Must Read Search Marketing Blogs

By Lee Odden Blogging, Online Marketing, Search Engines, Search Marketing, SEO

Editor: Here is the master list of search marketing blogs maintained weekly.
In the latter part of last year I had been sharing blogs that I came across and decided are worthy to add to my RSS reader. Topics of these blogs, as you might guess, concern search engines, search engine optimization, online PR and social media. I realize calling this a “must read” list is a bit ambitious, but I do have to say that if I had enough time to read them all, I would!

In the spirit of the new year, I thought I would share the OPML file as of January 3rd, 2007 of the 250 plus (and counting) SEO, SEM, social media and online PR blogs I try to monitor. There are quite a few gems in there but it’s nearly impossible to keep up with all of them. Even if you use Zap Reader.

In the process of revisiting each blog site and RSS feed, I have a few recommendations for bloggers:

Please make it easier to subscribe to your feed! Place an orange RSS icon high up on your page and don’t be afraid to use the word “subscribe” nearby. The RSS feed buttons tool can help you in this department.
Please add some “about” information to your blog. Without extra information about the contributor(s), there’s not as much credibility. You can still be anonymous, but add a little background info at least.
Take it easy on the AdSense. Too much AdSense above the fold, the less value you’re providing readers.
Post once in a while, will ya?! I know it’s not a top priority for many of the knowledgeable marketers out there, but think about how you can re-purpose other communications such as answering questions for prospects, customers or staff. Also, take notes when you have ideas and save them as blog post drafts. Add to them over time and soon you’ll be able to post full length articles (if that’s your thing) on a regular basis with a minimum time investment at one sitting.

Below is a collection of over 250 blogs covering search marketing with a few that venture into blogging, social media and new media public relations. This list is an output of my own RSS reader and it will update (add/remove) as I update the list of blogs and feeds that I track. I hope you find it useful.

The list will be maintained on an ongoing basis on the Search Marketing Blogs page. Here is the OPML file for your download/importing pleasure. (right click and save as)

Enjoy!

10e20 – Chris Winfield and Tamar Weinberg’s new blog is getting lots of attention.
Abhilash – Abhilash Patel’s blog: “Boutique SEO With a Little Brown Sugar.”
Accessible Web Design – Joe Dolson on accessibiliy.
ad:tech blog – Official blog for the ad:tech conferences.
Ask.com Blog – Official blog for Ask.com
BIG marketing for small business – Rajan Sodhi’s fairly new blog on common and uncommon marketing tactics for small businesses.
biggNuts – Dax Herrerra, black hat SEO and book author.
Biznology – IBM Distinguished Engineer Mike Moran’s blog on search.
Blackhat SEO – Entertaining at least.
BloggerDesign – Thomas McMahon’s blog (aka TwisterMC) on blog design, usability and marketing.
Blogs and Feeds – Amanda Watlington’s blog on blogging, RSS and search marketing.
BPWrap – Barry Welford’s blog about internet marketing.
Brad Fallon – Long time SEO.
Bruce Clay Blog – Lisa Barone performs her blog magic covering the search marketing industry.
Business Blog Consulting – A group blog started by Rick Bruner.
business2blog: B2Day – The latest ideas from Business 2.0 editor Erick Schonfeld
Cameron Olthuis – Personal blog with some search and SMO/SMM thrown in.
Capture the Conversation – Internet Marketing Methodologies from Room 214, Inc co-founders James Clark & Jason Cormier.
Cartoon Barry – Barry Schwartz’s pseudo personal blog. Also includes links to posts from his work at Search Engine Roundtable and Search Engine Land.
Catherine “Cat” Seda – Long, long time, search marketer!
Charlene Li’s Blog – Forrester Analyst blog that also covers search marketing.
Comparison Engines – Brian Smith’s popular blog on comparison shopping engines.
Commerce360 Blog – Craig Danuloff posts about search marketing and analytics.
comScore Networks – Feed for comScore press releases.
