Podcast appearances and mentions of loren baker

Join us as we look at how your online reputation and local marketing strategies can drive revenue for your business, while avoiding pitfalls along the way. With guest Raj Nijjer of Edge, we'll dive into the revenue impacts that your online reputation can have, and why this reputation building should be crucial in your planning. Join your host Loren Baker, as he and Raj discuss how to avoid wasteful strategies of local marketing and multi-location businesses, plus a couple tips on how a good reputation can help attract and retain top talent. [01:14] - Raj's Background and Journey to Edge. [02:44] - Edge's Concept of Employee-Driven Growth and Its Connection to Google Reviews. [10:34] - How Reviews Contribute to Local SEO. [11:27] - Customer-Facing End: In-Depth Reviews and Personalization. [13:24] - Standing Out in Cutthroat Competition: Franchises and Service Businesses. [14:37] - Motivating Employees and Transparent Recognition Through Reviews. [20:49] - Reputation Management and Injecting Employee Recognition. [45:06] - Employee Retention During Challenges Like The COVID-19 Pandemic. We encourage businesses to amplify positive reviews and learn from the negative reviews. - Raj Nijjer, 5:34 Now not only does the brand win and the business win, but employees can feel great or a person can feel great about the job that they've done. - Raj Nijjer, 9:21 Positive reviews are so important. There's one stat I read on your site…53% of customers won't go to a business rated under four stars. - Loren Baker, 15:21 I think the injection of motivating and recognizing your employees while they're doing this service is something that we're very proud of, because we can see which employees are doing really well. And then you can duplicate that. - Raj Nijjer, 21:44 Our goal is to marry the marketing with operational excellence. You want to hold people accountable, especially if you're rewarding them. - Raj Nijjer, 30:53 I think one thing COVID taught every business owner is employee retention and how hard it's been to find people and when a displacement happens, it really jeopardizes your business if you don't plan it well. So you want to keep your superstars, don't ever lose your superstars. - Raj Nijjer - 41:10 Resources Mentioned: Edge Connect With Raj Nijjer: Raj is Head of Marketing for Edge, an employee-driven growth platform for service brands. Previously, he was the CMO of Refersion (acquired), and held executive marketing roles at Yotpo and Yext (IPO in 2017). Raj also spent over nine years at Godaddy (IPO in 2015) in leadership roles launching innovative product lines with over ten patents issued and leading to a PE buyout and an IPO. Raj is also fractional CMO to early and mid-stage technology startups. Raj received his Bachelors of Science degree in International Management and his MBA from the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University. Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajnijjer/ Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RajNijjer Connect with Loren Baker: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker 

Join us as we explore how to prove that SEO matters to resistant stakeholders and C-suite executives, along with ways to combat the external noise affecting the outlook on SEO efforts. Dan brings his experience as a leading SEO consultant for top companies to this exclusive interview. He and Loren navigate the complexities of the shifting SEO landscape, and how to set realistic expectations in your business.  They also dig into the potential risks and opportunities of AI in search, and what these drastic changes mean moving forward. I think oftentimes in a lot of organizations, everyone's time poor, everyone has their own set of KPIs and objectives moving towards that bigger goal, and oftentimes SEO is trickled through. - Dan Taylor, 1:53 I think through that communication system framework, however you want to go around it or phrase it, it's about getting that shared buy-in. - Dan Taylor, 8:24 We have people planning their budgets and their SEO plans already, but with a little bit of a turbulent economy, sometimes it's a little bit of a question mark. - Loren Baker, 1:18 [00:43] - Dan's background and expertise [01:53] - SEO planning and visibility tips. [03:18] - Recommendations for visibility in SEO. [04:14] - Managing expectations with AI. [07:02] - Addressing SEO performance comparisons. [08:24] - Effective communication for executive buy-in. [11:17] - Combatting SEO Misinterpretations. [15:52] - Personal Touch in Client Interactions. [26:48] - Adapting SEO to Rich Media in Search Results. [32:06] - Adaptations in the travel industry. It's having sincerity and it's actually having a human touch. - Dan Taylor, 14:40 Essentially that kind of battleground which we previously had in search is sort of being lost. Now it's understanding what the impact of that's going to be, whether or not it's going to be a major impact, minor impact, or if the impact overall is going to be redistributive. - Dan Taylor, 18:19 It's about trying to bring in what unique modifiers we can into the actual product pages themselves...So how can we create a differentiator? It was this concept we had called champion products. - Dan Taylor, 21:03 Resources Mentioned: Mirador Local Connect with Dan Taylor: Dan Taylor is a recognized SEO professional, having worked with a number of companies in strategically helping them increase their organic market visibility and overcome technical challenges. Having consulted and worked with companies like Cloudflare, Proton, and China Southern Airlines, Dan has been featured in the leading SEO publications, as well as spoken at a number of SEO and marketing conferences in Europe, North America, the Middle East, and online. Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielrwtaylor/ Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/taylordanrw Connect with Loren Baker: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker  Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker 

In an increasingly difficult economy, do you know how to prove the value of your SEO and remain efficient, while maintaining the SEO budgets you need to succeed? Will Critchlow, CEO of SearchPilot, joins me on the SEJShow to examine actionable strategies to doing more with less and maintaining the freedom to test, all while proving the positive impacts of your SEO work.  Using insights from marketing leaders, SEO specialists, and senior executives, you'll hear Will and Loren break down the skills you need to keep your CFO happy while driving efficiency. If you've found yourself having to defend your budget, pitch harder than ever, and work more to prove your results, then you won't want to miss this episode. There's more pressure on ROI calculations, there's more scrutiny on all of those decisions. SEOs are often shy of taking on targets, quotas, goals and so forth. But even forecasting is something that I think the industry is too naive about. –Will Critchlow, 06:04 Big companies are spending tons of money on this stuff. The fact that you are out there asking for a quarter of a million dollars, half a million dollars, whatever it might be, that's actually totally achievable. –Will Critchlow, 09:38  Speaking of the funnel, we all know that SEO is not a direct response marketing technique. It's not search keyword, find site buy done. There's all kinds of touch points throughout the funnel, multi-touch attribution, which is massive. –Loren Baker, 16:16  [00:00] - Will's background and expertise.[08:44] - Integration challenges in long-term planning.[12:30] - The importance of planning when dealing with CFOs.[13:18] - Tracking multiple attribution points.[16:16] - Google algorithm updates and their impact on forecasting.[21:05] - Forecasting challenges influenced by various factors.[23:32] - Beta testing's effects on search results.[26:41] - The evolving impact of AI-powered tools on search queries.[29:28] - Strategies for SEO teams to improve forecasting. Resources Mentioned:  SearchPilot www.searchpilot.com Intro to SEO testing [PDF] Get on the email list to get new SEO test results in your inbox  SEO as a product discipline is something that we are seeing. And what that often means is squads of product managers, engineers, designers, all aligned to that objective. –Will Critchlow, 13:18  I think almost every SEO is testing beta testing, Google, SGE, and we have in our heads that when that query is done, everything's going to be pushed down. There's going to be an article, there's going to be this, there's going to be that, but we tend to forget that we're the ones beta testing it, right? –Loren Baker, 23:07 And so the other reason that I'm bullish on there being organic links is I think there have to be ad links because I don't think Google is going to turn off 98% of their revenue overnight. And I think they're not going to go with only ad links because I think that's a degraded user experience. So I think there's going to be a combination of advertising links and organic links, and our job is to win the organic just as it always has been. –Will Critchlow, 27:37  Connect with Will Critchlow: Will Critchlow is the founder and CEO of SearchPilot, a company dedicated to simplifying and improving SEO testing processes for large websites. He co-founded the SEO agency Distilled in 2005 and played a key role in expanding its services and the SearchLove conference series to the US, establishing offices in Seattle and New York.  In February 2020, he spun out SearchPilot as an independent business while Distilled was acquired by Brainlabs. Will is recognized for his expertise in SEO and digital marketing and often shares his insights through various platforms. Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/willcritchlow/ Connect with Loren Baker: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker  Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker 

In an era of user-generated, human-generated and machine-generated content, mistakes are increasingly costlier to make. Learn the ways to revitalize and future-proof your approach to content marketing with Purna Virji, globally recognized content strategist and bestselling author of "High-Impact Content Marketing". She and Loren will uncover the common mistakes content marketers make, and how you can avoid them as you plan your marketing strategy. Tune in and hear strategies for creating genuinely inclusive and relevant content that audiences will actually want to consume, so your content strategy won't go the way of the dinosaurs. What we want to think about is what are we solving for. What roles do we play? How are we engaging with the audience and giving them what they are interested in, what they need, and what would be of value to them? – Purna Virji, 03:00 You always want to give your audience something to do next. It all comes down to this concept called backward design. – Purna Virji, 08:58 We found that we get the most social interaction and the highest quality traffic from social media. LinkedIn has just become the most engaged platform there is within social media, and it's been a complete 360 over the past three or four years. – Loren Baker, 27:30 [00:00] - About Purna. [02:41] - Strategies for intentional content creation. [08:58] - How to ensure content effectiveness. [14:41] - Best practices for content promotion. [18:01] - How to create content for various audience awareness levels. [20:13] - Importance of company representation in content marketing. [23:41] - LinkedIn's content promotion capabilities. Resources Mentioned: High Impact Content Marketing Take an idea before you even create the content and think about different ways you'll use that idea. – Purna Virji, 17:13 The members on LinkedIn tend to see their time on LinkedIn as an investment in themselves professionally and personally. They're here to learn, grow, share, and put their best foot forward. – Purna Virji, 30:18 Try to understand what makes you money and for that, who are the types of the cream of the crop? Customers who spend a lot are loyal are referring you to others. – Purna Virji, 03:53 Connect with Purna Virji: Purna Virji, based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is a celebrated content strategist and marketer, currently the Principal Content Solutions Consultant at LinkedIn. Her career spans leading roles at Microsoft, and diverse experiences in social media, search advertising, and television, giving her a unique perspective on content marketing. Recognized as an Adweek Young Influential and Search Personality of the Year, she's also a top-rated international speaker and an advocate for women in technology. Virji is the author of the best-selling book "High-Impact Content Marketing," showcasing her expertise and influence in the field. Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/purnavirji/ Connect with Loren Baker: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

The most important thing you can do if you are worried about ranking is write content that satisfies intent and fulfills the aspirations of E-E-A-T. –Ben Steele, 09:11 Join us as we talk about the biggest updates to Google Ranking Factors this year, and what that means for you as we head into 2024.  Our very own senior editor of ebooks, Ben Steele, gives you the behind-the-scene scoop on what factors really matter now. More than 200 hours went into researching and gathering our findings on the signals that have been officially declared, at one point or another in time, as Google ranking factors. Ben brings you the impact behind the BIG updates made this year: E-E-A-T, Google's redefining of page experience, the developments around systems and signals, and more. Listen in as Ben and host Loren Baker, two of SEJ's brightest SEO professionals, talk Google Ranking Factors. Discussion designed for search professionals and marketing managers planning for next year.   Notable: Suppose you do build content that is comprehensive enough to display authority in your experience. In that case, the aspiration is that content will float to the top regardless of more manipulative tactics. –Ben Steele, 10:14 When people have asked me what's our secret to ranking content at SEJ, I've always told them the publish button because we've been building this brand, this entity, and this trust for 20-plus years. –Loren Baker, 13:48 Google is evaluating links more qualitatively. Keywords are still huge, but the number doesn't matter anymore. It's about the way you use them. –Ben Steele, 22:30 [03:30] - Google ranking factors 2023: What's changed and what remains? [10:14] - Keywords and links vs. content and E-E-A-T in today's SEO. [22:30] - Google's qualitative approach to evaluating ranking factors. [27:39] - Building E-E-A-T for smaller sites to compete with big brands. [29:42] - Generative AI content's ranking performance post-updates. [37:24] - Long-term success with E-E-A-T and user intent. [43:27] - Curation as a strategy against generative AI in SEO. [46:52] - How to access the Google Ranking Factors ebook. Keeping your nose clean, don't engage in the quick win strategies that are technically spam because Google has come out and straight up said if it's defined as spam under our guidelines, relevancy doesn't matter. –Ben Steele, 33:33 Curation is something you can lean into as a small business. There is still going to be a demand for human curation. –Ben Steele, 43:27 You can become a trusted source of curation for your audience... that's one thing that language models are not good at: being a source of well-curated information that you need right now. –Ben Steele, 44:29 Those factors of E-E-A-T  will be critical for inoculating your business from the negative impacts of AI implemented by big platforms... the experience and the trust. –Ben Steele, 45:53   Resources: Get the Ranking Factors ebook: https://bit.ly/3tFXB53 Subscribe to our newsletter: https://bit.ly/3Q64Cni    Connect with Ben Steele: Ben Steele, the Senior Editor at SEJ, boasts profound expertise in digital content. Though he didn't initially aim to become an SEO strategist, the skills he acquired for his role, combined with his self-initiated research into digital marketing, unveiled his genuine passion in this field. His experience in professional theater not only refined his work ethic and leadership abilities but also fostered other invaluable attributes such as creativity. Now, at SEJ, Ben contributes to their ebooks, consistently providing fresh perspectives and strategic content advice. Through his SEO endeavors, he artfully weaves the nuances of human experiences, journeys, and expressions into enlightening lessons for others. Connect with Ben on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/writerbensteele/    Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker  Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker   

Everyone who touches your website is on the SEO team. The problem is that most people don't know they're on the team. An “always on” mentality regarding SEO can help mitigate risk and protect rankings. Since there's no 'easy' button for a technical audit, join us for this special spotlight episode to learn how 24/7 monitoring can help you see everything happening on your site at any moment.  Go beyond SEO and bring together teams focused on compliance, know when people go rogue and when other teams make changes. Addressing them quickly as they happen can help your rankings and growth. Conductor's Patrick Reinhart joins me on the SEJ Show to dive into the importance of continuous SEO monitoring and how Conductor can help you work smarter, not harder. Patrick will walk through common problems with SEO and how you can proactively fix them before rankings are impacted. You'll also learn how real-time SEO auditing can streamline your process. One of the hardest things is a conversation with other teams getting people to care. And I think something that always gets someone, the attention is data. –Pat Reinhart, 13:47 The mindset of it being a compliance component and that notification when something is not working can not necessarily change a negative mindset, but get everybody on the same mindset that you're working together for this common goal, which I like. –Loren Baker, 16:59 One of the best things you can do is pay attention to how specific you're being with your content. Specificity is going to be a key factor moving forward. –Pat Reinhart, 26:16   [00:00] - About Pat Reinhart. [05:51] - SEO audit shift to ongoing processes. [07:34] - Always-on SEO mentality explained. [12:38] - Real-time SEO monitoring versus health check-ups. [16:22] - Emphasizing compliance in SEO audits with developers. [17:31] - Realistic goal-setting with dev teams in SEO. [19:31] - SEO strategies before holiday code freezes. [24:41] - AI's impact in SEO and ChatGPT's role. [25:05] - Strategies for Google's search generative experience. [32:58] - Transparency and authorship in SEO content. [35:58] - LinkedIn's importance for SEO professionals.   Resources Mentioned: Conductor‘s 30-30 Webinars: https://www.conductor.com/events/30-30-webinars/ Searchmetrics: https://blog.searchmetrics.com/us/ Content King: https://www.conductor.com/contentking-get-started/ Lily Ray's E-E-A-T: https://lilyray.nyc/e-a-t-expertise-authoritativeness-trustworthiness/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/ It's not about speed or volume. It's more about creating specific content that drives value. –Pat Reinhart, 29:51 LinkedIn has been very helpful to me throughout my career. It's not just my digital resume. It's a community that you can use to your advantage. –Pat Reinhart, 38:12 It's more about process than practice most of the time. –Pat Reinhart, 44:25   Connect with Patrick Reinhart: Patrick Reinhart leads enterprise digital strategy for Conductor's Customer Success team as Vice President of Services and Thought Leadership. With over 15 years of organic search and digital marketing experience, he helps some of the world's largest brands with organic search initiatives. Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickreinhart/ Connect with Loren Baker: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker   

SEO and Site Migrations: Common Pitfalls To Avoid  with Arnout Hellemans Migrations can be time consuming and stressful, even more-so when you don't have company-wide collaboration and alignment, or when you're worried about drops in rankings. Come learn some myth-busting migration tips shared between our host, Loren Baker, and freelance SEO and analytics consultant, Arnout Hellemans. Arnout has seen plenty of migrations go bad. Hear actual case studies on what not to do to have better success. Join us for this can't miss episode. Arnout Hellemans is a freelance SEO and analytics consultant based in Amsterdam but mostly working for clients all over Europe and the US. He just loves solving SEO puzzles. He has been freelancing since 2010 and loves it. Connect with Arnout Hellemans:  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arnouthellemans/ X: https://twitter.com/hellemans Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker  Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

Effective Website Redesigns: How To Avoid Costly Mistakes With Janet Mesh of Aimtal Website redesigns are a necessary component for marketers. But with so many elements going into an effective redesign, do you know what to focus on to develop a solid plan from the start?  Join us and hear from Janet Mesh, CEO and co-founder of Aimtal, as she and Loren Baker, our founder and host, break down the ways to effectively launch a website redesign using Webflow and HubSpot, and the factors you need to focus on when redesigning. You'll get tips on honing in on your site's infrastructure using Janet's “do no harm” strategy, to ensure that you have a clear infrastructure plan from the beginning. If you're looking to make your next redesign efficient and effective, you won't want to miss these tips.   Resources: Website Strategy Worksheet    Connect with Janet Mesh, CEO and Co-Founder of Aimtal: Janet Mesh is the CEO + Co-Founder of Aimtal, a fully remote integrated marketing & consulting agency for B2B tech companies like Cisco, Atlassian, Trello, and Prisma Cloud. She is a remote work advocate who, in the past 5 years, has built and run a team of marketers located in 6 time zones all over the world. Janet has doubled the size and revenue of her agency year-over-year since its inception in 2018 and Aimtal won the Sprout Social ‘Always Be Growing' award in 2022 in recognition of this growth. Her passion for integrated marketing with an agile approach is the key to her success, and has led to over a million dollars in sales for her clients in the last year. Outside of work, you can find Janet trying new restaurants around the world, reading historical fiction novels, and hosting happy hours at home for family & friends. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aimtal_co/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aimtalco/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@aimtal/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/aimtal_co LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aimtal/   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker  Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker 

