Mediaboss Marketing

About a decade ago, I was the Freelance Writing Guide for About.com, a company that rigorously trains its employees in search engine optimization (SEO). In addition to receiving that formal training, I locked myself away in a caf for a week and studied what was then a leading book on all things SEO, to help wrap my brain around the concepts I was learning.

Eventually I left the Freelance Writing Guide position and launched my own blog, Dancing with Pain, which shot to the #1 spot on Google, for the keyword natural pain relief. Then, as I segued into public relations management, I continued to implement everything I had learned, as well as intuited, about SEO over the years among other things, generating inbound links to my clients websites, from top media outlets with the result that my clients websites shot to the #1 spot on Google, for the various keywords of choice.

Recently, however, SEO got so damn convoluted, with algorithms changing every six minutes, that I stopped trying to keep up and now advise clients to bring an SEO specialist on board. For those on a budget, however, I figured it would be helpful to pass on these hot DIY tips from Tommy Landry, an SEO expert from Austin, Texas. Like a proper geek, Tommy uses numerous technical terms when discussing SEO. To ensure that even the novice understands the concepts to which he is referring, you will find these terms linked to blog posts on topic either those Tommy wrote himself or those he recommends from other SEO specialists.

Loolwa Khazzoom: What is the #1 most important thing that people need to know about SEO?

Tommy Landry: SEO is a long-haul strategy, and there are no effective shortcuts to success. Plan to dedicate time, energy, and resources to SEO, and the results will come. Anything that attempts to accelerate the process by gaming the system will backfire eventually, typically by way of a penalty from Google.

LK: What is the biggest mistake you find people making, when attempting to manage SEO on their own?

TL: Most people have, at best, an over-simplified idea of what SEO is and how it works. We talk to people all the time who say they know about SEO. In most cases, knowing SEO means generating content with on-page optimization (i.e. placing keywords in all the right places for Google to find and index them), then hoping the rankings follow. Without understanding more in-depth topics such as technical SEO, off-page SEO, advanced keyword filtering, and semantic markup, DIY SEOs will be hard-pressed to show actual results from their efforts.

LK: Is there ever a time that people can or perhaps even should ignore SEO?

TL: More than half of how Google decides to rank websites depends on who links from their website to yours. The more authoritative the website that links to your domain, the better your content will rank, by virtue of association with said authority.

This is why your clients and your websites quickly have improved in ranking for various keyword searches. By generating coverage among high authority domains such as The New York Times and Dr. Oz, you have secured some of the most coveted inbound links, passing along authority of those sites to the sites of your clients and yourself.

For websites that already have established link profiles and domain authority, publishing content should suffice for SEO benefit. Those websites quickly will rank and naturally will earn more links, as a result of the inherent visibility of their domains as a whole. There are also industries where the target audience either is not online (as in the case of products targeting oil rig workers who go offshore to work) or is not likely to do a search for options (as in the case of well-established industries, where there are only a couple of nationally-known options).

LK: What are your guidelines on balancing the art of writing with the functionality of SEO in websites? in blog posts?

TL: Previously Google focused on character matching algorithms, scanning for web pages with exact words and characters typed into a search field. Today, however, Google focuses on search intent, scanning for web pages associated with the meanings of words typed into a search field. A well-built list of semantic SEO topics identifies keyword variations and synonyms - providing a range of verbiage that helps keep the content reading naturally and making it easier to optimize content. Semantic SEO is paramount to effective SEO performance in 2017.

It also pays to understand semantic markup, or to hire someone to take care of it for you. Semantic markup enables you to establish entities via the code, which Google and the other search engines can use to help better interpret the intent of your content. Semantic markup will help you rank better on low volume/low competition searches, many of which happen for the first time ever on a daily basis (up to 25% of daily searches have never happened before, according to Google).

LK: For small business owners without the budget to hire an SEO expert, what are your top three tips for selecting and incorporating keywords?

TL: Think about how someone might search online, for the kinds of products or services you offer. For example, consider a problem for which your product or service offers a solution, and build keywords around fixing that problem. Do your keyword research, to figure out how many searches each keyword gets on a monthly basis, but also factor in search competition (i.e. how difficult it will be to rank for a keyword, based on the strength of sites already ranking for it). High volume keywords are almost certain to have high competition, so lesser-volume but more attainable options will be preferable. Among other considerations, think in terms of topics (similar keywords to use in tandem, such as Auto Shipping, Car Shipping, Auto Transport, Vehicle Shipping, etc.). These topics will be peppered into your body copy, and also used in the most important on-page elements that will tell Google what you are targeting, such as page title, meta description, etc.

