Do you ever feel like you are wasting time and money on content syndication?
Marketers seem bound to ever-increasing and hard to achieve lead goals. As a result, they are being forced to work with a disparate mix of publishers to reach buyers with their latest content.
Join Matt Mullin, Sr. Director of Growth Marketing at Tenable, and Stephanie Swinyer, Head of Revenue Marketing at Integrate, and learn how you can streamline content campaigns across publishers and enforce a 100% marketable lead data guarantee.
It’s no secret that it’s a job seeker’s market right now. While the pandemic may have initially hampered companies’ investment in SEO and PPC, as the lockdowns continued and more people took their lives online search marketing became paramount. Even anecdotally, I noticed an uptick in businesses interested in SEO services as they realized that they needed to be found online now more than ever.
Employees are getting antsy for career development and advancement. This shift means that search marketers have the power to set the tone for what’s next in their careers, but we’re not the only ones. According to Prudential Financial’s Pulse of the American Worker survey, 26% of workers planning to switch jobs post-COVID, 80% are doing so because they’re concerned about career advancement. The pandemic has led to a “very real experience that employees have had around a lack of career progression and a concern around skills development,” says Rob Falzon, vice chair at Prudential. People feel that they have been working hard but have not been given opportunities to advance professionally in their current company, wrote Caroline Castrillon for Forbes.
Shifting search landscapes mean shifting career skills. In search marketing, we’re seeing a move toward the larger players taking away our individual controls and levers. To advance we have to rewrite the old search marketing playbook. Problem-solving has always been our forte, but we have to be even more creative now as data is taken away, more of our processes are being automated, and we have to expand beyond our own siloes to get things done. Leveling up your career — regardless of how you decide to advance it, is all about becoming a strategic leader.
In my opening keynote at SMX Next today, I’m going to go through these nine key tips for becoming a search marketing leader in your area. It’s about more than just your spreadsheet skills (though that’s important too).
A caveat. Before we dive in it’s important to remember that career progression is not always linear. Especially with the fluctuating nature of work over the past two years, you may have found yourself having to take a break to help with homeschooling or taking care of a sick family member. Or perhaps your work increased dramatically faster than you anticipated and you’re still reeling. Whenever you are right now, just remember: You’re exactly where you need to be. And these are the steps to take to get to where you want to go.
1. Tech skill are important.
The foundation of SEO and PPC are technical skills. Search engines are giving us the numbers behind user experience, and we need the quantitative and specialized skills to be able to make those changes a reality. A while ago, someone asked Barry Schwartz what he thought would be a differentiator in SERPs in the coming years, and he replied, “Content.” His reasoning was that technical SEO and PPC skills will become table stakes. We will all need to have them just to get by.
We’re seeing a huge wave of more technical skills in both emerging as practitioners are finding new ways to automate their own processes, pull and analyze data to create reports that matter for each target audience, and manage the more specific back-end details of website accessibility. We’ve always been a technical field, and those skills aren’t going anywhere.
2. People skills are important-er.
While tech skills are table stakes in search marketing, the “softer” skills are often more varied and sometimes harder to come by. There’s, of course, an element of search marketing that’s just, sort of, intuition. Once you’ve been working in the field for a while, you can just tell what searcher intent is with specific queries. You learn your target marketing and your industry so well that you truly understand the people you’re serving.
The other key people skill in SEO and PPC is empathy. Microsoft regularly promotes their Marketing with Purpose Playbook which talks about expressing to your customers that your products and services are for them: “85% of consumers say they’ll only consider a brand if they trust the brand,” said MJ DePalma at Microsoft Advertising. “Authenticity is the most important attribute to brand performance.” Being able to convey authenticity in your search marketing isn’t easy! It’s a skill we have to work to build and hone, but it’s one worth investing in.
3. Not everyone wants to be a manager.
Many times when people move to the next level of their careers, they think it means they have to become a manager. The fact is not everyone wants to manage people. Some people really love the individual contributor work that they do and don’t want to give that up! In her book Radical Candor, Kim Scott talks about two types of employees: rock stars and superstars.