Using data gathered from 3,890 SEO professionals for our annual State of SEO report, we're ready to give you new insights on the disruptive factors in the industry. From the rise of generative AI to shifting content trends, there are many opportunities to use these new disruptions to your advantage and stay ahead in such a competitive time. Ben Steele, senior editor at Search Engine Journal, joined me on this SEJ Show to break down the three significant disruptions in the SEO world and the opportunities they present. We examined the process behind implementing generative AI and what AI might look like next year. Get tactics for communicating your SEO value, tips on new ways to cultivate your audience, and new content creation strategies for facing changing trends. People noted that generative AI would be the biggest disruptor. However, respondents are largely positive; they feel optimistic about the impact of generative AI and its potential to affect their business's bottom line. I think there's an interesting duality to note there. It's disrupting many things, but people are still excited about it. –Ben Steele, 04:33 You bring up a great point about adapting focus. The industry is incredibly dynamic. With the acceleration of AI, changes in search engine algorithms, and evolving user behavior, SEO professionals need to be agile. They have to reassess and adapt their metric priorities in real time to ensure they're capturing the most relevant data, which translates to business value. That could be the reason we had to revisit the metrics we included in this year's survey. –Ben Steele, 20:29 While I can't predict the future with absolute certainty, what's clear is that the traditional role of an SEO professional is already transforming. SEO is becoming increasingly interdisciplinary. It's no longer just about optimizing for search engines; it's about optimizing for user experience, understanding data analytics, and even having some proficiency with AI and machine learning models. –Ben Steele, 21:15   [00:00] - About Ben. [03:57] - Top disruptors in SEO. [04:33] - Has generative AI affected search yet? [07:07] - User behavior toward new technology: voice search example. [10:46] - Freelancers moving to permanent positions. [12:15] - Impact of layoffs in tech companies. [16:34] - Priority metrics for SEO professionals. [18:05] - Agency vs. in-house SEO communication struggles. [22:20] - Importance of click-through rate as a metric. [27:25] - SEO's role in ecommerce and Google Shopping. [28:53] - Content's role in SEO. [29:37] - Top barriers to SEO success. [30:57] - Communication barriers in SEO. [32:31] - Frequency of Google updates. [34:01] - Changes in Google SERPs. [34:36] - Major takeaways in the SEO report. [36:46] - Navigating SEO algorithm changes. [38:03] - Communicating SEO value.   Resources mentioned:  State of SEO 2024 - https://www.searchenginejournal.com/state-of-seo/ An SEO's job is not just to drive traffic; it's to complete that journey all the way down to the checkout. –Loren Baker, 26:08 What we're seeing is a shift in focus. Last year, people were going back to basics and focusing on technical SEO. This year, we're seeing a greater emphasis on understanding audience intent and traffic quality, not just raw numbers, but what this traffic means. –Ben Steele, 22:22 People are no longer convinced by the promise of getting you to page one for any term you want because the question becomes, 'Page one for what? For something that nobody searches for?' –Ben Steele, 38:03 For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect with Ben Steele:   Ben Steele, the Senior Editor at SEJ, boasts profound expertise in digital content. Though he didn't initially aim to become an SEO strategist, the skills he acquired for his role, combined with his self-initiated research into digital marketing, unveiled his genuine passion in this field. His experience in professional theater not only refined his work ethic and leadership abilities but also fostered other invaluable attributes such as creativity. Now, at SEJ, Ben contributes to their ebooks, consistently providing fresh perspectives and strategic content advice. Through his SEO endeavors, he artfully weaves the nuances of human experiences, journeys, and expressions into enlightening lessons for others. Connect with Ben on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/writerbensteele/ Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker  Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker   

Have you wondered how to expand your business' reach across different languages and cultures? Do you know what role multilingual and localized content can play in your business? Naoko Takano, Localization and Community Program Manager for WordPress, joined me on the SEJShow to explore the significance of localization and internationalization in WordPress' mission.  Naoko has been involved with WordPress localization since its infancy and has seen firsthand how multilingual localization has built larger communities around businesses.  Learn the power of multilingual content and what it means for effectively broadening your reach online. Discover tips and opportunities for your business to collaborate across different cultures and how to leverage this power to improve your ROI.   WordPress, being an open-source solution from WordPress.org, your mission is to empower the publisher. –Loren Baker, 06:45 One of the advantages WordPress has is that we have so many different types of languages, and it's possible to add more languages as long as there are translators. –Naoko Takano, 13:49 The mission of WordPress is democratizing publishing. Our mission is to reach all the people using the internet and want to publish, not only in English-speaking countries. So yes, we want to expand beyond. –Naoko Takano, 23:28   [00:23] - About Naoko. [02:18] - WordPress localization and global growth. [06:45] - Open source as WordPress.org's growth driver. [08:49] - The role of translation in WordPress business expansion. [10:58] - Volunteer-driven operations at WordPress.org. [12:55] - WordPress plugins vs. enterprise CMS for expanding businesses. [13:49] - WordPress' multilingual capabilities. [14:55] - Anticipation of multilingual support in WordPress core software. [16:07] - Balancing WordPress' multilingual offerings with business interests. [16:54] - Gutenberg's fourth phase: Multilingual support? [17:07] - Adapting translation plugins for WordPress' block editor. [19:54] - WordPress' growth in the Spanish market. [21:52] - The most active countries in WordCamps events. [23:12] - The impact of translation on WordPress.org's international usage. [24:42] - Democratization through cultural collaboration in WordPress. [26:12] - Localization in WordPress: More than translation. [30:15] - The future of multilingual WordPress. [32:48] - The international WordPress community's size. [34:07] - Site translation and localization for various audiences. [36:24] - Connecting with the WordPress community online.   Resources Mentioned: https://wordpress.org/    I would like to see a more technology-assisted way for us to read and reach the audience in different parts of the world. That helps us find more engaging content and allows the content provider to reach further than the limitation of their language area. –Naoko Takano, 30:55 We benefit as a community by using the version we are familiar with and providing that to the client. The backend is also translated, which helps people make the plugins usable without the language barrier. –Naoko Takano, 08:49 We, the translation community, always say over 20,000 active people have been translating something within a year or so.–Naoko Takano, 32:52   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to enhance your knowledge and skills in search marketing.   Connect With Naoko Takano: Naoko Takano is the Localization & Community Program Manager at Automattic with over ten years of experience in the US. She specializes in software localization and English-Japanese translation and applies her expertise to WordPress support, technical writing, and community organization.  A full-time contributor to the WordPress Polyglots and Community Teams for almost two decades, Naoko works as a Polyglots Global Mentor and General Translation Editor (GTE) for Japanese, aiding translation contributors and enhancing WordPress accessibility across different languages. Connect with Naoko on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/naoko/ Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/naokomc   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker  

No matter what your business specializes in, your website is often the first place potential clients and customers learn about your company. This means visitors can decide about your services within the first few seconds. So how do you hook them?  Fiona Allman-Treen, author of “Website Mastery for Business Owners Who Don't Speak Tech,” joins me on the SEJShow and shows you the three key things your website needs to increase your website's visibility, boost your business growth, and convert visitors to paying customers.  Get expert analysis based on Fiona's best-selling book that will show you how to translate the tech-speak around website design and maintain ROI after your website launch's initial excitement is over. Website Mastery for Business Owners was needed because [speaking tech] is something that people shouldn't have to do to get a really good website. They shouldn't need to know the ins and outs of the code. - Fiona Allman, 00:59 What attracted me to the web in the first place was seeing that level playing field. It makes a one-man band can sound like an orchestra online, and that's what I love. So it's, it's all about making that happen for people. - Fiona Allman, 01:31 I've always found it nice to just send a text every once in a while and send a follow-up because you never know when someone will leave and go somewhere else. It's just good sportsmanship at the end of the day. Just, "Hey, how's it going?" It's checking in, you know, happy new year, whatever it may be. It doesn't have to be cheesy, but it, it has  helped me personally retain or even bring clients back. Just having an open line of communication all the time. –Loren Baker, 20:21   [00:46] About Fiona. [02:22] Keeping up with recent web design changes. [03:12] Initial steps in defining a website strategy. [06:11] Key elements for website visitor engagement. [13:57] Significance of image selection in customer engagement. [15:23] Strategies for customer satisfaction and preventing buyer's remorse. [15:56] Importance of post-purchase customer engagement. [17:22] Balancing customer connection and salesmanship. [19:42] Value of communication with returning customers. [22:57] An insight into Fiona's book "Website Mastery." [23:00] Advantages of print publishing over online writing. [24:02] Networking advantages of a physical book. [25:41] Using "Website Mastery" in client onboarding. [26:20] Unexpected outcomes of book publishing. [27:28] Reaction to book rejection at networking events. [30:49] Advice for non-tech individuals on web design mastery.   Resources Mentioned: Website Mastery Book: https://www.fatpromotions.co.uk/wmregister/ Fat Promotions: https://www.fatpromotions.co.uk/   You can attract people to your website, but you've got that attraction piece if they don't connect with what they see when they get there. You've got these visitors coming in, like, with decent search engine listings. You'll get that. But if they get there and they don't connect with what they see, it's not going to happen." - Fiona Allman, 06:11 I had one guy who bought a copy, and he put this glorious review on Amazon. He was so kind. And he said, I read it in three days, and I have to work with you. That's it. And it, as it turned out, we ended up going through all the different things that he wanted.–Fiona Allman, 26:56 You want those repeat customers. That's where your engagement gold comes in. When you get those repeat customers, just show them you care. So really what you want to do is, as you say, keep them on the, on your love them up the list. Keep them in your email marketing. Give them regular newsletters, but keep people from pestering them. –Fiona Alman,15:56 For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to enhance your knowledge and skills in search marketing.   Connect With Fiona Allman-Treen: Fiona Allman-Treen is the Director of FAT Promotions, a digital agency she founded in 2001 to help clients create compelling websites. Also known for her best-selling book 'WEBSITE MASTERY,' she is renowned for her expertise in strategic website design and online systems that drive sustainable growth for businesses and charities globally. Before launching her web design agency, Fiona spent over a decade in graphic design and marketing. A passionate advocate for entrepreneurship and female empowerment, she founded the Affinity Business Initiative in 2019 to support local businesswomen. Away from work, Fiona's interests include classic cars, red wine, and playing the ukulele.   Connect with Fiona on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fatpromotions-website-design/ Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/fatpromotions   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

As WordPress celebrates its 20th anniversary, it is essential to reflect on its roots and explore how its history has shaped ecommerce and what this means for your website. Paul Maiorana, CEO of WooCommerce, joined me on the SEJ Show for this special episode to reflect on how ecommerce found its way into the WordPress world and how WooCommerce intertwined with WordPress' values and initiatives. We talked about Paul's 11+ year career with Automattic, his experiences leading WordPress VIP, and what led him to take on the leadership of WooCommerce.  You'll also hear about the core community spirit that lives in the foundation of WordPress and how this has impacted WooCommerce's mission for its users. You won't want to miss this critical look back from someone who has been there through countless steps along the way. The difference, though, in governance is really important, which is that nobody owns WordPress. It's stewarded by the WordPress Foundation and a nonprofit that owns the intellectual property and everything around WordPress. That's guided by Matt Mullenweg, its founder, co-founder, and still project lead. But the governance model is different. Whereas with WooCommerce, Automattic wholly owns WooCommerce. It's still an open-source product that uses the GPL license, free software, the same as WordPress is. Still, we effectively fund all of the development of WooCommerce. –Paul Maiorana, 14:36 WooCommerce is a global platform for sure. So we have customers in every country. There is such great support for localization. Translations and localization are a massive part of that, not just in terms of people providing those translations but also on the other side. It's how merchants can build a localized experience for their shoppers. –Paul Maiorana, 20:57 That's the beauty of open source, right? We're able to get leaner and meaner than some of our competitors. We've adequately federated this ecosystem of independent software developers, agencies, freelancers, and web hosts. These folks come together to produce a WooCommerce site and a quality product. Our interests are aligned, which ultimately makes for a better customer experience. –Paul Maiorana, 23:02   [00:00] - About Paul. [03:28] - WooCommerce's origin & Automattic integration. [07:01] - Purpose of WooCommerce development. [09:38] - WooCommerce's market share. [13:27] - Developer engagement with WooCommerce. [17:10] - Exploring WooCommerce extensions/integrations. [20:57] - WooCommerce & localization strategies, shopping support, lean model & open-source contributions. [24:14] WooCommerce's Solution to ecommerce challenges. [26:23] Commerce platform fragmentation issues. [27:40] Future commerce trends: Smartphone preference. [29:37] Growth potential in the WooCommerce ecosystem. [30:42] WooCommerce success stories.   Resources Mentioned: Woo Express: https://woocommerce.com/express/ Showcase of WooCommerce Merchants: https://woocommerce.com/showcase/ Woo's In-House Developed Extensions: https://woocommerce.com/product-category/woocommerce-extensions Recent Woo Blog: https://woocommerce.com/blog/ WooCommerce Merchant: https://www.tinywoodstove.com/ Tonal: Success story mention who uses WooCommerce as their ecommerce platform: https://www.tonal.com/   We think we've got a real advantage and opportunity to, through WooCommerce, provide a solution that developers love, but also to provide a more opinionated package of WooCommerce and extensions integrated with a hosting solution to provide something that's much more turnkey and simple and just more intuitive for a merchant to get up and running with. –Paul Maiorana, 26:23 The ability to start with something simple like Woo Express, or something like that, just out of the box simplified shopping environment. And then as that company grows and as they go down the paths of more and more and test more and more marketing channels, making that easier to grow from a core as opposed to having everything thrown at you at once and trying to figure it out sounds like a very logical solution. –Loren Baker, 30:09 We're making some decisions and saying, this is the best way to do that. These are all separate. Each of these features represents a different extension in the WooCommerce ecosystem today. And we're bringing that all together into a preconfigured solution so that it's easy, and again, people can start selling without having to build. –Paul Maiorana, 27:40   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to enhance your knowledge and skills in search marketing.   Connect With Paul Maiorana: Paul Maiorana is the CEO of WooCommerce, an open-source eCommerce platform, where he leverages his expertise in open-source development, content management, and WordPress, among other specialties. His leadership has contributed significantly to WooCommerce's growth and innovation in the online retail sector. Before WooCommerce, Paul built a formidable portfolio of professional experience focusing on open-source technology and software solutions. His understanding of the industry and his technical expertise have positioned him as an influential figure in pushing the boundaries of ecommerce. Connect with Paul on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pmaiorana/ Follow him on Twitter:https://twitter.com/pmaiorana   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

How do you prepare your social and marketing team for AI? There are a ton of AI tools out there, but not all of them are useful. Jamie Gilpin, CMO at Sprout Social, joined me on the SEJ Show to talk social, search, and how AI can play a bigger part in your strategy. Gain valuable insight into virality, social media trends, and emerging AI technologies, and discover the seamless integration of these technologies into your team's workflow.   Trends come from forces, and forces are the big cultural shifts that we see. As a result, the moment or signals from those forces become micro topics. –Jamie Gilpin, 05:43 In the world of SEO and search, search changes quickly. Social media trends change just as fast, whether it's platforms or just the way that people are communicating. Everything used to be written. Then, it went to images. And now, video.  –Loren Baker, 02:03  Social does infiltrate not just the full customer journey but all aspects of the customer's enterprise. –Jamie Gilpin, 33:23   [00:00] - About Jamie [02:03] - The evolution of social media trends & content consumption [03:25] - Understanding trend culture and TikTok's influence [13:14] - The importance of having a business presence on TikTok [19:51] - Opportunities to integrate AI in daily social media marketing workflows [20:57] - Current discourse and applications of AI in marketing [25:39] - Understanding the AI Assist Tool  [27:16] - Future of AI in visual content for social media marketing [33:39] - Intersection of social media and search in consumer research   Resources Mentioned: Sprout Social - https://sproutsocial.com/ One of the biggest opportunities, I would say, and it's synonymous with the challenge we have on the marketing team, is that it's so much easier to work autonomously in silos. Still, the real value, and more importantly, our customers expect that all those folks are working together and delivering one seamless customer experience. –Jamie Gilpin, 18:52 The worst thing that you can do, from a customer experience and perception perspective, is to not have a through-line for when your customer is ready to buy. When they see something they want to buy from you and can't find it. –Jamie Gilpin, 15:13 That's the future of social, and that's why I get very excited about this space. It started in marketing, but it started as a tool for us to advertise another thing–another channel that we would push our message out. –Jamie Gilpin,32:26   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect With Jamie Gilpin: Jamie Gilpin, the Chief Marketing Officer at Sprout Social, is a marketing maestro who knows how to grow brands in technology. Her knack for building stellar teams and driving revenue through ingenious strategies make her a force to be reckoned with.  From lead generation to social media sorcery, Jamie's expertise shines through. Armed with an MBA from Northwestern University and a bachelor's degree in public relations from Florida State University, she's a marketing dynamo who knows how to make things happen. Connect with Jamie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamiegilpin/  Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/jamiewo   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker  

