I’ve Renewed My Nerd Certification - I’m Officially On Facebook and Twitter

August 5th, 2008

I think I feel sick right now. It’s 11:39 p.m., on a Tuesday night. My cat is nudging me sleepily, occasionally walking on my keyboard, and trying to petition me to come to bed. I’m in need of some water, ice cold water, I think. On advice from a vendor and former OSU student of mine, I’ve signed up with Twitter. In relation to another OSU student of mine, I’ve signed up with Facebook.

Yes, you can now officially follow me and receive updates via the Web, email and yes, even your phone in the event you have nothing else better to do via this address: www.twitter.com/bizresearchlmt . In the event I get some crazy stalkers, I can always opt out of the public system, and go for locked updates to those I approve.

I have noted in the past month that all of my speaker colleagues who are leaders in the search marketing industry are well populated in Facebook. How many friends can you get? Second, do you really want to have all of your “friends” and “family” in your professional Facebook profile? Likely, not, right? mySpace is apparently working on this issue, so you can segment, but surely Facebook will catch on, so you don’t have to create three separate profiles, but instead could “segment” your profile access to various audience members.

As a result of pregnancy, I’ve become a true insomniac unable to fall asleep until well after Craig Fergusen, or if I do, I’m up by 4 a.m. A very productive use of your insomnia is to work on your Facebook profile, and/or your Twitter updates in the event people have forgotten about you in recent days, weeks or months. I’m now more connected to my colleagues than ever, and to a few friends that I want to be this connected with. I’ve decided that this is the real reason that Starbucks sales are down, not the economy or producing stores with more efficient sales and revenue. It’s really that we no longer need to get together for coffee to catch up, because we’re all texting and sending SMS messages via our devices, to the Web, and getting updates in various formats (Web, email and text).

I don’t know about you, but I need human contact. I also need to be away from various connectivity devices at times, to disconnect 100%, shut down completely and focus on the simple things in life, like a dog walk, with a stray cat named Bentley following me as of lately.

I need to talk to my neighbors, and leave the cell phone at home. I need to get together with my clients, in person, and understand their business better. But in the meantime, I’m now 21st century, 2008 ready, and am connected to colleagues of mine via Facebook and Twitter. I will say this, I’m updated on their status, colleagues are checking in with me moreso, and leads are increasing.

So, get connected on both applications, up your learning curve (c’mon you know it’s been a while since you learned anything), set up your mobile devices to send notice updates to the Web, and turn off your television set. You’re sick of those advertisements for McCain and Obama anyway. And it’s repeat season pretty much otherwise. You can say you know one more tool, or two in this case. One more way we can all stay connected in this crazy world, and one less way we can stay productive potentially. But if you do listen to the news, Twitter and Facebook are making national news on the way to develop your business and stay connected.

I’m in need of some water, and Larry King is not to be missed tonight. Keeping humor intact - I’m done online for the day and night!

Posted in Blogging. No Comments »

 

Not on Facebook? LinkedIn? Twitter? Why You Should Be

August 2nd, 2008

The value of business networking through social networking - today’s way of getting and staying connected
by Laura Thieme

I’ve been on LinkedIn for a while, and have encouraged employees and colleagues to be on LinkedIn. One of my recent favorite things about LinkedIn, is if you post a job ad, you can see how connected a candidate is - and this could influence your interest or hiring decision in some way. There is extreme value in networking, and the latest form of that is in social networking.

As many of you know, I’ve elected to become a single parent by choice (for more details, see www.laurathieme.com). I’m used to jet-setting around the world to speak at conferences, and take care of clients and build relationships in a more traditional sense. Now that I’m pregnant, it’s not as easy to jet-set. Once I have my daughter, Melina, it will be even harder to do this without advance preparation.

I was feeling a bit disconnected as I’ve already missed one SES conference, this year’s NY SES conference. I’ve spoken at every single domestic Search Engine Strategies conference since December of 2001. That’s three a year, for seven years, or 21 conferences, and at least 10 international conferences - so over 30 conferences in seven years. I’ve also spoken at numerous vertical conferences, including the Inner Circle of Advocates, where I crossed the stage with previous presidential candidate John Edwards, the Direct Marketing Association’s conference, as well as a couple of Shop.org events.