Copyblogger – Brian Clark’s most excellent blog on copywriting and marketing.
Cre8pc – The lovely and super smart Kim Krause’s blog on usability and holistic search marketing.
Cre8tive Flow – Cre8asiteforums group blog.
CrunchNotes – Michael Arrington’s less formal blog as a companion to Techcrunch.
Daggle – The man, the legend, Mr. Danny Sullivan: Hero of search marketing.
David Naylor – DaveN, a favorite blackhat SEO of many.
Did-It Frog Blog – Can you really take a frog blog seriously?
Diva Marketing Blog – Toby Bloomberg’s blog on marketing with blogs.
DMA Search Engine Marketing Council Blog – Direct Marketing Association SEMC blog.
Elixr Systems Blog – James Peggie and Dylan Downhill post about SEO, PPC and online PR.
eMarketing Talk Show – Cindy Turrietta podcast show on search marketing.
Emergence Media – Daniel Riveong’s excellent blog on internet marketing and social media.
eTraffic Jams Blog – Michael Pedone writes about SEO.
eWhisper.net – Brad Geddes thoughts on advertising, PPC and the web.
ExperienceCurve – Karl Long’s blog on marketing, social media and customer experience.
flashpoint – Yahoo Ian Kennedy’s blog on social media advertising.
Flyte Blog – Rich Brooks writes about web marketing for small business.
GOODROI Internet Marketing – Greg Niland blogs about his GoodKarma Online Marketing radio show.
Google Analytics Blog – Official blog for Google Analytics with tips and resources from the GA team.
Google Base Blog – Official Google Base blog.
Google Blogoscoped – Phillip Lenssen’s blog about mostly Google.
Google Code Blog – Google API’s and more.
Google Operating System – Ionut Alex Chitu offers uUnofficial news and tips about Google.
Google Watch – Steve Bryant from Ziff Davis watches Google.
Google Webmaster Central blog – Posts from the Google Webmaster Central team including wisdom from Vanessa Fox and Adam Lasnik.
Google Webmaster Help Google Group – A forum, not a blog, but valuable nonetheless.
Google’s Blogs ‘n More – Mix of official Google feeds from Google Blogscoped.
Googling Google ZDNet – Garett Rogers from ZDNet blogs about what Google is up to.
Graywolf’s SEO Blog – Michael Gray blogs about social media and grayhat SEO.
Great Finds – iCrossing company blog about marketing online.
Greg Hartnett – Internet entrepreneur (BOTW.org and other sites), husband, father, activist and all around great guy.
Hacking New Media – T.L. Pierce blogs about emerging technologies for online publishing, social media, communications & collaboration.
Hawaii Online Advertising – Dave Zuls writes about SEO from Hawaii.
High Rankingsï¿½ï¿½ Advisor Archives – Jill Whalen’s newsletter available via RSS.
HitTail – Mike Levin blogs about Connors Communication’s tool HitTail.
Hitwise Intelligence – The HitWise team posts tasty insights about search trends.
How To Blog For Fun & Profit! – T. L. Pakii Pierce
I Hate Google.org – Dan Kramer writes about sSearch engine optimization news and tidbits.
I Love Jack Daniels – Dave Childs on design, development and marketing.
IncrediBILL’s Random Rants – Bill Atchison on, “Stopping scrapers and spammers and a whole lote more”.
Influential Interactive Marketing – Rohit Bhargava, VP Interactive Marketing for Ogilvy Public Relations on marketing online.
Inside AdSense – Official blog for Google AdSense.
Inside AdWords – Official blog for Google AdWords.
Inside the Marketers Studio – David Berkowitz’s blog on internet marketing.
InsideGoogle – Nathan Weinberg’s long time blog about Google and the search industry.
Internet Marketing Blog – Chris Garrett of Performancing fame.
Internet – martinibuster – Roger Montti’s unique perspective on the search engine marketing industry.
