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For the longest time I have wanted to participate in a local seminar in my own community of Phoenix Arizona on the subject of search engine marketing. Now that will be fulfilled in the inaugural event of the National Marketing Academy as they host the Phoenix Search Engine & Internet Marketing Workshop. The event is scheduled for Wednesday, June 18, 2008 from 7:30 am - 5:00 pm and will be held at the Sheraton Phoenix Airport.
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I'm two days back from the first Small Business Marketing Unleashed conference and I have to say that this was probably one of the best conference I have ever been to. The conference attracted right around 50 paid attendees which made for a very intimate setting. Speakers and those of who were live blogging were able to spend some real quality time with attendees. The information that was presented in sessions and workshops was of the highest quality and the food served up set the bar high for any other conference to follow.
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I'm sitting in my hotel room now at the Northwest Forest Conference Center which is located just outside Houston in Cypress, Texas. I will be live blogging the Small Business Marketing Unleashed Conference tomorrow and Tuesday, posting my notes on Search Engine Guide. The conference is being put on by Search Engine Guide and Small Business Brief and is the first of what they hope to be many conferences of this kind.
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Small Business Marketing Unleashed takes place in just a few short weeks. This conference is being put on by Search Engine Guide and Small Business Brief and features some very prominent experts in the industry. While the early bird registration deadline has expired, there is still an opportunity to save $100 off the registration fee. It is called the "better late than never" discount in which you can use the word "PUPPY" to save $100 when you register. That means you'll pay $875 for two full days of learning from some of the leaders in the search marketing industry.
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I opted out of attending Search Engine Strategies in New York this year, not only because the sessions I typically speak in did not make the cut for this show, but I also have many other travel plans already scheduled for this year. I could have gone as a live blogger on a press pass but it seems like I just caught up on work after SMX West and in just a few weeks I'll be traveling to Houston for the Small Business Unleashed conference hosted by Search Engine Guide and Small Business Brief. This is not to mention SMX Advanced, SMX East, SES San Jose, a trip to Walt Disney World and any travel related to client work.
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I finally got my photos from the SMX West conference in Santa Clara up on Flickr. Sorry it has taken so long but last week I spent the majority of time digging out and keeping up with blogs and social media stuff. There is just under 90 photos there, some of which were taken from the sessions I live blogged while others are more related to the night life and people we hung out with all week.
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Besides speaking in a session entitled "Reputation Monitoring & Management Through Search" at this week's SMX West conference, I also helped in the live blogging efforts for Search Engine Roundtable. I stuck to a pretty light schedule seeing that I have my lovely wife, daughter and new grandson with me on this trip. I was able to attend all three keynotes (although I didn't cover them) and live-blogged four sessions in total.
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I will be part of a team of people that will be live-blogging sessions for Search Engine Roundtable at the upcoming SMX West conference in Santa Clara, California. No doubt, other groups will be providing coverage as well which is all designed for the benefit of those who cannot attend sessions in person and to archive what was actually presented in each session. While the coverage is always fantastic, I do have one pet peeve and that is the fact that "link love" is often not given.
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I'll be speaking at SMX West next week in a session entitled "Reputation Monitoring & Management Through Search" which explores ways companies and individuals can monitor and manage their online reputation as seen in the search results. I will demonstrate how to use social media profiles such as LinkedIn, Flickr, YouTube, etc. to help manage the first three pages of results when someone searches for a company or brand name. It is certainly not the only way to manage online reputation but one that is available and one that is free.
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Donna Fontenot of SEO Scoop has come up with a great idea for a select group of search marketers to shed some of those unwanted pounds and raise money for their favorite charity in the process. The project is called "SEOs Fight Fat For Charity" and has 11 search marketers committed to a "biggest loser" type of contest that runs from today till the end of March. The general idea is that whoever wins the contest, all the monies donated will go to his or her favorite charity.
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The results are in for Search Engine Journal's 2007 Search Blogs Awards. This is SEJ's third installment of this contest in which they nominated the best of the best in 18 separate categories. I had previously announced that we were nominated as one of the top ten SEO blogs which I think is an honor in and of itself. We didn't win the number one spot in that category which is justifiable as there were much better SEO sites we were contending with. Read on to see who won in each category.
