Online Marketing Blog

Ron Belanger from Yahoo does a decent job explaining, “Engagement, Search and Social Media” in a video over at iMedia Connection. I like the context in which he presents social search - as a third channel to organic and PPC. Now if iMedia just offered some social bookmark links for the video!

WSJ posits a good question: “Google Tests New Ad Offerings — But Will Advertisers Follow?” In order to accomplish the transfer of ad dollars to other ad formats, Google will need to change existing mindsets about advertising in print, on radio and TV as being too expensive or complicated.

I just noticed that Online Marketing Blog was included in the 9rules Network. So far there have been three, 24-hour submission rounds with hundreds of blogs trying to get in, but only a few make it, like Neil and Cameron’s Pronet Advertising Blog. In fact, although I’d met Neil at conferences before, I didn’t discover his blog until I found it on 9rules along with another favorite, Experience Curve.

Inclusion criteria are here, but basically include: passion for the subject, quantity and quality of writing, topics and design.

Andy Beal lets the cat out of the bag with “Five Secret Strategies to Add $1 Million in Revenue to your Interactive Marketing Agency in 2007″. What the hell is he doing giving such advice away for free??

Mike McDonald of WebProNews interviews Rebecca Lieb from ClickZ and new Editor in Chief of Search Engine Watch.

Sean X. Cummings from Ask.com calls bull$#@! on 3 marketing strategies over at iMedia Connection. Check out the “Billy Badass” sunglasses on Sean!

Chris Winfield to write for SEO Buzz Box - Aaron scores!!!

When the Yahoo Publisher Network blog editor Michael Mattis asked me to write an short marketing article for small businesses I knew exactly what to write about. As much as anyone, I am a proponent of new and interesting online marketing strategies like using social media for marketing, but I am also a firm believer in tried and true tactics, such as promoting one’s site offline.

After going through the routine hoops with Yahoo, the article has published on the YPN blog today, “Signal to Noise“. The article covers the basics as well as a few new, low cost tactics including:

This is a bit of a late post but I want to get it out there before it gets swallowed up by all the other half-finished posts in my WordPress control panel.

I am happy to say that the session on social media optimization with Neil Patel, Andy Hagans, Rand Fishkin, Todd Malicoat and I during SES Chicago last week went pretty well. Todd and I did not do PowerPoint presentations but we did get a few minutes to introduce ourselves and talk a little bit about SMO.

Neil started things off with a very unique and humorous explanation of Wikipedia. Basically, “Don’t spam Wikipedia.”

For some good humor, check out the following posts by Jeremy Zawodny from Yahoo and Matt Cutts from Google. Jeremey points out a striking similarity between the Yahoo and Google MSIE splash pages. Google has changed the splash page to something else by now.

Matt responds in that very politically correct and polite way that Matt does and then he points out how Yahoo has been copying Google’s PPC ad layouts.

It’s been six months since Google launched their Finance offering and Google announced today that several new features have been added including:

• Enhanced Charts: Up to 40 years of historical data for US stocks is now available.
• Market Trends: A “top-mover‚Äù module on the Google Finance homepage now highlights the market’s top moving companies which are featured categorically by price, market cap, volume, and number of queries.
• Customizable Portfolios: You can now store multiple portfolios and upload information from other online portfolios with several customization options.

Google’s posting a cool Edvard Munch inspired logo today based on his painting, “The Scream”.¬† Check out all of Google’s Holiday logos or these collections of fan logos.

Loren Baker from Search Engine Journal tells us it’s that time of year again for the SEJ Search Blog Awards. He is taking nominations in the comments of the nicely redesigned (ala Chris Pearson) Search Engine Journal blog.

Categories include:

* Best SEO Blog
* Best SEM Blog
* Best Search Agency Resource Blog
* Best Link Building Blog
* Best Social Media Blog
* Best Search Engine Corporate Blog (owned by the search engines)
* Best Contextual Advertising Blog
* Best Affiliate Marketing Blog
* Best Search Engine Community/Forum Blog
* Best Web 2.0 Blog
* Best Search Linkbait of 2006

(I’m crazy for hatbait)
On the tails of the Drink Bait promotion during WebmasterWorld Pubcon in Las Vegas a few weeks ago, Li from Search Marketing Gurus ran a very interesting “Hat Bait” promo during the Chicago Search Engine Strategies conference. I believe she has the largest single collection of labeled SEO photos anywhere!

Everyone from Danny Sullivan to MC Detlev posed with one of Li’s funky hats. Now’s your chance to vote (via comments) on which photo of a search marketer wearing a silly hat is your favorite.

I think some other creative variations for “bait” that include some social media could be:

Last week’s Search Engine Strategies conference was jam packed with information, networking, some fun and a little business too. What I like about conferences in Chicago is that it’s only an hour flight from Minneapolis, so I can leave on the last day of the conference and get home at a decent time. These days with a growing family and the biz, I need all the productive time I can get.

One cannot go an evening at a Search Engine Strategies conference without some type of revelry and Wednesday night was no exception. Clicktracks delivered an encore of sorts by having a party at B.L.U.E.S. which is where TrueLocal had a party two days prior.

Guests were treated to drinks, food and the musical stylings of Chico Banks and the Candy Lickers - yep, that’s right. There was an additional singer to rev things up (didn’t catch his name though) added after a few songs.

As you can see John and Laura Thieme got up and put it down on the dance floor along with other SES party goers.