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July 9, 2009

SES San Jose Offers Sessions for Veteran Search Engine Marketers

Last week, I said "SES San Jose Offers Conference Sessions for First Time Attendees." This year's Search Engine Strategies conference offers lots of sessions for veteran search engine marketers, too.

SES San Jose 2009 can cover both ends of the spectrum because it has five concurrent tracks. So, whether this will be your first show or the fourth SES event that you've attended in 2009, you'll find tons of new content worth learning.

For example, sessions oriented toward advanced marketers include: • Search: Where to Next sums up what the future holds for the search industry with a veteran panel of industry insiders. • The Next Wave for Online Video presents the importance of optimizing for video search and looks into tactics for copywriting, keyword research and more. • Don't Call it a Comeback: Semantic Technology and Search focuses on the reality of true semantic technology and the recent application of the "Web 3.0" tag. • Beyond Googling: Where Will Your Customers Be Searching in Five Years? presents a long-view look at weak signals and trends that appear to point in new directions. • Launching a Global Website presents key issues critical to successfully developing, optimizing, and launching the global websites that meet next generation marketing goals. • Duplicate Content & Multiple Site Issues explores the potential problems and pitfalls of running mirror sites and offers solutions. • Landing Page Testing and Tuning discusses how to twist and tweak your landing page to covert site visitors into buyers. • Real World Multivariate Testing helps attendees understand how landing page optimization, through multivariate testing, can quickly affect the success of any online acquisition campaign, and how simple changes to a landing pages can dramatically increase online sales. • Ads in a Quality Score World looks at quality factors and studies how to increase the perceived relevancy of your campaigns. • Follow the Carrot: Cool Mobile Apps examines the effect of mobile applications, their usefulness from a business point of view, and where they may be going in the future. • Images & Search Engines: Getting the Full Picture explores image searching along with image-links, geo tags and other considerations for capturing targeted traffic. • Search Becomes the Display OS includes a discussion and case studies focusing on the idea that the only thing that can save display advertising is making it more like search.

Although I should disclose that SES is a client, I'm not the only one who thinks that there is lots of sessions for veteran search engine marketers at SES conferences. For example, Lee Odden, an SES Advisory Board member and CEO of TopRank Online Marketing, says, "Search Engine Strategies in San Jose is the epicenter of what's current and useful in the search marketing industry when it comes to advancing internet marketing knowledge. I've attended SES events for years as a delegate, speaker, moderator, and now as an Advisory Board Member. That continued investment for me and my agency staff has resulted in bottom line growth of our digital marketing consulting business by staying current with search strategies and tactics, attracting new clients and talented staff. We've gained tremendous value from SES San Jose as a source of content for our top rated blog and of course, priceless networking with search engine employees, vendors and other smart internet marketers."

And earlier in the year, Odden did an escalator pitch -- which is like an elevator pitch, only faster -- at SES New York. Check out what he had to say at SESConferenceExpo's Channel on YouTube or by watching the video below.

Lee Odden, CEO of TopRank Online Marketing, on the benefits of attending SES New York 2009

Okay, so Odden was talking about SES New York in his escalator pitch, but he could have said the same things about SES San Jose.

For more information about the largest search engine marketing conference and expo on the West Coast, go to the SES San Jose 2009 website. Register through July 24 to save up to $200 with the early bird rate.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 11:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 8, 2009

YouTube Biz Blog Touts Social Media and Video Strategies Forum

How cool is this? On Monday, I posted "Social Media & Video Strategies To Be Held With SES San Jose:. It broke the news that ClickZ, YouTube and Google will be holding an event on August 11, 2009, in conjunction with SES San Jose 2009.

Then on Tuesday, the YouTube Biz Blog posted "Join Us at the SES Social Media & Video Strategies Forum." Kristin Kovner, the Industry Marketing Manager at YouTube, said, "We're excited to be a part of this first-time ever event. SES is one of the best places for businesses to learn about search; now that YouTube has millions of searches each day, it's only fitting that ClickZ and SES are expanding the agenda to include a full day dedicated to video and social media."

Just as importantly, the YouTube Biz Blog embedded the featured video on the SESConferenceExpo's Channel on YouTube. Views of the video, which was uploaded four months ago, shot up immediately. You can see the video for youself below.

Search Engine Strategies Conference & Expo

This illustrates the link between search and social media that I mentioned on Monday and Mike Grehan writes about in his cover story in the latest issue of SES Magazine.

Additional evidence can be found in research conducted by TubeMogul entitled "How do people discover videos online?" Here's the gist of what they found:

-- 45% of all videos are found on a video site, i.e. going to YouTube and doing a search or clicking around featured and related videos. -- 44% of all videos are found embedded in blogs. -- 6% of all videos are found with search engines, like Google. -- 2% of all videos are found in social networks, like Facebook. -- 2% of all videos found in social bookmarking sites. -- Less than 1% of all videos are found with video search engines, like Google Video.

So, optimizating the title, description and tags of your YouTube video is half of the success formula. But the other half is engaging what Google calls "the buzzing blogger community."

I mentioned this a year ago at SES San Jose 2008 during a video interview with Liana Evans, who was then with KeyRelevance and is now with Serengeti Communications. Looking at it again a year later, I wouldn't change a word. (And I can't anyway.)

VSEO - Video Search Engine Optimization - with Greg Jarboe at SES San Jose 2008

So, stay tuned. Because this year's events -- as you can see in the SES San Jose 2009 agenda and the Social Media and Video Strategies agenda -- are likely to demonstrate the link between search and social big time.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 11:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

July 6, 2009

Video about NACA's Save the Dream Tour Wins TELLY Awards

On Friday, I posted a story about the "Search and Community Track at SES San Jose: NACA's Save The Dream Tour." It seems to have connected with readers of the Search Marketing News Blog on Search Engine Watch because there were 75 Tweets about it on Friday and Saturday.

Well, the YouTube video embedded in my blog post just won two TELLY Awards. The documentary video chronicles the background and success of a the Save the Dream events in cities across America, in which homeowners with unaffordable mortgages can renegotiate or restructure their home mortgages and keep their homes. The Save the Dream tour is being organized by a community advocacy and homeownership organization called Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America (NACA).

The video won a Bronze TELLY for Social Issues productions and another Bronze for Charitable/Non-Profit productions. No, I didn't have anything to do with the video's production. It was produced by Mont Fennel and Michael Kolowich of DigiNovations, filmed principally by the video production company's Director of Photography Bill Charette, and edited by Dan Roth and Michael Kolowich.

It features numerous stories of homeowners whose lives were changed by the Save the Dream process. You can watch "Documentary: NACA's "Save the Dream" - Mortgage Restructuring and Renegotiation Rescues Homeowners" on the NACAmedia YouTube channel.

Oh, and if you have friends and neighbors who are struggling to avoid foreclosure, restructure home loans, and reduce mortgage rates, let them know about NACA's Save the Dream events in Cleveland, Ohio, July 17 - 20 at the Wolstein Center; Chicago, Illinois, July 24 - 27 at McCormick Place; and St. Louis, Missouri, July 31 - August 3 at Chaifetz Arena.

If they go to NACA's website for more information or to pre-register for one of the events, tell them to hunt for and click on the Save the Dream Tour bar in the middle of the page. The information and sign up process appears in a pop-up window. Yes, this non-profit, community advocacy and homeownership organization could use some help with usability, design, copy, link development, and other technical issues that prevent their website from receiving high quality search engine traffic and visitor conversions.

I might suggest that they attend Shari Thurow's Express Search Usability Clinic at SES San Jose 2009. Or, I might just donate that advice myself -- because SES San Jose 2009 takes place August 10-14, after the three upcoming Save the Dream events.

Heck, I already seem to be involved in this cause. If there are other search engine marketers who want to get involved, just mention that in your comments below. Maybe this will turn into a search industry effort.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 11:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Social Media & Video Strategies To Be Held With SES San Jose

The cover story by Mike Grehan in the latest issue of SES Magazine is entitled, "Is there a link between search & social?" Well, there's a new link -- with the posting of the agenda for ClickZ's Social Media & Video Strategies Forum.

This forum, which is brought to you by ClickZ, YouTube and Google, will explore "the successes and failures companies, celebrities, and politicians have had in the social sphere online and will deliver actionable tactics and strategies so that you can prosper from them." This one-day event at the San Jose Marriott on August 11, 2009, is taking place in conjunction with the Search Engine Strategies San Jose Conference & Expo, which is being held at the McEnery Convention Center August 10-14, 2009.

Being side by side will enable attendees of both events to hear the keynote speech by Clay Shirky, author of Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations.

It also enables attendees of both events to visit the grand opening of the SES San Jose exhibit hall.

Then, attendees of Social Media & Video Strategies can attend sessions on: -- Marketing in a Social Media World; -- Going Social: Effective Advertising via Social Networks; -- In the Now: Conversational & Real Time Marketing; -- What Works: Online Video Advertising Made Easy With Google & YouTube; -- What Works: Best Practices / Case Studies for Online Video; and -- A Social Visit: CMO Fireside Chat.

So, the link between search and social just got stronger.

I've just finished writing a book entitled, "YouTube and Video Marketing: An Hour A Day," which will be published by Wiley in mid-August. No, I didn't know that Social Media & Video Strategies would be held in conjunction with SES San Jose 2009 when I started writing last fall. But I did know that YouTube.com was on its way to being the destination where 107.1 million Americans went to watch 6.8 billion videos each month, according to comScore Video Metrix. I also knew YouTube was on its way to becoming the #2 property where search activity is observed, with 3.2 billion search queries a month in the U.S., behind only Google, with 9.8 billion search queries a month.

So, it appears that I've been fortunate to skate to where the puck's going, to borrow a line from Wayne Gretzky. But, it also appears that I'm not the only one headed in that direction. Obviously, Clay Shirky anticipated this move, too. And so did Mike Grehan, SES Advisory Board Co-Chair & Global KDM Officer of Acronym Media, and Stewart Quealy, the other SES Advisory Board Co-Chair & VP of Content Development for Incisive Media. And so has ClickZ, YouTube and Google.

And I know others who are also looking closely at the link between search and social. For example, Byron Gordon of SEO-PR interviewed Jeff Quipp of Search Engine People at SES Toronto 2009 about social media's impact on search, and more importantly, about social media's ability to create awareness of great content.

Jeff Quipp, SearchEnginePeople, on the past, present and future of SEO

John Mulligan of SEO-PR interviewed Eric Qualman of EF Education at SES New York 2009 about the future of search and social media.

Erik Qualman, EF Education on the future of search and social media at SES New York 2009

Li Evans of Serengeti Communications interviewed me at SES London 2009 about the spike in views that the SESConferenceExpo's Channel on YouTube saw when Matt Cutts of Google embedded my video interview with him on his Gadgets, Google and SEO blog.

Greg Jarboe of SEO-PR discusses YouTube and Video Marketing at SES London 2009

So, now all of us can find the link between search and social in the same place at the same time. Sweet.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 8:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 3, 2009

Search and Community Track at SES San Jose: NACA's Save The Dream Tour

At SES San Jose 2009, I've been asked to make a solo presentation to kick of the Search and Community Track. The title of the session is "How to Optimize for Search & Engage the Community."

I've been working on my presentation, but it lacked a compelling case study that illustrated how a community organization had used search engine optimization and YouTube video to generate measurable results. I had planned to show examples of videos created by Barack Obama's presidential campaign, Monty Python, and Blendtec, but plans have a way of changing.

Then, I got involved with the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America (NACA), a national non-profit community advocacy and homeownership organization headquartered in Boston.

NACA is organizing a series of Save the Dream events to help homeowners avoid foreclosure, restructure home loans, and reduce mortgage rates. They have already held events in Columbia, SC, Stamford, CT, and Washington, DC. And NACA plans to hold more Save the Dream events in Cleveland, OH, July 17 - 20 at the Wolstein Center; Chicago, IL, July 24 - 27 at McCormick Place; and St. Louis, MO, July 31 - August 3 at Chaifetz Arena.

Although I don't have my case study wrapped up just yet, I do see one in the making. And it offers lots of lessons to search engine marketers, YouTube directors and entrepreneurs about how to create unique, relevant content that can quickly gain popularity in the Internet community.

For example, we issued an optimized press release yesterday announcing that NACA CEO Bruce Marks and Congresswoman Marcia L. Fudge (OH-11) will hold a joint press conference on Monday, July 6, at the Wolstein Center at 11:30 am to discuss the upcoming Save the Dream event in Cleveland. You can get the gist of the news at NACA and Congresswoman Marcia L. Fudge (Oh-11) Announce Same Day Solution for Homeowners with Unaffordable Mortgage.

But we also embedded a documentary video created by DigiNovations of Concord, MA, in the optimized press release. It provides background on NACA's Save the Dream program, which has helped homeowners across America restructure and renegotiate home mortgages and home loans they can no longer afford.

Documentary: NACA's "Save the Dream" - Mortgage Restructuring and Renegotiation Rescues Homeowners

Now, the press conference hasn't even been held yet -- and the Save the Dream event in Cleveland is still two weeks away. But I was stunned yesterday when one Twitter user near Memphis, TN, said "this is fantastic news" but she couldn't afford to wait, had called NACA and was "on hold" waiting to talk with someone.

I initially tweeted back that NACA will have over 500 staff and volunteers at the Wolstein Center in Cleveland, including over 250 counselors providing counseling from 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. from Friday July 17 through Monday July 20. Then, I realized that this information wasn't helpful today, this minute, now. So, I sent her a direct tweet with the cell phone number of the person I was working with at NACA -- in case she needed it.

I got a direct tweet back saying, "Thanks for the info... my process is well underway - so I'm all set (I hope!)"

So, something extraordinary is happening. And as I prepare for my presentation at SES San Jose 2009, I hope you won't mind if I share the story as it unfolds. That's one of the lessons I've already learned: You can't plan a search campaign and expect the community to wait to respond when you are ready -- especially if you are offering an answer to the huge subprime and predatory lending industry.

This is bigger than a case study. This is people's homes.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 10:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 1, 2009

SES San Jose Offers Conference Sessions for First Time Attendees

I've been attending SES San Jose every year since 2003. And each year a healthy proportion of attendees are attending their first search engine marketing conference ever.

This is healthy because it expands the number of marketers who "get it."

I can't tell you the number of times when prospective clients mistakenly assume that search engine marketing (SEM) isn't rocket science. Or they mistakenly believe that search engine optimization (SEO) is something their information technology (IT) department took care of years ago. Or they mistakenly think that a pay-per-click (PPC) advertising campaign takes 15 minutes to set up. Or they mistakenly hope that their public relations (PR) people have a good handle on social media marketing.

So, I'm delighted to see the large number of first time attendees at Search Engine Strategies conferences -- because after they've sat in on a dozen sessions over three days they come away knowing how much more there is to learn.

Hey, if it were easy, we'd all rank #1.

So, with SES San Jose 2009 coming up August 10-14, I thought I'd highlight some of the conference sessions that I'd recommend to first time attendees. I've been doing this for several years -- and even spoke along with Matt Bailey of SiteLogic in a few "First Timer's Guide to SES and SEM" sessions at some events.

But, most marketers like to plan ahead. So, look over the SES conference agenda and check out some of the sessions that address your needs and your organization's issues.

If you want some suggestions, here are sessions specially focused on search fundamentals for first time attendees: • Introduction to Search Engine Marketing provides a clear and concise overview of the concepts involved in search engine marketing. • Successful Site Architecture offers a fresh look at topics on how to successfully design a site for search engines, including JavaScript, robots.txt use, frames, secure area usage and much more. • Turn Brain Science into Bucks: Incorporating Persuasive Messaging into Your Content Strategy showcases current online content campaigns and explains the best content strategies to help persuade buyers, build trust, and get great search engine listings using Twitter, white papers, optimized web pages and more. • SEO Tools of the Trade: What's in YOUR Toolbox? describes the tools that will help accomplish tasks, including indexing, competitive analysis, site ranking, diagnosing and remedying problems and much more. • Search Advertising 101 describes the basic principles and applications of paid placement. • Keywords & Content: Search Marketing Foundations presents an overview of the important keywords customers are searching for and how to target the right terms in paid and organic search marketing. • Discover the Power of Linking: Link Building Basics focuses on the role of link analysis in search engine site rankings and how to increase site traffic by building quality links. • The Findability Formula: The Easy, Non-Technical Approach to SEM features search engine guru Heather Lutze taking a fresh look at how search engines find content and what steps to take to ensure a successful online marketing campaign. • Extreme Makeover is a series of four sessions held throughout day three of the conference. Volunteers are taken from the audience, their websites are examined and feedback is provided. Sessions include: Extreme Makeover: Live Site Clinic provides general feedback about improving websites and gaining more traffic from search engines. Extreme Makeover: Live Twitter & Blogging Clinic provides general feedback about how to improve your website's use of Twitter and blogging. Extreme Makeover: Live Landing Page Clinic provides feedback on how to improve landing pages. Extreme Makeover Live! Why Am I Not Making Enough Sales? covers the most common reasons many sites have low conversion rates and gives tips on how to turn more site visitors into paying customers.

I think you can see from the suggestions above that there is more to SEM, SEO, PPC and social media than a handful of tricks that you can pick up by reading a blog post. Oh, and if the folks over in finance are still cutting travel budgets these days, ask them this rhetorical question: "If I don't learn how to improve our search engine marketing, search engine optimization, pay-per-click advertising, or social media marketing, then how will the company be able to pay your salaries next year?"

Okay, so maybe you don't want to actually say that to their faces. And you don't want to start calling finance the "department of sales prevention." They are just doing their job.

But you can show them the SES conference agenda and let them know that you've picked out sessions to attend that will provide your company with a return on its investment (ROI) in marketing. Finance folks love it when you talk about ROI. Your talking their language.

Or, ask them to watch the video below. Yes, yes, it makes the case for going to Search Engine Strategies. But it also demonstrates visually that SES San Jose, which is the largest search engine marketing expo on the West Coast, will be packed with more than 70 sessions, multiple keynotes, and Orion panels, over 150 exhibitors, networking events, and more.

Search Engine Strategies Conference & Expo

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 10:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 30, 2009

Enter the Search Engine Watch Awards by July 17, 2009

You only have a couple of weeks left to submit an entry to this year's Search Engine Watch Awards. The deadline is July 17, 2009.

The objective of the SEW Awards is to recognize excellence, as well as inspire innovation and encourage new ideas in search marketing. The SEW Awards will honor 14 outstanding search marketers, search engines and technology providers, as judged by a panel of industry experts and the Search Engine Watch editorial staff.

The categories are: * Search Engine with Most Relevant Results * Most Innovative New Search Engine * Best Search Engine Ad Platform * Technology Platform Search Marketers Can't Live Without * Best SEM Technology Platform for SMBs * Best Social Media Platform for Marketers * Best Web Analytics Platform * Most Innovative Use of Search Engine Optimization * Most Innovative Paid Search Campaign * Best Social Media Marketing Campaign * Best Business-to-Business Search Marketing Campaign * Best Use of Local Search * Best Integration of Search with Other Media * Most Effective Use of Web Analytics

And who are the judges? They are: * Chris Boggs, Director, SEO, Rosetta * Jessica Bowman, SEO Strategist and in-house SEO Expert, SEMinhouse.com * Eric Enge, President, Stone Temple Consulting * PJ Fusco, Natural Search Director, Netconcepts * Bill Hunt, President, Back Azimuth Consulting * Mark Jackson, SEW Expert & President/CEO, VIZION Interactive * Ron Jones, President/CEO, Symetri Internet Marketing * Cindy Krum, Chief Executive Officer, Rank-Mobile, LLC * Sage Lewis, President, SageRock.com * Melissa Mackey, Online Marketing Manager, Fluency Media * John Marshall, SES Advisory Board & CTO, Market Motive * Lee Odden, SES Advisory Board & CEO, TopRank Online Marketing * David Szetela, CEO, Clix Marketing * Brian Ussery, Director of SEO, Search Discovery * Matt Van Wagner, President, Find Me Faster

By the way, in case you think I'm sucking up to the judges by listing their names, my firm can't enter because SES is one of our clients. This wasn't in the rules a year ago, but now that it has, I am free to comment on the process and the outcome.

Entrants may submit nominations for multiple categories, but each submission must focus on the four key areas of consideration:

1. Overall approach and category relevance 2. Innovation in methodology and execution 3. Excellence in tactical execution 4. Achieving success goals

Submissions will be accepted through July 17, 2009. There is an application fee of $145 per entry. Up to four award finalists will be determined for each category. Finalists will be notified by July 27, 2009, and will receive 1-day passes (limit 3) to the SES San Jose sessions and Orion panels on the day the winner in their category is announced. Winners will be announced during Search Engine Strategies San Jose, August 10-14, 2009.

Submitting companies will be recognized at the event, as well as in the SES Magazine and on Search Engine Watch. I also plan to interview as many winners as possible for SESConferenceExpo's Channel on YouTube.

Oh, there is one other thing you should know about the Search Engine Watch Awards. The winner of the 2000 SEW Award in the "Outstanding Search Service" category was a little known start-up named Google. And Google was also the winner in the "Most Webmaster Friendly" category, as well.

Not bad for a company that had just announced a $25 million round from Sequoia Capital and Kleiner Perkins a year earlier. Where are they now, I wonder?

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 11:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 22, 2009

SES Toronto 2009 Gets Rave Reviews from Attendees

We conducted more than half a dozen video interviews with attendees at SES Toronto 2009 -- to get feedback on the conference. Basically, the event got rave reviews with comments ranging from "excellent" to "bloody fantastic."

A couple of attendees mentioned the Monday keynote by Tara Hunt, author of The Whuffie Factor. The Tuesday keynote by Emanuel Rosen, author of The Anatomy of Buzz Revisited, was also mentioned.

A couple of attendees mentioned the "Canadian focus" of the conference or the new information on the "Canadian landscape."

Also mentioned were the session, Beyond Linkbait: Getting Authoritative Online Mentions.

Each of the video interviews runs from 14 to 56 seconds long, so check them out below.

Debbie Wheeler on SES Toronto

Nick Eng on SES Toronto

Michelle Agudera, Microsoft on attending SES Toronto 2009

Estee Langis, Yellow Pages Group, on attending SES Toronto

Susan Hurell, Modern Earth Web Design and BinaryCanary on SES Toronto

Helen Faber, WebFuel, on SES Toronto

Cecilia Tamez, XE.com on attending SES Toronto 2009

So, congratulations to Andrew Goodman, the SES Advisory Board and SearchEngineWatch.com, who organized and programmed SES Toronto 2009. Based on the feedback, it appears that the keynoters and mix of sessions in the Nuts & Bolts, Corporateville and Geek Tracks appealed to both first time attendees and SES veterans.

Hey, I couldn't make this stuff up. Oh, and check out the crowd at the bing booth at SES Toronto 2009. Yes, with close to 1,200 attendees, the exhibitors were happy, too.

Crowds at the bing exhibitor booth at SES Toronto 2009

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 5:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

June 17, 2009

Nicholas Fox of Google AdWords to Keynote at SES San Jose

It seems like I've just returned from Search Engine Strategies Toronto and it's already time to look ahead to SES San Jose. Wow, time flies when you're having fun.

And it is worth noting that Nicholas Fox, the business product management director for Google's AdWords team, will be one of the keynote speakers at Search Engine Strategies San Jose. The event, which will be held August 10-14, 2009, is expected to attract approximately 6,000 marketing professionals this year. Since there were close to 1,200 attendees at SES Toronto 2009, which was about the same number that attended last year, it seems likely that Search Engine Strategies San Jose 2009 will also attract roughly the same size crowd as last year. And that was approximately 6,000 marketing professionals.

I've just returned from the Internet Retailer Conference & Exhibition in Boston, which attracted 5,000 attendees, approximately the same number as last year. So, while trade shows and events in other industries may have been hit hard by the global recession, it appears that conferences and expos on the Internet marketing side of the fence are holding their own.

And that's a good thing. Or, as I heard at the Specialized Information Publishers Association conference in Washington, D.C., earlier this month, "Flat is the new up."

SES San Jose 2009 is being organized and programmed by the SES Advisory Board and Search Engine Watch. The event, now in its 11th year, is the largest search engine marketing conference and expo on the West Coast and will be packed with more than 70 sessions, multiple keynotes and Orion panels, over 150 exhibitors, networking events, parties and more.

I should disclose that SES became a client in late 2007, but I started writing for Search Engine Watch in early 2002 and speaking at SES conferences in mid 2003.

Matt McGowan, Vice President and Publisher for Incisive Media's Interactive Marketing Group, said in a press release yesterday, "I can tell already that this year's SES San Jose is going to be a special one. The speakers, training programs, panels and sessions are all up there with the best we've ever had. Throw in over 150 exhibitors and some great networking events and parties, and we're looking at what very well may turn out to be the most exciting SES San Jose ever."

I interviewed McGowan during SES London 2009 back in February. He provided an overview of the SES Conference and Expo series for the upcoming year, which seems very clairvoyant now that we have about four months worth of 20/20 hindsight.

Matt McGowan, VP Publishing, Incisive Media, elaborates on SES shows in 2009

In yesterday's press release, McGowan also said he was thrilled to have Fox speaking at SES San Jose 2009. McGowan said, "It's not often that we get to hear from a management director at one of the most respected companies in the search industry. Anyone who's used Google AdWords in the past knows its value to the advertising field and this August, SES San Jose attendees are going to have the opportunity to hear the thoughts and ideas of someone who's been on the AdWords team since day one."

Fox is the business product management director for Google's AdWords. He also leads product management for AdWords bidding features. Before joining Google in 2003, he was a consultant for McKinsey & Company.

Go to the SES San Jose 2009 website for more information about the event. If you register through July 24, you can save up to $200 with the early bird rate.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 1:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 11, 2009

Top Stories from SES Toronto: Day 2 (Belatedly)

I should have posted the top stores from Day 2 of SES Toronto yesterday, but I have some really lame excuses for why I didn't get around to posting this until today. Let's just say I watched the Boston Red Sox beat the New York Yankees last night instead. Mea culpa (but my team won 6-5).

In other news, the top story on Tuesday was clearly the keynote presentation by Emanuel Rosen, author of The Anatomy of Buzz Revisited. After his keynote, I interviewed Rosen, who discussed the lessons learned about Blendtec's "Will It Blend?" videos which have been viewed close to 77 million times by YouTube users. Rosen said more than 1,000 people asked Blendtec to blend an iPhone, and as a result, they did so -- and emailed those people when the video was uploaded to YouTube. It is also worth noting that Blendtec's sales are up 700 percent.

Emanuel Rosen on generating buzz in the online and offline communities

Another one of the top stories is "Putting the M Back in SEM" by Kevin Newcomb of Search Engine Watch. According to Newcomb, "Just about every session offered the same general advice: stop chasing algorithms and build a site that people will trust; build links that will drive qualified traffic, and the SEO benefits will follow."

Byron Gordon of SEO-PR interviewed Stacey Jarvis, Search Lead, Consumer & Online, Microsoft Canada about search engine marketing and bing! Jarvis spoke on the Orion Panel: Is PageRank Broken? - The Future of Search. According to Jarvis, more than 60 percent of Canadians are using multiple search engines.

Stacey Jarvis, Microsoft Canada, on search marketing today and bing!

Tyler Calder of the Search Engine People Blog posted "SES Toronto 2009: Canada Specific SEO & PPC Issues." According to Calder, "Many SEO matters are common around the globe, but Canadian companies face some unique issues."

Mitch Joel, Twist Image, interviewed Nick Papsiopolis of Yahoo Canada about the state of mobile applications. Papsiopolis said the growth of mobile apps has been phenomenal over the past year.

Nick Papsiopolis, Yahoo Canada, on the adoption of new mobile applications

Evan Carmichael of the Entrepreneur Blog posted "SES Toronto - Day 2 - SEO University." According to Carmichael, "Just like I did yesterday, today I wanted to share with you some of the highlights from today's workshops. I again stayed mostly to the Geek Track to get really deep on technical issues and tactics to build more traffic."

Nick Cox of Semantec Monkey posted "SES Toronto." According to Cox, "If you've never done it, you'd be amazed at the havoc a 3 hour PST to EST timezone change can play with your body clock."

Patrick Landry of Ressac Media posted "Retour sur Search Engine Strategies Toronto 2009." According to Landry, "l'industrie du Search garde sa pertinence, un domaine d'innovation et d'avancée technologique qui ne cessera de me surprendre."

Finally, if you want to see what the event looked like, check out "SES Toronto - Photos Day 2." According to Alexandre Bussiere of NVI, "More expert wise words were spoken during a day full of speaker sessions, these and the first day's all captured here in live blogging form."

Or, you can also go to the SES Conference Series' photostream on Flickr. My favorite photo is the crowd at the bing booth at SES Toronto 2009.

Crowd at the bing booth at SES Toronto 2009

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 2:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 8, 2009

June 4, 2009

SES Names Three New Advisory Board Members

This morning, Search Engine Strategies announced that three new members are joining the SES Advisory Board: Brett Crosby, Group PPM, Google; Lee Odden, CEO, TopRank Online Marketing; and Stewart Quealy, VP, Content Development, Incisive Media.

The three new members are joining 11 current members, who will continue to serve on the SES Advisory Board: * Matthew Bailey, President, SiteLogic * Ron Belanger, Vice President of Worldwide Agency Sales, Omniture * Bryan Eisenberg, Co-Founder, Future Now, Inc * Jeff Ferguson, Senior Director of Online Marketing, Local.com * Andrew Goodman, Principal, Page Zero Media * Mike Grehan, Global KDM Officer, Acronym Media * Anne Kennedy, Managing Partner, Beyond Ink * John Marshall, CTO, Market Motive * Pauline Ores, Senior Marketing Manager, Community and Collaboration Strategy, Global Small & Midmarket Business, IBM * Erynn Petersen, Senior Manager, Advertising Platform Evangelism, Microsoft * Randy Peterson, Search Marketing Innovation Manager, Proctor and Gamble

The three new members of the SES Advisory Board replace thee original members who are rotating out: * Chris Henger, Group Product Manager, Google. * Jeff Levick, Head of Global Advertising and Strategy, AOL. * Kevin Ryan, SES Advisory Board Chair and CMO, WebVisible, Inc.

In addition, SES announced that Grehan and Quealy would be co-chairs of the SES Advisory Board.

In a press release, Ryan said, "I enjoyed the years spent with SES and SEW yet the demands on my time are tremendous with WebVisible and the companies I advise. I am so pleased to be passing on the baton to Mike Grehan, SES has a bright future,"

Grehan said, "I'm proud to have been a primary speaker with SES for many years--and even prouder to be taking on this new role with the global advisory board." He added, "I'm much looking forward to working more closely with my friend and colleague Stewart Quealy and the ever innovative SES content team."

Quealy said, "I look forward to working closely with Mike Grehan and the rest of the advisory board in shaping the future direction and ongoing growth of SES."

Now that Ryan has passed the baton to Grehan, the next logical question to ask is: What will Grehan do with the shoehorn that he normally waves around at SES conferences? Will he hold the baton in one hand and the shoehorn in the other? Will Quealy get the shoehorn?

I can't want to find out the answer at SES Toronto 2009 next week.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 10:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 3, 2009

Search Engine Marketing (SEM) Training Workshops Offered Following SES Toronto Conference

This just handed me: Search Engine Strategies is offering search engine marketing training workshops following next week's SES conference and expo in Toronto. In case you've been pre-occupied by other news and events, the largest search engine marketing conference and expo in Canada will be held at the Sheraton Centre Toronto June 8-10, 2009.

According to the folks at comScore, there were 3.5 billion expanded searches in Canada during March 2009. Google Sites had an 80.7 percent share, Microsoft Sites had 4.9 percent, and Yahoo! Sites 4.5 percent. During the same month, there were 21.0 billion expanded searches in the United States. Google Sites had a 58.8 percent share, Yahoo! Sites had a 14.7 percent share, and Microsoft Sites a 5.9 percent share.

The event is organized and programmed in cooperation with the SES Advisory Board, Search Engine Watch and Andrew Goodman, the founder and president of Toronto-based Page Zero Media. According to Goodman, "These workshops provide the practices, applications, and hands-on exposure you need to become and remain a top performer in your field. This in-depth training in a small class setting ensures that your instructor is accessible for informal one-on-one or small group discussions. Regardless where you are in the SEO and SEM process, you will leave these intensive workshops with the necessary skills to improve your business results and take your search engine marketing to another level."

The SEM training workshops will be held on Wednesday, June 10, 2009. They are:

Search Marketing Boot Camp (8:00am-5:00pm): This search engine marketing training workshop will be taught by Jennifer Evans Laycock and Matt Bailey of SiteLogic. With search engine marketing quickly expanding beyond the simple realm of keyword research, on-page optimization and traditional paid search campaigns, it's becoming more and more difficult for businesses to know how and where to break into the mix with their own search related marketing efforts. If you are planning on attending Search Engine Strategies Toronto, but are not yet familiar with the nuances of search engine marketing, link building, viral marketing and online reputation management, this workshop will provide you with a crash-course in all things search marketing related.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Workshop (8:00am-12:00pm): This SEO training workshop will be taught by Shari Thurow of Omni Marketing Interactive. A search-engine friendly Web site is a user-friendly, search-friendly, and persuasive site that converts visitors into buyers. In order for a site to be search-engine friendly, it must meet the terms and conditions set forth by Google and the other search engines. Additionally, the site must satisfy the needs of site visitors. Ultimately, the site must be profitable for the Web site owner. Can a single site satisfy all of these groups? This workshop will demonstrate that these skills are essential for building a user-friendly, search-friendly, and persuasive site that converts visitors into buyers.

Google AdWords Tactics to Improve Your ROI (1:00pm-5:00pm): This Google AdWords training workshop will be taught by Brad Geddes, bgTheory.com. Learn how to spice up your AdWords account by applying tactics learned in this session. You will first dive into the Psychology of Search that shows how consumers think and act throughout the search process. Next, you will learn how to choose the correct keywords to take control of when your ad is displayed. Then, you will study how effective ad copy can generate more clicks and increase your conversion rate. The landing page is fundamental to increasing conversions, and the session will cover usability and conversion optimization. Finally, you will learn everything you need to know about optimizing your account for Quality Score.

For more information about SES Toronto 2009, go to rates and registration details. Tell them the hoser from the Search Marketing News Blog at Search Engine Watch sent you. No, it won't get you a discount. But it will let me know if anyone is reading this post.

Participants may register for training in addition to the SES Toronto conference or independently, as workshops take place on the Wednesday after the event. To follow news about SES Toronto 2009 on Twitter, go to http://twitter.com/SES_Toronto.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 7:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 1, 2009

SES Toronto Adds Copywriting, Landing Page and Twitter Sessions

SES Toronto gets underway June 8-10, 2009, at the Sheraton Centre Toronto. With just a week to go, largest search engine marketing conference in Canada today announced the addition of copywriting, landing page and Twitter sessions to the already packed conference agenda.

The event is organized and programmed in cooperation with the SES Advisory Board, Search Engine Watch and Andrew Goodman, the founder and president of Toronto-based Page Zero Media.

In a press release distributed this morning, Goodman says, "Although most of the conference agenda was set months ago, we kept a couple of slots open for sessions that covered topics that needed to be addressed. I'm excited that we found one for each of our concurrent tracks: Nuts & Bolts, Corporateville, and Geek Track."

The three new conference sessions are:

Copywriting: 45-Minute Boot Camp: Copywriting requires special skills in the search marketing world. Writing ads for paid search requires three parts science, two parts audience research, and at least one part creativity. SEO copywriting requires a mix of skills, including an understanding of the balance between a natural flow, and the importance of keyword research. And improving conversion rates on landing pages may require testing long versus short copy, headlines, benefits copy, tone, call-to-action text, and more. Our experts share their top tips to maximize your search campaign performance by choosing the right words to connect with customers and bots alike.

Search Ads & Landing Page Clinic: Does your PPC ad make a promise that your landing page can't keep? Make sure that your ad copy and landing page contents are in alignment to ensure a smooth and profitable visitor experience. This clinic will examine actual ads and landing pages offered up by volunteers from the audience.

The Ins & Outs of Twitter: Of all emerging social media platforms, Twitter is perhaps the most talked (or should we say tweeted) about today. Coming seemingly out of nowhere, Twitter's exemplary ability to offer real-time search capability is shaking up the search world. And surely, retweets, follower counts, and mentions on Twitter should be factored into the search algorithms of the very near future. There are also downsides and even dark sides to improper use. Panelists discuss, with a longer Q&A period to take your posts, as submitted on Twitter to #sestortweet.

Goodman likes to remind me that the search engine market in Canada is similar but different than the one in the United States. For example, Google received 80.2 percent of all Canadian searches conducted in the 12 weeks ending April 25, 2009, according to Hitwise. MSN search properties, Yahoo! search properties and Ask search properties received 8.8 percent, 7.3 percent and 2.8 percent, respectively. By comparison, Google accounted for 72.7 percent of all U.S. searches conducted during that period, according to Hitwise. Yahoo! Search, MSN Search and Ask.com received 16.3 percent, 5.7 percent and 4.0 percent, respectively.

At SES New York, Byron Gordan of SEO-PR asked Goodman to provide a preview of SES Toronto. Goodman said he expects many new faces to the search marketing field to attend this year's conference.

Andrew Goodman, Page Zero Media, previews SES Toronto 2009

For more information about SES Toronto 2009, go to rates and registration details. To follow news about SES Toronto 2009 on Twitter, go to http://twitter.com/SES_Toronto.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 7:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

May 22, 2009

Lisa Buyer on Twitter damage control 101 at SES New York 2009

I had just finished posting "Twelve Twitter Tools, Tips, Tricks, Techniques and Twoubles" this morning when I was notified that my video interview with Lisa Buyer, President and CEO of The Buyer Group, had just been uploaded to YouTube.

I had interviewed Buyer at SES New York 2009 about a Twitter damage control case study. She describes the story this way: one of her staff members tweeted about a blogger who posted a negative post about one of their clients. The blogger reacted negatively and hours later a story appeared in Google and Google news about how someone was trying to hire The Buyer Group and had a bad experience.

Buyer says she later contacted the blogger to notify her that this was not part of The Buyer Group's corporate culture and apologized. The blogger took the story down. But the case study illustrates the need to have policies in place before something like this happens in your organization.

Lisa Buyer, The Buyer Group, on Twitter damage control 101 at SES New York 2009

I want to thank Buyer for sharing this story -- which shows a lot of class to talk about mistakes made and lessons learned. And I want to apologies for missing this obvious view interview that should have been included with this morning's "Twelve Twitter Tools, Tips, Tricks, Techniques and Twoubles."

Consider this additional example a "baker's dozen."

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 3:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Twelve Twitter Tools, Tips, Tricks, Techniques and Twoubles

Andrew Goodman, the editor of Traffick, has posted "Is Guy Kawasaki Singlehandedly Ruining Twitter (Part 2)." Goodman takes a deeper look at the tactics could turn Twitter into a "digital trailer park."

This prompted me to take a second look at what others in the search engine marketing industry have been saying about Twitter tools, tips, tricks, and techniques. And I found twelve video interviews conducted at SES London and SES New York this year that provide wide spectrum of divergent opinions.

Since there's going to be a session on "The Ins and Outs of Twitter" at SES Toronto next month, I suspect we'll add even more video interviews on the "Twouble with Twitters," as SuperNews describes it.

So, sit back, relax, and watch "Twelve Twitter Tools, Tips, Tricks, Techniques and Twoubles."

I interviewed Mikkel deMib Svendsen, Creative Director, deMib.com, at SES London 2009. He says most companies are still not aware of just how important it is to monitor their reputation online. And he shares some tips about using Twitter, including the importance of featuring a high quality photo of yourself when tweeting.

Mikkel deMib Svendsen on reputation management at SES London 2009

I interviewed Rand Fishkin, CEO, SEOMoz, about the future of SEO panel at SES London 2009. He says people are using more social elements and direct methods of getting information rather than using the traditional search engines. He says people today who want to converse or learn more about social media don't use Google but use such applications as Facebook or Twitter.

Rand Fishkin, SEOMoz, on the future of SEO in 2009

I also interviewed David Naylor, Founder of Bronco Internet, about reputation management. He shares a few tips. He recommends using such social media tools as Twitter to monitor reputation of brands, products, company name.

David Naylor, CEO, Bronco Internet, on reputation management at SES London

I also interviewed Twitter lover Guy Kawasaki, author of the new book Reality Check and keynote speaker at SES New York 2009. He discusses the social media marketing potential of Twitter. For him, content is king of the hill.

Guy Kawasaki Tweets About Twitter Twits & his Reality Check at SES New York 2009

I also interviewed Jeffrey K. Rohrs, Vice President, Marketing, ExactTarget, about Kawasaki's keynote on Twitter at SES New York 2009. Rohrs expresses concern that if Kawasaki's use of Twitter were adopted by most Tweeters, it would create an avalanche of Twitter spam. Rohrs says one of the major concerns about Twitter is how the Twitterati benefit greatly from its expansion but at the cost of reducing it to strictly a marketing spam tool. He also shares his own newly coined Twitter term, "Twangst."

Jeffrey K. Rohrs, ExactTarget, on Twitter spam at SES New York 2009

John Mulligan of SEO-PR interviewed Aaron Lazansky-Oliva of Sohnup Industries, who live-twittered at SES New York 2009. The two discuss social media such as Facebook and Twitter, and run through some of the best practices, tricks, and tips Aaron picked up as a first-timer at the conference.

Aaron Lazansky-Oliva Twitters and Tapes SES NY 2009

Mulligan also interviewed Eric Qualman, Global Vice President of Online Marketing for EF Education, at SES New York 2009 about the future of search and social media. Qualman describes the future of search as a competition between the major search engines and the various new social media applications such as Twitter and Facebook. As a result, he says the value of social media will only help to improve search.

