Social Desire

Information Architecture at IMSB - Build it & They will Come

I was fortunate enough to attend the Information Architecture Session at IM Spring Break and I’m so glad I did. This session was another brilliant one as the panel consisted of Steve Plunkett, Todd Malicoat and Carolyn Shelby.

For those of you who don’t already know…. Information Architecture is the way a website is organized to make it user-friendly as well as search-friendly. You want users to not only easily discover the site, but be able to follow the information on the site so they can easily get to their ultimate destination. Without the proper information architecture you might be bringing the wrong kind of viewers to the website. Or, you might be getting the right type of viewers, but they can’t locate what they need once they get there. Could you imagine a viewers frustration if this happened? Trust me…. they would never come back once they have those kind of struggles on your site.

A bad information architecture outcome can be virtual suicide for any website, but with the help of this amazing panel they have brought us all one step closer to Information Architecture Nirvana. So, without further ado…. here is what went down at the Information Architecture Session at IM Spring Break.

First up was Steve Plunkett

Steve spoke about Information Architecture and how it affected Search. The three categories that he went into detail about was…

• Collected Data Structure
• Search Evolved: File Management – DAO ( Digital Asset Optimization )
• Conversions and Forms

Collected Data Structure

• Domain authority
• Directories, flash and filenames (see Digital Asset Optimization)
• Activity within record, references, file changes, relocations.
• Bounce rate (www/email/groups)
• Segmentation

Search Evolved: File Management & Digital Asset Optimization

Steve when into great detail talking about the fact that Search has changed. No longer is it just about optimizing a website, but also other digital assets such as….

• PDFs - There are 25 fields in .pdf that you can optimize for Google.
• Spreadsheets
• Feeds - RSS Segmentation
• Social profiles
  • employee cost
  • personality research
    
    
• Video/flash
• Podcasts
• Whitepapers
• Games/widgets
• Images
• Analytical challenges

** Steve pointed out that EVERYTHING you do points back to domain name. Name all of your files, images, PDF’s with keywords and domain name.

Conversions and Forms

• Conversion paths - users answer questions in a form and then they land on a page that delivers tailored content to their specific answers.
• Conversion reporting
• Email database

Things to Remember

• Help search engines find your site by building your website in a search friendly data structure
• Leverage content by optimizing digital assets
• All search results are not created equal. Always keep the end in mind (conversions) to provide value for SER

Next up is Todd Malicoat

As far as Information architecture goes Todd Malicoat gave us some awesome tips for two different types of websites: The Blog and the eCommerce site….

Blog

• Use snippets - Instead of having the entire post on the front page Todd suggests using just snippets. This way there is no duplicate content on the site.
• link to your best posts - Put a section on your blog that lists your "best of" posts.
• funnel pagerank and anchor text
• automated internal linking - Automated internal linking keeps pages themed and helps older posts. Related Posts plugin for WP helps to automate the improvement of building an internal link structure
• Tag clouds - Not always great to use - dupe content and dilutes link pop

eCommerce

• Link to top selling products - home page, every page, body
• Use another word other than "Home" for the Home page…. such as the name of your product.
• French Fry Pages - These type of pages offer little value and dilute link population (such as the privacy policy page)
• sitemaps- These work great for very large sites work well. They help funnel the juice.

Todd explains that search engines aren’t as smart as some might think…. "Search engines are smart…but not that smart. You really want to spoon feed them the information you want them to have."

Next up was Carolyn shelby

Carolyn talks about how to determine the best architecture model for our needs….

• All in One - everything on the homepage
• Flat - all pages peers, every one accessible from each
• Hub and Spoke (Daisy) - useful for multiple, distinct linear workflows
• Strict Hierarchy - lower-level pages can only be accessed via its parent
• Multi-Dimensional Hierarchy - many way of browsing to the same content

Content Creation - Create an outline (Yes, a real outline) - She mentions if you don’t know how to do an outline you really need to go back to school to learn. It is just that important.

