No, Not that one. This one!

Thanks Google! While it is currently empty, I'm sure we'll all be stocking it with Gatorades, various sodas, candy bars and pudding very soon. What do you have stocked in your office fridge?

Labels: guest-posts, shout-outs

Today's post is a guest-post from one of my industry buds Taylor Pratt of LunaMetrics. Taylor was fortunate enough to attend the sunny, warm setting of PubCon last week in Las Vegas, while I was in the Windy City battling a small snow storm. Lucky guy! In the post to follow, Taylor has provided a recap of last week's PubCon conference, and has highlighted his favorite sessions, the biggest take-a-ways, and a few of the areas that need improvement.

For additional information on Taylor Pratt, I encourage you all to check out his brand-spanking new blog Gonzo SEO (launched yesterday).

I'm finally home after attending an amazing conference. I've only been to three conferences in my young career, but this year's Pubcon was the best. Not only was there a lot to learn, but the people I met were awesome. It's amazing what a few drinks can do!

Instead of going session by session, I thought I'd wrap up Pubcon 2007 a different way. If you want even more detail about the sessions, head over to the Bruce Clay blog or Search Engine Roundtable to read great right-ups by Lisa and Tamar.

TOP 5 SESSIONS

Social Media 101: the Playing Field. If having an all star panel wasn't enough, I have to give Rand Fishkin of SEOmoz credit: he gave an awesome presentation. Rand, one of the most entertaining speakers, outlined 20 places to get live links in the social media world, 20 domains with strong profile rankings (for reputation management), and 12 unique sites to promote your social media content. At Rand's request, I can't publish them. Sorry guys and gals.

Michael Gray, aka Graywolf, gave great tips on writing content for Social Media. I had the pleasure of hearing Graywolf speak on many panels, and he has a gift for social media content. Some of his great tips, included:

• Write short, easy to read, scannable content
• Include eye-catching images above the fold
• Use a calendar and current events when creating linkbait

Site Reviews with Rae Hoffman and Dixon Jones. I have had the pleasure of attending multiple site reviews with these two, and each of them have been fantastic. Although Rae is often wrongly accused of being to harsh, I think they provide great analysis and fantastic advice for all in the audience. I work on a lot of audits for clients, and it was great to see how these two could perform a well thought out one in only five minutes.

Site Reviews: Focus on Social Media. This site review had a social media all star panel. We were able to pick the brains of Tamar Weinberg, Todd Malicoat, Brent Csutoras, Rebecca Kelley, and Michael Gray. They reviewed many difficult sites to create link bait for, and were able to create multiple great ideas for each of them. They also shared a number of great tips as well:

• They talked to us about their favorite link baiting hooks, and gave a tip or two on how to be successful with them (i.e. provide a unique solution when using the attack hook to reinforce your argument).
• Don't overlook the social media site mixx.com
• When using a video to promote social media, keeping the length of the video under a minute works best. However, if you need to go longer, make sure the first 30 seconds are amazing.

Startup Costs: Getting in the Video Game. This was a very informative session, especially for me because I'm working hard at getting into the online video world (you should too.) The entire panel for this session was great, but one presentation really stood out: Robin Liss of camcorderinfo.com told us everything we needed to know about entering the video world. From tips on which equipment is best, to the most important dos and don'ts, her presentation rocked! Best tips:

• Remember: half of the video is audio! Don't overlook the power of having good sound.
• The most important accessory is the tripod - no one likes a shaky video.
• If you plan on editing your video, tape and HDV cameras are the best to use (instead of hard drive and DVD camcorders).

Search and Blogging Reporters Forum. What made this panel so interesting was that it was pretty much an open floor. You could ask this panel of industry experts just about anything. The panel included Rand Fishkin, Michael McDonald, Lee Odden, and Andy Beal. I asked the panel whether or not it was a good idea to allow comments on a new blog. In my opinion it can hurt your creditability to see 0 comments on every post. Rand said that he has done this before, and it isn't a bad idea. Build up an audience and then turn them on. Alternatively, he said you could get some friends to make sure they comment regularly on the blog to start up the conversation.

BIGGEST COMPLAINTS ABOUT PUBCON

As great as Pubcon was, there were still some improvements that could be made:

• Lack of Wifi. For the first two days of the conference there was very limited connectivity. It wasn't until the last day of sessions that we were able to have a connection in every room.
• No water in the morning. The breakfast selection was nice, but after being at the Pub all night: I need to hydrate!!
• Lack of time in between sessions. At most we would have 5 minutes to get to the next session. This left very little time for restroom breaks, to find a place with internet, and to socialize between sessions.
• A small exhibit hall. Brett said it was one of the largest he has ever had, but...I've seen bigger. (That's what she said!)