Erik Qualman, EF Education on the future of search and social media at SES New York 2009

Byron Gordon of SEO-PR interviewed Hollis Thomases, CEO of WebAdvantage.net, about Twitter and its social media applications at SES NY 2009. Hollis discusses how Twitter can be used effectively for building customer relationships and brand reputation. She goes on to describe Whole Foods as a success story in how they use Twitter and then describes a "horror story" that happened to Exxon Mobile when their Twitter handle got hijacked. She recommends several key Twitter tools for young companies just starting out to build their Twitter presence.

Hollis Thomases, WebAdvantage, on Twitter and brand building at SES New York 2009

Gordon also interviewed Brian Cray of Nearby Tweets, who discusses his social networking utility, which brings together Twitter and local search functionality at SES New York 2009.

Nearby Tweets, Twitter Tool, Brings Local Search to Twitter at SES New York 2009

Gordon also interviewed Michael Evans of Talent Magazine, an entertainment and emerging alternative artists and media publication, at SES New York 2009. Evans sees the need for the entertainment market to focus more on in-home activities, especially in a down economy, in order to reach consumers more focused on saving money and tailoring their own private media experiences, especially with the potential of social media sites like Facebook and Twitter to offer what Evans calls a StayCation.

Staycationing, Social Media, & the Economy: Talent Magazine at SES New York 2009

Gordon interviewed Bas van den Beld, founder of SearchCowboys, a European focused search website at SES New York 2009. Beld discusses the merits of Twitter and the future of search in tough economic times.

Bas van den Beld, founder, SearchCowboys, discusses highlights of SES New York 2009

Rebecca Lieb, eConsultancy, interviewed Michel Leconte, SEO Samba, about the value of integrating twitter into your analytics measurements to get more value out of your feeds.

Michel Leconte, CEO, SEO Samba, on RSS feeds and blog optimization at SES New York 2009

There you have it: Twelve Twitter Tools, Tips, Tricks, Techniques and Twoubles. Try saying that quickly three times at SES Toronto.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 8:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (13)

May 19, 2009

Twelve bloggers blogging about SES Toronto 2009

I know, the above headline above looks like a parody of the Twelve Days of Christmas, and it's only May! But I've seen a dozen bloggers blogging about SES Toronto, which will be held June 8-10, 2009, at the Sheraton Centre Toronto. So, I can't get the song out of my head.

Maybe if I focus on what they're writing about, then I won't slip into "11 tweeters tweeting...."

It all started innocently enough when Andrew Goodman wrote, "My Top Three Tips for SES Toronto 2009." See, when he said, three "tips are 100% guaranteed to help you get the most bang for your buck, and reduce headaches." I just couldn't stop thinking, will they get me "a ranking in the top three"?

And I read "Ruud Questions: Mike Grehan." Now, Ruud Hein questions were totally understandable. But Grehan's answers....Is it just me, or does Grehan sound like he has a bit of a Newcastle accent?

Then, there was Garry Przyklenk's "SES Toronto Pre-Show Interview: Janice Hatch, Google" and his "SES Toronto Pre-Show Interview: Julie Batten, Klick Communications." I know what you're thinking. These are two posts, but one blogger blogging. No, I'm not counting him twice.

I also read Marty Weintraub's "Jeff Quipp Interview: SEO, Canada & Killer Coffee." Although, I did have to head to Wiktionary to find out what "quintessential multifaceted search marketing agency owner" means. But, right next to the definition was Quipp's photo, so Weintraub nailed it.

And I read the "Tara Hunt Interview: True Community Marketing" by Manny Rivas. See, two bloggers, but the same blog. So, things have a way of balancing out.

I had no problem understanding Shane Schick's "What IT pros need to know about search engine strategies." I learned to read Computerworld back in the 1980s when I worked at Data General, so the dialect of techie used by IT World Canada is easy to translate. A "data centre" is just a "data ceter," right?

And I read Manoj Jasra's post "SES Toronto 2009: Interview of Mitch Joel - Twist Image." And the photo of Joel's left eye even looks like his left eye.

I read Tami's post, "Emanuel Rosen to Give Keynote at Search Engine Strategies Toronto," so I know she is as interested as I am in reading the sequel to "The Anatomy of Buzz."

Then I tried to read Patrick Landry's post "Ressac Media au Search Engine Strategies (SES) Toronto 2009." It's in French. Now, I studied French back in high school, but I never learned words like "Whuffie". So, I'll need to brush up on my grandmother's native language before I fly into Toronto next month. However, I had no trouble with the "Last Minute Interview with Tim Schigel CEO of ShareThis Live via Ustream." Schigel is from Ohio, and I understand his midwestern dialect, even though I grew up in Michigan.

Speaking of French, Sarah Benmaza posted "SES Toronto 2009 - Entrevue avec Bryan Eisenberg." I don't know how she did it, but she got Eisenberg to speak slowly -- so I was finally able to keep up with his train of thought which rockets along at Acela speed.

Christoph C. Cemper wrote about his "SEO Event Plans for 2009." Hey, that's in English. Although, Christoph has been to Rio, Berlin, New York City, Munich, Amsterdam, Hanover, and Seattle during the past few months, so obviously language isn't a barrier for him.

I also enjoyed reading Evan Carmichael's "New forum - online businesses!" Okay, okay, so technically this is a forum, not a blog. But his interview with Amanda Watlington looks sort of blogger-like -- if you are a stickler for details. Besides, I was one short of a dozen, so I'm counting him.

There you have it, 12 bloggers blogging.

Now, all together, let's sing the final chorus: "In the first month of summer, Toronto gave to me: 12 bloggers blogging, 11 tweeters tweeting, 10 speakers speaking, 9 Diggers digging, 8 searchers searching, 7 linkers linking, 6 vendors vending, 5 Google things, 4 conferences, 3 key trends, 2 journalists, and a ranking in the top three."

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 7:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

May 5, 2009

Charlene Li, Co-Author of "Groundswell", to Keynote at SES San Jose

Charlene Li, the co-author of "Groundswell," will be one of the keynote speakers at SES San Jose 2009. The event, which will be held August 11-14, 2009, is expected to attract approximately 6,000 marketing executives, managers, professionals, specialists and consultants this year.

SES San Jose 2009 is the largest search engine marketing conference and expo on the West Coast. The event will be packed with more than 70 sessions, multiple keynotes and Orion panels, over 150 exhibitors, networking events, parties and more.

Li is an influential thought leader and guide on emerging technologies, with a specific focus on social technologies, interactive media, and marketing. She is the co-author of the business best-seller, "Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies", published by Harvard Business Press in May 2008.

Named "One of the Most Influential Women in Technology" by Fast Company magazine, she is the founder of Altimeter Group which provides speaking and consulting services to organizations looking to understand and thrive in a new economy driven by social media tools and techniques. You can also read her insights on the firm's blog, "The Altimeter."

Li is one of the most frequently-quoted industry analysts and has appeared on 60 Minutes, The McNeil NewsHour, ABC News, CNN, and CNBC. She is also frequently quoted by The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, USA Today, Reuters, and The Associated Press.

Most recently, she was a Vice President and Principal Analyst at Forrester Research. She joined Forrester in 1999, after spending five years in online and newspaper publishing with the San Jose Mercury News and Community Newspaper Company. She is a graduate of Harvard Business School and received a magna cum laude degree from Harvard College.

In a press release distributed this morning, Matt McGowan, Vice President and Publisher for Incisive Media's Interactive Marketing Group, said, "More than 60 percent of the content at SES San Jose 2009 will be focused on topics that search engine marketing (SEM), pay per click (PPC) advertising, and search engine optimization (SEO) professionals, specialists and consultants need to know. That's what makes SES San Jose a must-attend event year after year."

He added, "As more and more businesses move ever greater amounts of their traditional marketing budgets into social media, we've also seen growing interest from marketing executives and managers in sessions that tackle a broader set of social technologies. That's why we're delighted to have Charlene Li as a keynote speaker at our conference in San Jose, which is home to the largest concentration of successful internet and high-tech companies in the world."

For more information about the largest search engine marketing conference and expo on the West Coast, go to the SES San Jose 2009 website. Register through May 8 to save up to $600 with the early bird rate.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 7:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

April 30, 2009

Clay Shirky, Author of "Here Comes Everybody", to Keynote at SES San Jose

Okay, I understand that it's hard to think beyond the current quarter. But, looking ahead to August could save you up to $600. Let me explain.

Search Engine Strategies San Jose will be held August 11-14, 2009. It is expected to attract approximately 6,000 marketing executives, managers, professionals, specialists and consultants this year.

Now in its 11th year, SES San Jose 2009 is organized and programmed by the SES Advisory Board and Search Engine Watch. The event, which is the largest search engine marketing conference and expo on the West Coast, will be packed with more than 70 sessions, multiple keynotes and Orion panels, over 150 exhibitors, networking events, parties and more.

And, if you register through May 8, you can save up to $600 with the early bird rate.

Get it? Got it? Good.

Now, it has just been announced that Clay Shirky, author of "Here Comes Everybody," will be one of the keynote speakers at SES San Jose.

Shirky is a writer, educator, and consultant on the social and economic effects of Internet technologies. He is an adjunct professor at New York University (NYU) in their graduate Interactive Telecommunications Program, where he teaches courses on the interrelationships of social and technological networks, particularly how they shape culture and vice-versa. He consults to a variety of organizations on network technologies, and is an acknowledged expert on collaboration tools, social networks, peer-to-peer sharing, collaborative filtering, and Open Source development.

Shirky has spoken and written extensively on the Internet since 1996, with regular columns in Business 2.0, FEED, OpenP2P.com and his own shirky.com blogsite. He has appeared in The New York Times, Time, The Wall Street Journal, the Harvard Business Review, and others. In his new book, "Here Comes Everybody", he explores how organizations and industries are being upended by open networks, collaboration, and user appropriation of content production and dissemination.

In a press release issued this morning, Matt McGowan, Vice President and Publisher for Incisive Media's Interactive Marketing Group, which includes Search Engine Strategies, Search Engine Watch and the ClickZ Network, said, "More than 60 percent of the content at SES San Jose 2009 will be focused on topics that search engine marketing (SEM), pay per click (PPC) advertising, and search engine optimization (SEO) professionals, specialists and consultants need to know. That's what makes SES San Jose a must-attend event year after year."

McGowan added, "As more and more businesses move ever greater amounts of their traditional marketing budgets into search engine marketing, we've also seen growing interest from marketing executives and managers in sessions that tackle a broader set of business issues. That's why we're delighted to have Clay Shirky as a keynote speaker at our conference in San Jose, which is home to the largest concentration of successful internet and high-tech companies in the world."

So, if you plan to attend the largest search engine marketing conference and expo on the West Coast, then register through May 8. If you do, you can save up to $600 with the early bird rate.

Get it? Got it? Good.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 7:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

April 28, 2009

Emanuel Rosen, Author of "The Anatomy of Buzz Revisited", to Give Keynote at SES Toronto

I'm looking forward to interviewing Emanuel Rosen, the author of "The Anatomy of Buzz Revisited", who will give a keynote presentation at SES Toronto 2009. I also look forward to reading his book.

Rosen is the author of the national bestseller "The Anatomy of Buzz" (Doubleday, 2000) and "The Anatomy of Buzz Revisited" (Doubleday, 2009) has more good stories.

Prior to writing these books, he was VP Marketing at Niles Software, where he was responsible for launching and marketing the company's flagship product EndNote, which spread to a large extent by word of mouth. It was during this time that he became interested in buzz and especially in how it can be accelerated.

Rosen started his career as a copywriter in Israel. For his work in advertising, he won the Bronze Lion from the Cannes International Advertising Festival, as well as several national awards including two gold medals. He holds an MBA from the University of San Francisco and lives in Menlo Park, California. The Anatomy of Buzz "has managed to generate quite a bit of buzz itself" as BusinessWeek Online noted. The book hit The Wall Street Journal's business best-seller list and is now available in 12 languages.

This year, SES Toronto 2009 will be held at the Sheraton Centre Toronto June 8-10, 2009. The largest search engine marketing conference in Canada is organized and programmed in cooperation with the SES Advisory Board, Search Engine Watch and Andrew Goodman, the founder and president of Toronto-based Page Zero Media.

According to Goodman, "This year, SES Toronto is being held at the Sheraton Centre on Queen Street West. As always it promises to be the digital marketing event of the year in Canada. With the help of the Incisive Media team, great speakers, and sponsors, we're teeing up another great program to help companies forge through these choppy economic waters with the ultimate in targeted, accountable marketing. And as always, the networking, rooftop tanning, and cultural opportunities are just icing on the cake."

For more information about SES Toronto 2009, go to rates and registration details. Register through May 22 to save $150 CAD with the advance rate. To follow news about SES Toronto 2009 on Twitter, go to http://twitter.com/SES_Toronto.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 7:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

April 23, 2009

Q&A with Rob Swick of Atlantic Canada Internet Marketing Association

SES Toronto 2009 is coming up June 8-10 and one of the event's association sponsors is the Atlantic Canada Internet Marketing Association (ACIMA).

ACIMA is an industry association dedicated to unifying the Internet Marketing community in the Atlantic Provinces (Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland), as well as to promoting and sharing Internet marketing knowledge and best practices. The association mandate is comprised of Education and Training, Networking, Information Sharing, Representation and Profile Raising.

To learn a little more about ACIMA, I interviewed the association's President, Rob Swick. As founding President of ACIMA, Swick coordinates the overall association activities. He also leads the charge for the association's promotion and growth.

Jarboe: ACIMA is a relatively new trade association, dedicated to unifying the Internet marketing community in the Atlantic Provinces (Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland) and to promoting best practices in this growing field. What are Canadians in this region most excited about in this Web 2.0 world? Any particular tools or developments that stand out?

Swick: Not on thing in particular. But Atlantic Canadians are famous talkers. It's a very social culture, so Web 2.0 in general has a high appeal. One thing I was surprised to see that even government seems to be shifting to Web 2.0 press releases. Usually government would be slow to adopt things like that but there's a real sense of understanding of this particular sea change.

Jarboe: How would you characterize Canadian search habits or queries? Or for that matter, in the Atlantic Provinces? Do search trends hover more heavily around generic keywords?

Swick: It's amazing how persistent broad search queries are, but the numbers show that search tail is producing better visitors, lower bounce rates, more time on the site, so we target those and we target more broadly and with more depth. I imagine it's the same all around.

Jarboe: Canada's population is about 1/10th of that of the United States. How underdeveloped is e-commerce in Canada and where do you see ACIMA's role in expanding it?

Swick: Until a few years ago this was a real issue. People still talked about whether ecommerce was safe and reports kept showing that the smaller percentage of Canadians who DID want to shop online couldn't find Canadian etailers to shop from. Things have changed a lot - and quickly. I think Canadians gravitated first to things like online banking and paying bills online. Maybe it's the cold! Canadians love doing things from the comfort of their homes. And now that they've made the leap numbers for even big purchase items are showing that Canadians are catching up quickly and embracing the convenience and value you can get through ecommerce. Kijiji apparently is growing more rapidly here, and especially in Atlantic Canada, than in the US.

Jarboe: How important is the .CA domain when creating a Canadian website? Is .COM considered an affront?

Swick: Both are fine in Canada. They're the most common extensions. Dot-ca is what a lot of companies have because it allows Canadian companies to actually get their name as a domain. Dotcom is just as acceptable if you happen to have it. Either - or. We're practical people. I don't think anyone sees dotcom as 'American'. It's just 'Internet'. You even see some provincial extensions (for Nova Scotia for example it's domain.ns.ca) though most people find those cumbersome and irritating. They're more common in Quebec which has a more nationalistic leaning. You've probably heard a little about that - remember the time on the Simpson's that Homer was reading the newspaper and said "hmmm...they're holding a referendum in Canada". Okay, probably not.

Jarboe: Social media tools are all the buzz right now. Twitter, in particular, is receiving lots of attention. What's your take on Twitter? Do you see the Internet marketing community in the Atlantic Provinces using it effectively to market their business?

Swick: I think it's still mostly for early adopters, though they're a passionate, active, and involved group and I think it's the actual personalities - I could name a handful of names - that are building networks of Tweeting friends and followers and they're taking the message into their companies that this is a cool and efficient way to get the word around on what's happening now. As a mainstream tool... Facebook, Twitter, Linked-In, each one I think currently has a thin slice of influence. At our AIM conference we have three different talks on Social Media. The interest is there. The adoption.... just starting.

Jarboe: What do you look forward to most in attending SES Toronto? Any particular panels or sessions?

Swick: I always enjoy meeting and seeing the speakers I haven't seen before. I'm also more interested in optimizing for different countries and languages so will be looking forward to hearing and talking about that. I first worked in Montreal so have done a lot of optimizing for French engines - but now many of our projects are truly global so there's a lot to learn about specific engines in other countries, usage and behavioural patterns. Lots and lots to learn - it's a big globe.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 7:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

April 16, 2009

Tara Hunt, Author of The Whuffie Factor, to Give Opening Keynote at SES Toronto

The conference agenda for SES Toronto 2009 introduces some new terms and unique phrases to the search engine marketing industry. For example, the opening keynote on June 8, 2009, will be given by Tara Hunt, the co-founder and chief marketing officer of Citizen Agency and author of "The Whuffie Factor: Using the Power of Social Networks to Build Your Business." In addition, SES Toronto will feature 18 sessions organized into three tracks entitled "Corporateville", "Geek Track" and "Nuts & Bolts".

The event is organized and programmed in cooperation with Andrew Goodman, the founder and president of Toronto-based Page Zero Media, as well as the SES Advisory Board and Search Engine Watch. I should also disclose that SES Toronto is a client.

But I didn't realize how much my vocabulary would expand working with Goodman.

In a press release distributed this morning, Goodman quips, "Robin Williams once quipped that Canada's like a loft apartment over a really great party. But what the people at the big party don't realize is that in our loft party upstairs, we're quietly plotting global domination. Of the world of ideas, of course. 'The medium is the message'? Marshall MacLuhan. 'Gen X'? Douglas Coupland. Whuffie? Cory Doctorow to Tara Hunt. Canadians, all! So, Tweet your followers that the must-attend event will be SES Toronto. We'll get things started with Tara, the author of a book that shows how any business can increase their Whuffie, the store of social capital that is the currency of the digital world. Then, we'll follow with conference tracks that read more like blog headlines and less like title tags."

Now, I have uncovered evidence that Goodman has been plotting this takeover of the industry's thought leadership for months. Check out the interview with him that was conducted last month by Byron Gordon of SEO-PR during SES New York 2009. Listen closely and you'll hear Goodman was already using terms like "Nuts and Bolts" and "Corporateville" and "Geek Track" as if they had already become the lingua franca of search engine marketers.

Andrew Goodman, Page Zero Media, previews SES Toronto 2009

Seriously, having conference tracks that read more like blog headlines and less like title tags just reflects where the industry is headed. As Google itself says in its Webmaster guidelines, "The best way to get other sites to create relevant links to yours is to create unique, relevant content that can quickly gain popularity in the Internet community."

As for Hunt, she is co-founder and chief marketing officer of Citizen Agency, an Internet consultancy specializing in community-centric strategies. She is also the author of "The Whuffie Factor," which is due out this month.

An online marketing pioneer, Hunt is a leading authority on online communities. She specializes in community marketing, which is not about pushing messages or creating strong brands, but building relationships and engaging communities.

Hunt has more than 11 years of experience in web design, eight years in online marketing and over four years of blogging at HorsePigCow. She was named by Fast Company to their list of the Most Influential Women in Technology.

As for the other new words I'm adding to my vocabulary, check out the names of some of the conference tracks and sessions at SES Toronto 2009:

• Corporateville Track: On Monday, June 8, conference sessions include: "Internationalizing Your Campaigns & Sites" and "Beyond Linkbait: Getting Authoritative Online Mentions." On Tuesday, June 9, conference sessions include: "Analytics for Search: ROI, Engagement, Attribution & More"; "The Canadian Agency Landscape"; "Social Media: Do Big Companies Get It?" and "How to Speak Geek: Working Collaboratively with Your IT Department to Get Things Done".

• Geek Track: On Monday, June 8, conference sessions include: "Signals: What Relevancy Indicators Are Search Engineers Watching Today?" and "Optimizing for Video Search: Virgin Territory?" On Tuesday, June 9, conference sessions include: "Follow the Carrot: Cool Mobile Apps"; "Information Architecture, Site Performance Tuning & SEO"; "Paid Search Quality Scoring: 201, 301"; and "Extreme Makeover: Live Site Clinic".

• Nuts & Bolts Track: On Monday, June 8, conference sessions include: "SEO Then & Now: What's the Same? What's New?" and "Universal & Blended Search: Comprehensive Visibility Challenges". On Tuesday, June 9, conference sessions include: "Introduction to Paid Search"; "Campaign Performance Tracking: Basic Tips"; and "Tool Time: The Search Marketer's Free-to-Cheap Goodie Bag".

And on Wednesday, June 10, SES is offering a full-day workshop, "Search Marketing Boot Camp", as well as two half-day workshops, "Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Workshop" and "Google AdWords Tactics to Improve Your ROI". Ah, finally some terms that I've been using for years.

For more information, click on SES Toronto 2009 rates and registration details. If you register through Friday, April 17, you can get the early bird rate and save $370 CAD.

You also get to increase your vocabulary at no additional charge.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 8:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

April 13, 2009

Q&A with Piera Palazzolo, SVP of Dale Carnegie Training

One of the new tracks at SES New York 2009 was focused on "Search & the C-Level Executive." As I pointed this out during the "First Timer's Guide to SES and SEM" session, I was asked what a C-level exectutive was. I quipped it was any executive who could keep his or her head above water in this economy. No one got the joke.

Seriously, a C-level executive is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Chief Operating Officer (COO), Chief Finanancial Officer (CFO), Chief Marketing Officer (CMO), Chief Technical Officer (CTO), Chief Learning Officer (CLO) or any of the other chiefs that us Native American Indians report to.

But it's noteworthy that some search engine marketing (SEM) specialists, search engine optimization (SEO) consultants, and pay-per-click (PPC) advertisers aren't familiar with business jargon like "C-level." Hey, it's a search term that costs $2.19 a click.

Apparently, some of us have been burried so deeply in our organizations that we don't talk the talk of the "C-suite", another search term that costs $1.39 a click. But that was changing before the recession, which is now in its 16th month, although it has rapidly accelerated as executives revised our budgets during the most severe recession in 70 years.

Today, all of us in the search engine marketing industry need to talk the talk of the C-suite and walk the walk of calculating our marketing return on investment (ROI). That's why Search Engine Strategies added the "Search & the C-Level Exectuve" track.

One of the sessions in the track was entitled, "Implementing a Digital Corporate Governance Program." When I was asked during the "First Timer's Guide to SES and SEM" session what that would cover, I had to lamely explain, "Hey, that's why I come to SES events: To learn things that I didn't know already."

Nevertheless, I vowed to find out what "Implementing a Digital Corporate Governance Program" was all about by interviewing Piera Palazzolo, Senior Vice President of Dale Carnegie Training, who was one of the speakers at the session.

Dale Carnegie Training is the oldest training company in the world, originally based on Dale Carnegie's world famous best seller: "How to Win Friends and Influence People." Dale Carnegie has 200 offices, both franchised and company owned, in over 70 countries on six continents.

As its first woman senior executive, Mrs. Palazzolo joined the Company in 1993 and was elected to the Senior Leadership Team in 2002. Previously, she was VP of Account Services at J. Walter Thompson (JWT). During her tenure at JWT, Mrs. Palazzolo oversaw both consumer and business to business accounts. In 1986, she helped launch Prodigy -- a pioneering company in online services. She serviced a variety of marketers including GE Capital and Ford Motor Company.

Over the last 15 years Mrs. Palazzolo has overseen the company's foray into online marketing, print and radio advertising and direct mail and sales support. Here are my questions and her answers:

Q: First of all, Piera, tells us a little bit about Dale Carnegie Training.

A: "Dale Carnegie partners with middle market and large corporations, as well as organizations, to produce measurable business results by improving the performance of employees with emphasis on leadership, sales, team member engagement, customer service, presentations, process improvement and other essential management skills. Recently identified by The Wall Street Journal as one of the top 25 high-performing franchises, the Dale Carnegie Training programs are available in more than 25 languages throughout the entire United States and in more than 75 countries. Dale Carnegie includes as its clients 400 of the Fortune 500 companies. Approximately 7 million people have experienced Dale Carnegie Training."

Q: I understand that you are migrating your marketing efforts from print to digital media. Can you tell us what Dale Carnegie Training is doing?

A: "Paid Search, Organic SEO. Paid search and organic SEO have proved to be the most cost effective way of driving leads online. We also use e-mail marketing to the leads we generate which has been very successful."

Q: As companies migrate their marketing efforts online, can the costs of implementing an effective program skyrocket quickly if a proper governance program is not in place?

A: "Yes, when dealing with multiple business units it is imperative that a governance program is in place to prevent duplication of effort and cannibalization of terms in paid search. In order to maximize budget a centralized approach has worked well for Dale Carnegie and allows us to provide very strategic marketing support to our franchisees."

Q: What can companies that have multiple business units or franchisees do to avoid the common pitfalls of cannibalization of budget and dilution of brand?

A: "Implement a corporate governance program and enforce it. It serves no useful purpose to run multiple campaigns with the same goals and compete against yourself."

Q: What are some of best practices for implementing a governance program that coordinates marketing efforts and optimizes budget across lines of business, geographic regions and organizational "fiefdoms"?

A: "Dale Carnegie has been in business for over 96 years and has always believed that a centralized marketing approach with clear brand messaging and guidelines works best. We simply took that same belief and strategy to the Web and have not run into some of the problems other major brands have faced in their online migration."

Jason Ferrara, SVP of Sales & Marketing at Elixir Interactive, moderated the "Implementing a Digital Corporate Governance Program" session at SES New York 2009. Following the session, he also interviewed Mrs. Palazzolo for SESConferenceExpo's Channel on YouTube.

Piera Palazzolo, Dale Carnegie Training, on implementing a corporate governance program

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 8:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

April 6, 2009

Amber Naslund of Radian6 on Social Media for the Little Guy

One of the sessions at SES New York that I had to attend was "Small Voices, Big Impact: Social Media for the Little Guy."

Why did I have to attend? Well, Amber Naslund, the Director of Community for Radian6, was on the panel and I was afraid that she'd spill the beans about how Radian6 gives you a complete platform to track millions of blogs, tweets, videos, and comments.

It's one of my "secret weapons."

But she was so intent on helping helping small companies with even smaller budgets freely tap the world of social media to improve their business and increase sales that she almost didn't mention what company she was from.

I should have been selfish and let her keep my "secret weapon" secret. But, when we got to Q&A I had to ask her about Radian6 -- because it's too good a product to keep under wraps.

We've been using it to track the surprising relationships between people who use blogs, video sharing sites (YouTube), photo sharing sites (Flickr) and microblogging sites (Twitter) as well as Social networking sites (Facebook). What continually amazes me is how frequently the person who Tweets this morning is blogging about the same topic this afternoon and then uploading a video about the subject tomorrow.

If you use different tools to track each of these social media, then you will often miss the connections.

To illustrate this point, I interviewed Naslund after the session, have embedded the video interview below and will Tweet about in a minute. Get it? Got it? Good.

Amber Naslund, Radian6, on the importance of social media for small businesses at SES New York

At Radian6, Naslund is responsible for client engagement, community building, and helping companies tap the potential of online reputation management, customer engagement, and social media monitoring. She's spent the last decade or so raising over $60m for non-profit organizations, building brands for companies large and small, and messing with all things online.

Naslund blogs at Altitude Branding, focusing on brand building and social media marketing for business. She's also an author of Radian6's PowerShift blog, where she's just posted a great story about Southwest Airlines, an old client of mine. And she is a contributor to the popular MarketingProfs Daily Fix blog, and she keeps her personal blog at Innacurate Reality.

Oh, and if you contact Naslund, you'll discover that she's is passionate about helping companies and customers build and share brands, together. Yes, yes. That's wonderful. But, ask her to give you a demo of Radian6. If you don't see the product, you'll be missing one of the marketing tools that should be in your social media toolkit.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 4:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

April 2, 2009

Matthew Liu Discusses YouTube Insight and Sponsored Videos

At SES New York last week, one of the speakers at the conference session, "Video Search Engine Optimization: 2009 & Beyond," was Matthew Liu, the the lead product manager on YouTube Sponsored Videos. You may remember him from such hits as the "YouTube Sponsored Videos Overview."

Well, enough about the past. Liu spoke about some of YouTube's newest applications, including YouTube Insight and YouTube Sponsored Videos, at SES New York. For example, he discussed how Insight, an analytics tool, allows users and advertisers to learn more about their videos and how much traffic they are receiving.

Liu also discussed how you can use Sponsored Videos to promote your videos on YouTube. He said Sponsored Videos is like "AdWords" for Youtube.

And just like Matt Cutts of Google, who always draws a crowd after he speaks at a session, Liu also drew a crowd after he spoke last week. Check out the video interview below.

YouTube Product Manager Matthew Liu on YouTube's Insight and Sponsored Videos

As the lead product manager on YouTube Sponsored Videos, Liu focuses on building an advertising platform that allows video creators -- from the everyday user to a Fortune 500 advertiser -- to reach people who are interested in their content, products, or services, with relevant videos. Previously, Liu led numerous other projects at YouTube for advertising, content partnerships and rights management, and community engagement.

Liu has a MS in Management Science & Engineering and a BS in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 2:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

April 1, 2009

Is Your IT Department the Department of SEO Prevention?

Although I conducted this interview with Jill Whalen, the CEO of HighRankings, in February at SES London 2009, I've been saving it for April Fool's Day. Why? Because we talk about the IT Department, which is often called the Department of SEO Prevention in many organizations.

One of my tips to get the IT folks on board with that an SEO consultant recommends and your organization needs to make is to buy pizza for everyone who claims to be too busy to implement them. Check out some of the other practical advice that Whalen shares in what has become an ongoing mission of hers.

Jill Whalen, HighRankings, on building better relationships between marketing and IT

By the way, High Rankings is offering new intermediate-advanced 1/2 day SEO workshops on April 2 and 3, 2009, in Framingham, MA. One is on keyword research, another on SEO copywriting, a third on social media marketing, and the fourth is about web analytics.

If you tell Jill that you're from the IT Department, you could get a slice of pizza. Then again, this could be an April Fool's joke that I just made up and all you'll get is an in-depth website marketing workshop.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 7:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

March 31, 2009

Andrew Goodman to Guy Kawasaki: You are Ruining Twitter!

At SES New York last week, I was amazed that the buzz generated by Guy Kawasaki's keynote about "Twitter as a Tool for Social Media" lasted more than 24 hours. Well, now it's a week later and everyone's still talking about the implications of what the author of Reality Check and Founding Partner of Garage Technology Ventures said in his bully pulpit.

For example, check out Andrew Goodman's latest post in Traffick: "Is Guy Kawasaki Singlehandedly Ruining Twitter? (Part I)." Goodman says, "I'm relatively new to Twitter, but then again, I'm not slow :), so I have seen these kinds of trends come and go. Mostly, since the late 1990's, what we've seen are spammers in various channels tell us that they're the cool ones and not really spamming."

And then as quietly and calmly as someone who is about to take you to the woodshed, Goodman adds, "I'd love to be able to make the point that it's not about the man, it's about the tactics. As honorable as that might be, it's impossible to separate the two... as you'll see."

You're going to have to read Goodman's next 17 paragraphs for yourself. I haven't seen this kind of outburst by a mild mannered Canadian since Molson ran its extremely popular ad, "The Rant", in 2000.

However, let me give you one small sample: "If everyone listened to Guy Kawasaki and admired his Twitter tactics, Twitter would start looking more and more like a digital trailer park."

I'm just glad that I don't live in Buffalo anymore. Or, I would have been blistered by the heat from nearby Toronto.

Maybe everything on the Twitter front will have cooled down by the time SES Toronto is held June 8-10, 2009. But I wouldn't bet on it.

Remember, Molson's commercial, "The Rant", was a remarkable success, spawning a number of parodies and copycats. This includes William Shatner's variation, "I am not a Starfleet commander."

So, I don't think we've seen the last of this.

I know that Twitter has an 140-character limit. Now, if only we could limit responses to Kawasaki's keynote to 140 Tweets.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 6:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (13)

March 27, 2009

Big Stories from Day 3 of SES New York 2009

There were just as many big stories on Day 3 of SES New York 2009 as there were on the first two days of the event. Since I took the Acela back to Boston last night, I'm only getting around to reporting on them this morning.

The big story was the morning keynote by John Gerzema, Chief Insights Officer at Young & Rubicam Group and author of "The Brand Bubble." In her post, "Morning Keynote: John Gerzema," Lisa Barone of Outspoken Media wrote, "John starts off. Marketing is your way out of the recession. In 2008, there was a credit crisis that shook the world to its core. Now we're seeing a confidence crisis."

Another one of the big stories was "Tips for Better Business Blogging - SES New York" by Lee Odden of TopRank's Online Marketing Blog. Before covering the session, Odden observed, "SES New York did pretty well considering many conferences are feeling the effects of business budget cuts. Publisher and VP Matt McGown stated that over 5,000 people attended 2009 SES New York."

Among the big stories was "Search Goes Global," by Kevin Ryan of Search Engine Watch. According to Ryan, "As if people didn't have enough issues with communicating, extending a search initiative beyond the borders of the United States represents its own unique challenges, not the least of which is that it looks easier than it is."

Another big story was "Where Social Media Fits Into the SEO Equation," by Chris Crum of WebProNews. According to Crum, "I thought it would be interesting to explore social media and how it relates directly to search engine optimization. I sent a couple of questions to several online marketing experts to get their thoughts on the subject."

Another one of the big stories was "HuffPo Blogger Brad Balfour Dishes on News Search Optimization from a Journalist's Perspective," an interview of Brad Balfour of the Huffington Post and BMB Media by John Mulligan of SEO-PR. Balfour discusses his own experiences blogging for the Huffington Post and the optimization strategies he has deployed in the search and social realms.

HuffPo Blogger Brad Balfour Dishes on News Search Optimization from a Journalist's Perspective

One of the other big stories was "Ads All Up In Yo Facebook @ SES New York" by Manny Rivas of the aimClear Search Marketing Blog. Rivas asks, "Why is Facebook so attractive to advertisers? Users are sharing personal information that make efficiently targeting a particular audience simple. BOOYA!"

Another big story was "SEO: Where to Next? At SES NY" by Brian Cosgrove of Search Marketing Gurus. Cosgrove reported, "On Day 1 of SES New York, the Where to Next panel was among the first in the track portion of the show. As you will read, the session was a conversation that migrated from topic to topic in fairly nonlinear path."

Another big story was "News Search SEO" by Virginia Nussey of Bruce Clay's SEO Blog. According to Nussey, "Off to the organic track for some news and SEO learning."

Yet another one of the other big stories was "Twitter Influence - Guy Kawasaki at SES NYC" by Sally Falkow of Social Media Today. According to Falkow, "On Day one of SES New York Guy Kawasaki's keynote certainly stirred the audience and caused a flurry of tweets on Twitter."

The final big story is "SES NY: Mysteries of Online Video Revealed," an interview by Mike McDonald of the WebProNews Video Blog with, ah, me. According to McDonald, "Why is video so hot right now? According to Greg Jarboe of SEO-PR, the reason people are creating videos right now is because so many other people are as well. It is simply a chain reaction."

More WebProNews Videos SES NY: Mysteries of Online Video Revealed

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 10:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

March 25, 2009

Top Posts and Stories from SES New York Day 2

In case you tuned in late, half of the top posts and stories from Day 2 of SES New York were a continuation of the top story from Day 1: Guy Kawasaki's opening keynote, "Twitter as a Tool for Social Media."

To catch you up, in case you missed my post, "Ten Top Stories from Day 1 of SES New York. Better yet, read Lisa Barone's post in Outspoken Media entitled, "Guy Kawasaki: Twitter As a Tool for Social Media." Here's a sample that will give you a flavor of the Barone's point of view: "He thinks Twitter is a tool (I think Guy is a tool)."

Why go straight to Barone's post? Because it appeared in Sphinn under a new title, "Guy Kawasaki: Twitter As a Tool for Social Media (or Guy Kawasaki is a Twitter Tool?)" This prompted a comment by Danny Sullivan, who asked, "Geez, forget Twitter. Someone explain to me how Alltop gets to run what appears to be hundreds of subdomains for various topics in a fun SEO play with Google giving them a free pass?"

This in turn prompted the post entitled, "Search News: What Can Guy Kawasaki and Danny Sullivan Tell Us About Relevance?" Written By Noah Mallin of Searchviews, the company blog of Reprise Media, it recapped yesterday's top story and added, "The raging debate in the search salons at the SES New York conference this week...(was) about a hornet's nest stirred up in the aftermath of Alltop founder Guy Kawasaki's speech to the assembled legions yesterday....Many of these concerns were shared by Lisa Barone who wrote a wonderfully snarky, yet fair, recap of Kawasaki's speech for her blog. The fun really started however, when her post made it to Sphinn and attracted a comment from Search Engine Land main man Danny Sullivan. Sullivan asked the broader question of why Google seems to turn a blind eye to link aggregators like Kawasaki's Alltop when they are much more aggressive in burying other sites that might be considered link spam but which were started by no-names." http://www.searchviews.com/index.php/archives/2009/03/search-news-what-can-guy-kawasaki-and-danny-sullivan-tell-us-about-relevance.php

Meanwhile, other stories focused on Kawasaki's tips. For example, one was entitled, "10 Steps to Terrific Twittering." Written by Lauren McKay of destinationCRM.com, it said, "Guy Kawasaki has taken social networking micro-blogging site Twitter to the extreme."

Now, there were other top posts and stories from Day 2 of SES New York.

One of these stories was the interview of SEO-PR Aaron Lazansky-Oliva of Sohnup Industries by John Mulligan of SEO-PR. Lazansky-Oliva is live-tweeting SES NY 2009. The two discuss social media such as Facebook and Twitter, and run through some of the best practices, tricks, and tips Aaron picked up as a first-timer at Search Engine Strategies and New York local.

Aaron Lazansky-Oliva Twitters and Tapes SES NY 2009

Okay, enough about Twitter. Let's talk about some of the other social media that were featured at SES New York 2009.

For example, one of the other top stories on Day 2 of SES New York was entitled "Using Social Media For Your Small Business." Written by Mike Sachoff of WebProNews, it said, "Social media is being used by small businesses to help build their brand and attract loyal customers while on a modest budget. The SES session "Small Voices, Big Impact: Social Media for the Little Guy" focused on ways smaller companies can improve business and increase sales."

Another one of the top posts was by Mike McDonald of WebProNews Videos, who interviewed im Kendall, the Director of Monetization at Facebook, walks us through Facebook's advertising system in this video from SES NY.

More WebProNews Videos SES NY: Advertising Based on Factual User Data

Another top post was by Mel Carson of the Microsoft adCenter Blog for Advertisers was entitled, "Day 2 Recap - Search Engine Strategies - New York & Video!" That's right, in addition to his observations and photos, Carson's post included a video. How do I describe the video? I can't. It defies description. You have to see it for yourself. Video: Day 2 Recap - Search Engine Strategies - New York Day 2 Recap - Search Engine Strategies - New York & Video!

This brings us to the interactive portion of our coverage. Lee Odden of the TopRank Online Marketing Blog asks that you please take his quick poll about integrating SEO and social media marketing. To participate, click on "Poll: Integrating SEO & Social Media Marketing."

Finally, if you want to listen to SES New York, check out the WebmasterRadio.FM coverage of the event. For example, you can listen to "Guy Kawasaki on Twitter during SES New York 2009." In fact, skip right to their preview of Day 3 at New York 2009.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 8:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Ten Top Stories from Day 1 of SES New York

The Search Engine Strategies (SES) New York 2009 Conference and Expo started a Tweet storm earlier today. The opening keynote was by Guy Kawasaki, a founding partner and entrepreneur-in-residence at Garage Technology Ventures, who spoke about "Twitter as a Tool for Social Media."

1. Andrew LaVallee of The Wall Street Journal Digits Blog captured the top story of SES New York in his headline, "Guy Kawasaki Can Handle Being Called a Spammer." LaVallee wrote, "To kick off his keynote speech at SES, a marketing conference in New York, Guy Kawasaki asked how many people in the audience were on Twitter at that moment. Hands shot up across the packed ballroom."

2. Mel Carson, Microsoft's adCenter Community Manager for Europe, posted photos of the event on his blog in a post entitled, "SES New York Photos -- Day 1." One of his photos shows the volume of Tweets about Kawasaki bringing down Twitter during his keynote.

3. Anna Maria Virzi of ClickZ focused on the Twitter tips and tools that Kawasaki shared in his keynote in her story entited, "Twitter Tips: Advice from Evangelist Guy Kawasaki."

4. I was able to interview Kawasaki after his keynote and asked him how Alltop, the "online magazine rack" of popular topics, has used Twitter to promote itself. Despite some audio problems (which have since fixed), I also asked Kawasaki abut a new term he had coined called "UFM."

Guy Kawasaki Tweets About Twitter Twits & his Reality Check

Although Kawasaki's keynote about Twitter was the top story at SES New York, there were others.

5. For example, Mike McDonald of WebProNews interviewed Matt McGowan, Vice President and Publisher for Incisive Media's Interactive Marketing Group, about highlights from SES New York 2009. According to McGowan, SES NY will house more than 5,000 people this week including over 100 exhibitors and sponsors in the Expo Hall.

More WebProNews Videos Highlighting SES NY 2009

6. Another top story was the session, "SEO: Where to Next?" Lisa Barone of Outspoken Media covered this session in a post appropriately entitled, "SEO -- Where to Next." According to Barone, "You know what my favorite thing about SES is? It comes with Mike Grehan."

7. Another top story was the session on "Budget Migration: Going Digital Without Impacting Your Brand." John Gaffney of the Econsultancy Blog covered this session in a post entitled, "Century 21, Avon ring up total digital makeovers."

8. Peter Provost of the AimClear Blog covered the "Survival of the Fittest 2.0" session. His post is entitled, "Bad Economy? Party like 1999, Market like 2009."