• define the site topic
• Do keyword research - pay attention to the phraseology that your audience uses; pay attention to most common search phrases; explore your niche to get ideas for additional topics.
• Mingle with the peasants - interview customer service, talk to sales people who deal with the public, read consumer reviews (online, offline, wherever), talk to non-your-industry people about your topic. This where you can get some of the best and clear ideas.

Some tips that Carolyn mentions…

• Remember we are not Normal - Carolyn mentions that due to the industry we are in and the experience we have in search …. "We are not normal…we do not search like regular people…we’ve been touched…" So, in order to remedy this we need to think outside of the box when it comes to Content Creation and Research.
• Check your 404 logs to see what people are typing in as a "guess". This can help identify the terms the site’s audience uses.
• Don’t forget the Logs - As far as Keyword Research goes Carolyn says, "Keep track of internal site search logs. Look for clues in access logs."
• Keyword Research Tool - She also mentions a great site to use to get keywords is SeedKeywords.
• Don’t forget to Think outside of the Box - Carolyn even mentions that she has even used a more nontraditional method to this that really works. She has her daughter’s friends come over and then she asks them, "If you were to search for "such & such" how would you go about finding information on that?" And, without offering them any help she watches what they enter into search to find the information on that topic. She watches step by step how they go about getting information on that topic. Here she gets a real clear answer on how some people might search for a certain topic.

Carolyn did a recap of both of her IM Spring Break Sessions on SEO 101. So, make sure to check that out.

It was another awesome session at IM Spring Break. Steve, Todd and Carolyn gave us a bunch of really terrific information to insure our success with Information Architecture. Remember, it is your job to make sure that when readers or users come to your website they can quickly find the information they are looking for. One way to lose a user forever is to make finding what they want difficult. Follow the suggestions and tips this amazing panel gave you… and you will be on your way to information architecture bliss.

Above image by Dana Lookadoo

Posted in Conferences, SEM, SEO, Tips and Tutorials, Web 2.0, Web 2.0 Basics, Websites | 4 Comments »

IM Business Session at IM Spring Break - The Dream Team

The IM Business panel at IM Spring Break was one of the most anticipated sessions at IM Spring Break. Apparently, it was a favorite from Scary SEO and they were asked to come back and speak again. However, there was one minor change….. Tony Adam was going to speak on the panel along with Christopher Hart and Pamela Lund.

I’m sure Tony must have been a little nervous…. after all there was a lot to live up to. As a matter of fact, Christopher Hart pointed out to me that Tony wouldn’t even be considered to be part of this "team" officially until he passed the test…. the test being making his session rock. Tony was being put on the “Chris Hart probationary period” until he proved himself worthy of this Internet Marketing Dream Team made up of Christopher Hart and Pamela Lund.

So, here is how this session went down. Read on to find out if Tony Adam rocked his session and passed his probationary period.

Chris Hart Begins

Corporate Evolution

• Maturing of the proposal process
• Many views are represented from the start
• Most important is the C-Class Executive, Buy-in from the top Down - "C-class" being Chief Whatever (CEO, CIO, CFO, etc…) The Chief Whatever needs to be part of it from the very beginning.

How Budgets have changed

• SEO, SEM, PPC, SMM, SMO and any other A-E-I-O-U styled acronyms were additional budget line items.
• Those who embrace change are rewarded those that fight the change will lose out.
• SEO, SEM, PPC, SMM, SMO are not specific projects…. They are all part of the business and effort.

Costs

• Services are not driven through menu selection
• Return on investment is not calculated with a formula

Corporate evolution

• The secret of life…

Metamorphosis happens - Corporate Evolution/Budgets/Proposals

Just as wild animals such as the Cicada, Elephant and Blue Whales have metamorphasized to adapt to the World around them to ensure their survival…. we have to do the same as well. Those who embrace change will be rewarded. Those who don’t adapt and instead fight change will have to find new jobs.

Chris reminds us It’s not a big ticket item, it’s all of the things that happen behind the scenes.

Bottom Line….

The old Corporate no longer works … SEO, SEM, PPC, SMM, SMO needs to be considered from the start….. before anything begins. Corporate evolution requires it all to be part of the entire strategy from the very beginning.