IR Thoughts – Dr. E. Garcia (aka Orion) blogs about theses, papers and presentations relevant to information retrieval.
Jeremy Zawodny’s blog – Famous or infamous? Yahoo employee.
Jim Boykin Internet Marketing Blog – Jim Boykin’s excellent blog about SEO, link building and running a SEO firm.
Joe’s Sem Blog – Joe Williams from the UK writes mostly about PPC search marketing.
John Battelle’s Searchblog – Famous co-founder of Wired magazine posts about the search engine industry.
John Scott’s Internet Marketing Blog – V7N founder posts on SEO.
johnon.com – John Andrews on competitive webmastering and SEO.
Jonathan Mendez’s Blog – Branding, usability, paid search and analytics.
Joseph Morin – Travels – Joe consults, works with Pubcon and should post more often.
Justilien – Link building guru posts about – link building!
kraneland – David Krane of Google PR shares his random thoughts.
LifeDev – Glen Stansberry blogs about personal productivity, web 2.0 and social media.
Link Building Blog – Patrick Gavin and Andy Hagans of Text Link Ads post about link marketing.
Linking Matters Blog – Ken McGaffin blogs about his unique perspective on link building.
Lonely Marketer – Patrick Schaber’s blog about being an in-house search marketing manager.
Link Moses – Link building goodness from the master, Eric Ward.
marciahoo – Marcia Welter, a previous moderator for WebmasterWorld, blogs about the search marketing industry, SEO and interesting forum threads.
Marketing Experiments Blog – Real-time data, insights, answers, and advice from Flint McGlaughlin’s team at MEC Labs.
Making Sense of Contextual Advertising – Jennifer Slegg’s blog (jensense) on all things related to AdSense, YPN and related contextual programs.
Marketing Pilgrim - Andy Beal’s super stupendous blog on search engine industry news.
Marketing Profs Daily Fix – With managing editor, Ann Handley, this group blog posts on all things marketing with participants ranging from Eric Ward to Stephan Spencer to BL Ochman.
MarketingVOX – Previously Marketing Wonk, this post I-Search publication founded by Tig Tillinghast.
Marshall Clark SEO Consulting Blog – Posts about various aspects of the search marketing industry but my favorite is “Sun Tzu Guide to dominating Google in 5 easy steps.”
Matt Cutts – Google’s famous engineer and search spam fighter dispels wisdom, insight and squashes SEO myths.
Media Buyer Planner – Online media publication from the same folks that bring you MarketingVox.
Media Relations Blog – Karen Sams of TopRank and M&O blogs about new media PR and media relations.
Micro Persuasion – Steve Rubel from Edelman PR on new and social media, web 2.0 and marketing online.
Mike Grehan Says – Old school SEO Mike Grehan blogs about his world travels and the SEO column he writes for ClickZ.
MIMA Search Marketing – A blog for the in-house and agency search marketers in Minneapolis and St. Paul.
mimaseosemgeeks at Yahoo! Groups – Discussion thread for search marketers in the Midwest.
Morrison – Observations about the search marketing industry from Liam Morrison in Ireland.
MSN Sandbox – Where MSN posts beta applications for testing.
MSN Search’s WebLog – Official blog for MSN Search.
Multilingual Search – Andy Atkins Kruger and friends around the world blog about search engines and search marketing news happening outside North America.
Natural Search Blog – Group blog covering natural search engine optimization.
New Google Blog – Dirson’s blog on Google.
New PR – Digg style community for new media public relations stories – started by Constantin Basturea of Converseon.
Niall Kennedy – Self proclaimed RSS geek with previous work experience at Microsoft and Technorati, posts about blogs, feeds and business.
NLC Internet Marketing Blog – A light posting group blog from the folks at non linear creations.
No Ignore – Internet Marketing & Money Making Secrets – Howard’s experiment at achieving $10k/month from the internet.
