SEJ LIVE: Anne Ahola Ward & Bridget Randolph on the Future of SEO, Mobile Search by @wonderwall7

This week #SEJLive was joined by Anne Ahola Ward and Bridget Randolph to discuss mobile SEO and the future of the search industry. Below are their live sessions and the topics they covered. Watch more SEJ Live Sessions by following our schedule or viewing past sessions on our Facebook page. Anne Ahola Ward, CircleClick Anne answered questions from the SEJ community on the future of SEO, including mobile optimization. She appeared LIVE on our Facebook page: Some of the Future of SEO questions Anne answered include: What’s the current state of search now? Is mobile search a necessity? How is mobile search different? What is […]

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Aim for the Stars: Creating Truly Killer Skyscraper Content by @IAmAaronAgius

Content marketing is more than just posting and re-purposing. Learn how skyscraper content just might be the missing piece in your marketing strategy.

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Online Marketing News: Bird’s Eye View, FTC Skepticism and Facebook for Business

Infographic: Latest Twitter Study Sheds Light on Just How Well Video Is Doing Based off of Twitter's annual Online Video Playbook, this infographic shows what's cleverly referred to as 'The Bird's Eye View of Video' on Twitter. For example, 93% of the video views on Twitter are on mobile. Users who watch video want breaking news, information, and viral content the most, followed by entertainment and celebrity content. AdWeek The FTC Is Skeptical When Celebrities Are Paid to Like Your Product The FTC is investigating a few big name brands for bending the rules that govern paid celebrity endorsements. Of course, rules regarding endorsements from celebrities aren't news to marketers, but the onset of digital marketing did prompt new rules and regulations. The one thing that hasn't changed? Disclosure. Entrepreneur Facebook Set to Launch ‘Facebook at Work’ Next Month Facebook is launching 'Facebook at Work' -- a private network for your business -- in the next three to four weeks. This will allow inter-office communication in a known format for larger, or even smaller, organizations. The network exists separately from personal profiles so there's not as much temptation to use personal Facebook during work time. Social Media Today Content Marketing Takes a Turn for the Better: New 2017 Research MarketingProfs and Content Marketing Institute paired up to produce their B2B Content Marketing 2017: Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends -- North America, and the findings are fascinating. Most notably, marketers are more positive about their content marketing efforts than they were in the previous year. Read the full report, it's full of great information. Content Marketing Institute Snapchat reveals its $130 Spectacles and rebrands as Snap Inc. Snapchat revealed Spectacles, a $130 pair of sunglasses with a 115-degree lens camera. According to The Next Web, "content recorded using the glasses is automatically pushed to the Memories section of the Snapchat application in a new circular video format — which can be played full screen in any orientation — via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi." The Next Web Salesforce, Google, Microsoft, Verizon are all eyeing up a Twitter bid TechCrunch reports: Twitter continues to inch its way to a sale process, and the latest developments come in the form of alleged bids from potential buyers ... we have also independently heard that both Google and Salesforce are interested in buying the company. We have additionally heard that Microsoft and Verizon have also been knocking." What, if anything, could this mean for Twitter marketing? TechCrunch Google (finally) launches cross-device retargeting According to Marketing Land, Brad Bender, VP of display and video advertising at Google revealed breaking news about Google AdWords retargeting: "We’re introducing cross-device remarketing for Google Display Network and DoubleClick Bid Manager to help you reach the same user across devices, apps, and sites." This means marketers can target the same users, across devices, for a more cohesive experience. MarketingLand Facebook Allowing Advertisers to Create Rules for Turning Off Ads, Email Alerts According to recent information submitted to SocialTimes, "Facebook appears to have given advertisers the ability to establish rules to automatically turn off ad or send email alerts once certain criteria are met." The report comes complete with screenshots for reference, we'll have to keep an eye out for this developing story. SocialTimes What were your top online marketing news stories this week? I'll be back next week with more online marketing news! Have something to share? Drop it in a comment or tweet to @Tiffani_Allen or @toprank.