Pamela Lund up next

In the beginning

• Be confident when quoting
• Give realistic expectations
• Educate your clients

During the project

• Over communicate
• Prioritize tasks to appear more productive
• Use a project management system

Ongoing communication

• Assume nothing
• Document verbal communication
• Schedule meetings intelligently
• Don’t pretend results are good if they aren’t
• Don’t lie

**If you lie you will get caught. If they check on something that you had said with another marketer that marketer will be more than happy to throw you under the bus.**

If it hits the fan

• Have someone else you can bring in
• Don’t use accusatory statements
• Don’t get angry or raise your voice
• Be prepared to walk away (aka firing clients)

Tony Adams is up next

You want people to get excited about what you are doing.

• Step 1: understand the culture - Pay attention to the culture of an organization.
  
  
• Step 2: Personalities - There are many different personalities. The "always angry"; the "combative type"; the "know it all type; the "disapproving type"…. Tony says you want this.
  
  
• Step 3: Listen - There are always deadlines…. Everything will always will be urgent!!
  
  
• Step 4: Relationships - Create relationships and partnerships - make meaningful connections. Get yourself some BFF’s!!
  
  
• Step 5: Get Involved! Make sure to get involved in every meeting you can.
  
  
• Step 6: Influencing - This is where your chops don’t mean a thing!! Take a break and knock one back!!

  Tony being the amazing person he is….. makes sure to have plenty of Beers for everyone attending this session proving his "take a break and knock one back!!" is an important part of the process.

  This is where the high fives come in!!

• Step 7: Provide the resources necessary - provide the tools necessary to succeed! Create SEO Guidelines, create avenues of sharing your knowledge.
  
  
• Step 8 make sure they play by the rules - Review, Review, Review. Pretend you are QA and make sure they play by the rules.
  
  
• Step 9: continue the evangelism. You now have buy in and relationships. Keep them happy. show them the numbers…show them the results. Keeps them happy.

If you take anything away… relationship + influence and persuading = it will get you there.

Wow!! I’m sure I don’t have to explain to you that not only did Tony pass his probation period per Chris and Pamela, but he NAILED it!! He was amazing as was Chris and Pamela. They are and will forever be the Internet Marketing Dream Team in my book. It was another amazing session at IM Spring Break.

Above image from session taken by Dana Lookadoo.

Posted in Conferences, SEM, SEO, Tips and Tutorials, Websites | 1 Comment »

Building a Brand through Social Media - IM Spring Break

If you wanted to know how to use Build a Brand Using Social Media then this session was the one to attend. Jeff Quipp, Brian Chappell and Li Evans were an amazing combo…. Together they were the perfect mixture of How-to, tips, suggestions, visuals….. absolutely all the facts needed to give you a good start in Branding.

Jeff Quipp discussed the How-to’s of branding by going into great detail on what Social Media can do for Branding. Brian Chapell added his thoughts and tips on monitoring your brand and Li Evans finished off this amazing session on Building a Brand with video and photo sharing.

All three speakers made sure to cover everything from the most basic to more complex. They gave us the social media recipe to whip up the best branding dish for any company…. large or small.

Here how it all went down…

First up was Jeff Quipp

Define Your Brand - How do you want your Brand to stand out?

Many Businesses often wonder what Social Media can do for them. Jeff did a really great job at explaining this in great detail.

Social Media Helps….

1. Create awareness of the Brand
2. Communicate the Company’s / Product’s Key Messages
3. Instill trust in the brand
4. Naturally propagate the crafted message(s)

He goes on to explain the 3 Steps to Branding via Social Media

1. List the Key Messages
2. Determine the best content formats to convey your messages (video, audio, text)
3. Craft the content - Must support the key messages you wish to convey…. at least for branding purposes.
   
   Some ways to do this….
   • "just in time" blogging
   • make the news- do something sensational!
   • resource/educational posts
   • the message must reflect positively on the company!!!
4. Determine the best Social Media to Employ
5. Test the Content
   • If the Key is in getting others to carry the chosen messages forward…. test it first (if its not news)
     • StumbleUpon Ads
6. Refine content and retest
• Using the solicited feedback, refine the content. Retest, again soliciting feedback.
7. Network to Promote
   • Get involved in the chosen social media
   • start befriending others and promoting their GOOD content
   • Be sure to promote good content!!!
   • Seek out key influencers and particularly support their stuff.