Emails are kinda crazy - phone calls - people’s schedules are nutty - but the most recent way to stay connected with my speaker colleagues, believe it or not, is not LinkedIn, but is Facebook. I joined Facebook (see Laura Thieme Facebook Profile) a few weeks ago, and can’t believe the social networking value. My colleagues are on there - we’re editing our “status” on a near-daily or weekly basis, and keeping in touch. Some speaker friends, or exhibitors that I’ve gotten to know over the years - they’re all on Facebook.

So, the next question that comes up - do you put your personal and professional Facebook friends in one profile? I say no, personally, to this. I think some friends who can cross over in both professional and personal realms are very special, however, I’m not sure that I’d have everyone in my professional network. After all, I’ve built that for years with much investment speaking and attending over 30+ conferences. Not anyone can get into my network, although some do try despite my refusal to let them in.

Sounds kinda egotistical, right? Yes, I can be at times, but I’ve worked hard to build my social network, and that includes speaking events, in recent years - blogging, and being present at many notable events in our industry. It also entails leadership, and setting the pace, or the trend in many ways, that others hope to follow. So, if you’re not on Facebook, and you’re looking for a job, or looking to connect with like-minded professionals, you should be using it to increase your network.

A close colleague of mine, Lee Odden of TopRank surveyed people to ask them which social networking tool is most effective for their business. I voted for Facebook, most recently as it’s brought about some new lead sources from colleagues, however, if given the chance for second priority - I would have chosen the winning social network, for business, and that’s LinkedIn. I prefer it for job hunting responsibilities, recruiting, if you will, as a business owner.

You say, you don’t have time, for Facebook. I know, I know. The only reason I probably have accomplished this, is because I have some insomnia while pregnant, and have often gotten up at 4 or 5 A.M. and have chosen that time to add to my profile, including pictures, plug-ins, etc. I’ve looked for my speaker colleagues and have sent out friend requests, etc. In three weeks, I’ve gone from zero friends to 51, 98% of whom are speakers in the search engine marketing industry.

The last question - do you put your clients on the Facebook profile? I say be careful here - as your speaker colleagues are also your dear competitors and some would encroach without hesitation. Most would not, but some would, so be careful.

Facebook profiles are lastly, another way to fill up that real estate in Google’s organic listings. If you search for Laura Thieme on Google, you’ll see that the Facebook profile is reaching into the top ten, or first page organic listings. Give it another couple of weeks, and it’s likely to be on the first page. My LinkedIn profile is also there.

If you’re a speaker, or an author, or any public persona - this is a must-have. If you’re wanting to create any of the above, as a public persona - you also need to get started on this.

If you need help creating your Facebook profile, or a social network to help you promote your business, or public persona, contact Bizresearch today.

Posted in Blogging. No Comments »

 

Sleepless in Columbus

July 16th, 2008

by Laura Thieme

I don’t know which problem is worse, having insomnia (which has seemingly developed since I became pregnant), or trying to fight insomnia with logging onto the Internet and not being able to connect for an hour.

Let me affirm a few things:

I love Vista (just kidding)

I am ready to scream - but it’s in the middle of the night and that could concern a few neighbors of mine

I am so frustrated - but so you’ve seen the Vista ads on TV and know why

A few days ago, my Verizon Broadband wireless card stopped working - brand new. It wants me to log on to the system and send my complaint only I can’t log on. It seems to no longer recognize my password. The automatic email support doesn’t work either through Verizon - they’re like, “HUH?”

Time Warner “cabled” access stopped working as the second resort - but don’t worry - as you can see at 4:06 a.m. EST it’s now working, and I can now vent.

Okay, deep breath - again - okay, I’m fine now. The satisfaction of being connected.

Perhaps the real reason I have insomnia is I’m trying to sell my house in a bad market - oh - I’ll have to vent more about this on www.laurathieme.com in the coming days. But the basics are this - My condo has been on the market for about six months. It’s priced not to profit, but to sell - until you see the other recent sellers who have caved in this market - maybe have their stainless steel and granite - and are willing to lose $10k or more in a bad market - in other words - completely lose any equity they might have gained in a condo market in a few years. My immediate neighbor lost every penny they had in the condo they sold - they sold for less than they bought - and had $23k in closing costs - took every penny they had out of savings to sell - no real strong equity built up in two years. I am not opting for that solution, but yet I am compared to the recent house that sold in my neighborhood.