Official Google Webmaster Central Blog – Official blog from Google’s Webmasters.
Oilman – Todd Freisen
Online Business by Brian Mark – Emerging trends & technology for online businesses.
Online Marketing :: Robin Good – What you need to know about online marketing.
Online Marketing Blog – Lee Odden blogs about search, blogs, social media and PR stuff with appearances from Thomas McMahon.
Britopian Marketing – Paid search, social media & search engine optimization from Michael Brito.
Organic Search Engine Marketing Strategies – Organic & PPC traffic strategies from Hendry Lee.
Original Signal – Transmitting Marketing – A little bit of everything from Peter van der Noord, Patrick Huisinga, Tako Steinz and Gert Goet.
Out of My Gord – Gord Hotchkiss of Enquiro blogs about search from time to time.
Pandia – Internet searching blog from Per & Susanne Koch of Norway.
Paul J. Bruemmer on Search – The name says it all.
Performancing.com – Nick Wilson and friends on monetizing blogging.
Peter Norvig – Technical papers, essays and other materials from Peter Norvig.
Peter T Davis – Covering everything from business management to web marketing.
Pheedo – Official blog for Bill Flitter’s Pheedo blog advertising service.
Phil’s Blogservations – The perso-professional PR & media blog from Phil Gomes.
Phil Bradley’s Blog – Internet searching, web design & search engine developments for librarians.
Practical Blogging – Adsense, affiliate advertising & general blogging help from Robyn Tippins.
ProBlogger Blog Tips – Darren Rowse helps bloggers add income to their blogs.
Pronet Advertising – Neil Patel and Cameron Olthius dole out SEO and social media optimization wisdom daily.
Pubcon blog – Official blog for Brett Tabke’s WebmasterWorld Pubcon conference.
Read/WriteWeb – Next generation web technology from Richard MacManus.
Reality SEO – Mike Valentine discusses changes in the search engine optimization industry
ResearchBuzz – News about search engines, databases & more from Tara Calishain.
ResourceShelf – Gary Price & Shirl Kennedy’s observations on news in the information & web industry.
RogerD’s Notebook – The inner workings of Roger Dooley.
Scobleizer – Tech Geek Blogger – Robert Scoble, formerly a Microsoft blogger, blogs about the web.
Screenwerk Greg Sterling – Greg Sterling’s musings on offline & online media.
Search Engine Guide Blog – Group blog about search engine optimization.
Search Engine Journal – Excellent search engine news site by Loren Baker and friends.
Search Engine Land – Danny Sullivan and friends’ new home to blog about search engines and the search marketing industry.
Search Engine Lowdown – MarketSmart Interactive group blog on search marketing with Jon Revill, JP Sherman, Stephen Ward and Jeremy Swillerzx contributing.
Search Engine Optimization Facts – Weekly SEO news from Axandra.
Search Engine Roundtable – Barry Schwartz aka RustyBrick and friends cover the search engine forums.
Search Engine Showdown – Greg R. Notess guide to web searching.
Search Engine Smarts – A blog about small business search engine marketing for AllBusiness.com.
Search Engine Watch blog – Group blog let by Kevin Newcomb posting news from Search Engine Watch and around the web on search engines and marketing online.
Search Engines – Topix.net – Search engine news from all over the net in one place.
Search Insider – David Berkowitz, Aaron Goldman, Rob Garner, Gord Hotchkiss, & Bill Wise give the inside of search marketing for MediaPost.
Search Marketing Gurus – Li Evans, Greg Meyers, Dan Kavanaugh cover everything from viral marketing to web development to affiliate marketing.
Search Marketing Standard Blog – Garrett French blogs for this popular print magazine about search marketing.
Search Marketing Thoughts – Chris Boggs often humorous blog on search marketing.
Search Visibility Report – Top Blog Posts – Latest news & commentary from the search engine community
SearchBrains – Excellent “river of news” site on SEO offered by the good people at WebProNews.