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Tom Anthony Talks About the Future of Search on #MarketingNerds

In this Marketing Nerds episode, Tom Anthony of Distilled talks about the future of search and how it can help SEOs understand where the industry is moving.

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Google Maps Maximizes Voice Search Capabilities in Latest Update by @SouthernSEJ

Google Maps has updated its mobile app with new voice search capabilities.

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Google Has Started Removing Penalties From Previous Penguin Updates by @SouthernSEJ

Google’s Gary Illyes has confirmed Penguin recoveries are happening now, and will be finished within the next few days.

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6 Critical Metrics to Add to Your SEO Campaigns

A few key metrics are all it takes to track the effectiveness of any SEO campaign. Incorporating these 6 critical metrics will give invaluable insight.

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5 Tips for Improving the Quality and Impact of Webinars

Webinars are such big business that everybody does them. How do you make your webinar stand apart from the pack? Here are five tips.

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The Complete Guide to AMP for E-Commerce by @MarcPurtell

Since e-commerce sites are different from news sites, a case must be made for the necessity of implementing AMP pages on an e-commerce site.

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5 Cool Ways to Make Marketing Magic with Interactive Content

On the occasion of the new trailer for Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, I was thinking about the fantastical wizarding world of Harry Potter. Who wouldn’t want to live in a world with magical items like pictures that move, newspapers that automatically update themselves, portraits that speak?

Then it hit me: My smartphone can show moving pictures and auto-updated news, and it doesn’t have to be delivered by owl. AND it’s a lot more compact than the average Daily Prophet issue. Sure, we can’t play proper Quidditch yet—someone get Elon Musk on flying broomstick development—but as far as interactive content goes, Muggles have got it on lock.

The point is, content can do a lot more these days than sit on a screen and look pretty. Are your content marketing efforts taking advantage of that fact? Do you invite your readers to participate in an experience? Or are they left doing this?

There are dozens of ways both subtle and flashy that you can add an extra kick to your content. Here are five to get you started, complete with examples to interact with.

#1: Make Data Extra-Relevant

Say you have a big set of data that relates to 12 different verticals within your target audience. You could make a dozen different infographics. You could write a dozen different blog posts. If you were feeling really sadistic, you could mash all the data into one content source and let each vertical search for the relevant info.

Or you could start with a template, let the user pick which data sources they’d like to see, and watch the most relevant info magically fill in. That’s what LinkedIn did, with the help of the wizards at Ceros, for their Where to Find Talent in the United States infographic. Pick your industry at the top, and it fills in the template with customized data.

Numbers fly in as you scroll down, delivering exactly the information you were looking for like a Hogwarts owl on a mission. It’s a neat way to make sure each viewer finds exactly what they’re looking for.

#2: Allow for Automated Hyper-Personalization

Checklists are a go-to content type that content marketers use to add a little extra value. It gives your reader a condensed version of your content, all action items, no filler. Readers tend to enjoy checklists, too—they perform well as a gated asset or as a stand-alone.

But you can improve on the humble checklist by making it interactive. Let your audience pick the most relevant points and compile their own list automatically, as in this interactive infographic from Cross Country Home. SnapApp helped the home maintenance company create the infographic, which allows the reader to choose areas of particular concern, then generate a customized to-do list (after ponying up an email address).

The interactivity makes the checklist far more valuable for the reader, and justifies having the end report gated. It also introduces an element of discovery with clicking on each icon—which might lead to readers spending more time with the content.

#3:  Tell Readers Something about Themselves

Let’s face it—we love looking at ourselves, talking about ourselves, taking pictures of ourselves, and learning about ourselves. Don’t chalk that up to millennial narcissism either. Some of the earliest photographs we have are self-portraits (not to mention all the old-school self-portraits from painters and sculptors).