9. Bas van den Beld of SearchCowboys.com shared several photos from the event in his post entitled, "Looking at SES New York."

10. Finally, one of the ten top stories was the Exhibit Hall traffic visiting the 100 sponsors and exhibitors at SES New York 2009. My post to the Search Engine Marketing News Blog on Search Engine Watch was entitled, "SES New York is a Search Expo as well as an SEM Conference."

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 7:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

March 24, 2009

SES New York is a Search Expo as well as an SEM Conference

Most of the attention at SES New York is focused on the SEM conference. But the must-attend industry event is a search expo, as well.

If you look over the list of participating sponsors and exhibitors, you'll see Premier Plus Sponsors like iProspect and Google as well as Premier Sponsors like Ask Sponsored Listings, iContact, Microsoft and WebTrends. But as you scroll down the list of close to 100 sponsors and exhibitors, you'll see lots of other names, too.

As I mentioned yesterday, I plan to visit the booths of the SES sponsors and exhibitors. I always find useful products and services -- not to mention the trade-show tchotchke and promotional swag.

In fact, I generally discover a couple of under-reported stories in the Expo Hall.

For example, at SES New York 2008, I thought one of the under-reported stories was LifeTips, which is a content design and content development company working on ebooks and other products. They had just launched an SEO content grader. So, I invited Byron White, the founder of LifeTips, to give us his escalator pitch. (This is a lot like an elevator pitch, except the escalators at the Hilton New York are a lot faster than the elevators.)

Lifetips Escalator Pitch, SES NY 2008

However, there's no way to know in advance which booths will contain under-reported stories at SES New York 2009. (Although, it won't hurt to check out Booth #1302, because WebTrends and Business.com are sponsoring the ultimate conference give-away: A brand new Smart Car.)

Nevertheless, it turns out that some of the exhibitors have submitted proflies to Business Wire's Virtual Press Office (VPO). So, that increases the odds that there is gold in them thar hills. Check it out for yourself.

Company: Click Forensics, Inc. Booth: 1108 Click Forensics is the industry leader in scoring, auditing and improving traffic quality for the online advertising community. By optimizing every step in the online advertising process, Click Forensics maximizes ROI for advertisers, publishers, and ad networks. Click Forensics' traffic quality management solutions are relevant for advertisers seeking to reduce costs and improve conversions rates, ad networks seeking to attract and retain advertisers and improve overall eCPM, and publishers seeking to attract quality advertisers and increase earnings per click. For over 5 years the online advertising industry has relied on Click Forensics as the independent authority on traffic quality and click fraud.

Company: DOCLIX Booth: 225 DOCLIX owns and operates AdSide, a pay-per-click ad network which brings search-level performance to content-targeted ads. It provides advertisers and publishers with tools to maximize revenue and growth. AdSide places user-activated text ads on premium sites. Its patent-pending Two-Step Click™ lead qualification model ensures that advertisers pay only for twice-qualified leads, generating higher conversion rates and ROI. AdSide expands publishers' real estate, providing them with a new revenue stream that does not dilute user experience. Our custom ad formats and yield optimization technology maximize click-through rates and effective CPMs. Premium publishers are pre-screened for content and are required to have over 1 million unique visitors. Company: Ektron Booth: 120 Ektron, a global leader in Web content management software and services, empowers organizations to maximize their business performance online. With tools and functionality that maximize SEM, SEO and social media optimization strategies for SMBs and enterprises alike, Ektron CMS400.NET delivers organizations' valuable content to the people who are looking for it. Ektron empowers developers and non-technical business users. Developers can take advantage of built-in Server Controls to deploy a Web site out of the box or customize the deployment using CMS400.NET's API, addressing all of the business's SEO needs. Business users benefit from an intuitive user interface for managing Web site content and messaging. In addition to SEO tools and core content management, CMS400.NET ships with a wide array of functionality, including social networking, Web 2.0, SEO and synchronization tools.

Company: Emailvision Booth: 322 Emailvision has become the global market and technology leader in on-demand software for email marketing automation. Used daily by over 1500 companies worldwide, the Emailvision flagship product, Campaign Commander, is the benchmark tool for e-commerce and publishing. Sold as a subscription service it enables clients to improve message deliverability, lower costs and focus on their online retention marketing strategies without important technology investments. The company has offices in major international markets including the US, UK, France, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands and Spain. Emailvision (ALEMV) was founded in 1999 and is listed on the Euronext/Alternext stock exchange.

Company: eZanga Booth: 121 eZanga (www.eZanga.com), a search engine marketing company and search engine founded by Beth and Richard Kahn in 2003, provides online advertisers with local, regional, and national advertising focused on generating high return on investment and users with access to a search engine powered by eZanga's proprietary Meta Search technology, which pulls data from numerous, unique content sources and displays the results in an easy-to-read and relevant fashion. In 2008, eZanga was recognized by Inc. magazine's Inc. 500 as the fastest-growing company in its home state of Delaware.

eZanga Escalator Pitch, SES NY 2008 Company: GoECart Booth: 213 GoECart is the clear choice for serious merchants focused on creating and rapidly growing a successful online business. With integration with industry-leading partners like Google Checkout, Paypal, Amazon.com, Linkshare, UPS, Google Analytics, Campaigner and LivePerson, GoECart is the most connected e-commerce solution on the market. GoECart combines 250+ powerful features and On-Demand Tier 1 hosting with a delightful shopping experience for customers - all at a surprisingly affordable price. GoECart is THE MOST Search Engine Friendly Ecommerce Software on the market, bar none! GoECart serves a diverse customer base ranging from small- and medium-sized enterprises to Fortune 500 companies. www.GoECart.com

Shopping Cart Software SEO with goecart.com

Company: iCrossing Booth: 100 iCrossing is a global digital marketing company that combines talent and technology to help world-class brands find and connect with their customers. The company blends best-in-class digital marketing services - including paid search, search engine optimization, Web development, social media, mobile, research and analytics - to create integrated digital marketing programs that engage consumers and drive ROI. iCrossing's client base includes such recognized brands as Epson America, Toyota, Travelocity and 40 Fortune 500 companies, including The Coca-Cola Company and Office Depot. Headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, the company has 580 employees in 12 offices in the U.S. and Europe.

Company: ideaLaunch Booth: 202 Valuable, relevant content is what your company needs to attract and retain customers. ideaLaunch offers a suite of content marketing services that hundreds of clients are using to gain the trust and win the business of online customers. From content creation to content optimization to content testing to content performance to content sponsorship, ideaLaunch offers a full range of content marketing services, solutions and resources. Start delivering fresh, relevant content to your customers with the revolutionaries at ideaLaunch. And improve your company's mind share, market share and profit share.

Company: Ingenio Inc. Booth: 315 Ingenio, Inc. pioneered Pay Per Call in 2004 as a way to connect millions of buyers and sellers around the world through the combination of the Internet and the telephone. Today Ingenio partners with leading providers in Web and mobile search, online directories, vertical content, and directory assistance to deliver live phone leads to any type of business. For more information, please visit www.ingenio.com.

Company: Local.com Booth: 1110 Local.com (NASDAQ: LOCM) is the largest local search network in the United States. The company uses patented technologies to provide over 19 million consumers each month with the most relevant search results for local businesses, products and services on Local.com and over 700 regional media sites. Businesses can target ready-to-purchase consumers using a variety of advertising products. To advertise, visit http://corporate.local.com/advertisewithus or call 1-888-857-6722. For more information visit: www.local.com or http://corporate.local.com/.

Company: Marchex, Inc. Booth: 201 Marchex, Inc. is a leading local search and performance advertising company. Marchex's innovative advertising platform delivers search- and call-based marketing products and services for local and national advertisers. Marchex's local search network, one of the largest online, helps consumers make better, more informed local decisions through its content-rich Web sites that reach tens of millions of unique visitors each month.

Chad Schott of Marchex on Local Search at SES NY 2008

Company: Onward Search Booth: 309 Onward Search is the nation's leading provider of internet marketing and creative services talent. Onward Search specializes in placing search marketing, graphic design, web development, and related creative services and technology professionals to companies nationwide. Onward Search provides their customers with the ability to rapidly source the best talent in the marketplace, so they can successfully deliver against their creative services, online marketing, and technology initiatives. Onward Search offers a full range of recruiting, staffing, and talent management solutions to include temporary staffing, consulting, and permanent placement options to ensure our customers have access to the right talent to get the job done.

Company: SearchIgnite Booth: 320 SearchIgnite is a leading provider of paid search and performance media optimization solutions that enable large, sophisticated marketers to achieve their online goals faster and smarter. The company's platform gives advertisers an advanced suite of tools to manage, optimize and report on their paid search campaigns in one central dashboard. In addition, marketers who use SearchIgnite have the ability to gather insights into the relationship between media channels, enabling them to spend smarter. Some of the world's leading brands and advertising agencies depend on SearchIgnite technology to power their online marketing campaigns. More information can be found at http://www.searchignite.com/.

Company: SLI Systems Booth: 303 SLI Systems provides site search, site navigation and user-generated SEO services for online retail and content-rich websites. These solutions are built with patented Learning Search technology - an intelligent search system that learns from customer behavior to increase sales and conversions. Learning Search enhances the user experience while delivering valuable insights on visitor activity, and provides ecommerce sites with advanced merchandising capabilities and intuitive navigation. SLI's Site Champion service creates optimised pages to increase a retailer's visibility in natural search engine listings and increase site traffic. Customers like FTD, Tupperware, ULTA, and hundreds more benefit from SLI Systems' search technology.

Company: TMP Directional Marketing Booth: 209 TMP Directional Marketing (TMPDM) is the largest local search marketing agency, offering online, offline and mobile local advertising solutions to top national brands. Providing clients search with a local focus, the agency understands the local nuances that help national merchants reach local customers. Combining its years of success in Yellow Pages advertising with online search expertise gained as a former unit of Monster Worldwide, TMPDM serves hundreds of national advertising clients, including nearly 100 Fortune 500 companies. TMPDM (www.tmpdm.com) is headquartered in New York with more than 500 employees and 15 offices in the U.S. and Canada.

Company: Wpromote Inc. Booth: 112 Wpromote prides itself in Superior Search Engine Marketing. From two employees in 2001 to over forty the company has experienced unwavering growth and continuous recognition for its exceptional service to each and every client. As a two-time Inc. 500 honoree, Google Adwords Qualified Company and recipient of countless other accolades, clients are assured that The Best Search Starts Here, at Wpromote. Since its inception Wpromote has dedicated itself to a single mission statement: help businesses succeed on the web. With unmatched experience in search marketing and an unrivaled dedication to our clients' results, Wpromote always stands out above the crowd.

Company: YELLOWPAGES.COM Booth: 321 "Need something?" For more than 125 years, consumers have trusted the Yellow Pages to deliver comprehensive local business information. And today, wherever, however and whenever they "Need something" local, they use YELLOWPAGES.COM. YELLOWPAGES.COM connects consumers to local businesses across the three screens they use most - Web, mobile and TV through AT&T U-verse services. As one of today's leading local search sites, YELLOWPAGES.COM provides comprehensive local business information, maps, driving directions, videos, user reviews and more. And new mobile features make it easier than ever to find information on the go.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 6:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

March 23, 2009

Q&A with Bev Thorne, SVP Marketing, Century 21 Real Estate

In 2008, Century 21 Real Estate LLC spent less than 10% of its advertising budget online. But, earlier this year, the franchisor of the world's largest residential real estate sales organization said it would cancel most of its offline advertising in favor of ads placed on the Web.

On Tuesday, Bev Thorne, the Senior Vice President of Marketing for Century 21, is speaking at the Search Engine Strategies (SES) New York conference during the session entitled, "Budget Migration: Going Digital Without Impacting Your Brand."

The session is part of the Search and C-Level Executive Track. The moderator is Jason Ferrara, SVP of Sales and Marketing for Elixir Interactive, and the other speakers on the panel are Pattiann McAdams-Russell, Executive Director of Avon's Online Division and Crispin Sheridan, the Senior Director of Search Marketing Strategy at SAP Marketing.

According to the latest SEMPO Annual State of Search Survey, search engine marketing is poaching budget from other marketing channels, especially from offline marketing channels. This represents a marked difference from 2005, when budget was shifted mostly from online media such as web development and affiliate marketing, but is consistent with spending in the past two years.

The SEMPO survey also found a shift in terms of what budgets are cannibalized in favor of search engine marketing. Over a quarter of advertisers report they are shifting budget away from print magazines and another 21% report their budget is shifted from direct mail. Rounding out the trend towards cannibalizing print, 19% of advertisers report they are shifting budget from their print newspaper advertising.

All this puts Bev Thorne at the epicenter of one of the most significant industry trends.

In her role as Senior Vice President of Marketing for Century 21, Thorne leads the planning and execution of the domestic marketing strategies in support of market share growth for the largest real estate franchise organization in the world. She is responsible for leading the strategy development and program execution of all consumer, broker and agent marketing programs.

Thorne earned her MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and has worked extensively in the areas of consumer marketing, strategic branding and event marketing management over her 20-plus year career. Before joining Century 21, she was with JPMorgan Chase & Company, where she served as senior vice president, customer marketing for the Home Finance business unit. Prior to that, Thorne worked at AT&T for nearly two decades in a series of increasingly senior roles, planning and executing marketing and communications strategies nationwide.

I interviewed Thorne late last week via email. Here are my Qs and her As:

Q: You're speaking at the session, "Budget Migration: Going Digital Without Impacting Your Brand." What information do you need to know about migrating budget to digital without impacting your brand awareness or the equity you have built up in your brand?

A: As we planned our marketing campaign for 2009, we made a firm commitment to spend our advertising dollars where they would be the most effective in driving leads to the nearly 100,000 sales professionals within the CENTURY 21 System. First we looked at our own data with regard to ROI on our online spend. The data made the decision to transition our national television advertising to online a very easy decision. From 2007 through 2008, our online advertising yielded a 237% increase in leads and a 62% reduction in cost per lead year over year.

Q: The move to a predominantly digital marketing strategy can be overwhelming. What advice to you have for other marketers planning to go digital?

A: Plan enough time to socialize the benefits of going digital with your key stakeholders to ensure you have maximum buy in before announcing the move to the general public. By empowering key stakeholders with information through effective communication you can help them to understand that online marketing enables a more targeted approach to the consumer.

Q: Migrating from staid traditional channels to the open waters of the Web can be daunting. Did it take courage to start moving significant resources away from TV, radio and print and into search, social, display and email? A: As you may know CENTURY 21 was the first national real estate franchise on television and now we continue our forward-looking market leadership as we enhance our online advertising. Market leaders must be willing to make the decisions necessary to gain a competitive advantage in the marketplace for their products, services and sales professionals. We are confident that increased online advertising will benefit our brokers, agents and most importantly, the consumer. Q: How does Century 21 Real Estate measure results -- especially for search, display, email and social media? A: We carefully track and measure our cost per lead in every channel where we advertise and market. Our goal is to maximize our investment by continually increasing our leads and reducing our costs per lead. The greatest thing about online advertising is that it enables us to track the effectiveness of our ads which helps us to better understand what is working and rapidly respond and make corrections and enhancements where our messaging is not as effective.

Q: Are there any lessons that you learned as well as any metrics or tools needed to gauge the success of a balanced digital marketing program that you'd like to share?

A: Given the fluid nature of technology and its applications for real estate marketing, the only constant is change. If there is one lesson to be learned, it is that by constantly innovating in the online marketing space you can develop a more agile marketing platform to effectively insulate your brand from dynamic shifts in how consumers prefer to be reached; thereby, cogently positioning your product, service or sales professionals for long-term success.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 7:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

SES New York 2009 Offers an Expo Only Pass (Free in Advance)

Check it out: If you read the fine print in the rates and registration details for SES New York 2009 you will see an Expo Only Pass -- which is free in advance or $50 on-site.

Today is Monday, which is "in advance" of the conference sessions, which start tomorrow on Tuesday. Get it? Got it? Good.

So, what can you see with an Expo Only Pass?

First of all, you can get into the keynotes and Orion Panels. So, if you attend SES New York on Tuesday, March 24, 2009, then you can get into hear the opening keynote by Guy Kawasaki, the author of "Reality Check" and Founding Partner of Garage Technology Ventures. And why might you want to do that? The title of his keynote is "Twitter as a Tool for Social Media." That's worth schlepping over to SES New York to hear.

Now, here's the stuff that is hidden in the agenda that you'll also want to know about.

The Expo Only Pass gets you into the Expo Hall (duh) and the "free events."

This includes the Express Site Clinics. This means you can walk right up to Booth #1122 and get your Web site reviewed live by one of the SES experts at these PowerPoint free, interactive clinics. This includes: • An "Express Search Usability Clinic," which will be held from 1:00 to 2:00 pm by Shari Thurow, Founder and SEO Director of Omni Marketing Interactive. Get one-on-one advise for usability, design, copy, link development, and any technical issues that may prevent your Web site from receiving high quality search engine traffic and visitor conversions. • A "Power PPC Advertising Clinic," which will be held from 2:00 to 3:00 pm by David Szetela, CEO of Clix Marketing. Get your Google AdWords PPC advertising campaigns and landing pages expertly analyzed, with specific recommendations for improvement and optimization. Or just come to watch and learn a wide range of tips and best practices! • And a "CPA Optimization Station," which will be held from 3:00 to 4:00 pm by Jonathan Mendez, Founder and CEO of RAMP Digital. With advertising dollars more accountable than ever optimizing your Cost Per Acquisition or Cost per Action (CPA) has never been more important. Take advantage of this rare opportunity to sit with an optimization guru as he finds ways to improve your ROI.

But wait, there's more!

From 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, you can go to the Outrider Career Center. Yes, you can bring your resume to SES! Outrider is hosting on-site interviews for senior, mid-level and entry-level positions. To schedule an interview in advance or submit your resume, visit www.outrider.com. On-site sign-up, walk-ins and informational interviews welcome. It is located in the Bryant Suite at the Hilton New York.

Or, head over to the Lyris booth (#1004) in the Expo Hall and simplify your marketing efforts and optimize campaign ROI. While you're there, pick up their FREE guide, 9 Tips for Organizing Your PPC Campaigns, and enter for a chance to WIN a $100 gift card.

From 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., attend the networking cocktail reception sponsored by OnDialog. It's being held in the Expo Hall.

And at 6:15 pm, head over to Sutton South in the Hilton New York for another networking party being held by SEMPO.

If Tuesday isn't good for you, then how about Wednesday, March 25, 2009?

An Expo Only Pass will get you into the "Orion Panel: The State of Search - A Maturing Marketplace or Poised for More Growth?" Is the search marketplace on the verge of maturing in North America or will advertising dollars continue to flow into search? As ROI and performance become increasingly important, will search gain a larger share of advertising revenues or is search generally or at least across some categories, becoming too expensive and competitive? Can search make an argument for value beyond pure performance and results? Will further insights and performance gains be realized as they relate to an overall SEM+SEO strategy for a brand or has the industry discovered most of the tricks?

This panel takes a hard look at the current value proposition of search and what the future holds for the North American search marketplace. The moderator is Kevin M. Ryan, SES Advisory Board Chair and CMO of WebVisible, Inc. The speakers are: -- James Colborn, Director of Microsoft Advertising at Microsoft. -- Robert Murray, CEO of iProspect. -- Steven Kaufman, SVP Media Director of Digitas. -- Jon Diorio, Group Product Manager of AdWords & Monetization Products at Google. -- Jeffrey Pruitt, President of SEMPO.

And there is also a second batch of Express Site Clinics on Wednesday. This includes: • "Small Changes, Big Results," which will be held from noon to 1:00pm by Matthew Bailey, an SES Advisory Board member and President of Site Logic Marketing. If you are particularly daring, bring the access to your analytics (if they are hosted online), and Matt will really dive in! • "Your Baby Is Ugly - Landing Page Mini-Critiques," which will be held from 2:00 to 3:00 pm by Tim Ash, President of SiteTuners. Yes, these complimentary mini-critiques are by the same by landing page optimization expert who wrote the bestselling book Landing Page Optimization from Wiley Press. • "Dave Naylor Search Marketing," which will be held from 3:00 to 4:00 pm by, wait for it, David Naylor, SEO of Bronco. Ever wanted the chance to have an industry leading SEO take a look at your website, to get an honest and often brutal opinion on whether it is any good? Well, Dave is available to do a mini site clinic for you. Does that work for you?

Meanwhile, you'll still have a chance to go to the Outrider Career Center on Wednesday.

And if you go over to Booth #1302 on the Expo Hall, you'll have a chance to win a brand new Smart Car! WebTrends and Business.com are sponsoring the ultimate conference give-away. One winner will be selected by random drawing. Open to all conference and expo hall attendees. Winner must be present at the time of the drawing.

There you have it. And while you're there, visit the booths of the approximately 100 sponsors and exhibitors. Hey, I plan to. I always find useful products and services -- not to mention the trade-show tchotchke and promotional swag that I used to bring home. (My wife has declared "No more t-shirts" and my kids have more freebies than they know what to do with.)

But, before I sign off, let me circle back to Tim Ash one more time. He seems to be everywhere this year. But, I don't want you to think that I'm plugging his book -- without making him dance for the plublicity.

In fact, at SES New York 2008, I made him do just that. Check it out below.

Optimizing Landing Pages -- Tim Ash's Tips and... Footwork

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 7:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

March 20, 2009

Facebook, YouTube and Twitter at SES New York! Oh, my!

Why are Facebook, YouTube and Twitter featured on the SES New York agenda? Isn't this a natural as finding lions, and tigers, and bears in the forest?

According to comScore qSearch 2.0, there were 2.7 billion expanded search queries conducted on YouTube and 206 million conducted at Facebook in February 2009. And according to Hitwise Intelligence, the top websites visited after people use Twitter are...wait for it...Google, Facebook, TwitPic, MySpace, Twitter Search, Yahoo! Mail and YouTube.

Okay, so Twitter's clickstream profile is much closer to a social network than to a search engine. But I could say that about YouTube, too. And Google bought YouTube for $1.65 billion in October 2006. And last April Fool's Day, InfoWorld joked about Google buying Facebook, because Google was losing too many of its top people to Facebook. Meanwhile, in another part of the forest, the Motley Fool has just published an article entitled, "Google, Just Buy Twitter Already."

So, it's really not that surprising to find Facebook, and YouTube, and Twitter at SES New York. We're not in Kansas anymore.

In fact, social media has worked its way into the agenda in lots of places and over several years.

On Monday, March 23, there is a training workshop entitled, "Corporate Blog Strategies: Blog Your Way to Success." It's being taught by Jennifer Evans Laycock, Director of Social Media at SiteLogic, and Matt Bailey, an SES Advisory Board member and the President of SiteLogic.

On Tuesday, March 24, the opening keynote at SES New York 2009 is entitled, "Twitter as a Tool for Social Media." It's being given by Guy Kawasaki, the author of Reality Check and Founding Partner of Garage Technology Ventures.

Pauline Ores, an SES Advisory Board member and Senior Marketing Manager of Social Media Engagement at IBM Corporation, is speaking at the "Beyond Googling: Where Will Your Customers Be Searching in Five Years?" session.

And Matthew Liu, the Product Manager for YouTube Sponsored Videos, will be speaking at the "Video Search Engine Optimization: 2009 and Beyond" session.

On Wednesday, March 25, the "Small Voices, Big Impact: Social Media for the Little Guy" session is another example of social media working its way into the agenda. And the speakers include: Amber Naslund, the Director of Community at Radian6; Jennifer Evans Laycock, Christina Kerley, Marketing Specialist at ckEpiphany; and Tim Kendall, Director of Monetization at Facebook.

And there is a session entitled, "Social Media Marketing for Brand Building" that features Dave Evans, VP at Digital Voodoo; Hollis Thomases, Founder of WebAdvantage.net; and Harry J. Gold, CEO of Overdrive Interactive.

Oh, and there's a "Facebook Workshop: Harnessing the Social Graph." The speakers are Kasey Galang, Product Marketing Manager of Facebook and Rebecca Sawyer, Online Sales Operations Manager of Facebook.

On Thursday, March 26, there isn't even an effort to disguise the social media sessions. In fact, there is a "Social Media and Blogging Track." • The first session in this track is entitled, "An Update on Social Media Optimization." And one of the speakers is Dave Snyder, Co-Founder of Search & Social. • The second session is entitled, "4 Views of Social Media: Planning a Successful Social Media Strategy." The moderator is Pauline Ores. • The third session is entitled, "Online Communities: A Bonanza of Content for Searchers and Search Engines." • The fourth session is entitled, "Online Communities: Blogging for Business." One of the speakers is Jennifer Evans Laycock.

That's right. They walk among us!

And it's hard to tell when you're talking with a search engine marketing expert and when you're talking with a social marketing expert. It's sort of like Americans and Canadians or people from the East Coast and people from the Left Coast. If it wasn't for a few trick phrases, you'd never be able to tell them apart.

So, to help you navigate this socially awkward situation, here's an SEM guide to Facebook, and YouTube, and Twitter. Oh, my!

Block: A Facebook term that means to prevent someone from searching for and viewing your profile. This is not to be confused with a "text block," a term that SEMs might use describe various elements that are considered parts of normal text.

Block: A YouTube term that means certain content which violates YouTube's Content ID usage policy will not be allowed on its network. This is not to be confused with the phrase "around the block a few times," which might mean an SEM remembers the "Florida" update of November 2003.

Block: A Twitter term that means discovering new people on your Twitter Block by navigating through this animated three dimensional visualization of who follows whom. This is not to be confused with the expression "chip off the old block," which might mean a young SEM submits to DMOZ just like his old man did.

Hmmm. We may need to call for backup.

Okay, I didn't want to do this, but I'll use YouTube to illustrate the difference between a search engine marketing expert and a social marketing expert.

In the example below, a Canadian interviews an American. Can you figure out which one is a search engine marketing expert and which one is a social marketing expert?

Small Business Viral Marketing Tips, SES San Jose 2008

Here's another example. An East Coast guru interviews a Left Coast guru. Can you tell which one is a social marketing expert and which one is search engine marketing expert?

John Battelle on Google Universal Search at SES NY 2008

If you still can't tell the difference between a search engine marketing expert and a social marketing expert, then we may need to "Test Your Awareness." This is something that I learned about at SES London last month. Watch the video below and count the number of passes the team in white makes.

Test Your Awareness: Do The Test

Now, did you see the moonwalking bear?

That's what I'm talking about. If you are focused on search engine marketing you may not see social marketing -- until someone calls your attention to it.

Okay, that's as much help as I can give you. At Search Engine Strategies New York, you may need to develop your own techniques for sorting this out. But whatever you do, pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 7:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

March 19, 2009

Search for SEM conference and find SES New York 2009

When I conducted a search yesterday on Google for "SEM conference", the top sponsored listing was for Search Engine Strategies New York. However, the top organic listing was for the Society for Experimental Mechanics.

Welcome to the real world. The organic search engine results don't always reflect the way we'd define a three-letter acronym (TLA).

And that's why the SES New York 2009 agenda overview features a ton of conference sessions and training workshops devoted to search engine marketing (SEM) and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising. Sometimes, PPC ads are the only way you can get found for a TLA.

If you are wrestling with similar, real-world challenges, then you have two options. First, you can read Andrew Goodman's book, Winning Results with Google Adwords. (The photo on the left is Andrew signing his book at SES London 2009.) Second, you can get over to the Hilton New York next week and register for what should be the leading SEM conference by anyone's definition. (Of course, you can do both.)

If you select the first option, here are the sessions and workshops that you should attend:

Monday, March 23

8:00am-12:00pm -- Making Pay Per Click Pay - Best Practices in Pay Per Click Advertising

1:00pm-5:00pm -- Landing Page Testing Crash Course Tuesday, March 24

10:30am-11:30am -- First Timer's Guide to SES and SEM 11:45am-12:45pm -- Introduction to Search Engine Marketing

1:45pm-2:45pm -- Pay Per Conversation

3:00pm-4:00pm -- Publishers & Agencies: New Business Models for Changing Times 4:30pm-5:30pm -- The Dozen Most Common Search Marketing Mistakes That CMOs Make

6:15pm -- SEMPO Networking Event

Wednesday, March 25

9:00am-10:15am -- Search Advertising 101

10:45am-12:00pm -- Google Workshop: Preview the new AdWords interface

1:00pm-2:00pm -- The State of Search - A Maturing Marketplace or Poised for More Growth?

2:15pm-3:30pm -- Slash Your Search Budget: What Are Your Alternatives?

4:00pm-5:15pm -- Wpromote Workshop: 8 Things You Aren't Doing That Will Boost Your SEM Results

Thursday, March 26

9:00am-10:00am -- Morning Keynote by John Gerzema, Author of The Brand Bubble 10:30am-11:45am -- Advanced Keyword Research 12:45pm-2:00pm -- Advanced Paid Search Techniques 2:15pm-3:30pm -- Ads in a Quality Score World 3:45pm-5:00pm -- Don't Be Afraid of the Dark: Black Hat PPC Tactics Of course, search engine marketing means more than just pay-per-click advertising, even if it commands the lion's share of most SEM budgets. And SEM needs to be integrated into the rest of a company's marketing mix. Last month, I interviewed Bill Hunt, the CEO of Global Strategies Inc. and Director of Global Search Strategy at Neo@Ogilvy, about this topic at SES London 2009. Listen to his insights below.

Bill Hunt, Global Strategies Int., on collaborative marketing at SES London 2009

Bill is just one of the many SEM experts who will be speaking at the SEM conference that our industry calls SES New York. How do I know that he's also a top thought leader on Search Engine Marketing? Bill is the co-author of the best selling book "Search Engine Marketing, Inc.: Driving Traffic to Your Companies Web Site" from IBM Press. And Bill, you magnificent SEM, I read your book!

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 7:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

March 18, 2009

SES New York is SEO Conference for Search Engine Optimizers

For the past few days, I've outlined the sessions at Search Engine Strategies New York that should appeal to newbies and veterans next week. But at its core, the event remains the premier SEO conference that was launched a decade ago. And there will be plenty of content at SES New York 2009 for budding search engine optimization specialists and experienced SEO consultants to see and hear.

Here are some samples of the sessions and workshops that should appear to search engine optimizers:

Monday, March 23

8:00am-12:00pm -- How to Create a Successful In-House SEO Program

1:00pm-5:00pm -- Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Workshop Tuesday, March 24

10:30am-11:30am -- SEO: Where to Next

11:45am-12:45pm -- Key Points in Launching a Global Website 1:45pm-2:45pm -- Beyond Googling: Where Will Your Customers Be Searching in Five Years?

3:00pm-4:00pm -- Universal and Blended Search: An Update 4:30pm-5:30pm -- Video Search Engine Optimization: 2009 and Beyond Wednesday, March 25

9:00am-10:15am -- Discover the Power of Linking: Link Building Basics 10:45am-12:00pm -- Keywords & Content: Search Marketing Foundations 1:00pm-2:00pm -- The State of Search - A Maturing Marketplace or Poised for More Growth?

2:15pm-3:30pm -- Turning Simple Change into Big Profit 4:00pm-5:15pm -- Google Workshop: Maximizing Your Website's ROI Thursday, March 26

10:30am-11:45am -- SEO Through Blogs & Feeds 12:45pm-2:00pm -- SEO Tools of the Trade: What's in YOUR Toolbox?

2:15pm-3:30pm -- Google Website Optimizer: Radically Improve your Conversion Rate!

3:45pm-5:00pm -- The Importance of Usability and Accessibility in Search Friday, March 27

8:30am-5:30pm -- SEO Training Course in partnership withBruce Clay.

To figure out which conference package is right for you, click on the rates and registration details.

Or, if you want a sample of the things you will learn from the experts at SES New York 2009, check out my interview with Rand Fishkin, the CEO of SEOMoz, below. I interviewed Rand about the future of SEO at SES London 2009 last month.

Rand Fishkin, SEOMoz, on the future of SEO in 2009

Get it? Got it? Good.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 7:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

March 17, 2009

SES New York Veterans Don't Need No Schedule Optimization

With Search Engine Strategies getting underway next week, veterans of SES New York don't need no stinking schedule optimization services -- even if I do offer them for free. A quick look at the conference agenda will reassure them that there is enough content to make a return trip worthwhile.

Actually, alumni of previous events may scan the schedule for more than a few minutes looking for market trends and business opportunities hidden in plain sight among the 65 conference sessions, six search engine marketing training workshops, six express site clinics, two keynotes, one Orion Panel, a one-day SEO training course, and a one-day web analytics training course.

I know, because that's what I do. And I've been attending Search Engine Strategies New York each and every year since 2004. Over the years, I've seen the changes in the search engine industry reflected in the new content added to the agenda each year.

Looking over the SES New York Agenda Overview for March 23-27, 2009, here are the significant developments that I seen hidden in plain sight:

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

9:00-10:00 am -- Twitter As A Tool For Social Media Twitter was barely mentioned at last year's conference, and now it's featured in a keynote.

10:30-11:30 am -- SEO: Where to Next? Certain industry pundits have been heard to say that SEO is dead, but I'd say it's alive, well and kicking.

11:45am-12:45 pm -- Thinking Outside Your Website: Branding Without Borders With the popularity of sites like YouTube, Flickr, Twitter, and Facebook, brands increasingly need to engage with their customers outside their website.

1:45-2:45 pm -- Budget Migration: Going Digital Without Impacting Your Brand Companies have started moving significant resources away from TV, radio and print and into search, social, display and email.

3:00-4:00 pm -- Publishers & Agencies: New Business Models for Changing Times Okay, so I'm moderating this panel. But it still looks very interesting.

4:30-5:30 pm -- Video Search Engine Optimization: 2009 and Beyond And, yes, I'm speaking at this session. But according to comScore, YouTube surpassed 100 Million U.S. viewers in January 2009.

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

9:00-10:15 am -- Small Voices, Big Impact: Social Media for the Little Guy Amber Naslund, the Director of Community of Radian6. Damn, now the rest of the search engine industry will learn about this complete monitoring and analysis solution for PR professionals.

10:45 am-12:00 pm -- Google Workshop: Preview the new AdWords interface All session attendees will receive priority access to the new interface, so be sure to bring your AdWords Customer ID.

1:00-2:00 pm -- The State of Search - A Maturing Marketplace or Poised for More Growth? I don't know about you, but I want to take a hard look at the current value proposition of search and what the future holds for the North American search marketplace.

2:15-3:30 pm -- Facebook Workshop: Harnessing the Social Graph Are you wondering how to effectively advertise on Facebook? I am.

4:00-5:15 pm -- Political Search: Preparing for Search in 2010 Okay, so I'm a political junkie. But so are lots of other YouTubers.

Thursday, March 26, 2009

9:00-10:00 am -- The Brand Bubble: The Looming Crisis in Brand Value and How to Avoid It Yes, pinch yourself, an ad agency exec is talking about brand strategies at Search Engine Strategies.

10:30-11:45 am -- An Update on Social Media Optimization Are Facebook, YouTube, Microsoft Tagspace, Wikipedia and new sites allowing content to be shared through "tagging" a great way to tap into links and search-driven traffic? Inquiring minds want to know.

12:45-2:00 pm -- News Search SEO Yes, yes, this panel has been around since 2004. But I'm presenting a brand new case study (about building over 700 inlinks in just 7 weeks) and the other panelists are presenting new content as well. So, don't let the title fool you.

2:15-3:30 pm -- Google Website Optimizer: Radically Improve your Conversion Rate! Now you know why certain industry pundits have been heard to say that SEO is dead. Google Website Optimizer killed it.

3:45-5:00 pm -- Don't Be Afraid of the Dark: Black Hat PPC Tactics I know about Black Hat SEO tactics, but there's also Black Hat PPC! Who knew?

In addition to all this new content, SES New York 2009 will also feature a number of special events where SES veterans can network with approximately 5,000 other attendees. And on Monday, March 23, there's the IM Charity Party at SES NY from 8:00 p.m. to midnight. And on Tuesday, March 24, there's the SEMPO Event at 6:15 p.m.

If you want a flavor of what "networking" looks like, check out the highlights from Search Engine Strategies New York 2008. Based on this YouTube video, it appears that dancing and yodeling. (Hey, I couldn't make this stuff up.) See for yourself.

Search Engine Strategies New York 2008

Tomorrow, we'll look at the sessions for search engine optimizers. Stay tuned.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 8:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

March 16, 2009

Schedule Optimization for Newbies at SES New York 2009

Search Engine Strategies gets underway next week. If you've never been to SES New York before, then navigating the conference agenda can seem almost as complex as planning your search engine marketing strategy for 2009.

Actually, that's what the Search Engine Strategies conference is supposed to help you do.

But, first time attendees often try to learn everything they need to know about SEM in just three days. If search engine optimization were just a handful of tricks and pay-per-click advertising consisted of only a couple of short-cuts, then there wouldn't be 65 conference sessions, six search engine marketing training workshops, six express site clinics, two keynotes, one Orion Panel, a one-day SEO training course, and a one-day web analytics training course.

Yes, there is that much to learn.

And you can't learn everything -- because there are five concurrent conference sessions and you can only attend one of them in each time slot. If you bring a team of five to SES New York 2009, then you can get together afterwards and compare notes. But if you are coming on your own, then you need to figure out which sessions will help you the most.

Now, I've attended Search Engine Strategies each and every year since the spring of 2002. And last year, I started providing a free service to Search Engine Watch readers: Schedule optimization for SES New York.

So, if this is your first Search Engine Strategies, then here are the conference sessions that I'd recommend you attend:

Tuesday, March 24, 2009:

9:00-10:00 am -- Twitter As A Tool For Social Media

10:30-11:30 am -- First Timer's Guide to SES and SEM

11:45 am-12:45 pm -- Introduction to Search Engine Marketing

1:00-2:00 pm -- Express Search Usability Clinic

2:00-3:00 pm -- Power PPC Advertising Clinic

3:00-4:00 pm -- The Imperative: Successful Site Architecture

4:30-5:30 pm -- The Dozen Most Common Search Marketing Mistakes That CMOs Make

Wednesday, March 25, 2009:

9:00-10:15 am -- Discover the Power of Linking: Link Building Basics

10:45 am-12:00 pm -- Keywords & Content: Search Marketing Foundations

1:00-2:00 pm -- The State of Search - A Maturing Marketplace or Poised for More Growth?

2:15-3:30 pm -- Facebook Workshop: Harnessing the Social Graph

4:00-5:15 pm -- Google Workshop: Maximizing Your Website's ROI

Thursday, March 26, 2009:

9:00-10:00 am -- The Brand Bubble: The Looming Crisis in Brand Value and How to Avoid It

10:30-11:45 am -- Extreme Makeover: Live Ad Copy & Continuity Clinic!

12:45-2:00pm -- SEO Tools of the Trade: What's in YOUR toolbox?

2:15-3:30 pm -- Extreme Makeover: Live Site Clinic!

3:45-5:00 pm -- Extreme Makeover: Live Search Advertising Clinic!

Feel free to make your own selections. These are just suggestions to help you navigate your first SES New York. After you've attended this event for a couple of years, you'll see that the agenda is constantly changing to keep up with the latest developments in the search engine industry.

That's right. This is an example of lifelong learning. To get a sense of what you'll learn, check out the 5-minute video below. It is one of 238 videos posted on SESConferenceExpo's Channel on YouTube.

Search Engine Strategies Conference & Expo

Of course, if you don't want to be found when 13.1 billion core searches -- or 19.2 expanded searches -- are conducted each month in the U.S., then you can afford to skip a Search Engine Strategies conference now and then.

What's the difference between a core search and an expanded search? That's what you're going to SES New York 2009 to discover. Hint: According to comScore, the 2.7 billion search queries conducted at YouTube each month are considered "expanded searches."

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 8:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

March 13, 2009

Enter Today To Win an Extreme Makeover at SES New York 2009

I'll take a closer look at the SES New York conference agenda next week, but there is one deadline that you don't want to miss. You need to enter today to win an Extreme Makeover.

So, sign up for a chance to have your site receive an extreme makeover in real time during SES New York. Conversion experts Bryan Eisenberg, Tim Ash and Ethan Giffin will perform 3 makeovers during their Extreme Makeover: Conversion Edition presentation on Tuesday, March 24, from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. The winners of the drawing will be notified prior to the event. But entries must be received by Friday, March 13.

That's today!

Only paid conference attendees are eligible for this drawing. Winners must have a valid conference pass on the day of the session.

If you haven't met Eisenberg, Ash or Giffin, let me introduce you. Eisenberg of Future Now interviewed Ash of SiteTuners at SES San Jose 2008. The two AB testing gurus talked about landing page testing shop on the conference floor. They discussed the crucial nature of testing for the bottom line with the triple threat of increased online competition, rising PPC costs, and a recession economy.

Check out the video below.

AB Test Experts Tim Ash and Bryan Eisenberg

There is much, much more going on at SES New York 2009. I'll optimize the schedule next week. But I didn't want anyone to miss out of the chance to win an Extreme Makeover.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 2:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

March 9, 2009

Well, raise my rent. Microsoft is the good guy!

There is a memorable moment in Blazing Saddles, when Sheriff Bart says, "Well, raise my rent. You are the kid."

I had a similar ephiphany last month at SES London 2009, when David Naylor of Bronco said that Microsoft is the good guy in the search engine industry during a session on "Brand & Reputation Management."

Now, I should disclose that I was the director of corporate communications at Lotus Development Corp. back in the late 1980s, when our relationship with Microsoft was -- ah -- "complicated." They provided the operating system that our applications ran on; while they offered applications that we competed with.

During the 1990s, I was the director of corporate communications at Ziff-Davis. And our relationship with Microsoft was also -- ah -- "complex." On the "church" side of Ziff-Davis, our 400 editors and reporters wrote comparative, lab-based, product reviews that treated Microsoft "without fear or favor," like any other vendor. On the "state" side of Ziff-Davis, Microsoft bought a ton of advertising in our magazines, on our websites and for our cable TV channel. Plus, Bill Gates was a frequent keynote speaker at our conferences, and Microsoft paid a chunk of money for big booths at our trade shows. So, when I got into the search engine industry in early 2002, I admit that I had some preconceived notions about the folks from Redmond. And I secretly chuckled when I heard that Google's informal corpate motto was "Don't be evil." I knew which company they were taking a jab at.

