Hey all! I just wanted to break up this little bit of silence that seems to have taken over my blog as of late, and inform everyone that Rebecca Lieb's new book - "The Truth About Search Engine Optimization" - is dropping tomorrow. I was among the fortunate few who had received a sneak peak back in November of last year - I was even able to review a couple of chapters - and was very much impressed with what I read. Since then I have been eagerly awaiting to get my hands on a full copy.

Rebecca's book consists of just over 200 pages, and highlights a list of 51 search engine optimization "truths" that every website owner should be made aware of. I certainly recommend to everyone, n00bs and vets, to pick up a copy. Without a doubt it is worth the $13 price tag that Amazon is listing it for.

One other thing... in addition to reviewing a few of the book's chapters I was also able to submit a quote to be published in the book. While the back cover was obviously reserved for someone with more... let's just say street credit... I did land a spot just inside the cover.

"In an industry as diverse and as fast-paced as search engine marketing, knowing which information to act on which and which to avoid is extremely crucial. Lucky for us, there is "The Truth About Search Engine Optimization". In this book, Rebecca Lieb provides a detailed look into the world of SEO and online marketing, all the while exposing many of the truths and misconceptions that exist within our industry. This is a must read for all online marketers."

Karl Ribas, Vice President of Search Marketing
All Web Promotion, Inc.

I'm pretty stoked about that.

Labels: shout-outs

Speaking of SES - referring to my last post - while away last week at the conference I was able to snag a couple of free books to add to my ever-growing office bookshelf. I love reading and reviewing industry books! These 2 are definitely next on my list. On your left is "The Big Switch" by "Nicholas Carr" and on your right is "Landing Page Optimization" by Tim Ash.

In fact, I actually waited in line for about 25 minutes just to have Tim personally sign my book. I know I know... I am such a geek. I told him to make it out to "Karl with a K", and he did just that:

Smart ass! I love it!

Labels: shout-outs

In my last post - "Search Engine Marketing, Inc." - I made a small comment on how after browsing through the pages of Mike and Bill's new book that it could very well be the finest SEM playbook that I've ever come across yet. Well, in just under 24-hours later... I stand corrected.

First off let me say that this is nothing against what Mike and Bill have done - in fact I have yet to read their book - so in no way is this even an applicable comparison. However, I am quite confident that "The Internet Marketing Handbook" by Danny Dover and SEOmoz is well deserving of the "Finest SEM Playbook" title. I just came across this online resource today and while I haven't had too much time to review it, it appears to be a very complete relevant resource for search marketers. I encourage you all to have a look.

Labels: shout-outs

I was lucky enough to receive this draft manuscript version of Mike Moran's and Bill Hunt's newest book "Search Engine Marketing, Inc." in the mail a few weeks ago. While I haven't quite had the time to dive into it just yet, it does however look to be a very intriguing book. On the surface it appears to be a decent read and should be full of SEM goodies. Quickly browsing through it, I see several in-depth updated topics including social media marketing, keyword research tools, and advanced PPC bidding to name a few. This could very well be the finest SEM playbook that I've come across yet.

"Mike and Bill thoroughly cover both the business and technical aspects of contemporary search engine marketing, walking beginners through all the basics while providing reliable, up-to-the-minute insights for experienced professionals. Readers will be walked through every facet of creating an effective program: projecting business value, selling stakeholders and executives, building teams, choosing strategy, implementing metrics, and above all execution."

Thank you Mike, Bill, and IBM Press for providing me with this advanced copy of the book. I will no doubt have a reader-review posted before long. For those of you interested in checking it out for yourself, the book was released on September 29th and is available now.

Labels: shout-outs

My friend Taylor Pratt shot me over this question via LinkedIn:

"On his most recent post, John Ellett asks the community 'why do advertising agencies neglect search marketing?' Why do you think that is?"