You can capitalize on the joy of self-discovery with quiz-based content. From personality quizzes to identifying your Patronus, quizzes are irresistible. Especially so when they’re about something that matters, like Influitive’s “What’s Your Marketing Personality Type?” quiz.

This quiz gets bonus cool points for not making you click to a new page for every question. SnapApp created a single, linear-scrolling experience that removes obstacles for completion.

Take note of how Influitive presents the results: There’s your marketing type, a description, and then a brief paragraph on skills your type might need to further develop. Right under that—an eBook offer! What a perfectly logical next step.

#4: Present a Ton of Info in a Visually Compelling Way

This next example takes what could have been a blog post or a slideshow, and makes it something that’s a lot more fun to play around with. Even if the information is familiar, or common knowledge, a novel presentation can make it worth a second look.

Designhill created this interactive guide to famous company logos. It presents itself as a seemingly infinite grid, with logos lined up in rows just waiting to be clicked so they can reveal their secrets.

As you scroll and explore, you’ll notice some of the tiles are calls to action: Create a Logo, Get a New Graphic Design, etc. These CTAs are inobtrusive but designed to be spotted after you’ve had fun playing with the content. And if you happen to miss them, there’s a CTA in each of the info pages that pop up when you click a tile.

#5: Bring Together Disparate Elements

No one’s product exists in a vacuum. Unless you sell vacuum bags, and even if you do, that’s not what I meant and you know it. Your target consumer has an entire life outside of their relationship with your product—and many aspects of that life also involve interaction with other products. Interactive content can help you address the larger context of your audience’s lives.

This fantastic Summer of ‘66 widget from Asos is a prime example of that kind of synergy—not the bad, buzzword-y kind, but a genuine combination of separate elements to make something groovier than the sum of its parts. Pick your 60’s style, and get music recommendations you can buy on Amazon or iTunes, clothes from Asos, and a Spotify playlist to stream immediately.

It’s a triumph of great design, effortless cool, and actual utility, inviting readers to customize an entire experience, not just a look or a sound. I’m just sad the sweepstakes to win that turntable is over.

Expecto Engagement!

In this age of wonders, we don’t have to stick to old Muggle methods of content marketing. Text will always have its place, of course. There’s no substitute for good old-fashioned long-form content. But your audience will appreciate it if you conjure up interactive experiences that enhance your quality content.

What else can interactive content do? What has your team created that dazzled your audience? Let me know in the comments.

Disclosure: LinkedIn Marketing is a TopRank Marketing client. 

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Google Continues to Rev Up Remarketing With Latest AdWords Innovations by @SouthernSEJ

Google continues to make remarketing an even more powerful tool for advertisers with the release new advertising innovations.

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Google’s iOS App Now Has Incognito Mode, + More in Latest Update by @SouthernSEJ

Google's iOS app now has an incognito mode for private searching and web browsing.

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5 Ways to Make Your App Sell Itself

A great app idea is only as good as it's execution and marketing. The best way to success? Have it sell itself with these simple, but important, attributes.

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A Short Guide to Google Allo Search Optimization by @wonderwall7

With over 150K downloads so far on Android devices, a 4-star rating, and 48% in a recent poll saying that they use and love Allo, it’s time to contemplate how it could affect organic and local SEO.

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The 10 Best Ways to Use UTM Codes For Conversion Tracking by @amelioratethis

UTM codes are great for determining which of your channels drive the most traffic, but did you know you can also use them to track conversions?

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10 Tools to Help Marketers Get More Out of Twitter

Most marketers understand that their Twitter efforts need to go beyond consistent tweeting if they want to grow their following and boost engagement. It takes commitment, strategy and constant management.

But as social networks and audiences continue to evolve—and marketers find themselves juggling more social networks and content responsibilities each day—staying on top of it all can be daunting and even frustrating. In fact, B2B marketers use an average of 6 social media platforms to distribute content, according to the Content Marketing Institute and MarketProfs 2016 B2B Content Marketing Benchmarks, Budgets and Trends—North America report.