But that was then and this is now.

During the past seven years, Microsofties have been model citizens. Heck, even the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has impressed me by working globally to enhance healthcare and reduce extreme poverty, and working locally to expand educational opportunities and access to information technology.

Still, it came as a surprise to me when Naylor said such nice things about Microsoft. It reminded me of another memorable quote from Blazing Saddles, "I think Mongo here's taken a liking to you."

So, I interviewed Naylor right after the "Brand & Reputation Management" session. In the early part of the video interview, he shared a few tips. He also emphasized the importance of identifying who is posting negative material about your company or brand. But half way through the video interview, I asked to Nayor discuss Microsoft's reputation and why it has improved. He says Microsoft now excels at handling not just business to business but business to consumer and Google has challenges they have not yet resolved.

David Naylor, CEO, Bronco Internet, on reputation management at SES London

As luck would have it, one of the people who attended the "Brand & Reputation Management" session was Mel Carson, the adCenter Community Manager in Europe for Microsoft. Carson joined Microsoft back in the summer of 2005, so we never crossed swords in the old days. As part of Microsoft Advertising, his role is to build relationships within the online advertising community to support, educate and evangelise through Microsoft adCenter industry forums, and to speak about internet marketing at conferences, trade shows and other events.

For the last year Carson has been writing a digital blog for Media Week and at his own site, Mel Carson. You can also follow him at http://Twitter.com/MelCarson. He is a credit to his company.

In the best tradition of ambush journalism, I interviewed Carson about his favorite panel sessions from SES London. He cited panels on topics such as social media, SEO, search behavior, and keyword research. But about half way through the interview, I asked Carson about the changing reputation of Microsoft and why Microsoft is now seen in a more positive light.

Mel Carson, Microsoft adCenter, highlights panels at SES London 2009

So, there you have it. You may have noticed this before. But that was the first time that I recognized that Microsoft wasn't evil. It's the good guy.

Both Naylor and Carson will be speaking at SES New York 2009 in two weeks at the "Extreme Makeover: Live Ad Copy & Continuity Clinic" on Thursday. So, you can ask them about this topic, before or after they examine your ads and landing pages "without fear or favor."

Well, don't just stand there looking stupid, grasping your hands in pain. How about a round of applause for the Redmond Kid?

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 2:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

March 6, 2009

Guy Kawasaki says Twitter is Marketing Weapon in SES Webcast

Guy Kawasaki and Matt McGowan just finished their SES Webcast. More than 500 people registered to hear them talk about Kawasaki's new book, "Reality Check: The Irreverent Guide to Outsmarting, Outmanaging, and Outmarketing Your Competition."

But most of the 60 questions during Q&A were about "Twitter As A Tool For Social Media," which is the subject of Kawasaki's opening keynote at SES New York on Tuesday, March24, 2009.

Here are just some of the realtime results on Twitter for Kawasaki's SES Webcast:

kandeezie: @la_panique It's just that there are so many on Twitter like Guy Kawasaki that use it well...at least follow a few more people...

ByronG: Best takeaway from Guy Kawasaki webcast: Use TwitterHawk to generate specific search conditions!

Vanessa_Bright: All top - http://alltop.com/ - an "online magazine rack" of popular topics (including marketing) - from webinar with Guy Kawasaki

markivey: guy kawasaki:3 people tweeting 5-10 Tweets/day, "the rest is me." His resources: Alltop Science, Psy, marketing, most popular;stumbleupon

shonali: I've never heard Guy Kawasaki speak before, so that was the most interesting part of #sesguycast for me. He can get snarky, eh?

jyo_ca: wow - this is like mini Twitter U with Prof Guy Kawasaki - very practical, useful stuff

inflatemouse: Guy Kawasaki thinks you should have to pay for Twitter like SMS. #idisagree

ohltweets: getting a little chuckle out of guy kawasaki on twitter. #sesguycast

johnsantangelo: listing to guy kawasaki. love his response to that dumbass question

GregLiveBrand: Watching a Guy Kawasaki video... this is awesome!

patratu: guy kawasaki :use twitter to aggregate coverage on your brand - "online magazine rack" on topics of interest

kirkhateswork: Listening to Guy Kawasaki on SES speaking about twitter, "The only other way to reach thousands of people directly are super bowl ads" $$$

tezindenver: listening to Guy Kawasaki streamed from Search Engine Strategies Conf. guykawasaki

lookadoo: Guy Kawasaki says, "Twitter is a great marketing weapon to reach thousands, millions of people absolutely free."

AuldHouse: reading the Art of the Start by Guy Kawasaki. Thinking of making my personal mantra the same for AuldHouse....Teach, Learn, Cause Trouble.

The Guy Kawasaki SES Webcast was recorded and will be posted at http://www.searchenginestrategies.com/webcasts/. These search engine marketing (SEM) and interactive marketing and advertising webcasts are FREE and available for up to 3 months On Demand.

Since only a handful of people with questions had the opportunity to get answers during the 60-minute SES Webcast, we're going to try to get answers and post them on the Search Marketing News Blog here on Search Engine Watch. Nevertheless, based on today's event, I expect that the Q&A after Kawasaki's opening keynote at SES New York will also be very active.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 2:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Search Engine Industry has its own Version of March Madness

It's that time of year again. The search engine industry has its own version of March Madness, squeezing multiple events into the same month.

If I were to create brackets, then Search Engine Strategies New York would rank as my #1 favorite. (Hey, I've been attending this conference and expo since 2002, when it was still held in Boston. And I'm speaking at three sessions at SES New York 2009 and moderating a fourth. So, I voted with my feet a long time ago, although I should disclose that SES is now a client.) But there are other conferences and forums that are also vying for your attention.

You can't attend them all, so choices need to be made. So, without further ado, here are the four top seeds in this year's March Madness -- the Final Four, if you will, in the 2009 search engine marketing conference tournament:

#1 Search Engine Strategies (SES) New York, March 23-27, 2009.

I think this is a must-attend event. And approximately 5,000 marketers, corporate decision makers, web developers and search engine marketing (SEM) specialists and rookies, including pay-per-click (PPC) advertisers and search engine optimization (SEO) consultants, attend SES New York each year to network and learn the tips, tactics and strategies that aren't covered online.

If you're still on the fence about attending, today is the day to get off the fence. If you register by March 6 (that's today), then you can save up to $200. And if you want a sneak preview of the opening keynote, listen to Guy Kawasaki speak during his Free Webcast at 10 a.m. (PST), 1 p.m. (EST), 6 p.m. (GMT).

Or, check out the video below, which provides an overview of Search Engine Strategies.

Search Engine Strategies Conference & Expo

#2 SES Amsterdam Forum, 16-17 maart, 2009

Okay, so you need to read Dutch to find out more details about this event. But, if you can read Dutch, then this Forum is targeted at you.

For those of you who want a hint in English about this event, SES Amsterdam will feature a number of workshops designed to educate the beginning SEO/SEM in addition to advanced maximizer sessions for those with years of experience. Topics such as Web 2.0 trends, social media and blogging will also be covered.

The Chair of SES Amsterdam is Henk van Es and the Programming Director for it is Joost de Valk. And this event is actively supported by Taskforce Search the Dutch branch of the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB).

#3. PubCon South, March 11-13, 2009

WebmasterWorld's PubCon will hold its first-ever Texas event celebrating all things search related under the sunny skies of the state's capital Austin. The leading search and Internet marketing gurus will gather for three exciting days of cutting-edge multi-track sessions at Austin's Norris Executive Conference Center.

I interviewed Brett Tabke, the founder of WebmasterWorld, at Search Engine Strategies London last month. Brett talked about his participation on the "SEO: Where to Next?" panel and also gave a quick preview of PubCon South.

Brett Tabke, WebmasterWorld, on the future of SEO

#4 Search 2009, 13 mars 2009

Okay, so you need to read French to find out more details about this event. But, if you can read French, then this conference is targeted at you.

I interviewed Marianne Dabbadie, the CEO of Evalir last month at SES London. Marianne discussed her favorite panels and also mentioned Evalir's partnership with Veille Magazine and Abondance in organizing Search 2009, which is dedicated to vertical and enterprise search and is opening its doors to search marketing and optimizing.

Marianne Dabbadie, CEO, Evalir, on SES London and Search 2009

There are other events, including ad:tech Syndey, March 10 - 11, 2009, the International Search Summit in Oslo, March 13, 2009, the eMetrics Marketing Optimization Summit, March 29-April 1, 2009, and SMX Sydney, April 2-3.

These are the Elite Eight in my March Madness metaphor. So, check out their agendas and see what they offer. No one can attend them all -- unless, of course, they own a private jet.

Starting next week, I plan to focus on SES New York 2009. Since this event features two keynotes, an Orion Panel, 65 conference sessions, six SEM training workshops, SEO training, and web analytics training, I'm planning to drill down into the choices facing attendees. You can't attend everything -- unless, of course, you bring a team of five of more people to the conference and expo.

(That's what my firm is planning to do. But that's another story for another day.)

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 6:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)

February 27, 2009

The fourth estate is dead; long live the fourth estate

Back in May 2005, Linda Rutherford sent me an email with the subject line: "Demise of the fourth estate." Linda is now the Vice President of Communications and Strategic Outreach at Southwest Airlines, but she is a former a reporter for the Dallas Times Herald newspaper.

In her email, Linda wrote, "If you have a few moments, please take a look at this short video. It's an interesting short movie from the Museum of Media History predicting the demise of the fourth estate.

"The scenario is entertaining, a bit frightening and not too far-fetched.

"It hints at the monumental changes afoot in how consumers will learn about news and form opinions about brands.

"Thought given your role you would enjoy this creative prediction of what's to come."

Linda was right. The 8-minute video by Robin Sloan and Matt Thompson is a bit frightening. And the scenario it depicted was not too far fetched: "In the year 2014, The New York Times has gone offline. The Fourth Estate's fortunes have waned. What happened to the news?"

The same day that Linda sent her email, The New York Times Company announced a "targeted staff reduction program that will include approximately 190 employees at The New York Times and the New England Media Group, which includes The Boston Globe."

While the staff reduction represented less than 2% of the New York Times Company's total workforce back in 2005, the cuts didn't end there.

In its report on The State of the News Media 2006, the Project for Excellence in Journalism, asked, "Will we recall this as the year when journalism in print began to die?"

In December 2007, I wrote an article for Search Engine Watch entitled, "Blogs are the new trade press." I observed, "In many industries, the trade press has imploded." In our industry, I reported that online publications and group blogs generated close to 88 percent of the coverage of SES Chicago and PubCon. (The remaining 11 percent was - you guessed it - press releases.)

A year later, I reported on the battery of online video crews interviewing speakers between sessions at SES Chicago 2008. I also interviewed Abby Johnson of WebProNews about this trend. Abby is a pioneer in the field and has been producing videos for the WebProNews Video Blog for years.

Abby Johnson, WebProNews, discusses the top trends at SES Chicago

We're now halfway between 2004, the year that Museum of Media History made its predection, and 2014, the date when it predicted the demise of the fourth estate. So, I think it's time to declare: The fourth estate is dead; long live the fourth estate!"

Yes, print journalism continues to implode. The Rocky Mountain News, Colorado's oldest newspaper, is publishing its last edition today. The Chicago Tribune and LA Times have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The Christian Science Monitor is going "all digital." US News & World Report is now published every other week. PC Magazine is going "all digital."

Even in my home town, The Boston Globe is cutting 50 jobs in its newsroom, fifth newsroom staff reduction since 2001. At its peak in 2000, the Globe newsroom had 552 full-time jobs. When the latest cuts are complete, there will be about 300 full-time newsroom and editorial employees, plus another 29 news employees at Boston.com.

At the same time that print media are imploding, blogs are exploding into a global phenomenon that has hit the mainstream. According to eMarketer, there were 22.6 million US bloggers in 2007 (12 percent of Internet users) and 94.1 million US blog readers (50 percent).

And comScore Video Metrix reports that Nearly 150 million U.S. Internet users watched an average of 96 videos per viewer in December 2008, or a record 14.3 billion online videos during the month. This means 78.5 percent of the total U.S. Internet audience viewed online video in December. The duration of the average online video was 3.2 minutes. So, the average online video viewer watched 309 minutes of video, or more than 5 hours.

Now, this doesn't mean that all of the predictions in the Museum of Media History video turned out to be right. For example, it predicted that Google would acquire TiVo. It didn't. Google acquired YouTube for $1.65 billion instead.

Still, I predict that you'll be able to see the new fourth estate for yourself at SES New York 2009. There will be lots of bloggers and a bunch of videographers. And, who knows, we might even see a print reporter or two -- attending sessions like "Publishers & Agencies: New Business Models for Changing Times", "Video Search Engine Optimization: 2009 and Beyond" and "News Search SEO."

I'll be at all three of these sessions, so I'll let you know if my prediction comes true.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 7:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 26, 2009

Stress Tests for SEO, SEM, PPC at SES New York

Regulators are putting banks through stress tests to determine whether they have adequate capital. And if you look at the SES New York conference agenda, you'll see that you can put your SEO, SEM and PPC programs through some pretty rigorous stress testing at six express site clinics that will be held in the Expo Hall.

Now, why would you want to do that? For starters, you can get some free advice from SEO, SEM and PPC experts. In addition, you'll get an honest opinion from search engine marketing specialists who will tell you the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, even if it hurts.

For example, the first clinic is being taught by Shari Thurow, the Founder and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Director at Omni Marketing Interactive. I first met Shari at Search Engine Strategies Spring in Boston -- back in 2002. And I've learned that she'll tell you exactly what she thinks -- without fear or favor.

And you'd be a fool to ignore her recommendations. Shari has a 100% success rate for getting client sites ranked at the top of search engines -- and her clients include Yahoo, Microsoft, America Online, ABC News, HSBC, Expedia, Deloitte and Touche, National Cancer Institute, and WebMD.

Shari is holding an "Express Search Usability Clinic" on Tuesday, March 24, from 1 to 2 p.m. You can get one-on-one advice for usability, design, copy, link development, and any technical issues that may prevent your Web site from receiving high quality search engine traffic and visitor conversions.

Need another example? Check out the "Power PPC Advertising Clinic" being taught by David Szetela, the CEO of Clix Marketing, on Tuesday, March 24, from 2 to 3 p.m. I've known David even longer than Shari. Back in the 1990s, we both worked together at Ziff-Davis Publishing.

I've never known David to pull a punch -- on his company's blog, in his weekly Profitable PPC column published by Search Engine Watch, or at search and advertising industry events. And Clix is also one of the few agencies paid according to their performance -- as a percentage of profit or a commission per sales lead generated.

You can get your Google AdWords PPC advertising campaigns and landing pages expertly analyzed, with specific recommendations for improvement and optimization. Or just come to watch and learn a wide range of tips and best practices!

The third Express Site Clinic is being taught by Jonathan Mendez, Founder and CEO of RAMP Digital. It is entitled, "CPA Optimization Station," and will be held on Tuesday, March 24, from 3 to 4 p.m.

Now, I don't know Jonathan as well as I know the other presenters, but here's what I do know: Jonathan authors the popular marketing blog Optimize & Prophesize. And he has provided expert pre-click and post-click strategies and execution for online testing, targeting and optimization to some of the world's leading brands and businesses, including Amazon.com, Ameriprise, Disney, Citibank, H&R Block, IBM, Intuit, Microsoft, Monster.com, Sears, and T-Mobile.

With advertising dollars more accountable than ever, optimizing your Cost Per Acquisition or Cost per Action (CPA) has never been more important. So, you should take advantage of this rare opportunity to sit with Jonathan as he finds ways to improve your ROI. He will perform strategic evaluations and provide actionable insights on the consumer touch-points in your conversion path -- keywords, ads, landing pages and registration/checkout. Jonathan will also offer test ideas for use with Multivariate & A/B testing and advice on how to use emerging marketing technologies to further improve your results.

These stress tests will let you know if your SEO, SEM and PPC programs can do heavy lifiting. But wait, there's more!

On Wednesday, March 25, Matthew Bailey, the President of Site Logic Marketing, will hold a clinic entitled, "Small Changes, Big Results," in the Exhibit Hall from 1 to 2 p.m. Now, what can I tell you about Matt that I haven't already revealed -- in about 120 articles, blog posts or video interviews? (Those of you who know that I went to the University of Michigan understand how hard it is for me to say warm, fuzzy things about a guy from Ohio, but I'll try. Hey, the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry is even a Wikipedia listing.)

Matt and I are both members of the Market Motive faculty, which has been called the "Internet marketing dream team." He is the primary trainer and developer for The Direct Marketing Association's Search Engine Optimization Certification program, and the trainer for the DMA's 2-Day Website Marketing Seminar. This year, Matt was selected as the Direct Marketing Association's emissary to France because of his expertise in search marketing. (Coming from a Wolverine, that's high praise for a Buckeye.)

If you need some help, or just another pair of eyes to check your website, then the Express Clinic with Matt will help you identify minor changes in your website that could provide major results. If you are particularly daring, bring the access to your analytics (if they are hosted online), and he will really dive in! (Actually, we are good friends and are both co-presenting the First Timer's Guide to SES and SEM at SES New York. So, we don't let football get in the way of our friendship ... except on one Saturday each fall. Oh, and maybe on New Year's Day.)

Now, I mentioned earlier that the SEO, SEM and PPC experts holding these Express Site Clinics will tell you the truth, even if it hurts. My fifth example of this is the title of the next clinic: "Your Baby Is Ugly - Landing Page Mini-Critiques." It will be held on Wednesday, March 25, from 2 to 3 p.m. by Tim Ash, President of SiteTuners.

Tim Ash is the author of the bestselling book "Landing Page Optimization," published by Wiley. He is a contributing columnist to several publications including Search Engine Watch. And he has also worked with Verizon Wireless, American Express, Sony Music, American Honda, COMP USA, Harcourt Brace, Universal Studios, HomeGain, Fair Isaac, TransUnion, Rand McNally, Red Envelope, Black & Decker, and Coach to develop successful Internet initiatives.

If your landing page has severe and fundamental problems or if you think it could have a much higher conversion rate, join Tim on the exhibit show floor for complimentary mini-critiques. His firm offers consulting, full-service flat-fee guaranteed-performance tests, and advanced software tools for landing page optimization. (Tim's Salsa dancing is pretty impressive, too.)

Finally, you'll want to attend the clinic entitled, "Dave Naylor Search Marketing," which will be taught by none other than David Naylor, SEO of Bronco, on Wednesday, March 25, from 3 to 4 p.m.

David, more commonly known as DaveN, is constantly developing new optimization techniques and has the uncanny ability to see algorithmic changes before most other SEOs. He has a proven track record of successes in some of the most competitive markets. And his blog is well known for its down to earth, yet informative approach on all SEO issues.

If you have ever wanted the chance to have an industry leading SEO take a look at your website, if you want to get an honest and often brutal opinion on whether it is any good, then Dave is available to do a mini site clinic for you. You'll be amazed at the information you will glean within seconds of the analysis.

A few final words of warning for those who put their SEO, SEM and PPC programs through one or more of these stress tests at SES New York. First, these PowerPoint free, interactive clinics are "first-come, first-served." Second, if you can't handle the truth, don't get your Website reviewed live by one of these SES experts.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 11:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

February 25, 2009

Obama Speech to Congress Relevant to SES New York Delegates

President Barack Obama's speech to Congress on last night contained a number of relevant messages to the delegates planning to attend SES New York next month.

For example, President Obama said, "We have lived through an era where too often, short-term gains were prized over long-term prosperity." And the search engine marketing industry has lived through years when it was easier to launch pay-per-click campaigns than it was to launch search engine optimization programs.

In fact, Fredrick Marckini, the chief global search officer of Isobar, made this point during his keynote speeches at SES London 2008 and SES Toronto 2008. According to Marckini, "Paid search alone does not constitute a search engine marketing program. I interviewed Fredrick a year ago about the importance of natural search in search engine marketing campaigns, which is still a potent issue as we wrestle with a global recession.

Greg Jarboe & Fredrick Marckini on SEM at SES London 2008

Another line by President Obama that still resonates a day later is this: "The weight of this crisis will not determine the destiny of this nation. The answers to our problems don't lie beyond our reach. They exist in our laboratories and universities; in our fields and our factories; in the imaginations of our entrepreneurs and the pride of the hardest working people on earth. Those qualities that have made America the greatest force of progress and prosperity in human history we still possess in ample measure."

And today, I received an email from Search Engine Strategies that said, "Bad news can easily derail you from your goal. Don't fall flat on your Q2 achievements. Stay on top of your marketing plan and learn how you can ride through the troubled economy and stand tall in the end. Search Engine Strategies New York is your survival guide to the unsteady economy. From Web 2.0 strategies for small businesses with small budgets to winning online campaigns on a dime."

And the email backed that up with specific suggestions of conference sessions to attend at SES New York: • The Impact of Today's Economy on the Search Landscape • Survival of the Fittest 2.0 • Every Day, In Every Way: Search Marketing as a Business Activity • Publishing: New Business Models for Changing Times • Lower Your Marketing Costs with Vertical Search • Four Paths to Success in a Tough Travel Economy

Or, take a close look at the SES New York conference agenda and you'll discover more sessions that "confront boldly the challenges we face." This includes: • The Dozen Most Common Search Marketing Mistakes That CMOs Make • Search on a Dime • 8 Things You Aren't Doing That Will Boost Your SEM Results • Extreme Makeover: Live Ad Copy & Continuity Clinic! • SEO Tools of the Trade: What's in YOUR Toolbox? • Google Website Optimizer: Radically Improve your Conversion Rate!

And if you register for SES New York by March 6, you can save up to $200. Plus, you have a chance to win an extreme makeover of your website in real time during SES New York! And there are other bonus offers.

So, if you think "the time to take charge of our future is here," as President Obama does, then check out the conference agenda for SES New York, which will be held March 23-27, 2009, at the Hilton New York. To borrow a phrase, "So often, we have come to view these documents as simply ... laundry lists of programs. I see this document differently. I see it ... as a blueprint for our future."

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 5:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Search Engine Strategies Names 5 New Members to SES Advisory Board

This afternoon, Search Engine Strategies announced that five new members are joining the SES Advisory Board. The new advisory board members are: Matthew Bailey, President, SiteLogic; Bryan Eisenberg, Co-Founder, Future Now, Inc.; Andrew Goodman, Principal, Page Zero Media; Mike Grehan, Global KDM Officer, Acronym Media; and John Marshall, CTO, Market Motive.

The five new members join eight current members, who will continue to serve on the SES advisory board, which is chaired by Kevin Ryan, CMO, WebVisible, Inc: • Ron Belanger, Vice President of Agency Development, Yahoo Search Marketing; • Jeff Ferguson, Director of Online Marketing, Napster; • Chris Henger, Vice President, Affiliate Marketing, Performics; • Anne Kennedy, Managing Partner, Beyond Ink; • Jeff Levick, Director, Global Industry Development and Marketing, Google; • Pauline Ores, Senior Marketing Manager, Community and Collaboration Strategy, Global Small & Midmarket Business, IBM; • Erynn Petersen, Senior Manager, Advertising Platform Evangelism, Microsoft; and • Randy Peterson, Search Marketing Innovation Manager, Proctor and Gamble.

In a press release, Matt McGowan, the Vice President and Publisher for Incisive Media's Interactive Marketing Group, which includes Search Engine Strategies, Search Engine Watch and ClickZ, said, "Over a year ago we created an advisory board consisting of individuals from the industry and beyond to help our programming and operations teams guide the direction of future conferences. The board has made significant contributions to the success of SES. We want to thank seven of the original advisory board members, who are now rotating out of the lineup, as well as welcome five new members who are joining the board members as we chart our way in this rapidly changing industry."

The members of the originaly advisory board who are rotating out include: • Sandeep Aggarwal, Senior Equity Research Analyst, Oppenheimer & Co.; • Jocelyn Griffing, Senior Vice President, Online Media, Icon International; • Steven Kaufman, Senior Vice President, Media Director, Digitas; • Carol Kruse, Vice President, Global Interactive Marketing, The Coca-Cola Co.; • James M. Lamberti, former Senior Vice President, Search and Media, comScore Networks; • Jeannie Moran, eCommerce Marketing Director, AutoNation; and • Gregg Stewart, Senior Vice President, Interactive, TMP Directional Marketing.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 2:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 23, 2009

Guy Kawasaki and John Gerzema to Keynote at SES New York

I've just returned from Search Engine Strategies London and it's already time to get ready for SES New York 2009. Fortunately, most of the content for the two keynotes, Orion Panel, 65 conference sessions, and nine training workshops will be brand new and even the format for the show is significantly different, so it won't feel like I've "been there, done that, got the t-shirt."

You can see the changes in the industry reflected in the two keynote speakers.

On Tuesday, March 24, 2009, Guy Kawasaki, Author of "Reality Check: The Irreverent Guide to Outsmarting, Outmanaging, and Outmarketing Your Competition" and Founding Partner of Garage Technology Ventures, will be giving the opening keynote, which is entitled: "Twitter as a Tool for Social Media."

Now, Twitter was barely mentioned last year at Search Engine Strategies New York 2008. (The honor of being ahead of the curve goes to Bryan Eisenberg, co-founder of Future Now, who discussed Twitter during his session on "Redefining the Customer.")

And last summer, there was a debate at SES Toronto 2008 about whether Twitter was the ultimate time waster, or a Great tool? I interviewed Dave Snyder, Co-Founder Search & Social , and Lee Odden, CEO of TopRank Online Marketing, about Twitter back then.

Twitter and its Uses & Abuses for Marketing at SES Toronto

And now at Search Engine Strategies New York 2009, the social networking and micro-blogging service is the topic of a keynote speech.

The rapid elevation of Twitter's importance is also reflected in recent articles.

On Jan. 26, 2009, Erik Qualman wrote an article for Search Engine Watch entitled, "10 Ways Twitter Can Make Money." Eric asks, "How can Twitter make money? That's the billion-dollar question. This question is important for Twitter, as well as its users and global advertisers."

On Feb. 6, 2009, Anna Maria Virzi wrote an article for ClickZ entitled, "Twitter's Glory Days." She wrote, "As Facebook evolves as a place for friends and family to connect, Twitter continues to penetrate the mainstream as a grassroots consumer-complaint bureau and a virtual business network. Giving the microblogging platform even more oomph is its search tool, which can give a quick snapshot of a developing event and instantaneously connect Twitter users."

On Feb. 13, 2009, Frank Watson wrote an article for Search Engine Watch entitled, "Should Google Buy Twitter?" According to Frank, "Left to its own devices, Twitter could create a large chink in Google's armor. It generates traffic and is far more accurate on building TrustRank."

Twitter's emergence as a major topic is just one example of who even veterans of the Search Engine Strategies conference and expo series come back year after year to this must-attend event to get updates on the major topics.

Another major topic that will put "butts in seats" is the morning keynote on Thursday, March 26, which will be given by John Gerzema, Chief Insights Officer of Young & Rubicam Group and the best-selling author of "The Brand Bubble: The Looming Crisis in Brand Value and How To Avoid It."

Now, "brand" was the subject of two conference sessions at SES New York 2008. The first was "Big Brand Search Strategies: Build Connections and Fuel Online Promotions, which featured Carol Kruse, Vice President of Global Interactive Marketing for The Coca Cola Company. The second was "Oldtimers: The Impact of Search on Brand Health Metrics."

And "brand" is also the topic of two conference sessions at Search Engine Strategies New York 2009: "Thinking Outside of Your Website: Branding without Borders" and "Brand & Reputation Management."

But bringing in Gerzema, who has designed brand strategies for clients for almost 25 years, to give a keynote address underscores the value of brands -- especially in a recession.

Last summer, I interviewed Gord Hotchkiss, President and CEO of Enquiro Search Solutions, about Enquiro's online branding and search industry research. Hotchkiss told me about his recent work on the relationship between brand lift and SEO search rankings, essentially contending that high web search rankings are a necessary but not sufficient component of strengthening a brand online. Although established brands do receive lift from winning on relevant web searches, it has yet to be established that unknown brands receive any lift for their high rankings.

Web Search, Branding, & Brand Lift with Gord Hotchkiss

At SES New York 2009, Gerzma, a pioneer of account planning in American advertising agencies, will take the topic of brand value to the next level. This is just another reason why this an event you can't afford to miss.

And if you register for Search Engine Strategies New York by March 6, 2009, you can save up to $200.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 8:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

February 21, 2009

Ten Top Stories from SES London 2009

Last week, I attended SES London 2009. For those of you who couldn't attend this must-attend event, here are the ten top stories from the conference and expo held at the Business Design Centre in Islington:

1. The top story was the opening keynote by Matt Mason, author of The Pirate's Dilemna: How Youth Culture Reinvented Capitalism. Chloe Temple of Tamar covered the keynote in her post, "SES London 2009 - Day 1 summary." She wrote, "SES London 2009 kicked off to a flying start, with an interesting choice in keynote speaker, Matt Mason, who gave us a summary of his book The Pirate's Dilemma. Not specifically targeted to an SEM audience, Matt presented his idea that businesses should embrace piracy rather than going to war with it."

Byron Gordon of SEO-PR interviewed Mason after his keynote about the history of piracy as well as its pros and cons. Mason reiterated why it is important for companies today to embrace piracy by competing with it. Mason also talked about the future of piracy and how he would like to see copyright laws changed to reflect the new information economy.

Matt Mason - Author: The Pirate's Dilemma, speaks on piracy at SES London

2. The second top story of SES London 2009 was the Orion Panel on SEO -- Where to Next? Paul Madden, an SEO Consultant in the UK also known as SEOidiot, covered the session for Search Marketing Gurus in a post entitled, "SES London - Orion Panel - SEO Where to Next?"

3. The third top story of SES London 2009 was the Orion Panel on Measuring Success in a 2.0 World. David Wilding of the Epiphany Search Marketing Blog captured the news in his roundup of "Search Engine Strategies London 2009 - Day One." He observed, "One point that may surprise many that don't work day to day in the world of SEO is the view of Google Analytics that came across in this question and answer session." It was called, a "jack of all trades" and a "one size fits all solution."

I interviewed John Marshall, the CTO of Market Motive, who was one of the panelists in this session. Marshall said Google analytics is a limited tool. John indicated that in a 2.0 world, there are details on your website that don't actually live on the website, such as YouTube videos, and Google analytics doesn't analyze this data. Marshall advocated a more realistic approach to measuring data and is a big believer in using competitive analysis. John also cited particular competitive analysis vendors that he likes.

John Marshall, CTO, Market Motive, on measuring success in a Web 2.0 world

4. The next top story was written by Mel Carson, Microsoft's adCenter Community Manager for Europe. He wrote a post for the Microsoft adCenter Blog and Forum Community entitled, "IAB Search Engine Marketing Best Practice Session - SES London." In his post, Carson said, "Islington's Business Design Centre is a hive of search marketing activity, with sessions on SEO, PPC and Social Media all contributing to a vibrant learning pot."

5. Another top story was by Magne Uppman of Uppman.net, which was entitled, "The Twitter Wave At SES London." According to Uppman, a Norwegian online marketer, "Since the last time I attended a major conference, Twitter has really grown big. In fact, you can now get a pretty good glimpse of the news and tips presented only by following the conference on Twitter."

6. The next top story was Rand Fishkin's post on the SEOmoz blog, "Some Interesting Tips and Tidbits from SES London Day 1." According to Fishkin, the CEO of SEOmoz.org, "For the first time in a good while, I managed to spend a few hours sitting in sessions here in London, re-absorbing some information and even picking up a few new bits here and there. Short post, but I figured if it's new/interesting to me, it might also be enjoyable to others (hopefully)."

7. Another top story was written by Philippe Schaillée of SearchCowboys, entitled, "Social Media Optimization - SES London 2009." The Dutch blogger wrote, "Everyone's on the Social networks. Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Flickr and MySpace have become household names."

8. The next top story was written by Zac of the Apple Pie & Custard blog. It is entitled, "The foundations of Video SEO." According to the UK blogger, "Yesterday at the SES Conference in London Amanda Watlington and Joseph Morin discussed the best practices for optimising your video content." 9. Another top story, which appeared in the Efficient Frontier Blog, was entitled simply, "SES London." It said, "London this week saw the spectacle that is Search Engine Strategies. As the first big search conference gracing the 2009 London Calendar, industry analysts observed it with a keen eye as the benchmark for confidence in the sector. Delegate numbers certainly looked healthy on both advertiser and agency side."

10. Last, but not least, was the blog post by Andrew Girdwood entitled, "PRWeb UK launches during SES London." According to Birdwood, "Search Engine Strategies was a good event to launch at. PRWeb now have a UK offering."

These were just the ten top stories from SES London 2009. For a comprehensive list, go to the Search Engine Strategies Blog. And these are just the initial video interviews to be posted to SESConferenceExpo's Channel on Youtube. If you want to be alerted when new videos are uploaded, just subscribe.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 11:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (7)

February 13, 2009

Apple Pie & Custard Shares Recipe for Success at SES London

I’m getting ready to fly over to attend Search Engine Strategies London next week. But before I left Boston, I checked the latest blog buzz and found Apple Pie & Custard’s recipe for success at the must-attend event.

What is Apple Pie & Custard? It’s a UK Blog about search engine marketing, social media and pay per click marketing. And I’ve just added the blog to my bookmarks.

Written by more than half a dozen members of the Site Visibility team, the blog has gone above and beyond the call of duty to prepare its readers for next week’s conference and expo, which will be held at the Business Design Centre, 52 Upper Street, Islington, from Feb. 17 to 20.

Just check out some of the posts from the past few days:

Kelvin Newman posted, “How To Justify The Price Of Your Ticket to SES London 2009 With Just One Question.” According to Kelvin, if you’ve already done the hard work and convinced your boss to buy you a ticket to SES London, then you need to make sure you come back and convince them it was worth the money. And he gives you tips and how to do that.

Gareth posted, “TÃªte-Ã -tÃªte with the President of Trellian Europe Maxime Grandchamp.” Gareth interviews the president of Trellian Europe, who is also co-author of an SEO book “le guide de’l optimization” and will be speaking at Search Engine Strategies London next week.

Zac posted, “E-interview with the SEO Don of Cheapflights.co.uk, Richard Baxter.” This is another great preview of what one of the SES conference speakers plans to tell us.

Nikki Ashley posted, “Beginners guide to SES London.” If you are attending SES London for the first time, read her tips on making the most of the time you spend at the conference.

Zac posted, “Candle Light Email Chats with the Conversion Rate Expert Ben Jesson.” Yet another sneak peak of what one of the Search Engine Strategies conference speakers plans to say, it concludes that conversion rate optimization is the most important opportunity for the majority of web businesses.

Finally, Zac posted, “Electronic Fireside Discussions with Napster Marketing Director Jeff Ferguson.” This is the final in the series of interviews with SES conference speakers.

After reading this, I’m ready for Search Engine Strategies London 2009. I’ve got a good sense of what the top stories will be at the show and who the top newsmakers are that I should interview for the SESConferenceExpo’s Channel on YouTube.

Thanks, Apple Pie & Custard for sharing your secret recipe for success.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 4:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 11, 2009

SES London 2009 Squeezes Mini Site Clinics into Crowded Agenda

If you think next week’s conference agenda for SES London 2009 was already packed with sessions, check out the trade show floor. The organizers have added Mini Site Clinics during the networking lunch and afternoon break in the Expo Hall.

Shari Thurow, the Founder and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Director at Omni Marketing Interactive, will be holding an “Express Search Usability Clinic” on Tuesday, Feb. 17, from noon to 1 p.m., and again on Wednesday, Feb. 18, from 3 to 4 p.m. You can get one-on-one advice for usability, design, copy, link development, and any technical issues that may prevent your Web site from receiving high quality search engine traffic and visitor conversions.

Matt Bailey, the President of Site Logic Marketing, will be discussing “Small Changes, Big Results” on Tuesday, Feb. 17, from 3 to 4 p.m., and again on Wednesday, Feb. 19, from 1 to 2 p.m. If you need some help, or just another pair of eyes to check your website, the Express Clinic with Bailey will help you identify minor changes in your website that could provide major results. If you are particularly daring, bring the access to your analytics (if they are hosted online), and he will really dive in!

Both Mini Site Clinics will be held in the exhibit hall in Booth 101. As you prepare to take advantage of this added bonus, all you need to do is figure out how to grab lunch and then get to these PowerPoint free, interactive clinics, which are “first-come, first-served.”

But if you can successfully navigate your way around Piccadilly Circus, then you are up for the challenge of the Business Design Centre. Don't miss the opportunity to visit the Expo Hall, take in an Express Site Clinic, and get your Web site reviewed live by one of the SEO experts at SES.

And while you are in the exhibit hall, check out the growing list of sponsors and exhibitors. There are companies like Adfero DirectNews, Efficient Frontier, MakeMeTop, and WebCertain, which exhibited last year are back again this year.

For example, last year I interviewed Andy Atkins-Krueger of WebCertain about multilingual tongue-twisting, polyglot poker, and the more serious aspects of organic seo and paid search optimiztion when operating internationally. Oh, and Kia from the PR team finished the video with a flambouyant Finnish flourish of a finale.

Andy Atkins-Krueger, WebCertain, at SES London on YouTube

And this year, there are a whole bunch of new companies exhibiting at SES London 2009, including: Acquisio, Digital Clarity, Direct Traffic Media, IAB Search Council, Indus Net Technologies, Jellyfish, Microsoft AdCenter, Platform-A, PRWeb, SCL Analytics, and WebTrends. I plan to interview some of these exhibitors next week for the SESConferenceExpo’s Channel on YouTube.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 2:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 10, 2009

UK Media and SEO Blogs are Buzzing about SES London

If you are on the brink of the verge of the edge of going to SES London 2009 next week, check out the buzz in the UK Media and SEO blogs about next week’s must-attend event, which will be held at the Business Design Centre, 52 Upper Street, Islington, from Feb. 17 to Feb. 20.

Kevin Gibbons of SEOoptimize has written a quick post entitled, “5 reasons to attend SES London 2009,” about why this is “one of the search conferences you should definitely consider attending this year.”

And read Duncan Bloor’s post, “Search Engine Strategies London ’09,” in CutTheMustard. He writes, “Apart from a lack of American buzz and razzamataz, the UK show is set to impress with substantial speakers and details released yesterday of an SEO ’round table’ event on day two where businesses, SEO’ers and anyone else with a vested interest in ranking highly on the search engines can access industry leaders thoughts and opinions.” Don’t worry, Duncan. American buzz and razzamataz is on the way.

Microsoft Advertising’s Mel Carson conducted an interview of Matt McGowan from Search Engine Strategies for Media Week’s DigiTales Blog. There’s even an incentive for reading the interview in these lean economic times. Hint, hint. Wink, wink. Nudge, nudge.

Or, check out Kasumi DeMarco’s “Amanda Watlington Interview for SES London 2009” in Kasumi’s sexy SEO blog. Although Kasumi started blogging on the theme “sex sells,” she’s discovered that Search Engine Optimisation helps you get noticed, too. Who knew?

And Lyndon Antcliff (aka Lyndoman) will be covering SES London 2009 this year for Cornwallseo.com. He writes, “My intention is to interview interesting people and get them to say interesting things. I will use my trusty mp3 recorder and microphone to squeeze juicy comments out of attendees. Mostly I am interested in the theme of how social media marketing is changing the online marketing world.”

Next, read Bas van den Beld ‘s post in Searchcowboys.com, entitled, “Exclusive: SES opens its doors in Amsterdam.” Yes, SES Amsterdam will be held for the first time. Nevertheless, the Searchcowboys will also be covering SES London 2009 as well as informing attendees, speakers, and exhibitors about their event in Holland on March 16 and 17, 2009.

And now for something completely differentâŠ.The Yanks are coming! (I’m pretty sure you’ve heard that one before.)

Read Virginia Nussey’s “Six Questions with Greg Jarboe” on the Bruceclay.com SEO Blog. Virginia twists my arm and gets me to divulge the SES London sessions that I don’t want to miss. She also tricks me into revealing where people can catch up with me. Don't you just hate it when that happens.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 2:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)

January 30, 2009

Higher Education and Travel Industry Headed to SES London 2009

According to the organizers of SES London 2009, it looks like attendance will be up this year. While this may come as a surprise to some, Matt McGowan, Publisher of the conference series in addition to its sister sites ClickZ and Search Engine Watch, says, “Attendance figures are up 11% compared to last year, which is not surprising as businesses invest more of their budgets in digital marketing.”

He adds, “Whatâ’s noticeable this year however is the increase in representation from the education and travel industries. Delegates from these two sectors have increased by 10% (Education) and 16% (Travel). Many of Europeâ’s leading universities are sending people to SES London – from web managers to researchers. Similarly, established travel companies and tour operators are, as always, well represented, but this year has seen an increase in representation from the smaller, more niche, travel companies. The figures suggest that these two sectors will see significant growth in digital marketing spend this year.”

On this side of the pond, universities have seen grad school applications and enrollments increase as government funding and endowments have declined. This prompted Brandeis University to announce it would close the Rose Art Museum and turn it into a study and research center.

So, I can see why higher education on both sides of the pond is interested in finding more cost-effective ways to drive traffic to college and university websites than mailing out more college brochures. One of the first things Iâ’d recommend is registering for the Google Online Marketing Challenge, which is open to any higher education institution, anywhere in the world.

Meanwhile, here in Boston, weâ’ve had 49 inches of snow dumped on us – more than double the normal snowfall at this point in the winter and even more than the normal snowfall for the entire winter season. So, I can also understand why the travel industry sees search engine marketing (SEM) and search engine optimization (SEO) turning “the winter of our discontent” into “glorious summer” in the coming year.

