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31 Aug This post is from from my other blog here Happy Labor Day weekend to my U.S.-based friends and peers. Kinda strange posting in the middle of a long, holiday weekend, but it is the end of the month, so what can you do? Here’s my roundup of the best search/marketing posts during August. If you’re new to SBS, this is a monthly feature. You can find earlier “Best Of”s for each month in the archives. Only rule is that my own posts are not eligible. Local Search
Click here to read the entire blog post
28 Aug
27 Aug This post is from from my other blog here
27 Aug This post is from from my other blog here Early-bird registration ends this Friday for the upcoming Small Business Marketing Unleashed Conference in Columbus, Ohio. If you register by Friday, the cost is an astonishingly low $750 … after Friday, it goes up to $975. The conference is set for September 22-23 — but events actually begin the evening of September 21, and I highly suggest being there for the Sunday night fun. Do you remember what I said about the first Unleashed show back in April? 
I wrote a post summing up my thoughts about the value of such a small, limited-attendance conference where all the attendees are guaranteed ...
27 Aug This post is from from my other blog here I’d really like to suggest to clients that they add their business to MSN’s Local Business Listings Center, but it’s down for some reason. And it’s not coming back in the immediate future. “Please try again after Labour Day.” Say what? And what’s with the UK spelling? Anyone know what’s going on? Big upgrades, perhaps? That would be nice. Advertise Here: Learn more at www.smallbusinesssem.com/advertise. a MSN’s Local Listings Center = Down
27 Aug This post is from from my other blog here
If you have a Google account, and if you have the Google toolbar installed (or if you’ve manually enabled the Web History tracking in your Google account), Google will keep track of every search you perform and every click you make in the SERPs. It’s kinda like this: 
If you right-click, choose “Copy Link Location”, and see a really long, ugly URL like the ...
25 Aug This post is from from my other blog here
25 Aug This post is from from my other blog here Just a quick heads up to let you know that I’ve started a five-part series on HyperlocalBlogger.com that might be of interest to any small business considering using a local blog for marketing purposes: That’s the introductory post for the whole series, and will be updated as new articles are published each day. Oh, and as long we’re talking about business blogging, here’s my latest post at SEM Clubhouse: Washington Post covers Corporate Blogging. a
24 Aug This post is from from my other blog here
24 Aug This post is from from my other blog here I was real happy a couple months when I noticed that Karon Thackston had started blogging. I’d been reading her articles since way back when (when articles were more popular than blogs, I guess), and have also had the pleasure of working with her virtually as co-moderators of the Small Business Ideas Forum. Karon’s been a great roll lately with her blog, and I just added a couple recent posts to what will become my end-of-month roundup. But they’re so good, they deserve an extra shout-out now: This post tackles the keyword density myth, which we know ...
24 Aug This post is from from my other blog here I’ve said before that I’m no PPC guru, so I could be way off on this one. But if you’re running PPC ads on the content network (Google or Yahoo), I’m thinking there’s a better chance your ad will be noticed and clicked on when there’s no content on the page to distract the user: 
(click for larger version)
Yahoo Sponsored Search FTW!
Advertise Here: Learn more at www.smallbusinesssem.com/advertise. a How to Increase PPC Success on the Content Network
22 Aug This post is from from my other blog here
22 Aug This post is from from my other blog here
The one session I caught was Local 2.0: The Evolution of Local Search, put on by The Kelsey Group. I’m liking these Kelsey sessions at the last few SES shows because they tap into areas of local that I usually don’t cover here on SBSM: industry news and ...
22 Aug This post is from from my other blog here Quite possibly, a lot. Earlier this week, the FTC banned “robocalls” — automated telemarketing phone calls — and said the new rule also applies even if there’s a pre-existing business relationship between the company making the call and the recipient/customer. That CNET article describes the two stages to this new rule: By December 2008, robocalls will be required to include an automated key-press or voice-activated opt-out. Beginning September 2009, telemarketers won’t be able to send out any robocalls without “the prior express written agreement of the recipient to receive such calls.” So, what does it have to do with local search and small ...