You can read John's full post here. BTW, I read a few of John's other posts too... a fantastic marketing blog. It would also appear that it's a relatively new blog, so let's help him out will a little RSS love, shall we?

In any event, in addition to responding to Taylor, I also thought it maybe worth it to my readers if I publicly weigh-in on this topic as well. Here is my response:

"In my opinion, advertising agencies neglect search marketing because they fear it. Simply put. Search marketing, as we know, is a very powerful marketing channel for both small and large businesses as it is able to provide what most other forms of marketing are not able to... relevant, targeted advertising. Search allows businesses the ability to place paid ads or organic listings directly in-front of the most-appropriate audiences, and only charging for those instances too.

In addition, due to multiple advances in our industry, search marketers are capable of tracking a search marketing campaign from search to click to sale. Meaning, we have the ability to provide our clients with revenue data and the necessary information needed to help them to fully understand the return on their investment. Try getting television, radio, and newspaper marketers to do that.

It is for these two reasons (targeted marketing and ROI tracking) that advertising agencies fear search marketing and will probably never incorporate such services into their offerings. If they did, they could pretty much kiss their hundred-thousand dollar commissions good-bye because I believe their client's, after learning the benefits of search marketing, will put all or most of their marketing dollars into search, and very little into traditional marketing channels."

Not to steal the thunder from John's post, but let me ask all of you that very same question. Why do you suppose advertising agencies neglect search marketing? I'm very curious to know what you readers think?

Labels: commentary-rants, shout-outs

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

A couple of days ago I was fortunate enough to receive a complimentary copy of "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Guerrilla Marketing" in my morning mail. The book is co-authored by Susan Drake and Colleen Wells, and from the immediate looks of things... this promises to be a fantastic read.

"You're no idiot, of course. You know that people won't spend their money on your product or service if they don't know it exists. But competing against the mega corporations means stretching your budgeting too thin. You need alternatives to high-priced convectional print and broadcast advertising."

"The Complete Idiot's Guide to Guerrilla Marketing offers exciting and cost-effective methods of promoting and publicizing your business. In this Complete Idiot's Guide, you get strategies for creating word-of-mouth buzz, the low down on Internet marketing via viral ads, email lists, streaming video, and more, unique ideas for marketing to your target base through unconventional venues, and tactics for product placement in the media.

Well, as always I appreciate the freebee. I'll be sure to give this book a read really soon, and of course I'll be providing my thoughts and a full-review. Until then... stay tuned.

Labels: shout-outs

What's a meatball sundae you ask? Well, besides being the brand-spanking new book offering from bestselling marketing author Seth Godin, it's also an analogy in which Seth uses to describe instances of when "boring" companies and brands use newly available and popular marketing strategies and tools to push their products and services.

For a better explanation... here's an excerpt from the new book:

'Gotta get me some of that New Marketing. Bring me blogs, e-mail, YouTube videos, MySpace pages, Google AdWords... I don't care, as long as it's shiny and new.'

Wait. According to bestselling author Seth Godin, all these tactics are like the toppings at an ice cream parlor. If you start with ice cream, adding cherries and hot fudge and whipped cream will make it taste great. But if you start with a bowl of meatballs... yuck!

As traditional marketing fades away, the new tools seem irresistible. But they don't work as well for boring brands ("meatballs") that might still be profitable but don't attract word of mouth, such as Cheerios, Ford trucks, Barbie dolls, or Budweiser. When Anheuser-Busch spends $40 million on an online network called BudTV, that's a meatball sundae. It leads to no new Bud drinkers, just a bad case of indigestion.

Meatball Sundae, for anyone who's interested, will be released a little later this month... I believe December 27th to be exact. However, as an attendee of last week's Search Engine Strategies conference in Chicago, I was lucky enough to have received an advanced copy of the book... in addition to sitting front row during Seth's Keynote presentation Tuesday morning.