Rock stars are the steady rock of a department. They know how to do what they do really well, and they get exceptional results. Their growth trajectory may be more steady, but they love their jobs and don’t really want their boss’s job.
Superstars, on the other hand, are the type of people who absolutely cannot stand the thought of doing the same job two years from now. They have a much steeper growth trajectory and are excited at the thought of taking their boss’s job someday (someday soon, preferably).
The path that I think Radical Candor leaves out is for people who want to go out on their own. They don’t want their boss’s job because they don’t want a boss at all! Any of these career paths are great. And, honestly, you may want to partake in any of them at any time given what’s going on in your life.
4. It’s ok if you don’t have a 5-year plan.
Someone told me once that when she asked for a raise at her job her boss countered by asking for her five-year career plan with the company. She asked my advice, and I honestly didn’t have anything good because 5 years is a long time! Sure, having an idea of where you want to go is great! But no one needs a detailed career map with an accompanying timeline.
So much can happen in 5 years. I bet 5 years ago no one could have predicted COVID-19 and how it would affect the workforce. If a career map makes you feel better, then don’t let me sway you from achieving your goals, but also remember to be flexible in your timelines and trajectories. You may get there a little slower or a lot faster than you anticipated.
5. Work on negotiation.
Regardless of whether you want to be a manager, an individual contributor, or an entrepreneur, almost everyone can benefit from leveling up their negotiation skills. While it can help you increase your salary and get better benefits at work, it’s also a beneficial skill in general. Negotiations are truly just conversations where two sides are coming together to discuss their interests and come to an agreement.
Negotiation skills can benefit you when you’re working with vendors, problem-solving with colleagues, determining scope of work with clients, or even determining whose turn it is to empty the dishwasher at home. Many people are nervous about negotiating, but the most you practice it in everyday life, the easier it gets. If you can work on negotiating in these smaller conversations, the bigger negotiations (like salary!) will come a lot easier.
6. Pursue your strengths.
In his book The 4-Hour Workweek, Tim Ferris talks about relentlessly pursuing your strengths and not worrying too much about your weaknesses. “By improving your strengths over your weaknesses, you focus on multiplying the results as opposed to incrementally fixing your flaws,” summarized Elle McFarlane for Oberlo. In business, this is called, “niching down.” The idea is that YOU know where you are the absolute expert and pursuing that arena would benefit you more than trying to learn everything about search marketing.
For example, I found out about Kristie Plantinga from iPullRank’s People Supporting SEOs list. I found her site really beautiful and asked her how she decided to niche down into SEO specifically for therapists: “I work with therapists because I was going to become a therapist [but] pursued my love of writing instead. Before working with therapists, I worked with lawyers. [I found out that some] lawyers are really aggressive, so I decided to niche with professionals I knew would be kinder and more patient. I didn’t end up working directly in mental health, but now I can support people who do,” she told me on Twitter. She pursued her strengths and area of expertise and serves the therapy community.
Instead of trying to fix all your areas of weakness, find ways to amplify your strengths like Plantinga!
7. Start a win list.
Along with helping in potential job negotiations, starting a win list gives you a tool to help kick imposter syndrome when you’re feeling it sneak up on you. Start by creating a folder on your desktop or Google drive and any time someone says anything remotely nice about you, your work, or working with you, take a screenshot. Put the screenshot in the folder for when you need it later.
This is also a great place to keep a running document of your achievements and projects. Keep track of the quantitative and qualitative wins you achieved (and things you said yes to outside your scope of work). That way, when it does come time to ask for a salary bump, you have the metrics and testimonials to prove you earned it. Plus, you can look at all your win list screenshots and organize them by themes. This will tell you what your superpowers are so you can continue to pursue them (see tip 6 above!).
8. Ask for what you need at work.
As I mentioned in the intro, it’s a search marketer’s job market right now. Not only has the pandemic accelerated the need for SEO and PPC, but it’s also dramatically changed the way we work. We’re working from home more, and it’s been nice to give up commuting and save money on lunches out. But it also means we are balancing more than ever, and there’s often no real differentiator between work time and home time since they all occur at the same place now.
