SEM – Go Ahead and Do it Yourself

by Jon C Coward on March 8, 2010

Jon C. Coward, VP of Internet Marketing

Jon C. Coward, VP of Internet Marketing

Remember how simple car engines were when you were a teenager? All you needed was a screwdriver, a wrench and some duct tape to keep them running. Well, thanks to improvements in technology and efficiency, they are a bit more difficult if not impossible to work on now if you haven’t kept up with the changes. You can spend hours looking under your car hood for your carburetor, but you won’t ever find it. (Someday soon, it probably won’t even be called a car “hood!”)  When it comes to the Internet, search engines and search technology, there is a similar type of growth as there is in automobile engine technology, but at a much more rapid pace. Are you prepared to keep up with all of the changes, today, tomorrow and next week?

If you are reading this blog, you probably have an interest in search engine marketing or at the very least have an idea or two about seo and search engines. There are plenty of blogs and websites that tell you just what to do. The problem is…. do they tell you what to do today? There are even a dozen places to learn about Google’s pay per click advertising, their own site included.  However… nothing stays as it was when the documents were originally written. Plus up and coming new advertising sources like Facebook, may look the same… but they do not act the same.

Working with seo and search engine marketing is a lifelong learning process. Everything you learn changes at a rapid pace and it takes a lot to keep up. Because the technology is evolving so rapidly, the skills you learn today may not be relevant tomorrow. Even that intense seo boot camp you attended last year is out of date. You must be constantly keeping your skills and certifications up to date. One class, one degree, or one Google certification isn’t enough to be effective in the long haul.

If seo and search marketing were that easy to master, wouldn’t everyone try to make their site rise to the top. Everyone would certainly constantly try… and that would make Google’s search engine irrelevant and no different from Bing or anyone else. All of the major search engines thrive on delivering their own definition of what they deem to be a relevant search. For individuals searching, each has a different version of relevant as well. So do you really think that that simple seo tip you read a few months ago can sustain you indefinitely? Do you really think that buying a pay per click ad and keeping it up at the top of the results, for the least amount of money possible is easy? Think again!

So, go ahead and do it yourself! Real estate agents learned long ago that one of the best sources of new customers comes from giving classes to teach people how to sell their house WITHOUT an agent. Many of those who take the course and try to sell their own house see first hand the amount of work and study involved and become a model client for that agent!

Sometimes, hiring a person to manage your search engine marketing isn’t about your lack of knowledge. You are paying for someone to keep up with the current knowledge to make sure you don’t fall behind.

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Are You Validated?

by Jon C Coward on February 22, 2010

VP of Internet Marketing - AdzZoo

VP of Internet Marketing - AdzZoo

One of the most important things you can do is something AdzZoo has done all along – claim your Google Maps listing. Google Maps has many listings and  viciously protects how they determine who shows up in the first page top 7. Google Maps are generally triggered when a person localizes a search in one manner or another. Just as with Google’s organic search, the key to Google’s map formula is the same thing – relevancy. Google is the current search engine leader in showing real, relevant results without a gimmick. As a matter of fact, I just read an article from a large radio conglomerate that talked about how “easy” it is to add Google Maps to your marketing campaign. Yes, it’s easy to add it… but to be effective is another story. To be relevant is yet another story too.

When it comes to Google’s local business center, you have to manage your Google account just as you would manage an organic campaign. Yes, with some luck and lackluster competition you can appear easily.  Google also encourages everyone to sign up and makes that process easy. It helps bolster their maps listings. However, a lot of businesses get listed without doing a thing. Google is able to determine lots of data about your business from other sources and it aggregates this into a listing. A store or vendor may be listed, but the problem is they have very little validity. The “farmed” listings are merely padding to help the accuracy and content of the map.

For top listings, Google prefers to feature sites that have been validated in one way or another. The easiest  ‘certificate of trust’  is to claim your business listing and keep your content accurate and up to date. Also, claiming your business listings and adding extra data about your business, inherently means better targeting and ranking. However, as in all things Google, the algorithm is complicated and nothing is guaranteed to make you number one.

Keep in mind, this is just the beginning and part of many other factors that Google uses to manage your local business center listing. Some of the factors include proper matching of keywords, categories, etc. These extra factors also change frequently as they “refine” their algorithm.  Properly managing your Local Business Center campaign can be one of the most effective tools in your search marketing campaign. How effective do you want to be?

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Five Myths of Search Marketing

February 17, 2010

The new Wolf-man movie is finally here. I’ve always had a fear of werewolves ever since I was a kid, but I know they do not exist. However, a powerful image has been created in my head that defies logic, reason and science. It chills me to the bone with logical reason why.
So, why am [...]

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