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In my recent post, I talked about the need for Agility, Authenticity and Passion along with the “four C’s” which describe the pillars of great marketing today. Let’s take a look at some examples of great marketers and great companies who are putting these pillars into practice.
Customer-centric. Customers are in control. They decide how and when to connect with you and your company and they vote with their online voice, dollars and attention. Customer engagement – an elusive achievement — is the number one asset to a business today and the number one goal for marketing to pursue. Customer engagement is only possible when customer’s wants and needs are put at the center of everything we do....
A lot of search engine optimization professionals are incorporating PR tactics into their optimization strategies these days, and there’s a very good reason for this trend: the search engines are placing premiums on authentic earned media.The very nature of earned media has evolved, however. In addition to pick up in the mainstream media, earned media credibility also occurs when content generates social shares and develops high-quality website traffic.
So, as we are writing press releases and other content intended for online publication, it’s a good idea to be thinking about how to encourage social sharing and to keep readers on the website page posting your content. And to achieve these objectives, first and foremost, it’s crucial to attract readers are truly interested in the message topic....
Delivering a positive user experience online through quality content and quality web assets creates a quality outcome for the brand. ...Google’s on-going quest appears to be to filter out the attempted nonsense by some marketers so that the user search experience produces valuable results. Poor search marketing and editorial practices are disenfranchised to this objective. Audiences are demanding it. As a marketer, failure to deliver valuable content will ensure that Google and your audience will tune you out or worse, turn you off. Good content delivers a relevant connection that invokes a response through humor, shock, mystery, emotion and/or just plain valuable knowledge. My favorite article on quality content was written by Brad Shore with the Content Marketing Institute. He identifies quality content as being “jargon-free, written in an appropriate voice and style, stimulates a response and is properly structured.” More importantly, he identifies the business value of quality content by emphasizing that it: - Elevates the brand Increase brand awareness - Helps generate leads and referrals Increases customer loyalty - Differentiates your business in a powerful way...
While 'creating great content' is important, it's not enough. Promotion is critical to content marketing success. In this post, Paul May shows you how to improve your content promotion. NEWSFLASH! Despite what you’ve read, your “epic content” isn’t going to magically go viral seconds after you click the publish button. There is no content marketing fairy. Like it or not, you’re going to have to work hard to promote your content. I mean really hard. “Well, Hi Paul….Bad Start to the Day?” Why the rant? Well, Cyrus Shepard wrote a fantastic “blueprint for ranking” post recently on the Moz blog (one of the best posts of the year, IMO). I found myself nodding in agreement throughout it…until I got to the end and read this: “This blueprint contains 25 steps to rank your content, but only the last three address link building. Why so few? Because 90% of your effort should go into creating great content, and 10% into link building.” In fairness to Cyrus, there’s more nuance to his thoughts than this quote conveys, but this fits into a theme that seems to be gaining momentum in some circles. I first saw Rand propose this at a Distilled conference I attended last year. The presentation was titled “F*** Link Building, Content Marketing FTW!” I’m paraphrasing, but in this presentation he said something to the effect of: “I have this awesome link building tool…you should totally get it. Every time I use it, I get links from 400 unique domains. It’s called the publish button.”...
Considering that the average b2b website gets about 40% of traffic from organic search, with some sites getting as much as two-thirds of all visits via search engines, effective search engine optimization (SEO) remains a vital strategy. But precisely what constitutes “best practices” in SEO is a continually (and lately, rapidly) moving target. Yesterday’s on-page optimization and link building tactics—even those used with the best, non-manipulative intentions—may get a site penalized in search rankings today for being “over-optimized.” (You can’t be too rich or too thin, but apparently you can be too optimized.) So what’s a marketing manager, PR professional or SEO specialist to do? Keep up with SEO trends and changes. Optimize off-site content (for example, on YouTube and other social platforms). Use effective SEO tools and marketing metrics. Create link-worthy content. Use social signals to boost rankings. Learn how to do all of that and then some here in more than three dozen of the best SEO guides and tips from the past year....