LK: Would you recommend any online tools for selecting keywords?

TL: I always advocate starting out with the Google Keyword Planner, for anyone who has access to it. Thats a great way to generate an initial keyword list, based on a crawl of your website. It also will be insightful for seeing what Google thinks your site is about (which may surprise you). Next, review the results and choose what you most want to pursue. If possible, review what your competitors are pursuing as well, and consider adding those keywords to your list. Get access to a premium keyword tool, to layer in the SEO competition/keyword difficulty metrics (SEMrush, Moz, ahrefs, and Market Samurai are tops in my book). If you dont pay to use any of these premium/paid tools, keep in mind that any well-qualified SEO expert will have access to one or more of them.

LK: For solopreneurs managing every aspect of their business, having to think about and implement SEO on every website page and blog post can feel overwhelming. Is there such a thing as fast and easy SEO implementation, or are there no shortcuts?

TL: For on-page SEO (the body copy and other elements on each web page that you control), knowing where to place keywords is a big deal. The art of keyword placement can be learned very quickly when working with a WordPress-based website, through installing Yoast SEO for WordPress. This plugin adds a dialogue at the bottom of the page and post editing views - evaluating your on-page optimization in real time, as you build the page.

Presuming you have a great target keyword already picked out, you can add it in the Yoast section at the bottom, and Yoast will tell you whether or not you have used it correctly in the various meta tags, ALT-Texts for images (which is a great place to include keywords that many overlook), and body copy. That said, for everything else under the SEO umbrella, the savvy solopreneur will understand that nothing is immediate, and patience is absolutely required.

LK: How many keywords do you recommend using per page, and why?

TL: Given that keywords are more important as guideposts today, we recommend identifying topics that include multiple keywords. Once you have rounded those up, put together long tail keywords - terms with 3+ words, incorporating short keywords. In the case of your Dancing with Pain blog, for example, you included the keyword pain in natural pain relief. Had you selected pain alone, you would have been competing with the leading pharmaceutical corporations and the United States government, among other top contenders. Even with your inbound links from prestigious media, it would have been quite a challenge to secure the #1 spot on Google for the keyword pain.

Longer tail versions, like natural pain relief, have lower search volumes and much lower competition for page 1 ranking, creating the greatest chance of securing the highest placements. In other words, it is better to come in at the #1 spot on the first page of a Google search for natural pain relief than it is to come in somewhere on the fifth or twelfth page of a Google search for pain.

Bottom line: Use long tail versions as your target keywords. The rest of the iterations on the keyword can be used within the content, to help indicate to Google what the overall topic should be for that page or post.

LK: Back in the day, if you hyperlinked a keyword on one page to the same hyperlinked keyword on another page in particular, if that keyword was in the first paragraph you would get additional SEO juice. Now that practice gets you dinged. Why the switch? And if someone is genuinely writing on that topic, how does s/he emphasize the natural keywords, without it backfiring?

TL: About a decade ago, the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) began to be overrun by poor-quality websites that were using highly-questionable tactics to leapfrog other websites. Some were ranking because of over-optimized content, which Google eliminated with their Google Panda penalty. Others were cheating with their link-building by automating link acquisition with software tools that placed a ton of links on random websites, as well as by keyword-stuffing the anchor texts pointing back to their sites. (Anchor texts are the words that are highlighted in blue and underlined, linking to other pages.) So Google rolled out the Google Penguin penalty, to hand-slap webmasters who were overly-aggressive with their off-page link-building. As a result, today you cant over-optimize the text in the hyperlink itself (anchor text), without opening yourself up to a penalty by Google.

This development is actually great. Keyword tracking is obsolete now that we have semantic search. The better metric to keep tabs on is domain authority, which measures the search weight of your website, relative to all sites on the web. Domain authority, in turn, is driven by a range of link-related factors. These reasons are why link-building should be left to a highly-knowledgeable SEO expert, rather than be executed on the basis of guesswork. Guesswork literally can backfire, resulting in a website being de-indexed altogether.

LK: Since domain authority is now the primary consideration for SEO, would you say that generating top media coverage, and therefore, inbound links from leading authorities, is more important than ever?

TL: Yes and no. Generating top media coverage will absolutely help you rank and improve your domain authority (DA). Better yet, however, if you can get a third party to include a link to your site within a contextual piece, i.e. non-promotional in nature, you will get even more DA weight with Google.