For those of you who remember, “it’s the economy, stupid” -
It's the Economy Stupid - made famous during 1992 election campaign - Clinton and Carville

I met for 2.5 hours with a new realtor tonight - smart person, creative - etc. But the realtor wants 7% or, 6% and upgrade my stove and dishwasher to stainless steel to match the new fridge on already what is a losing proposition. We all want HDTV Designed to Sell looking interiors but we don’t want to pay for it anymore. Realtors want and still get their percentages, sometimes more than 6%, and yet, they want us to lower the price again, and again, and again. Because that’s what a neighbor did - they might not have had the choice either.

In a nutshell, that’s a concern about our society today. We want Electrolux style, but we don’t want to pay for it anymore - and yet, are we not concerned by today’s news?

Bank failure

The sad thing is that in order to compete, some will in fact cave to the consumer’s constant demands. Even though the seller is unable to make money, or perhaps even stay in business for long if they persist with this attitude. But those are the ones that are failing in today’s business market - is IndyMac not enough of a headline for you? Scary, right?

Good marketing in today’s economy is creative, aggressive, and perhaps not as highly profitable - but yes, it still MUST BE profitable. And in my world of search marketing, you spend time on what pays you a return on investment, a profitable return on investment. You make smart decisions, spend wisely, and invest in the future. Somehow this does not apply to today’s real estate market.

I was watching the news coverage on the IndyMac, FreddyMac, and FannieMae mortgage crisis and bank failure. One commentary on CNN was blaming everything on Bush - like it’s Bush’s fault (I’m not a Bush fan right now and haven’t been for a while but give the guy a break on this one) that mortgage banks wanted the business and loaned a consumer $400,000 for a house that they couldn’t afford. Consumer defaults on loan eventually add up - and banks are going to fail if they continue to sell this way - and somehow this is Bush’s fault? I don’t think so. I don’t want gov’t reg on everything - I want smart business decisions to exist in today’s world.

IndyMac
We’re such a consumer society - we buy, and buy and buy. We rarely invest or save - I’m speaking in general terms not those of you who are the exceptions, or those of you who I personally know whom have profited from the search marketing industry and have invested wisely.

Bizresearch has offered 401(k) savings and matching, and yet less than 10% of our employees have chosen to take advantage of this, despite being above market salaried and bonused at the end of the year. I have colleagues whose larger search marketing companies do not offer end of year Christmas bonuses, nor 401(k)s. Getting someone to put away $200 a paycheck, or even $50 is like pulling teeth. We’d rather have a large screen TV, right? Again, the average person here - not the exceptions of you - trying not to offend too many people here.

We want the stainless steel appliances, the nice cars, the big SUVs aka the gas hogs, the logo fashion apparel, the eating out lifestyle, and much more. Has $4.15 a gallon really caused us to lessen the amount of driving we do, yet? $15 gets my little SUV (Toyota Rav4) a breath of gas at this point. It’s a joke to spend less than $60 at the gas We consume, and save not. We demand and yet what do we expect to pay for those demands? Not as much as it’s worth in today’s economy.

I’m personally troubled by today’s economy, the real estate market, the elections, and American society’s expectations (i.e., the average person’s expectations), and the simultaneous desire to work less in today’s younger generation (i.e., the average younger person’s work ethic). So, is this what keeps me up tonight? My mind leads in this direction because it’s what I can write about, right?

Otherwise, it’s due to a growing headache, pregnancy at five months, difficulty connecting to the Web, and my initial interest in checking in on an Omniture project because I couldn’t sleep. But that objective changed when I was unable to connect to the Web in a timely fashion on less than one hour, due to Vista indecisiveness. Perhaps I should wait to figure out Omniture’s custom reports in a few hours.

I think I need to go to Yoga, and light some candles, what do you think? ;-)

I hope all of you are sleeping peacefully right now, in all U.S. time zones, other than the UK and further beyond that.

