December 2009 Posts from the Internet Marketing Blog
Top Search Marketing and Social Media Research Projects of 2009
In 2009, the scientific community treated search and social media marketers to what seemed like a never-ending supply of meaty and game-changing research projects, covering everything from information retrieval, to personalized search, to integrated SERP analysis, to studying user behavior on social networks. I decided to compile and share a list of my favorite Search and Social Media Marketing Research Projects of 2009. Hopefully, these research papers will inform and inspire your marketing efforts going into 2010.
By the way, if after reading all the papers on this list you find that you're jonesing for more, here are two great resources for marketers to find research papers on social media and search engine marketing:
... Click here to read full postGoogle Toolbar PageRank Update: December 30, 2009
So despite claims of ditching the little green pixel bar, Google has once again updated their Tool Bar PageRank (TBPR) about an hour ago, at 8 p.m. on December 30, 2009. I noticed the change immediately when I was doing a little WordStream brand searching and saw in the SERPs that we'd jumped from a PR5 to a robust PR6. The change literally took place before my eyes. One minute we were PR5, then next search: BOOM! PR6. Totally geeky, I know, but my heart skipped a beat. The actual SEO for Firefox Toolbar has yet to update though. It's still reading PR5, but I'm sure that will change by tomorrow. I'm also seeing changes across many of my sites, all for the better, which is a nice way to kick off 2010.
... Click here to read full postOur Blog's Greatest Hits of 2009
Since we launched the WordStream blog earlier this year, what follows is not merely a list of our top posts of the year. These are our greatest hits of all time. (Cue Kanye joke, for nostalgic value – it's so 2009.) So pour yourself a glass of champagne and revisit our top 10 most popular and best loved blog posts ever:
... Click here to read full postMonthly Blog Roundup: WordStream's December Highlights
My childhood memories of the days after Christmas are bleak and dark: the incredible letdown of all that anticipation, the pressure to actually use the new toys and wear the new clothes as opposed to simply gazing upon them in a shining pile of potentiality. The day after Christmas was no less depressing this year; I spent most of it at the airport in El Paso, waiting in an unmoving line to rebook my flight which was delayed by 8+ hours. (Note to self: Never, ever book a connecting flight through O'Hare in December. Note to United: Damn you, United!)
But late December does bring some good things—like a little light through the windows when I wake up in the morning (though, as my boyfriend is fond of reminding/tormenting me, "As the days begin to lengthen, the cold begins to strengthen!"). And: a look back at our blog's greatest hits from the month. Come back tomorrow for our best of the year.
... Click here to read full postA Wrod Abut Mispelligns
The following is a guest post by Evan Saks, founder and president of Lungfish Communications.
PPC advertisers looking for the best value in search would be well-advised to follow these three steps: search, serch, and seacrh again!
One of the wonders of Google is its automatic spelling correction. Search for the term “Ipod” and Google will return results including text ads from Target, Bose, MacMall, Amazon, AOL, Overstock, and others. Apple gets top position, but it’s a crowded field with plenty of others clamoring for attention.
... Click here to read full postTop SEO Toy Websites
With Christmas just a few days away, I wanted to take a break from my hectic holiday shopping schedule (ah, who am I kidding...my wife does all the Christmas shopping, even for herself) to see which toy companies have killer SEO'd websites as part of our ongoing series, Top SEO Websites.
So I made this "top toy keywords" list and I've checked it twice. I'm gonna' find out whose SEO is naughty and whose is nice. Okay, okay, cheesy Xmas parody aside, there are definitely some surprises on this list of Top SEO Toy Websites, which includes one very popular toy company that really Scrooged on the optimization this year and deserve a big, honking lump of coal in their stockings. Wondering who it is? Read on and find out.
... Click here to read full postUsing the Free Keyword Niche Finder to Set Up a PPC Campaign
Yesterday I talked about using the Free Keyword Grouper to plot out a structure for a new website. Today I'd like to show you how to use our other new tool, the Free Keyword Niche Finder, to quickly set up a PPC campaign.
We believe that a high Quality Score is the key to an effective, cost-efficient pay-per-click campaign, and that a well-organized campaign structure is the key to securing high Quality Scores. Here's how the new tool can help you get there.
First, just enter a keyword.
The Free Keyword Niche Finder is a keyword suggestion tool and keyword grouping tool in one. Just enter a keyword, and you'll get back extensive, relevant suggestions, but instead of a scattered list, the results are organized into related groupings.
Let's use the perfume store example again:
... Click here to read full postHow to Use the Free Keyword Grouper to Plan a New Site Design
When you're launching a new website (or doing a site redesign) it's vital to take SEO into account. From square one, you should do everything you can to make sure that the people interested in what you offer will be able to find you. And most people will be looking via search engines.
There's an endless list of things you can do to optimize a website for search engines, but at a basic level, SEO-friendly site design is user-friendly site design. It's important to create a site that:
- Is logically structured
- Incorporates keyword research to ensure relevance to your audience
- Is easily navigable from both the home page and deep pages
You can actually use our new Free Keyword Grouper to start planning out the structure—or information architecture—of your new website. Here's how:
... Click here to read full postFriday Roundup: WordStream's New Keyword Grouping Tools
Well well well, if it isn't Friday once again. Since next Friday is Christmas, and the following is New Year's Day, this is my last Friday roundup of the year (and decade!). And I'd like to use it to say THANK YOU to everyone who helped us spread the word about our new free tools, the Keyword Niche Finder and the Free Keyword Grouper.
Here's a roundup of all the coverage around the Web:
... Click here to read full postDo You Suffer From Keyword Clutter? Learn How You Can Benefit from Keyword Organization Today
We just posted a new guide on WordStream.com - The Definitive Guide to Keyword Organization: Build a Foundation for Search Marketing Success. This guide walks you through the benefits and process for organizing your keywords for both pay-per-click (PPC) advertising and search engine optimization (SEO). Here are a few of the topics from the Keyword Organization guide:
- Keyword organization can be applied across all of your internet marketing channels and provide a roadmap to PPC campaign and website structures.
- Improve Quality Score and lower your PPC costs.
- Gain insights into ongoing content creation and information architecture changes for SEO.
- Learn how to organize your keywords and utilize free tools from WordStream in that process.
Happy reading and good luck cleaning up your keyword clutter!
... Click here to read full post
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