YouTube is a powerful platform for B2B marketers, but many organizations still need to start using it to its full potential.  Ali Schwanke, founder at Simple Strat and Host of HubSpot Hacks, joined me on the SEJShow to share her top tips for creating a successful B2B YouTube strategy- including using YouTube's new features to make your videos more discoverable. Gain insight into the rising importance of YouTube in B2B marketing, leveraging podcast features, differentiating strategies for marketers, the role of video in an AI era, and much more.   We run a channel called HubSpot Hacks over on YouTube, with about 18,000 subscribers. We just crossed over a million views earlier this year, and we're a small team of 10. –Ali Schwanke, 00:41 YouTube happens to be a place where there is very little competition for most B2B companies. So if we do help people on YouTube, it's because the barrier to entry is very high, and so the competition's low. –Ali Schwanke, 02:00 You can create videos so that they just earn a rabbit hole. So if I sent viewers a video every day, it'd take 30 days to get to know me. But if I create an experience for you and your journey that you consume 30 videos in four days because they're just so one after the other, yes, I've accelerated that relationship building, and that's what we're seeing. –Ali Schwanke, 14:18   [00:00] - Introduction to Ali Wanky. [00:41] - Simple Strat's role with "HubSpot Hacks." [02:00] - YouTube as a strategy for B2B in low-competition platforms. [03:56] - Misconceptions about video marketing. [06:19] - The importance of informative content in B2B YouTube marketing. [08:52] - The role of authenticity in learning. [11:22] - Strategies for embedding YouTube videos versus using tools like Wistia. [14:51] - Techniques for consistent video exposure. [16:17] - The benefits of multi-platform promotion for video content. [21:51] - The value of content length variations in viewer engagement. [23:49] - Format and style considerations: vertical versus horizontal videos. [26:07] - The potential of YouTube Shorts in content marketing. [27:29] - The role of AI tools in video creation. [32:17] - The necessity of engaging content in a crowded YouTube landscape. [34:44] - Efficient content generation through webinar repurposing. [35:19] - An overview of valuable resources on HubSpot Hacks.   Resources Mentioned: HubSpot Hacks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuMAttNQze1GaVfiQ7rMcfA Simple Strat: https://simplestrat.com/   How I recommend people use AI is less about the editing and more about the strategy. –Ali Schwanke, 28:57 You have to get outside your box of “everybody's ready to buy today, and we're going top of the funnel.” We're saying, “how do I create interesting content?” So people just go, “you know what, that company is different. I kind of wanna pay attention to them because attention, time, and convenience are the currency that we all have today.” –Ali Schwanke, 32:17 If you're going to go onto YouTube as a B2B company with human personalities, you do need to have people that are comfortable on camera and know what it's gonna take from them to be on camera consistently. –Ali Schwanke, 34:05   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect With Ali Schwanke: Ali Schwanke, the founder of Simple Strat, stands out in the realm of B2B content marketing with over 15 years of experience. A certified content marketer, HubSpot agency partner, and YouTube creator, she leverages her expertise to build data-driven strategies that fuel business growth. Schwanke champions a customer-centric approach to marketing, viewing content as a powerful tool to address customers' needs and challenges. Her innovative methods offer businesses a roadmap to increase their influence and reach through strategic content marketing. Connect with Ali on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alischwanke/ Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/alischwanke Watch her on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/hubspothacks   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker  

It's our 20th Anniversary! In this special commemorative episode, take an exhilarating ride back to some of the earliest SEO and search marketing days as I sit down with our founder Loren Baker. Come for the nostalgia and stay for the hidden gems as Loren reflects on an awe-inspiring 20-year evolution of Search Engine Journal. We delved into the unforgettable landmarks, behind-the-scenes stories, and revolutionary insights that have shaped the industry and our coverage. Loren's captivating anecdotes and poignant reflections paint a bold picture of SEO's past, present, and future. Join us as we celebrate the extraordinary legacy of Search Engine Journal and inspire a new generation of digital innovation.   We've achieved considerable success, especially since we collaborated with Alpha Brand Media in 2010 under the leadership of Jenise and Brent. Our primary goal was to expand SEJ's reach. Despite the various changes, one thing has remained constant – our commitment to continuous experimentation. –Loren Baker, 17:17 When I used to write, my natural inclination was to include a summary or an implication section in the post. I would explore questions such as: 'What does this information mean for marketers?', 'How can this be integrated into your SEO campaign?' or 'How can you incorporate this into your daily tasks?  –Loren Baker, 15:34 Some of my favorite shows are those where we've invited day-to-day marketers, mainly in-house marketers, to share their experiences. They discuss how things are working from an enterprise perspective and in-house. Even when I used to attend a lot of conferences, I particularly enjoyed the in-house or enterprise-oriented sessions. As a consultant or agency representative, it helped me understand the thought processes, challenges and struggles in-house marketers face, which improved my communication with clients and sales. –Loren Baker, 24:54   [00:00] - Origin and Initial Vision of the Search Engine Journal [07:15] - Key Changes in SEO Since Launching SEJ [11:33] - Impact of Social Media Rise on SEO Strategy [15:34] - Applying SEO News to Marketing Campaigns [16:31] - Importance of Experimentation in SEO and Marketing [17:17] - Growth and Evolution of SEJ with Alpha Brand Media [18:29] - Learning from Past Mistakes and Wrong Decisions [20:22] - Maintaining SEJ's Editorial Integrity and Accuracy [21:12] - Keeping SEJ Relevant Amidst AI Advancements [24:02] - Most Impactful Interview Conducted on the Podcast [27:04] - Evolution of Challenges Faced by Marketers [30:40] - Impact of AI and SGE on SEO's Future [32:02] - Debunking the Myth: Is SEO Dead? [38:13] - Proudest Moments after Two Decades at SEJ [41:04] - Future Plans for SEJ & Loren's Personal Career [42:43] - Possibility of a Lauren Baker AI Chatbot [44:55] - Dominating News Coverage without Being First [45:47] - Making News Stories Evergreen for Audience [47:55] - Creating Engaging Content for Less Exciting Topics [49:58] - Influence of Trends on the Content Creation Approach [51:13] - SEJ Experience's Impact on Worldview and Work Approach   Early on, I collaborated with several companies that wanted to start blogs. However, they were hesitant because they didn't believe they had anything of value to discuss. –Loren Baker, 47:55 Search and search traffic has evolved from being considered a vanity metric to becoming more focused on the long tail and conversion-driven. –Loren Baker, 27:13 The one thing I do love about this industry is that it's constantly changing. I love staying on top of everything in search, tech, and everything else, so I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. Going to continue to help to grow this puppy. –Loren Baker,42:16   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect With Loren Baker: Meet Loren Baker: a trailblazer in digital marketing, the mastermind behind Search Engine Journal (SEJ), and an authority in SEO. As the founder of SEJ, he's built a powerhouse of cutting-edge SEO insights and news, becoming a beacon for marketers and industry enthusiasts worldwide. But Loren's passion for digital excellence doesn't stop at SEJ. As an Advisor at Alpha Brand Media, he injects strategic vision into every decision, continuously pushing the boundaries of what's possible in digital media. At the helm of Foundation Digital, Loren crafts bespoke digital marketing strategies that redefine business success. His penchant for innovative solutions, along with his keen understanding of the industry's pulse, sets him apart as a dynamic and impactful leader. Connect with Loren on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker   Connect with Amanda Zantal-Wiener, Editor-in-Chief at Search Engine Journal: Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Amanda_ZW  Connect with her on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amandazantalwiener/   

ChatGPT and other Large Language Models (LLMs) are seemingly everywhere, and it's crucial to learn what's possible with them while acknowledging their flaws. After all, do LLMs have their intelligence? Is ChatGPT ready for “prime time,” or is it merely a toy that can lead to fake and error-laden stories?  President of Pilot Holding, Eric Enge, joined me on the SEJShow to share the truth behind the prevailing myths surrounding the generative AI landscape and how to succeed with the tools instead.  Discover the problems arising from placing too much trust in generative AI. You'll also find out what is possible and how to use it in your business best while avoiding the common mistakes associated with LLMs.   We must remember that the real problem is that this stuff is trained on the open internet. We have all the world's information on the web, and that's great, but we also have all the world's disinformation on the web and a lot of overtly intended misinformation. –Eric Enge,41:18 Anybody who thinks SEO is going away because of this doesn't understand SEO. As long as people want to search for and find things, and as long as there are tools to help people search for and find things, there will be SEO, end of story. –Eric Enge, 32:48 We're not at the point where this will supplant humans in all things. But we are at a point where we've developed a really interesting tool that can be used constructively and creatively in many different ways.–Eric Enge, 37:38   [00:00] - Introduction to Eric [04:21] - AI's current and future role in search & opportunities [09:36] - Effects of incorrect information on different Internet users [14:13] - Error reporting to Google: Best practices [15:25] - Preparing ecommerce sites for AI-enhanced search [21:02] - The role of content in local search results [23:52] - Evaluation of Google's source selection for search results [28:23] - Impact of Google's result integration on clicks and conversions [31:48] - Importance of brand visibility in search results [33:14] - Misunderstandings about AI's influence on search results [37:40] - Outlook on the future of ai systems [38:29] - Recent advancements in ai-generated output accuracy [41:18] - Web disinformation issues and their effect on ai models [44:22] - Strategies for ai-optimized business content [46:55] - AI's potential impact on online content credibility [48:33] - Importance of experts in enhancing ai-generated content [50:19] - Google's approach to evaluating content trustworthiness [51:49] - Insights on AI's role in future content generation and SEO   Resources Mentioned: Pilot Holding: https://www.pilotholding.com/   Right now, we have this massive paradigm shift or the preparation for the shift. We're definitely in the infant stages. Most of us SEOs have Google SGE running on our browsers. We're doing queries daily. We're getting scared or anxious every time we do a query. Now we're seeing an article appear before the typical organic results. We must keep reminding ourselves that we are beta-testing this at the moment. And this is a tricky thing to do sometimes when every time you search, you see everything pushed down. Google trying to answer what may not even be a question-oriented query with a relatively long piece of content. –Loren Baker, 04:21 The easiest way to get started is to take a page on your site, feed it into the model, give it the search query you want it to rank for, and ask it what changes you need to make to improve your chances of ranking on that or what content gaps you need to fill. –Eric Enge,44:22 Over time, E-A-T (Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) is going to become more important. Google will place a lot of weight on looking for subject matter experts, fact-checking, and a strong staff of experts owning the content. –Eric Enge, 48:22   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect With Eric Enge: Eric Enge is an award-winning professional and co-founder of Pilot Holding, specializing in executive consulting for SEO, content marketing, digital marketing, and finance. He founded Stone Temple Consulting, later acquired by Perficient, where he served as General Manager and Principal in the Digital Marketing team. Eric's expertise spans digital marketing strategy, SEO, content marketing, paid search, conversion rate optimization, social media, web analytics, and marketing automation. He excels in guiding businesses toward their next stage of growth. Connect with Eric on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ericenge/  Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/stonetemple   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker  Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

Unlocking Your Brand's Potential with WordPress: Insights from the Executive Director Have you ever wondered how WordPress can transform your brand's narrative and enhance your online presence? Executive Director of WordPress, Josepha Haden Chomphosy, joined me on the SEJShow to discuss the impact of the open source model on WordPress's growth and economy and provides valuable insights on leveraging WordPress to tell your brand's story and succeed in the digital world. As WordPress marks its 20th anniversary, empowering individuals and organizations to share their narratives and establish their businesses, this episode provides a glimpse into WordPress's future and the unique ways marketers, entrepreneurs, and SMBs can capitalize on its evolving capabilities. WordPress enabled about half a trillion dollar economy based on everything people can do to create services and products inside the WordPress space. How we have created our marketplaces has been significant.–Josepha Haden,15:22 Like all the things with AI, I always ask my community to move slowly enough to be ethical but fast enough to be relevant. We're technology, and we have to be fast. Otherwise, we don't matter. But also, we are open source, so we always want to be as ethical as possible.–Josepha Haden, 36:02 The thing I think that makes Open Source so valuable in the history of WordPress and probably in the history of any open source project is that it not only has a bunch of freedoms for what anyone who wants to use our software can do and can have, but it also specifically includes freedoms from things that they should not have to deal with. Like they should be free from having someone suddenly change their terms of service and no longer having access to their content or, suddenly changing their algorithms and no longer having any access to the audiences that they worked so hard to gain on their sites and in their own spaces.–Josepha Haden, 10:12 [00:00] - About Josepha. [00:29] - The 20th anniversary of WordPress. [00:40] - SEJ's transition from Blogger to WordPress. [01:54] - The WordPress project timeline. [04:12] - Explanation of open-source project contributions. [14:32] - The economy of WordPress. [14:51] - SEO plugins in WordPress. [17:23] - How do plugin and theme developers monetize their work in the WordPress space? [20:25] - How has Gutenberg changed WordPress post publishing? [27:21] - Benefits for merchants using WordPress for ecommerce. [28:56] - Storytelling in ecommerce. [31:26] - The role SEO plays in WordPress' operation and its importance to users. [32:31] - Future of WordPress. [33:08] - WordPress' multilingual support. [34:12] - How WordPress is navigating enterprise-level customizations. [36:02] - Ethical considerations of WordPress & AI. [41:57] - The role & importance of the WordPress community in its success. Resources Mentioned: WordPress – https://WordPress.org A Bill of Rights for the Open Web – https://wordpress.org/news/2023/04/episode-54-open-webs-bill-of-rights/ WordPress Playground – https://wordpress.org/news/2023/04/episode-54-open-webs-bill-of-rights/ Yoast – https://yoast.com/wordpress/plugins/seo/ All-In-One SEO – https://aioseo.com/ Rank Math – https://rankmath.com/ Josepha's Blog – https://josepha.blog/ And for what it's worth, a group of existing agencies caters to enterprise clients in WordPress. We know, as WordPress is in the heart of us, that we can do that and support that. And we also can do that while keeping the heart of our open-source philosophies like we see it happening. WordPress.org/enterprise is the page that enterprise-specific agency leaders pulled together to help us get more awareness that WordPress is an excellent choice for enterprise implementations and clients.–Loren Baker, 45:24 One of the goals of Gutenberg was to lower the barrier to entry for new users of WordPress by creating this block standard. The idea was that everyone would use the same variety and type of interactions. You only had to learn one type of management style for all the interactive management spaces available inside the CMS. This was an opportunity for us to modernize the code base and bring in a new concept of how we can work with WordPress. –Josepha Haden, 21:40 So in the publishing space, one of the things that I think, I'm not going to say we're going to lead in, but certainly, I believe we're going to do the best in, is making sure that our native, multilingual support is as seamless and robust as it can be. We are the most used CMS worldwide, and that work is slated for phase four of our current Gutenberg project. It's not necessarily a Gutenberg-centric concept, but it is one of the areas where we can stand to make the most profound difference in using an excellent CMS globally. And so that is in our next three to four years.–Josepha Haden, 33:08 Connect with Josepha Haden Chomphosy: Josepha Haden Chomphosy is an accomplished leader and technologist in open-source software. As the Executive Director of WordPress, she oversees the strategic direction of the world's most widely used content management system (CMS), with 43% of all websites globally powered by WordPress. Since taking on this role in 2019, she has devoted her work to cultivating a more diverse and inclusive community that welcomes hundreds of volunteers worldwide, expanding the platform's reach, and empowering users to create exceptional digital experiences. Josepha is known for her leadership skills and philosophy, passion for open-source software, and commitment to creating a more equitable and inclusive industry. Connect with her on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephahaden/ Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

In the world of SEO, search marketing, and content marketing, it's becoming clear that getting a solid grip on the customer's needs, desires, and lifestyle is equally essential to building your brand's unique persona and story. Ryan Kutscher, the creative force and founder behind CIRCUS MAXIMUS, joined me on the SEJShow to talk about how his team creates compelling brand narratives. We covered their use of Ikigai, a profound Japanese concept that translates to "a reason for being."  This concept is a remarkable tool in their storytelling arsenal, providing a fresh perspective that introduces depth and purpose to their narratives. In this episode, we'll gain invaluable insights into how Ikigai can be utilized to create more meaningful, impactful stories, ultimately adding a rich layer of authenticity to your brand narrative.    ​​We take a step back for brands to think more narratively about what the story they're trying to tell is. And then think about how they're applying that to the customer journey rather than tactics first, which just makes your head explode these days. –Ryan Kutscher, 04:38 Sometimes as a business owner or an executive, you assume that the entire company gets the mission and what you said is a human mission. So, one of the things lacking in the workplace, so that's been lacking in the workplace for the past 20-30 years, is purpose. What gets you up in the morning? –Loren Baker, 07:22   [00:00] - About Ryan [02:43] - How they craft memorable brand narratives and characters [08:50] - How human mission & passion comes in. [11:57] - The Mark Cuban example. [16:05] - How to get started with the voice of the customer. [17:48] - How do companies earn revenue from pinpointing passion & mission? [19:39] - Uber & Lyft example. [24:46] - The In & Out Burger example. [28:36] - Brands Ryan worked with applying Ikigai. [32:11] - Other ways listeners can use the Ikigai concept. [34:56] - How important are videos?   Resources mentioned: Circus Maximus - https://www.circusmaximus.com/   The first question that we ask is why? Why is your brand doing what it's doing? What is the brand's purpose? That answer is not to make money or increase revenue by a quarter. It's not a business goal. It's a human mission. If everyone can kind of answer those questions the same way, or at least have an understanding of how the brand wants to answer those questions, they start to work for that idea or that narrative, and then that helps them do their job better and hopefully helps them tell their story better, tell the story better. There's an internal role of answering these questions and having this shared narrative, and there's an external role. So that's where it starts, with purpose. –Ryan Kutscher, 05:32 People like Mark Cuban, who are successful entrepreneurs, understand that you start with the mission and then build the company around it. You don't start with the company and then build a mission backward. And when you have a mission clearly defined, the people you need to help you build that company come to you because they're attracted to the mission. And some of those people are customers. So that's the power of the mission. –Ryan Kutscher, 13:32   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect With Ryan Kutscher: Ryan Kutscher stands at the helm of Circus Maximus, an innovative agency transforming the advertising landscape. With a unique model that blends branding, content, and media, Ryan, founder and CEO, has propelled brands onto global platforms, partnering with industry giants and burgeoning start-ups. Beyond his leadership role, Ryan is recognized for his creative approach to life. He champions entrepreneurship within his team, urging them to infuse creativity into their daily lives. And amidst all these, he finds joy in the companionship of his Australian Shepherd, Rudder. Connect with Ryan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryan-kutscher-a282605/   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker  

