Yearly Archives: 2009
Internet Marketing Ian Lurie30 Jul, 2009
The End of SEO
HAH. Bet THAT got your attention. No, I’m not actually saying SEO is dying, or SEO is going away, or that SEOs are crooks. I’m an SEO. Some of my best friends are SEOs… But the definition of SEO is changing. The latest YaBing news will probably accelerate that change. And when the dust settles,… Read More
Featured Ian Lurie29 Jul, 2009
SEO 101: What’s a Title Tag?
I’m spending today trying not to spontaneously combust. Assuming I don’t vanish with a puff of smoke and a FOOMP, this will be a quick primer on title tags. In case you don’t know: In web terms, the ‘title tag’ is a hidden bit of code on your page. It’s typically visible to the public… Read More
Random Ian Lurie29 Jul, 2009
This post is not about the Yahoo/Microsoft Merger
’nuff said.
Elizabeth Marsten27 Jul, 2009
Simplify PPC Reports
After attending a Stratigent workshop with Jennifer Vessenmeyer called “Pimp your Reports” it got me thinking about PPC reporting and how I could be “pimping” my own reports. I don’t mean throwing so much data together that no one will ever read it like a house bill nor exporting something out of AdWords and handing… Read More
Portent Staff24 Jul, 2009
Google Suggest Links – A New Upgrade
Like every morning, I began today with a sane dose of looking around my iGoogle dashboard, checking email, reading important news, and consuming my Calvin and Hobbes comic of the day. What grabbed my unexpecting eyes was the iGoogle search box. This is an important feature. It gives me quick access to all things Google.… Read More
Tom Schmitz23 Jul, 2009
Where is Your Social Media Marketing Headquarters?
This post is about the nature of social media. The premise is simple. Your social media marketing needs a centralized location, a headquarters. Notice I did not write that you should centralize your efforts. That would be too much like those classic cartoon scenes in which the characters disappear behind skinny trees. When you hang-out… Read More
Featured Ian Lurie23 Jul, 2009
1 Keyword Metric You’re Forgetting: True competition
In keyword research, we all start with the standards: Google’s keyword tool, Wordze or Wordtracker or Trellian, and maybe Bing’s keyword research tool. It’s a mistake If you build your keyword list based purely on objective numbers, you’re going to fail. A lot. You’re forgetting one critical factor: True competition. You must measure true competition… Read More
Featured Ian Lurie21 Jul, 2009
10 Questions to Evaluate a Social Media ‘Expert’
If you know more than 5 people, chances are you now know someone who declares themselves a social media expert. How can you tell if someone’s claim of expertise is legit? Here’s my quick quiz. Ask each question and take the appropriate action: 1: Do you have a blog? If the expert answers ‘no’, that… Read More
Ian Lurie20 Jul, 2009
A little much-needed perspective
Featured Ian Lurie16 Jul, 2009
10 Ways Internet Marketing is Like World of Warcraft
Meet Dappa. He’s my World of Warcraft (WoW) character. He’s sadly neglected these days, but I’ve played World of Warcraft a fair bit, and notice some startling similarities to internet marketing: It’s very hard to walk away I’m not one of those guys who has to wear adult diapers because I spent 12 hours welded… Read More
Ian Lurie15 Jul, 2009
Sites Where I Learn Stuff
I have a few sites I go to day-in and day-out. They’re well-written, informative as heck, and a great source of inspiration. Here they are: Smashing Magazine. No surprise. The folks at Smashing Magazine publish one great, inspirational post after another. If you’re a designer, developer or web marketer you want to subscribe and check… Read More
Featured Ian Lurie14 Jul, 2009
3 Ways to Measure Social Media ROI
It’s very, very hard to measure social media in a way that credits it with all the great stuff it can do for an organization. Sure, you can measure clicks from each social media outlet, and measure conversions from those clicks. But that’s a tiny, tiny sliver of the real story. Here are three metrics… Read More
Featured Ian Lurie13 Jul, 2009
Headline Writing 101: Taught by TechCrunch
I’ve written about headlines before: A good headline can vitalize your entire page. A bad headline puts your page in a coma. Then there are the headlines that chop your page into small, bloody, fist-sized chunks and throw them into the ocean for hungry sharks to peck at. And that, everyone, is what we’re going… Read More
Ian Lurie9 Jul, 2009
9 Twitter Myths That Make Me Unfollow
More hyped than Barack Obama, less understood than quantum mechanics… It’s Twitter, folks! (applause) I’m here to dispel a few myths. There are lots of other Twitter mythbusting posts out there, so I decided to put my own spin on it. If you buy into any of these myths, and demonstrate by inflicting your beliefs… Read More
Internet Marketing Ian Lurie8 Jul, 2009
SyFy? Sigh Fie? Cy Figh? ‘Branding’ Gone Wrong
I’m no branding expert but the SciFi Channel’s new brand feels to me like rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. After she hit bottom. When will CMOs understand that branding is not your name, or your logo? If you’re a channel on my television, then your brand is your programming. When you go from FireFly… Read More