SearchCap: Daily Search Engine News Recap – Search is completely covered by Danny Sullivan, Barry Schwartz, Chris Sherman and Bill Slawski
SearchRank Blog – David Wallace blogs about search marketing from Arizona.
SearchReturn – Detlev Johnson’s revival of the I-Search discussion thread.
SearchViews – Company blog for Reprise Media.
SEM Research – Search engine and social media marketing by Chris Sandberg and others.
SEM SEO Certification & Training – David Temple promotes training sessions covering the basics of search.
SEO and Web Marketing Research – Oleg Ishenko provides research for online marketing.
SEO BlackHat – Covering blackhat seo, linkbait, & link spamming.
SEO Blog – Michael Duz provides an SEO resource for site owners and small businesses.
SEO Book – Aaron Wall’s exceptionally popular blog that also offers his SEO book for sale.
SEO Buzz Box – Aaron Pratt’s blog about SEO when he’s not making rain barrels.
SEO by the SEA – William Slawski provides Internet marketing & search engine optimization research & services.
SEO Coach – Dan Thies, keyword research guru blog.
SEO Disco – Kid Disco’s blog about search.
SEO Egghead – Jamie Sirovich blogs SEO goodness.
SEO News Blog – Didier Bizimungu provides news on search engine optimization & marketing.
SEO Scoop – Donna Fontenot, aka DazzlinDonna, discusses everything seo.
SEO Theory – Michael Martinez focuses on search engine optimization theory.
SEO’Brien – An online marketing blog by Paul O’Brien.
SEOmoz Daily SEO Blog – News, tips & highlights from the search marketing industry.
SeoPedia – Cristian Mezei’s blog on search and social media marketing.
SEOshed – Christian Griffithand friends blog about search engine marketing.
Seth’s Blog – Seth Godin’s blog about marketing.
ShandyKing – Adam Sussman is the obsessive compulsive entrepreneur
Shimon Sandler – SEO, PPC & other Internet marketing tactics
Shoemoney – Jeremy Shoemaker’s very popular blog about making money online.
Sifry’s Alerts – Dave Sifry, founder of Technorati posts “state of the blogosphere” reports here.
SitePoint’s Search Engine Marketing Blog – company blog for SitePoint
Small Business SEM – Matt McGee offers insight about search engine marketing for the smaller businesses.
SmartKeywords – A journal of the search industry provided by Frank Watson
Social Media Release – Best practices and social media news release from the Social Media Club.
Social Patterns – Michael Nguyen on search engine marketing.
SoloSEO Blog – Michael D Jensen and Aaron R Stewart provide tools & reports to make your SEO more efficient.
Somewhat Frank – Frank Gruber writes about Web 2.0 applications, technology and a bit about online marketing.
SpinThicket.com – Scott Baradell created one place to promote news stories related to PR, marketing and more.
Splintered Channels – Josh Hawkins’ reflections on marketing.
Stephan Spencer’s Scatterings – Stephan Spencer of Netconcepts blogs about search.
straightupsearch – OneUpWeb’s company blog for anyone in advertising, marketing and pr.
Street Smart SEO – Sean from Avenue A | Razorfish – on page SEO solutions
Stuntdubl – All around SEO guru and independent consultant Todd Malicoat’s blog about SEO, social media and the business of search marketing. Occassional guest posts from “Mr. Ploppy”.
Sugarrae – Rae Hoffman’s clever blog about search marketing.
TechCrunch – Michael Arrington’s popular web 2.0 blog.
techipedia: anything tech. – Posts about internet marketing, seo, social networking & more from self-appointed tech geek, Tamar Weinberg
Techmeme – Gabe Rivera’s software agent that covers all the news in technology in one location.
Technological Winter – Roger Kondrat blogs about social media, marketing, pr & search
Technology Evangelist – A group blog focusing on technology.
