May 27
Knowing the Rules of the (Social Media) Road
in Search Engine Guide
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by Mack Collier

At the first Small Business Marketing Unleashed, one of the case
studies I explored was how Stormhoek involved bloggers in the marketing
of their wine.  Stormhoek now has its sights on Twitter users as
marketing partners, and small businesses looking to explore social
media should pay attention to their efforts.

Stormhoek’s latest foray into social media involves Tweetups.  On his blog Gaping Void, Hugh Macleod explains:

“Two years ago, Stormhoek sponsored geek dinners. They were a huge success.

We’re ready to get back at it.

This time, however, we’re going to sponsor Tweetups. If you’re one of the people following me on Twitter, are based in the USA and are planning on having a Tweetup in the next wee while, drop me an e-mail, and let’s see if we can’t get some wine sent there for the evening. Rock on.

[For those of you outside the loop, a "Tweetup" is a
spontaneous, self-organizing social gathering of fellow Twitter users,
usually organized on Twitter itself. Usually food and drink are part of
the equation etc.]“

Tweetup.jpg

Why is this such a great idea?  Because Stormhoek is following the ‘rules of the road’ for Twitter.  They aren’t on Twitter trying to promote their product.  They have joined Twitter and in using the service and interacting with others, they noticed something.  They noticed that often, people are creating usually spontaneous meetings called ‘Tweetups’.  So Stormhoek decided that if people are going to be having these Tweetups anyway, why not give them some free wine to drink?  What better way to get people talking about your product, than to put it in the hands of people for free?

And not just people, but people that are active on Twitter!  What’s going to likely happen is that everyone will get on Twitter and start telling each other about how Stormhoek supplied the wine for their Tweetups!  Which increases buzz for Stormhoek, and likely awareness as well.  And as someone who is on Twitter almost every day, I can verify that Twitter is an AMAZING tool for creating buzz!

There’s a great lesson for small businesses, really anyone wanting to use social media to augment their marketing efforts.  Know the ‘rules of the road’.  Become familiar with the tools and understand how and why we use them.  Once you understand the tools, then you can use them effectively to reach your current and potential customers!

Want more from your web site?
Search Influence can help! Targeted Traffic. Increased Revenue. Results Guaranteed. Customized Internet Marketing you can afford.

May 27
Knowing the Rules of the (Social Media) Road
in Search Engine Guide
Comments Off

by Mack Collier

At the first Small Business Marketing Unleashed, one of the case
studies I explored was how Stormhoek involved bloggers in the marketing
of their wine.  Stormhoek now has its sights on Twitter users as
marketing partners, and small businesses looking to explore social
media should pay attention to their efforts.

Stormhoek’s latest foray into social media involves Tweetups.  On his blog Gaping Void, Hugh Macleod explains:

“Two years ago, Stormhoek sponsored geek dinners. They were a huge success.

We’re ready to get back at it.

This time, however, we’re going to sponsor Tweetups. If you’re one of the people following me on Twitter, are based in the USA and are planning on having a Tweetup in the next wee while, drop me an e-mail, and let’s see if we can’t get some wine sent there for the evening. Rock on.

[For those of you outside the loop, a "Tweetup" is a
spontaneous, self-organizing social gathering of fellow Twitter users,
usually organized on Twitter itself. Usually food and drink are part of
the equation etc.]“

Tweetup.jpg

Why is this such a great idea?  Because Stormhoek is following the ‘rules of the road’ for Twitter.  They aren’t on Twitter trying to promote their product.  They have joined Twitter and in using the service and interacting with others, they noticed something.  They noticed that often, people are creating usually spontaneous meetings called ‘Tweetups’.  So Stormhoek decided that if people are going to be having these Tweetups anyway, why not give them some free wine to drink?  What better way to get people talking about your product, than to put it in the hands of people for free?

And not just people, but people that are active on Twitter!  What’s going to likely happen is that everyone will get on Twitter and start telling each other about how Stormhoek supplied the wine for their Tweetups!  Which increases buzz for Stormhoek, and likely awareness as well.  And as someone who is on Twitter almost every day, I can verify that Twitter is an AMAZING tool for creating buzz!

There’s a great lesson for small businesses, really anyone wanting to use social media to augment their marketing efforts.  Know the ‘rules of the road’.  Become familiar with the tools and understand how and why we use them.  Once you understand the tools, then you can use them effectively to reach your current and potential customers!

