TopRank Internet Marketing News

Chicago is known for many things including the arts and being the home of the most well known mob boss of all time. This November we are excited to attend  SES Chicago with guns a’ blazing. This conference is flush with everything from expert advice on PPC, keyword research, SEO, social media, local marketing, mobile marketing, link building, content, optimization, usability, and so much more. With over 70 sessions at November’s conference there is a plethora of information for online marketers eager to learn more about present and future trends in the industry.

If you’re an internet marketing professional looking for the latest in industry trends, practical tools, and tips for executing on your own PPC or SEO strategy, then ad:tech New York is an event that you should not miss.  We are pleased to announce that TopRank CEO Lee Odden will be following in the footsteps of Melanie Mitchell, SVP of Search at Digitas, and serving as the Marketing Master for three sessions at the next ad:tech conference.

Chris Brogan & Lee Odden on a panel at BlogWorld - Photo credit: (CC) Brian Solis, www.briansolis.com and bub.blicio.us.

Where do you go when you’re throwing around the idea of purchasing a new product for yourself or making a business investment in a solution?  It’s safe to assume that the majority of people would say that is a no brainer.  You go online!  A recent study shows that over 44% of B2B marketers are utilizing blogs as a marketing channel.

The future of public relations relies heavily on interacting with individuals and companies online.  Building awareness and  brand recognition is only the first step.   What are you doing to make your news content and brand story easily found and talked about online?  In order to reach journalists, analysts, bloggers and influentials on the web, it’s essential that Public Relations and Communications professionals understand the role search and social media play with influencing information discovery, consumption and sharing.

MN Blogger Conference Audience

Minnesota Blogger Conference Sept. 10, 2011 – Photos courtesy Missy Berggren and Griff Wigley

Minnesota has a substantial blogging community dedicated to writing on a wide variety of topics including politics, food, sports, fashion, technology, communication –  the list goes on.  It comes naturally for this community to come together for some collaborative learning.  TopRank Online Marketing is a leader in leveraging blog marketing as a strategic focal point for social content development and customer engagement. Our internet marketing agency works with organizations large and small to maximize their presence online and convert that presence into sales or other business outcomes.

TopRank Online Marketing has worked with PRWeb for many years and helped to launch their first Twitter Chat #prwebchat late in 2010 by having TopRank CEO Lee Odden as the first host. PRWeb’s parent company, Vocus, tapped Odden for the first #vocuschat this week. Below is an archive of the correspondence on SEO and Public Relations between Cassie Pean from Vocus and Odden during this social conversation.

Vocus will be publishing a roundup post from the inaugural Twitter Chat on their blog that will include the dialog between participating members.

Q1: Why is #SEO for #PR important? #vocuschat

Search Engine Optimization and Social Media are no longer distinct channels. They are forever intertwined, each affecting the other in terms of how digital information is discovered, consumed and shared. The subsequent impact on reach and engagement means the integration of these channels is as relevant for Public Relations as it is for Marketing.

I was asked by Melanie Mitchell, SVP of Search Marketing at Digitas to give a presentation on holistic SEO at ad:tech San Francisco where I caught up with another amazingly smart friend, Susan Bratton. She recorded an interview with me on the Social & SEO for Public Relations topic for her popular DishyMix podcast and shared the transcript with me to repost.

Measuring the impact of social media on a marketing plan is critical. Even though spending on social media will reach over $3 billion in 2011* a study by Bazaarvoice and The CMO Club reports that no social network rated higher than a 15% response from Chief Marketing Officers on providing “significant ROI”.

How can businesses move from just driving traffic and reach actual engagement with customers and prospective customers? By following the advice from a recognized online marketing professional that has worked with companies ranging from a $100 billion corporation to one of the fastest growing SaaS companies ever.

If you weren’t one of the 300 or so digital marketers attending the SES Hong Kong conference this week, then you missed out on a great mix of search and social media content, networking and social events. Incisive Media’s Mike Grehan asked me to present at the all new SES Hong Kong conference on social media and a little bit of deliberation, I signed on.

The digital marketing scene in Hong Kong is growing rapidly even though there is a sense of conservatism when it comes to marketing. The SES Hong Kong conference showcased best practices, case studies and discussion from a mix of accomplished online marketers from the region like Adrian Toy from Bausch & Lomb, Eden Lau from Brandtology and Jonathan Liu from Moonlight Marketing.

SEO helps a search engine to do its job more effectively and Public Relations can increase the reach and influence of the brands they promote by optimizing news. Recently the good folks at Vocus interviewed TopRank  Online Marketing’s CEO on the basics of search engine optimization for public relations. The following post comes from the interview with Lee Odden of TopRank by Chris Pilbeam of Vocus.

Search engines aren’t perfect – that’s why people in SEO (Editor: like TopRank Online Marketing) are flourishing. People who write web copy often only consider one audience: customers, or analysts; maybe journalists. You should consider the extra audience of search engines.