How Google's New Search Works - WSJ

Think Local for Great Organic Search Results.

Local + Generic Content SEO: New Web-page gets Google Top Ranking in less than 24 Hours.
A very successful organic search engine marketing tactic is to target local content searches for your product or service. Build relevant, precise web-pages geared towards specific locations and the business services/products you offer... then watch the leads come in. Using local search tactics is a classic form of long-tail search marketing optimization, with proven results.

Local  Search SEO can bring Big Business Benefits.

By "local", I mean a specific geographic area - - which can be as large as a state or province, and as small as a town or neighborhood. When the geographic targeting is combined with your targeted service or product, excellent search results can occur quickly.... resulting in more lucrative business enquiries for you, and less for your hapless competitors.

To give an example, I recently built a new web-page targeting a few niche technical services for a geographically targeted area - - a state in the USA, in this case. In less than 16 hours after going live, this newly minted web-page is scoring in the top 5 organically ranked web-pages listed on Google, beating out another 8 million web-pages indexed by Google per search, on average, to get these coveted positions. And the page is ranking very high for a variety of quality searches I want to be ranked on.

So quality content and geographic targeting for a new webpage resulted in top Google organic search rankings in less than 24 hours. Not all first attempts will be so successful. And even with this excellent debut, the new page is not yet ranking for other desired searches, so I'll monitor and tweak the content as needed. When it comes to successful SEO results, everything is always a work in progress!
A related topic for small business: Getting leads and promoting your business with a limited ad budget.

Connect with Erik Holladay on Linkedin.

Facebook, Friend or Foe to Investors?

WSJ - - Google+ vs Facebook: It's No Contest

A Thank You Note to My Competitors (which I hope they never read)

Six Reasons to be Thankful to Your Competitors

Are you running over your 
competitors, or are they running
over you?

For success in B-to-B marketing and lead generation not only are your actions important, but what your competitors do.... or don't do.... or haven't a clue to do, make a big difference. That's why we should extend a tongue-in-cheek 'thank you' to some of our competitors. They can often make our job easier, without even knowing they are being so accommodating. We can divert 'their' quality business leads to ourselves with impunity.

However, to put this into perspective, we should never be complacent about our competition, for therein lies the road to defeat and ruin. A short list of reasons to be thankful, below, really serve as a list of dangers we all need to be aware of, for we are all capable of harming ourselves in this way.

Reasons to be Thankful to our Competition:

1. Poor Focus on Web-page Layout and Clutter:
Producing web-pages which surround and bury the core value content, the really important information a visitor is looking for, is a common practice and self-defeating. The "money content" is subdued, stifled, and trapped in a suffocating waffle of links, images, fluff and other content... the core content is diluted both for the reader and (happy days for us) search engines bots when they crawl their pages, resulting in lower organic search engine rankings.

2. Poor Web-Page Content:
Writing good concise, precise web-page content which targets a key product or service niche (or sub-niche, or sub-sub-niche) is an art and a science. We should thank competitors who launch web-pages with lousy content, especially if they are proud of the result. They just made our job a lot easier to whip them in search engine rankings. I could write a book about lousy web content on competitor webpages. In fact, many intelligent people have written books on how to improve web-page content for SEO. We should be thankful so many people appear not to have read them!

3. Poor Website Structure and Navigation:
A good webmaster is worth a lot, and should be cherished. A good webmaster who understands B-to-B and has a burning desire to rank high in organic search results is worth their weight in gold.... 24 karat investment grade. Having a mediocre or distracted webmaster can  harm a website's overall performance for lead generation. Having a mediocre or distracted webmaster plus poor content and navigation can be a disaster. There are so many things which can go right or go wrong depending upon the organization, resources, support and talent on offer.

4. Competitors behaving badly at Tradeshows and Conferences:
We should be thankful for competitors who suffer from self-defeating habits regarding trade-shows and conferences. Just a few of the event-wins (for us, not for them) are:
a. Not Being There (they skipped or overlooked a key industry event)
b. Being There but Missing in Action (Their booth is empty, delegates nowhere to be seen)
c. Being There, but Indifferent (They are deathly bored at their booth, glazed eyes, negative, non-engaging, don't mingle with attendees, reading, and are wall-flowers)
d. They brought the Wrong Message (They don't tailor their message to the event and market niche, and use a "one size fits all" approach, they brought the wrong people to the event)

5. Outsourcing Paid Search Campaigns:
Hiring an outsider to run Adwords and other paid search and content campaigns is another area for we should be very grateful to the competition. If the search targets are technical and niched, then tasked, informed and focused personnel inside the company will usually be far more nimble, proactive, knowledgeable and cost-effective and efficient than using an outside Ad Agency or consultant. Quality will be higher and wasted clicks and costs reduced by keeping this key marketing lead generation tool in-house. Another big competitive mistake we love is for them to run a one-size-fits-all ad across numerous market niches, with a landing page which is either not focused or requires the visitor make heroic efforts at navigating to a webpage which is relevant to them.
An ideal result for a competitor using Adwords, from our perspective, is for them to waste a lot of money on poorly managed campaigns and then decide it was all a mistake and completely shut the campaigns down... their new-found cost control is then applauded by their finance guys, while we, their competition, enjoy the happy competitive result of stealing their leads, paid-search marketing nirvana for us!