Brian Chappell was up next

Brian immediately reminds us that "You have to make sure you know your target audience…. otherwise you are wasting your time. Social Media is not a salt shaker. You can’t apply social media marketing tactic onto regular strategies to see success. Social media can not be an after thought…. has to be thought of at the core of marketing initiatives."

You need to be creative…. there is no cookie cutter approach to Social Media.

Brian urges us to extend our brand off of our site…. secure names elsewhere so no one tarnishes our brand. He suggests Streko’s site CheckUserNames.com as a good place to do this.

Must Monitor & Interact in Real time

Social Monitoring Benefits:

• Product Development
• Customer Service
• SEO / Marketing Initiatives
• Monitor your Competition

Don’t forget about SEO

Empower your customers - Let them build the ad, create your idea and implement new product offerings.

Next up was Li Evans

Building a brand through Social Media - Through Video & Photo Sharing

I love that Li went into using Video & Photo Sharing to build a brand through Social Media. For someone like me who is very visual I can understand the importance of branding this way.

Li starts with, "So you have serps and links….now what? How do you get people to remember you?"

Branding is essential. Even your avatar is important. Li reminds us that our avatar is who we are…this is how people relate to us.

Tips

• Make sure your avatar is your brand.
• Make sure your pictures are saying things about your brand
• Start your own group and encourage people to share their pictures / videos and join the group.
• Extend your brand and talk to the people that are part of the group.
• Bring influence of the brand into the picture.
• Don’t forget the Tags!!
• Keep your marketing consistent - ex. icon / logo on videos and photos
• Brand your Channels - w/ consistent colors
• No matter how small your company Branding Matters!!
• Don’t forget about branding even in Local.
• Optimizing is fundamental
• Research where your audience is.

**YouTube - YouTube beats Yahoo for searches. That’s pretty cool. And, it shows us how important videos can be in Search.**

Li ends with saying that “Branding and Being Social Is Key”

So, as you can see it was another amazing session at IM Spring Break. Follow the Branding Recipe that Jeff Quipp, Brian Chappell and Li Evans suggested and I have no doubt you will be off to a great start with using Social Media for Branding purposes.

Posted in Conferences, SEM, Social Bookmarking, Social Media, Social Media Marketing, StumbleUpon, Tips and Tutorials, Web 2.0 | 2 Comments »

Leveraging Social News and Bookmarking at IM Spring Break

This session was amazing. It reminded me a lot like a baseball line-up. Before you start thinking that I totally lost my mind let me explain a bit why I say this.

First up to speak was Neal Rodriguez. And, speak he did!!

In baseball the first player in the line-up is generally a person that is fast. A player that has a great potential to steal bases. He gets the rest of the line-up motivated and ready to play their hearts out. And, this is what I feel Neal did during this session. He motivated the audience and got them ready for the rest of the game.

Seriously, he could have been talking about cleaning the lint out of my laptop keys and I would have listened intently to everything he said. He had me wanting to stand up and cheer with excitement just by listening to his passion and watching him talk about something he felt strongly about.

Social Media in the Grind ‘09

Neal explains how Social News is directory that’s unbelievable. Social News are the stories that make you go "WTF!"

Unbelievable is part of the ingredients to the entire recipe. Stories need to be compelling and controversial.

Assault the reader!!

Make your reader say, "Hell Yeah!"

To Do that:

• Do your homework - Study sites that make the front page frequently. * Di66.net *
• Reciprocity - Help your fellow socialites. The Key to any relationship. * Source - DiggStatistics.com *

Neal reminds us that "The More you do the better your will get at it."

In baseball the middle of a line-up has the power hitters. These are the baseball players that have a great chance of getting a home run. These are the players you can count on for giving you what you came to the baseball park to see. In this case that is David Snyder and Todd Malicoat.