The biggest issue of any conference is the lack of public parties for everyone to get together. While I didn't get to attend the Microsoft private party or anything like that, I felt there were still a lot of opportunities to socialize with other people. SEOmoz setup a Werewolf game for everyone to play following the public Google party. Once a few of us turned it into a drinking game, it was even more fun (I'm the guy in the Google hat)!

(Photo courtesy of dk of Purposeinc.)

Another favorite event of mine was the first annual SEO Texas Holdem Tournament (somehow I think you would have really enjoyed this too, Karl). This was an awesome night, filled with about 90 entrants and free drinks - after a $200 buy in (some of which went to charity). I ended up finishing in 10th place, 1 place out of the money. It was a great opportunity to network and take advantage of being in Las Vegas.

(Photo courtesy of dk of Purposeinc.)

The best advice I can give anyone who attends a conference: remember, there are many people in this industry who are extremely knowledgeable - and you probably haven't heard of them. In other words, don't hesitate to talk to someone just because they aren't a guru. There are a number of great people in this industry who you haven't even heard of.

Overall, I really enjoyed the conference and meeting a bunch of new people. Thanks Karl for letting me post a recap on your blog, it is one of my favorites!

Labels: conferences, guest-posts

Labels: guest-posts, paid-search

Labels: commentary-rants, guest-posts

Time to get sentimental (hold back the tears). The end of 2006 is upon us and it's time to reflect on all of the great articles and posts we have read and discussed with each other over the past year. For me, it seemed like there was an abundance of Top 10 Lists popping up all over blogs, which is great! I love Top 10 Lists! They're direct, straight to the point - I can skim through them and read the points that catch my eye and I'm done! So with that, I (and others) thought it would be beneficial if someone compiled a list to remind us of all of the great Top Whatever's of the past year related to the industry (if it wasn't, this list would be chock full of Letterman jokes). I'm happy to present my Top 10 List of (but not limited to) Top 10 Lists of 2006 + 2, or as it is known in Europe, Listmania Haus 2006.

1.) 12 Different Types of Links and How to Get Them by Stuntdubl.
What better way to start a Top 10 list post than with the king of Top Whatever/Reasons, Stuntdubl. As someone who knew the benefits of linking, I didn't quite know alternative ways to go about getting actual quality links from web sites other than sending out blind emails begging for a link (exaggeration). This post is an excellent guide to have on hand on not only showing what kind of links to aquire, but also what to look for to identify a particular quality link, examples, and additional notes on how to go about getting this link.

2.) Top 7 SEO Mistakes For New Site Owners by Mr. SEO.
This is an excellent list of SEO Mistakes that new site owners should have folded up in their back pocket. Simple and easy for the newest of newbies to understand, he outlines many of the things I tell my clients to avoid or should be doing at the very least. This is a list anyone can do and should be doing.

3.) 101 Ways to Build Link Popularity in 2006 by Andy Hagans and Aaron Wall.
The mother load of linking tips. Broken up into categories and sections, this list is an invaluable resource of knowledge and ideas. It is so huge and such a great resource that ANYONE should be able to pull at least ONE great idea from it and act on it. In fact, I'm acting on the first category right now: "Love for Lists." Print this baby out!

4.) 10 Remarkably Effective Strategies for Driving Traffic by randfish.
The team over at SEOMoz does an excellent job of cranking out useful, informative post after post that you would have to think they are in fact not humans but Data-like characters who sit 24/7 writing posts to make benefit glorious industry of SEO (a Star Trek and Borat reference all rolled into one.) Seriously though, this list outlines different ways you can drive traffic to your site through the use of either great design, a creative Keyword campaign, or simply attending your industry events and writing about it. When you read it, you can realize how you can use the tools around you to actually improve your site easily.

5.) Top 10 Business Mistakes Search Marketing Firms Make by Marketing Pilgrim.
Maybe a lot of us search marketing agencies spend so much time improving the quality of our clients businesses that we forget to update our own businesses ways of operation! Here, Andy details how Search Marketing Firms may be missing the boat on how to effectively benefit their business, which in the long run, will make you and your clients more successful. Not only can this list come in handy for Search Marketing Firms, but you can most likely apply it to any business.