Dont get me wrong; the press coverage is still a fantastic DA builder. If you can have a major media publication write about your business, your owner, or anything special you have accomplished, make it happen. But Google absolutely loves earned links rather than proactively-pursued placements. Such links often come through content from third-party writers on a topic you have covered, with a link to your blog or website as a reference supporting key point(s) in the content. The higher the DA on the site linking to your domain, the more your own site will rise organically in searches.

LK: Yoast SEO plug-in will ding someone for using a, the, in, etc for example, preferring the keyword massage therapist San Francisco to the keyword a massage therapist in San Francisco. But the former is so awkward to use in a sentence. How does one get around this SEO stumbling block?

TL: This matter primarily comes down to keyword selection, but also to the tradeoff between perfect SEO targeting and a healthy user experience. Synonyms are important regardless. As we have discussed, algorithms today are driven by semantics that can better assess search intent, when keyword variations are included eliminating the previous need to repeat a keyword a dozen times.

Use both the primary target keyword, as well as any synonyms on the page, knowing full-well that Google will figure it out. Use the naturally-phrased version in the body copy, and optimize the meta tags and image ALT-Texts for the Yoast recommendation, with slugs removed. Yoast is not perfect, but it remains the best option I have seen among SEO plugins. Realistically, it would be impossible to build a plugin that fully accommodates semantic on-page optimization, in its constantly-changing state.

LK: Why should someone hire an SEO expert? What simply cannot be achieved without the professional level of support?

TL: Technical SEO could possibly be handled in-house, but it is important to conduct deep research into the various pieces of it, before presuming one understands it fully. By bringing in someone with years or decades of experience working on websites, the path to success is quicker and significantly easier for the client.

Off-page is also much more work than any other part of SEO. It could be a full-time job doing the work to build high-quality links that will move the needle. But off-page is more than half the battle to move up the SERPs, so it should not be overlooked. Without it, the rest of SEO is just busy work that will make marginal differences. An expert can help build off-page links properly, while avoiding the risk of a Google penalty.

Finally, keyword research is no longer a simple task, where it is enough to identify what keywords have search volume. SEO competition is a mandatory filter for removing keywords for which you never will be able to rank.

Semantic SEO understanding is also important, to avoid the myopic trap of thinking you can track 10 keywords and understand where your traffic originates. A properly-optimized website wont live or die on 10-20 keywords, which will typically account for less than 10% of traffic these days. With intent-based matching algorithms, topics matter more than keywords do. Get an expert to identify these topics and put modern Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), a.k.a. success metrics, in place.

LK: Is there anything else youd like to say about SEO practices for business?

TL: SEO underwent a significant evolution in the 2007 2013 timeframe, and the SEO of lore is no more. Today we need to focus on responsible link-building, semantic topics/markup, and a range of new concepts. Theres a reason we have a whole cottage industry of SEO experts, and the savvy solopreneur will seek to get help with search engine optimization rather than sinking too much time into DIY efforts. Once a strategy is set, and the client understands it, the client can start to take on more in-house, moving forward.

Read more from the original source:
Hot Do It Yourself (DIY) Tips from a Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Expert - HuffPost

Super early bird rates expire next week forSMX East, the East Coasts largest search marketing conference. Attend for three days of actionable, cutting-edgesearch marketing tacticspresented by experts that will leave your competition in the dust.

Heres what to expect October 2426 in NYC:

By attending SMX East, youll be sure to brush up on your skills, find new perspectives and walk away with actionable search marketing tactics that can you can use immediately. Just hear what ourpast attendeeshad to say!

We know your time is valuable, and we guaranteethat your experience at SMX East will be worth the investment.

Register for SMX East, and join fellow SEOs and SEMs making an impact in the search marketing community. For only $1,795, youll learn fresh tactics to improve your search marketing campaigns, have unlimited expo hall access, networking, WiFi, meals, snacks and more! That is a limited time savings of $400 compared to on-site rates.Register before next Saturdayfor lowest rates!

Need management approvals? Weve made it incredibly easy for you with thisGet Your Boss Onboard guide.

Some opinions expressed in this article may be those of a guest author and not necessarily Search Engine Land. Staff authors are listed here.