There is a viral TikTok video going around now talking about the 8-hour workday. The premise is that the way our workweeks were originally built catered to those doing assembly-line-type jobs. Nowadays we can work from anywhere and get our work done at any time, so the way companies think about a workday should shift to accommodate that.
All this is to say that you have the power as the employee to advocate for what you need to make yourself a successful search marketer. Ask for what you need and don’t be afraid to ask your coworkers if they’d like to join in the negotiations with you. Now is a great time to consider what you need to do your best work and to talk with your leadership about making it happen.
9. Give back to the search community.
Finally, once you’ve worked relentlessly to become the best, next-level search marketer in your industry, make sure you consider giving back to the SEO and PPC communities. Even if you don’t want to become a manager, you could always give back by becoming a mentor.
I did an informal Twitter poll a while back asking how people learned search marketing. Only 10% of search marketers had a mentor guide them along the way:
Mentorship is one way to help accelerate the careers of others in SEO and PPC. Plus, there are some benefits to you as a mentor:
Improve your communication and personal skills.
Develop leadership and management qualities.
Reinforce your own study skills and knowledge of your subject.
Increase your confidence and motivation.
Increase your network.
The Search Engine Land mentorship program, for example, hosted three mentorship matches each in both SEO and PPC. These mentorships varied in topics from technical SEO skills to how to manage a team all the way to getting your dream job in search. It doesn’t have to be a formal commitment like our program, but any way you can take your career advancements and offer a hand in search will grow the community as a whole.
Career progression isn’t always linear. Whether you’re entry-level or the CEO of a thousand-person organization, there are always areas to continue to develop to improve your career and its effect on those around you. These nine tips are a good starting point to continue to cultivate your career path and keep growing as a human and a search marketer.
Now is the perfect time for marketers to build on what we’ve collectively learned over the past 18 months and prepare for a comeback by embracing marketing agility.
In this webinar, experts from Adobe share three different ways to increase marketing velocity by focusing on optimizing and becoming more agile in your approach.
Discover the fastest ways to create the kind of content that will attract your audience. You can use these video strategies to rank on each channel, advertise online, and post to social media. In addition, you’ll even get insights into abiding by new privacy laws and the cookieless web.
Learn more about this event from Ignite Visibility speakers John Lincoln, CEO, Jen Cornwell, Director of Digital Strategy, Carl Bivona, Director of Social Media and Oscar Lutteroth, VP of Creative.
Video has taken over social media and found its way into the search rankings and has produced incredible returns for marketers who have integrated it into their marketing strategies.
86% of video marketers say video has increased traffic to their website. 84% say video has helped them generate leads. And 78% report that video has directly helped increase sales.
Video can increase all your KPIs. You just have to use it the right way.
On November 17, 2021, Ignite Visibility is hosting a free event for marketers and entrepreneurs called How to Launch a Winning Video Strategy and Increase Conversions.
During this live event, our award-winning team will take some of the guesswork out of creating and optimizing video content. You’ll see step-by-step how to incorporate video into your strategy and use it to increase traffic and leads.
You’ll learn:
The simplest ways to engage your audience across different platforms
SEO strategies to make sure your videos are seen by viewers and rank in search results
Creative best practices to quickly produce high-quality videos
Common misconceptions and mistakes when it comes to video content
Our methods for optimizing videos for different search algorithms
And more.
By the end of this training, you’ll be able to confidently add video into your marketing strategy and create the kind of content your audience will love.
To register or learn more about this event, click here.
What are podcast knowledge panels? Google began showing a specific podcast knowledge panel on October 12, 2021. It displays the podcast name, image, and description on the right sidebar. As of October 25, there is no link within the knowledge panel to listen to the podcast.
Which podcasts got a knowledge panel? Over 50% of podcasts got a knowledge panel overnight. And they sprang from the Google Podcast Knowledge Graph vertical. RSS seems to be the key: Your feed into Google Podcasts is key. Google applied new, stricter rules for podcast feeds a couple of months ago, and Mordy Oberstein and Azeem Ahmad suggested that was the precursor to what happened on the 12th of October.