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Okay so I'm officially on vacation this week and trying my best to stay away from the computer. However I thought I throw a quick post up announcing a nifty little quiz Matt McGee put together of Small Business SEM. The quiz is called 2007 Search Marketing Quiz and includes 11 multiple choice questions related to the "industry" of search marketing, meaning it is not necessarily a test to test your knowledge of SEM but rather how familiar you are with the news and people related to the industry.
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I had the chance to sit down with Li Evans of Key Relevance and founder of Search Marketing Gurus after my SES session on Thursday entitled "So Your Want to be a Search Marketer." She did a quick video interview with me asking me to summarize what I talked about on the panel and also asked me what I would consider my top three tips for new marketers who are just entering the filed of search marketing. Finally she asked me what one of the biggest lessons I learned when starting out myself.
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I just finished speaking on the "So You Want To Be a Search Marketer" panel at Search Engine Strategies Chicago 2007 and wanted to provide a brief overview of what I spoke on as well as highlight some of the great questions we received.
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Li Evans has been after Irma, my wife and half owner of our company, for some time now to do an interview for the Women of Internet Marketing series. Well, Irma finally obliged and the interview is included in issue number 23 in an ongoing series Li has been publishing for some time now.
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Small Business Brief, a site devoted to all aspects of small business, which is produced by Robert Clough and company, the same folks who also bring us Search Engine Guide, has re-invented themselves by converting into a Digg type of site where anyone can submit stories, vote them up or down and of course comment. Built off the same platform as Search Engine Land's Sphinn, Small Business Brief is now a lot like Sphinn however, not strictly limited to the topic of search engines and search marketing.
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Ian McAnerin, current president of the two plus year old Search Marketing Association of North America (SMA-NA) has announced that he will be dissolving the organization as of today mostly due to lack of resources. The association was originally founded out of concern that SEMPO, one of the major associations related to the search marketing industry, was not properly serving the needs of everyone. Since then, according to Ian, SEMPO has solved those issues.
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Irma and myself had the pleasure of attending our fourth Search Engine Strategies in San Jose event. We always turn this into a vacation, not only enjoying the conference itself but heading up to San Francisco and wine country after the it ends. Here I have provided a summary of where we went, what we did and who we met up with.
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I was able to sit in on the second of two keynote sessions we have here at Search Engine Strategies in San Jose. Here are some takeaways I picked up from the talk between Marissa Mayer of Google and Danny Sullivan who is co-chairing the conference.
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I was able to sit in on one of two keynote sessions we have here at Search Engine Strategies in San Jose. Here are some takeaways I picked up from the talk between Jim Lanzone of Ask.com and Chris Sherman who is co-chairing the conference.
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In just a few days, Irma and I will be heading to San Jose for this years Search Engine Strategies conference. It is the last conference that Danny Sullivan will be chairing. Actually he is co-chairing with Chris Sherman. It is also the first time I will actually get to do a formal presentation as a speaker. While I have sat in sessions as a Q&A participant twice and held a site clinic one other time, I have never done a formal presentation at an SES. I am excited and a bit nervous at the same time. The trip will offer a variety of opportunites to catch up with old friends as well as meet some new ones. Afterwards we make our usual trek up to San Francisco and Wine Country.
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It was promised last week and today when I opened my feed reader, I noticed the post, "New Look, New Awards" announcing that a newly redesigned Search Engine Watch site was now live. The new site has a much cleaner look. The header area has a much more prominent SEW logo than the old site and includes top navigation that includes a search feature, links to other ClickZ sites and some housekeeping links. The left navigation has been cleaned up and now includes the topics Blog, Forums, SEW Experts, Search 101, Ratings & Stats, Members Area, About SEW and Advertise on SEW.
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 Search Engine Land has launched a new social community web site called Sphinn. What is it? It is a social site for search and interactive marketers designed to allow you to share and discover news stories, read and take part in discussions, discover events of interest and network with others. I know, I know... you must be thinking, "Not another social media site to keep track of!" Get used to it as I see no end to social media sites continuing to pop up all over the place. This one is especially cool however as it is associated with Search Engine Land. We all knew it was coming and here it is.