TECHNOSIGHT – Ken Yarmosh’s centerpiece to his business & networking efforts
Textlinkbrokers.com Blog – Link building articles and news
The Ask.com Blog – Official blog for Ask.com
The Agency Blog – The personal blog of Giovanni Gallucci
The Daily Tubber – Allan Hazleton blogs about the finer points of clawfoot tubs, vintage plumbing, and whatever else seems interesting at the moment.
The Kelsey Group – The company blog for The Kelsey Group concentrating on global yellow pages and local media.
The Link Spiel – Debra Mastaler’s blog about link building and search marketing.
The Organic SEO – The place for organic search information provided by MWI.
The Pre-Commerce Blog – Corporate blog for Commerce360′s online marketing services.
The RSS and Marketing Diary – Rok Hrastnik provides marketing & project management experiences & results.
The Search Engine Marketing Weblog -
The Social Media Marketing Blog – Scott Monty’s perspectives on B2B & social media.
The Unofficial Google Weblog -
ThinkBait – Chris Hooley of “DrinkBait” fame.
Threadwatch.org – Group SEO blog founded by Nick Wilson and currently owned by Aaron Wall.
Thomas Bindl – Your English/German SEO blog
Timboy – Tim Converse’s websearch tidbits
Tony Gentile | buzzhit! blog – Online strategy tips from Tony Gentile
Tony Hill’s Blog – SEO & contextual publishing tips
tony spencer – aka notsleepy – A search engine optimization specialist’s take on SEO
Topix Blog – Topix finds the news you need to know in one place.
TopRank SEO Blog – TopRank team members posts SEO related tips and stories.
Top Stories | SEO-PR – Greg Jarboe publishes articles here.
Traffick – Andrew Goodman writes one of the oldest blogs on search marketing.
UKGimp – Richard Young on search and usability.
Unifying Marketing and Sales – Cliff Allen’s blog on online and offline marketing.
Unofficial Google Analytics Blog – ROI Revolution’s take on Google Analytics.
Vinny Lingham’s Blog – Vinny provides coverage on online marketing & Web 2.0.
Web Analytics World – Manoj Jasra from Enquiro shares his wisdom and observations about analytics and search marketing.
Web Analytics Demystified – Web analytics guru Eric T. Peterson offers tips and resources.
WebGuerrilla – Greg Boser tells it like it is on topics ranging from affiliate marketing to stupid news.
Web Ink Now – David Meerman Scott helps innovative marketers use digital information effectively.
Web Strategy by Jeremiah – Jeremiah Owyang provides web tools to help connect with customers.
WebmasterRadio Newsroom – Featured stories from WebmasterRadioFM.
WebmasterWorld – News and discussions for the Web professional.
WebPro Blog – Internet business & marketing trends from WebProNews
Website Content Strategy – Sally Falkow blogs about online and new media public relations and search marketing
werty dot net 4.0 – George Kepnick writes about stuff and sometimes SEO.
What’s Next – BL Ochman’s blog about marketing online and life in NYC.
What’s New | RSS Applied – Group blog on marketing with RSS.
Widget Blog – Sexy Widget – Lawrence Coborn’s blog about using widgets to market online.
wingedpig – Bloglines founder, Mark Fletcher, blogs about everything from syndication to the web to flying.
WOMMA’s WOMBAT Blog – Dana Vanden Heuvel and Jennifer Nastu edit the official blog for the Word of Mouth Marketing Association.
Wordtracker Blog – Official blog from the popular keyword research service.
Yahoo! Search blog – Official blog about the Yahoo search engine.
Yahoo! Search Marketing blog – Official blog for Yahoo Search Marketing.
Yodel Anecdotal – Yahoo! company blog.
YPN Blog – Official blog for the Yahoo Publisher Network.

There is no way to get on this list by “submitting” or requesting. I must notice your blog, read it and like it. It’s totally subjective and not an attempt to be a comprehensive resource, but one the we’ve found to be useful at TopRank.