That’s interesting! I think this is probably related to the new guidelines they had for podcast RSS feeds (making them comfortable enough to show these panels)… maybe.
My guess is based on those pods who might have updated their RSS feeds in line with Google Podcasting requirements. I first thought it was purely Anchor distributed pods but I’ve seen some that are podbean, etc.https://t.co/aHIj2vLqgQ
It seems that podcasts that adhere to those rules have gotten a knowledge panel. That’s not firm data, it’s an observation, but it seems fair enough to assume. In sum, this is a promotion for Google Podcasts, putting it on a par with Google Books and Google Scholar for triggering knowledge panels.
Before this update, about 10% of podcasts had a knowledge panel. That’s according to data from Kalicube Pro (which tracks about 500 podcasts). Now they all trigger thanks to other sources, such as Wikipedia, or IMDB. And the podcast knowledge panels that existed before have largely stayed the same.
If my podcast didn’t get a knowledge panel, how can I get one? Make sure that your RSS feed adheres to Google’s rules. If you do that, you will probably trigger a knowledge panel at some point. Also, it won’t happen immediately: there will be a process of digestion from Google before it will give you that knowledge panel. So be patient. I also advise that you create an Entity Home.
You need to provide an Entity Home so that Google can reconcile all of this information about your entity (the podcast being the entity). If you want to know more, check out this article on Entity Home SEO to help you understand the concept of Entity Home and its role in knowledge panel management.
Do knowledge panels always appear for a search on the podcast name? No. Even if it doesn’t appear, that doesn’t mean to say your podcast doesn’t have a knowledge panel you might want to search for “SEO podcasts,” for example (or whatever category your podcast falls under). Then you can look at the carousel that might actually show you the knowledge panel.
Examples of podcasts where the knowledge panel does appear directly on the name of the podcast: Edge of the Web, Search Off The Record, With Jason Barnard, and more.
This seems to be linked to having a clear Entity Home that isn’t on Google Podcasts. But also based on ambiguity: for example, Everyone Hates Marketers doesn’t trigger the knowledge panel, even though they have one. I think because the name is ambiguous.
About 30% of podcasts currently trigger a knowledge panel on a search on the podcast name. That is according to Kalicube Pro data.
Can I claim my podcast knowledge panel? No, you can’t unless it was triggered by another source. So if yours has been triggered by something other than the Google Podcasts update from October 12, you can probably claim it. If you can’t, just wait – it will come.
Where does the description for a podcast knowledge panel come from? It is taken from the description you provide in your feed. This means you have total control over the description that appears in your knowledge panel for the moment. So make sure that description is great!
Can I enrich the contents of my podcast knowledge panel? Yes! Right now, the knowledge panels that have been triggered by this Google Podcasts update on October 12 have not been enriched, but it’s very early yet. If you create an Entity Home, you can provide additional information above and beyond what’s included in the RSS feed.
By providing that information on the Entity Home and getting corroborative information all around the web, you will be able to push additional information into your knowledge panel. I would suggest you start now because even if you can’t enrich it right away, you will be able to enrich it over time. So, now is the time to start!
This is really big news in the knowledge panel world that I live in, and I’m really excited. It’s the biggest news of 2021 so far for knowledge panels. Expect more in 2022 !
We’re elated to announce the winners of the 2021 Search Engine Land Award for Advancing Diversity and Inclusion in Search Marketing. This year we’ve chosen an individual and an organization as winners for exemplifying the very best in inclusion in the search community.
Rejoice Ojaiku: Individual
Rejoice Ojaiku received multiple nominations for her work in founding B-Digital, “a digital marketing platform aimed at showcasing and inspiring Black talent.” Her nominators lauded Rejoice for working tirelessly to help Black marketers break into SEO, find jobs, and be a part of the B-Digital community:
“Rejoice is a brilliant SEO who has spent her time on creating BDigital… She is kind, helpful, talented and pioneering, and has shown passion and determination in bringing Black people towards the front in SEO.”
“Reji is continually working towards helping the digital marketing industry recognise that there is a wealth of Black talent out there. Her tireless work in this area makes her a deserved nominee for this award.”