And perhaps you have a different mindset on the future and current real estate market, gas prices, energy crisis, and consumerist society - and elections - yes? Perhaps you’re one of the few that believes ‘change’ is ahead with Obama? or McCain? You should watch the new JibJab animation (was shown on last night’s Jay Leno show) - rather long but very good.

I’d love to hear your thoughts - and whether or not you dare to share the economy’s effect on search marketing and the client expectations? Any relation to one another? I see many who say in certain posts that search marketing is not affected. Is that really true? No changes or impact - or are we afraid to say anything negative in any way?

Ciao for now.

Posted in Blogging. No Comments »

 

Search Marketing 101: The Beginning

July 6th, 2008

by Laura Thieme

In 11 years+ of business, I’ve learned so much. If it hadn’t been for eating poppy seed bread in 1996, and losing my job as a result, I probably would not have started a company to provide international market research a year later. Many of you know that story, however, here’s a quick recap.

I was working for American Electric Power (AEP), www.aep.com, in 1995. I started as an Internet research assistant, and spent hours creating databases for the economic development department. I often visited the North Market, a nearby farmers’ market, where I frequently purchased Highlands bread, which would later cause me to lose my job at AEP. I did get my job back, after a week of meetings and other events, and learned that not everything in black and white was believable or correctly interpreted. I learned a lot about human nature. I learned the value of fighting for what you believed in. While I got my job back, my reputation was pretty much ruined. I lost my job again in less than a year. I had also suffered a torn ACL from a skiing accident at the end of 1996, which was the beginning of an eight-month recovery ordeal. I would have physical therapy three times a week, which is brutal to say the least. Your body does wierd things under that much stress. An incident occurred one night late at work, around 8 or 9 at night. I was working - no one was there - as was often the case. The days before you had the luxury of a laptop to take home. Something happened to my body that I couldn’t explain. I knew something was wrong. I was soon tested for Multiple Sclerosis (MS), thankfully which turned out to be negative. I’ve since been tested again, which was negative thankfully. Nasty disease. Fast forward to June 1997, less than a month after a very successful public speaking engagement at the Ohio Development Association (ODA) annual meeting, I lost my job again. I had consulting job offers. I had a teaching position offer. Everything seemed to be going great. I was even asked to go to India, with AEP’s dereg group. But then things started to take a turn quickly - within a couple of weeks. No matter what I did to prove my value - I could see that someone in particular wanted me gone at AEP. I anticipated it - I saw the warning signs - but I was determined to do the right thing, and show my value to the last minute with a smile. I was just not meant to be at AEP. I started my company on June 4, 1997. I landed my first research project in September 1997.

In November of 1997, I offered a seminar showing local business owners how to use the Internet search engines for research. I had put together a very simple website over a weekend, and metatagged it, and submitted it to the search engines. Within days, I had top rankings for keywords related to my services. I wanted to demonstrate to the business owners how marketers can affect the way we do research. Attendees were far more interested in how I got my website to the top of the search engines. Within six months, in May of 1998, I was offering the search marketing service to business owners.

The days of metatags and search engine submission services as a form of search engine marketing are long over. In fact, not since 2000, has that been a viable search marketing service on its own. In that year, I noticed that retailers were becoming more interested in return on investment, notably small businesses. I began to find that search marketing tools, called web analytics tools, were as valuable if not moreso than tracking a site’s keyword visibility. If you could prove traffic resulted from visibility, that was a measure of success. If you could prove sales resulted, that was another form of success. If you could prove that acquisition costs were acceptable, as well as customer lifetime value (CLV), that was the ultimate success.

Imagine that when I began in this industry, Google did not even exist. There is not a day that I pick up the NYT, or WSJ (which is not everyday mind you), that Google is not in the news. It’s recent story headline - about how much employees have to pay for daycare/childcare. 19,000 or more employees. There is a Google campus, much like you might find at major corporations. 19,000 - AEP had 22,000 when I worked for them downtown. Imagine that type of growth in just 10 years. Imagine the management challenges…. whew!

This industry as matured greatly in the past 11 years. It’s been referred to as a cottage industry, with jargon such as SEO, search engine optimization, website marketing, search marketing, PPC or CPC bid management, web analytics and voodoo amongst many other words.
However, one thing is for sure, if you know search marketing, you remain valuable and it could get you through a tough economy. It got me through 9/11, the dot-com failures, and today’s current economy. Major companies have risen to the top of the industry, many of whom have been acquired. Few search marketing companies have failed, that were notable to begin with. Search engines have failed faster. But companies that know how to utilize search for marketing purposes have not failed as easily.