Despite last yearâ’s economic conditions, travel spending by domestic and international visitors in 2008 increased 5.2%, to $778.2 billion, according to the Travel Industry Association. Heck, I canâ’t begin to describe the looks I get from my wife when I lamely explain that I “have to” go to London to speak at conference, blog about the event for Search Engine Watch, and conduct video interviews from the show. Hey, itâ’s a business trip.

So, when we all get together Feb. 17-20, 2009, at the Business Design Centre, 52 Upper Street, Islington, I need a little help. For the European universities in attendance, my daughter is planning to spend a semester abroad next year. What do you have for an art major? And for the travel companies who will be at SES London 2009, my wife is looking for someplace sunny, where she can forget about the sleet, wind and bitter cold. (If Iâ’m lucky, she might even bring me along.)

Iâ’m speaking at the sessions on Online Video Update - The Next Wave, News Search SEO, and Beyond Linkbait: Getting Authoritative Mentions Online. Just come up after the session and introduce yourself.

If we haven't met before, Iâ’ve been called “the bearded guy you'd vote least-likely-to-be-in-public relations” by one industry observer. Or, I'm the bearded buy below who was interviewed by Li Evans of Key Relevance at SES San Jose 2008.

VSEO - Video Search Engine Optimization - with Greg Jarboe

Oh, and if you are from an art school in a sunny place like Spain or Italy, let me know all about the programs you offer. Who knows, I may even be able to come back from SES London 2009 a hero, instead of a zero.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 11:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

January 26, 2009

UK PR Firms Should Learn SEO at SES London 2009

Back in December, I posted two items to the Search Engine Watch Blog that encouraged UK PR firms to learn SEO at SES London 2009. With the Search Engine Strategies conference just three weeks away, I figure that now is a good time to remind my UK public relations colleagues why they must attend this must-attend event – even after official confirmation that Great Britain is in recession.

My first post was entitled, “Half of British and Irish Marketers Use SEO for PR Purposes.” It reported on new research by Citigate Dewe Rogerson that found 51.4% of marketers in the UK and Ireland use search engine optimization (SEO) tactics for public relations (PR) purposes. However, the research also found that over four in 10 marketers in the UK and Ireland said that they did not have the in-house digital skills to develop a sound online PR strategy.

My second blog post was entitled, “Online PR Industry in UK Can Learn Lessons from SEO Industry.” It reported on a new Online PR Industry Benchmarking Report by E-consultancy that found about half of companies that outsource online PR are using PR agencies, but the other half are using search marketing agencies or web development agencies to develop and deliver their online PR strategy. The report also found, “Agencies and specialists should note that levels of client satisfaction are not encouraging and they may need to improve their Online PR knowledge and offering.”

So, if UK PR firms and UK public relations specialists want to do more than muddle through Britain's economic downturn, then they need to attend Search Engine Strategies London, which will be held Feb. 17-20, 2009, at the Business Design Centre, 52 Upper Street, Islington.

Now, I would urge public relations specialists to attend the opening keynote by Matt Mason, Author of “The Pirate's Dilemma”, and the Orion Panel, “Measuring Success in a 2.0 World”, on Tuesday, Feb. 17. And I would recommend that they attend the Orion Panel, “SEO: Where to Next?”, on Wednesday, Feb. 18. But I'd advise UK and European marketers, corporate decision makers, webmasters and search engine marketing (SEM) specialists, including pay per click (PPC) advertisers and search engine optimization (SEO) consultants, to attend these sessions, too.

However, if I were organizing a virtual track for just my PR peers, there are a number of sessions that I'd strongly encourage them to attend.

On Tuesday, Feb. 17, they should go to: • Universal & Blended Search • WebTrends Workshop • Online Video Update - The Next Wave • Analytics: Data Into Action

On Wednesday, Feb. 18, they should go to: • SEO Through Blogs & Feeds • News Search SEO • Video & Podcast SEO • Link Building Basics • Keywords & Content: Search Marketing Foundations

On Thursday, Feb. 19, they should go to: • Brand & Reputation Management • Social Media Optimization • Duplicate Content & Multiple Site Issues • Beyond Linkbait: Getting Authoritative Mentions Online • Local Search Marketing Tactics

On Friday, Feb. 20, they should register for these training workshops: • Reaching Your Audience Through Blogs • Link and Reputation Workshop

UK PR firms and UK public relations specialists will also want to visit some of the exhibitors that will be at SES London 2009. This includes PRWeb, which is recognised as a leading online news and press release distribution service worldwide.

John Mulligan of SEO-PR interviewed Jiyan Wei of PRWeb at SES San Jose 2008. Wei talked about the public relations benefits of providing press materials online and the ease with which PRWeb customers can set up their own newsrooms complete with releases and other media.

PRWeb NewsRoom Launch Preview with Jiyan Wei

All this should convince UK PR firms and UK public relations specialists that they must attend this must-attend event. (And if they register for SES London 2009 by Monday, Feb. 2, they can save £100!)

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 2:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

January 23, 2009

It's NOT Business as Usual at SES New York 2009

According to Google Trends, the search volume and news reference volume for “hope” are greater than they are for “fear.” And it's worth noting that the search volume for “recovery” is greater than it is for “recession,” although the news reference volume is the other way around.

Still, this is NOT the time for “Business as Usual.” And you can see that reflected in the agenda for Search Engine Strategies (SES) New York, which includes a new track dedicated to “Search & the Fear Economy.” Thousands of the nation's marketers are expected to attend this year's event, slated for March 23-27, 2009, at the Hilton New York.

The new conference track, “Search & the Fear Economy,” features a line-up of timely themes: -- Searching for a Solution: The Impact of Today's Economy on the Search Landscape; -- Survival of the Fittest 2.0; -- Publishing: New Business Models for Changing Times; and -- Pay-for-Performance: Winning Strategies for Advertisers and Agencies.

And that's not the only change in the conference agenda.

There is a second new track, “Search & the C-Level Exec,” which features these sessions: -- Entrepreneurs and C-Suite Executives: A Fast-Track to Search Marketing Fluency; -- Thinking Outside of Your Website: Branding Without Borders; -- Budget Migration: Going Digital without Impacting Your Brand; and -- Implementing an Effective Digital Corporate Governance Program.

But wait, there's more!

In addition to the search engine marketing training workshops on Monday, March 23, there is also a one-day Bruce Clay SEO Training Course on Friday, March 27. And in between the optional SEM and SEO training are 65 conference sessions, two keynotes and an Orion Panel.

With the search industry rapidly changing, SES organizers are also reserving several sessions for late-breaking topics to be announced closer to the event. All this makes SES New York a must-attend event in the search industry as well as the largest show in the global SES series.

If you want to get a flavor of SES New York 2009, check out the Day 1 highlights from Search Engine Strategies New York, 2008. And it is worth noting (again) that the economy was in a recession back then, even if it hadn't been officially declared.

Search Engine Strategies New York 2008

So, as President Barack Obama said in his inaugural address, “Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.”

And one of the places to start is at SES New York 2009. And if you register by Friday, March 6, 2009, you can save up to $200. Hey, that's equivalent to 40% of the tax cut – or payroll tax credit – that Obama is proposing to give individuals. And even “in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive,” $200 is still $200.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 12:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

January 21, 2009

SEO is Alive and Well and Looking for a Fight at SES London

Yesterday, Mike Grehan wrote a guest comment for Netimperative entitled, “Who says community isn't search?” According to Mike, “SEO's glory days are over. And we should get over it.”

Back on June 11, 2007, Mike wrote a column for ClickZ entitled, “SEO is Dead. Long Live, er, the Other SEO.” Mike said at the time, “In November 2003, the earth moved for a lot of SEO people when Google rolled out a little thing called Florida. If you think that was scary, you're in for a much scarier ride. A couple weeks back, Google rolled out what it calls universal search. And that changes everything.”

As an American SEO (as well as a PR guy), I've always listened intently to Mike's pronouncements, which are usually accompanied with the wave of an extra long shoe horn. The global KDM officer of Acronym Media understands both traditional marketing and search engine algorithms, a rare combination which makes him a highly sought-after SEM conference speaker. It also makes him the perfect organizer and host for SES London 2009.

So, what has Mike gone and done now that will have everyone in the former colonies of the British Empire up in arms…again? Stir up a little controversy about SEO? Nah, he does that all the time. But, now he's gone put together a unique roundtable session that will open the proceedings on day two of the leading global search engine marketing conference series.

Why is this act so diliberately provocative? Because, damn it, it means you need to attend SES London 2009 to hear what Brett Tabke, founder of WebmasterWorld, Rand Fishkin, founder of SEOmoz.com, Chris Sherman, Executive Editor of Search Engine Land, Jill Whalen, founder of HighRankings.com and Kevin Ryan, Chairman of the Search Engine Strategies Board of Advisors, have to say during the keynote Orion Panel entitled, SEO, Where to Next?, a special strategy session moderated by – you guessed it – Mike Grehan.

Oh, the impudence of the man! You'd think he was trying to put “butts in the seats.”

Will he succeed? Can't marketers, consultants and industry leaders from the world's leading businesses miss SES London 2009 and pretend the event is just Europe's leading event for education in online marketing and advertising, including Search (SEM/SEO)?

Oh, sure. And everyone on this side of the pond could pretend that World War II was just a regional conflict that they could miss...until “the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor.”

(Germans? Forget it. I'm rolling.)

Can you afford to skip an all star line-up that has collectively been responsible for generating billions of dollars, Euros and Pounds of business for some of the world's most recognised brands? I think not.

The Orion Panel on February 18, 2009, will enable members of the audience to share issues and problems faced by their own businesses with practical advice provided by the best and most respected minds in search on how SEO will develop this year. How can you afford to miss this not-to-be-missed session?

Can any business looking to build an effective marketing plan to maintain stability and growth through a tough year ahead pretend that what takes place at the Business Design Centre on 52 Upper Street in Islington won't reshape the world?

As Winston Churchill once said, “This is the sort of bloody nonsense up with which I will not put.”

So, I'll be going to SES London 2009 myself to monitor the flow of conversation between each member of the panel, who has been monitoring the flow of conversation in the SEO world for up to 10 years and has heard opinions on everything from Black hat/White hat SEO, dynamic delivery, Flash, Google index updates to universal search. In other words, I will monitor the monitors.

And I will attempt to report back what is said there to the readers of the Search Engine Watch Blog who can't be there. And I will also post video interviews with as many of the panels as I can to the SESConferenceExpo's channel on Youtube.

But I know I'll just be scratching the surface. You really need to be there yourself -- if you really want a report as comprensive as Edward R. Murrow's on the CBS Radio Network during the Blitz, which began with what became his signature opening, “This is London.”

How do you convince the folks over in finance that you really need to be there?

Tell them that SES London 2009 features more than 60 SEM and SEO experts, who will be speaking at 50 conference sessions about how Search Engine Marketing can grow your business.

Tell them that this panel has been brought together for the first time to give delegates the unique opportunity to seek business advice from the world's most experienced experts in digital marketing.

Tell them to watch the 3-minute, 27-second video interview with Mike Grehan below and then dare them to try to answer the key questions which will undoubtedly be on everyone's lips this year, “Where is SEO going? How will the market develop? And how can developments in SEO help my business?”

Mike Grehan, Acronym, on the battle of the Internet browsers

If they won't let you go, if you can't attend SES London 2009, if you don't attend this must-attend event, then as Murrow would say at the end of his reports at the end of 1940, “Good night, and good luck.”

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 2:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

January 14, 2009

SEO Training Workshop on Blogs at SES London 2009

One of the four SEM and SEO training workshops that will be held at SES London on Friday, Feb. 20, 2009, will be focused on “Reaching Your Audience through Blogs.” The instructor is Jennifer Evans Laycock, the Editor-in-Chief of Search Engine Guide, an online publication aimed at educating Small Business owners about search engine marketing, viral marketing, social media marketing and blogging.

There have been a number of studies aimed at understanding the size of the Blogosphere, yielding widely disparate estimates of both the number of blogs and blog readership. All studies agree, however, that blogs are a global phenomenon that has hit the mainstream.

This means the opportunities for businesses to speak with their customers is nearly unlimited. That's why more and more companies are turning to the blogosphere to connect with consumers. Businesses have never had such effective access to the frustrations and desires of their target audience.

After attending this half-day workshop, you will have a solid understanding of concepts that are vital to reaching out to consumers via blogs including: • Why blogs are the fastest growing form of consumer generated media. • How blogs can change the way you interact with your customers. • How to engage your target audience in conversation and how to put what you learn into action. • Why blogging works for both B2B and B2C companies. • How to avoid the most common corporate blogging mistakes. • Crisis control tactics in case you encounter negative blogging.

In this workshop, you will learn why so many companies are launching corporate blogs and how they are creatively using them to advance their brand and marketing campaigns. You'll also learn how to leverage other people's blogs to build your company's reputation, address criticism and introduce new products.

The workshop will give real life examples of both good and bad blog campaigns as well are sharing insight on how your business can build their own blog style based on consumer feedback.

During this workshop, you will learn: • How to find your corporate blogging voice. • What resources are needed to launch an effective corporate blog. • How to balance sales and information to build a more loyal readership. • Why pitching bloggers is different than pitching traditional media. • Why companies ignore blog comments at their own peril.

In addition to being the Editor-in-Chief of Search Engine Guide, Jennifer also operates as an independent online marketing consultant specializing in organic search marketing and viral marketing. Her clients have included companies like Verizon, American Greetings, Highlights for Children, and Option-Line, a national crisis-pregnancy hotline. She is also the author of the popular e-books "The Small Business Guide to Search Engine Marketing" and "Zero Dollars, a Little Talent and Thirty Days."

During SES London 2009, Jennifer will also be speaking at the “SEO Through Blogs & Feeds” session on Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2009. In 2005, she delivered the keynote presentation at the MIVA Small Business Conference.

Jennifer has been interviewed and quoted by a variety of publications including The Financial Times, USA Today, The San Francisco Chronicle, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and Entrepreneur magazine. At SES San Jose 2008, Andrew Goodman of Page Zero Media interviewed her about using social media sites like Linkedin and Twitter to communicate one's marketing message to a dedicated and enthusiastic audience.

Small Business Viral Marketing Tips, SES San Jose 2008

And check out the other three SEM and SEO training workshops at SES London 2007. Participants may register for training in addition to the SES London conference or independently, since the workshops take place on the Friday after the event.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 2:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

January 13, 2009

Mobile Search Training Workshop at SES London 2009

In addition to more than 40 conference sessions at Search Engine Strategies London on Feb. 17-19, 2009, there will also be four SEM and SEO training workshops at SES London on Friday, Feb. 20, 2009.

These four-hour workshops provide the in-depth training you need to become (and remain!) a top performer in your field. The small class setting also ensures that your instructor is accessible for informal one-on-one or small group discussions.

One of the training workshops should be of particular interest to UK and European marketers - because it is in a field of search that is more advanced in Great Britain and on the Continent than its is back on my side of the pond. It's the field of mobile search and the training workshop is entitled, "Mobile Marketing 101."

The session will focus on mobile SEO, but will also touch on driving traffic and conversions with mobile applications, text messaging and mobile email. You will learn what you need to know to develop, launch and track a mobile marketing strategy.

After attending this workshop, you will be able to: • Understand how mobile marketing fits into the traditional and online marketing mix • Determine what mobile marketing strategy is most appropriate for your target market • Update your existing site to be found and used on a variety of mobile devices • Choose a mobile site architecture that will work for your site and your customers • Direct mobile meta crawlers and mobile users to mobile content • Author meta data that ranks well in mobile search and is compelling for mobile searchers • Leverage local and universal search results in mobile search engines • Provide a good mobile user experience for all mobile devices • Test mobile websites to ensure they render correctly across different devices • Track and evaluate your mobile success • Anticipate future opportunities in mobile marketing.

The instructor is Cindy Krum, the Founder and CEO of Rank-Mobile, LLC. She will also be speaking at SES London 2009 during the "Mobile Search Update - The Next Generation," which will be held on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2009.

Cindy writes for industry publications, and has been published in Website Magazine, Advertising & Marketing Review, Search Engine Land, and ODG Intelligence. She also currently serves as the co-chair of the SEMPO Emerging Technologies Mobile Web Task Force.

Byron Gordon of SEO-PR interviewed her at SES Chicago 2008 about both the Mobile Search Update - The Next Generation conference session as well as her Mobile Marketing 101 training workshop at SES London 2009.

Cindy Krum, Rank-Mobile, previews SES London 2009! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hG-eOWzSmNE

If you watch the video interview, Cindy says the training workshop is being held on her birthday and she'll be bringing a cake. Let's see if the instructors for the other three SEM and SEO training workshops try to top that.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 2:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

January 12, 2009

It's “Horses for Courses” at SES London 2009

A year ago, I wrote an article for Search Engine Watch entitled, “It's ‘Horses for Courses' at SES London.” In the article, I said business professionals may want to bring a team to Search Engine Strategies London – because there will be three concurrent conference tracks and no business professional will be able to attend all of the sessions.

Well, it's a year later and I'd make the same case – even in a recession. In fact, if you need to grow your business online now more than ever, then the smart move will be to bring a team of three people to SES London 2009.

To some extent, this is a case of “In for a penny, in for a pound.” If something is worth doing, then you might as well go the whole nine yards.

But it also turns out that it has economic benefits. If you read the rates and registration details closely, you'll see that there are Special Group Discounts. (First two conference registrants pay full price, the third person from the same organization, registering at the same time qualifies for 50% off their registration fee.)

And sending a team of three people will enable you to take advantage of the fact that the SEM conference includes advanced sessions, intermediate sessions, and beginner sessions. And this will enable your organization to put different "horses" on different "courses."

For example, someone entering the SEM steeplechase for the first time will race through the the Fundamentals Track on Wednesday, Feb. 18, as well as the Beyond Fundamentals Track on Thursday, Feb. 19.

Meanwhile, someone who's been around the SEO racecourse a few times will gallop through the Organic Track on Tuesday, and the Issues and Tactics Track on Thursday.

To extend the metaphor, someone who already knows how to harness PPC will be trotting through the Advertising Track on Wednesday, as well as the Improve Me Track on Thursday.

How can I be so sure? Well, I've been speaking at Search Engine Strategies London each and every year since 2005. And when I wasn't speaking, I was sitting in on sessions to report on the conference for Search Engine Watch.

If you've never been to SES London before and want to get an idea of what you'll see and hear, you can take a look at the descriptions below of half a dozen out of more than 40 sessions -- as well as some video interviews with six the more than 60 conference speakers.

Let's start with a couple of the advanced sessions first.

Search Advertising Tools: In order to get a leg up on the competition, successful Search Engine Marketers need to be armed with the latest tools of the trade. This session will explore a range of popular search engine advertising tools along with some important features you should be aware of. One of the speakers on the panel of experts will be Thomas Bindl, Founder & CEO, Refined Labs GmbH.

Byron Gordon of SEO-PR interviewed Thomas about the evolution of search ad tools during SES Chicago 2008. Thomas mentioned the best paid and free search ad tools on the net and provided a preview of SES London 2009.

Thomas Bindl, Refined Labs, on search ad tools and SES London 2009

Ads in a Quality Score World: More and more, ranking well in paid search listings is less about how much you pay and more about the "quality" of your ad campaign. But what goes into making up your quality score? One of the speakers on this panel will be Andrew Goodman, Principal, Page Zero Media.

As SES Chicago 2008, I interviewed Andrew about the updates he made to his book, “Winning Results with Google Adwords.” His book take a closer look at quality factors and gives tips on increasing the perceived relevancy of your campaign.

Andrew Goodman, Page Zero Media, on Google Adwords at SES Chicago 2008

Next, let's take a look at a couple of the intermediate sessions:

Search Resources: Building a Better Economic Model: In today's uncertain economic times, businesses need certainty around their marketing and sales initiatives. Measurable, quantifiable strategies which have a defined ROI will win, as managers will only invest in activities they can measure. One of the speakers on this panel will be Bryan Eisenberg, Co-Founder, Future Now, Inc.

Mitch Joel of Twist Image and Six Pixels of Separation interviewed Bryan at SES Toronto 2008. Bryan was the talked about his keynote presentation as well as his new book, “Always Be Testing: The Complete Guide to Google Website Optimizer.”

Bryan Eisenberg on Site Metrics and Optimization

SEO Through Blogs & Feeds: Not yet running a blog? Not syndicating your content through web feeds? Then you're missing out on an important area that can help your overall SEO efforts. One of the speakers on this panel is Jennifer Evans Laycock, Editor-in-Chief, Search Engine Guide.

At SES San Jose, 2008, Andrew Goodman interviewed Jennifer about the best tips on viral campaigns and social media marketing, especially for small business who want to make the most of their business online without spending too much money.

Small Business Viral Marketing Tips, SES San Jose 2008

Finally, let's take a look at a couple of the beginner sessions:

Search Engine Friendly Design: How can you build a website from the ground up that pleases both crawler-based search engines and your visitors? Discover how “search engine-friendly” design can tap into free traffic from search engines. One of the speakers at this session is Matt Bailey, President, SiteLogic.

As SES Chicago, Chris Boggs of Rosetta interviewed Matt about difference between Analytics 1.0 and Analytics 2.0. Matt said Analytics 1.0 is the endless reporting of numbers with no analysis of the data, while Analytics 2.0 digs into the "why and how" to better understand what the data means.

Matthew Bailey, SiteLogic on 1.0 and 2.0 Analytics at SES Chicago

Search Advertising 101: Paid placement is a form of search advertising that provides a top ranking in return for payment. Every major search engine offers a paid placement program. The moderator of this session, which is especially geared toward beginners, will be Andy Atkins-KrÃŒger, Managing Director, WebCertain Europe Ltd.

Byron Gordon interviewed Andyat SES Chicago 2008 about that show as well as his expectations for SES London 2009. Andy also talked about the state of search in Europe for 2009.

Andy Atkins-Kruger, WebCertain, discusses SES Chicago and SES London 2009

In other words, there are courses for horses at SES London 2009. That's what makes it the definitive event for UK and European marketers, corporate decision makers, webmasters and search engine marketing (SEM) specialists, including pay per click (PPC) advertisers and search engine optimization (SEO) consultants.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 2:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

January 8, 2009

Going to Search Engine Strategies? In a New York Minute!

Are you going to Search Engine Strategies New York, which will be held March 23-26, 2009? Of course you are. It takes less than a New York minute to make that decision.

SES New York is a not-to-be-missed event in the search industry. I've been attending each and every year since 2004. And I attended SES Boston in 2002 and 2003, before the spring conference and expo was moved to the Big Apple.

Why do I keep coming back year after year? Because search engine marketing (SEM), search engine optimization (SEO), and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising are not static fields. You can't learn the industry best practices in a week and then continue applying them without getting an annual update.

Let me share a recent conversation I had with an unnamed organization. (All I can say is that it's big, which is why it wouldn't want its name dropped in a blog post.)

This organization's website was built seven years ago. And it was “optimized” back in 2002. But nobody inside the organization could understand why the website didn't have high rankings anymore.

I diplomatically observed that the website had been optimized back when AltaVista was the leading search engine. Who knows, maybe it still ranks well in AltaVista – but that doesn't matter anymore.

And one of the industry best practices back in 2002 was changing the Meta keywords tags. Hey, I still remember those days like…they were yesterday.

So, I had to explain politely that no one in the organization had made a mistake in the spring of 2002. It's just that AltaVista dropped its support for the Meta keywords tag in July 2002, prompting Traffick.com's Andrew Goodman to declare “the end of the metatag era, full stop."

Oh, and during 2002, Google charged past AltaVista to become the leading search engine. And Google never supported the Meta keywords tag.

In other words, things change in the search industry.

A couple of years back, I tried to get a handle on the pace of change and discovered that about half of what I had learned the previous year was obsolete. That's why I had to go back to SES New York each year to discover which half.

And then the pace of change increased. Today, I estimate that about two-thirds of what I learned last year is now obsolete.

Hey, anyone still optimizing the video on their website for Google Video and Yahoo! Video?

Well, according to comScore Video Metrix, YouTube.com accounts for more than 98% of all videos viewed at Google Sites. (This means Google Video accounts for less than 2%.)

As for Yahoo! Video, while it began as an internet-wide video search engine, it added the ability to upload and share video clips in June 2006. And Yahoo! Video launched a re-designed site in February 2008 that changed the focus to Yahoo-hosted video only.

Meanwhile, comScore just reported that 97 million viewers watched 5.1 billion videos on YouTube.com during November 2008, ranking it as the top U.S. video property. MySpace.com ranked second, with 52.5 million viewers watching 371 million videos that month. Neither are video search engines.

And this is just one example of the kind of changes that can fly past you like a stealth jet under the radar.

This is what makes SES New York 2009 a not-to-be-missed event in the search industry. Even if you've attended in the past, you can't afford to miss the latest twists and turns in this ever-changing business.

So, you know you're going to Search Engine Strategies New York. It's a no brainer.

Then, here's a tip: Register by Friday, Jan.9, 2009, and you'll save up to $700 with the Early Bird Rate. That's tomorrow! Just do it.

Now that I've done you a favor, maybe you can do me a favor.

At SES New York 2009, we plan to do some more “Escalator Pitches” like the ones we did last year. An Escalator Pitch is like an elevator pitch – except the escalators at the Hilton New York move much faster than the elevators. Check out the YouTube videos below to see what I'm talking about.

Escalator Pitches at SES NY 2008

So, if you've got a story to tell that can be told in the time it takes to get from the bottom to the top of the escalator (or the other way around), just let me know. You can email me at Greg (dot) Jarboe (at) SEO-PR (dot) com.

Get it? Got it? Good!

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 10:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

January 5, 2009

Building a Business Case for Going to SES London 2009

With six weeks to go before SES London 2009, it's time to build a business case for going to the definitive event for UK and European marketers, corporate decision makers, webmasters and search engine marketing (SEM) specialists, including pay per click (PPC) advertisers and search engine optimization (SEO) consultants.

Yes, yes, I know there's a recession on both sides of the pond. I read The Economist. (I loved the article in the print edition on December 30, 2008, which reminded us that Alfred Kahn, one of President Jimmy Carter's economic advisers, was chided in 1978 for using the “R” word. So, Mr Kahn, in his next speech, replaced the offending word, saying, “We're in danger of having the worst banana in 45 years.”)

So, how do you make the business case that you need to go to an SEM conference during the worst banana since 1978?

I would argue that it is penny wise and pound foolish to miss SES London 2009 just because we're in a recession. In fact, it's probably more important to go now than ever before.

So, what makes Search Engine Strategies London a not-to-be-missed industry event? And what makes it particularly important for people who have attended in the past to make a return visit this year?

First, SES London 2009 is the place where the search industry gathers to chart the year ahead. The pace of change in this industry hasn't slowed down. This search industry keeps reinventing itself at an amazing pace and last year's cutting-edge program already is dated in some areas. You can't afford to be left behind.

Second, it's where you can learn how to calculate the ROI of your search marketing efforts from top search experts. Now, I'm just one of the 48 conference speakers who will be making presentations at SES London 2009. And I plan to share some case studies of how optimized press releases generated: • $200 million in B2B leads for Symmetricom's chip-scale atomic clocks, • More than $2.5 million in ticket sales for Southwest Airlines, and • Almost 1.3 million searches for “florists” on SuperPages.com.

I'll also explain how combining blog outreach with press release optimization generated: • A record 450,000 unique visitors to The Christian Science Monitor in 24 hours, • A record 88,000 entries into Parents magazine's cover kid photo contest, and • A record 1,100 attendees to the Wharton Economic Summit.

Now, I think I'm supposed to say, “Past performance is no indicator of future success.” And I should disclose that SES became a client about 14 months ago.

But check out the list of speakers who will be presenting at SES London 2009. I know most of them. I've heard many of them speak at previous Search Engine Strategies conferences. And I know they have similar success stories to tell.

If you want to hear more than 200 of their success stories from 2008, just go to SESConferenceExpo's Channel on YouTube. Or watch the three SES London 2008 Roundup Reels below.

So, can your organization really afford to skip SES London 2009 just because there's a recession? Missing a not-to-be-missed industry event would be penny wise and pound foolish. Skipping the event because you went last year would be “bananas.”

Now, you could simply cut your print magazine, print newspaper and other offline advertising budgets. But that isn't going to grow your business online and it isn't going to help you weather the storm any better than your competitors.

The only way you can do this is by learning the SEM strategies, PPC tactics and SEO tips that generate a measurable marketing ROI. And then you need to keep learning what's coming next in the constantly evolving world of search, and how you can profit from those changes.

And where can you do that? You already know where I'm headed. You can learn all this by going to SES London 2009.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 3:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

December 30, 2008

Meet the Conference Speakers at SES London 2009 - Part 2

Yesterday, we took a look at video interviews with half a dozen of the conference speakers who will be at SES London 2009. Today, we'll look at another six of the people who will be making presentations at one or more of the sessions which will be held at the Business Design Centre, 52 Upper Street, Islington, Feb. 17-20, 2009.

Now, what is it worth hearing these top search engine experts speak? Some of them currently have a contract minimum of $10,000 per month. Some of them charge up to $1,000 an hour for consulting. Some of them charge $10,000 to $15,000 for speaking engagements that last 30 minutes to 2 hours. And some of them charge $5,000 to $25,000 for training workshops.

Hey, even with the U.S. dollar worth less than .69 British pounds, you couldn't afford to hire 47 of these the search engine experts to visit your organization for four days.

But you can hear more than a third of them speak at SES London 2009. (The conference is organized into three concurrent tracks, so you can't hear everyone speak - unless you bring a team of three people to the conference. But, that's a topic that I'll tackle next week.)

So, who are these search engine experts and what SEM tips, tactics and strategies can you learn from them - individually and collectively - that will grow your business online? In alphabetical order, here are another six video interviews that were conducted in 2008 with conference speakers who will be presenting at SES London 2009.

First up is Liana Evans, Director of Internet Marketing for KeyRelevance. She's speaking about "Online Video Update - The Next Wave" on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2009, and she's moderating the "Site Clinic" on Thursday, Feb. 19, 2009. I interviewed Li at SES Toronto 2008 about winning social media strategies from companies such as Dell, Houlihan's, and Loblaw's.

Li Evans on Social Media Success and BBQ Sauce

Next up is Cindy Krum, CEO of Rank-Mobile. She's speaking about "Mobile Search Update - The Next Generation" on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2009. John Mulligan of SEO-PR interviewed Cindy at SES San Jose 2008 about mobile's evolution, its impact on Web connectivity, phones, web browsing, and death of the .mobi.

Cindy Krum, Blue Moon Works discusses mobile

Next up is Jennifer Evans Laycock, Editor-in-Chief of Search Engine Guide. She's moderating "Social Responsibility in a 2.0 World" on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2009, speaking about "SEO Through Blogs & Feeds" on Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2009, and teaching the "Reaching Your Audience Through Blogs" training workshop on Friday, Feb. 20, 2009. Andrew Goodman of Page Zero Media, who is also speaking at SES London 2009, talked with Jennifer at SES San Jose 2008 about the best tips on viral campaigns and social media marketing, especially for small business who want to make the most of their business online without spending too much money.

Small Business Viral Marketing Tips, SES San Jose 2008

Next up is Michel Leconte, CEO of SEO Samba. He's speaking about "SEO Through Blogs & Feeds" on Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2009. Byron Gordon of SEO-PR talked with Michel at SES Chicago 2008 about their new platform technology that provides SEO campaign management.

SEO Samba at SES Chicago 2008

Next up is Amanda Watlington, Owner of Searching for Profit. She is moderating the Orion Panel about "Universal & Blended Search" on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2009, moderating the "Search Advertising Tools" and speaking about "Video & Podcast SEO" on Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2009. I interviewed Amanda at SES Chicago 2008 about how to get the most out of your marketing campaigns in today's economic times.

Amanda Watlington, Searching for Profit, on SEO in tough times at Chicago 2008

Finally, there is Richard Zwicky, Founder and CEO of Enquisite. He's speaking on the Orion Panel about "Measuring Success in a 2.0 World" on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2009. Bryon Gordon of SEO-PR interviewed Richard at SES San Jose 2008 about click fraud.

Richard Zwicky, Enquisite, discusses click fraud

Now, this is just a sample of the search engine experts who will be conference speakers at SES London 2009. If you want to a more comprehensive list, go to SES London Speakers.

As I mentioned above, I'll take a look next week at the wisdom of bringing a team of three people from your organization to the definitive event for UK and European marketers, corporate decision makers, webmasters and search engine marketing (SEM) specialists, including pay per click (PPC) advertisers and search engine optimization (SEO) consultants.

In other words, "If you can't bring 47 search engine experts to your organization, then bring your organization to 47 search engine experts." Okay, so maybe the original English translation by Frances Bacon said something about Mohammad and a mountain. But, a more modern translation would be: Take advantage of the Special Group Discounts for SES London 2009.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 11:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

December 29, 2008

Meet the Conference Speakers at SES London 2009 – Part 1

Search Engine Strategies (SES) London is coming up Feb. 17-20, 2009. If the economy in the U.K. is anything like the economy in the U.S., then somebody somewhere in your organization is going to ask why you're planning to spend four days out of the office.

Hey, they ask that question every year. But, now they expect you to hunker down like everyone else and wait for things to eventually get better. Well, you can wait it out – like many people seem to be doing these days – or you can learn the SEM tips, tactics and strategies that will grow your business online.

Or, as Winston Churchill once said, “I never worry about action, but only inaction.”

So, if you attend SES London 2009, what can you learn? According to the conference and expo website, you can learn: • How search engines list web sites for free and through paid placements. • How to get free “organic” traffic by building a site that pleases search engines and your visitors. • How to efficiently purchase listings guaranteed to rank your company at the top of search engine results. • How to calculate the ROI of your search marketing efforts by tracking your visitors from the time they hit your site until they buy-and get tips on improving conversion if they don't. • How to build links that generate traffic to your web site, and how to avoid the penalties of “spamming” the search engines. • What's coming next in the constantly evolving world of web search, and how you can profit from those changes.

But, you can learn most of that by reading the 10 search engine marketing and search engine optimization books that I wrote about back on Dec. 16, 2008. But there are some things that books can't teach you.

For example, reading books won't help you network with your peers. And, if you want to learn the ins-and-outs of search engine marketing from top search experts and the search engines themselves, then you need to go where they gather. And I can confidently predict that they'll be gathered in the same place (the Business Design Centre, 52 Upper Street, Islington) at the same time (Feb. 17-20, 2009).

How can I possible make this outlandish prediction? Because, I know they will be speaking at SES London 2009. (It isn't rocket science.)

Search Engine Strategies London is a great place to network with fellow marketers and search engine industry professionals. The conference gives you access to the world's most comprehensive gathering of search engine marketing and optimization-related solutions providers and potential partners.

Today, I'm going to share video interviews with half a dozen of these conference speakers. While the interviews were conducted in 2008, they'll all be speaking at SES London 2009.

Tomorrow, I'll share another six video interviews. I'm listing them in alphabetical order, although it's worth noting that the conference has been organized by Mike Grehan, the fifth interview below.

First up is Andy Atkins-Krueger, Managing Director of Web Certain Europe Ltd. He's speaking about “Search Around the World: US, Europe & Asia” on Tuesday, Feb. 17. I interviewed Andy at SES London 2008 about multilingual tongue-twisting, polyglot poker, and the more serious aspects of organic seo and paid search optimiztion when operating internationally.

Andy Atkins-Krueger, WebCertain, at SES London on YouTube

Next up is Matthew Bailey, President of Site Logic Marketing. He's speaking about “Analytics: Data Into Action” on Tuesday, Feb. 17, “Search Engine Friendly Design” on Wednesday, Feb. 18, and “Dynamic Websites: Beyond the Basics” on Thursday, Feb. 19. I interviewed Matt at SES London 2008 about the Ohio State Buckeyes (the college equivalent of Manchester United in American football) and the show's ability to connect SEO and SEM.

Matt Bailey, SiteLogic, at SES London 2008 on Networking

Next up is Thomas Bindl, Founder & CEO of Refined Labs GmbH. He's speaking about “Search Advertising Tools” and at the “Searcher Behaviour Research Update” on Wednesday, Feb. 18. I spoke with Thomas at SES New York 2008 about his German contribution to the “Search Around the World” panel.

The German SEM World from Thomas Bindl at SES NY 2008

Next up is Bryan Eisenberg, Co-Founder of Future Now, Inc. He's speaking about “Measuring Success in a 2.0 World” on Tuesday, Feb. 17. I spoke with Bryan at SES London 2008 about the ad-hoc floor meetings he'd had as well as the more planned sessions.

Bryan Eisenberg, Future Now, at SES London 2008 on SEO

As I mentioned above, next up is Mike Grehan, Global KDM Officer of Acronym Media. He's not only organized SES London 2009, he's also moderating the Orion Panel about “Measuring Success in a 2.0 World” on Tuesday, Feb. 17. I spoke with him at SES London 2008 about rolling up his sleeves and participating in the panels such as the universal search Orion Panel, and his excitement about organizing the analytics Orion Panel.

Mike Grehan, Acronym, on SES London 2008

Finally (for today), is Bill Hunt, CEO of Global Strategies Intl and Director of Global Search Strategy for Neo@Ogilvy. He is speaking about “The State of Search Integration” and “Why Does Search Get All the Credit?” on Tuesday, Feb. 17. I talked with Bill at SES San Jose 2008 about his new book, “Search Engine Marketing, Inc.: Driving Search Traffic to Your Company's Web Site.”

Greg Jarboe interviews Bill Hunt about his new book

I'll have more video interviews tomorrow. But, to meet these top search experts, all you need to do is attend SES London 2009. Or, as Franklin D. Roosevelt once said, “I'm not the smartest fellow in the world, but I can sure pick smart colleagues.”

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 1:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

December 23, 2008

Matt Mason, Author of "The Pirate's Dilemma", to Give Opening Keynote at SES London 2009

In the U.S., we'd say, "Stop the presses." But, in the U.K., they simply say, "Stop Press." The expression means that a news item has been inserted into a newspaper after the printing has been started.

I was just sitting down to write about a new video interview with Andy Atkins-Krueger, the Managing Director of Web Certain Europe. The YouTube video has just been uploaded to the SESConferenceExpo's Channel.

That's when I visited the Search Engine Strategies London site and discovered that Matt Mason, author of "The Pirate's Dilemma: How Youth Culture Reinvented Capitalism," will be giving the opening keynote on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2009.

Stop Press!

Matt is a writer, consultant and entrepreneur, who is an expert on how youth culture drives innovation and is changing the way the world works. His book tackles the problems and opportunities created by the rise of piracy and its potential as a business model.

According to the SES London conference agenda for Day 1, Matt thinks that the trends emerging from the youth culture are blurring long-established boundaries between right and wrong and unraveling some of our most basic assumptions about business, society and our collective future. He has explored the problems these new trends pose to business and the opportunities they represent, as well.

For example, when pirates create value for society and society gets behind their creations, it doesn't matter how many lawsuits you throw at the problem -- you are assaulting your own potential future. This reality positions piracy as a new business model.

Matt plans to speak about how this model works and how it applies to your business at SES London 2009. I plan to have a front row seat. (I may need to wear my pirate costume.)

This topic was also raised by Lawrence Lessig, Professor of Law at Stanford Law School, during his opening keynote at SES Chicago 2008. This is where my original post about Andy Atkins-Kruger comes in.

Byron Gordon of SEO-PR interviewed Andy at SES Chicago about Lessig's keynote and asked Andy to give a quick preview of SES London 2009, where he will be speaking at the Search Around the World: US, Europe & Asia session on Day 1. Check out the interview below.

Andy Atkins-Kruger, WebCertain, discusses SES Chicago and SES London 2009

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 2:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

December 11, 2008

Underreported Stories from Search Engine Strategies Chicago 2008

All week long, I've been reporting on the top 10 stories from each day of Search Engine Strategies Chicago 2008. Generally, they were generated by news coverage of the three keynotes and two Orion Panels, or interviews with speakers at the 63 conference sessions. Hey, that's just fishing where the fish are. But there were a couple of other places where I found underreported stories from SES Chicago 2008: SES Magazine, the Expo Hall, the free mini clinics, and the search training workshops.

If you didn't attend Search Engine Strategies Chicago this year, find someone who did. And “borrow” his or her copy of SES Magazine. There is a lot of content in there – beyond the conference information.

For example, there's an article by Kate Kaye, senior editor of ClickZ News, entitled “Politics 2.0: Political Change Comes to Search, Too.” It looks at the search marketing tactics that Chicago's own Barack Obama and his rivals used during the 2008 presidential electiion. My favorite underreported story is how the campaigns employed search to take advantage of hot topics right away.

If you can't find someone with a copy of SES Magazine, then check out the interview below with Kate, which appeared back in June. Obama Ads Online: Search Advertising Analysis by Kate Kaye

Meanwhile, over at booth #315 in the Expo Hall, ideaLaunch was giving demos of WordVision, its new SEO software tool that uses a complex algorithm to recommend hot keywords to SEO writers. Yes, that got my attention. And once this content is uploaded to a website, it tracks the contents' impact on search engine listings so that SEO managers can understand the overall ROI of content assets. Yes, that got my attention, too.

But wait! There's More!

Over at booth #204, there were a series of free mini clinics. Tim Ash, the President of SiteTuners, ran one called, “Your Baby Is Ugly - Landing Page Mini-Critiques.” David Szetela, the CEO of Clix Marketing, ran another called, “Power PPC Advertising Clinic.” Jonathan Mendez, Founder and CEO of RAMP Digital, ran a third called, “ CPA Optimization Station.” And Brad Geddes, Founder of bgTheory.com, ran a fourth called, “Ad Copy to Landing Page Review.”

In fact, check out what Kurt Scholle, Head Coach of WebAsylum.com, wrote about them at Website-ROI-Guy: -- I Met a Rockstar at Search Engine Strategies/Chicago -- Your Baby Is Ugly - Landing Page Mini-Critiques (SES Chicago)

Okay, so maybe the mini clinics weren't as underreported as SES Magazine and the Expo Hall stories. But it doesn't hurt to overreport them, does it?