David Snyder spoke about "How not to utilize Social News and Bookmarking"

He reminds us that the keyword is "Social". Social News & Bookmarking exist as a place to center conversations and sharing around content. And, the end user is the most important part of this process.

How Social News and Bookmarking can be used by marketers….

• Not an end means, but a tool to increase visibility of content, and conversation around content.
• You get what you give from Social Media

DON’T

• Hire people for pushes where you pay based on the outcome
• "Push" content without first thinking about the community
• Approach social bookmarking as a business looking to engage.

The next power hitter up to bat was Todd Mailicoat

He spoke about "How to sell social media marketing for in house SEO’s"

• Show a Competitor
  • fear
  • uncertainty
  • doubt
  • greed
    
• Show the Stats
  • digg
  • delicious
  • reddit
  • stumble
  • buzz propeller
    
• Introduce the Concept - The plan
  
• Show the Value
  • Explain the Value of the links
    • theme value
    • power source
    • outbound links
    • unique linking domains
    • placement
    • age
      
  • Explain why link baiting and viral marketing
    • global link popularity
    • sometimes anchor text (based on title)
    • Better Rankings
    • Links competitors can’t get
• Close the Concept
  
  
• Add the Bonus - lots of traffic and branding
  • such as premium content

So, as you can see this entire session was amazing….. it kept me on my toes wanting to start the wave.. All three speakers hit the ball out of the park and kept the audience happy and cheering for more. No doubt in my mind…. A Win!!

Posted in Conferences, SEM, Social Bookmarking, Social Media, Social Media Marketing, Social Networking, Web 2.0 | 2 Comments »

Didn’t attend IM Spring Break? 23 Reasons You Should Have.

After spending four days in Florida with the IM Spring Break crowd and attending the conference & enjoying the parties at night It didn’t take me long to realize that this is hands down the best conference I have ever attended. And, from reading others tweets I come to the realization that this conference is a "must attend". In case that wasn’t enough to get you to realize you should be totally bummed you decided not to attend the IM Spring Break Conference here are a ton more reasons you should Kick your own Ass for not attending IM Spring Break.

• Small conference….. big knowledge. I know small isn’t always, the best description of something wonderful. But, trust me on this one. What I think made this conference so amazing was the small size. I had a chance to sit down with practically everybody and have a nice conversation. At no time did I feel rushed to hurry a conversation so that I could find the next one to talk to. There was plenty of time to get to everybody.
  
• Intimate Conversations - Due to the small size of the Conference I was able to have some wonderful intimate conversations with not only Industry Leaders, but the awesome guys running the whole show. That has never happened to me…. but on the first day I shared lunch with Loren Baker and his beautiful wife, Janna.
  
  
  
  
  
  
• The Best of the Best in our Industry speaking on Search, Social and Internet Marketing - Loren, Dave and Jordan made sure to get some of the best in our industry speaking on the panels…. making sure we were learning everything from the most knowledgeable in the field.
  
  
• The Q & A’s after with amazingly awesome top secret info….. seriously, TOP SECRET. Only people that were there have the benefit of hearing the information. And, even if something wasn’t covered in the Q & A’s there was plenty of time for conversations with the speakers later. If you are beginning to the get the feeling of kicking your desk for not attending…. I can understand.
  
  
• The food, the YUMMY food. And, I am not talking simple meals. I’m talking about meals that knock your socks off by simply looking at the colorful presentation. Loren, Dave and Jordan spared nothing to make sure we ate like Kings and Queens.
  
  
  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• Open Bar - The attendees of IM Spring Break were offered Open Bar every night. Do I really need to say anything else about this? I’ll just repeat it….. Open Bar EVERY Night.
  
  
  
• The pool - A Gorgeous pool that many of us got to enjoy….. whether we wanted to jump in or not. Ladies and Gentlemen I would like to personally thank Streko for my shoes just finally drying.
  
  
  
  
  
• Poker Games - Yes, we even had poker. And, even though there were some winners and some losers from the looks of everyone participating we enjoyed ourselves either way. I even managed to spend some money during Poker just watching… Not sure how that happened.
  
