I’m totally late getting this post out today.

I had every intention of writing it last night. However, that got derailed after I cut and chopped trees in the back of SageRock for 11 hours:

I got it to this point:

Then by 7:00 pm I got it back to this state:

Because I’m not accustom to that type of work I was literally exhausted. At one point I thought I might throw up.

Needless to say, I couldn’t get a blog post out last night.

Today I have a 9:00, 11:00 and 1:00 meeting. (I just had a 20 minute impromptu internal meeting added in.)

My point is: Blogging is like that. It become incredibly difficult to stuff it into your day. But regularity is the #1 way to become a successful blogger, Facebooker, Tweeter, Instagram-er. All social media requires constant discipline. The minute you begin to slack off on your schedule is the minute your audience stops showing up.

So, poof! I have a blog post out the door today.

Here is why I do it:

Visits are up 72% year over year.

The only reason for that is because of blogging. Nothing else has changed.

But if that doesn’t excite you, here are year over year conversion rates:

That’s why I force myself to blog every day.

Post from: SageRock Digital Marketing

The Discipline Of Blogging

That’s all I can guess. I’m afraid of this book.

I had a whole day today to work on 1 of 2 books: a link building book and an online video book.

The link building book is super close to getting done. But I’ve recently thought it might be better to start with the online video book. That might be more interesting to people.

But either way, it’s now 12:39 pm and so far today I have:

• Moved my camper to the office (no quick feat).
• Planned a big tree cutting project at the office for tomorrow.
• Searched the office high and low for a reciprocating saw that I have misplaced.
• Talked with everyone at the office about such and such topics.
• I’ve even worked on sales follow-up stuff (that’s usually the thing I put off for other stuff).
• Checked my email over and over again.

But I have not done thing one with either of these books.

This blog post is the closest thing to them that I’ve gotten so far.

I’m not the procrastinating type. I usually can bust through projects like the Incredible Hulk busts through walls. But not this book.

This book is like kryptonite to me.

It weakens me and makes me less than my normal self.

I’d be inclined to take it as a sign that I don’t have a book in me. But that’s not who I choose to be. I probably am not an author. I’m probably more of a speaker. But, just the same, this is something I really want to accomplish.

So, like it or not, I’m going to get this freakin’ thing done.

I always know I’m on to something interesting if I start to feel afraid.

Do you have a similar issue?

I haven’t yet read it, but my friend Jim Kukral is temporarily offering a free book: Amazon.com: Write A F*$%’ing Book Already – The Insider’s Guide To Increasing Your Sales & Improving Your Career With A Book eBook: Jim Kukral: Kindle Store.

Jim writes a bunch of books. While I can’t review that book, because I haven’t read it yet, I can tell you that Jim knows how to do this stuff. So I’m quite sure it’s going to be helpful.

Do you have a similar phobia?

Alright, I’m going to force myself to open the file. Maybe I’ll make a list of things to do next.

Post from: SageRock Digital Marketing

Afraid of the Book – My Phobia

This is maybe the most unusual consulting job I’ve ever had.

I have been contacted by a guy who is doing 30 to life. He’s writing a book and needs a social media plan.

There is one problem: (ha! 1 problem) he has no access to the internet. All of his correspondences to me are through hand-written letters. He decorates each letter sometimes with crayon designs.

He’s one of these genious people that never really was a great fit for society. He’s very smart and his book is very good.

I’m not going to go into the details here. But the book would likely be very contraversial because of his crime and the topic of the book. It would be a powerful social media center.

I have several questions that come up here:
Should I get involved? I’m obsessed with my work. I wouldn’t be condoning his previous actions. But the work is incredibly interesting. Just the same, is there a reason I’m not thinking of that should preclude me from getting involved?

How do I manage engagement with a person who can’t access the Internet? I’m thinking a blog would be best for him. His correspondences could be scanned and then maybe transcribed.

The immediacy of social media would not exist in his scenario. It’s possible people would lose interest as we wait for his response.

I’m interested in this because it would likely be a really good topic for the social media world. Emotional topics are ideal for getting engagement. I’m pretty sure this is as emotional as it gets.

If you have thoughts on all this please let me know.

Post from: SageRock Digital Marketing

Social media consulting for a 30 to lifer

I don’t know what search engine optimization is.