See the original post here:
3 days of SEO and SEM tactics at the lowest rates. SMX East prices increase next week! - Search Engine Land

ASHEVILLE, NCThe JB Media Institute , a digital marketing training program offering online and in-person classes, is giving away a lifetime of digital marketing training (valued at over $10,000) to the winner of its Summer Sweepstakes. From August 1 through September 7, anyone 18 years of age and older (from anywhere in the world) can enter for their chance to win at jbmediagroupllc.com/sweepstakes . A winner will be drawn at random and announced mid-September.

The total prize package includes:

One free seat in the JB Media Institute in-person or online training program

$957$2,500 value One lifetime membership in the online learning community $4,500 value over the first 5

years One 90-minute private coaching sessions 4 times per year for 2 years $2,400 total

value Bonus for Asheville locals Access to all of our local Bootcamps and Workshops for 2

years $600 estimated value

Total value $10,000 over the first 5 years

More than 250 students have completed the programs since its launching in 2013. Justin Belleme, founder of the digital marketing agency JB Media Group in West Asheville, cofounded the JB Media Institute with Sarah Benoit, lead instructor. Together, they want to help business owners and marketing professionals achieve their digital marketing goals. The Institute covers digital campaign best practices for strategy, SEO, social media, online advertising, and online public relations.

Students Across the Globe

The JB Media Institutes comprehensive training program offers three in-person sessions per year and seven online sessions per year. The in-person classes are offered in Asheville, NC, where the Institute is headquartered, and the online Institute is available to anyone with internet access.

In the last year, the Institute has expanded to include free monthly webinars and a summer workshop series. The Institute also continues to offer half-day digital marketing Bootcamps in Asheville throughout the year on a wide variety of topics. As the program has grown, Benoit has worked to diversify and adapt the curriculum in numerous ways that support different styles of learning.

We are always focused on student feedback and discovering ways to improve and strengthen the curriculum. The program now offers more than 20 hours of training materials, made up of over 100 presentations and how-to videos, says Benoit.

Different people find certain types of training and educational environments more conducive to success, she continues. It is my goal to offer students of all kinds the opportunity to enhance their skills and achieve their digital marketing goals, whether they prefer one-off workshops, immersive training, in-person classes, or online courses.

Theory Meets Real World Application

Uniquely, the school draws from the expertise of the JB Media Group agency professionals who provide real-world, on-the-ground support and instruction. Currently, the Institute has 8 to 10 active instructors made of up a combination of JB Media Group staff, local industry experts, and academic thought leaders. Students include business owners, marketing professionals, administrative staff, and those in career transition.

From the very beginning, we have worked hard to integrate current trends and best practices into the training program, says Belleme. This allows us to teach both the theory and real-world application of a wide variety of digital marketing skills in an accelerated learning environment.

Belleme and Benoit are excited to offer anyone interested in the Institute a chance to win a lifetime of training through the sweepstakes.

This is an awesome opportunity for someone to win the training they need to execute a successful digital marketing strategy or to level up their skills to advance their marketing career, says Benoit.

Additional JB Media Institute Updates

Along with the sweepstakes, the JB Media Institute has a number of other exciting developments this summer and fall:

A Summer Internet Marketing Bootcamp will be held Tuesday, August 29, from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Goodwill Career Center in West Asheville.

Cofounder Justin Belleme will present an update on the JB Media Institute at Ashevilles 1 Million Cups of Coffeefree and open to the publicon Wednesday, September 6, at 9 a.m. at RISC Networks. Our fall online and in-person Institute sessions begin on Tuesday, September 12. Free monthly webinars are open to the public and are typically offered on the first

Wednesday of the month.

About the JB Media Institute

Headquartered in Asheville, NC, the JB Media Institute launched in 2013 by cofounders Justin Belleme and Sarah Benoit, and has graduated more than 250 students across online and in-person sessions. Through a hands-on approach, students learn to create a complete digital marketing plan covering strategy, SEO, social media, online advertising, and online public relations. In addition, the JB Media Institute holds free monthly webinars and various half-day bootcamps across the Western NC region. Learn more at jbmediagroupllc.com.

Read more:
JB Media Institue offers a lifetime of free digital marketing training - Mountain Xpress (blog)

Super early bird rates expire next week forSMX East, the East Coasts largest search marketing conference. Attend for 3 days of actionable, cutting edgesearch marketing tacticspresented by experts that will leave your competition in the dust.

Heres what to expect October 24-26 in NYC:

By attending SMX East, youll be sure to brush up on your skills, find new perspectives and walk away with actionable search marketing tactics that can you can use immediately. Just hear what ourpast attendeeshad to say!

We know your time is valuable, andguaranteethat your experience at SMX East will be worth the investment.