6. Competitors don't exploit Social Media:
If our competitors do not understand nor encourage Social Media marketing, then they aren't blogging, tweeting, posting, "liking" their company, letting others "like" and forward their web-pages, and otherwise promoting their brand, products and services to a huge potential audience. This is a big and inexpensive marketing opportunity for your company to exploit. Since your competition have left a large Social Media vacuum, fill that gap with your offerings. Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter, Blogging and more are all opportunities to get in front of your prospective clients in a positive way. If you competitor hasn't figured that out, so much the better.

These "thank you" notes to the competition also serve as a warning to our own marketing and lead generation efforts. Objectivity, modesty, vigilance, and humility always serve us well. Overconfidence, pride, arrogance, ignorance, and hubris are marketing dangers to be avoided at all costs. A question we should frequently ask ourselves: "Are WE making our competitor's jobs easier?" If so, immediate remedial action is needed.

There are many other things for which we can be grateful to our competitors. We must make sure they don't have too many reasons to be grateful to us in return.

B-to-B Web Marketing Should Help Sales People Sell

Connect with Erik Holladay on Linkedin.

Thoughts on PANDA, FARMER and other Search Engine Creatures.

Like so many other Google algorithm changes, "PANDA" and "FARMER" caused quite a lot of intentional panic, chaos and scrambling for many search engine marketers who depend upon search engine rankings for leads and affiliate and referral business.

The intentions of Google in making these changes to their search engine ranking methodology are noble. Google wants to keep relevancy of organic search results the top priority. This focus on relevancy and perceived neutrality is the reason why users love Google as a search engine resource, and why Google blew past all of its major competitors years ago.

We search engine marketeers are always trying to beat our competitors and rank high in Google. This goal is is to be expected and is healthy if content is king. But when "spammy" websites (including websites full of links, ads, and little original relevant content) try to "game" the system by attempting to manipulate Google's search ranking algorithms to rank high in organic search result pages (SERPs), the alarm bells ring in Mountain View and Google seeks to change the rules of the SEO game to push "spammers" down or out of search engine results. Google wants quality results, pure and simple, their customers are the end-users making the search, not us marketing types seeking SEO nirvana.

What impact are "PANDA" and "FARMER" updates having on my own webpages and websites?
My experience with Google SEO updates, including PANDA and FARMER, going back to 2003, is that the impact has been beneficial or neutral to my niche B-to-B webpages.
I try to always follow the SEO content school of keeping web content concise, precise, original, and relevant to my target audience and markets, with good website navigation, etc. My focus on relevancy and precision has been working extremely well for organic search.

There is usually a lot of excited SEO marketing chatter whenever Google rolls out a publicized search algorithm update... these Google tweaks go on all the time, and many changes are made under the radar. The only people who appear to really need to be concerned about these Google updates and changes seem to be those with websites which have marginal or poor content, are 'spammy', and engage in nefarious 'black hat' practices.

Regarding Google search results overall, there is always room for improvement... but then again, all the other search engines like BING and ASK have plenty of room for improvement. Search engine rankings are dynamic and always changing. This helps make the search engine optimization game never boring and always very interesting!

Suggested Reading: "How Google Makes Algorithm Changes"

If you are involved with organic search engine marketing, and your lead generating is thriving or suffering depending upon how the search engine gods treat your webpages, then you should read this informative and  eye-opening blog by Jennifer Ledbetter, otherwise known at as the author of "PotPieGirl.com".

Results by Algorithms, Computers, Humans?

In October 2011 she wrote an excellent blog offering insight into how Google engages in the complex work of making search engine algorithm changes, and on a little known fact that the human factor is applied as a sort of sanity check. Yes, the Android company will utilize humanoids as needed to check on computeroid algorithms. 

Google Search can be your "best friend" in SEM (it is very often for me), or your most stubborn "opponent" (ditto). Best to get to know Google as well as you can. Don't take it personally. This blog from Jennifer provides some great learning material.

What this particular blog posting on Google algorithm change processes will not do is help you write clear, concise, precise, and relevant content which will soar to the top of organic search engine rankings... there are no miraculous short-cuts and no SEO voodoo magic juice is available. But her fascinating blog will give you an interesting look at how Google works. Know your frenemy!