I’ll be compiling the basics to the advanced of today’s search marketing in the coming weeks here online. If you want to subscribe, to the feed, click on the RSS feed link to the right. I’ll be focusing on what you really need to know when it comes to all those search marketing and analytics tools. I’ll be focusing on the executive perspective, above all else, because we all know your time is limited. What is you really need to know?

How to increase sales at a profit? What information should you be paying attention to? That’s what I’ll be writing about in the coming weeks and months.

Posted in Uncategorized. No Comments »

 

Women in Search Marketing - Great Blog Post Compilation

July 5th, 2008

Bizresearch’s Laura Thieme (c’est moi) gets a top ranked mention in 100 Blogs About & By Women. We’re in the top two listed, okay it’s alphabetical, out of 19 Women in Search Ranked Blogs, on a page of 100 blogs by and about women. An exhaustive compilation of blogs and a detailed excerpt of what’s good about those blogs. They even included that we have guest writers (indeed, and often OSU students when I teach, or employees, or contractors), and that we let them post about their pets (hee hee). That’s because we can probably all talk about our favorite pet, right? That is, if you’re nice enough to own one.

We were also included in the list because I keep an active blog. Well, active is relative - depends on your perspective, right? I blog as often as I feel like it, and as often as I have something to say or contribute. I also blog at www.laurathieme.com - on the personal side - which rarely references to much about search marketing but talks about other things near and dear to my heart. How often should you blog?

That’s something that people ask me frequently - how often should I blog? Here’s my answer on that: Blog when you have something to talk about - or when an event occurs - or when the news affects your industry or your company - or when you’re having to deal with a repeated customer service issue, or problem in your business. If you have to keep telling people the same thing, over and over, write a blog, or blog series about the topic. Then use email marketing programs, to cross-reference and promote the blog series. There’s a blog mention about when not to blog, and I’ve commented here.

Between my corporate and personal blogs, I typically blog in either place about once a week, unless I’m buried by something going on in business world, or teaching at OSU, or dealing with first-trimester pregnancy or feeling a little less motivated to pontificate. When that happens, I try to get guest bloggers such as the OSU students, or an employee, to write about something that they are passionate about. I’ve noticed these women mentioned below, do the same thing. They apologize when they haven’t blogged in a while. They occasionally reference how often they blog, or not, in their posts but all contribute something worth sharing, something worth passing on to each of you.

Some of my favorites on Jimmy’s top 100 women in blog compilation:

SEO Chicks - Lisa Ditlefsen -

Sugarrae - a little profane but I like her edginess and her slogan - never mess with a woman who can pull rank (search engine rankings that is).

The Link Spiel - a link expert, Debra Mastaler

Vanessa Fox, a former Googler and frequent speaker at SES, SMX, etc.

Barb Coll - WebMama

Anita Chaperon - Are You an Original?

Big Green Purpose - You Go Girl! Diane MacEachern

In Women We Trust - Mary Clare Hunt

LipSticking - Yvonne Divita

WonderBranding - Marketing to Women

What I enjoy most about these women’s blogs - they think, they write, and they are active at something they enjoy! They are doing something, contributing something, and making a difference. Active minds that contribute to society in some meaningful way - that’s what makes a great blogger.

Okay, it’s 7:13 a.m. on Saturday morning. I have been up for two hours, walked my dog, eaten breakfast (my first breakfast and not likely my last today as I’m nearing 5 months pregnancy), and am about to dose off again. I’ve got laundry projects (YUCK), gardening projects (YAY) and work-related projects (SOMEWHAT YAY - OKAY NOT ON A SATURDAY IS IT EVER REALLY YAY) to accomplish today, and of course, a nap (YUMMY) somewhere in between.

My goal today is to make sure my cat, Monroe, doesn’t escape to hide in the basement rafters. I think I’ve taken down his stairwell to asbestos heaven. A pregnant lady climbing up on stools and chairs to get her cat down from the rafters is getting a little bit much on a daily basis. You might think if a cat can get up there, it surely can get down, right? Not!