Looking for some great PPC conversion rate optimization tips?  Navah Hopkins, PPC expert and SEJ contributor, joins me on the SEJShow, where we explore the art and science of turning ad clicks into valuable conversions.  She delves into the crucial journey from ad to landing pageant and shares strategies and techniques to help you deliver on the promise made in your advertisements.  Whether you're a seasoned professional or a newcomer, this podcast episode is a must-listen for anyone looking to take their conversion rates to new heights. Navah Hopkins is the Evangelist for Optmyzr. A veteran of the digital marketing industry, she began as an SEO in 2008, transitioning to PPC in 2012. In 2019, she became a founding member of the Paid Search Association, a group dedicated to empowering the next generation of PPC practitioners and serving as a resource for all practitioners to learn from and share with the community.   Now, landing page experience is a core component of quality score, which is a core component of ad rank, which influences your cost per click in at least Google and Microsoft PPC campaigns. And what's interesting is that the landing page experience is a two-part piece: The first is how well the landing page answers the promise you made in your ad, and that goes to the keywords you're targeting or the audiences you're targeting. The other piece is a little bit technical, and where you might need to partner with your SEO friends or use a tool that has some of these things baked in. Is the ad bot able to crawl your landing page to generate a quality score? Are you going to be having popups going left, right, and center? Are you going to have modules that may not necessarily behave? So there's a, there's a technical component, and then there's the, the content component. And what I think a lot of either PPCs, may need to remember to think about is the technical component. –Navah Hopkins, 04:47 I've always considered utilizing SEO or normal site pages as huge distractions for PPC campaigns. Typically with PPC campaigns, someone knows where they're going to go. You want to keep them in that funnel and follow that call to action, so they will make that purchase. But it seems like, in PPC, you can direct someone into taking that call to action. Whereas SEO, we're doing the exact opposite. We're interweaving this web of distractions to show that it's an authority, and there are reviews, FAQs, and there's the schema, and there's everything else, like all across the board and interlinks and navigation. –Loren Baker, 10:07 If we want experiences that are curated, we need to know how to say yes. Because that's another thing: what does that experience look like? And we can talk about that in terms of what cookie consent looks like on the landing page. The other thing that's important to factor in is that if you choose to say no to tracking, which is a valid choice, just expect to see ads that are not valid.  –Navah Hopkins, 18:00   [00:00] - About Nava. [03:35] - What is landing page experience, & how does that impact overall PPC performance? [12:52] - How important is landing page compliance for in-app browsers? [19:32] - Which is worse, rage clicks or abandoned carts? [24:02] - Metrics for landing pages. [27:45] - What is Performance Max? [32:23] - Opportunities in AI. [35:43] - Tips for managing multiple campaigns & pages.   Resources mentioned: Performance Max: https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/10724817?hl=en Google IO: https://io.google/2023/   What's interesting is that if you see that mostly YouTube displays and others are getting the lion's share of your budget, odds are you're not budgeting enough for transactional search. More importantly, your landing pages are likely being served to people that aren't as relevant. So definitely make sure that, as you're building your P-max campaigns, you include as an audience signal some of your competitor websites. –Navah Hopkins, 31:17 One of the things that I would encourage every consumer to think about is whether you want the experience of walking down New York City and you see billboards everywhere. Or whether you want an experience of, “I went into a pop-up store that I sought out, and I have this very curated shopping experience specifically for me.” No judgment either way, but bear in mind that advertisers and SEOs only have the data that we consented to give. So you need to share that data to expect landing pages to be a perfect match. –Navah Hopkins, 14:34 I think this new visual era is exciting and interesting, but that's one of the areas where this is a good time to fail fast and test playing with video, playing with display, ads, and content.  See how you can adjust your landing pages to capitalize on that. Because if you're treating your landing pages that came from tech sources with the same as visuals, you likely need to include a couple of opportunities to connect with your consumer.–Navah Hopkins, 11:53   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect With Nava Hopkins: Meet Navah Hopkins, the Evangelist for Optmyzr. With over a decade of experience in digital marketing, she knows the ins and outs of SEO and PPC like the back of her hand.  Navah is all about sharing knowledge and spreading the love for paid search. She's a frequent contributor to SEJ, SEMrush, and WordStream. Plus, she's a sought-after speaker, sharing her wisdom with audiences across the globe.  In fact, Navah loves PPC so much that she's a founding member of the Paid Search Association. Along with her fellow members, she's dedicated to nurturing the next generation of PPC pros and creating a community of collaboration and learning. Connect with Navah on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/navahhopkins/ Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/navahf   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

You know how the world of SEO is constantly changing. And staying on top of things and making the most of your skills is essential.  That's what we're all about here at the SEJShow - finding fantastic new business models and strategies that help you shine as an SEO consultant.  Roland Frasier joins me in today's show to dive into alternative methods that could change your consulting game, giving you even more rewards for all that hard work you put into client and partner projects.  So, strap in, and let's jump off that old SEO hamster wheel to uncover some exciting SEO consulting opportunities!   If you're entrepreneurial, it makes sense to think about possibly getting something more permanent for your time. –Roland Frasier, 03:40 What I found to be most effective is to say you've got knowledge, skills, experience, and connections that add tremendous value to businesses, so you have a choice: You can get a short-term income and a flat fee, get paid by the hour, and even get in the middle of a revenue share. But when that stops, it stops. A way around that is to come in and add value to the business. The value you bring to the company should be compensated by participating in the ongoing profits or equity of the business...That's the concept: how do you turn your effort into equity? –Roland Frasier, 05:12 After so many years in marketing, I don't consider myself just an SEO. I'm typically brought in to do SEO Consulting and help on that side. The next thing I know, there's a new brand launching, so I'm looking at opportunities for brand messaging, looking at the product before it comes out, and involved with that this and that. –Loren Baker, 13:03   [00:00] - About Roland. [07:01] - What consultants should look for when they want to have equity in a company. [12:55] - How to avoid “over consulting” and earn based on the value provided beyond SEO? [20:45] - How to yourself as proving more than just SEO. [23:20] - How to start consulting for equity. [32:55] - What is a Fractional CMO? [41:30] - The mindset that leads to a better quality of life. Resources mentioned: Epic Network - https://epicnetwork.com/ The Business Lunch Podcast- https://businesslunchpodcast.com/   I'm going to look at where I can have a significant impact. I'm going to say if the lift that I can add to this company is something that I think will move the needle for them, then I believe it's an appropriate conversation. –Roland Frasier, 9:40 They will put you in that box if you come in as an SEO, so how you brand and present are essential. I'd position myself as a strategist as opposed to an SEO-only. The fact that SEO is one of the things that you do is significant. It might be the main thing that you do. But having even alliances with other people that can provide the additional services is an intelligent way to go because if you come in as growth, you know that the company is going to value you more than if you come in as a component or sub-component of development. –Roland Frasier, 15:01 People might think that it's not possible to have you as a partner. It might not occur to them, but they might believe you're so far beyond that it's not even an option. So by telling them in advance that this is an option having them put skin in the game by having them show that they believe in you and that they're willing to invest in themselves is crucial in making this work. –Roland Frasier, 20:00   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect With Roland Frasier: Roland Frasier stands out in the world of ambitious investments and building strategies. With over 1000 acquisitions, exits, real estate portfolios, and more under his belt for himself and his clients, he knows what it takes to succeed in business!  As a principal of 6 Inc.'s fastest growing companies plus an advisor at Stanford University –Roland is making waves with some hefty credentials. Not only has this savvy investor been featured on all major news networks but Business Insider, Fast Company, Forbes & Entrepreneur are singing praises too!  And if that isn't enough star power...he even interviewed Sir Richard Branson AND Magic Johnson, so you know something good must be cooking up around him - like his award-winning podcast, 'Business Lunch.' Connect with Roland on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rolandfrasier/ Watch him on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/RolandFrasierEPIC  Follow him on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rolandfrasier Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

Networking is one of the best parts of any conference. But, the bigger events might not give you the best opportunity to improve your skills and expand your network as much as you would like. Smaller-scale events and masterminds can provide unique benefits with more intimate networking opportunities, personalized learning experiences, and the chance to interact with industry experts on a one-to-one basis. Join us to learn how smaller events can help you exchange ideas and collaborate with like-minded individuals who can motivate and inspire you.  Jim Christian, a seasoned digital marketer with over 26 years of experience and founder of The Digital Marketers Organization, and Stephanie Solheim, a dynamic leader in the SEO industry and co-founder of Mastermind Mansion, joined me on the SEJ Show to share their insights on the value of smaller SEO events and masterminds and how they can help professionals reach their full potential.   You're building those relationships that you wouldn't necessarily have the opportunity to build when you're at a larger event. You have access to the people that you want to talk to. So in Austin, that might mean that I'm going to get burgers at midnight with a bunch of my buddies to talk about my buddy's new software. It's awesome, you know. We cap our events at probably 40 people. –Stephanie Solheim, 6:45 People are going to remember the event that they're here for, but they're not going to remember all of it. They might feel like they got a speaker and some tips and tricks. Still, the real thing that they're going to remember is they're going to remember being on this balcony up on the 60th floor of the Cosmo hotel. They're going to remember all the people that were in this room, and they're going to remember those conversations, and those are the things that they're going to take back with them. The thing that holds value is the social networking aspect. And so, for us, the mentorship never stops at the event. The event is just the beginning. After that, it's all about keeping those connections and bringing everyone into the community, and just sharing with the larger audience. –Jim Christian, 34:54 Not everyone is a natural conversationalist. It can be overwhelming to walk into a room at an after-hours event in New York or a larger event in Vegas with hundreds of people. It's challenging to make conversation with people you don't know, especially when you can't tell if someone is a salesperson or not. At trade shows, expos, or educational events, there might be a speaker presenting great material, but as one of the hundreds of people in the room, it can be hard to engage with them. With multiple tracks happening simultaneously, conversing with the speaker afterward can be nearly impossible. –Loren Baker, 7:23  [00:00] - About Jim and Stephanie. [07:53]- How are the barriers in large events taken down in smaller events? [12:08] - Do smaller events give your company more ROI? [18:17] - How you build community after the event. [21:35] - Struggles that larger events face now. [30:33] - The benefit of including non-search people in SEO events. [33:51] - How did Mastermind Mansion start? [34:50] - How mentorship plays in the events that they do. [37:08] - Tips they've learned while promoting events. [40:42] - How do you ensure topics remain relevant when planning ahead? [44:02] - Ticket Sales va Waitlist: Which works better? Resources Mentioned: Digital Marketers Organization (DMO) Advanced - https://digitalmarketers.org/pages/dmo-advanced Mastermind Mansion - https://mastermindmansion.com/   We try to pull people from all different walks of life regarding digital marketing and then put them together into a group designed to accelerate growth and learning. –Jim Christian, 16:33 Every time I go to my event, I come away with at least two alternative ways to do my processes more efficiently. And I walk away with either somebody that can use my services or somebody that I can call on when I need help with something. I know that happens across the board. I mean, you're making those really deep personal connections and understanding at a greater level. –Stephanie Solheim, 12:19 What we're offering is truly a nice branded experience. There are no drink tickets, so we go out and have a great time. And there isn't a limit. Or again, we can take you on a really cool excursion that you wouldn't be able to do if you had, you know, 2,000 people –Jim Christian, 25:22   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect With Jim Christian: With over 26 years of experience, Jim Christian is a skilled digital marketer passionate about driving client success through bespoke, performance-driven strategies. He has worked across various industries, including B2B, B2C, travel, luxury, ecommerce, and retail. Jim began his career in 1997, eventually becoming GoDaddy's Director of SEO and managing a $40-million sales channel. Later, he founded Blush Digital, a digital marketing agency assisting large enterprises and global brands. He established The Digital Marketers Organization (DMO), a community of thought leaders hosting conferences and masterminds across North America. Connect with Jim on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mrjimchristian/ Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/jim_christian Connect With Stephanie Solheim: Stephanie Solheim, a dynamic leader in digital marketing and SEO, owns Grow With Meerkat, a full-service agency known for its innovative approach. As the founder of Women in Marketing and co-parent of Sisters in SEO, she empowers women in the industry. Stephanie's friendly personality shines at her Mastermind Mansion Brand events, where top SEO experts share insights.  An active mentor, she participates in the "Attagirl" sorority and enjoys sharing humorous content. Passionate about AI and prompt engineering, Stephanie was recognized as one of the "12 Powerful Women You Should Know" by The Content Factory. Connect with Stephanie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephaniesolheim/ Follow her on Twitter:https://twitter.com/solheimsteph   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

AI Revolutionizes SEO: Unveiling IndexNow Updates and Bing Strategies We know you're wondering: What does SEO look like for the new Bing? Can you use AI for SEO? We're curious, too.  Fabrice Canel, Principal Program Manager for Microsoft Bing, joins me on the SEJShow to share insights and answer your questions. We'll dive into the latest advancements in  AI and their potential impact on SEO strategies and discuss recent updates to the IndexNow protocol and how it's transforming the search landscape.  Take advantage of this opportunity to learn from an industry expert and discover the future of search engine optimization on Bing.   Open AI investment for Microsoft is not recent. Microsoft has invested in Open AI for a few years already. For years, there has been a lot of investment in leveraging AI at Microsoft and Bing and liberating machine learning. We are purely machine learning based, trying to satisfy the user. –Fabrice Canel, 04:39 When people enter the search chat experience, this is about refining the queries and results to satisfy the user. The Bing experience is really about redirecting a customer to a site that somebody has published. This is all about finding the best content and clicking to find this content online and clicking this link where people can transact. –Fabrice Canel, 11:18 When you navigate a site, you can use the chat experience to learn about the site or summarize information about this page. The chat can help you generate an email, LinkedIn posts, Twitter, etc. This experience is not only available within Bing.com. This is also moving across Microsoft products. You will see this also in Skype and directly integrated into Windows. –Fabrice Canel, 13:39   Resources mentioned: Bing Webmaster Guidelines - https://www.bing.com/webmasters/help/webmaster-guidelines-30fba23a Edge Browser - https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/edge   [00:01] - About Fabrice. [00:59] - The new Bing & the technology it powers. [03:35] - How does Bing use ChatGPT & Open AI technology? [05:32] - What is the Prometheus language model? [07:41] - How citations work in ChatGPT-powered Bing search results. [12:41] - What can you do with Bing Co-Pilot in Microsoft Edge? [18:03] - What AI integrations is Bing working on for small and local businesses? [20:26] - How to use ChatGPT-powered Bing Search - Help planning a trip to London. [23:01] - What has Bing learned since launching ChatGPT-powered search?  [25:24] - How to generate an image with DALL-E in the Edge browser. [26:56] - How does Bing view AI-generated content? [30:11] - What is IndexNow & how can SEO professionals use it? [34:53] - How long does it take to get indexed by Bing? [36:15] - What's Bing working on next? [38:20] - What should you do with the other URLs listed as sitemaps in Bing Webmaster Tools?   I love the guerilla warfare aspect of this, the ability to introduce this new being chat experience in products and services that have been seated and are used by individuals daily. So when you bring up things like Skype, you know it doesn't necessarily mean that you have to download Bing, or someone does not necessarily have to be a Bing fan to get into this. Skype is a lifestyle tool. It's a chat tool. It's a communication tool. Teams obviously on the B2B side skyrocketed in the past couple of years. There are so many SharePoint or default Microsoft products that are utilized daily. –Loren Baker, 15:56 Sometimes you want to interact with an experience that will offer the ability to learn more, refine your query, and improve your question to find stuff online. So we enabled this experience beyond web links. Meaning that you can also find images, you can also find local, you can also find advertising, and you can all find all these things assuming they are relevant. So you will see a profound experience in chat that is more than a text search. –Fabrice Canel, 18:21 If you're utilizing IndexNow, it should be more or less instantaneous or nearly instantaneous for new content. We are scaling variabilities, and in the following weeks, you will see this content indexed in seconds. Some very large websites have already adopted IndexNow. We are encouraging everybody to embrace and explore because SEOs want to be in control. –Fabrice Canel, 34:43   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect With Fabrice Canel: Fabrice Canel is part of Microsoft's most exhilarating team: Bing, where AI plays a crucial role in shaping the future of search. Every day, hundreds of billions of new pages emerge on the web, and an equal number of existing pages are updated with fresh content. The challenge of indexing and crawling the web demands a large-scale, distributed approach emphasizing speed, accuracy, and thoroughness, all AI enhances. With an impressive 24-year tenure at Microsoft, Fabrice takes excellent pleasure in tackling this fascinating endeavor. Connect with Fabrice on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fabricecanel/ Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/facan Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

Privacy laws and best practices are ever-evolving, just like everything else in marketing.  How do you ensure your organization is compliant and keep your customer's best interest in mind?  Lucas Long, Director of Privacy Strategy at InfoTrust, and co-author of the new Amazon Best-Selling book, "Becoming a Privacy-Centric Marketing Organization" joins me on the SEJ Show for a privacy-focused podcast. Gain insights on the three pillars of privacy that every marketing should consider and what steps you need to take now.    When we start talking about consumer expectations and we start talking about compliance, it becomes very complicated in large organizations that are working across different countries. You have other things like GDPR and EPRI in Europe versus all the state laws in the United States. There are various restrictions for how you can use an identity service, how you can identify users, and for those users that you can identify, even what activities and what data you can start to leverage for any advertising activity. –Lucas Long, 02:13 Traditionally, third-party cookies have played a significant role...Those are ultimately going away by the end of next year once Chrome deprecates support. So how we have to identify those users and associated information together is the core of what's changing right now. –Lucas Long, 06:14 The only way to identify a user across different locations is if there is some persistent identifier. Typically in the form of an email or a login, so that's really where it starts. And then it gets into that first-party ownership for that first-party data, collecting the correct information on each of those different properties, integrating it so that we can then have that more centralized view and be able to take various actions for that consumer –Lucas Long, 07:16   [00:00] - About Lucas Long. [01:37] - ID-oriented data and targeting in multiple brands & regions. [03:26] - Industries Lucas specializes in. [04:13] - Ecommerce challenges with cross-country targeting. [07:16] - Core pillars of privacy-centric marketing. [08:34] - Other ID touchpoints available. [14:58] - Other options for additional data sources. [16:21] - What is server-side tag management? [19:21] - Can companies access more data from loyalty programs? [23:09] - How the book launch has been for marketing.   Resources Mentioned: Book: Becoming a Privacy-Centric Marketing Organization (Crawl, Walk, Run) https://www.amazon.com/Becoming-Privacy-Centric-Marketing-Organization-Crawl/dp/1544539622 InfoTrust: https://infotrust.com/ Tag Inspector: https://taginspector.com/   I want to make it easy for my consumers to do what they want on the website. And that's where interoperability comes in...develop that brand relationship with the individual and get that persistent identifier yourself. That would be a login. Many organizations are starting to have email as a part of the checkout process, with a much larger focus on loyalty programs, rewards programs, and discounts. –Lucas Long, 11:23 One core focus of many different regulations, and even being privacy-centric in general, is the concept of data minimization. So, thinking through a particular use case, what minimum user data is necessary to accomplish that use case? And then designing your data collection strategies and everything really from there. –Lucas Long, 21:12   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal  Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect With Lucas Long: Lucas is a dynamic professional who brings incredible skills and experience to the InfoTrust team! With extensive sales, marketing strategy, and analytics knowledge – not to mention his successful implementation record for tag architecture with significant corporations – he sure brings fresh insight into SaaS offerings.  He is also Google Analytics Certified, making him an invaluable asset when it comes time for web analysis and tag management strategies. His passion for introducing businesses to his company's fantastic suite of analysis products and educating them on user behavior has allowed him to forge excellent relationships with some of the world's leading agencies and enterprises. He's truly making a difference! Connect with Lucas on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucas-long-61005648/ Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker   Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker 