  
  
• Arm Wrestling Neil Patel - At what other event could I have a chance to kick one of the Speakers Ass’s in Arm Wrestling. I doubt anywhere else. But, at IM Spring Break I was offered the chance to do just that. I took Neil up on the offer to arm wrestle and I fought really hard to beat him. Unfortunately, I totally got my ass kicked. I’m pretty scrappy, but he must be freakishly strong for his small size. He also took $20.00 from me from losing.
  
  
• Beautiful Friendships - While at IM Spring Break I was fortunate enough to build beautiful friendships that I have no doubt that will last a lifetime.
  
  
  
  
• Free Chiropractor on Call - We can all totally use a good back massage from time to time. And, there were plenty to go around at IM Spring Break….. thank you Chiropractor Mike.
  
  
  
  
  
• Killer DJ - At the indoor BBQ Party there was some awesome music during the open bar and dinner. I mean, I’m talking killer music. Thanks to Steve Plunkett for giving up his yummy dinner to make sure to keep us totally happy until the live band started. Proof the music rocked is in the pics my friend…
  
  
  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• Lots of Dancing - Steve had the music playing for 2 hours until the live band started. Giving us 2 hours extra to dance…. and dance they did!!
  
  
  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• Live Band - Yes…. Loren, Dave and Jordan spared absolutely no expense to make sure the attendees of the conference were kept happy and entertained the entire time. They hired a live band to get people out on the dance floor. But, it turns out they were just the opening band for a rock band MUCH larger….
  
  
• SEO Rock Band - This might come as a total surprise to you, but many of the leaders in our wonderful Industry are also musically gifted. Our very own David Szetela and Jeff Quipp surprised all of us by announcing that they were going to get on stage and entertain us with The SEO Rock Band. And, they were good. No, I’m lying….. they were freakin awesome!! Like, I’m talking about lighter waiving and girls screaming kind of awesome. But, that wasn’t the end of it….Loren Baker and Tony Adam got on stage with them and were just as amazing making up their own SEO lyrics to popular songs. It was so much fun. Still not over…. I got more. Brasco from WebMaster Radio sang La Bamba perfectly. I mean, perfectly. Steve Plunkett did some singing as well… as did Aaron Chronister’s beautiful fiance, Jenny. It was an amazing night with some of the best fun I have ever had. Many of us want to know when the SEO Rock Band’s CD will be coming out…. it truly would be a must buy!!
  
  
  
  
  … and the lead singer even had his groupies:
  
  
• Neil Patel made me Breakfast - I’m assuming that Neil was feeling bad for hurting my ego the night before in arm wresting, but whatever the reason he made me a toasted bagel, went out of his way to find the exact type of cream cheese I wanted and spread it on my bagel. Thanks, Neil…. it was an awesome bagel.
  
  
• Drinking being part of a session - The wonderful Tony Adam brought out beers for everybody during his IM Business session. He was going through his 9 Steps to get people excited about what you are doing. And, as he pointed out sometimes you just need to "take a break and knock one back!!" I agree, Tony.
  
  
  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• Milk & Cookies - Thanks to Allyson Fergison, aka SEOaly we all were able to enjoy her homemade cookies. Allyson was the very lucky winner of the free pass to IM Spring Break. She was so excited to have won she apparently didn’t know what to do with her pent up energy that she decided to bake like a mad woman. And, a mad woman she was….. she came to the conference with 600 freshly back chocolate chip cookies. Could you imagine this happening at a huge conference? No, I don’t think so. I’m telling you… small intimate conferences is where it is at!!
  
  
  
  
• Rock’n Keynotes - We got to hear some of the best keynotes I have ever heard. The keynotes were from Chris Winfield, Neil Patel and Rae Hoffman. Really, really great stuff…. all three were totally passionate and equally motivating. The best combination.
  
  
  
• Sushi baby - I will have to admit…. I have never had sushi. I have always been afraid to try it because of the fact it is raw fish. But, upon being pushed to try it…. try it I did. Oh My God…. it was so good!! I am now sushi’s biggest fan.
  