17 Aug
17 Aug This post is from from my other blog here It’s easy to associate all real estate agents with that tired and useless spam-filled joke that we often think of when we hear the phrase “real estate marketing”, truth is that things are changing slowly but surely in that industry. The Washington Post writes this weekend about the new ways home buyers are finding agents — what they call “Real Estate Agent Hunting 2.0″: No longer must potential home buyers and sellers actually speak to real estate professionals to meet them. Instead, consumers are accessing agents’ ever-more-common blogs, social network pages or viral video campaigns — all of the burgeoning options that ...
15 Aug This post is from from my other blog here
15 Aug This post is from from my other blog here Next week I’m doing what the concert industry would call “a runner.” I’m arriving in San Jose Wednesday afternoon, speaking early Thursday, and heading back to the airport as soon as my session is over. I’ll be in town about 24 hours. My presentation is part of the “Fast, Free and Easy Tools” session, geared toward online marketing newcomers. I’m sure the session will be live-blogged, but if you want a sneak preview, I’ve pretty much pre-blogged my presentation over on the SEM Clubhouse blog. Enjoy! Advertise Here: Learn more at www.smallbusinesssem.com/advertise. This is a post from Matt McGee's blog, Small Business SEM. Click here to read the entire blog post
15 Aug This post is from from my other blog here For those of you who are new SBS readers & subscribers, here’s a list of noteworthy posts you probably missed from one year ago. I try to put together a post like this each month to introduce new readers to old content that might be worth reading.
SBS Flashback: July 2007 SBS Flashback: June 2007 SBS Flashback: May 2007 SBS Flashback: April 2007 SBS Flashback: March 2007 SBS Flashback: February 2007 SBS Flashback: January 2007 SBS Flashback: December 2006 SBS Flashback: November 2006 SBS Flashback: October 2006 SBS Flashback: September 2006 SBS Flashback: August 2006 SBS Flashback: July 2006 SBS Flashback: June 2006 SBS Flashback: May 2006 Advertisement: Instant SEO audits for $12 or less. Single reports or subscriptions available. Save time and $$$. Learn more at www.semcheck.com. This is a post from Matt McGee's blog, Small Business SEM.
13 Aug This post is from from my other blog here
13 Aug This post is from from my other blog here You’ve heard me and many others say that great/unique content is only half the battle of linkbuilding; the other half is promoting that content so it spreads. Even the best content needs a good push. Well, stay with me on this…it will eventually be a brief case study on linkbuilding and content promotion. But first, some background. 
U2, my favorite rock band, is managed by a brilliant business man named Paul McGuinness. But he’s not endeared himself to the music-buying public lately. Twice this year, McGuinness has gone on the attack about the current state of recorded music. He’s called out ...
12 Aug This post is from from my other blog here
12 Aug This post is from from my other blog here “GroupThink” is where I turn the blog post over to you. This is the third edition. Here’s the question: For small business owners/staff: Is the current state of the economy going to impact your marketing strategy or tactics for the upcoming holiday season? For marketers: Is the current state of the economy going to impact the advice and recommendations you’ll be giving to your clients for the upcoming holiday season? In other words, what are your expectations for shopper behavior during the holidays, and how will you react where your marketing is concerned? Advertisement: Instant SEO audits for $12 or less. Single reports or ...
11 Aug This post is from from my other blog here
10 Aug This post is from from my other blog here A few months ago, when David Mihm interviewed me, he asked me to name one emerging trend in local SEO and small business marketing — what was “the NEXT big thing”, he asked. At the time, I was about one month into an experiment with my wife: We had created four hyperlocal blogs and started writing about life in the four main cities she covers as a real estate agent. So, my reply to David’s question was hyperlocal blogging: We all know that a good blog is a powerful SEO tool; the quality of content and links brings trust fairly quickly. So ...
08 Aug
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by 
Have you ever thought about how Google might use all that clickstream data it has? For some reason, this question popped into my head on the flight home from SES San Jose last week. 
I did a runner this week in San Jose — spent exactly 24 hours in town for the SES show, which didn’t give me much time to take in sessions. In fact, aside from the one panel on which I spoke, I only attended one session (and had to leave early, too).