Monroe Cat - Scaredy Cat - Hiding

Go do something mind-worthy today and then write about it! Take your dog for a walk, nuzzle your kitty cats, and enjoy your freedom. And take in some fireworks somewhere - geez - act like you’re proud to be an American.

Posted in Blogging. No Comments »

 

More on OSU Search Marketing Students of Marketing 754

June 15th, 2008

More on the Series of Search Marketing Student Blogs - Marketing 754 (Principles of Electronic Marketing 754)
by Laura Thieme

Without a doubt, in the two years I’ve taught search marketing at Ohio State in the Fisher College of Business - there are some students who truly excel in search marketing and web analytics. They are the type of students that within time they prove they are hard workers, incredibly smart, and determined to learn above all else. A’s mean a lot to them in some cases, but above all else, they want to do well at everything they do.

I’ve enjoyed working with some of the students who ask to meet with me, come to my office, and work to improve their practical knowledge of search engine marketing and web analytics. The challenge for those of us who have expressed interest in recruiting students from Ohio State’s search marketing course include the following:

1) Despite how good they might be, are they interested in search engine marketing?
2) Do they know what they want to be, when they grow up yet? And is search marketing at the top of their list?
3) Are they strong creatives, but not great analysts?
4) Can the strong analysts understand the value of working with the strong creatives?
5) Will they work longer in one position than six months, the average tenure of the job-hopper in today’s younger generation?

Questions to answer for those who come to me from major companies and want to recruit:

1) Who can I hire, who would you recommend?
Answer: About 5% of the class may want to go into search engine marketing. That means you need to invest in recruiting at OSU well in advance of the course. Don’t wait until the course runs in Spring, as you may be too late to hire the students. They may already have good jobs lined up.
2) Where can I post my jobs, or recruit?
Answer: Through Career Fairs, and the Fisher Job Board. You might also want to read OSU Fisher College of Business Recruiter FAQs.

I’m having problems posting a job right now on the Job Board - so as soon as I can add more insightful info about the process of posting a job and upcoming job fairs - I will update this blog post.

Posted in Ohio State University Fisher College of Business. No Comments »

 

OSU Students Weigh in On Search Marketing 754 (Principles of Electronic Marketing)

June 13th, 2008

Ohio State (OSU) Students Weigh in On the Challenges of Using Web Analytics for Search Engine Marketing
by Laura Thieme

As you’ll see the blog posts below, several of the OSU students taking my course on Search Engine Marketing & Analytics struggled with web analytics. I noticed a big difference this year in the students. The biggest challenge was learning nine tools: NetTracker (the old fashioned log file analysis software), Google Analytics, WordTracker, Google Adwords, Flickr, Wordpress blog software, WebPosition ranking software, Bizresearch’s Bizwatch, and improving their Excel and Powerpoint skills.

If search marketers counted the tools they have to use on a near weekly basis, they might be surprised to learn they are using over 38 technology tools to do their job. That’s a problem in itself. However, the ability to learn technology tools and adapt to an ever-changing tool industry at an uber-hyper pace is crucial. Knowledge of these tools makes you as an employee far more valuable. Rarely do employers train on all of these tools, thus there is an employment requirement to easily and efficiently adapt to new tech tools as they come out on the market. If you think you’re going to get training on how to use Wordpress, or Flickr, or WebPosition in your first week on the job - that’s unlikely. You might get training on a company’s proprietary tool that they own - but unlikely they’ll train on every new tool that is introduced on the market. If anything, they’ll be looking to you kiddo, to figure it out and quick!

Why is web analytics so hard for search marketing students at OSU? For one, they’ve never had a course anything like this in business school. This is taught at Fisher College of Business, it is not taught at the multimedia school of design or some similar curriculum. I’m also not an easy professor. I don’t grade on a “curve” basis. I don’t do multiple choice until the final exam, and only select questions are multiple choice. I don’t like multiple choice as a professor - you like to guess, and if you had a review session the way students want these days - you get the answers in your review session. Short answer is best. You either know web analytics and search marketing or you don’t. Essays - people bull-shit too much.