Finally, there are the six search training workshops, which will be held on Friday, Dec. 12 at the Chicago Hilton. These include:

Search & Analytics Workshop: Using Analytics to Increase Search Effectiveness -- Analytics are a gold mine of information, just waiting to be uncovered. The results of campaigns, effectiveness of the website, and the efficiency of your rankings can all be measured with a good analytics program. Unfortunately, many site managers do not make changes to the website without prior measurement, nor do they measure after the changes. As a result, there are many changes to sites that are not based on facts, merely assumptions. Similarly, if changes are not analyzed, then there can be no clear understanding of whether or not improvements made a difference on the site or to the bottom line.

Viral Marketing & Link Baiting -- Attendees will gain a better understanding of the concepts, ideas and implementations that are required to launch a viral marketing or link baiting campaign. They will learn why the Internet has created a unique environment that allows for rapid, inexpensive word of mouth marketing and how they can harness that environment to promote their own products and services. The workshop will give real life examples of both good and bad viral marketing campaigns and will share insight on how your business can capitalize on your competitor's viral disasters. This workshop will also focus on how you can make use of consumer generated media environments like social media outlets, blog marketing, discussion forums and more to both monitor and expand your company's online persona. Consumer generated media (the very core of viral marketing) is the fastest growing form of media online today. It's only a matter of time until someone online talks about your business. This course will not only help prepare you in the ways to respond to the conversation, it will help you learn how to shape that conversation to your advantage.

Link Building Tactics, Tools & Techniques -- Need links? In order to rank well and successfully promote your online business, you need an effective link building program as part of your overall SEO strategy. This link building workshop will help you to better understand and manage your link building campaigns by providing you with the knowledge to create proven, practical and creative link marketing campaigns. You'll walk away understanding why you need certain links, how to find them, and how to effectively use links to promote your brand and your search engines rankings.

Advanced AdWords -- This session is broken down into two sections. The first section examines how to effectively use keywords, ad copy, landing pages, and the search and content networks to effectively reach your target audience based upon where consumers are in the buying cycle. The second section will examine different bidding strategies you can employ to maximize your campaign's goals.

Search Engine Optimization Workshop -- A search-engine friendly Web site is a user-friendly, search-friendly, and persuasive site that converts visitors into buyers. In order for a site to be search-engine friendly, it must meet the terms and conditions set forth by the search engines (Google, Yahoo, MSN Search, Ask, etc). Additionally, the site must satisfy the needs of site visitors. Ultimately, the site must be profitable for the Web site owner. Can a single site satisfy all of these groups? This workshop will demonstrate that these skills are essential for building a user-friendly, search-friendly, and persuasive site that converts visitors into buyers.

Optimizing for Universal Search -- Universal search changes everything! The advent of Google's Universal Search has been called "the most radical change to its search results ever." So, how do you take advantage of Google's new approach that blends listings from news, maps, video, and image search among those it gathers from web search? This training session will help you get found in all the right places.

The full-day training session is $1,345 and half-day is $745. Register for SES SEM Training at http://www.searchenginestrategies.com/chicago/training.html.

Now, I realize that the search training workshops haven't even been held yet. So, it may be premature to call them underreported. But trust me on this. Most of the journalists and bloggers who covered SES Chicago 2008 this week have already headed home. So, I'm pretty confident predicting that this, too, will be one of the underreported stories from the conference and expo.

Hey, I could be wrong. As Yogi Berra once said, "It ain't over till it's over."

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 8:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

10 Top Stories and Videos from SES Chicago 2008 on Day 4

You don't need to read most of the 10 top stories from Day 4 of SES Chicago 2008. You can watch them. In fact, one of the photos that I hope someone took the week was the battery of online video crews interviewing speakers between sessions.

The rest of the coverage from the only major Search Marketing Conference and Expo in the Midwest was provided by online journalists and bloggers. In fact, the “dog that didn't bark” at Search Engine Strategies was the print media. Perhaps it was just a coincidence, but the Chicago Tribune filed for bankruptcy this week. And earlier this month, PC Magazine decided to go “all digital.”

I don't know about you, but I think I saw the future of journalism this past week – and it was already “all digital.”

Personalizing Video Analytics for Campaign Success - Interview with Omniture's CEO Josh James ReelSEO's Contributing Reporter Erika Blackwell interviewed Josh James, CEO and Co-Founder of the online analytics and business optimization firm Omniture. Erika spoke with Josh after his keynote presentation at Search Engine Strategies Chicago, Avoiding the Chasm of “Anticipointment, and asked him, is it possible to do a video ad campaign that offers personalized, relevant online experience for each visitor, and how could it be tracked?

SES Chicago: Profitable Opportunities for CPG Marketers Abby Johnson of the WebProNews Video Blog interviewed Eli Goodman, Search Evangelist for ComScore, who says 73% of searchers are now becoming more specific with their search queries and are looking for information and help. She adds, “Although these observations strengthen a paid strategy, comScore is seeing a shift in traffic to social media enhancers such as Yahoo! Answers, Google Blogger, and About.com. More WebProNews Videos

Paid Links: A Black Hat/White Hat Discussion Kevin Newcomb of Search Engine Watch writes, “Those expecting a knock-down, drag-out brawl at the ‘Black Hat/White Hat' session at SES Chicago may have left a bit disappointed. It looked like the sparks could fly, with Dave Naylor, director of search marketing at Bronco, and Todd Friesen, VP of search at Position Technologies there representing the black hat side, and Eric Enge, president of Stone Temple Consulting and Doug Heil, owner of ihelpyou there defending the white hat side. But, as Friesen so eloquently said, ‘As it turns out, Doug's actually a nice guy.'”

Gary Stein on Battle of the Browsers I interviewed Gary Stein, the Director of Strategy at Ammo Marketing, who elaborates on search engine data analysis after the heated SES Chicago Orion Panel “Battle of the Browsers- Personalization or Privacy.”

SES Chicago: SEO Through Blogs and Feeds Lee Odden of the Online Marketing Blog writes, “Yesterday I presented at SES Chicago in a session on SEO Through Blogs and Feeds with Stephan Spencer and Sally Falkow. I went first and presented the slideshow embedded below, a presentation in two parts: 1. Why blogs created solely for SEO purposes will inevitably fail. 2. Tips on how to create a successfully optimized company blog that will last.”

Lawrence Lessig at SES Chicago 2008 Sage Lewis of SageRock.com talks about Lawrence Lessig, a professor of law at Stanford Law School and founder of its Center for Internet and Society. Lessig, who was the opening keynote speaker at SES Chicago, is also a founding board member of Creative Commons. According to Sage, Lessig “sheds some really provocative insight into the world of copywrite and how it is negatively affecting today's culture.”

Blogging To Build Buzz About Your Business Mike Sachoff of WebProNews writes, “While blogs are now considered mainstream with more businesses using them to get their message out, just how are they building buzz online? The SES session ‘Blogging For Business' has the answers.”

SES Chicago 2008: Sally Falkow and Shari Thurow Sally Falkow of ExpansionPlus and Shari Thurow of Omni Marketing Interactive discuss content syndication, link development, and news search optimization at the 2008 Search Engine Strategies Conference and Expo in Chicago.

YouTube's Guitar Hero Anna Maria Virzi of ClickZ writes, “As a marketer, what YouTube video do you wish you had dreamed up? I posed that question to participants of the SES Chicago panel, ‘The Next Wave for Online Video,' which I moderated yesterday. Gregory Markel, founder/president, Infuse Creative, pointed to this one featuring JerryC, which has 55 million page views and counting. It's snagged the number-two spot on Google's search engine results page for the search term ‘guitar,' appearing higher than Gibson, Fender, and Guitar Hero.”

Jordan Kasteler: PocketCam Interview at SES Manny Rivas of the aimClear Blog writes, “Yesterday at SES Chicago 2008 I met up with Jordan Kasteler a.k.a Utah SEO Pro. Not one to miss a cool opportunity, I whipped out my pocketCam to ask him a few questions. At age 26, Jordan has made quite a name in the search community and consistently contributes valuable content and thought-leadership that can't be overlooked.”

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 6:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

December 10, 2008

Top ten stories from SES Chicago 2008 for Day 3

Today's list of top ten stories from SES Chicago 2008 is just a small sample of all the news and commentary that's coming out of Day 3 of the conference and expo. I'm sure that you will see more coverage rolling out over the next week.

But for those of you who couldn't attend because your travel budget was cut because of the recession, here's a quick summary of the search engine marketing tips and SEO tools that – ironically – could help your company weather the downturn in the economy better than your competitors:

The Rich Are Different Than... Anna Maria Virzi of ClickZ writes, “An examination into the online behavior of the most affluent or ‘upper crust' people was an eye-opener for Bill Tancer, Hitwise general manager. He shared this following anecdote during the SES Chicago keynote on Tuesday to make the point that online marketers have access to information that can inform marketing strategies.”

Bill Tancer on Search Patterns in 2008 I interviewed Bill Tancer, the General Manager of Hitwise and author of the best-selling book, “Click: What Millions of People are Doing Online and Why it Matters,” following his morning keynote presentation. I asked Bill to elaborate on some of the search engine user behavior he saw in 2008 and forecast what patterns we might see in 2009.

SEM Tips For Small Businesses Mike Sachoff of WebProNews covered the the “SEM Small Business Blitz” session the speakers focused on how to use social media in an affordable and practical way.

Lawrence Lessig on Copyright Laws Stanford Law School Professor Lawrence Lessig, who gave the opening keynote at SES Chicago 2008 on Monday, talks about the problems and shortcomings of current copyright laws and discusses solutions on how to revise copyright laws to end the war on prohibition and build on a new hybrid economy.

I Drool, You Drool, We all Drool for New Tools Manny Rivas of the AimClear Blog writes, “Take time to research the overwhelmingly huge list of SEO tools out there, and you'll quickly see there are hundreds (if not thousands), all sorting the very same data. Some cost arms, legs and sometimes skin off the back, but many are appendage-friendly (free). This SES Chicago session, succinctly titled ‘SEO Tools,' was moderated by Sage Lewis, Search Engine Watch Expert & President of SageRock.com.”

Live Blogging Day 3 at SES Chicago Jeff Woelker of Written By All Of Us, a Slack Barshinger Blog, was back at it for day 3 at SES Chicago. He writes, “Hope you've been enjoying the last two days.”

Interview with Amanda Watlington on Podcast & Audio Search Optimization Shana Albert of Social Desire writes, “Right now SES Chicago is going on….. the only major Search Marketing Conference and Expo in the Midwest. I had the good fortune of being able to interview Amanda Watlington of Searching for Profit…. She was on the panel of the Podcast & Audio Search Optimization session. Here is my interview with Amanda.”

Sally Falkow at SES Chicago 2008 with Matthew Bailey Sally Falkow of ExpansionPlus interviewed Matthew Bailey of SiteLogic about social media measurement, content strategy, and search engine optimization (SEO) at the 2008 Search Engine Strategies Conference and Expo in Chicago (SESChicago08).

A Special Message to the Ladies Attending SES Chicago: Woman to Woman Nathania Johnson of Search Engine Watch has this observation about women at SES Chicago: “I see you at the keynotes. I see you at the sessions. I see you in the expo hall during the day. But at night, when I go to the networking cocktails, it's a testosterone festival.”

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 10:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

December 9, 2008

Top 10 stories from SES Chicago 2008 on Day 2

Things are really rolling now at SES Chicago 2008. Here are the top 10 stories from Day 2:

Fighting IP Extremism with Online Video – The Lawrence Lessig Interview Grant Crowell of ReelSEO writes, “We caught up with Professor Lawrence Lessig, founder of Standford Law school's Center for Internet and Society, and the opening Keynote Speaker the Search Engine Strategies Chicago 2008 conference for ‘Remix: Making Art and Commerce Thrive in the Hybrid Economy'. We asked Professor Lessing if he believes there is significant IP extremism (i.e., legal restrictions) with online video content for both amateur and commercial use, and what video-specific solutions does he see in his proposal of a ‘hybrid economy' – protecting freedoms for video amateurs while producing incentives for video professionals.”

Measuring Success In A 2.0 World Mike Sachoff of WebProNews writes, “At the SES Chicago session "Measuring Success in a 2.0 World" the panel discussed different strategies to use to track success.

How Low Performing Banner Ads Can Actually Increase Conversions Nathania Johnson of Search Engine Watch writes, “In a couple sessions at SES, I've been hearing about how banner ads can drive people to search. So while they may not be clicking on your display ads and converting off of them, they may send people to a search engine to find your product or service.”

SES Chicago: Getting Your Viral Campaign Going Abby Johnson of WebProNews Video Blog interviewed Chris Winfield, the President of 10e20 about getting started with a viral campaign. More WebProNews Videos

Day 1: My Daily Takeaways From SES Chicago Grabanski of the AimClear Blog writes, “Whereas conference coverage typically focuses on 1 session at a time, we thought it might be interesting to assign one of our bloggers (me) the role of providing a more global overview of their day spent in sessions. We hope you enjoy the format of bite-sized chunks of key points gleaned from multiple sessions.”

Josh Todd explains Campaign Measurement Josh Todd, the Director of Acquisition Marketing for Constant Contact, explains the challenges of measuring online/offline advertising campaigns.

Live Blogging Day 2 at SES Chicago Jeff Woelker provides Day 2 live blogging coverage of SES.

Welcome to SES Chicago 2008! Sage Lewis, the President of SageRock.com, says, “Today is the first day of Search Engine Strategies 2008. Watch this video to see what the week will be about and all the things that will be learned.”

Universal & Blended Search from #SES Chicago 08 Shawna Fennell of the Yahoo! Store Blog writes, “First of all, I thought this session was really fascinating! When you look at how much search engines have changed over the last 10 years, it is truly amazing!”

SEO Samba at SES Chicago Dave Naylor checked out one of the exhibitors on the show floor of SES Chciago 2008 and writes, “Behold a fully fledged SEO automation platform Seo Samba and DaveN is at the SES Chicago Conference to see it. SEO Samba promises much in terms of SEO process integration, facilitation of SEO best practice and a scalable content management system.”

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 9:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

December 8, 2008

Ten Top Stories from SES Chicago 2008 for Day 1

It takes a little effort to spot the ten top stories from the first day of SES Chicago 2008. That's because some of them appear in Google News or Yahoo! News, some in Google Blog Search or Technorati, and some on YouTube. And I didn't even try to monitor Twitter.

So, if you are trying to keep up with all the news coming out of the event, here's my take on the top ten stories from Day 1:

Google AdWords Launches iPhone and G1 Options (Plus Mobile Marketing Tips from SES!) Nathania Johnson of Search Engine Watch reported that Google has launched AdWords options that will be visible on the iPhone and G1. Both devices have web browsers that display full HTML. And since around 95% of all mobile searches are conducted on the iPhone (according to today's Mobile Search panel at SES Chicago), today's announcement opens up a brand new opportunity for search engine marketers.

Larry Cornett Yahoo! Universal Search Dr. Larry Cornett, VP of Consumer Products for Yahoo! Search, spoke on the Universal & Blended Search session. He gave an overview about universal/blended search results across the major search engines: Yahoo, Microsoft, and Google. He also shared a some new search user research about universal search results with Byron Gordon of SEO-PR.

SES Chicago: Igniting Viral Campaigns John W Ellis of the Web Analytics World Blog wrote, “My favorite session from Day 1 of SES Chicago was Igniting Viral Campaigns.”

SES Chicago Highlights: Search Industry Update The Search Engine Strategies session "Search Industry Update" was an informative session especially if you need to convince those holding on to the marketing purse strings on how big the effort needs to be.

Legal Considerations for Video SEO – Interview with IP Attorney Mark Rosenberg Grant Crowell of ReelSEO interviewed Mark Rosenberg, and intellectual property attorney and Search Engine Strategies Chicago conference speaker, who shared the important legal issues that both companies and Video SEO professionals needto consider, especially before they even get started with making and promoting video content online.

SES Chicago Winds of Change Lee Odden of the Online Marketing Blog, writes, “Today kicks off another Search Engine Strategies conference, this time in the windy and bleeping cold city of Chicago. Change has been in the air for SES.”

Live Blogging Day 1 at SES Chicago Jeff Woelker is attending SES and will be live blogging the conference.

Nixed Presentation for SES Chicago Mobile Search Battle Update Bryson Meunier of the Natural Search & Mobile SEO Blog writes, “For the Mobile Search Battle Update panel, we have elected to present in a more panel-based format since there will only be three speakers.”

WebProNews Heads to Chicago for SES! WebProNews is covering the Search Engine Strategies show in Chicago. At least, they hope to cover the show this year. They write, “As of the time of this writing, it is 14 degrees in Chicago and calling for snow showers on Monday, December 8 right at the time of our departing flight. We are determined to get there though since we have lots of exciting coverage to bring you!” More WebProNews Videos

Speaking at SES Chicago Dave Naylor, more commonly known as DaveN, is speaking at two sessions at SES Chicago: SEO Tools on Tuesday and Black Hat, White Hat & the Best Kept Secrets to Search on Thursday. Writes Dave, “I'm making it a flying visit. Arriving on Monday afternoon and flying back out on Thursday evening, so that I can be back in the office for Friday afternoon if I manage to get some sleep on the flight back.”

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 10:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

December 4, 2008

Why Retailers Should Be Day Trippers to SES Chicago

Okay, so I'm an old Beatles fan. But there are lots of very current reasons why retailers should consider becoming day trippers to Search Engine Strategies Chicago next week.

Hidden in plain sight on the rates & registration details page is this nifty option: “One-Day Package” for SES conference sessions is $895. I'm not making this up. Check it out for yourself.

And which day might a retailer consider being a day tripper? Check out the SES Chicago Agenda Overview and retailers will see two options.

The first is Tuesday, Dec. 9. You can start with the morning keynote presentation by Bill Tancer, General Manager of Global Research at Hitwise and author of “Click: What Millions of People Are Doing Online and Why It Matters.”

Bill is going to talk primarily about what search term data can tell us about the economy and consumer sentiment. He'll also spend some time on finding insights on the effect of an economic downturn on search. You could get an ROI on your day trip just by attending the keynote.

But wait! There's more!

Tuesday features a Retailer Track. There are three sessions focused on:

Squeeze More Sales Out of Your Existing Online Campaigns Given the economic downturn, learn how companies are using the latest tools, like Google Website Optimizer and others, to maximize online sales without increasing their ad spend. Three internet retailing companies will discuss how they are increasing the ROI of their ad campaigns in these tight budgetary times. • Moderator: Kayden Kelly, CEO, Blast Advanced Media • Speakers: Chris Benson, CTO, AudioEditions.com Todd Curry, VP of Marketing, ifbyphone Sandra Niehaus, VP, User Experience and Creative Director, Closed Loop Marketing

Google Site Search: Fast, Relevant, Customized Search Results for Your Website Over the past decade, website search has increased in importance from a technical feature to a core marketing and sales asset. End-users are increasingly losing patience with multiple navigation options on websites and are looking to search as the answer. To this end, Google's Nitin Mangtani will be discussing how customers are using Google Site Search to grow their businesses and how you can do the same for yours in this sponsored session.

A Case Study From American Greetings: Rethinking Optimization What happens when you combine thousands of keywords across 2 engines with 3 products and a single, optimized landing page? Nothing much really. In this session, attendees will learn how American Greetings became post-click marketing mavens by discovering the inherent value of AdGroup-level testing and iteration for increased lift. American Greetings and ion interactive will explain how and why they moved from a single optimized landing page to testing over 40 landing pages tightly matched to each individual search AdGroup--enabling them to deliver the right content to the right people in the most compelling format. Attendees will hear real American Greetings examples — what worked and what didn't — that achieved increased engagement, increased conversions and increased behavioral data that impacted their bottom line. Session takeaways include best practices for running simple, high-impact A/B tests that any front-line marketer can easily implement and understand. • Moderator: Rebecca Lieb, Contributing Editor, ClickZ • Speakers: Tessa Fraser, Marketing Manager, Online Media, American Greetings Anna Talerico, Executive Vice President, ion interactive

Now, if retailers have a conflict on Tuesday, then they should check out what's being offered on Wednesday, Dec. 10.

The morning starts with a keynote by Josh James, President and Chief Executive Officer of Omniture. The title of his presentation is “Avoiding the Chasm of ‘Anticipointment'” To drive to the next level of conversion and optimization, Josh thinks it's time for online marketers to consider the entire marketing value chain and bridge the gap between ads and a personalized, relevant online experience for each visitor.

Then there is a Vertical and Retail Track that features sessions on:

Advanced B2B Forget consumers. You want leads! Leads that become opportunities that convert into booked business! Join our seasoned panel of B2B marketing professionals as they share the latest tips and trends in using search to find those niche decision-makers that drive your business. • Moderator: Aaron Kahlow, Chairman & Founder, Online Marketing Summit • Speakers: Karen Breen Vogel, President and CEO, ClearGauge Patricia Hursh, President & Founder, SmartSearch Marketing Adam S. Goldberg, Chief Innovation Officer, Clearsaleing

Getting Vertical Search Right The need for specialized search capabilities has never been more prevalent than it is today. Established leaders and experts in vertical search application and execution will discuss the state of the industry, positive and negative experiences, and best practices for answering needs of today's demanding searchers. • Moderator: Elisabeth Osmeloski, Founder, AdventuresinSearch.com • Speakers: Paul Forster, CEO, Indeed John Ellis, Senior Online Marketing Manager, ResortQuest Jeff Tinsley, CEO, Reunion.com

Shopping Search Tactics Learn how content from your e-commerce or merchant site can - and should! - be included in shopping search engines. • Moderator: Brian A. Smith, Analyst, ComparisonEngines • Speakers: Greg Hintz, General Manager, Yahoo! Shopping Jonathan Ashton, VP of SEO & Web Analytics, Agency.com Dave Moran, Sr. Manager Search Marketing, Performics Aaron Shear, Partner, Boost Search Marketing

In House: Lessons Learned & Victories Won As Search Engine Marketing (SEM) grows in popularity, many companies are attempting to handle the SEM function in-house despite the inherent complexity and challenges. Join us for a spirited discussion and get a chance to meet some of these intrepid do-it-yourselfers behind the in-house movement, as we debate the pros and cons of developing and training a dedicated in-house team. Laying the foundation for in-house SEO success, long-term cost savings, gaining project support at the executive level, leveraging innate knowledge and creating accountability are just some of the topics to be discussed. • Moderator: William Flaiz, VP, Search Engine Optimization & Web Analytics, Razorfish • Speakers: Olivier Lemaignen, Group Manager, Global Search Marketing, Intuit Jessica Bowman, SEO Strategist & in-house SEO Expert, SEMinhouse.com Maura Ginty, Senior Web Manager, Web Content Team, Autodesk, Inc. Mark Ruzomberka, Traffic.com

Oh, and the exhibit hall also happen to be open Tuesday and Wednesday, so retailers can what's new on the show floor.

I think these are some pretty compelling reasons why retailers should consider becoming day trippers to SES Chicago next week. Of course, I've got a ticket to ride for the entire week. So, I also think there are some pretty compelling reasons for attending the entire conference and expo.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 11:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

November 21, 2008

4 Reasons to Go to SES Chicago

If you register today to attend Search Engine Strategies Chicago, which will be held Dec. 8-12, 2008, you can save up to $200 with the Early Bird Rate.

So, why would you want to attend the only major Search Marketing Conference and Expo in the Midwest?

Let me give you 4 reasons to go to SES Chicago.

1. You'll want to attend as many of the 74 keynote speeches, strategic development workshops, Orion panels, conference sessions, and SEM training workshops as you can. If you look over the agenda, you'll see lots of topics that weren't discussed at Search Engine Strategies Chicago a year ago. In fact, you'll see new content that wasn't covered at SES San Jose back in August. Heading into 2009 using old strategies and tactics makes about as much sense as optimizing your website for AltaVista. Things change in the search industry and savvy SEOs and SEMs understand the competitive advantage of staying up-to-date.

2. If you look over the list of sponsors and exhibitors for SES Chicago, you'll see familiar names like Acronym Media, DoubleClick, iProspect, PrintPlace.com and TMP Directional Marketing as well as new names like AdBuyer.com, ideaLaunch, Rosetta, The Search Agency and SEO Samba. So, whether this is your first Search Engine Strategies Chicago or you've attended every one held since 2003, there will be plenty of products and services to check out on the show floor.

3. Next, you'll want to take advantage of the special events and networking opportunities. On Tuesday, Dec. 9, DoubleClick will be holding a networking lunch from noon to 12:45 p.m. It will be presenting a case study on multi-channel tracking that will address how to de-duplicate search conversions when using numerous online channels. Later that afternoon, Google will hold a sponsored session entitled, “Google Site Search: Fast, Relevant, Customized Search Results for Your Website.” Google's Nitin Mangtani will be discussing how customers are using Google Site Search to grow their businesses and how you can do the same for yours. And here's a hot tip for first time attendees of SES Chicago: If you hang out at Kitty O'Sheas, the authentic Irish pub on the ground floor of the Hilton Chicago, you can network with fellow marketers and search engine industry professionals after hours. Plus, I recommend the shepard's pie and Bailey's cheese cake.

4. Now, this fourth reason will only make sense if Big 10 football is more important to you than search engine reputation management. As those of us who grew up in the Midwest already know, there's a big football game tomorrow: Ohio State vs Michigan. Now, I'm a Wolverine. But I've made some friendly bets with others in the search industry who are Buckeyes. And as you can see from the photo in this post, if we lose the big game, I have to wear a Buckeye shirt to the next Search Engine Strategies conference -- again. And, we've lost a lot over the past few years. So, depending on whether you are a graduate of the University of Michigan or The Ohio State University, I encourage you to come to Chicago in December to see who is wearing which sweatshirt this year.

In summary, there are three good reasons to go to SES Chicago no matter what happens tomorrow. And there's a 4th good reason if Michigan upsets Ohio State, like we did in 1993.

Go Blue!

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 11:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

November 19, 2008

Video, Blogs and Twitter Top Trends at PubCon

I spoke at PubCon last week -- about How SMBs Can Use PR Campaigns To Grow Traffic and Alternative Discovery and SEO - Feeds, PDFs, and Blog SEO.

But, enough about me. Let's talk about the top trends spotted at last week's search engine and Internet marketing conference and expo in Vegas, baby!

For the record, I not only spoke at PubCon, I also looked at the 88 articles about it in Google News, the 77 articles in Yahoo! News, the 406 posts in Google Blog Search from the past month, and the 799 posts that IceRocket has found from the past month.

Then, I used a new tool called Twist, which lets you see trends in Twitter, to chart the hundreds of Tweets about PubCon over the past 30 days.

But, I could have just as easily looked at the session agenda grid for PubCon. Why? Because Brett Tabke, PubCon's organizer, had set most of the agenda for 2009 when he selected the keynote speakers and creating the conference tracks. That's why.

So, it was dead easy to spot the top trends at the six-track educational conference hosted by SearchEngineWorld and WebmasterWorld. Heck, even the most sleep-deprived attendee would know they were video, blogs and Twitter.

Video is hot -- and YouTube video is red hot. This was reflected in the choice of George Wright, the VP Marketing & Sales at Blendtec, as one of the keynote speakers.

Described as the “The best viral marketing campaign ever,” George's viral marketing campaign, "Will it Blend?," has changed the face and the future of online marketing. Seen by more than 100 million people on the Internet and reported on by traditional media outlets like the Today Show, the Tonight Show, and the History Channel, Will it Blend? continues to deliver unprecedented corporate awareness through social media channels. This new form of marketing has delivered a 700% increase in sales for Blendtec, a small Utah based blender manufacturer, with an initial investment of $50.

Oh, and in case you didn't notice that video is hot, Brett added a Video and Multimedia track with five sessions to drive the point home.

Blogs were big, too. This was reflected in three tracks at PubCon: one on Social Media Marketing, another on Social, Brand, and Reputation Management, and a third on Linking as Social Media Networking.

Now, blogs certainly aren't considered the “newbies” of the social media scene – “granddaddies” is probably a more appropriate name. But that gives them an advantage from a marketing perspective – the medium has matured and moved from early adopter phase to the mainstream. That means more consumers are not only reading blogs; they are being influenced by blog content when it comes to what they decide to buy and who they decide to buy it from.

If you want a second opinion, sign up for tomorrow's free webinar: "Consumers and the Influence of Blogs: What it Means for Your Marketing Mix." It starts at 2:00 P.M. EST/11:00 A.M. PST and will be moderated by Kevin Ryan, SES Advisory Board Chair and CEO of Motivity Marketing. It will feature Barry Parr, Analyst, JupiterResearch, and Rob Crumpler, President and CEO, BuzzLogic. They will be discussion a new BuzzLogic-sponsored research study conducted by JupiterResearch, entitled, “Harnessing the Power of Blogs.”

But, you could also see the power of blogs at virtually ever session at PubCon.

In fact, there were tables in the sessions so the dozens of bloggers who were live blogging the event could blog more comfortably. (I think this is a first: I'm not sure that I've ever put bloggers, blogging and blog in the same sentence before.)

And what about Twitter? No, none of the keynote speakers was from free social networking and micro-blogging service. And, no, there were no Twitter tracks. And I can't even find Twitter mentioned in the title of any of the 85 sessions.

But, trust me, you couldn't miss the Twitter trend if you'd hit every one of the special events -- from the exhibitor cocktail reception sponsored by Bruce Clay and Apogee Search, to the SEOmoz WereWolf Event, to the WebmasterRadio Search Bash, sponsored by Microsoft Live Search.

For example, I was sitting in the session entitled, Five Bloggers and a Microphone - What's The Worst That Can Happen? It was moderated by Ken Jurina, and the speakers included: • Andy Beal, Internet Marketing Consultant, Marketing Pilgrim LLC, • Lee Odden, CEO, TopRank Online Marketing, • Michael McDonald, Managing Editor, iEntry Inc., • Barry Schwartz, President, RustyBrick, Inc., • Jane Copland, Search Marketing Consultant, SEOMoz.

When it came time for Q&A, one of the first questions came from a woman in the audience, who said, “I asked my circle of friends on Twitter what I should ask you, and I got eight questions. If I eliminate the seven that are inappropriate, here's one that the panel can answer….”

That brought down the house.

Oh, PubCon also had lots of tracks and sessions on SEO, SEM and interactive site reviews. But they've had those for years. The new news is video, blogs and Twitter. These are the top trends that I spotted at this year's PubCon.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 3:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

November 18, 2008

Matt Cutts Video Interview on SESConferenceExpo's Channel

During Search Engine Strategies San Jose back in August, I did a video interview with Matt Cutts, head of Google's Webspam team. It will be uploaded to the SESConferenceExpo's Channel on YouTube tomorrow.

Why the wait?

As Maury Sline explained to The Blues Brothers, “A gig like that, you gotta prepare the proper exploitation.”

So, here's a taste of what you can look forward to seeing and hearing in tomorrow's video interview: Matt talks about his job interview at Google before he joined the company as a software engineer in January 2000. He takes a look at trends in the industry, including mobile search. He praises an iPhone App developed by Barry Schwartz, President of RustyBrick. And he discusses the Cuttlets, the people who crowd around him at every search conference.

And what can you do today to ensure that you don't miss the Matt Cutts video interview tomorrow? I'm glad you asked.

First, go to the SESConferenceExpo's Channel and take a quick look around. You'll find there are now 184 videos from SES London, SES New York, SES Toronto, and SES San Jose 2008.

According to YouTube Insight, these 184 videos currently have more than 45,000 combined views. That's about three times more views than the number of people who attended these four conferences and expos this year.

And there will be more video interviews added during and after Search Engine Strategies Chicago, which will be held Dec. 8-12, 2008. That's a lot of content -- and a lot of insights from top search experts and the search engines themselves.

Now, some of these video interviews are uploaded to YouTube during each SES conference. But others are uploaded in the weeks and months following a show.

So, if you want to be alerted when the Matt Cutts video interview has been posted, all you need to do is hit the orange “Subscribe” button in the upper left hand corner of the SESConferenceExpo's Channel, which already has 142 subscribers.

To embed one of these video interviews, just copy the code from the “Embed” box -- which you can find in the “About This Video” box when you're watching the video. Once you've copied the code, just paste it into your website or blog to embed it.

And if you want to embed several of these video interviews, use the Search Engine Strategies video widget. It will let you customize a SES Video Player Widget for the audience on your website or blog.

For example, in the header options, I selected the standard link and said I'm blogging at SES Chicago. For my playlist content, I selected videos of everyone, picked two thumbnails with a maximum of 25 results. And for my format option, I selected a vertical orientation. And the SES Video Player Widget generated the code for me to past into this blog post.

Now, I could have selected a customized header. And after going through an authentication process, I could have customized my playlist -- and display only videos of my company. Or I could display videos of everyone, but with videos of my company first. You can see an example of this on the SEO-PR website.

Or, you can see an example of a more bi-partisan approach on the Search Engine Strategies Chicago home page -- just below the fold. (By the way, if you register by Friday, Nov. 21, you can save up to $200 with the Early Bird rate.)

Now, I don't need to explain the benefits of adding video to your blog. Search engine marketers and popular bloggers understand that already. But consider the benefits of adding relevant content from the latest SES conference and expo -- quality content that can be customized for your audience. And, don't take my word for it, check it out for yourself. It is useful content that your website's visitors will find beneficial or your blog readers will find valuable.

What's the catch?

Well, if you select videos of everyone, then you might end up with a Matt Cutts video interview on your website or blog. And if anyone watches it, that would give the SESConferenceExpo's Channel on YouTube more views.

Or, as Elwood told Maury Sline, “I know all about that stuff. I have been exploited all my life.”

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 11:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

November 10, 2008

SES Chicago Delegates: “Who Are Those Guys?”

Search Engine Strategies Chicago starts in four weeks on Dec. 8, 2008. Since SES Chicago is the only SEM conference in the Midwest, it is expect to attract more than 2,000 attendees, or “delegates.”

But as Butch Cassidy frequently asked the Sundance Kid, “Who are those guys?”

In the past, there was anecdotal information about the quality of attendees who came to Search Engine Strategies Chicago. And as a frequent speaker, I would often ask for a show of hands to get a sense of the percentage of first time attendees and SES veterans.

But now, there is survey data that provides a clearer picture of the demographics of delegates from last year's event. And I suspect it's the kind of information that exhibitors and sponsors of the SES expo have been asking for: • 87% of delegates are new to SES, 13% are alumni; • 85% of delegates approve or recommend purchasing decisions; • 52% of delegates have a high level of experience within search marketing; • 36% of delegates are from a company of 100+ employees; • Nearly 1,300 unique companies attended SES Chicago 2007, 27% of these companies sent two or more staff.

In addition, 41% of the attendees are in marketing or management; 27% are in web design or e-commerce; 23% are in corporate management or owners; and 9% are non-marketing professionals. And 57% approve or specify purchases, 28% make recommendations, and only 15% have no involvement in purchases.

That's why you'll see 40 sponsors and exhibitors at the Search Engine Strategies Expo. Savvy search engine marketers understand the value of quality attendance.

As Bill Muller, the VP Marketing for iProspect, has said, “SES is a terrific event series, one that we plan to be at in New York, San Jose, and Chicago.” Or as Ginny Redgate, VP Marketing for Hitwise, has said, “SES provides us great brand visibility within the search marketing community as well as quality leads. It is a great place for us to connect with our clients.”

I don't think Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid could have said it better.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 11:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 29, 2008

SEO covered at PRSA International Conference in Detroit

I've just returned from the PRSA International Conference in Detroit, Michigan. The Public Relations Society of America is the world's largest organization for public relations professionals.

But there were a number of sessions on the agenda about search engine optimization. On Saturday, Oct. 25, Lee Odden taught a half-day workshop on "Optimizing Content for Optimum Search Results: Search Engine Optimization of News." Lee, as most of us in the search industry know, is the CEO of TopRank Online Marketing.

Bill Wagner, the CMO of Vocus, talked about "Uncovering the Potential of PR to Drive Sales." Lee Odden, Rob Key, the founder and CEO of Converseon, and David Bradfield, senior vice president and partner of FH Digital, discussed "The Changed PR Landscape: What Works, What Doesn't." And Laura Sturaitis, senior vice president of media and product services for Business Wire, and I spoke about "What's the ROI on Your Press Release?"

In other words, SEO and PR people are starting to "reach across the aisle" to build some pretty interesting alliances.

In February, I interviewed Lee Odden at SES London 2008, about news search engine optimization and related topics. And in December, Lee and Sally Falkow, the President of PRESSfeed, will be speaking about "SEO Through Blogs and Feeds" at SES Chicago 2008.

Lee Odden, TopRank Online Marketing, at SES London 2008

As Frank Watson noted earlier this morning, Lee and Jay Byrne, President of v-Fluence Interactive Public Relations, are holding a free PRWeb webinar entitled, "Use PR To Drive Better Search Results," today at 2 p.m. Eastern Time.

And PRSA has asked me to teach a teleseminar on "The Secrets of Search Engine Optimization" on Thursday, Nov. 6, at 3 p.m. Eastern.

What's all this mean to search engine marketers? Get the folks over in public relations to check out this topic. They may have missed it at the PRSA International Conference. But it is a subject that they'll want to understand as they prepare for 2009.

And getting your PR specialists on the same page with your SEO specialists could give you the best bang for your buck in a global recession. Consider this tip a "recession special" you won't want to pass up.

One last note: I hadn't been back to Detroit in a long, long time. Wow, is the Renaissance Center impressive. And the Detroit Riverwalk. And the GM Next Showroom. Now, I remember Detroit as Motor City and Motown. But it has experienced a renaissance while I wasn't looking. Cool. Very cool.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 8:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)

October 20, 2008

Professor Lawrence Lessig to Keynote at SES Chicago

Lawrence Lessig, a Professor of Law at Stanford Law School, will be giving the opening keynote at Search Engine Strategies Chicago on Monday, Dec. 8, 2008. The title of his keynote is “Remix: Making Art and Commerce Thrive in the Hybrid Economy.”

And, if you read the description of Professor Lessig's keynote in the conference agenda, it says: “The content industry has convinced industry in general that extremism in copyright regulation is good for business and economic growth. That's false. In this talk, Professor Lessig describes the creative and profitable future that culture and industry could realize, if only we gave up IP extremism.”

What is he getting at?

Well, “Remix: Making Art and Commerce Thrive in the Hybrid Economy” also happens to be the title of Professor Lessig's new book, which just went on sale on Amazon.com.

And, according to the editorial reviews on Amazon.com, “The author of Free Culture shows how we harm our children -- and almost anyone who creates, enjoys, or sells any art form -- with a restrictive copyright system driven by corporate interests. Lessig reveals the solutions to this impasse offered by a collaborative yet profitable ‘hybrid economy'.”

It goes on to say that Professor Lessig, who is the reigning authority on intellectual property in the Internet age, “spotlights the newest and possibly the most harmful culture war -- a war waged against our kids and others who create and consume art.” It adds, “America's copyright laws have ceased to perform their original, beneficial role: protecting artists' creations while allowing them to build on previous creative works. In fact, our system now criminalizes those very actions.”

How does it do that? Well, Professor Lessig argues that “biting” riffs from films, videos, or songs shouldn't be crimes. Why? It makes felons out of some of today's most talented artists.

Professor Lessig argues that the way to end this war is to embrace what he calls the “read-write culture,” which allows its users to create art as readily as they consume it. And he can already see glimmers of a new hybrid economy that combines the profit motives of traditional business with the “sharing economy” evident in such websites as Wikipedia and YouTube.

Wow. That's strong stuff. And, if we play buzzword bingo at SES Chicago 2008, then there are a couple arcane business concepts that we can use on our bingo cards.

But, this short blurb may not do justice to Professor Lessig. So, I emailed him some questions about the topic of his opening keynote. And he emailed me his answers -- quickly, I might add.

Here is our Q&A:

Q: Who benefits and who is harmed by extremism in copyright regulation?

A: Benefits: Lawyers (certainly). The record companies (maybe). Harmed: Artists, businesses, consumers — and a generation of (criminalized) kids.

Q: What are the “read-write culture” and the “hybrid economy”?

A: A RW culture is one where ordinary people are empowered to participate in the creation and recreation of their culture. Every culture in human history has been RW, save for a few dark years in the 20th century. A hybrid is a commercial entity that tries to leverage value out of a sharing economy, or a sharing economy that tries to use a commercial entity to support it. Either way, two radically different cultures need to learn how to work together with each other. Q: When will this war on our kids stop, the “read-write culture” be reborn, and the “hybrid economy” start to flourish?

A: When policy makers are woken up to the extraordinary cost this war is imposing.

Q: Where can we already see glimmers of a new “hybrid economy” that combines the profit motives of traditional business with the “sharing economy”?

A: I think everywhere around us. All of the interesting Internet businesses today are hybrid: Flickr, Second Life, Yelp!, even Amazon builds much of its business from the sharing activity of its customers.

Q: Why is IP extremism bad for business and economic growth? A: Practice moderation. When the lawyers in the room start insisting that the licenses you create must impose perfect control over everything you have, ask them to prove it. Ask them to demonstrate that the business return from that relationship of antagonism is higher than its cost. Don't give over your business' future to those who don't think like a business man or woman. Keep focused on the only undeniable truth: IP is an asset. Like any business asset, it should be deployed to maximize the value of the corporation.

Let me add that I've watched the 19-minute-long video of Professor Lessig speaking at last year's TED Conference as well as the 4-minute 35 second video from OpenSourceCinema which is embedded below. So, I am confident that he will rock the house at Search Engine Strategies Chicago.

Lessig Remix

Professor Lessig was also named one of Scientific American's Top 50 Visionaries, for arguing “against interpretations of copyright that could stifle innovation and discourse online.” He's on the board of the Creative Commons project has served on the board of the Electronic Frontier Foundation. He was also a columnist for Wired, Red Herring, and the Industry Standard.