6.) Do Your Users Trust You?: 21 Tips for Improved Website Credibility by stuntdubl.
In this list, Todd outlines different ways any online business can give themselves the credibility they need to attract more business. It is so easy to be a fly-by-night operation on the internet that savy customers are now looking for ways to make sure you are a credible business they can safely transact with. For instance, by simply adding an 800 number with your business hours, or by adding a physical address you can build some confidence within your customers. What have you done to improve your customer confidence?

7.) 7 Reasons Why You Should Add More Content to Your Website by Jim Boykin. Conference after conference, agency after agency, you are told to add content to your site, and here is why in 7 sweet and short reasons. Let's do some role playing, I'll be Jim, you can be an inquiring mind.

You: "So Jim, why do you think my site isn't showing up in Google?"
Jim: "You've got the same content on your pages as 50 other sites have."
You: "And this is a problem how?"
Jim: "Google will try to choose the 1 page it thinks is the 'real' one, will it be yours? Or will yours go supplemental?"

Read the rest of his reasons to find out why you may not be showing up on the SERPS.

8.) 11 Best Practices for URLS by randfish.
If you're thinking about adding a whole new product line to your web site, or are in the process of developing a new web site, then this post is a must. Your URLS are important in not only that search engines are becoming pickier and pickier about what they'll like better but they also can improve your click through rate. For instance, if you're URL is http://www.example.com/acf934.html and the URL right next to your listing is http://www.example2.com/product-i-want.html, which would you be more inclined to click on? This list outlines many more ways to make the most of your websites URLS.

9.) The 12 days of Christmas by Paul Boisvert.
Ok, ok, maybe this isn't exactly along the same lines as the other posts, but it is still a list and an excellent one at that. Paul from the official Yahoo! Store Blog gave 12 great tips on how to maximize the effectiveness of your Yahoo! Store. Start implementing these tips into your store and I'll bet you'll see some vast improvements in your store through the year.

10.) 99 Branding Tips for Poor Web Startups by the Aviva Directory.
You know what's great about the internet? Is that anyone can pretty much start up their own business from the comfort of their own home. You know what isn't so great about the internet? Is that not everyone can afford to market their web site from the comfort of their own home. Check out this list for 99 different ways you can market your web site with even the smallest of budgets.

Bonus!

Jill Whalen's 10 Signs That your SEO is a Quack! If your SEO mentions the items in this list, then maybe it's time you moved to a new agency.

+

While doing my research for this post, I came across a post by Neil Patel who did a post on his Top 50 Favorite Blogging Resources. He lists some great web sites where you can get the know-how and find the resources you need to create a successful blog.

Bonus Bonus!

While Karl didn't want me to mention any of his posts in this article because it would look bad (and I think he only did one list post anyway), he did do an excellent article: How to Attain Repeat Business. He offers some great ways you may not have thought of to keep customers coming back to your store. For instance, by simply adding your business card with your order or offering free samples with each order, you can increse the chances of your customers returning to your site. It's worth a read.

So this concludes my Top 10 List of Top 10 List posts of this year. Do you agree, disagree? Who and what did I miss? Does this even matter because it'll all be irrelevant in a few months anyway? :P Please share your thoughts - and have a great New Year!

Labels: commentary-rants, guest-posts

This week, our top 4 favorite search engines have added some tools to their game, which will help personalize the over all experience for their users. I get the feeling that the general public doesn't realize the features and capabilities search engines have and are making to improve their online experience. So, for those of you who don't subscribe to the search engines blog or keep up to date on what's going on, here is a quick recap of each addition.

Ask.com
With the official start of summer nearly upon us, Ask.com unveiled their Weather Search tools just in time to help provide users plan their vacation days. What I like about this new search feature, is that like on Google and Yahoo, you do not have to download a pesky toolbar, or have an annoying pop up show whenever a storm is brewing 80 miles away. Simply type in "weather, your city" (zip code, county or state) and you can see today's projected temperatures, current temperature, and weather condition. You also have the option to view the 7 day forecast, and view your choice of Celsius or Fahrenheit. Also, Ask provides you with seasonal weather, so you can start to plan your next winter get-a-way vacation to Hawaii. Interested in surfing conditions and ski conditions? Ask is the only search engine that I found to offer that information when entering a specific search like surf conditions San Diego or ski conditions for Falls Creak, Australia.