  
• Bacon Explosion - At the IM Spring Break BBQ Party the food continued to be just as impressive as any of the other meals that the gentlemen of IM Spring Break provided for us. This meal had a BBQ flare. But, the highlight of the meal had got to have been the Bacon Explosion. This dish was thought up by Aaron Chronister and loved by everyone I spoke to that night. I can’t even describe the taste to you…. just trust me when I say it is like no other. And, you have got to experience it for yourself. Yep, just another reason you should be kicking your own Ass for not going to IM Spring Break.
  
  
  
  
• Appearing on Webmaster Radio - Webmaster Radio was at the conference the entire time and many of the attendees of IM Spring Break appeared on Webmaster Radio being interviewed. Even I was one of the lucky ones. It was so much fun!! I felt like a superstar.
  
  
  
• Weight loss - Apparently the more you eat the more weight you lose. It probably has something to do with the fact that you can eat healthy even at a conference.
  

Okay, you still don’t believe me that this was the conference of the year??? Don’t take my word for it…. check out what Alysson Fergison had to say about it. Her tweet totally sums up my entire post…

Just to let you know….. IM Broadcast has other conferences coming up in the future. They mentioned doing one in the next few months in California and another Scary SEO in October… this time in Atlantic City. So, keep an eye out for the next IM Broadcast Conference and sign up. Otherwise…. you are totally missing out on the best Marketing, SEO, and Social Media Conference out there!!

Thank you to those who allowed me to use the wonderful photographs they took during IM Spring Break. Most of the photos on this page came from either Janna and Loren Baker at the IM Spring Break Facebook Fan Page, Rafael Montilla and Dana Lookadoo’s Flickr Page. So, make sure to check out their photo pages so you can check out the rest of the IM Spring Break pictures.

Posted in Conferences, Parties, SEO, Social Media, Social Media Marketing, Social Networking, Web 2.0 | 11 Comments »

Creating Content for Social Media Session - IM Spring Break

The first session of IM Spring Break on Social Media day was "Creating Content for Social Media – How to create the content and make it stick". Kenny Hyder, Greg Finn and Brent Csutoras were on this sessions panel and what a Rock’n job they did. It was an awesome session!!

First up was Ken of PositionTech. He started with "Content is King. And, if your content sucks it won’t go anywhere." And, moved on to explaining that it takes more than just ideas. Your content needs to be compelling. To show this Ken compared the two sites Watch it Shred with Will it Blend. Both of these sites have a very similar type of viral content…. Watch it Shred has videos of many different items that they put through a large shredder to see if it will shred. Will it Blend puts many different types of items into a blender to see if they will blend. They both started their YouTube accounts around the same time, but Watch it Shred has 3,553 subscribers while Will it Blend has 178,164 subscribers. Why such a huge difference? Because of the question, "Will it Blend". And, this question causes the viewer to wonder…. will it in fact blend? See, questions need answers. Viewers watch to find out…. will it blend. The question is compelling.

Kenny offers some tips….

Tips to make your content sticky

• Think about what has done well.
• Be compelling - how can I intrigue my readers?
• Think about your audience

Next up was Brent Csutoras

Brent starts off talking about how Businesses often wonder how social media pertains to them. What should I write about…. how is my product going to work in social? How am I going to participate?

But, Brent assures us it doesn’t have to be the most extreme thing. Social Media can apply to anything.

For a company to come up with things to write about he suggests….

Step back & Identify your:

• Social Goals - What do you ultimately want? Do you want more links? More traffic, etc..
• Desired Keywords - what do you want to be known for? What do you want people searching for when they find you?
• Related Keywords - loosely related terms.

Once that is done the Research begins.

Research social sites for what has worked for others or failed for others, Check competitors and see what they are doing, and Check Search Engines.

Some tips that Brent suggested were…

Tips

• Involve your staff - memos. Keep all informed of plans.
• Current events - watch them and use them. People love what’s going on right now.
• Avoid "10" - Top 10 gets old fast.
• Don’t accept crap and don’t push crap either. Throw it in the trash.

Next up Gregg Finn of 10e20 who spoke about Tactics for Creating content.