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WebmasterWorld who produces the PubCon conferences and SEO Class, a newly formed organization providing intimate training experiences in search marketing, are partnering together to produce PubCon SEO Class, coined as a premium Internet marketing training program. These two-day programs will be limited to less than 50 participants and focus on midrange to advanced SEM/SEO curriculum. The inaugural two-day SEO Class by PubCon is scheduled for New York on July 30th & 31st. The cost to attend is $2,999, however if you pre-register before June 30th, you can save $1,000 off the normal price.
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Sad news out of Search Engine Watch - Elisabeth Osmeloski is leaving her position as Editor to start a new venture with Zonder.com, a vacation rentals company. Zonder is a venture capital funded start-up, based in Salt Lake City where Elisabeth calls home. She will become Director of Online Media for the company. Nobody has been named officially to take over her role at SEW, however Rob Kerry (aka EvilGreenMonkey) has been appointed "Forums Editor" over the Search Engine Watch Forums.
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Friend and colleague, Neil Patel has certainly risen to rock start status in the industry of search marketing as of late. So who better to provide advice on how to be a mover and shaker in their given industry than Neil himself? This is why he has launched a new blog called QuickSprout in which he will provide practical insight on how to become an influencer and major rock star in your industry.
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 I can now say that we have been providing search marketing services for a decade. That's right, April 18th is the day that we celebrate as our birthday. At least it is the date where we obtained our first trade name and opened a business checking account here in Arizona. Through that time we have had the privilege to work with so many companies of so many different types and sizes. At the same time we have watch search marketing birth and grow into the multi-billion industry it is today. The future of search looks bright as so does our future as well. Happy birthday, SearchRank!
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What started with a three hour flight delay and three gate changes at the airport turned out to be another great SES, this time in New York City. While Irma and I were supposed to arrive in New York from Phoenix at about 4:30 pm, we actually did not get to our hotel till a little after 8 pm. The original plan was to attend the Internet Marketers of New York charity party, however because we were absolutely famished by the time we arrived (all we had eaten at this point in the day was an airport breakfast burrito), we opted to hook up with Matt McGee and head on over to the Stage Deli for dinner. Then it was over to the Hilton Bar where we met up some old friends. Read on for the rest of the story...
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It doesn't seem that long ago that I was in Chicago attending the winter Search Engine Strategies conference and now, New York. My wife and business partner, Irma, and myself will be heading to New York on Monday for this year's SES - my first time to the big city and her second. That's the reason why I haven't put up a single blog post until now - been busy trying to wrap up two weeks worth of work.
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Just received an email from David Temple who along with Ian McAnerin have been planning the upcoming China Search Marketing Tour that will take place during Search Engine Strategies in China conference. While the conference only runs two days (May 25th-26th) the tour runs from May 19th thru the 28th - 10 glorious days in China. The reason for David's email was to announce that they are offering an early bird discount of $500 until March 5, at 5pm EST.
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This year's Search Engine Strategies conference in Chicago was simply a blast. I attended last year but was only there for one day because a spot on a Site Clinic session opened up. I literally flew in Wednesday and left 24 hours later only leaving the hotel once to attend a party held at Buddy Guy's Legends club. This time around, my wife and business partner, Irma joined me as we attended the entire week. We met tons of cool people and were able to experience some of the highlights of this fabulous city.
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We all knew this was coming. With Danny's recent departure from Search Engine Watch, the resource he founded which was acquired twice, first by Jupiter Media and then by Incisive, it was only a matter of time before it was expected that a new conference series would be announced. While Danny will continue to chair two more Search Engine Strategies conferences for Incisive - New York in April and San Jose in August, Danny's new conference series will be called Search Marketing Expo, or SMX for short. The first event will take place in Seattle on June 4 & 5th 2007.
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I'll be heading out Sunday to Chicago for the annual Search Engine Strategies Conference. I will be a Q&A speaker on the "Working With Ad Agencies" session that looks at how SEM firms can survive and thrive in the ad agency world through partnerships, coexisting and other means. I will also be covering the "CSS, AJAX, Web 2.0 & Search Engines" session for an article I will write shortly after the conference for SearchDay. Other than that, haven't made up my mind exactly which sessions I will attend. Most of all I look forward to meeting up with all my search marketing friends. So posting may be light next week unless there is breaking news or I get inspired.