Penguin 2.0 affected 2.3% of all English-US queries. Lest 2.3% sound to you like a smallish number, keep in mind that there are an estimated 5 billion Google searches per day. 2.3% of 5 billion is a lot.... It’s happened. With one blog post, the rollout of an algorithm, and a couple hours of processing, Penguin 2.0 has been unleashed. The Internet will never be the same. Matt Cutts published a brief post on the topic on May 22, 2013. Here are four key points that you should know about Penguin 2.0....
Google’s fourth Penguin update — what the company is calling Penguin 2.0 — hit last night, and less than 24 hours later we’re already getting a first chance to look at what sites might be considered “losers” in terms of search visibility. Google’s fourth Penguin update — what the company is calling Penguin 2.0 — hit last night, and less than 24 hours later we’re already getting a first chance to look at what sites might be considered “losers” in terms of search visibility. In a nutshell, the list includes: porn sites, game sites and big brands like Dish.com, the Salvation Army, CheapOair and Educational Testing Service (yes, ETS, the company that makes a lot of those standardized tests you probably took as a child). The SEO software company, SearchMetrics, has just shared its initial look at what sites have been affected the most by the latest Penguin update. As always, SearchMetrics is using its “SEO Visibility” benchmark, which looks at the visibility of a company’s web pages as they appear (or don’t appear) across a wide range of keywords in Google’s search results. Here’s their initial list of the 25 biggest Penguin 2.0 losers...
This kind of thing might happen to Rand all the time, but it’s not often that a digital marketing company based in Leeds gets 100,000+ people reading anything it does (at least on its own site). That’s what unexpectedly happened to us on www.branded3.com a few weeks ago – what essentially started as a rant from some guy having a bad day blew up and now has 1,184 votes on Hacker News (and incoming links from some of the biggest sites in the world). I think it’s likely I’ll never replicate this, and I didn’t intend this either – so I’ll not preach: “this is how you get 100,000 page views.” Everyone else is just as qualified as I am to write a post that’s read all around the world, and that’s exactly what I want to happen. I’d like to tell you what I’m taking away from this, and how I’ll use it when I’m creating content for my clients in the future....
Content curation services, which had been one of the choice tools of marketing experts for some time now. Content curation is evolving from not being only a professional tool but a tool that saves web surfers time as personal service. It is important to note that the actual popularity of the phrase “content curation” has not decreased. On the contrary, GoogleTrends clearly show that the popularity of the keyword query and its various forms is growing. What does this mean? It means that more and more people are interested in content curation; it is no longer just for marketing professionals.. Why is this happening? Everybody knows that the amount of information exchanged through social networks and feeds is growing exponentially, following the well-known Moore‘sLaw. According to LikeHack’s research based on 3 million user accounts, people spend approximately one hour every day looking through unnecessary information. There are several services available today which solve this problem, and they are growing in popularity: Likehack, Storify, Pearltrees, Getprismatic and others....
...One of the interesting things about these B2B content marketing campaigns is a fairly consistent LACK of attention to optimizing content assets (images & infographics, video, PDFs, etc) for search. Many of these campaign assets could continue to attract new prospects or at least attract more than they are if the assets were more visibile for relevant keywords. Just using the titles of the files and documents was difficult to find many of these. Many of these content assets are near invisible when it comes to buyer-centric keywords. Just remember marketers, when it comes to content, there’s no excuse not to socialize, advertise, publicize AND optimize. This approach represents a lot of what we do at TopRank Marketing. Here’s the full deck for details on each Killer Content Marketing campaign plus performance data. Enjoy!
This is not a blog post about writing. This is a blog post about creation. Creating content that actually matters. If you’re writing to increase conversion rates, then, yes, SEO matters. Proper grammar matters. Page layout matters. Verbal flourish might matter. But those are all details – aspects of content writing that come only after you’ve answered the more fundamental questions. Whether you’re developing a content strategy for the first time or you’ve been writing to increase those conversion rates for years, it’s time to touch on some fundamentals. Before whipping up that next blog post, ask yourself these seven questions, and start creating content that actually impacts your audience!...