Anyone who's read this blog for awhile now can tell you that I'm a huge Seth Godin fan. Thus far, I've read 7 of his books / ebooks, and have even reviewed 5 of them right here on the Klog. One of the biggest reasons why I find his writing so enjoyable is that he uses the absolute strangest analogies to convey his point or message. Take for instance "The Red Fez", "Purple Cow", "The Big Moo", and now "Meatball Sundae". While each of these is the title to one of his books, they are also analogies to describe specific issues with businesses and their marketing strategies.

I want to send a "thanks" out to both Seth and SES for the complimentary copy of "Meatball Sundae". I'll add it to my already overwhelming list of books to read and review.

Labels: shout-outs

Sorry for the profanity, but there really is no other way to say it.

Quick Sprout is among my absolute favorite reads, and I just wanted to take a quick second and share it with you all. With this being a search marketing blog, I'm sure most of you have either heard of it or are subscribers yourself. However, for those of you who haven't... this is a great day for you.

Quick Sprout, authored by Internet Marketing Consultant Neil Patel, is a blog on "Personal Branding" - a "how to" on branding oneself for success. Neil is a highly reputable leader in the search marketing industry, and I'd be lying if I said that I hadn't personally and professionally benefited from his insights on personal branding.

Let me be clear and say that this isn't a blog for search marketers; rather it is a read for anyone looking to improve their own personal branding efforts.

Check out Quick Sprout... you'll be glad you did.

Labels: shout-outs

Last week I received yet another marketing / business related book in the mail titled "Fire Them Up!" (pro bono of course - man, I love freebies). However, this time the read came courteously of Carmine Gallo, a communications coach for many of the world's most admired companies... literally!

After a little bit of research I found that Carmine's client-portfolio includes such companies as Intel, IBM, Chase, Nokia, The Home Depot, and Hyundai with many more top-notch brands to boot. As if all that wasn't "kick-ass" enough, the man is an Emmy award-winning journalist and has worked as a television anchor, host, and correspondent for CNN, Fox, TechTV (remember that?), CNET and CBS.

A small excerpt from the cover-jacket states:

"Regardless of what you do or what you position, influence is an important and powerful key to achieving professional success and getting what you want from life. Fire Them Up! Reveals seven simple, profound secrets for using your vision and your values to motivate and influence the people you work with, or share a community with."

"These seven secrets will give you astonishing communication skills that will help you enjoy more successful and fulfilling relationships with colleagues, clients, employees, or anyone else in your personal or professional life. Plus, Fire Them Up! is full of stories and tactics from some of the world's most influential people. More than two dozen of today's most inspiring business leaders share their secrets - from top companies including The Ritz-Carlton, Google, and many other big-name brands."

The best part about receiving this book in particular is that Carmine thought enough to personally autograph it. His message reads: "Karl, I hope these ideas fire up your readers!". A quick shout-out to Carmine... thanks for the book man. Thus far it sounds like a stellar read and I'll be sure to share my thoughts with you and my readers just as soon as I have a chance to read it.

Labels: shout-outs

Check it out... the other day I received a complimentary edition of Mike Moran's newest read "Do It Wrong Quickly: How the Web Changes the Old Marketing Rules", which just hit bookstores earlier this month. Kickass!

An excerpt from the back of Mike's book states:

A "thanks" goes out to Mike. I'll be sure to give it a read and a review sometime soon.

Thanks man!

Labels: shout-outs

This post is in regards to my recent write-up titled "Introducing the NEW AllWebMail". If anyone out there is willing to give AllWebMail a serious shot at putting together a targeted email marketing campaign, I have a few freebies to offer up as a token for being a loyal reader of this search marketing blog. Simply tell me or anyone else at All Web Promotion (your Yahoo! Store, Pay Per Click, Search Engine Optimization, or current Email Marketing account managers) on or before August 31, 2007 that you want the "Klog" discount for email marketing. It's that simple.