Google is not unlike a secretive government agency - - it must be deliberately murky, cloaked, vague, and always focused on keeping high relevancy in search results. This is a core mission. This is why Google is the number one search engine in the world. Thus, Google is always looking for spam and ways to eradicate it. This is why Google is always changing the search "rules" to keep a healthy advantage over the collective efforts of millions of clever people attempting to manipulate organic search results via SEO, seeking to gain top rank positions "deservedly" or not. 

Visit www.potpiegirl.com to see more of Jennifer's work and services. Jennifer has a healthy fascination with Google's inner workings. We need enthusiastic people like her to help shed a little light behind the mysterious Mountain View curtain.

SEO Competitive Analysis @ SES San Francisco 2011 Live

Search Engine Optimization Competitive Analysis at SES San Francisco.


The challenge with a great conference like SES is that very useful, multiple presentations can occur on multiple tracks simultaneously. "SEO Competitive Analysis" was a session I did not want to miss, and I was not disappointed! Excellent presentation. I filled page after page with notes, here is an overview.

http://www.searchenginestrategies.com/sanfrancisco/index.php

Moderator: Chris Boggs, Director, SEO, Rosetta
Speakers:
Michael Hayward, CEO, ROI Labs
Taylor Pratt, VP of Product Marketing, Raven Internet Marketing Tools
Richard Zwicky, Independent Consultant 


Highlights from the SEO presentation included:

"Help! I've dropped in search engine rankings. What am I doing wrong?"

• When bad SEO happens, don't panic. Don't focus just on your website. Look at those sites which have passed you. Evaluate and research their success. Develop a Reverse Marketing Plan - - in effect, reverse engineer your competition.
• Determine your competitive landscape. Who is doing what where? 
• Look at the web strategy of competitors, including their source codes, to get drill-down data you can use.
• "To Compete, you must Displace your competition." In other words... Kill, or be Killed. 
• Organic Search, Local Search and Social Search are all connected. Don't ignore any of them!
• Proper web analytics tools can help you understand your competition in hours, not days.

SEO is the most highly leveraged tool in the digital marketing toolkit - - you can enjoy great ROI. But more SEO and other tools are needed to achieve success. Your SEO marketing plan must be part of a total package which includes PPC, email, print, advertising, sales, mobile and PR.

• Look exploiting Brand and non-Brand (generic) positioning in organic search and paid search.
• Consider building three matrix evaluation charts, grading current marketing results by 'effective', 'neutral' and 'ineffective': 
• SEO Matrix - Organic Search
• PPC Matrix - Paid Search
• Social Media Matrix - Social Sites
• Use analytics for quick (top 5-10) and in-depth (deeper) analysis of keywords. Ask "is that keyword worth the effort and cost?". 
• Keyword research tools, free and paid, are readily available to help you evaluate keywords. Tools include Google Analytics, SEObook, SEOMOZ, SEObook for Firefox, CustomRank, Getmelisted, Sycara, Searchmetrics and many others.
• Analyze SERPs from your competitors. Consider:
• Age of the domain. Number of links. Number of ads for keywords, title tags, page urls, keyword density, keyword positioning, anchor text, navigation, back-links, clean HTML, Call-to-Action, etc.
• What else are they doing? Blogs, Conferences? Part of the back-link analysis.
• Compare their webpages to YOURS. Evaluate and prepare. How far do you have to go to be competitive?
• After evaluation, determine rank potential. Look at potential keyword value, ROI and % share of clicks. 
• Then ask: "Is it worth your time?". Pick your targets and your battles and implement your strategy.

Google Ad Innovations @ SES San Francisco Live

The Google Ad Innovations session at the Search Engine Strategies SES Conference this week was a stellar example of why going to SES is so valuable for web marketing professionals. Here was a rare opportunity to hear directly from Google personnel about what's new and what's coming in Google ad marketing. 




Google Adwords at SES San Francisco 2011.

 The Google team:
Dan Friedman - Google New Ad Formats
Bill Kee - Google Analytics
Alexandra Kenin - Google Optimization


Here is a short outline of what they shared:

1. Google Search Overview:
a. Ad Innovations Resource:
Excellent source for new information and updates at: http://www.google.com/ads/innovations/
b. "Search is becoming more Visual, Local and Personalized" - - with all that implies for how Google will continue to evolve search engine results (SERPs) in the coming year. 
c. Google's ongoing mission is to continue to improve SERPs, and made searching more easy, relevant and intelligent.


2. Adwords Automation Rules:
a. Extended automation rules - schedule automatic changes to criteria you specify - free your time up.
b. Opportunities Tab - - optimization ideas can help customize your account and goals.
c. New Display feature - - Interest Categories. Activate 'Audiences Tab' - - there are over 100 categories. Over 500 million daily users are categorized in some manner.