Social advertising can be an easy entry point for many organizations. But, with all the targeting and metrics to track, it's easy to get overwhelmed.  Daniel Alvarado, CEO at White Shark Media and Head of Engineering at AdClicks joined me on the SEJShow to talk about ensuring profitability and success with your social ads. Gain insight on how to leverage social advertising metrics and strategies to achieve optimal ROI and measurable business outcomes.   In terms of trends, we are going to see a lot more funds being put in by advertisers and by agencies in terms of video production and video production quality. There are a lot of people that are investing in refreshing their creatives and their copy and making it a little bit more top-notch production because that's, that's what's finding to be very appealing to users today. –Daniel Alvarado, 05:25 My approach towards AI is more around research as opposed to actual content production. And I still have my team, put the effort in terms of creating that very original piece that really appeals and speaks to the customer. –Daniel Alvarado, 11:04 In the world of SEO, people look at it as a very direct response-oriented marketing channel. Like, oh, you got this traffic from Google, it converted, okay, then you get attribution. Whereas that's typically not the case. People like to do research. With top 10 lists and peer reviews, it means that people are doing their research or trying to figure things out. They may visit your site one day via SEO, do research, and down the road visit via the ad, but SEO was part of that, or organic was part of that. Or maybe one of the last steps of the buyer's journey is to actually go to the site, do a search, find the site, find some basic information from it, and then from that organic traffic or that organic visit make that final decision to then buy, which could even be a branded search. –Loren Baker, 22:15 [00:00] - About Daniel [03:00] - Experience working on campaigns that are search oriented within TikTok [04:42] - Is Daniel doing a lot more video advertising now? [08:02] - Does he use AI in campaigns? [14:00] - How do you show ROI in campaigns from multiple platforms? [18:30] - Does he integrate CRMs with ad clicks? [21:58] - How attribution points are tracked through SEO & social with an ad click. [25:18] - Where Daniel sees the GA4 transition play into attribution tracking [28:30] - Does he see social platforms affecting metric tracking? [33:07] - Daniel's journey from SEM supervisor to CEO.   Resources Mentioned:  White Shark Media - https://www.whitesharkmedia.com/ AdClicks - https://adclicks.app/   It's no longer just Gen Z, it's now actually a lot more age ranges that are actually taken into TikTok. And so we are finding a lot more of our clients finding interest within going into it.  –Daniel Alvarado, 4:04 Make sure that you're implementing tracking within all of your devices or all of your applications. For example, if you not only have your website but also have, for example, a mobile application, which a lot of people now have, combine that with information within your CRM so that your CRM also allows you to seek some sort of truth within that. One thing that we are also seeing very much of is this concept of looking at the return on ad spend, but looking at it from a global standpoint as opposed to a per-publisher standpoint.  –Daniel Alvarado, 31:23   The biggest thing that has helped me move forward within the business is that I really am passionate about the things that I do. –Daniel Alvarado, 35:47 For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal   Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer. Connect With Daniel Alvarado: Daniel Alvarado is a true tech star, masterfully maneuvering the marketing technology industry for an impressive eight years. His current roles as CEO of White Shark Media and head of engineering at AdClicks provide him with a unique scope to aid organizations in creating compelling experiences via simplified processes that will add value for their clients through cutting-edge technology. With his innovation and tech expertise, Daniel has become a go-to resource for businesses interested in leveraging the latest advances in marketing technology. With his help, businesses can stay ahead of the curve and achieve real results with cutting-edge marketing technology solutions. Connect with Daniel on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielalvaradob/ Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker  Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker 

In today's digital age, having a well-optimized website is essential for any business looking to succeed online. However, simply focusing on keywords and topics may not be enough to stand out and connect with your target audience truly. Rory Hope of HubSpot joined me on the SEJ Show to discuss integrating actual audience data into SEO strategies to go beyond the basics of critical terms & topics. Learn how to integrate audience intelligence and social listening data into keyword strategies to understand your 'SEO persona.' You'll be able to plan more relevant and engaging content and digital PR (link building) campaigns to generate better results. Many SEOs I know sometimes struggle with integration into broader marketing. I think one of SEO's worst enemies is being in a silo where people see the SEO's role as being purely keywords or having and not having a voice in broader content strategy in strategic discussions. I think SEOs can start to bring in social data to support the reasoning as to why content is being published, to help keyword performance by tailoring it all back to the keyword topic, then building out from there and saying we're listening to these publications and these influences because we've seen that these websites rank for these keywords topics that we want to target. –Rory Hope, 27:53 Social is fascinating because we're looking at the digital marketing pillars –email marketing, social media, marketing search, organic search page search, and the ability to use persona typically are not necessarily integrated into what I would call traditional keyword research. A lot of the tools now have things like intent, which helps, but what does the persona look like, what does the buyer look like, who is the buyer when they're searching for something, and what terms are they utilizing that others may not identify and better filter down into Google. –Loren Baker, 7:17 In the sense of SEO, we're missing out on getting back to the audience and understanding the persona. So I think that audience intelligence tools have a real place at the table within an SEO toolset. –Rory Hope, 26:07 [00:00] - About Rory [04:18] - What is Hubspot's Hustle? [08:01] - Importance of social data in SEO. [20:26] - Key benefits of link acquisition opportunities. [32:28] - How social data can work from an agency point of view. [36:15] - Tips for teams that are spread out worldwide. [38:23] - What C3PO means. Resources Mentioned: The Huste: https://blog.hubspot.com/the-hustle Let's look so, so what you need to think about here is I like to call it audience first SEO. So you know your base layer research, your foundational study remains the same. You are conducting keyword research, clustering keywords into topics, subtopics, intent analysis, and building a keyword targeting planner. I think that's important to know. However, you would use social data to enhance your SEO strategy by integrating data sources from audience intelligence tools. –Rory Hope, 11:04 So I'll reevaluate what will allow you to use social insights and social listening on the influences that you are confident in your SEO personas that search for keyword topics you want to rank that they are engaging with you regularly to enhance your SEO topic model content strategy. Then, you can keep adding relevant thought leadership content there so that it doesn't go stale. –Rory Hope, 19:57 It all goes back to the core of marketing. Understanding your audience, understanding the sociology behind everything they do, what they're talking about, why they're talking about it, and identifying those trends that you feel have gotten lost in SEO. We're so keyword-heavy; everything else, like identifying those trends, isn't necessarily part of it. –Loren Baker, 24:04 For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Connect With Rory Hope: Rory Hope is a seasoned SEO and growth marketer who's an expert in digital marketing strategy and leadership. Rory is the Head of Content SEO at HubSpot. He leads the Content SEO team, drives their strategy, and oversees organic growth. He's passionate about sharing his knowledge and helping others implement cutting-edge SEO and growth marketing strategies for their websites or businesses. So, if you want to take your digital marketing game to the next level, you won't miss Rory's insights and expertise! Connect with Rory on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rory-hope-33a31066/ Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Roryhope. Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

Google's very own Martin Splitt joined me on the SEJ Show to share his thoughts and opinions on various technical SEO topics, such as Semantic HTML, Google Search Console, indexing, and client-side rendering. Explore how to leverage these powerful tools to improve your website's SEO. Prefer to watch the video? Register here: http://bit.ly/3YQxzG7  I would say make sure that you are focusing on the content quality and that you are focusing on delivering value to your users. Those have been, will always be, and are the most important things. Everything else should follow from that. –Martin Splitt Suppose you are fine-tuning technical details or your website's structure or markup. In that case, you are likely missing out on the more significant opportunities of asking yourself what people need from your website. –Martin Splitt This question keeps coming up. This is not the first time and will not be the last time this question will come up and continue to be asked. I don't know why everyone thinks about who, what value, or who. It's about structure. I can't emphasize this enough, if you choose to have H1s as your top-level structure of the content, that's fine. It just means that the top level of the content is structured along the H1s. –Martin Splitt   [00:00] - About Martin [02:47] - Why Semantic SEO is important. [04:22] - Is there anything that can be done within Semantic HTML to better communicate with Google? [06:02] - Should schema markup information match what's in the document? [08:24] - What parts of Semantic search does Google need the most help with? [09:19] - What is Martin's opinion on header tags? [14:22] - Is the responsibility of implementing Semantic HTML on the SEO or the developer? [16:19] - How accessible is Semantic HTML within a WordPress, or Gutenberg-style  environment?  [19:58] - How compatible is Semantic HTML with WCAG? [21:08] - What is the relationship of Semantic HTML to the overall concept of the Semantic web RDF, etc.? [25:04] - Can the wrong thumbnails be rectified utilizing Semantic HTML? [28:42] - Is there another type of schema markup that can still refer to the organization and use IDs on article pages? [32:10] - Can adding schema markup to show the product category hierarchy and modifying HTML help Google understand the relationship between the product and its category? [33:49] - Is preserving header hierarchy more critical than which header you use? [36:36] - Is it bad practice to display different content on pages to returning users versus new users? [40:08] - What are the best practices for error handling with SPAs? [45:31] - What is the best way to deal with search query parameters being indexed in Google?  [48:02] - Should you be worried about product pages not being included within the XML site map? [50:26] - How does Google prioritize headers? [56:00] - How important is it for developers and SEOs to start implementing Semantic HTML now? [57:31] - What should SEO & developers be focusing on?   If you understand that it's a 404, you have two options because two things can happen that you don't want to happen. One is an error page that gets indexed and appears in search results where it shouldn't. The other thing is that you are creating 404s in the search console and probably muddling with your data. –Martin Splitt If you have one H1 and nothing else under it except for H2s and then content H2 and then content H2, that doesn't change anything. That means you structured your content differently. You didn't structure it better. You didn't structure it worse. You just structured it differently. –Martin Splitt   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal  Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com  for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer. Connect With Martin Splitt: Martin Splitt - the friendly internet fairy and code magician! He's a tech wizard from Zurich that has magic fingers when it comes to writing web-friendly code.  With over ten years' experience as a software engineer, he now works as a developer advocate for Google. A master of all things open source, his mission is to make your content visible in any corner of cyberspace - abracadabra! Connect with Martin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/martinsplitt/ Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/g33konaut   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker   Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker  

When two search experts come together, they will likely discuss various SEO and digital marketing topics.    These discussions can cover everything from the latest trends and strategies to industry news and best practices.   Barry Schwartz, CEO of Rusty Brick and Founder of Search Engine Roundtable, joined me on the SEJ Show to discuss SEO, business, the search landscape, and even hair products. It was legendary!   Most of the world these days wants to see a five-second TikTok or YouTube short, and they don't have the patience to go ahead and read something. I think that might be scaring not just advertisers, SEOs, and marketers but Google and Microsoft search ad revenue models and seeing how they can get people to click on those things. This should be interesting. –Barry Schwartz, 17:19  I'm usually very consistent. I'm the type of person who will do something and never stop doing it for better or worse. And it's just the way I like to be. Have a nice routine where I do certain things in a particular order. And I'm passionate about tracking what's changing, so if you let things go more than 24 hours, it just gets worse, piles up, and you get behind. So I like to stay on top of it, and honestly, helping the community in my little way makes it all worth it. –Barry Schwartz, 5:22 I try to cover publicly available stuff that anybody else could access without a password. So that's my rule, it has to be publicly available, and Twitter is a great place where most things are publicly known unless their profiles are limited. –Barry Schwartz, 9:53   [00:00] - About Barry. [04:46] - What has kept Barry going over the past 20 years? [09:28] - SEO forums that people should participate in today. [17:46] - What should the KPIs be behind SEO now with AI here? [19:13] - Will a new search engine now emerge over Google? [25:22] - Biggest regret in blogging. [28:54] - Topic Barry wished he could cover. [32:46] - Barry vs. Google's announcement to take down sponsored links. [38:15] - Is having a Google Plus share button on your blog a ranking factor? [40:45] - How important is it to have fast site core web vitals? [51:15] - How to boost authority & rank higher. [59:42] - How fulfilling has it been to use Roundtable from a religious standpoint?   Resources mentioned: Search Engine Roundtable: https://www.seroundtable.com/ Rusty Brick: https://www.rustybrick.com/   On chatGPT, I don't remember a time in the world of search where or a recent time, maybe the past 12 or 13 years, when things were so exciting. –Loren Baker, 12:04 I think, seeing how Google launches its version. I think it's going to surprise a lot of people. I think people are going to be wowed as much. It will be interesting to see how Bing adapts. It's fun to watch how things change things on a day-to-day basis. It's a super exciting time to be in. –Barry Schwartz, 13:49 If Apple were to launch a Siri AI, then that could be a massive game changer, and that's the one challenge I see with Microsoft. They have it with Teams on the B2B side, and maybe that's where they want to keep it. They have it on the desktop but don't have it in people's pockets and where people are. So maybe it will be a B2C versus B2B-oriented play. –Loren Baker, 23:40   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect With Barry Schwartz: Barry Schwartz is nothing short of a search marketing powerhouse, offering valuable insights and analysis on advanced search engine topics through his popular blog Search Engine Roundtable.  Barry also owns RustyBrick, a New York web design and development firm specializing in custom online technology. Individuals across the globe trust him as an authoritative source in SEM with extensive experience in business development and custom web software engineering - you name it!  Connect with Barry on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rustybrick/ Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rustybrick Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker  Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

Success in the fast-paced world of advertising requires a focus on innovation and adaptation to the latest trends. This includes staying informed on changes in cookie usage, the growing importance of identity, and exploring opportunities in emerging platforms like connected TV (CTV).  John Gentry, CEO of OpenX, joins me on the SEJShow to discuss the opportunities of ad exchanges, distribution beyond Google & Microsoft, how header bidding works, ad opportunities growing on mobile devices and CTV, and the role of identity and cookies in ad targeting. Gain insights on how to take your PPC and advertising efforts to new heights.   The key is to put an offering in front of somebody who has articulated their interest. Reaching a consumer in real-time and understanding that they want something –they want a car, they want to get tickets to a baseball game. So you're responding to them at that exact time, making that work compelling. The big magic of that model was that real-time response to a user's needs. –John Gentry, 04:26 Paid search is a great entry point into an ecosystem of advertising models working together to identify that intent. And then, if someone may not make the purchase decision at that moment, you can then remarket/retarget. You can then remind them, or at least you have the data. Maybe they're somewhere in the funnel where you are looking at a blog post, buyer guide, or comparison page, and then you can follow them through. –Loren Baker, 05:07 Programmatic came out of that idea to take intent and see if you can respond to the user in some timeframe. The goal here is to try and keep that offer in front of the user when you think you understand the consumer wants to buy something. Programmatic extended that opportunity to be in front of that user and target that user with a different time window. –John Gentry, 05:53   [00:00] - About John. [05:07] - Where Programmatic comes in. [06:59] - Overview of OpenX. [09:46] - How is First-Party Data different from cookie-based advertising? [11:21] - How buyers match to data. [18:19] - More about Open audience. [19:38] - Will there ever be an alternative to Google? [22:34] - How AI will change the search experience. [25:42] - How targeting works in CTV. [33:09] - Ways OpenX stays sustainable. [39:28] - The next big thing to look out for. Resources Mentioned: OpenX - https://www.linkedin.com/company/openx/   Being able to target the level of an individual user is very powerful. All of this stuff is protected and wrapped up, and done safely. There's a recent move towards clean rooms, which are safe ways to exchange data so that you're guarding the person who owns the data; the company owns the data that's not leaking out. And there's a lot of investment in that, which is excellent because that goes back to privacy. How do, how do we keep these things? How can we do targeted advertising in a way that protects people's personal information? –John Gentry, 17:10 With CTV, you can now understand the household watching that content, which means you can now look at the behavior of those households to understand more directly potential attribution from an ad. That's a massive game-changer. And I think that's the big move. What we're seeing advertisers do–the first thing they did when Streaming came out–they realized that the early streamer audience was precious. I think what we're seeing now is kind of the expected and, not surprising, migration to more addressability and the ability to understand how can I target a given household –John Gentry, 26:22 Do we see consumer behavior move with AI? Because if the user moves to AI, that will be a new form of marketing, right? That's a place we're going to have to reframe. How do we engage with the consumer and help them find what they need or address what's coming up? So I think that's a fascinating area in terms of where things will go on the advertising side. –John Gentry. 40:06   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect With John Gentry: A veteran of the technology and media industries, John Gentry, serves as CEO of OpenX, a world-renowned provider of digital advertising technology.  Before joining OpenX, he was President of Spot Runner, CRO of Green Dot, SVP, and GM of overture Services' Affiliate Business. In addition, he held executive positions at Disney/ABC and Discovery Communications. Having 20 years of leadership experience, an engineering background, and a product innovation background makes him an ideal leader for navigating changing times. With his invaluable contribution to OpenX, he is committed to further accelerating OpenX's rapid trajectory. Connect with John on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-gentry-93561/   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker  Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker 

