baja, fish is abundant, as are limes and homemade tortillas. After several days the thought of a thick juicy steak or luscious wine-braised mushrooms overcome my desire for another taco. One of the rules, and sometimes the downfall, of cooking and SEO projects is understanding and doing the best with the resources available.
Here are 6 ways to perform (in the Baja kitchen or on the SEO project) with limited resources:
1) Assess the situation prior to creating a strategy. Once I’m inspired to prepare a particular dish, I announce my intention and set about making it so. Living in a town with organic fruits and vegetables, cage free eggs, grass fed beef and fresh herbs out my window there’s precious little I can’t attempt. In La Ventana, embarking on baking a cake would be pure foolishness. The oven temperature varies anywhere from 20-60 degrees and I have yet to grasp the differences I would need to understand to bake at an altitude unfamiliar to me. Plus there are several panaderias in the area with very talented bakers. Many SEO’s create strategy and tactic based on past experience or other projects. My first 2 clients, GI Joe’s (Joe’s Direct) and Avery Dennison, had a depth of resources and established product marketing and ecommerce marketing teams. Then I had 3 smaller clients with no established marketing process or reporting. It was important to project success to understand the lack of resource and create a strategy with the strong possibility for success.
2) First, go for the low hanging fruit. Before going to the populated and better shopping options in La Paz, utilizing the local options of fresh fish and shrimp provides exceptional results. A perfectly grilled tuna with a bit of wasabi is always a hit, as are the local shrimp with a touch of lime and chili. If there are site architecture issues or title tag and meta description changes that could quickly impact search placement, focus on those before taking on complex, contextual issues.
3) Get creative. I love pancetta-wrapped parmesan stuffed dates as an appetizer. There’s no pancetta to be found within 100 miles, but the local bacon makes a perfect substitute particularly if I get the thinner sliced version and then stuff the dates with the local Queso Tipo Chihauua cheese. Interview client team members and learn about talents that may not be apparent to the client, a particular employees gift for writing. An enthusiastic, empowered customer service evangalist can be an invaluable resource.
4) Keep pushing the envelope. I tried a whole chicken and it failed, then I turned it into chicken with a mole sauce and homemade tortillas. With no budget for social marketing, it’s tempting to leave out this strategy. Yet SEO is becoming more and more affected by social marketing signal. Create expectation for the need, create a simple to follow strategy and tactics for the internal team. Identify a champion in customer service or other department with an eye on relating to the customer. Then use that success to establish a budget for social marketing.
5) Allow for failing. I love beef bourgeoneon so proceeded to purchase the local version of beef and attempted the recipe I so love at home in my own kitchen. Four hours later, the meat still had the texture and flavor of an old tire. No amount of coaxing with red wine, fresh garlic and potatoes was changing the stubborn qualities of the beef I had hoped to transform. So we went to dinner and the next day I let it simmer for hours and it eventually resembled a version of the dish I love.
6) Celebrate success. Whether you’re cooking or creating an SEO strategy, you are never really DONE. Celebrate successes along the way and continue to improve.
My sister Stefanie is a fantastic cook, she always finds fun, new ways to keep tradition and add something different to the Thanksgiving table.
I’ve been tasked with coming up with new drinks for the meal. Working on a Vodka Martini with Bacon and Blue Cheese Stuffed Olives as well as a Pumpkin Martini and Homemade Hot Buttered Rum Mix.
Why do the Holidays compel us to pull out all the stops? Maybe because it’s not just a meal, but a meal with all the people we love, maybe because we allow ourselves to spend more money or maybe because we can spend more time in preparation.
Holiday campaign planning is no different. We spend more money and more time because there’s so much to gain. What are some ways you’ve “pulled out all the stops” for online holiday campaign planning?
Babbo & SMX
Last week’s
SMX (search marketing expo) conference in New York was fantastic. Unprecedented session time was given to, not just social marketing, but specific networks (Social & You Tube and Twitter & Facebook). Sessions covered tactics, case studies, Social PPC, real-time search, social and SEO integration, even exceptional case studies using Facebook for market research.
Clients have gone from being dismissive regarding social to clamoring to have a presence, this year’s SMX show went a long way in helping agencies and in-house marketers understand that Facebook and Twitter aren’t marketing strategies, they’re the medium. Creating a campaign and an experience with a well-thought out purpose is the way to win in the space.
New York is home to some of the best chef’s in the world. Mario Batelli’s Babbo is my very favorite NY restaurant. Reservations need to be made at least a couple of week’s in advance unless seated at the bar, it’s a small, intimate restaurant with a sense of warmth and grandeur normally reserved for large spaces. This combination of grand and intimate is intoxicating and no mistake.
Perusing the exceptional wine list (broken down not into varietals but into Italian wine regions) is a joy in and unto itself. The wine list changes daily and great care is taken that the list is a reflection of the dishes served that evening.
The eclectic Italian menu included Goose Liver Ravioli, Gnocchi with Ox Tail, a Lamb Tongue Dish and Wild Boar Ragu. Babbo makes no apologies for delving into exotic, even controversial meats that compliment it’s dishes.
Babbo knows that they don’t want to reach everyone. They’re catering to food aficionados. Customers who understand that the White Truffle pasta is worth $120 because the foraging for that delectable commodity is a skill and preparing it is an art.
Answering the question of who to reach and how to reach them is the beginning of the social marketing campaign. Excitement is palpable when CMO’s come to the misguided notion that they can reach everyone via social. Reaching everyone isn’t the answer.
As presented succinctly at SMX, marketers must treat the medium of social as any other marketing campaign. Heard often at this show “Facebook is not a marketing strategy”.
The Morsel of the Story – Don’t try to please everyone, create a well-thought out experience and cater to just those people.
An important, but not sexy, part of SEO is making sure you’ve done the on page basics. I’m constantly amazed at how often this process is overlooked. Once keyword research is complete, making sure that keywords pursued are defined for each page, then important next steps include assigning relevant title tags, meta descriptions, H1 tags, alt+image tags, etc for the page.
In cooking, it’s tantamount to having good pans or a clean kitchen.
I can understand why people skip this step, it’s not a lot of fun. When I’m cooking my favorite chicken and mushroom dish, I don’t enjoy cutting up the whole chicken and slicing the crimini mushrooms, it’s boring and messy, but you can’t do the dish without it. I do however love the part where you add cognac to the simmering mushrooms, savory chicken broth, butter and white wine then light it, the flames are a gorgeous flourish of blue and purple and everyone in the kitchen ohs and aws. It looks cool and it’s really fun. But it can’t all come together in a glorious meal without doing the drudgery as well as the fire.
SEOmoz has a great tool in their tools called Term Tracker that actually grades your on page efforts for the terms persued for the page and reports what’s missing.
The Morsel of the Story – Mastering fundamentals is imperative to mastering, don’t skip the basics.