3. New Google Ad Formats:
a. Make your Ad relevant. (What else would you expect from Google! LOL)
b. Ads are evolving at Google as the web evolves: "1/3 of Google ads are served in new formats." 

• The latest display benchmarks and Adsense Ad formats from Google.

c. Ad Sitelinks create lift. 3 Line sitelinks bring a 40% CTR lift. 1 line sitelinks a 17% CTR lift.
Related update: Google's New 'Sitelink' Search Dominates Results - PC World, Aug 16, 2011.
d. Ad sitelinks help your visitors navigate to your site pages faster and more efficiently.
e. Sub-category links allow for faster drill-down. Mobile ads can benefit from a 30% lift in CTR.
f. Product Ads: Ad Block of Product Listing Ads give 100% CTR Lift. Text ads with product extensions give a 6% CTR lift.
g. For ecommerce sites, Google Merchant Center links with your ad account. Commission based platform.
h. Google Media Ads: Combines Brand advertising with the 'Intent of Search'. Good for video, TV, entertainment, etc.


4. Local & Phone:
a. Click to Call Features: Mobile devices. Phone extensions. Adding phone number helps conversion.
b. "Vanity Phone Numbers can now be added." Example: 1-800-Flowers
c. Call Only creative available. Not a click-to-call. Helps to segment channels if needed.
d. Hyperlocal Ads: Increases phone call rate, reduces CPC.
e. Product Local Ads: Show in-store inventories


5. Adwords Experiments: 
a. Adwords Campaign Experiments: Now in Opportunities Tab.
b. "Test Smart" - Test keywords, Bids, Ads, Ad Groups, Ad Creatives, Placements, Remarking Lists.
c. Run experiments on keyword and bid ideas.


6. Google Analytics: More data on funnel behavior and Social Media coming.
a. Most leads require 3 to 5 'touches' before conversion occurs. There is a need to better understand this process using analytics.
b. Multichannel Funnels built on goals and ecommerce. A set of 5 reports now available, providing an understanding of the path towards conversion. 
c. The Impact of Social Media Beta: Social Interactions and Source - -"Tracking behavior across channels, including social media."


Whew! My apologies for such a lengthy blog post, but in this short 1 1/2 hour long presentation by Google there was a huge amount of valuable information and updates... this session alone made SES worth attending. There  was something here for experienced search engine marketeers and novices alike. Having Google HQ, along with Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter and other powerful web marketing platforms, just a short drive from the Moscone Center is an prime advantage for SES San Francisco.


Other sources on Google Innovations at SES San Francisco, 2011:

• http://blog.milestoneinternet.com/industry-news/google-ad-innovations/
• http://www.bruceclay.com/blog/2011/08/ses-san-francisco-2011-google-ad-innovations/

YouTube is one big fat Search Engine. SES Highlight Day Two.

One of the eye-opening concepts I picked up today at SES was that YouTube is one huge Search Engine and Social Media Site..... it is not stuck in an online "Video" niche, mostly visited by teenagers and college students. Far from it, as the user profile broadens and grows, opportunities to market to these people grows along with it. While I have posted videos for my company on a dedicated Youtube channel and we get visitors, I now realize we can and should do more to exploit this arena!

Moderator:

• Liana Evans, Author and Co-Founder & CEO, LiBeck Integrated Marketing
• Speakers:
  Greg Jarboe, President & Co-founder, SEO-PR
  Mark Robertson, Founder, ReelSEO

According to the panel assembled today for the SES Conference, Youtube is:


1. The 2nd most popular search engine in the world after Google.


2. The 2nd most popular social media website after Facebook.


Youtube enables users to discover and share videos (going viral). There are massive ad opportunities to get into Youtube and monetize it for your business. Already thousands of Brands are using Youtube to promote products and services, and driving traffic to landing pages on their websites.


Youtube has a keyword tool for "Promoted Videos", by targeting Video Title, Description and Tags. Paid Search costs on Youtube are very inexpensive compared to Google.


But creating a good video people will watch and send to their friends required good content... an art, not a science. People use Youtube for Inspiration, Education, Enlightenment and Education. "How To" videos are really starting to take off.


Put your URL into your video description. Include the http:// to make sure the link is live.


"Cosmic Panda" - A new look for YouTube is coming. YouTube is changing! Per Greg Jarboe.


SES Day Two: Today was another intense, in-depth, full, information-packed day on Search Engine Strategies and the Marketing that goes with it. There was so much good material today that I can't pack it all into one blog entry... more to come in the days ahead. I'm bringing a large cache of new tactics, strategies and tools back to the office, and there is still one more day to go. The Google Adwords team made an excellent presentation on "Google Ad Innovations" - - this topic alone deserves a dedicated blog entry, which it will get.