Sound like you?

Well, the good news is that there are a number of tools that can help you manage your Twitter account, as well as make it easy for you to share, interact and grow your following—and even mine for new content ideas and gain a better understand the impact of your content—so you can make all your effort count.

Whether you want to boost visual content, host a Twitter chat or find relevant followers, below we dive into some of the tools that are worth your consideration if you want to get the most out of your Twitter efforts.

#1 – Bit.ly

Bit.ly has long been known as a tool for shortening links, but that’s certainly not its only capability. By signing up for a free account, you can also use the tool to share links to multiple Twitter (and Facebook) accounts and individually track performance of those links—allowing you to quickly share content and get insight into how your audience interacts with that content. In addition, with an enterprise account you can create a branded short domain and get deeper audience analytics.

#2 – Hootsuite

Hootsuite has been my go-to social media management tool since my journalism days for a few different reasons:

• You can post directly to Twitter and other social media pages within the platform.
• You can schedule out posts, making it easy to post consistently.
• You can monitor all your feeds, allowing you to instantly interact with those you follow and your own followers.
• You can track the conversations around specific hashtags or keywords by setting up an individual stream.

With a free account, you can also get access to some basic analytics, content suggestions and the ability to integrate two RSS feeds so you can easily share relevant content from your own blog or other trusted sources. Hootsuite also offers Professional, Team, Business and Enterprise plans that allow you to customize the tool for your own unique needs.

#3 – BuzzSumo

If you’re looking to create better content, discover relevant influencers or both, BuzzSumo could be the tool for you. This little excerpt from their website sums the tool up up nicely:

“BuzzSumo gives you insight into what content is working, and the influencers amplifying it.”

When it comes to hot content, BuzzSumo allows you to instantly search and discover the most shared content within the last day, week, month, six months or year. In addition, you’ll see data for the engagement and shares that content has received across social networks, and the number of linking domains.

To find relevant influencers, the tool allows you to search by username or topic. Some of the insights you’ll find are page authority, domain authority, number of followers, retweet ratio, reply ratio and the average number of retweets.

#4 – Keyhole

With Keyhole you can track hashtags, mentions, keywords, URLs and Twitter accounts in real-time, which can be especially useful for keeping track of the conversation and engagement happening around your company or brand—or even your top competitors.

Below is a sample of the tracking information you’d see for #digitalmarketing. You can see that the data includes the top posts, related topics, recent users, the most influential users, and some analytics.

While Keyhole isn’t free, it offers several different size plans from professional to enterprise—and there’s a free trial option.

# 5 – Periscope

These days, it’s pretty safe to say that all marketers understand that video is an increasingly important marketing tool for capturing audience attention, showing value and encouraging engagement across the digital universe. Using Twitter’s Periscope app, you can natively share live video that is a little more raw and authentic, giving your audience something more visual and compelling to interact with.

#6 – Buffer

Buffer is another fantastic social media management tool that allows you to consistently schedule tweets and other social posts. But one of the big advantages of this tool is that it shares your content at the best possible times throughout the day to maximize exposure.

In addition, Buffer recently added video sharing capabilities, as well as Pablo, which allows you to create beautiful and perfectly sized images.

#7 – Crowdfire

Crowdfire was originally built to be the answer to the frequently asked question: “Who unfollowed me on Twitter?” But now the tool has “matured into a holistic friend management platform,” according to its website.

The “Copy Followers” is one of the most interesting Crowdfire features, allowing you to search similar users’ followings and “copy them” to the list of people you’re following. The idea here is that they’ll want to follow you, too, since they’re already following someone similar to you or your brand.

Crowdfire also gives you the ability to see who you’re following that is inactive and makes it easy for your to unfollow them. You can also keep track of how the content and updates you share actually affects your follow and unfollow stats. This information can give you a good idea of what types of updates are turning people off and enticing them to follow.

