Stoney deGeyter from Pole Position is up first. He says, “because I’m the prettiest.” Heather and Rebecca might disagree.
Who’s looking at you? Who are you trying to attract. What are they interested in? You need this information. Once you have the information, you hit on the very specific desires your audience desires. You want to have a good pick-up line. Stoney won a SEMY and no one cared…[sad].
Reveal the Content
- Compelling opening
- Speak the language
- Scannable
- Bullet points
- Bolds and italics
[Side note: Stoney likes the pretty ladies for his PowerPoint - that's what he calls, "easy on the eyes." For Stoney, that's Angelina Jolie.]
Once your audience is there, keep them interested. Appeal to needs, ask questions, inform. Give them more than they came for. Link out to other sites, providing more information. And then do it right again. [This slide is tantalizing!]
Rebecca Kelly of SEOmoz is up next!
Rebecca says that Stoney told her that his slides had half naked women so she thought that she would counter with half naked men on her slides!
Myth #1 about Blogging = Link Magnet
Blogging is a great way attract links but you have to have good content. If you blog it, they will link is not true. Don’t be afraid to promote your blog. Participate with other blogs, guest post.
Myth #2 Content is King
Well sort of… Even if you have good content, if no one knows about your site yet then it doesn’t help yet.
Myth #3 Dofollow Blogs = Easy Link Building
You have to find sites that are like yours. If you go to a site about animals that have dofollow but you sell batteries, it is going to be wierd that you are commenting about hamsters.
Myth #4 It’s “List” or Bust
Mix things up/diversify your content. People see lists get on Digg so they think everything should be a list. Non-List content that’s spiffy: Pictures, tutorials, well researched content…
Myth #5 Blog When It’s Convenient
Blogging takes consistency. If you have an empty blog, you should hire someone to do it. Shout out to Lisa Barone for being great as an SEO blogger! Viral content on empty blog = suspicious. You can use guest bloggers if you can’t hire someone. If you don’t know what to Blog about: check out Google Trend, Social Media searches (Digg, Delicious, StumbleUpon, Reddit). SEOmoz has Popular Searches and they have Blogscape. Blogscape identifies hot topics/trends, you can check your web presence, discover blogsphere links.
Don’t Over Think It! This results in stupid posts.
Myth #6 It’s Your Blog, Do Whatchoo Wanna Do
Interact with your readers. Own up to your content. If you delete a post you can get flack because people think that you are covering up. Write a follow up post. Give back: link to other websites.
Myth #7 Your Website Needs a Blog
Can you update frequently? Can you promote it? Are you a decent writer? Are you remotely interesting? If not, maybe you don’t need a blog right now.
Oooh, Rebecca concluded with a hot pic of David Hascelhoff!
On to Heather Lloyd Martin - SuccessWorks
Do you find yourself neglecting your website for your blog, Twitter, etc… Make your site dateable, in just 7 easy steps. It is like when you have been out of the dating scene for a long time. There are new rules. “How many people have changed their site copy because of the economy?” Heather asks. Will your old approach work in today? REthink your benefit statements - are they still valid?
Take a hard look at your challenges and advantages. SERP makeover. Look at the SERP of your site by going to Google and typing in site:www.yoursite.com. Are all the titles the same/poorly written? Go where the action is, keyword research. You’ll find additional opportunities.
Keyphrase Research Tools:
Woodtracker
Keyword Discovery
Google AdWords Keyword Tools
Focus on 2-3 keyphrases per page and ignore keyword density.
Grab their attention. Titles are really important. You want them to be sexy and tell them what they can expect to see.
Title Structure:
Keep headlines around 60 characters
included your main keyphrase
Always stay current. You need to update your blog and your website. When you have copy that looks outdated, customers will think that if you can’t keep up with your site, how are you going to keep up with my business? Give your copy an update. Check for outdated copy. Worst offenders: Press pages, conference/events pates, products pages, old articles.
Let your personality shine through. Personal Brands in SEO: Stop Obeying False Idols [Lisa Barone shout out again! Heather Lloyd Martin thinks your awesome!]
Update your home page. Help your conversion rate and be engaged with your company. Don’t lower your writing standards, just because you want content, don’t put up crap. If a copywriter charges $10 a page, you might want to be concerned. Don’t scrape the bottom of the writing barrel. Don’t stuff the keyphrases. Put keyword phrases in the right places: headers, titles, etc…
Enjoy ultimate success!
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