Want more from your web site?
Search Influence can help! Targeted Traffic. Increased Revenue. Results Guaranteed. Customized Internet Marketing you can afford.

May 27
Small Business Marketing Unleashed Part Deux: Fall in Columbus
in Search Engine Guide
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by Jennifer Laycock

If you missed the first Small Business Marketing Unleashed event in Columbus and have spent the last month kicking yourself, it’s ok! We wouldn’t be us if we didn’t try to do everything we could to take care of you! So, Jen, Rachel, Robert and Vickie have spent the last three weeks with our nose to the grindstone to line up a second, BONUS edition of Small Business Marketing Unleashed this fall in Columbus, Ohio.

Wondering what you missed from the first time around? Check out our recap video:

The fall show comes around on September 22nd and 23rd and takes place at the Quest Conference Center in Columbus, Ohio. (Find out why in the world we picked Columbus here.)

This time, a few things are different.

1.) We’ve decided a small show is a good thing, so we’ve cut the amount of space in HALF. This time, we’ll only be accepting 100 attendees. We announced the show this morning on Twitter and six spots have already been snatched up, so don’t wait too long to register if you plan on coming.

2.) We’ve cut the price! It’s still $975 for the two day show, but thanks to some of our sponsors re-upping so quickly for round two, we’re able to drop the early bird price to $750. That’s $100 less than it cost to attend our first show!

3.) We’ve got new content! We’ve added two new general sessions and seven new workshops. We’ve also added two new speakers and will shortly be announcing a great keynote presentation for day two. In other words, even if you came to the first show, there’s plenty of new content to keep you busy.

4.) Our charity speed networking event will be a blast this time around. In fact, it was one of the most popular parts of our first show, even for those who aren’t particularly social. We’ll be renting out COSI, a fantastic science museum here in Columbus for the event and will have a great night of geek toys, food and fun.

5.) If you missed out on the first Unleashed because you’ve got small children, we understand. That’s why we picked a spot for our fall show that gives you access to fantastic child care. In fact, it’s where Jen leaves her kids two mornings a week.

For the full skinny on the show, check out the Small Business Marketing Unleashed conference site. There’s a ton of new content and information on there and of course you can always drop us an email if you have any questions we haven’t covered.

Hope to see you in the fall!

Want more from your web site?
Search Influence can help! Targeted Traffic. Increased Revenue. Results Guaranteed. Customized Internet Marketing you can afford.

May 27
SearchCap: The Day In Search, May 27, 2008
in Search Engine Land
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Below is what happened in search today, as reported on
Search Engine Land and from other
places across the web.

From Search Engine Land:


  • Yahoo Search May 2008 Index Update
    The Yahoo Search blog posted a new weather report today. The report tells us to expect some fluctuations in the search results found at Yahoo Search. Priyank Garg & Sharad Verma of Yahoo said, that they are releasing “some changes to our crawling, indexing and ranking algorithms over the next…

  • Search Illustrated: Increasing Brand Awareness With Search
    When brand awareness is the goal, it’s sometimes easy to implement PPC as a “go to” for increasing awareness quickly and effectively. But, paid search is just one part of a broader, long-term brand awareness campaign. This week’s infographic explores how SEMs can utilize all facets of search to…

  • PPC Management Options – Are Your Fees Inline With The Advertiser’s Goals?
    There are many ways to bill for PPC management and each has its own distinct characteristics. Some of these billing techniques align more with an agency, and others more with an advertiser. For agencies, the proper billing types can make the difference between being profitable and going out of…

  • Don’t Call Me Linkbait
    When use of the phrase “linkbait” first started to achieve critical mass, some dismissed it as nothing more than a fad that would be dead in a year. Some truly understood linkbait and tried to explain it while some of those who grasped it ran with it and went…

  • Viacom And Google Assail Each Other In Court: Viacom “Threatens” Freedom, Says Google
    You may recall that the failure of Google and Viacom, which owns MTV and Comedy Central among other properties, to negotiate an agreement to work together (read: revenue sharing) resulted in a very public Viacom-Google “pissing match” over copyright infringement and whether Google had made good faith efforts to protect…

  • 2008 Memorial Day Search Logos
    Today is Memorial Day, so we plan on keeping it light over here at the blog today. I have a post at the Search Engine Roundtable, with a collection of logos I have found from the various search related companies and blogs for the special day. Here is a single…