Gregg starts talking about content and what makes for bad, good, great and pants crappingly awesome content. Yes, I did say, "pants crappingly awesome" content. You are dying to know what that means huh? This is how Gregg defines it…

Pants Crappingly Awesome Content

• Content that stands out
• Readers Can’t stop reading it
• Takes serious man hours to create
• Extremely well written
• Great looking
• Immediately vote and IM friends about it.

Gregg then goes into some detail about the Do’s & Don’ts of Creating Content…

Do’s

• Be comprehensive. Make sure your content is inclusive.
• Be consumable - Make it so the reader doesn’t have to read every word for them to understand it.
• Be Relevant - Make sure your message is on point, content "fits" on your site.
• Be Niche - Quality targeted content is better than average general content.
• Be Thorough - Make sure all spelling / grammar is on point. Take the time to do it right.
• Be Supportive - Provide detailed media, link to sources when necessary.
• Be Attractive - Take the time to use well designed images.

Don’t

• Don’t be overly linkbaity - Users can see when you are trying too hard.
• Don’t be sloppy - Check with others on spelling & grammar.
• Don’t be greedy - Keeps ads minimal & make sure pop-ups are non existent

So, as you can see the "Creating Content for Social Media" session was a huge success. The speakers rocked. And, the information I got out of it was amazing. Wait until you hear about the other sessions…. the rest of the Social Media Sessions at IM Spring Break were just as good as this one!!

Posted in Conferences, SEM, Social Media, Social Media Marketing, Social Networking, Tips and Tutorials, Web 2.0 | 1 Comment »

Chris Winfield Rocked the IM Spring Break Opening Keynote

It is Day 1 of IM Spring Break here in beautiful Deerfield Beach, Florida. And, Dave Snyder, Loren Baker and Jordan Kasteler have an entertaining and educational day planned out for us. Day 1 of IM Spring Break is dedicated to Social Media…. which I am totally excited about.

First off was Chris Winfield’s Keynote. Chris is the President and Co-Founder of 10e20. His Keynote was absolutely the perfect way to open up Day 1 of IM Spring Break. Chris spoke about Social Media in Business brilliantly…. I love how passionate and excited it was to speak about it…. Totally motivating. It was awesome to hear him speak.

Chris began his keynote by announcing that Social Media Marketing in Business is way more than just Facebook and Twitter.

Social Media is one big conversation.

Now, this is when Chris gets into the true nitty gritty of Social Media Marketing in Business. He begins talking about the question that many of us as Social Media Marketers have heard asked hundreds of times….

Why would a Business Want to get involved in Social Media?

A business should get involved in Social Media for a number of reasons. Such as,

• achieve recognition with a wider audience
• create/ improve reputation
• enhance credibility
• attract evangelists
• public relations
• link attraction
• traffic

Ok, so now we know why businesses should get involved in Social Media. But then what? What types of Social Media should Businesses get involved in?

No worries… Chris covered that as well. And, in great detail.

Types of Social Media Businesses should get involved in

1. Blogs
2. MicroBlogs (Twitter)
3. Social Networking
   • Myspace
   • Facebook - Facebook Ads & Facebook Pages
   • Niche Social Networks
4. Online Videos (YouTube)
5. Forums & Groups
6. Photo Sharing - (flickr & photobucket)
7. Yahoo Answers
8. Online Review
9. Wiki’s
10. Social News and Bookmarking Sites

Even after going into great detail on all of that Chris then went into making sure people know who you / your business are.

Let people know where you are

• Have your social links in your email signature
• Include your social networks on mailing lists
• On the business web site make sure you have links to where people can locate you online…. your other social networks / profiles.

Chris then goes into how to build up a network of people online.

How to build up a network of people

• Check their website - many websites list where you can find them on other social networks.
• Go to digg & other social sites’ profile page and see if they list their other social networks there
• on social sites there is usually a way to direct message them
• go to conferences and talk to them and find out how to connect with them.

Chris finishes his keynote by reminding us that, "Social Media is opportunity for you!!!"

Posted in Conferences, Social Bookmarking, Social Media, Social Media Marketing, Social Networking | 3 Comments »