One more professional opinion - it’s amazing how cocky some kids can be these days. I watched a 60 Minutes episode a few weeks ago about hiring and retaining today’s younger generation (the younger 20-somethings) - today’s student is likely to walk up to the professor with cell phone in hand and request they talk to their mother about that C you gave them on the mid-term. I had a few students go to the chairperson because they didn’t like their mid-term grades, and they thought I should be more lenient. One student told me he clearly got the “gist” of it all, so isn’t that enough? He asked me six times to change his grade. Six times! I later learned that is actually considered “stalking a professor” and not ethically permitted. Good to know!

Another student actually contacted a client of mine in a spiteful way because he was upset about his mid-term. I caught him in the act, and we are now going through Judicial Affairs and Academic Misconduct. This is not what I want to do teach search marketers how to be better at this topic - at the 20-something or 30-something business school level. I want to teach however, not put up with 5-year olds. I know teachers who do this, and they are to be admired, respected and honored at the highest level. Not all college students are like this type of person mentioned above, just about 10% of the class and that’s enough to make you wonder why you’re taking the time out of your business day at a high consulting rate to teach 21-25 year olds. Perhaps the business level course at a master’s level is better? I’m talking to OSU about offering such a course, perhaps an executive level MBA course on the evenings and weekends where direct application is strongly desired and college course credit is available.

I admit I’m a tough professor, but I want the students to learn more in my class that they can apply to the real world than most any other course they’ve ever taken in a business school. Theory is great - but practical experience where you log in and view, report, and possibly strategize on various ad accounts is best for truly learning topics that can be used in a job. My reputation is on the line, and I don’t want companies who are already recruiting from my class to get students who understand search marketing concepts but have no clue on how to engage in search engine marketing.

Students who check emails during the two hour computer lab, sit in the back of the classroom, or do not engage in frequent correspondence with the professor and course material are likely to really struggle. But those students who really worked at it, improved significantly by the end of the 10 week 4-credit hour challenge 754-level course. I used most of their blog posts below, and will continue to post a few others in the OSU section over the summer.

Having taught search engine marketing at the college/university level at the business school for two years now, with approximately 60 students, I have seen what works and doesn’t. Today’s students expect you to give them Powerpoint notes, review sessions of what’s going to be on the text (like the specific questions not the topics), constant access to you via email, and by phone when possible. They think if you don’t do this, they won’t get an A, and then a few might take their complaints all the way to the head of the department. Strangely enough, they are some of the same students not paying attention in course, and rarely doing a good job on their homework. Plainly, bluntly put - if you’re lazy - don’t get into search engine marketing or web analytics. If you’re really smart, a little geeked up on technology and are fascinated with learning new things, often teaching yourself - if you watch the news a lot, if you pay attention to trends big and small - and you’re fascinated with the Web - you’re probably going to be interested with this - but not necessarily good at it. Ah - but you know what they say - practice makes perfect - years of practice makes better is more like it.

I’d like to hear from you if you’ve taken a college level search engine marketing course, or if you’ve taught at the college level, undergrad or MBA. What has your experience been like?

Posted in Ohio State University Fisher College of Business, Web Analytics. No Comments »

 

Search Marketing, Why So Much Work?

May 29th, 2008

crimsoncup logoSearch Marketing, Why So Much Work?

By: Dan Gruenberg

OSU MKTG 754 Student

Guest Blog Post

One of the things I pride myself on is my work ethic.  I do not slack off and put forth the effort on any project, well except for when senioritis hits of course.  That is a completely different story though and luckily it has not hit yet.  It is a good thing because the amount of work in this class has shocked me.  To be completely honest, when I came into this class, I expected it to be a breeze.  My exact words went something like this: “What?  Marketing over the internet?  That sounds awesome.  Is that actually a class?  It sounds like an easy A.”  Then I walked into class (jaw drops). 

I was expecting to do landing pages and such but the amount of work that deals with various statistics bizresearch pagewhen determining conversions and impressions was something completely unexpected.  What I thought I knew turned out to not even touch the surface of the material taught in Marketing 754.  From analyzing real campaigns, looking at Crimsoncup and Bizresearch, I have learned so many things.  As great as that is, the amount of work has taken up all of my time, where I have been unable to even get to some of my other classes.  When I came into this class, I thought it would be my easiest, but it has turned out to be my hardest by far.  The amount of work that it takes to be a search marketer is completely overwhelming.  I came in thinking this might be a “fun” job to have; now, I think that I was completely wrong in that assessment.  It does have its perks: making a difference in someone’s company.  Other than that, you really do lose hours of your life. 