SEO professionals looking for ways to gain a competitive edge in their link acquisition and blogging techniques can take heart — 2023 is bringing some exciting advancements that you'll want to add to your toolbox of tricks.  Ann Smarty joins me on the SEJ Show to talk about techniques in link acquisition, resourceful and trusted content, and other progressions of traditional SEO strategies. Discover approaches for boosting visibility and SEO success in this episode.   Link building is the only thing that can move the needle. You can optimize, and you can make your site fast. You can create content and do keyword research, but at the end of the day, what moves the needle to get that website ranking very competitively is still linking. –Ann Smarty, 07:43 We even have our database of websites that sell links, and we can track every company that buys links there. So we know that if this site is buying here, that site is usually selling links. So the neighborhood is a huge thing here. –Ann Smarty, 10:28 The beauty of educators is that it's the best neighborhood. Those people never sell links on their websites because they're busy with something else and value all the resources they put on their websites. So that's a never been spammed neighborhood.–Ann Smarty, 21:20   [00:00] - About Ann. [03:59] - Are experimental side projects important? [07:15] - How crucial is linking for SEO nowadays? [11:56] - The importance of quality of content in terms of a link target page. [14:53] - What's more important on Google reading lists, at the top or bottom? [21:09] - Other forms of ethical link building. [26:42] - Kinds of content that attract more links now. [30:23] - Types of impactful outreach and linking. [32:57] - Importance of original statistics.   Resources Mentioned: https://www.seosmarty.com/ Some companies are closing down, and there are stores and restaurants everywhere that are closing down. That's very sad. But the opportunity from a link acquisition perspective is someone's going to lose their domain, which you can always pick up in the future and do something creative with, or those lists are now going to be linked to pages, which 404 or redirect. So you can go out and help the publisher update and make things fresh. –Loren Baker, 13:51 Google is being used by journalists and bloggers all the time. So if you can write an excellent article on a topic and rank it for half of the high-volume search queries, you will see those links coming because people would just come across your resource using Google. –Ann Smarty, 23:02 I do have a theory that Google does look at clicks when they evaluate links. So if links are never clicked, those links are not helpful. So usually, I do want the most valuable links to be those that get traffic. And the higher on the list you are, the more traffic you will get. So always, if you are higher, that's better. –Ann Smarty, 15:53   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect with Ann Smarty: Ann Smarty is a digital marketing mastermind. Not only does she have extensive work experience as an Affiliate Program Manager and SEO consultant, but she's also the Community Manager at Internet Marketing Ninjas.  With her diverse link building skills, keyword research, and social media management, Ann has developed numerous free guides plus courses to help everyone, from individuals to businesses, get ahead. So get ready for success with all that HQ knowledge from one super smart(y) cookie! Connect with Ann on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annsmarty/ Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/seosmarty Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker  Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

It seems like everyone these days wants to talk about artificial intelligence (AI) and its potential in search.  It's true - there is no doubt that AI will continue revolutionizing how we find information online. But did you know that real-time AI search is already here? Introducing NeevaAI, it harnesses the power of artificial intelligence for more efficient search results in real time. Neeva CEO and ex-Head of Google Ads, Sridhar Ramaswamy, joined me on the SEJ Show to discuss how live AI questions and answers will change how people search. We touched on how AI will alter the business models of search engines. And also covered the limitations of ChatGPT, and the importance of sourcing and citations in AI-powered live search-driven answers.   We felt that commercial search engines, Google, and Bing, had become products for advertisers, not products for you and me to find out what we want. We felt that a user-focused search engine could differentiate itself and deliver a better product experience. So Neeva, at its core, is a user-first search engine. That means that we don't show ads, don't show affiliate links, and we protect your privacy. –Sridhar Ramaswamy, 02:03 NeevaAI seemed to fix most of the issues I was experiencing with chatGPT, especially the lack of sourcing and accurate information.–Loren Baker, 35:30 The underlying technology behind chatGPT is this model called GPT-3.5. The core technique that that model uses is learning on every page, every piece of text that it can get its hands on. Now note they don't know where these pages came from. They don't know whether it is real or not. They don't understand things like link structure authority. –Sridhar Ramaswamy, 06:41   [00:00] - About Sridhar. [05:29] - Limitation of ChatGPT. [10:17] - A walkthrough on Neeva's AI search. [17:35] - Monetization challenges ad-supported search engines may face with AI. [21:24] - How verified sources are served. [23:48] - How personalized are AI-driven answers based on history? [24:54] - Will there be more follow-up queries after the AI results are given? [27:43] - Where this is going in terms of privacy. [35:30] - Is Neeva available in multiple languages? [37:12] - Can website owners verify with Neeva, like Google Search Console?   Resources mentioned: Neeva: ad-free private search: https://neeva.com/   All of us, willingly or not, are participating in a giant experiment similar to Google. We are happily submitting our thoughts, worries, and desires to chatGPT. And worse, it is not equipped to compartmentalize information like Google reasonably can. Google's like, okay, this is your account, these are your searches, you want to delete it, tell me. We'll delete it. They make it hard for you to do it, but it is possible. So I think there needs to be oversight over how this is done. What storing personal information is going to mean? If the data is then used for training future models, that's when life gets very scary.–Sridhar Ramaswamy, 32:50 One of the main points of concern that I've had with some peers while discussing AI is real-time answers. This could be a direct negative on the traditional Google search monetization model.–Loren Baker, 15:59 Lack of authority is a huge issue. Also, these models are humongous. They take an enormous amount of money to train and an enormous amount of money to run, and they're not real-time. So what we do at Neeva is we use a technique called retrieval, augmented generation. That's a fancy way of saying to use the power of search to set the reality field for a large language model. Then, ask it to generate text and cite which part of the input text it uses.–Sridhar Ramaswamy, 08:27   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect with Sridhar Ramaswamy Sridhar Ramaswamy is an inspiring example of using technology for the greater good. After leading Google's enormous advertising division, he succeeded as a venture capitalist at Greylock Partners.  He then took his ambitions one step further with Neeva. This privacy-focused search engine has no ads and runs on a subscription-based model instead.  This tech master combines humanistic values with revolutionary thinking to make the software work towards beneficial societal outcomes. With such ambition inspiring him forward, this entrepreneur has set down new paths of discovery. As a result, we can all benefit from Sridhar's tireless vision for innovation! Connect with Sridhar on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nancy-marzouk-82519a/ Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RamaswmySridhar   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker  Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

Savvy digital marketers leverage user identification to create genuinely custom experiences for their customers because identity is a crucial part of today's online landscape. Nancy Marzouk of MediaWallah joins me on the SEJ show to discuss the concept of identity data and how it becomes an integral part of digital advertising. In addition, we discuss the critical elements to have in place to create a successful approach.  We also get into clean rooms and clean tech vs. a "black box" approach and how AWS, Google & Snowflake's impacts on the ID data market will look like.   There's a lot that needs to go into how I design my identity strategy to fit not only the privacy talk about data governance and all that fun stuff but also works within the industry that I'm in and deals with the marketing stack that I've invested in. So that's really where identity by design comes in. It helps you understand. We help people understand the pieces of what a sustainable building-up of your identity graph might look like. –Nancy Marzouk, 06:19 The fact that the cookies were anonymous and that the workflow that was present for cookies was acceptable, but it's no longer viable when you're starting to deal with the first-party data. Because it's very sensitive information, creating a more secure workflow will be very important in the future. With that being said, it doesn't mean that retargeting goes away. It just looks a little different.  –Nancy Marzouk, 10:41 With cookies and mobile going away, what it does is it brings the advertiser and the publisher closer together. –Nancy Marzouk, 16:15   00:00 - About Nancy. 05:00 - What is identity, and why is it important? 08:46 - Can you still retarget in the future? 11:47 - Is it going to be better or worse for advertising? 22:51 - Does a publisher have to work with every identity solution? 35:29 - A scenario ID platforms can identify. 38:47 - How to transition to ID.   Resources mentioned: MediaWallah - https://mediawallah.com/   There are different parts of identity. First, there's being able to identify an event or a session or something happening in a browser or something happening in the app so that you can do that targeting right then and there based on what the platform is that you're using. And then there's how do I take all that information and connect it to an individual or a user so that I can perhaps do some sophisticated audience modeling or attribution? –Nancy Marzouk, 26:12 It seems like the past three years. Google's been serving more and more publisher sites that are reviews or product-oriented reviews, recipe sites, whatever on the publisher side, as opposed to going directly to the source. So I think it will make that real estate more important from an advertising perspective. –Loren Baker, 19:01 People are looking to use their first-party data to bridge the gap and create a crosswalk between the information they need to understand about their marketing and the effectiveness of their marketing. –Nancy Marzouk, 05:17   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect with Nancy Marzouk Nancy is a true maverick on the marketing technology scene - always one step ahead of the pack and more than capable of solving even its most stubborn problems.  Through her company MediaWallah, she's revolutionized how data can be connected for maximum value at every level. The industry has taken note - Nancy's been making waves as a frequent guest speaker at conferences and through op-ed pieces in publications everywhere!  Her genuine commitment to progress saw her appointed to IAB's Cookie Management Task Force – proving that when it comes to tech, no problem lies beyond reach with Nancy around. Connect with Nancy on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nancy-marzouk-82519a/ Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/nmarzouk   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker  Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker 

You may have heard of artificial intelligence, but what about creative intelligence?  Alex Collmer, CEO of VidMob, joined me on SEJ Show to talk about creative intelligence and its role in helping marketers, especially in today's market conditions.  Gain insight into how creative intelligence optimizations and data transparency can help you make the right decision when running your creative campaigns.  Find out how it plays in with privacy updates and running campaigns across various ad networks, mobile devices, and social media apps.   One of the things that creative intelligence can do is help people get a reality check on how original and unique that creative is vis-a-vis the myriad of things in the market today. It's a tool to help people monitor culture to understand how trends are progressing and when the moment has passed. –Alex Collmer,15:34 Before, it was about getting the click to go to the site. Now everything is so intertwined. It has to be quite a chore for a creative team to fill in all the blanks and then utilize that data to alter, refresh, or make those adaptations to the creative itself. –Loren Baker, 03:54 This isn't A/B testing. You know that that's sort of like the thing we did yesterday. This is a whole new world and opens up visibility into the why of creativity for the first time. –Alex Collmer, 07:20   [00:00] - About Alex. [08:03] - How creative intelligence relates to AI. [10:53] - How fast a campaign gets creative feedback. [13:40] - Where originality comes in. [17:55] - How important is Creative Intelligence regarding data privacy? [19:46] - Can Creative Intelligence report on demographics? [21:16] - Can you optimize for different age groups simultaneously? [22:57] - Can data sync from handheld devices to traditional advertising? [25:20] - Alex's take on Augmented Reality and Snap. [31:37] - Insights on rich media style advertising on Amazon.   Resources mentioned:  VidMob - https://www.vidmob.com/   We built technology to enable people to ingest all of that creative they might be running across an account on Meta, YouTube, TikTok, or Amazon. We process those billions of creative attribute signals and pull all the performance information from those platforms. The likes, clicks, views, engagement metrics, and purchases are included. –Alex Collmer, 06:22 Intelligent creative gives people data they can react to in real-time in a software platform that enables them to be very agile in their creatives. They can optimize the market and dramatically improve the results they see from their campaigns.–Alex Collmer, 10:35 As the media side loses effectiveness, the creative side has to take over more of the responsibility. –Alex Collmer, 19:14   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect with Alex Collmer Alex Collmer founded VidMob, the most prominent video creation platform that enables anyone to maximize their video presence and make a brand impact. He is an engineer who specializes in technology, design, and entertainment. Alex's multifaceted expertise paved the way for him to co-found Autumn Games, a renowned publisher of video games, before founding VidMob. Alex is an all-around man with many passions and talents! He's an enthusiastic husband, youth sports coach, ultra runner, and tech/digital media entrepreneur. Equally impressive are his specialties in intellectual property finance (movies, video games & music), investment/fund management & media private equity – Alex sure knows how to make the most out of life! Connect with Alex on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexcollmer/ Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/collmerica   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker  Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker 

In a world where PR and content marketing is essential to SEO, the sports industry can bring about some learnings for anyone in the digital marketing field.  Karina Barriga Albring of FIFA joined me on the SEJ Show to discuss the world of Sports Development and Sports Marketing. She shares her journey from traditional journalism to PR and marketing.  Take a look at how sports can provide some valuable marketing insights and how marketing can benefit from sports too.   We know how passionate people are about a sport, whether football, soccer, or basketball. People sometimes have an irrational attachment to this activity, myself included...The emotional connection is so strong that, of course, brands will want to be involved. Sports marketing is tagging along to the immense love, attachment, and relationship we have for sports. –Karina Barriga Albring, 11:44 We're going to start seeing brands' funding to align with athletes whose message and online persona align with the values that the brand wants to spread. –Karina Barriga Albring, 24:31 Brands like to have ambassadors who are relatable and who are real people. So if you are an athlete who enjoys theater, go to the theater and get involved in local community activities. Try to identify the other passions that you have. All of that helps you build your persona. Make people find you more relatable and likable, which will translate into brands wanting to work with you. –Karina Barriga Albring, 30:30   [00:00] - About Karina. [03:40] - How working with other industries helped her in sports. [06:57] - What PR is all about. [10:54] - What is Sports Marketing? [16:12] - To what extent is licensing a part of Sports Marketing? [19:14] - The importance of personal branding in Sports Marketing. [27:26] - Opportunities for athletes to build their brand. [33:28] - Sports Marketing tips that can be applied to marketing.   Resources mentioned: FIFA - https://www.fifa.com/   In the time that we're living in, we're no longer competing for an audience. We're not only competing with our direct competitors but for the attention of the audience. You're competing for people's times...These days that is something that we need to think about when we analyze our strategies and our positioning. –Karina Barriga Albring, 48:29 In website development or SEO, it's always nice to check what your main competitor is doing and your smaller competition. And it's always great to have a "side project" to experiment with...the ability to have some side project and then turn it into a business case and then pitch the ability to do it on your company's website may also be helpful. –Loren Baker, 47:23 With influencers and content creators online, when we think about PR, we don't only think about traditional media. We think about anyone with a platform to make your message widespread.–Karina Barriga Albring, 8:27   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect with Karina Viviana Barriga  Karina loves building lasting relationships with people, using the game of football as her prime opportunity.  Her passion for sports and expertise in journalism, public relations, and marketing help her develop athletes and businesses side-by-side through dynamic business models. With an MBA dedicated to Football Industries already under her belt combined with bi/multicultural experience within the industry, Karina is ready to make significant changes in this ballgame! Connect with Karina on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karina-barriga-albring Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/kbarrigaalbring Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: www.twitter.com/lorenbakerConnect with him on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

What is Zero Click? And how does it affect businesses and their SEO/PPC strategies?  Semrush's Marcus Tober joins me on the SEJ Show to discuss Semrush's recent Zero Click study and how this fits into a growing trend in Google. Get insights on how Zero Click reshapes expectations of traffic, multi-touch attribution, and other traditional Google KPIs.   Zero Clicks for us means there was an initial search and nothing after that. There was no continuation. And we did is we defined a session in a two-minute window. –Marcus Tober, 09:42 The biggest pivot probably in the past decade is that, to your point, someone may click on Google Maps, someone may click on Google Images, but that doesn't necessarily mean that you're not reaching the business goal of that user. –Loren Baker, 12:44 As a marketer, we should aim for areas with a hybrid strategy. We need to show up for these transactional commercial searches, even if we know we don't get to click. We need visibility. We also need to invest in content that might trigger different search results, like, featured snippets, or maybe show up in more visual searches because we have lots of visual content. –Marcus Tober, 19:59   [00:00] - About Marcus. [04:22] - The difference between enterprise vs. normal marketing solutions. [08:00] - Is Zero Click negative or positive with planning for SEO? [08:19] - What triggered the Zero Click study? [12:12] - Is the call button a Google internal click or a click to the site? [18:04] - What are the popular product box? [22:12] - An actual query on mobile by Loren. [30:37] - How do you make sure your brand covers the results delivered? [39:07] - Google's search difference on desktop vs. mobile. [47:02] - Other findings from the Zero Click study. [48:08] - Conversion rates through Google products vs. regular organic traffic. [51:58] - Will people ignore a CTR within indexed content and be served on Zero Click?   Resources mentioned:  Semrush - https://www.semrush.com/   Zero Click may mean Google may have answered the user straight away. So there was no need for the user to click to continue anything else.–Marcus Tober, 11:24 I truly believe Google has now found enough motivation to compete against Amazon. That's why they're investing so much in all these different ecommerce integrations.–Marcus Tober, 36:58 SEO will be very important in the near end and long term if we understand from which perspectives users are coming. Don't only optimize on transactional keywords because you can convert this traffic easily in SEO. And then, suddenly, Google launches popular products with checkout, and you lose every traffic. It would help if you diversified to succeed in SEO.–Marcus Tober, 23:45   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect with Marcus Tober:   Marcus Tober is a visionary leader who has been tackling the most complex enterprise workflows and requirements related to SEO. As SVP of Enterprise Solutions at Semrush, he develops smart and innovative SEO solutions to manage complex SEO workflows and requirements. He previously founded Searchmetrics and was named European Search Personality Of The Year in 2016. Among the enterprise companies he's worked with are eBay, Adidas, GoDaddy, and Walgreens.  Using data science in websites is his game, and he is always passionate about building organic SEO products. Connect with Marcus on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcustober/ Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/marcustober Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

Want to increase your ROI and improve your SEO strategy? How will SEO evolve in the year ahead? What are the biggest threats and challenges? SEJ's Ben Steele joined me on the SEJ Show to discuss the findings of SEJ's Second Annual State of SEO Study, which includes emerging trends in the world of SEO and can help companies plan for 2023 and beyond.   As long as people need to find things, there will be SEO. That explains why this industry has seen so much growth, even with the upset of the last few years and economic issues on the horizon.  –Ben Steele, 12:34 Organic marketing or performance marketing forms, such as SEO and affiliate marketing, have risen from staffing and investment perspectives. –Loren Baker, 14:31 If you're hyper-focusing on that automation element, you might be missing its actual value, which is allowing you to go hands-off on some of the things that don't matter as much and focus on creating content that resonates with your audience –Ben Steele, 31:11   [00:00] - About Ben. [06:49] - What is the second annual State of SEO? [09:59] - Number of respondents involved. [10:25] - Preliminary findings that stuck out. [16:09] - Locales with the highest salaries for SEO. [18:20] - Where SEO professionals focused big this year. [22:31] - Metrics to track success. [32:40] - Important emergent factors in the next two years. [41:33] - Difficulties in ebook planning. [43:34] - The difference between an ebook & a white paper.   Resources mentioned:  State of SEO - https://www.searchenginejournal.com/state-of-seo-performance/ Ebooks are an interesting beast because they have unique difficulties and advantages. The most significant unique problem is they require a lot of buy-ins. By that, I mean they need someone to not only have the time to sit down and read it but to go through the process of discovering and deciding to download it. –Ben Steele, 37:55 People are returning to basics, driven by Google's updates over the last couple of years. –Ben Steele, 19:40 Yes, rankings are nice, but it's much better to have an ROI where people purchase or click. –Loren Baker, 28:16   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect with Ben Steele:   Ben Steele, Senior Editor at SEJ, is an expert in digital content. He didn't set out to be an SEO strategist. Still, after learning the skills needed for his job and combining them with some self-driven research on digital marketing, he found that this is where his true passion lay.  His professional theater background also helped him develop a work ethic and leadership skills, among other soft factors like creativity.  Ben now works on the ebooks of SEJ, where he always offers fresh insights and recommendations for content strategy. Through his work in SEO, he channels the human experience, journey, or expression into something that others can learn. Connect with Ben on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/writerbensteele/ Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/BennyJamminS