#8 – Twubs

Over the past couple years, Twitter chats have emerged as a marketing tactic that allows brands and marketers to connect with their audience, build awareness and showcase what they have to offer. Twubs is a tool that allows you to find and follow relevant Twitter chats, or even host your own.

Other tools that can help you manage a Twitter chat include: TweetChat.com, Tchat.io, Twitterfall and TwChat.

#9 – SocialRank

SocialRank is a tool that can help you better understand and analyze who your most engaged or most influential followers, helping you identify and track important people who you should be engaging with.

The basic account is totally free and gives you the ability to filter and sort your followers, view their full profiles and connect multiple social accounts. There are also Premium and Market Intel versions that offer a host of other features and benefits such as the ability to send a direct message to multiple recipients.

#10 – Twitter Analytics

The native analytics dashboard within Twitter is a must-use. It’s free, simple and already built into the platform—you just have to turn it on. The dashboard features detailed overview of all your activity for the past 28 days, including your top tweets, top mentions and top followers.

What is your favorite Twitter tool and why? Share it with us in the comments section below.

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Google AdWords Introduces Cross-Device Remarketing by @SouthernSEJ

Cross-device remarketing for AdWords can help you target the same ads to the same users as they move between their devices.

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Next #SEJThinkTank: How Every Company Can Use Snapchat w/Kelsey Jones by @dantosz

Think Snapchat is only for kids? Think your brand is to 'boring' to use a hip, social channel? Join us for a free webinar to learn how to use Snapchat for your brand.

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Google Testing New Schema Markup for ‘Science Datasets’ by @SouthernSEJ

Google is testing a new type of Schema markup designed for scientific data to be more easily understood by search engines.

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How Content Marketing and SEO Work Together #SEJSummit by @wonderwall7

Brand content tends to be created with either SEO or reputation/brand-enhancement in mind, but rarely with both, as if they were mutually exclusive.

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Low Email CTR? Here’s Why You Should Delete Subscribers by @FixCourse

Saying goodbye to your unengaged subscribers is the hardest part. The second hardest is getting the greasy handprints off your window.

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Looks Aren’t Everything: Why a Successful Infographic is Much More Than Just Design by @sejournal

An infographic is one of the most effective ways to visually communicate compelling core messages. Learn how to create one for your brand with Pixel Road Designs.

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Why Website SEO Trumps Design Every Time

Approaching your website's entire build with care will not only give you a good looking site, but one that can go head to head with your competitors.

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What Social Media Marketers Need to Know About Facebook Live

In the age of Netflix and DVRs, it’s weirdly ironic to watch the growing popularity of live video for social media marketing. Sure, most of it is recorded so you can access it later, but it has far more in common with the nightly news than with modern on-demand, personalized content.

It turns out, there’s something about watching an event unfold live that’s hard to replicate. To be there as it’s happening, in the moment with a group of friends and strangers, sharing a singular experience. It’s powerful. And it never really went out of style—it just took a while for technology to create a compelling modern version.

Facebook Live has realized the potential for live video combined with a social network. Not only are people watching in droves, they’re more engaged: People spend three times longer watching live video than they watch recorded versions after-the-fact.

As with any new channel, it’s always tempting to jump right in and start creating content. And, as always, it’s a better idea to do some evaluating and strategizing first.

Here’s the low-down on Facebook Live: What it is, what it’s for, and how brands are using it.

What Is Facebook Live?

A native live-streaming service embedded in Facebook. When you go Live, the stream will show in your follower’s feeds and on your profile page. Viewers can leave likes and comments in real time. After the event is over, viewers can watch a recorded version with the option of seeing the comment stream as if it were live.

Who’s Doing It?

Everyone from the President to celebrities to athletes.

How Do I Do It?