“She’s the #1 supporter of promoting POC and women SEOs. She stands up for what she believes in. She’s also incredibly intelligent when it comes to keyword clusters and teaches us something new in the industry.”
Our guest judge and last year’s Search Engine Land Award for Advancing Diversity and Inclusion winner Areej AbuAli said, “Rejoice is so deserving of this award, the impact she’s had on the industry over the past year is massive. The work she’s doing with B-DigitalUK is truly inspiring and her passion and perseverance in spreading her message on equality and inclusion is admirable. Looking forward to seeing all the brilliant initiatives coming from her community. Keep doing YOU, Rejoice, and a huge congratulations!”
hasOptimization: Organization
hasOptimization is a small marketing agency based in New Hampshire. Their marketing work is complemented by their work for both inclusion and diversity across many areas of focus.
Not only are they helping small businesses but are working hard in “attempting to advance accessibility, prioritizing minority-owned businesses, their LGBTQ+ leadership, as well as consistently employing a range of effective neurodiverse staff members who may or may not have chronic conditions. hasOptimization is not a large business, but is growing over time. I have seen a consistent line of communication regarding a range of broad and diverse ideas from staff members, many of which include new ways to make the web more accepting and accessible to others from all walks of life,” said their nominator.
“I have so much respect for the work that hasOptimization are doing. They are setting the standard for what an agency should focus on when it comes to web inclusion and accessibility. With a brilliant team and a diverse clientele, their mission on making the web a better place can be seen through the services they provide and the clients they serve. Congratulations team, well deserved recognition!” added AbuAli.
Congratulations to this year’s very deserved winners!
This year’s class of winners for Search Marketer of the Year demonstrates that leadership, community, empathy, and giving back are keys to being a person of excellence in our industry.
Your Search Marketers of the Year for 2020 are:
Frederick Vallaeys, CEO at Optmyzr
Kristen Seto, SEO Manager at Trusted Media Brands, Inc.
Sean Kaenic, VP or Strategic Growth and Marketing at Quattro
Danita Smith, SEO Program Lead, North America and Senior Web Specialist at Scheider Electric
The continuation of the pandemic forced marketers to get creative and stretch beyond their day-to-day to help brands and clients reach their target audiences in new ways. Not only have these marketers exceeded expectations in every way, but they’ve focused on giving back to their companies, departments, and communities.
“Frederick Vallaeys is an iconic search marketer and industry influencer. He helped define the paid search industry starting with his groundbreaking work as Google’s first AdWords Evangelist and later morphing to a pioneer in PPC management software as Co-Founding CEO of Optmyzr. A search marketer to the core of his soul, Fred has been in the game since its inception and is now driven to help ALL paid search pros break barriers and reach/exceed their potential,” said Joe Thornton of Aimclear, who nominated Vallaeys.
That sentiment can be said for all our winners this year. Pioneering the way for their organizations, the teams they lead, and the community at large. Congrats to the winners, thank you to all who entered, and thanks to our sponsor, DeepCrawl, for its support of this year’s awards!
The competition was fierce for the 2021 Search Engine Land Awards. The pandemic caused lockdowns and shutdowns, which affected many businesses’ main income streams. Not only that but it forced many consumers almost completely online. As such agencies, in-house marketing teams, and individual marketers had to get creative, think on their toes, and often make a little go a long way.
Amanda Jordan, Director of Local Search at Locomotive
Tess Voecks, Sr. Director of Project Management at Local SEO Guide
Crystal Carter, Sr. Digital Strategist at Optix Solutions
Mordy Oberstein, Head of Communications at Semrush
Niki Mosier, Head of SEO at AgentSync
Daisy Quaker, SEO Content Marketer at Daisy Digital LLC
Chima Mmeje, Content Strategist and SEO Copywriter at Zenith Copy
Miracle Inameti-Archibong, Organic Performance Lead at Moneysupermarket Group
Henry Powderly, Vice President of Content for Third Door Media
On the PPC side:
Anu Adegbola, PPC Consultant at The Marketing Anu
Greg Finn, Partner at Cypress North
Emily Mixon, Director of Digital Acquisition at Fleetcor
Brad Geddes, Co-Founder at Adalysis.