For qualified companies* with a pre-established email list:

1) A FREE Email Marketing Campaign: AllWebMail will create an email marketing campaign specifically tailored to a sale or promotion of your choice and send it out to your entire email address list. No hidden fees, and absolutely at no cost to you. Our goal is to simply show you how great our services are. We know that once you see the sales attributed to your campaign that you'll be back for more.

2) Waived Start-up Fees: After your FREE Email Marketing Campaign. AllWebMail will also waive the one-time start-up fee valued at over $150.00! This means no charge to generate custom email subscription code to place on your own website, no charge for initial database work to setup custom marketing fields in our mailing systems, and no charge for initial training and consulting to maximize your email marketing experience. There are no additional mark-ups and no requirements on how many campaigns you'll have to run. Whatever makes sense for your business model, whether its sending emails weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, bi-monthly, or even yearly, the start-up fee waiver will apply.

For new online companies or companies without an email list:

1) FREE Integration and Use of our email collection script and form: AllWebMail will create a custom form tailored to the design and layout of your website, and integrate it onto your website. Our email collection script and form will allow your customers and website visitors to sign up to receive product updates or promotional emails... thus building a qualified email list to use in future email marketing campaigns.

2) Free Email Campaign & Waived Start-Up Fees: Once you've generated an appropriate amount of emails in your list, you'll be qualified to receive a FREE Email Marketing campaign and waived start-up fees on every campaign there after (the same deal explained above).

Seriously... these are some pretty sweet deals. If you have any questions on our newly adopted Email Marketing services or on any of these "Klog" specials or about Email Marketing in general, please feel free to contact me directly. If I can't address your questions, I will put you in touch with those who can.

* Qualified Companies: This offer represents a significant investment on All Web Promotion's behalf so we must limit this to companies/individuals whom, based on our experience, can materially benefit from email marketing and would therefore consider ongoing email marketing through All Web Promotion or another email service provider.

Labels: shout-outs

As a man that wears many hats and has quite a few affiliations in the search marketing arena let me first start this post by checking them at the door. I typically do this with every post anyway, but because of the sheer nature of this post I want everyone to be aware of it. The following words and opinions are my own and I certainly don't want to come across as blowing smoke up your asses and endorsing a product on the account of All Web Promotion. Even though that would be the smart thing for me to do (as they sign my pay checks)... I promise you all that this is not the case.

Ok... with that being said and now out of the way, let me tell you about All Web's newly revised AllWebMail Email Marketing services and how I believe it can benefit your online marketing efforts.

A week or so ago I sat in a meeting with Peter Roebuck, head of our Maryland office and Email Marketing services, as he presented the company's revised email marketing package in all its greatness. Actually, to be honest about the whole situation, the current package has been in affect for quite some time now, but it was only a week ago that it was presented in a way that we non-email marketing folks could understand it. I can honestly say that I have a new found respect for this service. I also learned that we've been doing email marketing for over 7 years! We have long-term clients that mail as frequently as 3 times a week and some that mail monthly or even quarterly. We have clients with less than 500 names on their email lists and some with more than 100,000 names.

First of all, if your company is one that has been online for years now and doesn't currently run targeted email marketing campaigns then I can say, without doubt, that you're missing out. In my opinion, email marketing is the best way to attract repeat business... which we all know is far more profitable and less costly than attracting new business leads. AllWebMail offers several packages, based on the number of emails you'll want to send (must already have an email list - we don't buy or sell lists), and can help you in your email marketing and repeat business efforts.

Second, if your company is new to the internet and has just recently launched a website (or will be launching a new site) now is the time to start thinking about email marketing and repeat business strategies. Seems kind of funny to be thinking about ways one can market to future "past-customers", when your online store isn't yet open for business, but I assure you, doing so can make a significant contribution to your website's success. AllWebMail has solutions to help new websites prepare for future email marketing campaigns, and can even offer solutions to help your company build-up and manage an email list consisting of your website's visitors and customers.