Content marketing effectiveness is a common concern among marketers, according to CMI research in North America, Australia and the UK. Think about these 13 reasons why your content marketing might fail ... ...While each of us has our own challenges that we need to bear and break through, here are a few particularly troubling ones that have been on my mind: 1. Your content is all about you: Remember, customers don’t care about you; they care about themselves and their problems. We often forget that point when we describe how wonderful our widget is (which no one cares about). 2. Your fear of failing paralyzes you: Taking chances with your content and experimenting a bit reveals the possibilities for your content marketing, and uncovers new and valuable customer stories. 3. You’re setting the bar too low: Your content marketing should be the best in your industry — better than all your competition, and better than the media and the other publishers in your space. How can you be the most trusted expert in your industry if your content marketing doesn’t reflect these high standards?...
Effective content marketing should leverage tools and technologies that track and make actionable data relating to your audience (target vs. actual), content (forms and stories), and points of distribution (devices, sites, context).... ...So what are the keys to effective content marketing? It turns out there are three – the "who," "what," and "where."...
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SEO enthusiasts and online marketers alike are abuzz over the unveiling of Penguin 2.0, a new generation of algorithms that specifically target web spam. The previous Penguin update simply checked out a site’s home page, whereas this new generation takes a deeper look within the subpages and considers smaller details. This means that it’s getting harder to disguise spam, and fresh content is a must.
So what’s changed? Penguin 2.0 essentially aims to locate sites that serve as an authoritative voice on a subject, thus providing these pages with a boost in the rankings. The new algorithms punish “black hat SEO” which refers to unethical or unsavory tactics that a site may use to try to boost its Google ranking. This may include buying links, scraping content from other webpages, or overloading the site with keywords and ads.How do I stay in favor with Google?
This is pretty simple: if your site is creating regular, unique content that considers the reader, you will do well in Google’s index. It’s also important that this content has some substance to it, and is high quality. Quickly throwing an article or blog together doesn’t count; providing the reader with useful information does....
You’ve optimized every part of your website – but have you checked your Pinterest SEO potential? Learn how to use Pinterest to increase your search ranking and drive traffic to your site. It’s no secret that SEO is an extremely important part of any marketing mix. The right keywords, linking to the right content, shared to the right sites, help your domain rank higher in search. However, there’s probably a valuable tool for traffic that you haven’t thought of – Pinterest SEO. By applying a few tweaks to your Pinterest profile, pins and website, you can easily take advantage of Pinterest’s viral nature and recieve the SEO bump you’ve been looking for....
As the controversy swirls over publishers selling advertisers bogus nonhuman traffic, many of the accused have screamed, "It wasn't me! We bought bad traffic from somebody else!" So, who are these traffic dealers? At Adweek's request, close to a dozen industry experts—representing publishers, ad buyers, DSP and other ad tech execs—have identified six companies that they believe may be selling low-quality, potentially bot-generated traffic—starting at half a penny a click. They are AdOn, Adknowledge, eZanga, Jema Media, MGID and BlueLink Marketing....
Heard this one before? “If you create great content you will find a large audience.” It’s nonsense. Or at the very least, it’s idealistic. It’s like if you make great music you’ll become a rock star. The number of great bands that are painfully undiscovered is, well, painful. You need to create something great and be discovered. In my articles I tend to focus on the “create something great” half of the formula. Today I’ll focus on the “be discovered” part, which is largely a mechanical exercise you may not understand—or have never considered....
SEO and content marketing extremes help no one but consultants. An integrated approach helps brands attract, engage and convert more business than SEO or content alone.... Content Marketing Strategy has to factor in all digital channels as well as offline where appropriate because the focus isn’t solely on a search engine. It’s on the customer. Customers don’t just use search for finding solutions. Search is hugely important during the customer journey, of course. But it’s not the only touchpoint. The only thing worse than no SEO at all, is ALL SEO. Ignoring the contribution of search for attracting visitors that are actively looking for your information is a huge mistake. At the same time, ignoring content marketing simply defined as “more content” and focusing only on SEO is also a mistake. Search engines don’t buy products, people do. Market to the people!...