Azeem Ahmad, Digital Marketing Lead at Azeem Digital
Brett Bodofsky, Sr. Paid Media Specialist at Elumynt
Vani Chopra, Director of Media Acquisition at Essence
John Lee, Head of Evagelism at Microsoft
George Nguyen, Editor at Search Engine Land
Without further ado, here are your 2021 Search Engine Land Awards winners:
SEM campaign awards:
Best Overall SEM Initiative – Small Business
Brandastic
Best Overall SEM Initiative – Enterprise
Block & Tam
Best Retail Search Marketing Initiative – SEM
DAC
Best Local Search Marketing Initiative – SEM
DAC
Best B2B Search Marketing Initiative – SEM
GR0
SEO campaign awards:
Best Overall SEO Initiative — Small Business
Inflow
Best Overall SEO Initiative — Enterprise
Primal
Best Retail Seach Marketing Initiative – SEO
Searchbloom
Best Local Search Marketing Initiative – SEO
sitecentre
Best B2B Search Marketing Initiative – SEO
Directive
Team, individual, and overall awards:
Best Integration of Search Into Cross-Channel Marketing
Rocket Agency
Agency of the Year — SEM
Disruptive Advertising
Agency of the Year — SEO
Primal
In-House Team of the Year – SEM
Wiley Education Services
In-House Team of the Year — SEO
DiscoverCars.com
Boutique Agency of the Year – SEO
Flywheel Digital
Boutique Agency of the Year – SEM
Block & Tam
Freelancer of the Year
Marco Lauerwald
Select winners of the Search Engine Land Awards will be invited to an AMA during SMX Next where YOU can ask these SEO and PPC experts your search marketing questions. If you’re interested in attending, choose your ideal pass and register now for Early Bird Pricing (ends October 23).
Congrats to the winners, thank you to all who entered, and thanks to our sponsor, DeepCrawl, for its support of this year’s awards!
In February, Microsoft launched Smart Pages, a free website builder service to help small businesses that may not have had websites. This was critical during the pandemic as more businesses were essentially required to be online. However, many SMBs don’t have the know-how or the funds to commission a brand new website. Based on customer feedback, Microsoft announced new features for the Smart Pages service this week.
Publish a Smart Pages website with no social and advertising tools required. “With Smart Pages standalone mode, you can create, edit, and publish your website for free — no payment information required. We know that not every business with a web presence is prepared to advertise online and want to give everyone the access to Smart Pages,” wrote Will Rivitz, Program Manager, and Cristiano Ventura Sr. Product Marketing Manager. If business owners choose to partake in Microsoft Advertising later, they can easily sign up when they’re ready.
New analytics features to figure out what works (and what needs tweaking). The new Smart Pages reporting feature allows marketers to track pageviews, clicks, and more all within the platform. “By tracking these metrics over time, you’ll see how the improvements and edits you make affect your customers’ experiences,” said Rivitz and Ventura.
Source: Microsoft blog
Bing Place integration for local businesses. Marketers will be able to create a new Smart Pages website directly from their Bing Places account and integrate the two properties. “Customers viewing your business on Bing Places will be able to go directly to your Smart Page, where you can show even more information,” according to the announcement.
Why we care. Many small businesses operate without a website, utilizing Facebook pages and local listings as their “hub” for customers, but having your own property is critical to controlling your messaging, optimizing to reach your target audience, and driving in more critical traffic and potential customers. These updates open up the Microsoft Smart Pages website builder to help even more SMBs create an owned online presence and optimize it to drive more qualified leads and customers.
After 18 months of heartbreak and hardship, business owners are ready to bounce back.
Eight out of ten small businesses are fully recovered from 2020’s recession, and 94% are looking to partner with agencies to fuel long-term growth. Join growth expert Jen Spencer, chief revenue officer, SmartBug Media, who will share how SMBs position themselves for growth and where they need help, including tactics like paid search, SEO, website development, blogging and attaining customer reviews.
