Janet Driscoll MillerPresident & CEO
SearchMojo
Elizabeth SheaPresident & CEO
SpeakerBox Communications
Content For Customers: Search, Content, Social
Search + Content
+ Social Media = Leads
Start With Some Math…
* According to HubSpot, 2009, Inbound Marketing Software Provider
Content Strategies for Government
Start with the keywords! Identify, rank, execute against. Identify where your customers live online. Put a search plan in place.
Take content inventory: Where are the gaps? Create, revise, disseminate, track.
Leverage social media tools to optimize search, drive leads back to site, landing pages.
1.2.3.
Keyword Development
Content For Customers: Search, Content, Social
Selection of Keywords, Content
Research what your keywords turn up
Talk to customers about key messaging
Develop a “short list” for inbound links
Not too broad, not too niche
BASELINE
Optimizing Your Search
Content For Customers: Search, Content, Social
Keys to High Search Engine Rankings Select good keywords
– Not too broad (“software”), not too specific (“virtualization software for the public sector”)
Site content edits– Include the keywords in the text of the website– Keyword Density: percentage of times that a keyword
appears in page text Site structure
– Certain technologies can “block” search engine bots Inbound links
– Serves as a measure of site “popularity” on a subject Ongoing monitoring
Optimizing Website Pages Keyword should appear in:
– Filename– Title tag– Meta keyword, Meta description– Bold text– Link text– Overall content of the page
Keyword Density– Percentage of times a keyword appears in the
total page content Ask for links to your website from partners, etc.
Optimizing Blogs Host the blog on your domain
– Example: blog.search-mojo.com– NOT: search-mojo.wordpress.com
Use SEO plugins to optimize title tags, etc.– Wordpress: All in One SEO Pack
Promote blog content to get viral inbound links
Register blog with blog directories (i.e. Technorati)
Articles If you own the copyright:
– Post articles on your website or blog– Post to article distribution sites
Creates inbound links from those that republish your article
Further establishes your subject matter expertise across the web
Whitepapers Submit to whitepaper submission sites For maximum SEO benefit, focus on
sites that link to the paper on YOUR website
Images Especially important if images really showcase your offering
– Example: National Geographic Name the image file with the keyword as the filename. For multiple
keyword phrases, separate terms with a dash (-) or an underscore (_). Example: <img src=”/images/keyword.jpg”>
Ensure that the alt text of the image tag contains the target keyword. Also consider incorporating a title tag on the image tag.Example: <img src=”/images/bear.jpg” alt=”A bear eats a fish.” title=”A bear eats a fish.”>
Incorporate the keyword into the page content where the image resides. If the image has an enlargement version, ensure that the link to the
enlarged version contains the keyword in the anchor text. Ensure that the surrounding text on the page uses the keyword for that
image. Append your keyword with the word “picture” or “pictures”.
Videos Include the word “video” in your keyword when possible. Many people
searching specifically for video will use this term with their search phrase.Example: Polar Bear Video
Name the video file with the keyword as the filename. For multiple keyword phrases, separate terms with a dash (-) or an underscore (_). Example: <img src=”/videos/keyword.jpg”>
If Flash is used as a player model, be sure to also embed the video in the non-Flash page version, contained in the <noscript> tag.
Include the keyword in any video meta data when possible, such as titles, descriptions and keyword tags.
Include the keyword in the anchor text for links to the video. Example: <a href=”/videos/polar_bear_video.mpg”>keyword</a>
Try to include the keyword as much as possible in the page linking to that video, using standard SEO techniques.
Incorporate your video into a video sitemap or an mRSS feed. Information on how to build one can be found at: http://www.google.com/support/webmasters/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=80472
Webinars/Podcasts Promote events through various event
sites Provide a registration page ON your
website Archive, archive, archive!
– Creates viral inbound links to content– Register archived content links with
webcast and podcast directories
Press Releases Distribute
press releases online– Example:
PRWeb Make sure that
you use SEO keywords as the anchor text on your press release links
Why is Content So Important to Search Engines? How does the engine know WHAT your website is about if it
cannot READ it on the site? Site content should contain keywords/phrases relevant to
your messaging and offerings IMPORTANT: Search terms and brand terms are not ALWAYS
equal– Example: “certified used vehicles” vs. “used cars”
“used cars” searched 600% more Incorporate non-attractive keywords by spinning
them in content» Example: “Our certified used vehicles are better
than regular used cars – each vehicle has passed a 20-point safety inspection.”
– If you don’t want to use a keyword on your website, maybe you shouldn’t be optimizing for it!
It’s Not Just AboutWritten Content Either… Google Universal
Search– Mix of many
types of content in web search results
How Important Are “Inbound” Links? The most important ranking factor for
Good content can create viral, inbound links
Which Links Are Most Valuable? Is a link from Government Computer News more
valuable than Federal Computer Week?– Check PageRank
GCN: 6/10 FCW: 7/10
– PageRank is a measurement of inbound links to that page/site.
– Does the link contain your keyword in the anchor text?
Bottom line: Treat links like PR efforts.– If you’d want press there, you’d want a link from
there too!
Social Media If you’re not on Twitter, you should be!
– Twitter links affect SEO rankings– Get a Twitter ID for company– Tweet news, events, blog posts, etc.– Use links back to your own website to
help SEO Facebook and LinkedIn also helpful for
marketing, but have less impact on SEO
Content Development
Content For Customers: Search, Content, Social
What Qualifies as Content?Website
Search-optimized press releases
eBooks
Blog comments
Twitter feeds
Photos/Videos (with keyword tags)
Blog Posts
Articles in publications/blogs
Surveys
Product Reviews
Whitepapers
Social conversations
Marketing Strategies
Customer
Outbound Marketing
Inbound Marketing
(e)Mail Call-to-action
Collateral Leavebehind
Advertising
Direct Mail
Tradeshows
Press release pickups
Article Syndication
Editorial coverage
Link from Twitter
Viral Campaigns