Right now, the easiest way to go Live is from a mobile device. On the Facebook app for iOS or Android, you’ll see a “Live” button right at the top of the feed. Click that for a quick set up and your feed will begin! There is a version of Live for desktops which is slowly being rolled out—if you don’t have it yet, the mobile version is the only game in town.

What Are the Best Practices?

Facebook’s best practices for Live are a good place to start:

• Tell followers ahead of time before you broadcast
• Write a compelling description
• Make sure you have a strong internet connection
• Respond to commenters on the air
• Aim for longer sessions (10-90 minutes)
• Develop a schedule so viewers know when to tune in

What Pitfalls Should I Look Out For?

Since it’s so easy to go Live, a lot of Live streams right now look the same. They’re talking heads, people holding up a phone and chatting informally with the viewer. If you’re a celebrity with a quick wit, go for it—otherwise, don’t go in without a plan.

It’s an unpredictable platform—you may have to contend with technical issues and an unmoderated comment stream at the same time. It’s a good idea to have at least one person off-camera who can handle the comment stream and work out any glitches.

Finally, don’t expect your entire audience to tune in all at once. Generally viewers drop in and out of live streams—some will arrive late and some will leave early. So a complex narrative that builds on prior knowledge is not the best choice.

Q: What Kind of Content Works Best?

There’s a vast array of content that works for Facebook Live. The most successful take advantage of the special connection the platform affords with an audience, addressing and interacting with them in real time. Here are a few good examples:

• Behind the Scenes: Dunkin’ Donuts took their followers on a tour of “Dunkin’ Brands University,” a facility where Dunkin’ creates new products. At the end of the tour, audiences got a tutorial on how to make a Dunkin’ Donuts wedding cake. The tour scored just over 30,000 views.The informal, intimate nature of the platform is ideal for these sneak peeks behind the scenes. If your brand doesn’t have a factory to tour, consider a tour of the office space itself—promote transparency and your corporate culture by showing off work spaces and interviewing co-workers.
• Tips and How-tos: Benefit Cosmetics hosts a weekly show called Tipsy Tricks. A host and guests drink wine, gossip, and offer makeup tips. They respond to viewer comments, and generally offer a mix of practical advice and entertaining banter.Facebook Live works well for how-tos and demos, provided there’s an angle to keep it interesting for the audience. As you prep a how-to, keep an eye out for dead spots in the process that your host will need to fill.
• Performances: If your brand can swing it, musical or dance performances are a great way to pull in top-of-funnel audiences. Postmodern Jukebox is my favorite for performance video—they livestream parts of every concert they put on, often capturing behind-the-scenes content as well as the concert. But you don’t have to play at that level to stream a performance. Buzzfeed’s interactive dance-off was compelling to viewers because it was an amateur, interactive event.
• Stunts: If one video captures the pared-down essence of storytelling on Facebook Live, it’s Buzzfeed’s watermelon explosion. At the time it aired, it was the platform’s biggest hit, with well over a million views.The concept couldn’t be simpler: Two Buzzfeed employees, decked out in safety gear, take turns putting rubber bands around a watermelon. The tension builds for 45 minutes until the watermelon finally explodes.On the surface, it seems kind of…dumb, right? But this video was successful because it hit all the right points:
  • Audiences could drop in any time
  • It was immediately obvious what was going on and what was at stake
  • It encouraged audience interaction
  • It built suspense
  • It worked toward a definite endpoint

Granted, the one thing it lacked was an element of utility. But it was undeniably compelling. Add some value for your viewer while checking off the same boxes this video did, and you’ll be unstoppable.

Livestreaming video is still in its infancy. Marketers are still experimenting with the form, with mixed results. One thing’s for sure: As with any channel, it’s all about relevancy, authenticity, and providing something of value to your audience. Put their needs first, and you can develop a strategy for success.

Does your brand plan to jump into livestreaming? Are you already enjoying success with the platform? Let me know in the comments.

 

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