Social Media & SEO.

I've discussed our approach to social media marketing & why we think it so important. In response to a tweet by Chris Brogan I also illustrated why I felt SEO was more important than ever and how SEO & Social Media work together.

Has anyone ever said to you, "I think I just googled..." or "Just do a search for..." ? They say it to me all the time. Maybe that's just a reflection of the company I keep.

How good is your memory? Can you remember this URL? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY It's the Susan Boyle video. Why should I walk back to my desk and copy and paste & send you that link when you can just Google her name? Or how about "Saw a funny video on Youtube the other night, I think I was searching for...." ? Whilst I spend far too much time online I often say those things to people in the real world. I talk to people I meet all the time, (most of them don't appreciate it). There was a bloke at Sydney Airport last night who I overheard say to a mate "Nah can't download music on my Mac there not much software around for them being a Mac" . I just told him to Google Cabos or opensource mac. There's a heap of stuff.

That is why SEO is more important than ever. We are connecting more, we're sharing more & search is the gateway to new discoveries.

The more you are involved in Social Media the more opportunities you have of others connecting with you via the replacement of the Yellow Pages. The Search Engine.

SEO is important

Chris Brogan posed the question a few moments ago on Twitter "Is SEO *AS* important". I completely understand the not so subtle emphasis on "as". The implication Chris is making here, is that it's probably still important but not as much as it used to be. With the rise of social media (whatever that is defined as this week) I have had conversations like this before with clients. I would argue that it is now more important than ever.

Trust agents, trusted networks etc are of course monumentally important but if one of my mates starts asking me questions and wants recommendations about a product or service BEFORE they've done their own homework, I'll explain I am not their Google bitch. Google it yourself first, get some information, then if you still want my opinion, let's talk. Search engines drive the bulk of traffic on the web. Consider Google Social Search. If you are not keyword optimising your social media presence you are not going to turn up when I search my network for a particular phrase.

SEO is about discovery. If I can't find what I want in Google I'll then go to my social networks, as I did earlier in the year when I vlogged Twitter is bigger than Google

Have a look at these numbers from Google on the amount of searches for the phrase "Social Media"

 

More people than ever are searching for that phrase. If you are selling Social Media services of course you want word of mouth recommendations but what about those people looking for a solution, right now that you can provide.
Think of SEO as having the best shelf space in the supermarket. Who doesn't like discovering something new & sharing (or in my case bragging about) that discovery with their friends? It's human nature.

Here's the kicker though. We can accurately measure the return on investment of SEO activities. How do I do that with Social Media? We can tell you what a word is worth in $ terms to your business. Once you have setup SEO publishing KPIs for your online properties, the search engines will continue to send you new visitors OUTSIDE your current social circles. This is incredibly important as detailed in the doco "How Kevin Bacon Cured Cancer". The most important & valuable connections are the ones on the fringe of your networks. As they will help you connect to other networks you would not have otherwise been exposed to. The old "you tell 10 people and they tell 10 people, then they tell 10 people" promotion technique doesn't work. The reason being is that there is a lot of cross over in those networks. Basically the same people get told the same message a number of times.

SEO is one way to open up your message to people who otherwise didn't know you existed AND if you have  good social media strategy in place perhaps you will become one of their trust agents that they introduce to their networks.

What do you think? Can social media become insular? How do you measure the return to your business on social media activities?

Is your online marketing spam

We got comment spammed during the week. Not uncommon for our site. Turns out the "online marketer" had gone feral. Do you have yours under control?

SEO Classic Keyword Mistakes

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We have so much business coming in it's getting difficult to find time to devote to the workshops.

I know I've said it before but I mean it this time. The Melbourne workshop below is the last one I will be running.

So if you want 1/2 a day of learning how to get to No.1 in Google and be sent home with a bucket load of ranking secrets, Feb 21st is your last chance. There's heaps of freebies as well

Today's vid looks at a classic keyword blunder and what we will be replacing the workshops with.

Melbourne Workshop - 5 tix left!

FREE SAMPLE! Watch now! Here are some comments from people that have attended previous seminars and workshops. "Just thought I'd give you some feedback on the results we've achieved so far. For 5 very generic terms and those we'd found difficult to previously rank well in, these are the Google (au) search results after 2.5 weeks since attending your seminar: 1. Phrase 1 - 2nd page, 2. Phrase 2 - 1st page, 3. Phrase 3 - 1st page, 4. Phrase 4 - 1st page, 5. Phrase 5 - 1st page

These results have only just occurred mid last week - and it's no coincidence that our enquiry level shot through the roof for Wed, Thu & Fri last week." Mark Dally Channel 1 "Thanks for sharing so much of your valuable wisdom - you are very generous!.... You were awesome!" Jo Harrison Relationship Coach "I wanted to say how grateful I was for your fabulous class on Monday . It was very interesting and I hope I get to hear you again sometime again in the future." Patrick Meegan "Thanks again. You have been the most helpful and well informed SEO person I have ever dealt with." Daniel Cohen A.C.E. Training & Consulting

Workshop Details

Where: Australian Institute of Management, St Kilda

When: 21st Feb 2008, 9:00AM - 1:00PM

Cost: $495

If you are not ready for the workshop why not get the 2 hour DVD Tutorial on getting to no.1 in Google. Or if you just want someone to get you to no.1 in Google give us a call! 03 9770 8176

WORKSHOP BOOKINGS HERE!

All the best,

Jim Stewart
PS. People search for "cheap flights" NOT "low price airfares"

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Ever wonder why no matter what you do Google seems to ignore you?

There could be a very good reason for it.

Today's vid gives 3 examples that we have seen recently, where the web developers should have been taken outside and slapped with a large fish. Preferably something smelly like a mackerel.

All these problems could have been easily avoided. Make sure your web developer isn't doing any of these things.

If you are having trouble getting seen in Google you need to watch this vid.