In other words, he's a speaker worth coming to SES Chicago to hear. And, yes, I do think I'll put some of his arcane business concepts on a buzzword bingo card.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 10:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

October 6, 2008

Keynote speakers posted for Search Engine Strategies Chicago

The keynote speakers for Search Engine Strategies Chicago have just been posted to the website for the SEM conference. And check out the heavy hitters: • Lawrence Lessig, the Professor of Law at Stanford Law School, is giving the opening keynote on Monday, Dec. 8; • Bill Tancer, the General Manager of Global Research at Hitwise, is giving the morning keynote on Tuesday, Dec. 9; and • Josh James, the President and Chief Executive Officer of Omniture, is giving the morning keynote on Wednesday, Dec. 10.

That's quite a line up. Or, as my good friend Anne Kennedy, the Managing Partner of Beyond Ink and a member of the SES Advisory Board, says, whether you're a “seasoned search maven or hopeful newbie, you'll find speakers who share expertise, new research, horizon's edge views and knuckles-in-the code tactics” at SES Chicago.

Take Professor Lessig, for example. For much of his career, he has focused on law and technology, especially as it affects copyright. He is the author of Code v2 (2007), Free Culture (2004), The Future of Ideas (2001) and Code and Other Laws of Cyberspace (1999). He was also a columnist for Wired, Red Herring, and the Industry Standard.

According to a recent article by Kim Heart in The Washington Post, Professor Lessig is among the signers of a letter that went to the Barack Obama and John McCain campaigns. The letter was also signed by Craigslist founder Craig Newmark and Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales.

The letter asked the candidates to insist on using a new method to choose debate questions. While that job is usually left to the media host, the members of the “Open Debate Coalition” say they aren't “hard-hitting enough.”

Instead, they want to let people submit questions, then vote on their favorites, over the Internet. The top 25 questions would have the potential of getting asked during the debates.

“This cycle's YouTube debates were a milestone for Internet participation in presidential debates,” the letter said. “But they put too much discretion in the hands of gatekeepers. Many of the questions chosen by TV producers were considered gimmicky... and never would have bubbled up on their own.”

So, do you think what Professor Lessig says at SES Chicago will be on the mid-term? All I know is that I can't wait for the Q&A following his keynote.

The following day, Bill Tancer takes the stage. He's the author of “Click: What Millions of People Are Doing Online and Why It Matters.”

Bill, who I've known for years, is the author of a weekly online column for TIME, “The Science of Search.” He is a frequent guest on CNBC, and has been quoted extensively in the press, including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, USA Today and Business Week.

Bill recently had a “naked lunch” with Andy Greenberg of Forbes.com. Hey, I didn't make this up. Click on “We Are What We Google” and read the article for yourself.

In the article, Bill is quoted as saying, “What I find really fascinating is how much we tell search engines – more than we tell surveys, more than our family members, more even than our priests or rabbis.”

Are you skeptical of this claim? Bill backs it up with his analysis of searches beginning with “fear of.” It reveals search engine users are afraid of flying, heights, clowns, intimacy and death, in that order. Looking at searches beginning with “how to,” he observes that the phrase “how to tie a tie” edges out “how to have sex” and “how to kiss” for the top spot.

And Bill's analysis of searches beginning with “why” shows that most queries are related to school projects. But these fall sharply during the summer and Christmas holidays. During those periods, more existential questions like “Why did she leave me?” and “Why did God do this to me?” pop to the surface.

But wait! There's more! The following day, Josh James is the keynoter.

James co-founded Omniture in 1996 and, under his leadership, it has evolved into one of the fastest-growing publicly traded software companies with more than 4,700 customers across 75 countries and over 1,100 employees. His market vision, leadership and entrepreneurial philosophy have enabled Omniture to achieve greater than 75% growth for more than five consecutive years, as well as to maintain customer retention rates of greater than 95%.

James is also the founder of Silicon Slopes – a private sector initiative whose mission is to promote the interests of high-tech in Utah. A recent article by Tom Harvey in The Salt Lake Tribune said that the Omniture CEO was motivated to found Silicon Slopes in 2007 to change the misperception that Utah is “A quirky state at the edge of the desert dominated by a single religion and defined by its far-right politics and weird liquor laws.”

For example, Siliconslopes.com is sending out thousands of promotional posters this year that depict the Silicon Slopes running along the Wasatch Mountains from Logan to Provo, listing an array of high-tech companies with operations here, as well as ski resorts and signs pointing to Moab and other attractions.

While I haven't met Josh James yet, I did interview Huw Roberts of Omniture earlier this year at SES London. Roberts talked about the importance of web analytics to effective search engine marketing for businesses of any size.

Huw Roberts, Omniture, at SES London 2008

There you have it: The keynote speakers for Search Engine Strategies Chicago.

And I've got to agree with Anne. Whether you're a “seasoned search maven or hopeful newbie, you'll find speakers who share expertise, new research, horizon's edge views and knuckles-in-the code tactics” at SES Chicago.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 2:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 25, 2008

Just in time planning for SES Chicago 2008

If you are like me, then you are a master of just-in-time planning. While Search Engine Strategies Chicago 2008 won't be held until December 8-12, if you register by tomorrow – Friday, Sept. 26 – you can take advantage of the “recession special” and save up to $600.

So, if you were already planning to attend, register now and save some dough. If you haven't made up your mind yet, look over the conference agenda below pronto.

SES Chicago is the only major search engine marketing conference and expo in the Midwest. And, with more than 70 conference sessions, strategic development workshops, keynote presentations, Orion panels, and training workshops, I'll bet you find plenty of content that was designed for you – whether this is your first SES conference ever or the fifth one that you're going to attend this year.

This is especially true if you are involved in retail marketing. There is a Retailer Track on Tuesday, Dec. 9, and a Vertical & Retail Track on Wednesday, Dec. 10.

I've been optimizing SES schedules for clients and Search Engine Watch readers for years. And there are plenty of sessions at SES Chicago 2008 that everyone should attend, including: • On Monday, Dec. 8, attend the Conference Welcome/Orientation and Opening Keynote from 9:00 to 10:15 a.m. and the “Orion Panel: CEO vs. SEO” from 1:45 to 2:45 p.m.; • On Tuesday, Dec. 9, attend the Morning Keynote Presentation from 9:00 to 10:00 a.m. and the “Orion Panel: Why Does Search Get all the Credit?” from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m.; and • On Wednesday, Dec. 10, attend the Morning Keynote from 9:00 to 10:00 a.m.

But, there are four to five concurrent tracks over the four-day conference and there are three concurrent training workshops on Friday. So, attendees of SES Chicago 2008 will need to make some choices about what to attend.

For first-time Search Engine Strategies attendees, here are the conference sessions and training workshops that I'd recommend:

• On Monday, Dec. 8, attend “Search Industry Update” from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m., “Measuring Success in a 2.0 World” from 11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m., and “Search and Packaged Goods” from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m., and “Landing Page Testing & Tuning” 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. • On Tuesday, Dec. 9, attend “Introduction to Search Engine Marketing” from 10:30 to 11:45am, and “SEO Tools” from 4:15 to 5:30 p.m. • On Wednesday, Dec. 10, attend “Search Advertising 101” from 10:30 to 11:45 a.m., “Getting Vertical Search Right” from 12:45 to 2:00 p.m., “Blogging for Business” from 2:15 to 3:30 p.m., and “In House: Lessons Learned & Victories Won” from 4:00 to 5:15 p.m. • On Thursday, Dec. 11, attend “How to Speak Geek: Working Collaboratively With Your IT Department to Get Stuff Done” from 9:00 to 10:00 a.m., the “Ad Copy Continuity Clinic” from 10:15 to 11:15 a.m., and the “Site Clinic” from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. • On Friday, Dec. 12, consider attending the “Search Engine Optimization Workshop” from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., and the “Optimizing for Universal Search” workshop from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m.

For veteran attendees responsible for pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, here are the SES conference sessions and training workshops that I'd recommend:

• On Monday, Dec. 8, attend “Search Industry Update” from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m., “Measuring Success in a 2.0 World” from 11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m., “Is There Life Beyond Google?” from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m., and “Landing Page Testing & Tuning” 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. • On Tuesday, Dec. 9, attend “Advanced Keyword Research” from 10:30 to 11:45 a.m., and “Managing Automated PPC Bid Management” from 4:15 to 5:30 p.m. • On Wednesday, Dec. 10, attend “Advanced B2B” from 10:30 to 11:45 a.m., “Search Advertising Tools” from 12:45 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., “Ads in a Quality Score World” from 2:15 to 3:30 p.m., and “Advanced Paid Search Techniques” from 12:45 to 2:00 p.m. • On Thursday, Dec. 11, attend the “Contextual Ads & Ad Sense Clinic” from 9:00 to 10:00 a.m., the “Ad Copy Continuity Clinic” from 10:15 to 11:15 a.m., and “Brand & Reputation Management” from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. • On Friday, Dec. 12, consider attending the “Search & Analytics Workshop: Using Analytics to Increase Search Effectiveness” from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., and the “Advanced AdWords” workshop from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m.

For veteran attendees responsible for search engine optimization (SEO), here are the SES conference sessions and training workshops that I'd recommend:

• On Monday, Dec. 8, attend “Universal & Blended Search” from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m., “Measuring Success in a 2.0 World” from 11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m., “Igniting Viral Campaigns” from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m., and “Semantic Search: How Will it Change Our Lives?” from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. • On Tuesday, Dec. 9, attend “Usability & SEO: Two Wins for the Price of One” from 10:30 to 11:45 a.m., and “Advanced Link Building” from 4:15 to 5:30 p.m. • On Wednesday, Dec. 10, attend “SEO Through Blogs & Feeds” from 10:30 to 11:45 a.m., “Video Search Engine Optimization” from 12:45 to 2:00 p.m., “SEO Friendly Flash” from 2:15 to 3:30 p.m., and “The Next Wave for Online Video” from 4:00 to 5:15 p.m. • On Thursday, Dec. 11, attend “How to Speak Geek: Working Collaboratively with Your IT Department to Get Stuff Done” from 9:00 to 10:00 a.m., “Affiliate 2.0: New Distribution Value Using Search & More” from 10:15 to 11:15 a.m., and “Black Hat, White Hat & the Best Kept Secrets to Search” from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. • On Friday, Dec. 12, consider attending the “Link Building Tactics, Tools & Techniques” workshop from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., and the “Viral Marketing & Link Baiting” workshop from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m.

Of course, veteran SES conference attendees already know how to navigate the conference agenda. They may want to check out the Issues Track on Tuesday, the Social Media Track on Wednesday, and the Local Track on Thursday. The point I'm making is there are plenty of conference sessions, strategic development workshops, keynote presentations, Orion panels, and training workshops to help them take their skills to the next level.

You'll also see a couple of sessions “reserved for late-breaking topic.” Every year that I've been attending Search Engine Strategies – which goes back to the spring of 2002 – there have been unexpected developments in the search industry. So, use the optimized schedule above to get the folks in finance to approve your plans to attend. But, even I expect to be “calling audibles” when I get to SES Chicago 2008.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 9:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

September 5, 2008

Top rated WebProNews Videos from SES San Jose 2008

Earlier this week, I listed the “Top 10 Videos on YouTube from SES San Jose 2008.” Well, the WebProNews Video Blog has some top-rated videos from last month's SES conference that you won't find on YouTube – at least not yet.

Here are three of them:

SES: The Power of Thumbnails and Images According to Rebecca Lieb of the ClickZ Network, recent surveys show that video has a greater chance of being clicked if it has a thumbnail or image. These results are evident in the popularity of universal search. Rebecca advises marketers to take these statistics seriously and recommends posting related videos with each new video just as I suggested in my interview with WebProNews, which appears below.

Website Optimizer Activates Pruning, Modifies Reports, and More As you can tell by the title, Google's Website Optimizer department has been busy. Tom Leung gives WebProNews the scoop on all their new features. First, through experiment pruning, users can disable any page that's not doing as well as was hoped for. They've also enhanced their reports with a new color coded system, made it easier to validate tags on pages, and submitted several new demonstration videos to YouTube.

SES: Improving Conversion Rates Landing pages can make or break a site, and no one wants that second situation to occur. In this interview with Mike McDonald, Frans Keylard, the director of optimization at Widemile, shares some tips that should help improve conversion rates.

There are a lot more interviews on the WebProNews Video Blog from SES San Jose 2008. That includes the five below with members of the Search Engine Watch staff.

SES San Jose: Kevin Ryan WebProNews spoke with Kevin Ryan, the VP and Global Content Director of Search Engine Strategies and Search Engine Watch, at SES San Jose 2008!

SES: Focus On Call To Action After going to all the trouble of getting users to your site, you don't want your landing page to turn them away. According to Tim Ash, a Search Engine Watch Expert Columnist, clutter is the most common problem with landing pages. Tim explains how you have to give users breathing space so they can focus on their main purpose for coming to the site.

SES: The Blessing and Curse of Conversions Did you ever think of conversions as a blessing and a curse? As Sage Lewis, another Search Engine Watch Expert Columnist, tells WebProNews, everything is trackable online. In most cases, this is a blessing. But for those marketing efforts which do not convert, it can be a curse.

SES: Being Careful With Blogs Blogs are powerful communication tools, and companies should embrace them. Yet there are things to watch out for, and Search Engine Watch Guest Blogger Amanda Watlington explores some potential pitfalls in this interview with Mike McDonald.

SES: Get on Top of Video Distribution After listening to a spirited musical intro from a certain Search Engine Watch Blog Correspondent, WebProNews got me to tell my secret to video distribution. I explain how video optimization on your own website was enough in years past, but now in order to succeed you must distribute your optimized videos to sites like YouTube, Yahoo Video, and more.

Okay, taunting Buckeyes from The Ohio State University by having a Wolverine sing the University of Michigan fight song may seem like an odd way to open an interview, but it was payback for the interview below that I conducted earlier this year.

Mike McDonald of WebProNews, Web Video Guru, at SES NY 2008 Mike McDonald talks about the humble beginnings of e-business internet video channel WebProNews and some of its funnier moments of adolescence, like forgetting to hit record. Stay tuned 'til the end to see and hear the University of Kentucky Wildcats cheer!

Get it? Got it? Good.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 11:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

August 26, 2008

SES San Jose 2008: Top 10 Stories

Over the past few days, more and more articles and posts from SES San Jose 2008 have been written. I'm sure there will be more stories to come out of the event, but this seems like a good time to recap the conference.

A quick Google News search for “SES San Jose” finds 276 articles from the past month – 138 when the duplicates are removed. A search in Yahoo! News for “SES San Jose” finds 114 articles from the past month. A query in Google Blog Search for “SES San Jose” finds 5,554 blog posts that mention “SES San Jose” from the past month, 337 when the duplicates are removed.

A little content analysis reveals the top 10 stories from the past month that were triggered by a keynote, panel, session or workshop at the 10th annual SES confence. Seven of these stories were ones that I predicted in my post on the Search Engine Watch Blog entitled "SES San Jose tip sheet for bloggers and journalists." But three of the top stories came as surprises -- even to an SES veteran like myself. Here, in order, are the Big Ten.

Kevin Ryan, VP, Global Content Director, SES & Search Engine Watch. (Twenty-three articles and 72 unduplicated blog posts, including “SES San Jose Photos – Paparazzi Style” by Lee Odden of TopRank's Online Marketing Blog.

Tuesday Morning Keynote by Satya Nadella, SVP, Search, Portal & Advertising Platform Group, Microsoft. (Nineteen articles and 69 unduplicated blog posts, including “Is Microsoft's Vision of Search Enough to Catch Google?” by Rob Hof of BusinessWeek. Rob wrote, “It would be dangerous for anyone to write off Microsoft. Its determination was on display today at the Search Engine Strategies conference in San Jose. Satya Nadella, Microsoft's senior VP of search, portal, and advertising platform group, told the crowd that he sees searchers moving from merely typing keywords into Google to getting tasks done.”

Matt Cutts, Software Engineer Guru of Google. (Ten articles, 74 blog posts and a YouTube video entitled “Matt Cutts on Big Brand BlackHat Sites” on the ChrisDaviesCa Channel. Chris happened to be sitting next to Matt, Google's head of webspam, when Matt weighed in about big brand sites that have been banned for black hat seo practices during the Black Hat/White Hat session during SES San Jose 2008.

Danny Sullivan, Editor-in-Chief of Search Engine Land. (Eleven articles, 41 unduplicated blog posts and a video interview by Mike McDonald of the WebProNews Video Blog entitled, “SES: Staying Focused On Search.”) Danny said that social marketing and all sorts of other things can be useful, but it's important to get back to the search marketing basics.

Universal & Blended Search. (Four articles, 42 unduplicated blog posts and a video interview for the SESConferenceExpo channel entitled, "Johanna Wright of Google on Google Universal Search." Johanna gives some insight into how vertical search results are blended into universal search results and advocates a thoughtful approach to making information accessible to Google through use of sitemaps and detailed descriptions.

Keynote Roundtable: Why Does Search Get the Credit for Everything? (Four articles and 38 blog posts, including “SES roundtable: Search shouldn't take all the credit” by Ellen Keohane of DM News. Ellen wrote, “Search marketing often gets credit for the final sale or conversion, even when it shouldn't, according to a roundtable discussion today at Search Engine Strategies in San Jose.”

Opening Keynote Presentation by Lee Siegel, author of Against the Machine. (Two articles and 27 unduplicated blog posts, including "Trust: The Backbone of Consumer Satisfaction" by Kevin Lee of ClickZ.) Kevin wrote, “In an afternoon keynote, Lee Siegel, author of "Against the Machine," predicted a backlash against the Internet as it has evolved. His book (which I've partially read) discusses how there are unforeseen consequences due to technology, and the Internet is responsible for largely unforeseen positive and negative effects on individuals and society.”

Thursday Morning Keynote: Dan Heath, author of Made to Stick. (One article and 27 unduplicated blog posts, including “Dan Heath 2008 SES San Jose Keynote” on WebmasterRadio.FM.) Listen to Dan explain Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die as he delivers his 2008 SES San Jose Keynote. Dan offers six key factors for sticky ideas, plus offers numerous supporting examples.

Orion Panel: How Much Search is Enough? (Three articles and 19 unduplicated blog posts, including “SES San Jose 2008 - Where's Money For Search Going?” by Manoj Jasra of WebProNews. Manoj wrote, “How much Search is enough? Aaron Goldman of Resolution Media, Steven Kaufman of Digitas, Robert Murray of iProspect and Bob Tripathi of Discover Financial Services were posed that very question by SES's own, Kevin Ryan.”

Orion Panel: Technical & Information Giants. (Six articles and 15 unduplicated blog posts, including “Technical & Information Giants Keynote - SES San Jose 2008” by Jason McElweenie of The SEM Blog. Jason wrote, “WOW. Let me repeat that. WOW….This was a great panel of some very huge icons on the web today. Bravo SES!”

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 1:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

August 21, 2008

SES San Jose 2008: Top stories for Day 3 of SEM Conference & Expo

So much was taking place on Day 3 of SES San Jose 2008, even attendees needed to use news and blog search engines to keep up with more than 75 articles and posts coming out of the SEM conference & expo. Here are the top stories that represent just the tip of the iceberg:

Report: Bill Gates Remains Tied To Search Doug Caverly of WebProNews reports, “The latest Nielsen stats put Microsoft's share of the search market at an unimpressive 11.9 percent. What's more (or to be accurate, less), its year-over-year growth is negative. But Microsoft's search team has an interesting ally in its corner, as it turns out Bill Gates may still be lending some sort of hand.”

Google Dance 2008 (Photo by Byron Gordon)

SES roundtable: Search shouldn't take all the credit Ellen Keohane of DM News reports, “Search marketing often gets credit for the final sale or conversion, even when it shouldn't, according to a roundtable discussion today at Search Engine Strategies in San Jose.”

Tools teach owners about Web site traffic Deborah Gage of the San Francisco Chronicle reports, “Most people who search the Web are really stumbling in the dark. So said a couple of Google evangelists who spoke Tuesday to a packed audience, all looking for advice on how to light the path to their Web site's door.”

SEO Through Blogs and Feeds SES San Jose Darrell Long of Search Engine Journal reports, “I am here at the first session of the day, yes I am up on time after the Google Dance! We have Rebecca Lieb, Contributing Editor, ClickZ moderating this morning.”

SES San Jose: News Search SEO Jessica of TopRank's Online Marketing Blog writes, “News search engines offer a great way to receive targeted traffic related to breaking topics or to help with a public relations launch. In this session, industry experts Lee Odden, CEO of TopRank Online Marketing, Lisa Buyer, President & CEO of The Buyer Group and Greg Jarboe, President and Co-Founder, SEO-PR look at how to make use of press releases and news content to tap into the power of news search.”

Getting Vertical Search Right Susan Esparza of the BruceClay.com SEO Blog writes, “Day 3 of SES San Jose and everyone looks a little tired from partying at the Googleplex last night. The coffee shop was out of bagels. That's a crime. I'm going to starve. My kingdom for some scrambled eggs. But enough about me. Moderator Lauren Vaccerello (FXCM) and panelists Philip James (Snooth, Inc), Jonathan Dingman (Digitally Imported, Inc) and Paul Forster (Indeed) are ready to go. On with the show!”

Measuring Web 2.0 with Star Trek - & SiteLogic's Matt Bailey Matt Bailey of SiteLogic Marketing talks Trekkie lore and web analytics with Jamie O'Donnell of SEO-PR about his SES San Jose 2008 panel on Web 2.0 measurement. Matt's famous Star Trek/Web Analytics mashup played well at the show as he explained the increasing likelihood of Enterprise ensigns' chances of survival given various circumstances, including the color of their shirts, shuttlecraft landings, and the captain's amorous liaisons.

Blended Search Demands Blended Marketing and PR Sally Falkow writes in her Website Content Strategy Blog, “At the session on Universal and blended search at SES San Jose we heard from all the search engines. Johanna Wright of Google, Cris Pierry of Yahoo! Erik collier of Ask and Todd Schwartz of LIve search all gave their insights and predictions about how search is displayed and how searchers view a results page.”

SEO Sucks at SES San Jose & The Google Dance Jeremy Schoemaker of ShoeMoney writes, “I thought I would spice it up a bit and wear my ‘Seo Sucks' t-shirt as a bit of a social experiment to see what kind of reaction it would get. Being at the largest and most respected SEO gathering/conference I was curious to (see) the reaction.”

Search Marketing Agencies: Why Can't They Sell Themselves? Julia Hyde of Creative Search Media reports, “If I was a prospect looking for an agency to represent my company, I'd throw my hands up in the air and make the decision to handle search marketing in house.”

AdGooroo Debuts Online Competitor Keyword Report MarketingVOX reports, “Online keyword intelligence firm AdGooroo announced the release of the "Top Ad Copy Report," part of its SEM Insight offering. The report went live at the SES conference in San Jose this week.”

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 12:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

August 20, 2008

SES San Jose 2008: Top Stories from Day 2

There were more than 70 news articles and blog posts on Day 2 of SES San Jose 2008. And that doesn't include the video interviews from Day 1 which are being posted as we speak. Here are the some of top stories for those of those of you trying to glimpse the highlights -- when you really need to be here to get the full impact of the conference.

Is Microsoft's Vision of Search Enough to Catch Google? Rob Hof of BusinessWeek writes, “It would be dangerous for anyone to write off Microsoft. Its determination was on display today at the Search Engine Strategies conference in San Jose, Satya Nardella, Microsoft's senior VP of search, portal, and advertising platform group, told the crowd that he sees searchers moving from merely typing keywords into Google to getting tasks done.

Matt Cutts, Software Engineer Guru, Google, draws a crowd following the Orion Keynote Panel: Technical & Information Giants at SES San Jose 2008 (Photo by Kelsey Jarboe)

Microsoft sees tailored search as way to pierce Google's armor Stephen Shankland of CNET reports, “Microsoft believes it's found a way to gain an edge against Google's dominant search engine: a deeper understanding of what people are searching for and what's on Web pages. Specifically, the company believes examining a full sequence of user queries can lead to more useful results. Today, the company only keeps track of the immediately prior search, but often users use search engines to explore subject areas broadly, said Satya Nadella, senior vice president of Microsoft's search, portal and advertising platform group, at the Search Engine Strategies conference here."

Search engines under the spotlight this week Sam Diaz of ZDNet writes, “I'm spending most of this week at the Intel Developer's Forum but also wanted to give some time to another show happening in the Bay Area this week: Search Engine Strategies, being held at the San Jose Convention Center in Silicon Valley. Monday was one of those unofficial days of the show - a handful of sessions and an opening keynote but no expo yet - so it was hard to gauge the sort of impact the show will have. But based on a few hours of hanging around and popping in and out of sessions, it's clear that search remains a hot sector with a lot of moving parts.”

Search Is No Longer an Afterthought for Brands Anna Maria Virzi of The ClickZ Network, reports, “Unlike eight years ago, paid search campaigns are no longer a hard sell. Still, search marketers say they are haven't reached the equivalent of marketing nirvana -- ensuring that search is always part of an integrated campaign. However, search marketers and others speaking at the Search Engine Strategies conference this week in San Jose, CA, pointed to inroads being made.”

SES San Jose: Microsoft dedicated to investment in search Ellen Keohane of DMNews reports, “Delivering the best results is the key to growing Microsoft's search marketing business, said Satya Nadella, SVP of Microsoft's search, portal and advertising group. In his keynote speech this morning at the Search Engine Strategies conference in San Jose, CA, Nadella said that Microsoft has to ‘build a search experience that's great. We've made decent progress but have a long way to go.'”

SES: Thumbnails, Thumbnails, Thumbnails! Optimizing video content isn't really much different from optimizing textual content. In fact, as YuMe.com vice president Bob Bahramipour told Mike McDonald at SES San Jose, most video content is still found the old-fashioned way: via textual search engines.

Small Business Viral Marketing Tips, SES San Jose 2008 Jennifer Laycock and Andrew Goodman of Page Zero Media follow up their SES San Jose 2008 ""Igniting Viral Campaigns"" session with a discussion of the best tips on viral campaigns and social media marketing, especially for small business who want to make the most of their business online without spending too much money. The two talk about using social media sites like Linkedin and Twitter to communicate one's marketing message to a dedicated and enthusiastic audience.

5 Things No One Will Tell You About SEM Sheara Wilensky of Promediacorp is blogging for Search Engine Roundtable. She writes, “Finding keywords, trying different ad copy, testing landing pages, bid managing – blah blah blah. You already know what managing SEM is about. But if you crave the new SEM tactic, the unknown search story, the changing market dynamics of SEM that few understand and even fewer talk about, come to this session, where Omniture and an SEM "dream team" panel will push the conference envelope and make you — yes, even you— all-stars: better, more knowledgeable, and aware of what's really going on in search.”

SES San Jose Expo Hall Photos Dana Larson of the TopRank Online Marketing Blog writes, “Today the Expo Hall at SES San Jose opened. Time to collect astronomical amounts of swag and drop your business card to win a free iPhone! The expo hall every year is full of some of the best products and services available for any online marketing team, and this year was absolutely no different.”

SES San Jose Photos - Day 2 Andy Beal of Marketing Pilgrim captures Day 2 of SES San Jose 2008 in photos.

Quote Of Day 2 - SES San Jose 2008 Mel Carson's Internet Marketing Blog captures the quote of the day from SES San Jose 2008, which is a quotation from Samuel Johnson (1709 - 1784), “The trade of advertising is now so near perfection that it is not easy to propose any improvement.”

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 12:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

August 19, 2008

SES San Jose 2008: Top Stories from Day 1 of Conference

There have already been more than 65 news articles and blog posts from SES San Jose 2008 – and it's just Day 1 of the conference. Looking through the event coverage, here are the top stories for those of you who are trying to keep up with the latest news and developments.

SES San Jose: Kevin Ryan WebProNews spoke with Kevin Ryan at SES San Jose 2008! Watch the first video of the conference.

Opening Keynote Presentation: Lee Siegel According to Virginia Nussey of the Bruceclay.com Blog, “The programmers decided to wrap up day one with a bang. Author and critic Lee Siegel will present on the fascinating topic of his latest book, a critique of current Web culture called “Against the Machine: Being Human in the Age of the Electronic Mob”. I'm intrigued...”

Lee Siegel, author of Against the Machine, was the opening keynote speaker at SES San Jose Orion Keynote Panel: How Much Search Is Enough? Dana Larson of the Online Marketing Blog writes, “Right after lunch today (which was pretty darn good ) was the first of the Orion Keynote presentations - a panel entitled “How Much Search is Enough?” Moderated by Kevin Ryan, this keynote panel discussed issues facing marketing budgets for search and traditional media, and how to make each piece of the marketing pie come together.”

Universal and Blended Search Panel at SES San Jose Darrell Long of Search Engine Journal writes, “Hey everyone, I am here at Search Engine Strategies San Jose, sitting here in the universal and blended search panel. Mr Tawadros talks about how universal search is only a year and a half old and is still a baby.”

Search Industry Update - SES San Jose 2008 Coverage Over at the adCenter Blog for Advertisers, Mel Carson reports on the Search Industry Update session. According to Mel, “There's no better way to kick off a convention than with an industry update from experts in the know, so we're in the ballroom at the Marriott and are promised an in-depth dive into the latest research and trends in the search engine marketing industry.”

Video Search Engine Optimization (VSEO) Blogging for Search Engine Roundtable, Avi Wilensky of Promediacorp writes, “According to comScore, nearly 139 million U.S. Internet users watched an average of 83 videos per viewer in March 2008, viewing a total of 11.5 billion online videos during the month. However, the average YouTube video receives only 100 views a year. This makes optimizing video for YouTube one of the biggest opportunities in the fast-changing and complex world of search.”

43 Killer Viral Tips from Top Marketers: SES Day 1 Jennifer Osborne of the aimClear Search Marketing Blog writes, “‘Tis budget season and marketing people are all a flutter trying to decide how to spend their 2009 dollars. As the American Economy gives more and more recession indicators, marketing budgets are going to hold even at best and most likely will shrink this year. Smart marketers know that Viral Marketing aka Word of Mouth Marketing (WOM) can be an inexpensive yet HUGELY effective means of getting your message out.”

Everything But Google - SES San Jose 2008 Jason McElweenie of The SEM Blog writes, “Last panel of day 1 before the closing keynote is dedicated to other forms of search out there besides the big three. Moderated by Andrew Goodman of Page Zero Media and featuring Sage Lewis of SageRock.com, Jay Sears of ContextWeb Inc, Jonathon Ewert of LookSmart, Dustin Kwan of Ask Sponsored Listings and Mary Berk of Microsoft.”

Yahoo! at SES San Jose Yahoo! Search Blog team writes, “With Search Engine Strategies starting this week, we get a sneak peek from Vice President Larry Cornett on his panel on how searchers interact with search engines on Wednesday at 1 - 2:15 p.m. Also you'll find a glimpse of where the entire Yahoo! Search team will be throughout the show.”

Left Behind For SES: Top 10 Things To Do Back In The Office Frank of the SEOMFG blog writes, “Everyone on the Internet is talking about SES. Everyone at my office is at SES. But I am here at my desk. As I eye the list of seminars that I will not be going to I started thinking; I have to get in on the show somehow. Luckily, some people I know just created this crazy blog and made the horrible mistake of handing me a login. So, for all of you out there who are in the same boat as me, here are some things to pass the time while you are NOT at SES.”

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 1:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

August 15, 2008

Special Events at Next Week's SES San Jose

If you are coming to SES San Jose next week, there are several special events in the evenings -- after the conference wraps up each day -- that you won't want to miss.

The first is The Internet Marketer's Charity Party, which is raising money for the Children's Hospital of Aurora, CO, and the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. The party starts at 8:00 p.m. Monday evening and is being held at the Agenda Lounge, which is located at 399 1st Street. Donations are $40. For more information, go to the Internet Marketer's Charity Party Site.

Tuesday evening, there's Google Dance - Glow in the Dark! All SES attendees are invited to attend the 7th annual Google Dance. Buses will depart from the San Jose Convention Center beginning at 6:30pm and run continuously until 11pm. Parking will also be available at the Shoreline Amphitheatre parking lot "C", across the street from the Google campus. SES San Jose attendees will need to bring their badge, a printout of your RSVP confirmation, and a photo ID to get into the special event. I'm bringing my wife and daughter to the Google Dance in San Jose next week. They saw the Flickr photo on the left of Li Evans, my oldest son and I at the St. Patty's Day Pub Crawl at SES New York back in March. And, for some strange reason, they no longer believe my geeky description of the Google Dances in 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 or 2007. Man, one Flickr photo can screw up your whole search engine reputation management campaign.

And on Wednesday evening, there's the WebmasterRadio.FM SearchBash. It starts at 7:15 p.m. -- just blocks from the Convention Center. For the secret, undisclosed location of this special event, visit the WebmasterRadio.FM, Bruce Clay, Moniker, or PRWeb booths on Tuesday or Wednesday.

But wait! There's more!

For a complete list of all the special events at SES San Jose, click on the anchor text link in this sentence. Or, check out the list compiled by Party Queen Becky Ryan over in the Search Engine Watch Forums.

Yes, it's a dirty job. But someone has to do it.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 6:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Q&A with Jamie Welsh of 10% Solution

Jamie Welsh, the founder and CEO of 10% Solution, will be speaking at the session on "Non-Profits & Socially-Responsible Companies With Global Interests in a 2.0 World" during next week's SES San Jose.

10% Solution is a social responsibility certification and consulting company. In a previous life Jamie was a highly accomplished executive with a diverse background in, ISO certifications, process consulting, marketing, organizational management and software development. She has worked with fortune 500 companies, start-ups and for the top homebuilders in the country.

Jamie has held executive roles, as the VP of Marketing for Hilton Hotels Corporation, as an executive consultant to start-ups and as President and CTO of Your Design Center. She has been in marketing and consulting for the past 12 years and in the interactive space for 16 years. She holds a Master's in organizational management and a Bachelor's in television and film. She also works with several non-profits including Habitat for Humanity. She is on the board of Team Kids and is an executive board member for the Centennial Heritage Museum.

To provide attendees of SES San Jose with a sneak preview of the upcoming "Non-Profits & Socially-Responsible Companies With Global Interests in a 2.0 World" session, I asked Jamie some questions that she was happy to answer.

Q: What role do Web 2.0 tools and/or applications play for a company like 10% Solution that seeks to certify companies as socially responsible?

A: Web 2.0 tools are an intractable part of our abilities to communicate our message and value proposition to our customers. As we move forward it will become an ever increasing core business tool, as we bring together, individuals, organizations, non-profits and groups to enact change at the local and global level through our Giving Networks ™. The web is finally becoming the means of production. It is a great equalizer in giving everyone a voice.

Q: If a company wants to be 10% Solution certified, what types of communities should they be involved in?

A: The hallmark of a good organization is one that has a core group that is dedicated to change and action. This is not a one size fits all equation; each company needs to research and partner with organizations that match their organizational direction.

Socially responsible companies need to embrace and reach out via multiple channels with engaging content and ideas, and thereby empower consumers to engage with their business, products and services directly. If they give consumers more tools, they will get more engagement and hence more collaboration in meeting social responsibility goals.

Q: Web 2.0 implies social networking and the use of blogs and wikis, for example. What are some of the Web 2.0 tools you strongly recommend a company should be integrating into its business model if it wants to become socially responsible?

A: Either before or after certification the companies should be looking at, RSS feeds, facebook groups, twitter, and social bookmarking as well as creating custom YouTube channels to create meaningful content that engages consumer.

A blog or wiki will can be a face to your public relations CSR front, and it will allow employees to also be abreast of company programs and contribute their take on the program. A certification in any arena would be helpful to verify the credibility and authenticity of the blog and wiki posts for both customers and employees. It also demonstrates a level of transparency and openness.

Q: Companies that want to become 10% Solution certified have to meet strict financial and time commitments. For example, a company must commit 1% of sales or 5% of pre-tax profits. How difficult is it for companies who approach you for certification to meet these commitments? Are they effectively using Web 2.0 tools and /or applications in order to meet these commitments?

A: Every organization approaches the social responsibility path with their unique set of opportunities. We typically find that companies that are ready to move down this path are eager and ready to get started. They see it as a platform for engagement and an opportunity to participate in transparent business practices that will have a positive impact on their internal and external business. For companies that are not ready for certification we offer a baby step in our Social Responsibility Program (SRP). This program is a straightforward service that helps you enact socially responsible business practices today. We organize and create an integration path for your charitable giving, volunteerism and green sustainability efforts. 10% makes it easy to track your current contributions of time and money, as well as the activities you engage in every day to help protect the planet and carry out sustainable business practices.

Q: Philanthropy and local action are core beliefs that drive and sustain 10% Solution's goals and actions. How is Web technology helping to further this value-set in companies that are trying to integrate such beliefs into their business plan? A: Our on-line community is where individuals, groups and neighborhoods can connect through Giving Network™. Our Giving Networks are a forum for the sharing of ideas, information and empowering local change. They provide a system for people to combine their time, monies and resources to create a dynamic evolving collective impact.

10% Solution also believes measurement and accountability are keys to the long term growth and success of the Social responsibility movement. We are creating measurement tools to allow certified companies to measure their return on investment (ROI) for their CSR programs. Results can be used internally and externally to support the business case for social responsibility programs on a quantitative level.

Q: What are some online resources you might recommend to your clients who are committed to becoming 10% Solutions certified?

A: Here is a sample of sites that would be a good place to start. - Research and compare your company CSR programs to others within the same industry: http://www.betterworldshopper.org/ - Keep up to date on the latest CSR information: http://www.csrwire.com/ - Finding the best non-profit to connect with for donations and employee volunteerism that align with your corporate values: http://www.justgive.org/, http://www.networkforgood.org/, http://www.volunteermatch.org/

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 3:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

August 14, 2008

Search Engine Foosball Smackdown

In a battle for universal search engine foosball domination, Google and Yahoo are meeting in a clash of the titans at SES San Jose. Microsoft has also been invited, and is trying to put together a team. This could determine the future of the search industry (well foosball-wise at least).

So come to the Networking Cocktail Reception on Tuesday. Play will start as close to 5:15 PM as possible, so we can get the games done prior to the end of the reception. Bring your cameras, bring your loyalties, and cheer for your favorites!

We will also be holding our usual Beat the Pros Foosball Challenge. This will take place at the following times:

Tuesday morning from 10 AM to 11 AM PT (in the Expo Hall)
Wednesday afternoon 2:15 to 2:45 PM PT (in the Expo Hall)
Wednesday afternoon 5:30 to 6:30 PM PT (in the registration area)

Of course, if you see us (John Biundo and Eric Enge) at the table any time prior to Wednesday afternoon, we will be glad to play you in a Beat the Pros challenge match right then and there. We will be there at lunch on Tuesday and Wednesday for example.

By 6:30 PM on Wednesday, we will announce which team has performed the best in playing against us (scored the most points), and that team will win a brand new pair of iPod Touch's. Any ties will be resolved by a random drawing (or a head to head matchup if that is possible).

Hey Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft - think you can take us? You are eligible for the prize too, and we will be there and ready to play at any time, including right after the smackdown is complete ...

Posted by at 4:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

August 12, 2008

Terry Plank of SEMPO Institute Teaching SEO Training Class at SES San Jose

On Friday, Aug. 22, SES San Jose is offering half a dozen Search Engine Marketing (SEM) Training Workshops. Two of them are being offered by the SEMPO Institute: "Successful SEO: The Essential Elements - Part 1 and Part 2."

(I should disclose that SEMPO is a client, but I'm also teaching a half-day SEO training class that is being held at the same time as Part 1 of the SEMPO Institute's full-day workshop.)

One of the three people teaching the SEMPO Institute's SEO training class is Terry Plank, the SEMPO Institute Curriculum Dean. Byron Gordon of SEO-PR caught up with Terry last week and asked him a couple of questions for the SES Conference Expo's YouTube Channel about the importance of keywords and website design to successful search engine optimization.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Discussion with Terry Plank

Byron also asked Terry about the importance of SEO copywriting and using directories to build links, which are also essential elements of successful SEO.

SEO Copywriting and Linking with Terry Plank

Speaking of SEMPO (how's that for a smooth segue?), The Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization is hosting a Speed Networking Reception at SES San Jose. It will be held Monday, Aug. 18, 5:30-6:30 p.m. and will provide members and non-members alike with the opportunity to schmooze with SEMPO bigwigs and other search engine marketers, hear about SEMPO's research projects and SEMPO Institute's courses, and learn how to develop and join SEMPO working groups in their area.

Hey, SEMPO is a global non-profit organization serving the search engine marketing industry and marketing professionals engaged in it. So, I have no problem if I'm accused of a little “shameless promotion.” This group has 830 members representing over 2,000 individuals, including some of my closest friends and competitors.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 2:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

August 11, 2008

Video Search Engine Optimization (VSEO) session at SES San Jose

SES San Jose 2008 gets underway in a week. One of the sessions on Day 1 that may draw a crowd is the one on Video Search Engine Optimization (VSEO).

To give you a sneak preview of the session, Byron Gordon of SEO-PR interviewed Matthew Scheybeler, the CTO of blinkx, who will be one of the speakers. Byron asked Matt about how to classify a video in its many parts to enable more viewers to find the video of their choice.

Video Search Engine Optimization (VSEO) with Matthew Scheybeler

blinkx has been in the news lately. On Friday, Nathania Johnson reported that "blinkx Seeks to Acquire MIVA for $1.20 Per Share."

In a letter to MIVA CEO Peter Corrao and Chairman Larry Weber, Suranga Chandratillake, the CEO and Founder of blinkx wrote, "blinkx believes that a combination of the two companies would be mutually beneficial to both companies' shareholders, employees, and customers. blinkx and MIVA have complementary businesses that could benefit greatly from blinkx's technology and MIVA's distribution network."