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As promised earlier this year, Danny Sullivan's last day as Editor in Chief at Search Engine Watch is today. He bids farewell in a post at the SEW Blog and reminds us that his new home will be over at Search Engine Land where he will continue to do what he has done so well over the last decade. Additionally Danny says goodbye at Search Engine Watch Forums where he will hang up his administrator and moderating badge and will become a regular member.
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WebProNews took the opportunity to conduct several video interviews during the most recent PubCon conference. Mike McDonald does an excellent job interviewing each person on a specific topic. Some of the personalities include Danny Sullivan, Brett Tabke, Andy Beal and even Matt Cutts. Read on to see a list of interviews that stand out. Hopefully this will be a continuing trend at for WebProNews trade shows and conferences, Chicago SES being the next one on the map.
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In an announcement last week during PubCon, Las Vegas, Danny Sullivan revealed his new home, Search Engine Land, where he will continue to do what he has been doing for the past ten years - covering the world of search. Along with that announcement came the news that Chris Sherman and Barry Schwartz would also be contributors as well. Danny will leave his current home, Search Engine Watch by the end of this month. Will Chris and Barry also be leaving? The answer is yes. Now news come out that Danny will be pulling nearly the entire staff of Search Engine Watch as they move over to his new venue. Read on for all the juicy details.
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Marketing Pilgrim has launched a contest to give away a search engine marketing scholarship prize worth more than $5,000. Andy's goal is to help one lucky winner to either start their career in search engine marketing or improve their existing skills further. Included in the $5,000 prize package is access to conferences and online workshops, eBooks, a year's subscription to KeywordDiscovery and even free consultation from Andy Beal. Read on for more details.
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Want to receive training on everything from paid search advertising to web analytics to project management from some of the best of the best? How about John Jantsch (Duct Tape Marketing), Andrew Goodman (Page Zero Media), John Marshall (ClickTracks), Jennifer Laycock (Search Engine Guide), Craig Fitzpatrick (Devshop) and Jefferey Eisenberg (Future Now)? You can register for free teleseminars that will begin this Thursday and run every week for the next nine weeks at Freshbooks. Read on for details and link to register.
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A new show entitled "The Search Pulse" will air for the first time today at 5pm (EST) on WebmasterRadio.fm. The show features Barry Schwartz, Chris Boggs and Benjamin Pfeiffer of Search Engine Roundtable in which they will discuss recent news in the industry of search and search marketing. Congrats to Barry, Chris and Benjamin. I personally wish the show much success!
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With the news of Danny Sullivan's soon to be departure from Search Engine Watch, many of us in the industry are now beginning to ponder what the future may hold for the Search Engine Watch site as well as its conferences - Search Engine Strategies. Will it all continue to grow as it has for so many years now or will it die a slow death?
Read on for a recap of Barry Schwartz's most excellent opinions posted at Search Engine Roundtable as well as my own thoughts.
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I couldn't believe the headline as I was going through my RSS feeds this morning, " Leaving Search Engine Watch" found at Danny Sullivan's personal blog, Daggle. Not only will Danny be departing Search Engine Watch but most certainly Search Engine Strategies as well. After 10 plus years, Danny is leaving because Incisive Media (the company that owns SEW and SES) has failed to renegotiate an acceptable contract to keep Danny at the helm.
It is obvious to me that Incisive hasn't the faintest idea how important Danny is as not only a contributor to Search Engine Watch and the Search Engine Strategies conferences, but a figurehead as well. I would even be as bold to say that "he is" SEW and SES. Not to discredit everyone else involved with these two entities as Danny's staff is absolutely awesome but we all know that SEW and SES will not be the same without him.
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Last week's Search Engine Strategies conference in San Jose was the best yet. It is my third SES in San Jose and fourth total. I spoke on the Retaining Traffic After Moving Or Redesign session, a new one for this year that was very well attended. Along with me, Paul Bruemmer, Scott Orth and Navneet Virk presented while Jennifer Laycock moderated. Jennifer I have known for a few years now but it was the first time I have had the opportunity to meet the other three although I have seen Paul Bruemmer's articles floating around throughout the years.
So what did I do, who did I see, etc., etc.? Read on to find out.
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I leave tomorrow for Search Engine Strategies, San Jose, a conference focused on search engines and search marketing that will probably attract well over five thousand attendees. After that it is off the San Francisco for three days of R&R. So blogging will probably be pretty light next week if I even have a chance to blog at all.
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