  • Yes, Truthiness Is A Credibility Factor Google Cares About
    Doing A Fake Story For Linkbait? Disclose — Or Face The Wrath Of Google from last week is still a hot topic of discussion in the industry. In fact, Google’s Matt Cutts posted a more detailed explanation of why a fake story without disclosure is something, in some cases, Google…

  • Travel Appears To Be Next Up For Google
    BusinessWeek writes about Google’s potential plans to enter the travel arena with a specialized offering. That offering, assuming it appears, would likely include a heavy dose of video. There would also likely be a heavy helping of Maps. Interestingly, Google is pushing Maps and MyMaps today as a travel/trip planning…

Search News From Around The Web:

Applications & Portal Features

Business Issues

Local, Maps & Mobile

Link Building

Paid Search & Contextual

Searching

SEM Industry

SEO & SEM

Social Media

Video, Music & Image Search

Other Items

Recent Hot Items From Sphinn, Our Social News Sharing Site:

May 27
Daily Search Forum Recap: May 27, 2008
in Search Engine Roundtable
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Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web.

May 27
Yahoo Search May 2008 Index Update
in Search Engine Land
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The Yahoo Search blog posted a new weather report today. The report tells us to expect some fluctuations in the search results found at Yahoo Search.

Priyank Garg & Sharad Verma of Yahoo said, that they are releasing “some changes to our crawling, indexing and ranking algorithms over the next few days.” Expect some “ranking changes and page shuffling,” they added. I have not seen much of any discussion from SEOs and SEMs on any Yahoo changes in the past few days.

May 27
Deep Links: Web Users Want What They Want and They Want it Now!
in Search Engine Guide
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by Jennifer Laycock

One of the most common mistakes I see being made by folks who are new to search engine optimization is a lack of focus on attracting deep links. These people will work hard to gain new links to their sites by submitting to directories, joining organizations and filling out profiles on social networks, but they often fail to focus on getting good quality links to the inner pages of their web sites. But new data released by Jacob Nielsen shows just how important those deep links are.

BBC News had an article over the weekend that talked about the data from one of Jakob Nielsen’s studies on how Internet users surf the web. His findings confirmed what most link building gurus have been telling folks for ages. It’s essential to build strong links to the internal pages of your web site.

The article reports:

There has also been a big change in the way that people get to the places where they can complete pressing tasks, he said.

In 2004, about 40% of people visited a homepage and then drilled down to where they wanted to go and 60% use a deep link that took them directly to a page or destination inside a site. In 2008, said Dr Nielsen, only 25% of people travel via a homepage. The rest search and get straight there.

That tells us two things.

1.) You need to make sure ALL pages of your web site are ranking well so people find their way straight to the page that best fits what they are looking for when they run a search.

and

2.) You need to be building deep links to all pages of your site with good content so those pages will rank well and so direct link traffic ends up exactly where they want to be.

It’s easy enough to fall into the trap of only building links to a home page. For most sites that are new to search engine optimization, the home page is the easiest one to rank. At the same time, when you’re just starting off with link building, it tends to be easiest to get those front page links from the directories and sites you’ve been neglecting.

The trick is not to get lazy.

Once you’ve built that foundation (or better yet, WHILE you’re building that foundation) start branching out and building links to the inner pages of your site. Create fantastic product copy and find ways to promote those individual product pages. Build a blog and use the easy-to-publish format to offer information and insight into the topics near and dear to your heart. Creating killer content throughout your site is a great way to make sure you start naturally attracting deep links.

Beyond that, make sure you’re controlling what you can control. If you have social networking accounts, consider linking back to a favorite post or article on your web site instead of to your main URL. If you’re leaving a comment on someone’s blog and they allow you to leave links, consider linking back to a post you’ve made that is relevant to the topic you are commenting on. Check your internal link structure. There’s no rule that says the only links on your site are in your navigation. If you have content on one page that talks about content on another page, include a link.

Users have shown time and time again they want to cut to the chase and get straight to the content they want. Your job as a site owner or marketer is to help them accomplish that goal.

Want more from your web site?
Search Influence can help! Targeted Traffic. Increased Revenue. Results Guaranteed. Customized Internet Marketing you can afford.

May 27
SearchDay: Google AdWords Editor a Great Tool for Content
in Search Engine Watch
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Today’s search engine marketing news and opinion: Google AdWords Editor a Great Tool for Content; Google Friend Connect to Make Advanced Social Features Easily Available; Google on Spam; and more.