A good SEO strategy is the difference between your business easily being found online and getting lost in the noise of thousands of other businesses trying to stand out. With Google’s ever-changing algorithm, it can be difficult to know what’s effective here and now. In 2013, success in SEO hinges on businesses putting together a robust combination strategy that brings together an integrated web of great content, credible links, and social signals. Each of these pieces supports the other, providing tremendous value to readers, building your authority and brand value, and distributing your content across new channels. Here are the highlights of what to think about in terms of each of the three pillars of great SEO....
Content marketing isn't the "new SEO" – or even new. Have you been drinking the Kool-Aid and not spending enough time on your search optimization? Here are 12 things you should check with the arrival of Google Penguin 2.0 and more changes coming.... What Should Lead Your Online Marketing Strategy: SEO or Content". "Why Content Marketing is the New SEO". "Is Google's love affair with content marketing usurping SEO?" "Content Marketing is the New SEO " These are actual titles from articles in the top search results for [content marketing and SEO]....
Less than a year ago links were everything to the SEO industry. Whether it was guest blogging or content marketing, the sole aim of many agencies revolved purely around sourcing and acquiring links. The answer is simple. By combining knowledge on entities, associations, co-occurrence and authorship, you can build a strategy that actually solves a problem or satisfies a need for your target audience. By doing this you will increase traffic and naturally generate links. Like Hannah Smith mentioned at this year’s LinkLove conference, if you do stuff that gets links, rather than doing it for links, you are much more likely to succeed. And to save you the hassle of pooling all this together, I’ve done it for you. You’re welcome....
The most popular way of building back links right now is guest blogging. Why is it so popular? Simple, it’s so effective at driving up keyword rankings – when it’s done consistently and when those guest posts are published on authoritative domains that are relevant. It’s been in the back of my mind for some time now, actually since the first iteration of the Google Penguin update, that guest blogging may become a target of Google. I believe that guest blogging will still continue to be effective after the next major Penguin update, however the way in which you build links through guest blogging will change. This is how I think guest bloggers will be impacted...
Quick & Easy Keyword Placement Checklist This SEO Guide is for the small business owner or SEO (search engine optimization) beginner that is in the initial stages of website creation or optimization. Search engine optimization is a great marketing tactic for any type of business, but many business owners or traditional marketers are apprehensive about optimizing their company’s website. As a digital strategist who has been leading SEO campaigns for the last 7 years, I have heard a lot of excuses… “I just don’t understand” “I don’t have time” “It is too much work” “I tried for a little while, but didn’t see anything happen, so ….” Don’t worry, I am not here to chastise, just provide you with a Quick and Easy Keyword Placement Checklist for your company’s website....
For the last year we’ve written about 2 blog posts each week on our blog LogMyCalls. We said we had a content strategy, but we really didn’t. Our blogs were read, but not all that much. It sort of felt like we were writing into an empty box. Then I came across a blog post by a guy who had written 50 blog posts in 25 days. His traffic went up, his organic traffic went up, his referral traffic went up. Everything went up. So, we decided to do something similar at LogMyCalls. We decided to write 150 blog posts in 50 days. We did this from Feb 3 until April 13. We only published blogs on weekdays, so the experiment lasted 10 weeks. Three blogs a day, 5 days a week. We wrote on marketing and call tracking related topics. The results of this test speak for themselves...
When people follow your business pages in Facebook or your account in Twitter, they are also likely to get to visit your company website, and even encourage their friends to visit. That makes social media marketing a very important tool for lead generation. In addition, search engines now give more ranking points to websites that have an upright presence in social media. This is good because most of the traffic that you will get in your website will come from people starting off with search engine queries....
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Thank you Jeff, excellent read and insight.