Marketing Technology for Growth

Back in October of 2011, when Google first announced it would start implementing HTTPS/SSL encryption on all searches of logged in Google users, I raised an eyebrow. “This could be very bad for organic search” (and marketers), I thought to myself. The move had SEOs and digital marketers all over the blogosphere crying foul. But then Google SEO-in-chief Matt Cutts appeared on Twitter assuring everyone that it was no big deal and would only impact a small percentage of searches. I was slightly dubious, but ultimately accepting, of this explanation.

“I want what I want when I want it.” No, this isn’t a quote from my three-year old (though it just as well might be); this is a snapshot of our thinking every time we use a search engine or mobile app for needs discovery. Whether it’s a keyword search for “the capital of Djibouti,” or a voice query for “best brew pub in Minneapolis,” we are not asking Google’s search engine or Apple’s Siri to shoot us an eMail or text with the answer sometime later on- far from it. In each of these instances, we are engaging in a highly targeted discovery action through which we expect to fulfill an immediate need or a want. We do this with search engines, social search queries, social-mobile apps and more. In such a fragmented needs discovery environment, brands and digital marketers must optimize for targeted discovery. Move over SEO, we live in an age of TDO.

As the world shifts to all things mobile, anew reality is emerging: mobile devices are killing search as we know it. This is one of the many insights from an excellent article on the future of search recently appearing in Ad Age, written by David Berkowitz, VP of emerging media at 360i. In the post, Berkowitz notes that mass consumer adoption of mobile, coupled with the rise of big data, are creating a world in which consumers will seldom, if ever, need to actively search for things. Thanks to advances in predictive analytics, consumers’ needs will be anticipated and fulfilled before they are actually expressed (or even realized) in the form of a constant stream of predictive recommendations sent to their mobile devices.

As Internet Search continues to gain in complexity as a medium, I think it’s high time we recalibrate some of the outdated lingo associated with it. To date, when we refer to Search, most of us are talking about two categories of species: Paid and Organic. The former implies a controlled and subjective Search process, while the latter implies a free process, the very nature of which suggests some degree of unshackled objectivity.

According to a recent blog post in Search Engine Watch written by one Uri Bar-Joseph, paid search for B2b companies is dead, “or at least dying.” Admittedly, Uri Bar-Joseph may not be the most objective voice in the matter: after all, he is Director of Marketing at Optify, a demand generation software suite for B2B marketers. But I write for a blog that helps SMBs use Marketing Technologies to improve their bottom line, and for my money I think he’s spot on.

This is a Guest Blog from Dave Conklin, President and co-founder of High-end SEO, Inbound Marketing, and Blogger Outreach services provider RankPop.com. 

I love data. Some new search engine usage stats from Experian Hitwise for September 2012 search got me thinking about the future of search. According to the data, there were slightly over 2 billion (2.126B) visits to the top five search engines during the week ending September 15^th, representing approximately 90% (91.46%) of all search engine traffic. The top search term was “Facebook,” representing 3.28% of ALL searches. Not surprisingly, Facebook was also the number one website visited after search as well, capturing 6.62% of all post-search traffic (don’t ask me why 2X as many people ended up at the FB website as searched it; maybe this number represents the lost tribe of G+ users).

For today’s online marketers, Search Engine Optimization, or “SEO”, is a valuable tool used to drive traffic to your website. By optimizing web content, your website will see increased visibility within search engines, resulting in more traffic and a greater chance of converting leads into sales. If your business plans to develop its online presence while generating more onsite traffic, then it’s necessary to have an established SEO strategy in place. However, providing quality SEO “optimized” content is not an easy feat; it requires a lot of patience and careful monitoring.

In Google’s post-Panda/Penguin search algorithm, social shares are now more important than keywords. This is one of the takeaways from a comprehensive study of UK Google ranking factors by search analytics firm Searchmetrics.

Performing an Internet marketing self-analysis is a quick and easy way to analyze the effectiveness of your internet marketing efforts. Here are 16 questions to ask when determining whether or not your internet marketing is on the right track.