So how much time does search marketing leave you in the end?  Relaxing time?  Don’t even think about it.  Going out with friends?  Yeah right!  Notice the sarcasm.  Sleep?  Maybe.  Just don’t get used to it.  From one quarter, I feel incredibly stressed out and I can’t even imagine doing this for your permanent job.  One of the reasons is that I would have a hard time dealing with clients that just simply do not understand what it takes to do that job.  They would not appreciate the work that is being done and would have no clue on the effort that is being put forth.  This class was a great lesson on the tools needed but showed me one thing: search marketing is something I definitely don’t want to get myself into.  For those able to do it, great job!  It takes a lot of courage to be successful when it comes to search marketing.

Posted in Ohio State University Fisher College of Business. No Comments »

 

WARNING: Search Engine Marketing May Cause Anxiety, Headaches or Stress

May 27th, 2008

WARNING: Search Engine Marketing May Cause Anxiety, Headaches or Stress
 
By:Brittany Amato
 
OSUMKTG754Student 
 
Guest Blog Post 
 

Search Engine HeadacheWhen I first signed up for Internet Marketing, I didn’t know what to expect. I figured when I graduated the information I learned from it might actually be helpful in the real world. I also figured it wouldn’t be that difficult. I was in a whirlwind of a surprise when I came to class and Laura started spitting out a foreign language. I never thought that so much went into marketing on the internet, it is on a whole different level then what I have learned in other marketing classes.  The program you will love and hate I think the thing that frustrates me the most about search engine marketing is how inexact it is. There is no book that spells it all out for you. There is so much data that can be collected on programs like GoogleAnalytics but trying to figure out what it all means and how to use it to your advantage is where you loose me. I hear the word “assignment” and know a headache is not to far away. Little Engine that Could There are so many things that can be done to try and improve a website, and sometimes you just need to play around to see what works. You need to have the mentality of the Little Engine that Could, because if you don’t think you can you won’t be able to figure out anything.      �I know that when this class is over I will have gained valuable information and hopefully a good grade. I feel that compared to other classes, I may end up using this information which is kind of exciting. Although I’m still sure the headaches will never go away. �

Posted in Ohio State University Fisher College of Business, Web Analytics. No Comments »

 

For me, SEO…not so

 

For me, SEO…not so

Hattie Dietrich, OSU Mktg 754 Student, Guest Post 

When the time came to choose a marketing elective for my last quarter at OSU, I knew I wanted something different; something more intellectually stimulating than retail management or international business (the other options offered). So, on a whim I enrolled in search engine marketing 754. I was in for a big surprise. Sure enough, the class has proved to be a challenge. The first day I was overwhelmed with new terminology and internet marketing lingo. I had always considered myself computer savvy, but it was clear this class was going to be a learning experience.

          SEO confusion

  The first surprise of the class was finding out how much work was put into advertising on Google and other search engines. Having not really given much thought to the topic, I‘d always assumed that companies paid Google and BAM! - their ad appeared on my computer screen. I was completely ignorant of the bidding process and the campaign settings that effected the advertisements. I also found it amazing how Google’s engineers can develop such complex programs and algorithms that lead the searcher where they want to go.

One frustrating thing about the class so far has been getting through several very dry reading assignments. The text at times is somewhat hard to read and uninteresting. Another frustration is that I consider myself a very active thinker and creative person. A lot of the work surrounding SEO seems very formulaic and is trial and error based. Overall, I’ve realized that as much as SEO and SEO campaign management is a crucial part of any company, I’d prefer not to be the one in charge of it. It’s obvious the importance and impact internet marketing has on the company, however I don’t think I would excel in a career based on managing search engine marketing. However, I am sure that the knowledge I’m gaining from the class will be an asset no matter what field I enter.

Posted in Ohio State University Fisher College of Business. No Comments »

 

« Previous Entries

Subscribe:

 

Categories

 

Archives

 

Pages