May 27
Search Illustrated: Increasing Brand Awareness With Search
in Search Engine Land
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Search Illustrated - A Column From Search Engine Land When brand awareness is the goal, it’s sometimes easy to implement PPC as a “go to” for increasing awareness quickly and effectively. But, paid search is just one part of a broader, long-term brand awareness campaign.

This week’s infographic explores how SEMs can utilize all facets of search to achieve increased brand awareness.

Click to continue reading…

May 27
PPC Management Options – Are Your Fees Inline With The Advertiser’s Goals?
in Search Engine Land
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Paid Search - A Column From Search Engine Land

There are many ways to bill for PPC management and each has its own distinct characteristics. Some of these billing techniques align more with an agency, and others more with an advertiser.

For agencies, the proper billing types can make the difference between being profitable and going out of business. In addition, if your goals are aligned with your advertisers, then long term synergies usually develop which means longer client retention.

For advertisers, it is important to understand the options that exist. Not all agencies offer all of the below pricing options. However, some will be willing to work with you to find a solution that benefits both parties.

A contract extends beyond just billing to include contract lengths and contract renewal types. First, we will examine agency fees, then we will dive into contract lengths.

By seeing the billing point of view from both an agency and an advertiser, it can be easier to choose the proper type of contract so that both the agency and the advertisers succeed in their digital efforts.

Click to continue reading…

May 27
PPC Management Options – Are Your Fees Inline With The Advertiser’s Goals?
in Search Engine Land
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Paid Search - A Column From Search Engine Land

There are many ways to bill for PPC management and each has its own distinct characteristics. Some of these billing techniques align more with an agency, and others more with an advertiser.

For agencies, the proper billing types can make the difference between being profitable and going out of business. In addition, if your goals are aligned with your advertisers, then long term synergies usually develop which means longer client retention.

For advertisers, it is important to understand the options that exist. Not all agencies offer all of the below pricing options. However, some will be willing to work with you to find a solution that benefits both parties.

A contract extends beyond just billing to include contract lengths and contract renewal types. First, we will examine agency fees, then we will dive into contract lengths.

By seeing the billing point of view from both an agency and an advertiser, it can be easier to choose the proper type of contract so that both the agency and the advertisers succeed in their digital efforts.

Click to continue reading…

May 27
Don’t Call Me Linkbait
in Search Engine Land
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Link Week

When use of the phrase “linkbait” first started to achieve critical mass, some dismissed it as nothing more than a fad that would be dead in a year. Some truly understood linkbait and tried to explain it while some of those who grasped it ran with it and went on to profit from it (and still do). Below, what linkbait really is and where its value lies.

Click to continue reading…

May 27
Don’t Call Me Linkbait
in Search Engine Land
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Link Week

When use of the phrase “linkbait” first started to achieve critical mass, some dismissed it as nothing more than a fad that would be dead in a year. Some truly understood linkbait and tried to explain it while some of those who grasped it ran with it and went on to profit from it (and still do). Below, what linkbait really is and where its value lies.

Click to continue reading…

May 27
Is Link Buying Worth the Effort?
in Search Engine Roundtable
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A WebmasterWorld member was desperate for improved rankings, so he bought links. As a result, his rankings tanked and he was wondering if there’s a better way to buy build links.

Really, if you’re trying to buy links, the recommendation is to avoid using brokers. Go directly to webmasters and ask them if they can place a link on the site where it appears naturally (not in the navigation, for example). Additionally, go for quality over quantity. As pageoneresults says, “[t]en (10) high quality links will typically trump a hundred (100) low quality links.”

The best ways to build links is slowly and methodically, he adds. You don’t want to add a bunch of inbound links immediately because it can raise red flags.

On a related note, Jim Boykin suggests that you build links by focusing on the right text by having the right content on targeted pages. Don’t necessarily link to your homepage; build links to the appropriate internal pages instead.

Forum discussion continues at WebmasterWorld and Sphinn.

May 27
A Reminder to Update Your Google AdSense Login to a Google Account
in Search Engine Roundtable
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We posted about the requirement to link Google AdSense accounts with a Google Account in February. As indicated in the comments of that blog post, the frustration of doing so is still there and a lot of publishers are not taking the plunge as a result.

Well, Google is reminding you that you have no choice. You’ll need to do it, according to a Google Groups thread. AdSensePro Ashley refers to a new post on the Inside AdSense blog which states that if you don’t make the change, you’ll be locked out of your account — for good. (Roger, I’m sorry.)

There’s no exact date for when this will be rolled out, but Google states that it will be a requirement “in the next few weeks.”

Forum discussion continues at Google Groups.