SEO... More than Keywords

Bill Gates once said,"if you are not online, you don't exist." I say,"if you can't be found you don't exist". Your online presence is dependant upon your SEO strategy.

The common person believes Seo to be just the selection and implementation of keywords. Not really! The black hat SEO days are over.

Today's algorithms have gotten smarter and evaluate page rank upon other factors:
Page views, unique visits, time on site, bounce rates, referral links, unique content, website links and PPC.

To be able to truly optimize a website to higher ranking's within the major search engines, one must prove that your online strategy is truly organic.

Not everyone can truly name him or herself an SEO specialist without covering some of the common facets of SEO:Keyword research, web structure and design, link building, social media and blogging, directory listings submission and e-mail marketing.

SEO.com Predicts Top 9 SEO Strategies for 2011

http://www.seo.com/blog/top-seo-strategies-for-2011/

Social Commerce

Social media has greatly helped the buying process. Many brands have utilized the power of social media's "word of mouth". The recommendation, share and like modules have helped consumers identify options from their peers. Social media has helped leverage e-commerce.

The term social commerce was born from the integration of social networking sites and e-commerce platforms. True social commerce must also include user generated content platforms from its users.

In today's web 2.o landscape user's input on products is indispensable. Online users are prosumers(consumer and producer). They collaborate in the production process via there input and criticism. The production process has shifted from the producer to the consumer.


Social Media and e-Commerce Go Hand in Hand
http://www.adotas.com/2010/02/social-media-and-e-commerce-go-hand-in-hand/


Social Media and E-Commerce Converging: Report
http://www.clickz.com/clickz/news/1701003/social-media-e-commerce-converging-report

Behavioral Targeting... No So Perfect

Although cliche, life is not always what it seems. So is behavioral targeting. It is not 100 percent solid for both the advertiser or the user.

From the advertisers perspective tracking is not completely accurate. The main reason being that a cookie might register on a shared family computer. The computer could have multiple users: 50-year old husband, 42-year old wife, 17-year old daughter, and a 10-year old boy. If the son of the household is the one whom mostly spends time online computer gaming, that specific browser will register as a young segment. All the ad impressions will not attract any clicks from any of the other family members for they will not be relevant. The data is not personally identifiable.

The user is the one whom pays the highest price for behavioral targeting. The trade off is relevant ads for personal privacy. For behavioral ads can track your browsing patterns, Facebook likes and even your most recent tweets. The collection of all this data registers users into a correspondent segment.

Currently there is no legislation protecting users right to privacy. The only options users have is the option to opt out from tracking. So basically it is the online advertising duty to inform and educate prospect customers on their options.

Other Resources:
Ad Industry Attempts to Self-Regulate Behavioral Advertising
http://www.fastcompany.com/1692936/ad-industry-self-regulates-behavioral-advertising

Behavioral targeting: the user-scale advertising
http://www.youngdigitallab.net/social-media/behavioral-advertising-the-user-scale-advertising/

Online is stepping over Print Media

The online revolution has brought about many changes in several industries:
Print, music, travel, most notably print.

The most obvious downfall in media has been print. Online media has proven to be more cost effective and more efficient. Online newspapers and journals offer faster turn around for users and more business opportunities for advertisers. A clear example has been the shutdown of major newspapers including: The Boston Globe,Rocky Mountain News and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Other newspapers whom have gone out of circulation are mentioned in the times business article: http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1883785,00.html

Advertising costs online are cheaper plus offer more impressions for the same price. Many advertisers feel they get more bang for their buck online. Another plus for online newspapers is advertisers can more accurately and quickly measure the effectiveness of their campaigns. The click through rates of some banners can even be measured in real time depending on the ad manager used.

Many profits have diminished from print and transferred to online for advertisers are realising today's potential customers must be engaged. Major advertisers are not only looking for a print ad but for a full 360 degree digital campaign.

more reading:

The 10 Most Endangered Newspapers in America
http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1883785,00.html

A Decade of Destruction
http://2010.newsweek.com/essay/a-decade-of-destruction.html

The Year The Newspaper Died
http://www.businessinsider.com/the-death-of-the-american-newspaper-2009-7#the-rest-5