Blogstorm

As a Data Analyst with my own blog; naturally, I’m always intrigued to check out some of the keywords that bring people to my site.

Focusing on video games, my blog attracts some pretty random keywords, take a look at this one I found the other day:

So, I decided to check it out for myself. By using the Google image tracking filter AJ Kohn wrote about, I was able to tell this came from image search. So before long, I was searching for photos of ‘pretty emo boys’ to see what image was ranking.

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You can now book your place at Branded3’s next SEO & Digital Seminar in London, encompassing talks from Patrick Altoft, Tim Grice, Branded3’s experts and two guest speakers.

With 10 expert sessions covering the latest advice in SEO & Digital Marketing, our 10 Digital Secrets Seminar on Tuesday 11^th June is guaranteed to equip in-house marketers with the latest tips for successful strategies.

We all know that the click through rate on the search results declines pretty quickly the lower you rank on the page but most of the CTR studies have not really looked at different devices. With the rise of tablets and the fact that by the end of this year there will be around 200m iPads in existance we can’t ignore how Google displays results on these devices.

Have a look at the screenshot below for an average commercial query and notice how Google only shows one full organic result above the fold and just the title of the next one. This screenshot isn’t trimmed down, that’s the full visible screen. I’m sure people scroll on tablets and it’s easy to do that but Google really needs to get a grip of themselves and remember that adverts are not content.

It’s been just over two years now since Panda was unleashed on the UK and it seems that a lot of sites are still struggling to figure out how to recover from the effects of what is perhaps the most important algorithm Google has ever developed.

Panda heralded the start of Google using artificial intelligence to penalise websites that exhibited signals of being a low quality site and is no doubt the first of many similar algorithms that will be run over the years, Penguin being another key one.

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If you’re heading to Internet World next week, be sure to catch our Director of Search Patrick Altoft and Head of Search Tim Grice delivering expert talks on future-proofing search strategies, e-commerce SEO and integrating social media with SEO.

The free event is the largest online and digital conference in the UK, offering an extensive free seminar programme over the three days it runs, boasting talks from some of the country’s best online marketers.

You can find Patrick in the Social Media World Theatre on the first day, Tuesday 23rd April at 1:45pm where he’ll be delivering a talk on using SEO to justify investment in social media channels.

Just a little while later on the same day, head to the Search, Advertising & Affiliate Theatre at 3pm where Patrick will be telling delegates how to future-proof their SEO strategies. This presentation is not to be missed if you’ve been affected by Google’s recent algorithm updates and need advice on how to prepare for the next one.

Fresh from delivering an expert penalty recovery workshop at Brighton SEO, Tim Grice will be presenting in the Search, Advertising & Affiliate Theatre on Wednesday 24th April at 1:30pm.

Tackling the tough issue of SEO for e-commerce websites, Tim will be covering best practice for ensuring online retailers can stay ahead of the game, regardless of the amount of products they sell.

Here’s a summary of where you can find Patrick and Tim talking during the event:

• Tuesday 23rd April, 1:45pm, Social Media World Theatre: Using SEO to Justify Investment in Social Media Channels – Patrick Altoft
• Tuesday 23rd April, 3pm, Search, Advertising & Affiliate Theatre: Future-proofing SEO Strategies – Patrick Altoft
• Wednesday 24th April, 1:30pm, Search, Advertising & Affiliate Theatre: SEO for Ecommerce Websites – Tim Grice

If you can’t make Internet World this year, check out Branded3′s slideshare the week after the event to view Patrick and Tim’s presentation slides and keep an eye on our conferences page for details of where we’re speaking next.

See you there!

The weather forecast is looking good and the brightest and best SEO’s are flocking to the beach this Friday for Brighton SEO – an expert one-day search marketing conference held in, er, Brighton!

Our Digital PR Specialist Laura and myself will be there on Friday to take full advantage of the seminar programme, which is bursting with the latest search knowledge and tips.

If you’re heading to the event too, drop me and Laura a tweet to say hi and arrange a chat, our handles are @Felicity_Rose_ and @LauraCrimmons.

Our Head of Search Tim Grice is heading down a day early to run a penalty recovery workshop tomorrow.

The workshop focuses on helping online marketers understand exactly what an unnatural link is and how to prepare SEO strategies against further updates.

It’s now completely sold out but you can still see Tim talk on Friday morning in the Dome Studio Theatre at 10am.

You can also catch Tim speaking at Internet World later this month and keep an eye on our seminars page to see him and Patrick Altoft talk in June.

If you can’t make the event this week, be sure to follow me and Laura on Twitter for updates during the day.

In case you couldn’t make it, you can now watch the videos of our Director of Search, Patrick Altoft and Head of Search, Tim Grice speaking at the TFM&A event earlier this year.

This annual event is a must-attend for marketing and advertising professionals and enthusiasts and 2013′s show certainly didn’t disappoint. The show boasted over 100 free seminar sessions over the two days with an impressive line-up of speakers.

Branded3 sponsored the Search Marketing theatre which saw our SEO expert Tim Grice step up to the presentation stand on the first day. Tim’s talk delved into how brands and e-commerce sites can position themselves to take advantage of future Google updates and deliver long-term sustainable rankings. Check out the video of Tim’s talk below:

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Head over to Branded3′s Google+ page to get involved with Brunch with Branded3 this Friday, an expert Google+ Hangout with our Director of Search Patrick Altoft.

Patrick will be focusing on the latest Google algorithm updates, giving his thoughts and advice on how best to adapt for them and how to future-proof your strategies.

All you need to do to get involved is follow Branded3 on Google+ and head there at 11:30am (BST) on Friday 5th April where you’ll be able to watch the session and ask your question live.

