Orange County SEO™ Blog

Trending Keywords: One Key to Success

It is difficult, but not impossible, to do some predictive work on trending keywords.  One crucial task is to predict keyword volume, which, according to SEOMoz, you can do before the data appears in AdWords (PPC), Bing, or any other search engine.  Predictive keyword research is an advanced technique, so it pays to learn the tricks of the trade if you want to utilize this technique successfully.

Trending keywords are important for two reasons.  First, internet searches are event-driven; when something happens, there will be an upsurge in interest about that topic.  This can produce large volume for content marketers.  Second, unless you are in the news business, chances are your competitors have not begun to predict what will be trending, so you will have an edge with your marketing and advertising.

Here are a few tips to get you started on your quest to predict keyword volume and popularity.

• Stay on top of things.  Read the latest information in your field on a daily basis.  You cannot predict if you do not know what is currently trending.  Look for interesting facts, figures, or information that comes out of that reading.  What sparks your interest?  Chances are, other people will be interested, too.
• Check out Q&A sites.  There are sites specifically devoted to Q&A such as Quora and Formspring.  These sites will tell you what people are currently asking about.  Look for trends and opportunities that seem to repeat themselves, especially over a wide audience.
• Decide if you are a “longtailer” or a “fat header.”  “Longtail” refers to a high volume of search terms, “fat head” to a few well-chosen ones.  Both strategies have legitimate rationales, but it is important for you to decide which is most appropriate for your audience.  Will your customers be looking for one or two specific phrases, or are there a variety of phrases they might use?  Tailor your keywords to these facts.
• Write relevant content.  No matter how good your keywords, poor content will not generate traffic.  Be sure your content is relevant to both topic and audience.
• Publish and promote your content.  This is not an event, it is a process.  Check constantly for feedback on your performance, and analyze what is working and what is not.  Do not be afraid to change things if they do not give you the results you want.  Continue to monitor Q&A sites to see what people are talking about.  Sometimes predictions on keyword volume sink out of sight without coming to fruition.  This is not a failure but an occupational hazard.  Pick something else and move on.

By following the basics of keyword optimization, you will generate traffic on your website over time. Orange County SEO has learned that learning to predict keyword strategies is a skill that takes time to master, but it can give you a keen competitive edge in a very crowded marketplace and make your website stand out from the crowd consistently—and that translates into a growing body of loyal users.

The Role of Search Marketers in Sales

As a search marketer, you may not have thought about how much control you have over various aspects of your company’s marketing strategy.  Practically, however, you are in the driver’s seat.  You sell your creativity through your use of strategies with one goal in mind—to get more customers into the fold.  The better you are at this, the more credibility you have as a search marketer.  However, you cannot force customers to buy any more than you can force people to read your ads.

Instead, you persuade readers to buy based on the strategies you choose.  You hand off the customer to sales people who receive your product–a customer primed to buy based on what you have shown them.

Understanding your role in the entire sales process is key to doing your job well and having a ROI that stands up to scrutiny. Read More »

The Fancy Is The Newest “Hot Spot”

With a name like The Fancy, the more masculine among us may dismiss this newest hotspot as a “girly” site.  However, it is becoming the latest in a series of amalgamation websites to combine the best of some popular and climbing web interest sites—Pinterest, Love with Food, Groupon, and a host of others.  Best of all, the Fancy combines the best of these sites with a new and easy-to-use look that will draw buyers in and give higher conversion rates than the same bland and boring sites we have come to expect.

comScore’s article on the Fancy focuses on conversion from social media.  Likes are all well and good, but what happens when your likes do not translate into sales?  The Fancy can help you change that by providing that all-elusive marketing gold—a sales opportunity.  If your customers are buying, you are making money, and the Fancy proposes to give them every opportunity to do just that.

Orange County SEO can help you keep up with the latest trends in social media marketing and management by giving you up-to-the minute opportunities to grow your company through strategic marketing. Read More »