So, in addition to SES San Jose attendees, I suspect that there might be some MIVA shareholders, employees, and customers might want to watch the video interview with Matt to see where he thinks video technology is headed.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 10:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

August 4, 2008

SES San Jose tip sheet for bloggers and journalists

Many bloggers and journalists don't need a tip sheet to find the most newsworthy sessions at SES San Jose. Either they will bring a team along to live blog or report five concurrent conference sessions, or they will blow into the San Jose Convention Center to listen to one of the keynotes and depart mistakenly thinking that they've covered the entire show.

But a number of bloggers and journalists will have to make choices – trying to cover the most important sessions over the four-day Search Engine Strategies 2008 Conference & Expo. I'm a member of this little band of ink-stained wretches.

Well, I really haven't had any serious problems with ink stains since the media world went digital. But, even bloggers feel fairly wretched after covering a week-long search engine conference from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.

So, to help my colleagues keep their editors or bosses from muttering that they missed the big story, I've put together this tip sheet for SES San Jose. These are my predictions for the top ten news stories that will come out of the event.

Day 1 - Monday, August 18, 2008

9:45am-11:00am Universal & Blended Search Moderator: • John Tawadros, Chief Operating Officer, iProspect Speakers: • Shashi Seth, Chief Revenue Officer, Cooliris • Johanna Wright, Director of Product Management, Google • Cris Pierry, Senior Director of Product Management, Yahoo! Search • Erik Collier, VP, Product Management, Ask.com • Todd Schwartz, Group Product Manager, Live Search

1:30pm-2:30pm Orion Keynote Panel: How Much Search is Enough? Moderators: • Kevin Ryan, VP, Global Content Director, Search Engine Strategies & Search Engine Watch • Anne Kennedy, Managing Partner & Founder, Beyond Ink Speakers: • Robert Murray, President, iProspect • Aaron Goldman, VP, Marketing & Strategic Partnerships, Resolution Media, an Omnicom Media Group Company • Steven Kaufman, SVP, Media Director, Digitas • Bob Tripathi, Search Marketing Strategist, Discover Financial Services

4:30pm-5:30pm Opening Keynote Presentation: Lee Siegel, Author of “Against the Machine” and a senior editor at The New Republic.

Day 2 - Tuesday, August 19, 2008

9:00am-10:00am Morning Keynote: Satya Nadella, Senior VP, Search, Portal & Advertising Platform Group, Microsoft

11:00am-12:15pm Measuring Success in a 2.0 World Moderator: • Richard Zwicky, Founder & CEO, Enquisite Speakers: • Jim Sterne, Target Marketing & Chairman, Web Analytics Association • Matthew Bailey, President, SiteLogic • Avinash Kaushik, Author, Blogger, Analytics Evangelist, Google • Marshall Sponder, Senior Web Analyst, Monster.com

1:30pm-2:30pm Orion Keynote Panel: Technical & Information Giants Moderators: • Kevin Ryan, VP, Global Content Director, Search Engine Strategies & Search Engine Watch • Mike Grehan, Global KDM Officer, Acronym Media Speakers: • Matt Cutts, Software Engineer Guru, Google • Danny Sullivan, Editor-in-Chief, Search Engine Land • Tim Westergren, Founder, Pandora • Robert Scoble, Managing Director, FastCompany.TV • Kirsten Mangers, Co-founder & CEO, WebVisible • Rich LeFurgy, General Partner, Archer Advisors

Day 3 - Wednesday, August 20, 2008 9:00am-10:00am Keynote Roundtable: Why Does Search Get the Credit for Everything? Moderator: • Bill Hunt, CEO, Global Strategies International Speakers: • Randy Peterson, Search Marketing Innovation Manager, Procter and Gamble • Terry A. Cox, Manager, Search Engine Marketing, Walt Disney Parks & Resorts Online • Mikel Chertudi, Sr. Director, Online & Demand Marketing, Omniture • Sharon Gallacher, West Coast Managing Director, Neo@Ogilvy

2:45pm-4:00pm War of the Search Worlds: Unifying Your Global Search Marketing Program Moderator: • Kevin Heisler, Executive Editor, Search Engine Watch Speakers: • Olivier Lemaignen, Group Manager, Global Search Marketing, Intuit • Jay Middleton, Senior Manager, Worldwide Search Marketing, Adobe • Mark Scholz, Interactive Manager of IPG Worldwide, Hewlett-Packard • Russ Mann, CEO, Covario • Dan Quinn, Manager of Global E-business, Research In Motion

Day 4 - Thursday, August 21, 2008

9:00am-10:00am Morning Keynote: Chip Heath, Author of “Made to Stick” and Professor of Organizational Behavior in the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University

2:45pm-3:45pm In House SEO: Lessons Learned & Victories Won Moderator: • Jessica Bowman, SEO Strategist & in-house SEO Expert, SEMinhouse.com Speakers: • Marshall D. Simmonds, Chief Search Strategist, New York Times / About.com • Derrick Wheeler, Senior SEO Architect, Microsoft • Kara Jariwala, Search Marketing Strategist, Cisco • Laura Lippay, Group Program Manager, Search Strategy, Yahoo!

If you want a second opinion, I recommend that you read “15 Things Not to Miss at SES San Jose 2008” by AshleyB or “Do You Know the Way to San Jose” by Jessica over at the Online Marketing Blog, or “What To Look For At SES San Jose” by Thomas McMahon at WebProNews.

Of course, any good blogger or journalist will investigate other potential top news stories in the hopes of getting a real scoop at the search engine conference. But, the list above represents my handicapping of the pre-show favorites that will dominate the headlines from Aug. 18-21, 2008.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 10:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

July 28, 2008

Liana Evans of KeyRelevance on social media optimization (SMO)

One of the people that you will want to hear speak at SES San Jose is Liana Evans of KeyRelevance. Li is the director of Internet marketing at KeyRelevance and a member of the “Successful Tactics for Social Media Optimization (SMO)” panel on Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2008, at 1 p.m.

I'm bummed out because I'll be speaking at the “News Search SEO” session at the same time, so I won't be able to hear what she has to say in San Jose.

So, through the magic of YouTube video, I've interviewed Li – so I won't miss her keen insights entirely – although there is no substitute to hearing her first hand.

Li is a search marketing guru (literally), especially on topics like social media optimization (SMO). So, here's a sneak preview of what she has to say.

Why Your Social Media Campaigns Should Socialize More Liana is also famous for her Flickr photos from sessions, panels, exhibits, the night life, and everything in between at Search Engine Strategies conferences and she won one of the Flickr photo sharing awards for SES London 2008.

Li specializes in social media marketing, blog optimization, link building and viral marketing. I like to hang out with her at SES conferences because Li has a background in both public relations and information technology.

Li is the creator and main contributor to Search Marketing Gurus and has assembled a well rounded group of professional search marketing professionals to contribute to the blog. Oh, and she's shared her secret for finding the best cheesesteak in Philly with me – not that this has influenced my favorable opinion of her at all.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 9:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

July 22, 2008

SEO copywriting tips from Jill Whalen of High Rankings

I went to my first Search Engine Strategies back in the spring of 2002. And one of the SEO experts speaking at that search engine conference was Jill Whalen, the CEO of High Rankings.

Six-and-a-half-years ago, Jill spoke at a session entitled, “Writing for Search Engines.” And six-and-a-half-years later, I'm still quoting her SEO copywriting advice in the “Introduction to Search Engine Marketing” sessions at SES conferences because it was “built to last.”

As Jill says, “Good SEO work only gets better over time. It's only search engine tricks that need to keep changing when the ranking algorithms change.”

And next month, Jill will be speaking at SES San Jose at the “Building a Search Friendly Site” session on Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2008, at 10:30 a.m. as well as the “Keywords & Content: Search Foundations” session later that day at 2:45 p.m.

I recently interviewed Jill and asked her to share some of her SEO copywriting tips. The video interview is below.

Copywriting: High Rankings Jill Whalen Jill is a pioneer in search engine optimization. She founded High Rankings in 1995 and since then, it has grown to be one of the pre-eminent SEO companies in the United States, providing hundreds of clients in more than 40 industries with expert SEO consulting, website audit reports, SEO campaigns and in-house SEO training classes. Jill is also the founder of the popular High Rankings Search Engine Optimization Forum, the author of The Nitty-gritty of Writing for the Search Engines, and the co-founder of the Search Engine Marketing Network for New England (SEMNE).

If SES San Jose is going to be your first search engine conference, then I strongly encourage you to attend both of the sessions where Jill will be speaking. Her advice is “built to last.”

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 10:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

July 21, 2008

Conference speakers from brand name companies at SES San Jose

Last Thursday, I had a chance to spend a full day with a diverse group of search engine marketers during the Search Engine Strategies “Optimizing for Universal Search” workshop in Seattle. Over lunch, we talked about SES San Jose – which is coming up August 18-22, 2008.

The people around the table were excited to see that conference speakers from brand name companies like Adobe, Cisco, Discover, Forbes, HP, Humana, IBM, Intuit, P&G, Monster, Napster, New England Journal of Medicine, The New Republic, The New York Times, Stanford University, and Walt Disney were on the agenda.

Um, yes, of course. How could I have possibly overlooked that significant market trend?

Okay, so maybe I've attended too many SEO conferences. When I looked at the agenda in my post, “Optimizing your schedule for Search Engine Strategies San Jose,” I was excited to see that Matt Cutts, the Software Engineer Guru from Google, was speaking on Day 2 during the Orion Keynote Panel: Technical & Information Giants.

And I'm so used to seeing conference speakers like Marshall D. Simmonds, the Chief Search Strategist of The New York Times / About.com, on the SES conference agenda that I had missed the fact that he is being joined at SES San Jose by more than a dozen other conference speakers from brand name companies.

This market trend is significant.

In the past, conference speakers from brand name companies have been under-represented at search engine conferences.

Part of this is evolutionary. In the early days, most search engine experts either headed up SEO companies or worked at one of the search engines. And these segments are still well represented on the Search Engine Strategies conference agenda.

But part of this is revolutionary. Kevin Ryan, VP of Global Content for the SES series, named an advisory board in August 2007 that included a number of individuals from brand name companies.

Their input is clearly reflected in this year's agenda at SES San Jose. Here are some examples:

(Monday, Aug. 18, 2008, 1:30 p.m.) Orion Keynote Panel - How Much Search is Enough? Moderators: • Kevin Ryan, Vice President, Global Content Director, Search Engine Strategies and Search Engine Watch • Anne Kennedy, Managing Partner & Founder, Beyond Ink Speakers: • Robert Murray, President, iProspect • Aaron Goldman, VP, Marketing & Strategic Partnerships, Resolution Media, an Omnicom Media Group Company • Steven Kaufman, Senior Vice President, Media Director, Digitas • Bob Tripathi, Search Marketing Strategist, Discover Financial Services

(Monday, Aug. 18, 2008, 4:30 p.m.) Opening Keynote Presentation • Lee Siegel, senior editor at The New Republic and author of “Against the Machine: Being Human in the Age of the Electronic Mob”

(Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2008, 9:00 a.m.) Keynote Roundtable: Why Does Search Get the Credit for Everything? Moderator: • Bill Hunt, CEO, Global Strategies International Speakers: • Randy Peterson, Search Marketing Innovation Manager, Procter and Gamble • Terry A. Cox, Manager, Search Engine Marketing, Walt Disney Parks & Resorts Online • Mikel Chertudi, Sr. Director, Online & Demand Marketing, Omniture • Sharon Gallacher, West Coast Managing Director, Neo@Ogilvy

(Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2008, 2:45 p.m.) War of the Search Worlds: Unifying Your Global Search Marketing Program Moderator: • Kevin Heisler, Executive Editor, Search Engine Watch Speakers: • Olivier Lemaignen, Group Manager, Global Search Marketing, Intuit • Jay Middleton, Senior Manager, Worldwide Search Marketing, Adobe • Mark Scholz, Interactive Manager of IPG Worldwide, Hewlett-Packard • Russ Mann, CEO, Covario

(Thursday, Aug. 21, 2008, 9:00 a.m.) Morning Keynote • Chip Heath, Professor of Organizational Behavior in the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University and author of "Made to Stick"

(Thursday, Aug. 21, 2008, 2:45 p.m.) In House SEO: Lessons Learned & Victories Won Moderator: • Jessica Bowman, SEO Strategist and in-house SEO Expert, SEMinhouse.com Speakers: • Marshall D. Simmonds, Chief Search Strategist, New York Times / About.com • Derrick Wheeler, Senior SEO Architect, Microsoft • Kara Jariwala, Search Marketing Strategist, Cisco • Laura Lippay, Group Program Manager, Search Strategy, Yahoo!

Of course, you can also see plenty of search engine experts from SEM and SEO companies speaking at SES San Jose. This includes Greg Boser, Christine Churchill, Barbara Coll, Mikkel deMib Svendsen, Bryan Eisenberg, Kevin Lee, Jeffrey K. Rohrs, Dana Todd, Amanda Watlington, and Jill Whalen, who were all speakers at the first SES conference that I attended in the spring of 2002 -- which was programmed back then by Danny Sullivan, who will also be speaking at the SES conference in San Jose next month.

And you can also hear lots of representatives of the top search engines speaking at this year's Search Engine Strategies San Jose. The fact that it is being held in the backyard of Google and Yahoo explains why the top search engines are sending so many people from their engineering and search quality teams to both the conference and expo.

So, some things haven't changed.

But, the growing number of conference speakers at SES San Jose from brand name companies is a significant market trend that's worth noting. It's “the new new thing” in Silicon Valley.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 10:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

July 8, 2008

Optimizing your schedule for Search Engine Strategies San Jose

Yesterday, we looked at building the business case for going to SES San Jose. Today, let's tackle optimizing your schedule for Search Engine Strategies San Jose.

For arguments sake, let's say that you'll be bringing four members of your team to the SES conference and SEM training. One is an SES newbie, another is an SEO specialist, a third is a PPC specialist, and the fourth is an SEM veteran.

Which Search Engine Strategies conference sessions and search engine marketing training workshops should each one attend – to ensure that your business gets the biggest bang for its bucks?

As I mentioned yesterday in yesterday's post, “Building the business case for going to SES San Jose,” almost 88% of the content at Search Engine Strategies San Jose 2008 will be brand new! So, how can anyone presume to know which sessions to recommend to someone else?

That's a fair point, so you may want to glance at the conference at a glance yourself before deciding which tracks are right for you.

But, I've attended 28 SES conferences since the spring of 2002. And I've learned that the key to getting the right member of your team into the right session is to see who is speaking as well as to read what the session is about.

For example, on Tuesday, Aug. 19, from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m., the Orion Keynote Panel, Technical & Information Giants, will be moderated by Kevin Ryan, Vice President, Global Content Director, Search Engine Strategies and Search Engine Watch, and Mike Grehan, Global KDM Officer, Acronym Media. The speakers include: • Matt Cutts, Software Engineer Guru, Google; • Danny Sullivan, Editor-in-Chief, Search Engine Land; • Tim Westergren, Founder, Pandora; • Robert Scoble, Managing Director, FastCompany.TV; and • Kirsten Mangers, Co-Founder & CEO, WebVisible.

According to the session description, these search engine marketing industry giants will “discuss how the past will shape our future and attempt to answer some of the biggest questions in search. What are the most important changes in the space that you should be aware of? How will the decisions made today affect our marketing and communication efforts in the future?”

While it's never been held before, I strongly encourage you to attend this session. In fact, run, don't walk, if you want to get a good seat.

In other cases, you'll want your team to split up to cover as much of the four-day SEM conference as possible. To help you get started, here is an optimized schedule of Search Engine Strategies San Jose for an SES newbie, an SEO specialist, a PPC specialist, and an SEM veteran.

Day 1 - Monday, August 18, 2008

9:00am-9:30am Whole Team: Conference Welcome & Orientation

9:45am-11:00am SES Newbie: Search Industry Update SEO Specialist: Universal & Blended Search PPC Specialist: More Customers, Fewer Costs - Why Marketing to the 'Long Tail' Makes Sense SEM Veteran: Mobile SEO: Death of the “.mobi”

11:15am-12:30pm SES Newbie: The Next Wave for Online Video SEO Specialist: Igniting Viral Campaigns PPC Specialist: Giving Credit Where It's Due: Which Campaign Sold What? SEM Veteran: Semantic Search: How Will It Change Our Lives?

1:30pm-2:30pm Whole Team: Orion Keynote Panel: How Much Search is Enough?

2:45pm-4:00pm SES Newbie: Video Search Engine Optimization (VSEO) SEO Specialist: Storyteller Marketing: How the Art of Storytelling Matches Up With the Business of Marketing PPC Specialist: Everything But Google: Alternative Search Advertising Options SEM Veteran: Enterprise Search: Running Your Own Search Engine

4:30pm-5:30pm Whole Team: Opening Keynote Presentation Lee Siegel, Author of “Against the Machine”

Day 2 - Tuesday, August 19, 2008

9:00am-10:00am Whole Team: Morning Keynote Satya Nadella, Senior VP, Search, Portal & Advertising Platform Group, Microsoft

10:00am-11:00am Whole Team: Expo Hall Grand Opening

11:00am-12:15pm SES Newbie: Introduction to Search Engine Marketing SEO Specialist: Measuring Success in a 2.0 World PPC Specialist: Landing Page Testing & Tuning SEM Veteran: Shopping Search Tactics

1:30pm-2:30pm Whole Team: Orion Keynote Panel:: Technical & Information Giants

4:00pm-5:15pm SES Newbie: Search Advertising 101 SEO Specialist: Identify, Analyze, Act: SEM by Numbers PPC Specialist: Landing Page Utopia: Expert Roundtable SEM Veteran: Research Online, Purchase Offline

5:15pm-6:30pm Whole Team: Networking Cocktail Reception

7:00pm-11:00pm Whole Team: Google Dance Buses depart for the Google Campus from 6:30pm

Day 3 - Wednesday, August 20, 2008

9:00am-10:00am Whole Team: Special Session

10:30am-11:45am SES Newbie: Building a Search Friendly Site SEO Specialist: SEO Through Blogs & Feeds PPC Specialist: Ads in a Quality Score World SEM Veteran: Getting Vertical Search Right

1:00pm-2:15pm SES Newbie: Link Building Basics SEO Specialist: News Search SEO PPC Specialist: Auditing Paid Listings & Click Fraud Issues SEM Veteran: Searcher Behavior Research Update

2:45pm-4:00pm SES Newbie: Keywords & Content: Search Marketing Foundations SEO Specialist: Duplicate Content & Multiple Site Issues PPC Specialist: War of the Search Worlds: Unifying Your Global Search Marketing Program SEM Veteran: SEO Rehab & Intervention

4:15pm-5:30pm SES Newbie: Maximizing SEO Returns With User Generated Content SEO Specialist: Dealing With New Technologies PPC Specialist: Advanced Paid Search Techniques SEM Veteran: Black Hat, White Hat: Playing Dirty With SEO

5:30pm-7:00pm Whole Team: Domain Auction

7:00pm-11:00pm Whole Team: SearchBash Just blocks from the Convention Center from 7:00pm till late!

Day 4 - Thursday, August 21, 2008

9:00am-10:00am Whole Team: Morning Keynote Chip Heath, Author of “Made to Stick”

10:15am-11:15am SES Newbie: The Business Case for SEO Content Development: Turning Words Into Action! SEO Specialist: How to Speak Geek: Working Collaboratively With Your IT Department To Get Stuff Done PPC Specialist: Effective Contextual Search Management SEM Veteran: Site Clinic

11:30am-12:30pm SES Newbie: Fast, Free & Easy Tools to Get You Going SEO Specialist: Trademark Issues: What SEMs Should Know PPC Specialist: Creating a Cohesive Search Strategy Across Multiple Business Units SEM Veteran: Site Clinic

1:30pm-2:30pm SES Newbie: How to Choose a Search Vendor SEO Specialist: Best Kept Secrets to Search PPC Specialist: Post Click Marketing - Converting Search Engine Traffic SEM Veteran: Affiliate & Search Marketing Square Off

2:45pm-3:45pm SES Newbie: Organic Listings Forum SEO Specialist: In House SEO: Lessons Learned & Victories Won PPC Specialist: Search Advertising Tools SEM Veteran: Site Clinic

Yes, I know that I included special events like the Google Dance in the schedule above. But, trust me on this: You'll learn as much talking to the Google guys and girls at the Google campus as you will by attending any of the conference sessions listed above.

Before you register, take a hard look at sending some of your people to the SEM and SEO training workshops on the day following the conference. They are designed to provide in-depth training in a small class setting.

You may want to send your SES newbie, SEO specialist, and PPC specialist to one or two of these half-day workshops.

Day 5 - Friday, August 22, 2008

8:00am-12:00pm SES Newbie: Successful SEO: The Essential Elements - Part 1 SEO Specialist: Optimizing for Universal Search PPC Specialist: Search & Analytics Workshop: Using Analytics to Increase Search Effectiveness

12:00pm-1:00pm Whole Team: Lunch Break

1:00pm-5:00pm SES Newbie: Successful SEO: The Essential Elements - Part 2 SEO Specialist: Search Engine Marketing Metrics and Myths PPC Specialist: Making Pay Per Click Pay - Best Practices in Pay Per Click Advertising

If you optimize your schedule for SES San Jose, then you will increase the likelihood that your team will return with more than enough new search engine marketing opportunities, better search engine optimization techniques, and different pay-per-click advertising options to provide your organization with a very healthy return on its investment.

See you there.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 6:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)

July 7, 2008

Building the business case for going to SES San Jose

It's that time of year again. Search Engine Strategies San Jose will be held the week of August 18, 2008. And whether this will be your first SES San Jose ever, or the sixth one in a row that you've attended since 2003, you might need to spend little time optimizing your schedule for what search engine marketers call “the big one.”

A quick look at the conference at a glance will tell you why. There are a total of 77 conference sessions, strategic development workshops, Orion panels, and keynote presentations crammed into the four-day Search Engine Strategies conference. And on the fifth day, there are an additional six SEM training workshops.

Since there are five concurrent tracks during the SEM conference and three concurrent workshops during the SEM training, no one can attend everything – unless, of course, you bring a team of five or more people to SES San Jose.

And deciding which sessions to attend isn't just daunting for the first-time attendee. It's also a challenge to SES Alumni.

If you compare last year's conference at a glance with this year's conference at a glance, you see that only 12 of the sessions and two of the workshops are repeats. And four of the “repeat sessions” are Site Clinics or the Organic Listings Forum, which examine new web sites or issues every year. This means almost 88% of the content at Search Engine Strategies San Jose 2008 will be brand new!

The rate of change in the search engine marketing industry comes as a surprise to some – especially the bean counters over in finance. They act like going to one SEM conference a year ago means you don't really need to go to another one this year. But you can't learn search engine marketing the way they learned the multiplication tables.

So, if they give you any grief about taking a team of people to SES San Jose 2008, remind them that it will get increasingly harder to manage the bottom line if you don't continually find new ways to increase the top line. Who knows, skipping this year's conference could end up costing a bean counter his or her full-time position next year.

If the folks in finance don't buy that argument, then build your business case for attending the show. And do it in the next couple of weeks.

If you sign up before August 1, you can save $200 off the cost of Platinum Passport. And, if you bring more than two people from your organization, the third, fourth, and others registering at the same time qualify for 50% off their registration fee.

I'm not making this up. Read the registration information for yourself.

If you sign up for a full-day of the SEM training workshops, you'll save $145 off the cost to two half-day workshops. And, if you make reservations by July 23, you should be able to find hotel rooms for $179 per night.

All in all, bringing a team of four people to the four-day Search Engine Strategies conference as well as the fifth day of SEM training can cost your company under $12,000 – less than $3,000 per person – not counting airline reservations.

This means your business will break even if your entire team discovers new Search Engine Marketing (SEM) opportunities, learns better Search Engine Optimization (SEO) techniques, or finds different Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising options that generate an extra $1,000 a month. And, if each member of your four-person team finds a way to generate an extra $1,000 a month, then you'll be showing a very healthy return on investment (ROI) from bringing them to SES San Jose.

How realistic is this scenario?

According to the Search Engine Strategies San Jose website, you will learn: • How search engines list Web sites for free and through paid placements; • How to get free “organic” traffic by building a site that pleases search engines and your visitors; • How to efficiently purchase listings guaranteed to rank your company at the top of search engine results; • How to calculate the ROI of your search marketing efforts by tracking your visitors from the time they hit your site until they buy – and get tips on improving conversion if they don't! • How to build links that generate traffic to your Web site, and how to avoid the penalties of “spamming” the search engines; • What's coming next in the constantly evolving world of Web search, and how you can profit from it.

But wait! There's more!

According to data and research provided by Efficient Frontier, the average cost-per-click (CPC) in the “Total finance” category, which includes auto finance, banking, credit, financial information, insurance, lending, and mortgage, was $2.96 in May. So, if each member of your team finds a way to generate 338 extra clicks per month – less than a dozen clicks a day – then he or she will be providing your organization with a very healthy ROI.

Can each member of your team come back from SES San Jose with new, better or different ways to generate a dozen extra clicks a day? That's the business case that you can make to the bean counters. And trust me on this: The folks over in finance will love it when you talk numbers to them.

So, let's say you get the okay to bring a team of four all the way to San Jose. They still won't be able to cover every session. And now each person is on the hook for coming back to the office with new SEM opportunities, better SEO techniques, and different PPC advertising options that can generate 338 extra clicks a month.

Tomorrow, I'll recommend the sessions and workshops that an SES newbie, an SEO specialist, a PPC specialist, and an SEM veteran should attend – to ensure that your business gets the biggest bang for its bucks. It's not a difficult task. There is so much great content being presented.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 8:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 25, 2008

Q&A with Darby Sieben of the Yellow Pages Group

Search engine marketers in the US tend to look West when trying to spot new SEM trends. As Frederick Jackson Turner first observed back in 1893, the frontier has always had a significant influence on American perceptions.

But, if you stare into the sunset too long, you might not see the other “new frontier” North of the Canada-United States border that's also shaping search engine marketing trends. While Search Engine Strategies Toronto ended last week, I'm still sorting through some of the new SEM trends that I spotted by looking in a different direction.

One of the more intriguing trends that I noticed was this one: More than 80 employees of the Yellow Pages Group (YPG), Canada's largest directory publisher, attended SES Toronto. YPG also owns and manages Canada's most visited online directories, YellowPages.ca and Canada411.ca, so the company is no stranger to local search or Search Engine Strategies Toronto.

Now, I've often encouraged SES alumni as well as first time attendees of Search Engine Strategies to “bring a couple of colleagues along with you” to an upcoming SEM conference. And I've seen companies send teams of more than a dozen people to other SES conferences. But, I've never seen a group quite as large as the one I saw at SES Toronto last week.

So, I tracked down one of the key players behind this new trend. His name is Darby Sieben and he's the Director of Online Services at the Yellow Pages Group. You can watch my interview with Darby on the SES Conference Expo channel on YouTube.

Yellow Pages' Darby Sieben at SES Toronto 2008

Or you can read my interview with Darby Sieben of the Yellow Pages Group below. He has some very interesting insights into small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Q: The Yellow Pages directory story started 100 years ago by connecting Canadian buyers with sellers. YellowPages.ca went online in 1995. Has the Internet dramatically changed the way people approach the shopping experience?

A: Yes and No. By this I mean, the need of connecting buyers and sellers has not changed and never will. The way in which they go about doing it has changed and will continue to evolve and the Internet is only one way. Consumers are more complex today and depending on the need and particular circumstances will connect using a combination of ways including print, internet, voice, mobile, etc. The key piece of advice to a SME in this evolving world is to understand that this is about syndication of their information across multiple media platforms.

Q: According to comScore Media Metrix, the Yellow Pages Group reaches 41% of all online Canadians -- and ranks #8 out of the top properties in Canada. In the United States, the SuperPages.com Network reaches about 16% of all online Americans and ranks about #21 out of the top properties in the United States. What's going on in the Great White North? A: The main difference between Canada and the US is the fact that the Yellow Pages brand in Canada is trademarked; we are the sole owners and users of the brand. In the US, the value and strength of the brand has been diluted as there is confusion. Second, I believe we are a very progressive directory player. We were the first to sign a deal to license data to Google, we work with all the major search players and we continue to push the envelope on technologies such as our 411 voice services, SMS, IM and our mobile platforms. Syndication of our advertiser's information is very important. We believe in the anywhere, anytime and on any platform to get information.

Q: The content and keywords found in a print advertisement in the Yellow Pages Group and contained in a business profile on YellowPages.ca are fully searchable on the web and made available to your online partner network including Google, MSN and Yahoo! Isn't that that a strange brew?

A: We don't think so. If we examine a key barrier to search, that would be content. YP.ca and the search players are only as good as content that is digitized. The issue is that half of Canadian SME's don't have a website. We view print as the start of a very incredible journey for a SME because it contains very important pieces of content that consumers look for in the buying process. Those ads get digitized; keywords extracted, bucketized and distributed on YP.ca for our users as well as being pushed to search engines who index. It creates some incredible synergies and creates an ROI for our advertisers. To add one point here – a few years back we launched an initiative called the WebNumber. This is where we have mapped every phone number in our directory to a URL. For example – http://7804517857.yp.ca (this is the phone number for a Harley Davidson Dealership in Edmonton, Alberta). If you type that URL in – you land on their merchant page and can see their video and a host of rich content about that business. Many of our clients will register a domain name and simply point it to their page instead of investing in expensive design services.

Q: More than 80 people from the Yellow Pages Group attended Search Engine Strategies Toronto last week. Why did you bring everyone except the McKenzie brothers to the conference?

A: Well Bob and Doug are launching a cartoon version of their hit from SCTV to be aired this fall, so they were unavailable. On a serious note it is all about further learning's and understanding. In 2007 we signed Canada's first reseller agreement with Google and have bundled AdWords with our print and YellowPages.ca advertising. We also launched last year full customized search marketing solutions based on a budget spend and have been testing and continue to sell a guaranteed clicks product. To really become the CMO for small businesses you need to understand all sources of generating results for your customer. Q: You mentioned that you are bundling Google with your print and YellowPages.ca advertising – isn't Google considered a competitor? A: We are definitely in a world of cooperative competition. You referenced ComScore earlier; here is a key fact that best explains the strategy. If we examine the unduplicated audience between Google Maps and our properties – what you realize is that there is a significant boost in audience reach. Both of us have around 31-32% reach and combined we reach over 50% - that is incredible for any SME who is looking to be placed in the path of consumers when they are making buying decisions. One thing I would like to add is that in terms of the purchase funnel – YellowPages.ca generates a very high ROI because by the time users come to us they tend to already know what they want to buy or are very close to a buying decision and need to do some comparisons. We tend to be further down the purchase funnel than search engines and the measurement for SME's has to go beyond clicks to include phone calls and store visits. As we often say, nobody comes to YellowPages.ca to surf they come to buy and this remains a key focus for us.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 1:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 19, 2008

Top stories and blog posts from SES Toronto Day 2

Search Engine Strategies Toronto wrapped up yesterday. I'll be analyzing some of the new trends that I spotted in Canada over the next couple of weeks. But I wanted to share the top stories and blog posts for SES Toronto Day 2 this morning, so you can get a sense of the highlights from the SEM conference.

Fredrick Marckini, the Founder of iProspect and Chief Global Search Officer of Isobar, gave the opening keynote. Mona Elesseily, the Director of Marketing Strategy of Page Zero Media, interviewed Marckini for the Search Engine Strategies Conference & Expo Channel on YouTube right after his keynote.

Fredrick Marckini of Isobar on Tracking Offline Conversions

Accordion Guy Joey deVilla provides a full set of notes from the keynote in a post entitled, “Fredrick Marckini's Keynote at Search Engine Strategies 2008 Toronto.”

Bryan Eisenberg, the Co-Founder of Future Now Inc., gave the keynote presentation on Day 2 of SES Toronto. Mitch Joel, President of Twist Image, interviewed Eisenberg about the impact of the economy on search engine marketing.

Bryan Eisenberg on Site Metrics and Optimization

Jennifer Laycock of the Search Engine Guide Blog says, “If you only read one link from today's Puppy's Picks, you should check out Chris Winfield's fantastically creative Twitter presentation from SES Toronto.” Winfield made his presentation at the “Twitter: Ultimate Time Waster or Great Tool?” session.

Rahaf Harfoush, aka The Foush, also weighs in on this session in a post entitled, “SES Toronto - Is Twitter A Time Waster?”

Chris Ragobeer of The Toronto Marketing and Technology Blog covered “SES Toronto 2008 Day 2 : Web 2.0 & Search Engines.”

Lisa Tarticchio of the aimClear Blog covered the “Introduction to Search Engine Marketing” session in a post entitled, "SES Toronto: Essential Return To Basics."

Jim Crocker of the Boardroom Metrics CEO Blog “took a break from reality” to attend the Search Engine Strategies Conference in Toronto and reports his observations in a post entitled, “SES Toronto Day 2.”

Naoise of NVI's Blog also provided some perspective on the conference in a post entitled, “SES Toronto - There's something sticky going on here.”

Stephan Spencer shared some Social Media “Hacks” (at SES Toronto) in his presentation on the “Social Media Success” panel and commented on them in his Scatterings blog.

Meanwhile, south of the border, The Austin Business Journal reported that Austin-based Apogee will open an office in Toronto, Canada, in an article entitled, “Apogee Search sees big potential in Canadian office.”

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 8:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 17, 2008

Top stories and blog posts from SES Toronto: Day 1

Weather delayed my arrival in Toronto for the start of Search Engine Strategies, but I was able to catch up quickly by reading what other journalists and bloggers were saying about the SEM conference. Here's a roundup of the top stories and blog posts that I found this evening:

SES Toronto Day 1: State of Search Marketing in Canada Andrew Goodman of Traffick provides a brief update from conference-land.

Hello from Search Engine Strategies 2008 Toronto! Joey deVilla, aka The Accordion Guy, covered Fredrick Marckini's Opening Keynote and the best thing in the goodie bag given to attendees.

Notes From SES Toronto 2008: Day One Toronto Mike's Blog threw down a quick entry with some thoughts about search engine marketing.

Going to Search Engine Strategies (SES) Toronto 08 nicolask7 of Montreal Social Media covered some of the panels as well as the other Montrealers at SES Toronto.

SES Toronto 2008: Opening Keynote Louis-Dominic of Adviso covered the opening keynote.

SES Toronto 2008: Universal and blended search Simon Lamarche of Innovation Web is covering the SEM conference in French: "Nous sommes actuellement Ã Toronto pour le SES Toronto 2008."

Updates - Exciting News on the Foush!! Rahaf Harfoush is live-blogging the Toronto Search Engine Strategies Conference.

David Snyder As a result of both Twitter and SES Toronto 2008, Mike of Drop the Mike Blog had the pleasure to meet up with and spend some time with a very good up and coming Internet Marketer, David Snyder.

Getting Authoritative Online Mentions (SES Toronto) Stephan Spencer came in late to the "Beyond Linkbait: Getting Authoritative Online Mentions" session, but he did have notes from Jim Hedger's presentation for Scatterings.

SES Toronto - Day 1 Evan Carmichael of the YoungEntrepreneur.com Blog outlines the sessions that he's selected to follow at SES Toronto.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 11:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 13, 2008

Two dozen search blogs buzzing about SEM conference

If you're getting ready to go to Search Engine Strategies Toronto next week – or still on the fence about whether to attend SES Toronto June 16-18 – then check out the buzz from more than two dozen search blogs that has been leading up to the SEM conference.

If fact, the buzz in Canada has been louder this year than the one coming from the periodical cicadas that emerge every 17 years from underground haunts on Cape Cod. (Hey, I'm not making this up. Just read “Cape is again abuzz” from The Boston Globe.)

What Google calls “the buzzing blogger community” has been blogging about the speakers who will be speaking at Search Engine Strategies Toronto. I should know. I was among the first bloggers to start buzzing about “Why search engine marketers should attend SES Toronto 2008.”

But, I haven't been alone.

More than two dozen other search blogs joined the chorus. Here's a list of the posts about next week's SEM conference that I was able to find today – and I'm sure that I'm missing more:

An Analytic Approach to SEO and PPC Entrevue - Eric Morris de Google Canada Search Engine Strategies (SES) Toronto Speaking Schedule for June: Millennial Financial, DM Days & SES Toronto

Andrew Goodman On Toronto SES

Search Engine Optimization - Toprank's CEO shares tips and Tricks

Interview: Jane Motz Hayes on SEO and Usability

How To Succeed With Search

SES Toronto 2008: Interview with Jill Whalen on SEO Donts, Myths, and Scams

Interview with Mitch Joel

Metamend Speakers at SMX Advanced and SES Toronto

Mission Critical for Non-Profits to Make the Search Connection

Is Your Web Site Accessible?

My interview with Matt McGowan, VP of Marketing - Incisive Media

SES Toronto 2008

SES Toronto - Combine Professional Development with Family Fun

SEO Myths with WestJet's Lyndsay Walker

Speaking at SES Toronto 2008

SES Toronto, Here I Come!

Search Around the World - an Interview with Alicia Morga about Search Marketing for the Hispanic Market

Urban Mapping to Speak at SES Toronto 2008

Is There A Need For More Search Conferences In Canada?

So, “the buzzing blogger community” has really been abuzz about the SEM conference that gets underway on Tuesday, June 17, at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre (South Bldg.), in Toronto, Canada. It's not too late to register to find out what all this buzz is about for yourself.

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 10:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

June 9, 2008

Q&A with June Li, Founder and Managing Director of ClickInsight

With SES Toronto coming up June 16-18, 2008, we interviewed June Li, the founder and managing director of ClickInsight. June will be one of the speakers at the “Giving Credit Where It's Due: Which Campaign Sold What?” session, which will be held on Wednesday, June 18, from 4:00 to 5:15 p.m.

June has over 20 years of e-business, marketing, manufacturing, logistics and sales experience. She is also an associate instructor for the web analytics program at the University of British Columbia, as well as an instructor for a web analytics course at the University of Toronto Professional Learning Centre, Faculty of Information Studies.

June has spoken and moderated at the Emetrics Summit and is a contributing writer to OneDegree.ca and the AIMS blog.

Q. You founded ClickInsight, a business that creates successful strategies for clients to multiply their online leads and sales. Can you provide SEW readers with a sample of some of your latest Web analytics projects? What is the latest “buzz” in the field of Web analytics? A. We use web analytics to help businesses accelerate their results from marketing initiatives. Almost all of our business breakthrough projects involve an analysis of search marketing, either organic or paid. And since Canada is a net exporter of goods and services, with the Canadian dollar as strong as it is, there's been increasing interest in using search to get more qualified leads. Cold calling is such a probability game, why not attract the buyers who are need your goods and services and are looking for what you have to offer? Analytics is a necessity for defining baselines for improvement. Businesses that have not optimized their site for search or are not using paid search should look at their organic search keywords using their web analytics system. What searches are driving traffic to their site? More often than not, the search keywords include just the company name in some way. This means only the people who already know about your organization are coming to your site, and you're not reaching new prospects. And if you are getting generic, non-branded searches, don't stop there? You may not be visible to your target market, and unless you drill down to see who your visitors are, you won't know what you're missing. What's the latest buzz? Social media measurement and mobile analytics. Both have great linkages to search and positioning on the search results page. Q. How does your company make use or not make use of Google analytics? A. We and many of our clients make use of Google Analytics (and other tools) to assess the impact of marketing and site changes. We want to see whether our changes have the intended impact on where our visitors are coming from, what's driving them to our sites, and what's not. Google Analytic's new benchmarking availability is interesting and has definitely triggered some very interesting discussions. We also use Google Analytics to mine and analyze onsite search to see what people think you should have on your website. Perhaps what they're looking for isn't present or is difficult to find. But Google Analytics can't tell you what might work better. So we also use and recommend Google Website Optimizer for testing alternate options and 4Q (4Q.iperceptions.com) to “listen” to the voice of the customer. Without listening, you won't have the insight on what might be improved or the reason why people behave as they do on your site. And if this still doesn't provide what you need, surveys and usability testing might be next. Q. What got you fascinated about Web analytics to begin with? Did you ever suffer any of the experiences that so many of your clients come to your company for to help solve? A. Since I started with web analytics on the client side, I'm quite familiar with the issues companies have managing web analytics data, reports and analysis. Without analytics, you're guessing as to what's happening on your website and with your online marketing initiatives. And who can afford to guess, particularly now that we're seeing the economy slowing down and in Canada, coping with a stronger dollar. Web analytics won't solve everything (it's not magic and it's not perfect) but you're much better off with the insights analytics can provide than none at all. Web analytics practices continue to evolve, integrating with data mining and expanding to include social media and mobile analytics. Q. What excites you about Search Engine Strategies Toronto? What do you look forward to most? A. This will be the 4th Search Engine Strategies I'll have attended in Toronto, and they get better every time. Last year, I was happy to see there was much more discussion “beyond the click” and about landing page conversion, the money-making “value event”. I'm sure this year will bring yet another advance in the community. SES is a great place to gauge the pulse of the search community, where businesses are at with search, learn what leading organizations are doing, and have fun discussions about the current myths of search and what the crawlers are up to now, where they're going next. Q. You teach a Web Analytics Training course at the University of Toronto. Do you plan to draw upon any of it for your presentation at SES Toronto? A. Absolutely. The Web Analytics training course at the University of Toronto is an introductory course intended to help those who need to show value from website content understand not only the technical basics but also the management and organization pre-requisites for success. Key to using web analytics is a clear understanding your goals. Only then can you set up your analytics plan to properly (and sanely) assess performance and progress towards attaining your goal. I'm really looking forward to the panel I'm on. We're tackling the topic of Multi-Channel Measurement. Goal setting is critical to ensuring you don't drown in multi-channel data and can actually make sense of what you're measuring. Q. Put on your prognosticator helmet: What is the future of Web analytics? Say over the next 10 to 20 years? A. 10-20 years? We're having problems with 2-3 years! Web analytics will become “analytics”. With new online and integrated technologies proliferating, the tools to measure will evolve, perhaps not fast enough but they'll evolve. For sure things will get more complicated, and that's what keeps it interesting and fun!

Posted by Greg Jarboe at 8:26 AM | Permalink |