Countdown clocks, limited seating, only X items left in stock ... does scarcity marketing work for you? If so, why?  Scarcity marketing and the Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) is a phenomenon that can be applied to all forms of marketing - especially digital.  Mindy Weinstein, Ph.D., author of The Power of Scarcity, joins me on the SEJShow to talk more about the concept - and how it can help you drive results.   Marketing is so much psychology; it doesn't matter if you're doing SEO, paid search, or social. You're trying to reach a person. I feel like it's a lot harder than before because it's a matter of not just reaching them but cutting through the noise and then using the right words. –Mindy Weinstein,1:51 Because of scarcity, there is excitement and there is loyalty. Think of Nike and some of these big companies that people watch for the drops. It goes beyond just creating quick revenue, as I need sales right now, which is what most of us associate with scarcity. –Mindy Weinstein, 29:02 You're bringing their focus, especially for people all over the place, and you're giving them the direction to tell them what to do, which many audiences actually crave. They don't necessarily want to make that decision, and they need you to guide them to make the decision or to make the sale. I think that's something that can be lost in digital marketing. –Loren Baker, 19:20   [00:00] - Mindy's background. [05:17] - What is scarcity marketing? [06:00] - Four types of scarcity.  [10:14] - How to take scarcity marketing from the traditional to the digital side. [16:01] - Examples of using scarcity marketing in websites. [20:20] - Examples for service-based businesses. [25:19] - How McDonald's used scarcity marketing. [32:27] - Ways search marketers can incorporate scarcity marketing into campaigns.   Resources Mentioned: The Power Of Scarcity Book - http://powerofscarcity.com Market MindShift - https://www.marketmindshift.com/ It's multi-layered. It's more than just thinking buy now, or miss out, or you have only one day left. There's so much to it, it doesn't always work and it only works for specific audiences depending on the type of discourse you're using. –Mindy Weinstein, 2:39 Just telling you have these products as best sellers or most popular on your website helps someone as they're searching on your website. –Mindy Weinstein, 7:50 You want to have the regular price because it elicits a feeling of loss aversion that we don't want. –Mindy Weinstein, 33:54 For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect with Mindy Weinstein:   Mindy Weinstein is the founder and CEO of Market MindShift and a national speaker with an extensive background in digital marketing strategy. She has trained companies across all industries, from Facebook to World Fuel Services.  Mindy is also the leading expert on persuasion-related concepts, with years of experience in the business. The research she conducts helps companies better understand how to persuade their customers-and; she isn't afraid to think deeply! Her book, The Power Of Scarcity, is available on November 8, 2022. Connect with Mindy on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mindydweinstein/ Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/mindyweinstein   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

Can programmatic be transparent and value-driven, given the deprecation of third-party cookies? Absolutely.  Rajeev Goel, Co-founder and CEO of PubMatic, joins me on the SEJShow to talk about the future of programmatic.  You can expect to hear critical insights on Google's open bidding, ID services, how AI can play a future role, bidding after cookies, CTV, trends, and more.   Header bidding came to exist in the first place because publishers felt they were not getting a fair auction inside the Google Ad Tech stack. So header bidding was designed to open up that auction process and bring transparent participants. –Rajeev Goel, 25:28 What header bidding did was that it allow publishers to work with multiple monetization platforms. –Rajeev Goel, 4:06 There's a massive shift in consumer behavior that's driving where the ad dollar growth is. The change in consumer behavior is towards much more online video than the Internet. It's also towards connected TV and streaming. –Rajeev Goel, 29:52   [00:00] - About Rajeev Goel & PubMatic [03:03] - What is header bidding? [08:06] - The future of header bidding with third-party cookies is going away. [12:20] - Do identity solutions do a better job than third-party cookies? [14:49] - The shift toward more direct deals [17:32] ​- How AI helps with programmatic advertising. [18:10] - About modeled cohorts advertising. [21:10] - What is Google open bidding & why its controversial? [27:39] - All about CTV. [36:36] - Walled gardens vs. Open Internet. [41:04] - Opportunities & challenges in brand advertising vs. performance campaigns.   Resources mentioned: PubMatic - https://pubmatic.com/ Identity Hub - https://pubmatic.com/products/identity-hub/  Header bidding is now ubiquitous across the industry, more competition for your ad space leads to more revenue, and we think that's great for publishers. That allows people to do what you're doing right now and reinvest into content that you know your consumers love. –Rajeev Goel, 7:22 Near term, we are seeing that there is a shift toward more direct deals.  –Rajeev Goel, 15:25 Consumers want transparency. They want to know that, in an auction environment, there's a level playing field. –Rajeev Goel, 24:58   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect with Rajeev Goel:   Rajeev strongly believes in technology's power to solve problems and improve people's lives. This conviction has driven him to build PubMatic into one of the world's leading software companies serving the digital media industry. Under his leadership, PubMatic has grown from a small startup to a publicly traded enterprise with more than 600 employees and 14 offices worldwide. In addition to co-founding Chipshot.com and serving as its VP Of Technology, he held marketing director positions at SAP. His experience navigating large companies and bringing innovative products that drive business growth makes him a true technology visionary. Connect with Rajeev on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajeevgoel1/   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

What's more important to your SEO bottom line? Data or feelings? Data, of course!  Dmitrii Kustov of Regex SEO joins me on the SEJShow to talk SEO Data, the opportunities for SEO of home services (which exploded post-Covid), and other emerging search trends.  You'll also get insights around Google updates, tracking, and ROI expectations of SEO, and  building localized service-oriented leads.   Start recording data. Start tracking data today. Without it, you can't make any decisions based on the data you don't have. –Dmitrii Kustov, 13:57 Instead of Search Engine Optimization, I like Organic Revenue Generation. What is the point of organic search? It's not just traffic, it's revenue generation from that channel. A lot of people don't have that phrase, but that's what I prefer calling SEO, "Organic Revenue Generation." –Dmitrii Kustov, 21:48 I've always experienced that I don't see SEO as a standalone service that people buy, and that's it. It has to be integrated into the overall marketing machine, where lead quality and follow-up come in. Marketing is getting someone further down the funnel to make that sale. –Loren Baker, 16:28   [00:00] - About Dmitri. [02:10] - Home services Dmitri specializes in. [03:18] - What does it mean to be data-driven? [06:12] - What pure ROI means. [09:27] - Should you concentrate on high-ticket items for onsite optimization? [17:48] - Dmitri's viewpoint on ranking only for the front end. [22:59] - Role of direct search on data. [27:46] - Questions to ask product teams to start recording data. [29:55] - Can you leverage national blog post traffic for home services? [35:07] - Dmitri's take on Google's recent content updates. [40:47] - Dmitri's thoughts on E.A.T.   Resources mentioned: Regex SEO - https://www.regexseo.com/   Content is not only text content. Text content nowadays is going away. So if you are an established business, doctor, health practice, or veterinarian, hire an intern videographer or editor and just let them follow you around and make a little YouTube showing whatever or little interviews. It's much easier for a doctor or any expert to sit in front of the camera for 15 minutes and answer a few questions than sit down and write a 2000 article that's going to take a day or more. If you have video content, YouTube is your friend. Nowadays, text content is becoming a smaller portion of content marketing. –Dmitrii Kustov, 50:53 If you're in the marketing industry and SEO game and doing it correctly, meaning that you produce great content, do not use any black hat, gray hat backlink building, or any of that stuff, none of the updates will affect you. They should even improve your rankings. –Dmitrii Kustov, 37:49 There's a big difference between trust and knowledge. Someone can be the smartest individual in their space, and someone can be incredibly knowledgeable. Still, it doesn't necessarily mean they're trustworthy. –Loren Baker, 46:32 For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer. Connect with Dmitrii Kustov:   Having a strong passion for business and a desire to help others have led Dmitri to start his own company - Regex SEO. He works with companies of all sizes to help them grow their online presence. As a data-driven Marketing Director, he helps companies increase market share and revenue by optimizing their marketing budgets. Among other high-profile marketing platforms, he's been featured on Forbes, MOZ, and SEMrush HackerNoon. Connect with Dmitri on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/digitalspaceman/ Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/DigitalSpaceman Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

Amazon Prime Day opened doors to endless marketing boosts for the second time this year. Refersion's Raj Nijjer joins me on the SEJShow to discuss marketing opportunities for Amazon Prime Day within and outside of Amazon.  Even for businesses not on Amazon, there are chances to leverage the new October Prime Day, which is on its way to becoming as large of a holiday shopping day as Black Friday.   This is the first time they've done the two prime days. The first one is in July, so it's the beginning of Q3, and now they're doing one at the beginning of Q4. It shows you that there's enough demand out there and there's enough inventory too. Now that supply chains have gone back to normal, shipping prices have gone way back to earth, and frankly, many brands are sitting on a lot of inventory. The timing for Amazon could not be more perfect –Raj Nijjer, 9:04 Amazon is probably one of the most efficient machines out there. I think from that perspective, it works, and that's why you see conversion rates that are six to seven times the B2C website –Raj Nijjer, 31:46 I also think you're going to have a generation going away that knows what Black Friday is. When was the last time, probably five or ten years ago, people lined up outside a store to go shopping? Black Friday it's become an online event. As that generation fizzles and goes away, the concept of Black Friday may not even exist anymore. –Loren Baker, 31:59   [00:00] - About Raj & Refersion [08:26] - What makes this year's Prime day different? [11:40] - Best categories to be in. [18:06] - How to reach out to your Amazon customers. [25:41] - How to leverage Prime even if you're not on Amazon. [27:23] - How does Prime impact Black Friday? [40:03] - How to use Refersion as an Amazon affiliate, associate, or seller.   Resources mentioned: Refersion - https://www.refersion.com/   It can't be like B2C versus Marketplace. It has to be like B2C and Marketplace. –Raj Nijjer, 17:24 It's the promise that Amazon makes. It's fulfillment, shipping, and payment. It's all systems and operations, but it's like magic to you as a consumer. –Raj Nijjer, 16:15 If you're worried like, oh my God, I don't want to put my brand on Amazon, more than likely, your competitors are already on there. They're on there all right, and they're already selling and finding success. They've registered in the brand registry, which gives them protection and product protection. But they also get a slew of selling and marketing tools because you have complete control over your listing. –Raj Nijjer, 23:13   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect with Raj Nijjer:   Raj's experience in the ecommerce space has given him an invaluable advantage in building out affiliate marketing strategies for brands looking at ways of accelerating growth.  His role as CMO at Refersion involves enabling advocacy and maximizing customer lifetime value for brands. When not investing or advising startups, Raj is a witty and knowledgeable speaker on all things tech-related. He knows his way around any digital marketing topic you can throw at him!  Connect with Raj on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajnijjer/ Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RajNijjer   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

Email marketing is still one of the most effective ways to reach your audience. However, staying up-to-date on the latest trends is crucial to avoiding common mistakes. Jay Schwedelson, the founder of SubjectLine.com, joins me on the SEJShow to discuss subject line techniques you should be testing, key tips for conversions, and pitfalls to avoid.  You'll discover new options to stay ahead of the curve and how to make the most out of your email marketing.   You're not going to get more business by sending less. That's not the way it works. You need to send more. Marketers think they send too much, but they're just not sending relevant stuff. –Jay Schwedelson, 6:50 Technology has changed in the last five to seven years, and the reason you go to the inbox versus the junk folder is not because of the content. It's not because of the words or symbols that you're putting in your subject line. It's because of your sending reputation. It's because of the engagement, the opens, and the clicks you're generating with the people in your database. Your engagement is the reason you're going to the inbox or not. –Jay Schwedelson, 8:58 You go in the junk folder because you have a bad sending reputation. You have no engagement. The misconception of spam trigger words hurts marketers because they're trying to write subject lines, not utilizing the words that all marketers know to work the best –things like free or expires.–Jay Schwedelson, 9:47   [00:00] - About Jay. [03:02] - What is the Guru Conference? [08:15] - Common email myths. [11:10] - Does purging & getting unsubscribes help with ratios? [15:24] - Email triggers words that are not okay. [19:24] - Using emojis in subject lines. [23:13] - What are Friendly Forms? [26:01] - Importance of personal names & avatars. [29:10] - How important is a subject line in outreach emails? [33:15] - How personalized can we get with email marketing? [37:10] - How important is it to get the CTA above the fold? [40:25] - Holiday email marketing tips. [45:24] - How to avoid getting into the promotions folder of Gmail.   Resources mentioned: Guru Conference - https://guruconference.com/ Subject Line - https://www.subjectline.com/ Outcome Media - https://outcomemedia.com/ Inside Scoop - https://jayschwedelson.com/ Email marketing here at SEJ is one of our cores. It's one of our most significant pillars in terms of marketing. –Loren Baker, 4:57 You don't have to get any negative repercussions from an unsubscribe. You get negative repercussions from spam complaints which only occur if you're doing some sketchy stuff. –Jay Schwedelson, 12:44 If they're going to unsubscribe, they will never buy anything from you. So, therefore, they send the offer because they're looking and waiting for something. –Loren Baker, 5:46   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect with Jay Schwedelson:   Email marketing expert Jay Schwedelson is one of the best in the business. Founder of the #1 rated subject line grading tool, Subjectline.com, he's evaluated over 15 million subjects and helped 200 thousand marketers send out their message effectively! Also, as the President and CEO of Outcome Media, Jay has helped some of the most iconic brands in the world to become even more successful. With his innovative solutions, he knows what it takes for your business to soar. Connect with Jay on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/schwedelson/   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

In content marketing, trust is the most critical factor. But with all the updates happening now, will this still hold, and will content marketing die off soon? Vitor Peçanha. the CMO and co-founder of Rock Content, joined me on the SEJShow to discuss the future of content marketing.  We talked about the importance of branding in trusted content (for even zero-click searches), the "death" of content marketing, and the challenges and opportunities of building a global content marketing company.   Content marketing today, it's like going back to our roots and saying hey, you need to generate value. It would help to recognize that brand awareness so people will remember you. That brand recall, the positive perceptions of your brain, that's emotion. So instead of saying, "Hey, here's a lot of ads," we will build all this by attracting people with excellent content. So it's the same cruise as before with the new channels, formats, and measuring methods.–Vitor Peçanha, 48:03 SEO has a straightforward response marketing mindset. People say that an ad served but not clicked is branding. With PR, if you get an article in the New York Times or Forbes that discusses your brand, but it doesn't link to you, I think a link builder or an outreach person might be upset, but that's a win. That's a branded win.–Loren Baker, 35:47 Branding is a tough thing to measure. It's something that for the last, I would say, 15 years. When you think about branding and how it is in content marketing, we have to explain that it's not only demand generation, last click, and exact attribution. You're building a huge asset, and you win the game when people are looking for your brand. –Vitor Peçanha, 43:30   [00:00] - About Vitor & Rock Content's mission [04:23] - Rock Content's acquisitions. [07:48] - Learnings in acquiring businesses. [15:15] - How was the Helpful Content update for Vitor? [23:54] - How important is content planning for outreach? [36:39] - How marketers can identify branding wins. [44:06] - One of Vito's best successes in Brazil. [46:12] - What is share of search? [52:20] - How to optimize blogs in 2023.   Resources mentioned: Rock Content: https://rockcontent.com/ Rock Content's Social Impact Page: https://rockcontent.com/social-impact/   If you acquire a company, you're not acquiring only the revenue; you're not acquiring only their market share., you're acquiring their culture and their team. –Vitor Peçanha, 8:32 When we think about the customer journey, I like to say; ideally, you have to take people to your media and domains continuously. –Loren Baker, 24:39 The important thing here is to broaden your scope and think about content and SEO from a minimal perspective if there is no link, but there's also no value. You got to believe I'm building an online presence and reputation. If I can make people go to my website because I managed to introduce a new concept, that's a great strategy.–Vitor Peçanha, 33:17 For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect with Vitor Peçanha:   Bringing global brands to new heights is what Vitor does best. He is an international speaker and one of the founders of Rock Content. A world-renowned leader in content marketing, Rock Content helps businesses grow their brands and drive revenue.   Vitor's leadership helped Rock Content grow from a small start-up in Brazil to an international powerhouse. Their global expansion strategy was significant for their success, which saw them invest heavily in new acquisitions. Connect with Vitor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pecanha/ Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/pecanha Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