Register for SMX Eastand join fellow SEOs and SEMs making an impact in the search marketing community. For only $1,795, youll learn fresh tactics to improve your search marketing campaigns, have unlimited expo hall access, networking, WiFi, meals, snacks and more! That is a limited time savings of $400 compared to on-site rates.Register before next Saturdayfor lowest rates!

Need management approvals? Weve made it incredibly easy for you with thisGet Your Boss Onboard guide.

Some opinions expressed in this article may be those of a guest author and not necessarily Marketing Land. Staff authors are listed here.

More:
3 days of SEO and SEM tactics at the lowest rates. SMX East prices increase next week! - Marketing Land

The 2017 American Golf Long Drive Championship was filled with surprises, upsets, new talent and record drives.

A staggering 5,000 people took part in the third annual American Golf Long Drive Championship, but after all was said and done in the final at the spectacular Heytrop Hall, the victors were Dan Konyk (Under 45s), Ilona Stubley (Ladies) and Charles Seo (Over 45s).

Each winner now heads to the Volvik World Long Drive Championships in a few weeks time.

In the U45 category, although Max Armstrong set the pace with a 454-yard monster, the match of the day was fought out between2016 champion Lucas Dornan and 2015 champion Dan Konyk.

Following social media sparring in the run up to the final, the competition was fierce. Both had seeded with 420 yards and it took a sudden death hit off to separate the pair before Konyk progressed, to the delight of the crowd.

Konyk then went from strength to strength, before taking down German contender Timo Petrasch in the final with a 401-yard hit.

"To win qualification for the World Championships is a great opportunity and I cant wait to represent American Golf at the highest level," said Konyk.

"This will be my 13thWorld Championships and if I can carry this form forward to the USthen Ive got a real chance of bringing the title home."

WATCH: HOW TO START NAILING YOUR DRIVER

The Ladies competition proved just as enthralling as reigning champion and current world number threeRebecca McGinley was deposed in the quarter finals by Becki OGrady.

O'Grady couldnt quite continue her form in the semi finals, however,as she came up against 14-year-old wonder kid Elle Gibson, who proved a model of consistency all day, hitting 300 yards on multiple occasions with a smooth, fluid golf swing.

But the only player able to compete in consistency and numbers was Ilona Stubley, who struck a stunning 338-yard drive in seeding.

The 33-year-oldGlaswegian kept pace with Gibson, with both players taking a set each in the final with drives of 300 yards. In the deciding set Gibsonset a target of 299 yards. but Stubley edged that by eight yards to land the spoils.

"All day Elle was hitting great, so I knew the final would be tough," said Stubley."

"In the third set, I was pleased that I was hitting second as I prefer to chase down a score and knowing what I have to do to win. To win it with a drive of 307 yards was a great feeling as I was still able to hit a good distance when the pressure was on and made all the hard work leading up to the event worthwhile."

And the over 45s category proved just as impressive as the others before it, especially given the category saw its first400-plus yard drivewhen William Hunt Tyrell marked his return from retirement with 413-yard bomb in the first round.

But despite Tyrell's best efforts, the final was won by popular LondoneCharles Seowho ousted David Willmore.

Seo, who puthis success down to a new training regime, explained how he had finally fulfilled a childhood ambition having agonisingly fallen short for the title in recent years.

"Ive been playing golf for over 40 years and this really is my dream come true," said Seo.

"Ive always been the longest hitter between my friends and thought I would be good at long drive, but to actually win the American Golf UKChampionship is an amazing feeling.

"Ive come so close over the last threeyears. I lost in the final in 2015 and the semi-final in 2016 so Ive been training hard for this year. I came up with my own special training in the swimming pool to improve my flexibility and its all paid off. I will just carry on working hard now and if I hit as well in the World Championships I will have a real chance."

"This event keeps getting better but I dont think anyone expected what weve seen here today," said American Golf's director of marketing Daniel Gathercole.

"We started the American Golf Long Drive Championships threeyears ago to encourage more people to get out hitting balls and having some fun.

"This year weve had over 5,000 people take part and this really has become the premier long drive event in Europe.

"Its such a competitive environment but every player has shown fantastic sportsmanship and support for each other. Im very proud of what American Golf has achieved with this Championship and hope to go even bigger with it next year."

For more information about the event visit http://www.americangolf.co.uk

More here:
Konyk, Stubley, Seo prove too strong at ... | GolfMagic - Golfmagic.com