Click here for a printable PDF highlighting our services and our pricing structure.

And that's that. If you have any questions on our newly adopted Email Marketing services or about Email Marketing in general, please feel free to contact me directly. If I can't address your questions, I will put you in touch with those who can. I have put together the following few Q&A tidbits to address some of the more common questions that you'll all have.

So, how does AllWebMail work?
Well, like most email marketing solutions available today, AllWebMail utilizes your company's email list (those emails you've personally collected throughout the years - either from those who've placed orders on your website or have subscribed to other offerings you may have had) and market to them using emails that highlight your latest specials or promotions. The obvious goal here is to attain repeat business / sales from those that have already purchased or shown interest in your products or services. Talk about targeted marketing!

How does AllWebMail differ from other Email Marketing providers?
Simply put... pricing, quality, customization, and reporting. In every important aspect of email marketing... we're better. And that's not a line of bull or me showing a new found cockiness either... that's me being legit. We're better... and there's no other way to say it.

Pricing: We've always had an understanding of how important online marketing services are to an eCommerce website... especially for those little "Mom & Pop" stores. As with all our marketing and design services, our new email marketing services offer lots of value at very little cost.

Here's a snap-shot of our current Email Marketing pricing structure:

Quality: Our team is equipped with qualified designers, marketers, and technicians that are responsible for not only designing your email ad according to your promotion, but also for ensuring that your emails are delivered properly. Anyone can send out an email, we strive hard to ensure that your emails are delivered to the inbox and opened... something many email delivery companies fail at.

Customization: We understand that no 2 email marketing campaigns are the same, nor should they be developed the same. We have highly customizable email marketing platform that allows us the ability to do just about anything needed or requested. Past examples include: Sending by time-zone, A/B testing, text/HTML compliant emails, and more.

Reporting: We can offer you several different pre-mail and post-mail reports highlighting statistics on just how successful your email marketing campaign is. Everything from "bounce rate", "open rate", click-throughs, sales, deliverability by ISP (like AOL.com, Yahoo.com, Gmail.com), and so much more can be tracked for months after the launch of each email campaign.

How does AllWebMail handle bounced emails and unsubscribes?
Our system instantly removes people that ask not to receive further emails and more importantly, our systems automatically remove "bounced" emails that occur when an address becomes inactive. Removing inactive addresses is possibly the most important thing we can do as email marketers while continually massaging our relationships with the big ISPs like AOL, MSN, Hotmail, Yahoo and the rest. They all severely penalize email marketers for ongoing mailings to bad addresses.

How many Emails should we send out?
Like with most things... the more emails you have in a list the better your chances are of having a successful campaign. However, depending on your individual industry and the type of promotion you're going to run, small campaigns (1,000 emails or less) do have the potential to be successful. We recommend giving us a call to talk about your specific project... please note that if we don't feel an email campaign will work for you... we'll simply tell you so.

Does AllWebMail buy email lists on your behalf?
We do not, nor will we ever, sell email lists. It is our belief that the best email campaigns are those that utilize the emails that a company collects over time.

Do we sell or market to your Email List?
No... we do not sell nor market to the list of emails you provide us for your campaign. The emails we collect or email to on your behalf are yours and yours alone.

** UPDATE **
Click here for special discounts and waivers courtesy of the Klog blog.

Labels: shout-outs

Check it out... last week's mail brought me a complimentary copy (manuscript version) of David Meerman Scott's new book "The New Rules of Marketing & PR".

As if that wasn't kick-ass enough, David was considerate enough to personally autograph my copy and acknowledge me and my blog in the "Acknowledgements" section of the book! Thanks buddy!

Here's a small excerpt from the book:

Anybody looking for more information on the book, including details of when and where you can pick up a copy, check out this Amazon page.

A "thanks" goes out to David. I'll be sure to give it a read, and a review sometime soon.