If you’re one of the first nine participants and you have a webcam, you’ll be able to join in the discussion with Patrick, but don’t worry if you’re not – because you can still watch the Hangout live on our Google+ page and leave your questions for Patrick in the comments section.

So grab a fresh cup of coffee, a morning muffin and join us for brunch at 11:30am this Friday. See you there!

On Thursday 14^th of March, the top minds from Branded3 travelled to London to impart their wisdom concerning the future of SEO, Social Media and digital strategy.

With two talks outlining future-proof SEO strategies, two talks on the conduct and measurement of social media and one insightful digital landscape overview, attendees were armed with the tools and tactics they need to survive in an ever-changing digital world.

The videos of all five talks are now available below. To receive a free copy of the slides from the day, sign up here http://www.branded3.com/events/seminars/ and for any further information, please get in touch!

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Finding highly trafficked blogs for your target niche while trying to create the best possible long-term blogger relations plays an essential role in boosting up your search engine presence and authority. However, it doesn’t come easy; you have to invest time and effort in an outreach strategy.

Fortunately, you can do something about this regardless of your experience in the blogging field. Here you will find some of the most efficient tools and methods for successful blogging outreach:

Outreach through directories and blogging communities

Technorati

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Branded3’s Digital Futures Seminar takes centre stage at The Barbican Centre in London today – and you can follow all the day’s talks and insight in our live blog. 

Industry experts Patrick Altoft and Tim Grice will be speaking along with our newly-appointed Managing Director David Crawford, Head of Creative & Social Andrew Machin, and Social Media Strategist Georgia Halston.

Here’s a run down of today’s schedule:

10:00-10:15 - Introduction from David Crawford

10.15-11.00 – The Latest Advanced SEO & Link Strategies, Patrick Altoft – This session will focus on the newest aspects of SEO which are either driving results now or are going to help future-proof your SEO strategy.

11:15 – 12:00 - The Importance of an Integrated SEO Strategy, Tim Grice - Tim will delve into recent Google updates, advising on the many pitfalls companies may encounter.

12:00 – 12:30 - Q&A session

13:15 – 13:45  - Latest Google Algorithm Update

13:45 – 14:30 - Five Digital Trends for 2013, David Crawford - As we approach the end of 2013’s first quarter, David will take a look at how the top digital predictions for the year are shaping up and, more importantly, what we need to watch out for and concentrate on over the coming months.

14:45 – 15:15 - You’ve been invited to the party, Andrew Machin – Why do so many brand social media accounts act so anti-socially? Andy looks at how brands can discover how to build, engage and influence through social platforms.

15.15 – 15.45 – Getting ROI from Social Media, Georgia Halston - Georgia takes a detailed look at why investment in Social Media is a justifiable spend for your business and what return on investment you can achieve from effectively utilising its channels.

15:45 – 16:15 - Q&A session

That’s a flavour of the day ahead – and you can join the conversation even if you’re not here at the Barbican by using #B3Seminars on Twitter.

Get involved and join the digital debate!

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Branded3’s Digital Futures Seminar is just around the corner and we can’t wait for what is guaranteed to be a fun, insightful and valuable day. We’ve only got a few tickets remaining, so we thought we’d help you out in making up your mind and convincing you that our Seminar is well-worth the small investment.

Taking place on Thursday 14^th March at The Barbican Centre in London, the Digital Futures Seminar promises to teach you everything you need to know about future-proofing your online strategies. Covering SEO, social media and digital; the day is a must-attend for anyone working within online marketing and is sure to equip you with all you need to know to develop strategies which stand the test of time.

So, if you still need a bit of encouragement to peel yourself away from the desk and venture out in the cold, here are five reasons why you should buy a ticket right now:

1. Value for money: The cost for a ticket is just £95, when you compare this to the price of many other industry conferences, you’ll see that ours is by far the cheapest. But this certainly doesn’t reflect a dip in presentation quality, the very opposite in fact. You see, this isn’t a money-making exercise for us, we just believe that in an ever-evolving industry like ours, it’s key to encourage transparency and knowledge transfer between experts so everyone can stay one step ahead of the game. We enjoy what we do and we just want to share it.

    

2. We’re in London: To celebrate the launch of our new London base this year and provide a much more accessible location, we’re holding the March Seminar at The Barbican Centre in London. This is a fantastic venue which plays host to a whole heap of creative events and better still, it’s really simple to find!

    

3. Get advice from experts: With the likes of Patrick Altoft and Tim Grice speaking, you know you’re getting the highest-quality advice. Not only have Patrick and Tim founded and ran two of the most successful blog in the Search industry, Blogstorm and SEOwizz, they’re both regularly invited to present at the biggest marketing events around the world. As well as this, you’ll gain Social Media insights from our Head of Creative & Social, Andrew Machin, who has years of brand experience having worked with the likes of John Lewis and Energizer Group. Our newly appointed Managing Director, David Crawford will also be sharing his digital insights for the future. Having worked alongside brands like Bentley, HSBC and UPS, it’s fair to say you’ll be listening to the voice of experience.

    

4. You’re in good company: We’ve hosted a few Seminars now which have proved really popular amongst in-house brand teams. Take a look at who’s attended before:
   

    

5. Good food and good chat: Don’t worry about forgetting breakfast before you leave home to grab the tube, we’ve got it covered! When you get to The Barbican Centre, we’ll have coffees and pastries waiting for you. All of this, plus lunch, cakes, refreshments and drinks is covered in the price of the ticket, so leave your wallet at home! Couple this with a bit of networking with interesting people on the side and you’ve got yourself a cracking day out of the office.

    

So, what else do you need? Get tickets booked for you and your team today, you won’t regret it. See you there!