There are many things to consider when launching a new product. But there are ways of getting everything ready and popping the cork in Google once you go live. HubSpot's Aja Frost & Justin Champion joined me on the SEJShow to discuss the role of SEO in product launches, how its seamless integration helped HubSpot's launch of CMS Free, and how your company can incorporate these learnings into your next launch, expansion, or growth initiative.   I think the best way to understand what someone is looking for is to look at the SERP and then ask yourself what the format and meaning of the content ranking are and how you match that. –Aja Frost, [17:20] It has free web hosts and free SSL, so when you're thinking about launching a website that the cool thing is that you can have a sales arm and a marketing arm that fits right into your CMS. –Justin Champion, [04:21] I like taking a hybrid approach from time to time because the SERPs themselves are constantly changing. So putting all of your eggs in one search intent basket may work for a shorter period but can come back to bite you in the end. –Loren Baker, [17:35]   [00:00] - How Aja & Justin got started in SEO & HubSpot. [02:46] - What is HubSpot's CMS Free? [05:01] - Unique SEO plays that are incorporated into this rollout. [07:54] - How easy is it to get stakeholders' buy-in? [15:24] - How do you handle informational vs. transactional intent queries? [19:15] - A walkthrough on pre-launch pages. [26:09] - Were the launch pages made indexable and included in XML? [27:07] - The Nike strategy. [29:26] - Ways that improved the value of pages linking to them. [32:20] - What else can SEO professionals do to improve relationships? [38:27] - How to incentivize for user-generated content. [45:56] - Thoughts on ads to a landing page & organic discovery. [53:53] - Final tips on the linking & SEO side.   Resources mentioned: CMS Hub Free Web Hosting: https://www.hubspot.com/products/cms/web-hosting   We find much more value in investing in relationships so that when something happens where a page comes out, we can tap into resources and build inbound links quickly. –Justin Champion, [22:37] I would urge anyone listening to this who ranks both in ads and an organic listing for one query to map the relationship between spend and click-through rate. –Aja Frost, [46:46] I have so many conversations with SEOs that have gotten into this practice within the past five or six years and are afraid almost to do anything that's link-building oriented, like "Break The Rules," like whose rules? I don't know! –Loren Baker, [36:22]   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect with Aja Frost & Justin Champion:   HubSpot's Director of English Growth, Aja Frost, channels her inner rock star to ensure the company reaches the right audiences with organic search strategies. Author of Work-From-Home-Hacks and former head of content SEO, she also shares her tips on working remotely successfully. Justin Champion is an expert in the field of link building, with years of experience that can help you grow your business. As HubSpot's Head of Link Building, an instructor for higher education, and the author of Inbound Content, he knows what it takes to find the most effective strategies. Connect with Aja on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ajafrost/ Connect with Justin on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/championjr/ Follow Aja on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ajavuu Follow Justin on Twitter: https://twitter.com/justinrchampion   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

It is possible that what works in SEO now is not what you think. Contrary to popular belief, it's not all about keywords and keyword research - though they certainly help! Today, almost everything works differently, and we're here to find out why. Craig Campbell, Glasgow's top SEO expert, joined me in this episode of the SEJ Show for a candid discussion about what's REALLY working in SEO at the moment, including a discussion around dropped domains, domain leasing, PBNs, link building, YouTube, TikTok and other media outlets that Google loves! There are a lot of domain names that are not personally branded, and you could turn them into an excellent money website in some way. Whether it be affiliate or ecommerce, it really doesn't matter. A website's a website. –Craig Campbell, 29:24 I don't even see people going to the Wayback machine recreating all your videos. Many people just slap up any old URL and brand new URLs and stuff like that. What they don't do is do the basics properly. You need to reignite that. It's run out of gas, essentially, the website. You need to reignite it –Craig Campbell, 31:23 If you ever feel like you have imposter syndrome and don't know anything about SEO, go to a room where no one knows anything about SEO. They'll all ask you questions because you will be validated immediately. –Loren Baker, 12:38   [00:00] - A little about Craig & his YouTube channel. [04:28] - What is Craig's core focus? [05:55] - How many sites did Craig launch before finding two profitable ones? [13:22] - How does it feel to be the only SEO in the room? [17:03] - What are expired domains? [30:59] - What NOT to do when buying dropped domains. [37:18] - The best way to approach expired domains. [50:39] - Is Craig noticing anything in the middle of this content update? [55:38] - How important are Domain Authority ratings and other metrics in inbound links? [58:04] - Does Craig ever look at Majestic?   Resources mentioned: Craig Campbell SEO - https://www.craigcampbellseo.com/ Odys Global - Premium Aged Domains & Websites for Sale - https://odys.global/   Typically, what I would do with any website that I bought is I would repurpose it. I might not keep the exact template and look of pictures, but what I would be doing is recreating, going through any URLs that had links pointing to them, I would be recreating those URLs. I would put the content back up from the Wayback machine and keep the website as close to what it was initially just to start to rank again for some of the terms it did have. Then link equity starts to kick back in. –Craig Campbell, 22:00 I'm not just looking at the domain name. I'm looking at the number of outbound links. I'm looking at the number of keywords that rank on that website. I'm looking at the referring domains. I'm looking at a bunch of other quality checks, and I think that part is what these guys are missing. –Craig Campbell, 32:38 Take the time to invest in an idea. It can be local, global, a $500 product, or even a $20 product, and just do it right and get it out there. Who knows, you might get addicted, and you might, if you're like Mr. Craig Campbell here, be able to flip it for 50x. Its monthly income is fantastic. –Loren Baker, 1:01:19   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect with Craig Campbell:   Craig Campbell is regarded as one of Glasgow's most experienced SEO practitioners. With his expertise spanning all aspects of SEO, he has built up an unmatched wealth of digital marketing knowledge.  He is also a businessman known as "Craig Campbell SEO." The pandemic led him to start a YouTube channel that is now home to more than 100,000 subscribers. Subscribe to Craig on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CraigcampbellseoUk Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/craigcampbell03   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

Sometimes SEO and other marketing integration can be overlooked when you're doing migrations or other developmental projects, especially on the ecommerce side. Holistically, you can't do one without the other. So the search engine and conversion pieces are equally as important as the technology pieces. Ethan Giffin, the founder and CEO of Baltimore-based Groove Commerce, joined me on the SEJ Show to discuss overall SEO for ecommerce & DTCs, Google Merchant Center / Shopping, the importance of CRO & Upsells for SEO (and other channels), and ways to prepare for the 2022 Holiday Shopping season.   Shopify Plus can be a good fit if you have a simple business. However, you need more customization if you have a more complex interaction with more business rules and logic. Big-commerce people generally float over to the big commerce side of things. –Ethan Giffin, 12:38 Programmatically create the best framework. The best framework is thinking about how the template is laid out. What is the hierarchy of the template, what are the components, and how do the sites link together from an internal linking standpoint? So I'm just a believer that many things we did back in the day still work. –Ethan Giffin, 16:11 Suppose you're new to a company and you hear a migration. In that case, hopefully, there are archives within the company that people used before you. There are lists of the redirects that were integrated and implemented into the site. Just cleaning that history up can be incredibly impactful. But again, it gets into human behavior and the ability to make things more efficient. –Loren Baker, 20:37 [00:00] - About Ethan. [12:14] - Most commonly overlooked issues during migration. [24:44] - An essential factor to consider in building an ecommerce site. [31:48] - What to do when a product is no longer sold. [35:18] - FAQ schema recommendation. [37:23] - What is rendering on the ecommerce side? [41:29] - Recommendation on optimizing from an ad script perspective. [43:01] - Optimizing schema integrations on the catalog side. [48:55] - Ecommerce companies Ethan has worked with.   Resources mentioned: Groove Commerce: https://www.groovecommerce.com/   Every app that you install into your store has overhead. Every kind of front office sales-related app, reviews, upsells, cross-sell, site search, out-of-stock notifications – everything has a component to it that loads into the browser, and that creates a heavier page. –Ethan Giffin, 25:15 People don't think about margin enough. So how do you promote those products and get people to buy things with the best margin versus the most popular ones? So really, it's thinking about how to optimize the catalog. –Ethan Giffin, 47:32 If you have a business and you're moving to another building, you don't just bring the storefront with you. You got to bring everything you got to bring the offices, the desks, everything. So if you're migrating a site, you don't just redirect the front page and the top like collections or categories. You must take care of everything –the blog, subdomains, subfolder structures, etc. –Loren Baker, 22:56   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect with Ethan Giffin: Ethan Giffin, GrooveCommerce's CEO, has been a leading ecommerce and web analytics expert for most of his career. Conversion rates, search engine visibility, and web analytics are all things he knows inside and out. However, he is passionate about helping businesses succeed online without having to become experts. There are only a few people like Ethan. His love for SEO, conversion rates, and ecommerce go hand in hand with his passion for traveling and DJing in between - not to mention those pocket squares! Connect with Ethan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ethangiffin/ Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/opie   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

Marketplace models drive traffic and revenue while enabling businesses to stay flexible and expand their reach.  In this episode of the SEJ Show, I talk with Ryan Lee, Founder & CEO of Nautical Commerce, about managing marketplaces, SEO for marketplaces, increasing web traffic with marketplaces, and more, especially as we near the holiday season. Last year, the holiday shopping season was huge, especially with everything that Google Shopping was rolling out. So getting outside of Google a little bit is the topic of this episode about marketplaces. The most successful marketplaces don't act like commerce companies. What they are is they're exceptional customer service organizations. This is because they deliver such a unique and high-value customer experience. –Ryan Lee, 29:36 This idea is that SEO is transactional versus relational. Lifetime value is the relational component. How do you build that relationship with the customer, so they repeat business? Marketplaces are maniacally focused on that piece, whereas traditional commerce companies optimize only for SEO to get the transactional execution. There needs to be equal emphasis on both. It's got to be transactional to get them in the door. But once you get them in the door, how do you create that emotional connection with the buyer? –Ryan Lee, 34:23 One of the most significant differences is that when we talk about SEO, we're thinking about on-site components and optimizing your listing on a third party. –Loren Baker, 20:30   [00:00] - Ryan Lee's background. [02:19] - What is marketplace commerce? [04:45] - Larger marketplaces besides Amazon. [09:58] - Will you have a higher closing rate on a marketplace vs. Google? [20:18] - Paid & organic opportunities to practice SEO within marketplaces. [36:32] - Where does Ryan see Google shopping going? [41:38] - Advantages to marketplace SEO. [52:36] - Can you lose your loyalty programs by being on marketplaces?  Resources mentioned: https://www.nauticalcommerce.com/ If you're in-house SEO and you're working in an ecommerce company, and there's a code freeze coming up for the holiday season, take that time that you have away from the site to focus on organic optimizations within marketplaces such as Amazon, Wayfair, and other platforms and then utilize those learnings as a proven backed up a data-driven strategy to implement the following year on your website.   Once you sell via those marketplaces, work on ways and strategize to bring those marketplace buyers back into the core and back into the site. Then you can sell them on your loyalty programs and everything from there. –Loren Baker, 45:16 I hardly ever see anyone break down whether or not the customer that came from SEO has a higher lifetime value than paid or other channels, which I always hear, but I never necessarily see the data. It seems like many SEOs are held accountable for that first-time sale and not necessarily what's done on the back end. –Loren Baker, 32:40 At the end of the day, you already have the buyer in a place where they can complete the transaction. That's a significant distinction between looking at a car on the side of the street and then actually being at the dealer. You have a higher probability that that person will close at the dealership. –Ryan Lee, 13:12   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer. Connect with Ryan Lee: Ryan is an industry insider with extensive experience building enterprise cloud platforms that boost business efficiency.  In everything he does, from payments to technology consulting services like mobile applications to financial management technologies, his passion for innovation can be seen - all explicitly geared towards enabling transformation within organizations across various industries worldwide. As the founder and CEO of Nautical Commerce, he is passionate about driving growth and building solid teams toward a platform that orchestrates complete lifecycle marketplace transactions. From startups to enterprises, he makes marketplace technology accessible to all.   Connect with Ryan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanjlee/ Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rlee0524   Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

PPC is one of the most potent ways to reach your target market. However, knowing which approach is best can be challenging with so many changes in how people consume information.  From opportunities in Google Shopping + Google Local to the challenges with ecommerce supply chain issues & customer expectations, Kirk Williams joins me for a PPC discussion on ecommerce and beyond. The show provides you with some invaluable insights into PPC, regardless of whether you are just starting or looking for new ideas.   I think we're looking at another unprecedented season. I say that somewhat sarcastically because, you know, okay, we had the covid, we had like the covid rebound, we had, you know, just everything that's been upset in the last few years.  Now, all of a sudden, we are increasingly looking at a potential consumer buying hesitancy period. As a result, we could be in for some consumer credit card debt that has been highest since the 90s or early 2000s.  So we're walking into the holiday season where people are already very much in credit card debt and, I think, probably with inflation and stuff. –Kirk Williams, 15:07 It's a great time to test your feed right now. The best way to optimize it would be to identify the terms people search for and land on products. Now might be a good time to update your product types if you've been putting off updating them for a while, especially if you have to migrate things. –Kirk Williams, 27:34 I don't think Apple played fair with how they started the conversation with that prompt since they weren't communicating accurately how the digital ecosystem works and the benefit of personalized ads. –Kirk Williams, 34:20 [00:00] - Introduction to Kirk [03:58] - How important is video in PPC? [07:09] - What Kirk focuses on with Zeto. [10:06] - Benefits of working with a micro agency. [14:06] - Holiday season PPC in ecommerce: exciting things to watch. [19:34] - What should your goal be this holiday season? Sell now or go for LTV? [27:05] - What can you do now to boost shopping and local integration? [30:48] - How privacy changes are affecting ad strategies. [44:52] - How will you target ads if cookies go away? [46:27] - What is the privacy sandbox? [53:02] - Kirk's recommendations for platforms other than Google to prepare for the holidays. Resources mentioned: https://zatomarketing.com/ https://zatomarketing.com/ppc-marketing-book https://zatomarketing.com/blog/stop-the-scale-book   As part of their strategy, brands need to figure out how to invest in video, so even those of us who normally do more like Google ads, which used to be more search and shopping, are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of video when it comes to ad placement as well. –Kirk Williams, 6:39 Privacy changes do impact ads. However, there is a difference between digital privacy and digital security. –Kirk Williams, 32:46 First of all, Google flocks sound very, very scary. It sounds especially compared to cookies, right? Whoever invented the word cookies or called these things a cookie is a genius because no one is scared of a cookie. –Loren Baker, 50:15   For more content like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/searchenginejournal Are you looking to keep up with current and effective digital marketing today? Check out https://www.searchenginejournal.com for everything you need to know within the digital marketing space and improve your skills as an internet marketer.   Connect with Kirk Williams: Kirk is the PPC expert everyone should know. He runs ZATO, a micro-agency specializing in paid search, and has worked in this industry since 2009. In his podcast and book "Ponderings Of A PC Professional" and"Stop The Scale," Kirk will walk alongside readers on their way towards success as marketers, both online and off.  PPC Hero has recognized him for six years, and he's been featured on podcasts and webinars across multiple industries to talk about his experience as an entrepreneur. Speaking about paid search advertising at conferences worldwide is one of his favorite ways to share his knowledge. Connect with Kirk on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ppckirk/ Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/PPCKirk Connect with Loren Baker, Founder of Search Engine Journal: Follow him on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lorenbaker Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenbaker

12 Essential On-Page SEO Factors You Need To Know (Part 2)On-page SEO is the process of tweaking a page's content, tags, and internal links to improve search visibility. Here are 12 factors to maximize yours.  (Part 2)Author: Loren Baker Source: https://www.searchenginejournal.com/on-page-seo/essential-factors/Sponsor: https://seranking.comSpecial Offer: https://seranking.com/best-seo-podcast.html-Having 1st aired in 2009, with over 3.6 million downloads in 100+ counties, “SEO Podcast, Unknown Secrets of Internet Marketing” has become one of the longest-running and most authoritative podcasts for staying ahead of the perpetually changing digital marketing landscape.Great for internal marketers, business owners, and agencies from novice to experienced in using the internet to market and grow a brand!You can also watch his episode here: https://bestseopodcast.com/Follow us on:https://www.facebook.com/EWRDigitalhttps://www.instagram.com/thebestseopodcast/https://www.tiktok.com/@bestseopodcasthttps://www.linkedin.com/company/bestseopodcastPowered by: EWRdigital.comHost's: Matt Bertram & Chris Burres Disclaimer: For Educational and Entertainment  purposes Only.

12 Essential On-Page SEO Factors You Need To KnowOn-page SEO is the process of tweaking a page's content, tags, and internal links to improve search visibility. Here are 12 factors to maximize yours.Author: Loren Baker Source: https://www.searchenginejournal.com/on-page-seo/essential-factors/Sponsor: https://seranking.comSpecial Offer: https://seranking.com/best-seo-podcast.html-Having 1st aired in 2009, with over 3.6 million downloads in 100+ counties, “SEO Podcast, Unknown Secrets of Internet Marketing” has become one of the longest-running and most authoritative podcasts for staying ahead of the perpetually changing digital marketing landscape.Great for internal marketers, business owners, and agencies from novice to experienced in using the internet to market and grow a brand!You can also watch his episode here: https://bestseopodcast.com/Follow us on:https://www.facebook.com/EWRDigitalhttps://www.instagram.com/thebestseopodcasthttps://www.tiktok.com/@bestseopodcasthttps://www.linkedin.com/company/bestseopodcast/Powered by: EWRdigital.comHost's: Matt Bertram & Chris Burres Disclaimer: For Educational and Entertainment  purposes Only.

Building An SEO Business Case Your Boss Can't Say No ToSome stakeholders struggle to see the value of adding SEO to your marketing mix. Use this guide to build an irrefutable business case for it.Author: Loren BakerSource: https://www.searchenginejournal.com/seo-business-case-building/444779/-Having 1st aired in 2009, with over 3.6 million downloads in 100+ counties, “SEO Podcast, Unknown Secrets of Internet Marketing” has become one of the longest-running and most authoritative podcasts for staying ahead of the perpetually changing digital marketing landscape.Great for internal marketers, business owners, and agencies from novice to experienced in using the internet to market and grow a brand!You can also watch his episode here: https://bestseopodcast.com/Follow us on:https://www.facebook.com/EWRDigitalhttps://www.instagram.com/thebestseopodcast/https://www.tiktok.com/@bestseopodcasthttps://www.linkedin.com/company/bestseopodcastPowered by: ewrdigital.comHost's: Matt Bertram & Chris Burres Disclaimer: For Educational and Entertainment  purposes Only.

Some stakeholders struggle to see the value of adding SEO to your marketing mix. Use this guide to build an irrefutable business case for it.Author: Loren BakerSource: https://www.searchenginejournal.com/seo-business-case-building/444779/-Having 1st aired in 2009, with over 3.6 million downloads in 100+ counties, “SEO Podcast, Unknown Secrets of Internet Marketing” has become one of the longest-running and most authoritative podcasts for staying ahead of the perpetually changing digital marketing landscape.Great for internal marketers, business owners, and agencies from novice to experienced in using the internet to market and grow a brand!You can also watch his episode here: https://bestseopodcast.com/Powered by: ewrdigital.comHost's: Matt Bertram & Chris Burres Disclaimer: For Educational and Entertainment  purposes Only.