What I've come to find out though, is that it seems Ask only seems to consider people on the coasts to be interested in boating and surf conditions. I suppose the 94,000 square miles of water known as The Great Lakes and the 10,900 miles of coast along the U.S. and Canada border isn't considered a significant large enough body of water to attract any boating or tourism during these summer months, therefore, who possibly is going to be searching for that information? Well... me. I personally am very interested in surface temps for Lake Michigan because of the fact that I live 3 or 4 hours away from any decent beach (that doesn't have garbage or toxic waste floating around). I don't want to travel all of that time just to find out that it's July 5, and the surface temp is still 45 degrees! So if Ask is going to go to the trouble of making it easier for people on the coasts, why not me?

I also don't see, why doesn't Ask and the other search engines offer weather information when you simply type in a location. Obviously, if you are entering a location you are either interested in information about that specific area or are planning on traveling to that area, therefore you will ultimately be interested in the weather there. If they decrease the size of the space designated for the weather report, it will hardly take away from the rest of the search results, and therefore help users refine their searches even more while providing useful information.

It is just a few days in with this new search feature and I'm sure as time goes on they'll add new features and information. It does remove a few extra steps for Ask's users to take, and for that I applaud their efforts.

While the remaining 3 search engines did make additions to their services, they were to tools that I don't normally use, so this will be a quick run down of what was updated.

MSN
For those of you who use, or are interested in using Windows Live, they announced that they are bringing email and search one step closer with their Active Search for Windows Live Mail Desktop Beta. Here is what they announced on the 2nd:

Active Search bridges the gap between your inbox and the broader web using the power of search. Using Active Search is essentially the same as conducting a ton of related searches the old fashioned way - by cutting and pasting terms from your emial into a seperate web browser - only without all of the effort

So what happens is if you are reading an email or an RSS article about the video iPod, what Active Search will do is show keywords they pick up from your message and show you search results related to the video iPod, so you can see real results, without having to open a new window. MSN also provides a search box right underneath, so you can search for the video iPod or anything else for that matter, without the hassle of opening a new browser. If you are already an MSN mail user, and you don't care for the new feature, you can go ahead and close it down. MSN also keeps your information confidential according to the agreement you have already agreed to when you signed up for their services, so those worried about what they are receiving in their email, can be assured that that information will remain confidential.

What I've come to find out in reading and learning about search behavior is that people tend to be impatient and dare I say lazy and want to take as few steps as possible to find what they are looking for, I myself included. So with Active Search, this truly does cut half the work in half and I think will be an invaluable service to it's users. It is also great for businesses, because if someone who has just read an email and now is intrigued more about this information or product, they will be more likely to make a purchase sometime soon about that product they searched for using Active Search.

Google
Attention Firefox users, Google has announced a new tool titled Google Browser Sync. This tool allows you to synchronize your browser settings on all of the computers you install it on. So the bookmarks, history, saved passwords, and persistent cookies you have saved can now transfer from your desktop to your laptop and even to your work computer. It even allows you to keep open tabs and windows across different browser sessions and computers.

So, if you have been dedicating your life to solving the mystery of JFK's assassination and have been spending the past few weeks digging through and book marking documents on your desktop from the CIA's web site, you can easily transfer those book marks over to your laptop by installing an extension on your laptop and synching the two computers together. So how does this differ from just copying and pasting your bookmarks onto your laptop? Well from then on when you add a bookmark to your laptop, you can go back to your desktop, who will then automatically update it with your laptops new additions. Nice, huh?

Yahoo
Yahoo just updated the design and look of their MyWeb service. MyWeb is a service like del.icio.us that allows users to save their bookmarks in a place they can access by just logging in with their Yahoo account. You can also share your bookmarks with other friends and family members. The idea is, to provide people with common interests the opportunity to find useful sites that people who have the same interests have found and bookmarked as well as your own bookmarks. Obviously, if the page is worth book marking, that means it is worth sharing. You can also search for terms, such as travel tips that will bring up sites others have found useful and bookmarked.

Along with the MyWeb design update, came some feature updates as well. "Top Tags" and "Interesting Today" shows users what are the most popular terms being searched for in My Web. Also, now when you do a search, not only do book marks show up, but also a list of people who share a same interest in your search. So I did a search in the Tag Finder for one of my interests, archeology and there I can see that Elric (yeah, Elric) also shares my interest. I can then click on Elric's name and see sites he found interesting enough to bookmark related to archeology.

I am actually interested in beginning to use some of these new additions for myself in the future. What current tools do you regularly use that is offered by search engines?

Labels: commentary-rants, guest-posts

Labels: commentary-rants, guest-posts