Thanks man!

Labels: shout-outs

The good folks over at Bruce Clay, Inc. have just recently announced that they are holding the next big SEO contest in which the winner not only secures a search marketer's dream package (valued at near $4000.00), but also lends a helping hand to a community-driven non-for-profit organization of his or her choosing.

The "search marketer's dream" prize package includes:

• 1 FREE Full-Conference Pass to SMX in Seattle
• Enrollment into the Bruce Clay SEO Training Seminar
• Enrollment into the Bruce Clay Advanced Certification Course

Do the math... that's near $4,000 in prizes. And, that's not including the extra added value of learning the latest tips, tricks, and strategies from many of the industry's top online marketing professionals.

If anyone's interested in participating, be sure to check out the Bruce Clay Blog for more official rules and details. Kudos to the BC gang for putting together a very worthwhile contest.

Labels: shout-outs

I just came across a relatively new blog today that I feel is worth plugging. The blog is titled "Social Media Marketing" and, as you can guess, it promises to deliver regular news, updates, and commentary that is specific to Social Media Optimization and Marketing.

This blog is authored by Joe Williams (whom also blogs at SEM Consultancy) and Kevin Gibbons (whom also blogs at SEOptimise), and is written to gather the attentions of current Social Media marketers as well as those looking for more information on using social media platforms as a basis for promoting their websites.

If you're among those who'd like to keep updated on SMO/M, this blog is for you! Be sure to check it out!

Labels: shout-outs, social-marketing

Check it... yesterday's mail brought a complimentary copy of Jaimie Sirovich's and Cristian Darie's new book, Search Engine Optimization with PHP.

Here's a small excerpt from the book:

And we're back.... As most of you know I was out of the office all of last week taking in a very much needed vacation, and unlike most of the times when I'm away I was completely unplugged from the SEM/Blog community. I didn't check a single Blog nor did I read a single newsletter, and you know what... it didn't bother me one bit. It was great!

The only downfall about being away from the office for an entire week is that I now have to play catch-up, which is to be expected. I spent most of my day yesterday attending to emails, blog feeds, and the other responsibilities that needed my attention. As it turns out I'm going to need yet another day to completely catch up.

As busy as I am, I wanted to take a quick second to give a shout-out to ShoeMoney and his new radio show "Net Income" which premiered last Tuesday. I of course was on vacation and did not have the privilege of listening to it live. I did, however, download the podcast and am actually listening to it at this very moment. It's been a great show thus far as he and special guest Patrick Gavin, co-founder of Text Link Ads, have been discussing detailed ways to monetize websites via text link ads.

Here's an excerpt that I jacked from Webmaster Radio:

"Want to learn how to turn your website into a money making machine? Jeremy Schoemaker aka ShoeMoney will take you on the fast track to understanding contextual advertising, affiliate marketing, PPC, Subscription Sales and more. Net Income will help you bolster your bottom line and meet and exceed your financial goals."

Tonight's episode will feature special guest Lee Dodd, owner of Sprint Users, and is set to be all about how to make money from forums and other social networking websites. I encourage you all to check out the show as it comes live from Webmaster Radio.fm later on today, and every Tuesday, at 5:00pm (Central Time). If by chance you can't catch it live, or if your one of my many email subscribers who will get this post tomorrow morning, be sure to download the podcast. Net Income stands to be one of the better and more educational industry-related shows out there.

Labels: shout-outs

Hey all! I just wanted to take a few seconds and introduce Kid Disco's brand new SEO Blog. He published his 1st Official Post about an hour ago and I encourage you all to go over and take a look. As it looks now, this is going to be a pretty fresh and humorous Blog to follow and I for one have added it my RSS Reader. I encourage you all to do the same.

If you get a free minute, go over and introduce yourself... and be sure to tell him that Karl sent ya!

Enjoy... I know I will.

Labels: shout-outs

Labels: shout-outs