That probably seems like an unusual statement for someone who has made his living doing SEO since 1999.

I think it’s that history that makes me less clear in being able to arrive at a definition of what search engine optimization is.

Wouldn’t you say search engine optimization would include:

• Online video
• Online images
• Sharing PowerPoint presentations
• Guest blogging
• Tweeting
• Facebook page updating

Those are all things that impact results at Google, Bing and Yahoo. Those are the obvious ones.

But then I have to ask myself, “What is a search engine?”

Sure. Google, Bing and Yahoo are definitely search engines. But shouldn’t a search engine be anything that has a search bar?

It’s fairly common knowledge now that Youtube is the second most used search engine. This then asks the question, “What isn’t a search engine?”

• Facebook is a search engine.
• LinkedIn is a search engine.
• Pinterest is a search engine.
• Twitter is definitely a search engine.
• Google Play is a search engine.
• iPhone App Store is a search engine.

This all goes on and on. Where does search engine optimization end?

There is a part of me that thinks it ends by no longer calling it search engine optimization.

Look at this Google Trends report:

The phrase “search engine optimization” appears to be a dying phrase.

I’m not the only one confused by the term. I think it’s slowly but surely dying simply because nobody knows what the hell they mean when they say “SEO”.

Quite honestly, I’m ready for the phrase to go away. It has often been tainted by people who are less than ethical.

What we are talking about here is Public Relations.

A site that does well in a search engine does well because it is noteworthy. It offers something of value or interest. People like going to the site because it has something unique to offer.

Public relations has always been about that.

PR people figure out what is unique and special about you and then they tell it to the world.

That’s what search engine optimization was always meant to be. But instead, most people obsessed about the algorithm and how they could game it.

I believe those days are coming to an end for most people. There will probably always be a place for spammers. But it’s going to get harder and harder. Eventually they probably are going to just give up. I know not a few spammers that have gone on to get jobs in agencies and companies doing legitimate SEO. Spamming is too volatile to make a steady living.

SEO. Search engine optimization after these most recent updates at Google is going to look a lot more like what good public relations has always looked like.

If you want to rank well for a set of particular phrases across a wide variety of sites you have to be great. That’s the secret. Be great and you’ll be rewarded.

Yesterday, I had an inspiring lunch with Marketing & Motivational Speaker, Katherine Miracle. Her specialization is “Internal marketing”. She helps companies get to the heart of their marketing problems: Things like customer service and good leadership.

Marketing starts from within. Marketing is not just pretty pictures and words. It’s your very culture.

This is becoming more true with user generated reviews. Your flaws are being exposed by your customers. They will tell the truth. Your customers become your marketing agency of record.

A poorly run company will easily be exposed today.

So, if we now have “Internal marketers” like Katherine Miracle where marketing is about who you are at your core, what does that mean for search engine optimzation?

Doesn’t it follow that search engine optimization is:

• Your leadership
• Your values
• Your quality services and products

Search engine optimization isn’t just about how many times you write a word on a page. It’s how good of a company you are.

SEO is 21st century public relations. And 21st century public relations is who you are as citizens in your community. Are you good people? That’s where it all starts.

And so maybe now you can see why I’m so unsure about where search engine optimization begins and ends. I think it begins with your true ethics. That’s what it all comes down to.

Are you trying to add value to the world with your company? Or are you just trying to get rich?

Your answer to that question will determine how well you will do in 21st century public relations.

Which reminds me: 

Please don’t forget about Digital Akron this month. It is Thursday, May 31st from 4:00-5:30 pm at 15 Broad St. in Akron Ohio.

It’s all about this very topic: Public Relations in the 21st Century. It’s going to be really fun and interesting.

You can learn more and register for free here. 

Post from: SageRock Digital Marketing

Search engine optimization – 21st Century Public Relations

I admit that I have not gone through all 100 top U.S. airports from a paid search perspective.

But what I can say is that most of you are missing a big opportunity for traffic in the search engines. Most airports are doing no paid search.

This is a big opportunity for a couple reasons.

You want to understand that you are fighting for real estate on Google. The more real estate you have the more likely it is that people will click on your listing.

This is a great example of Atlanta owning the majority of the real estate on Google when you search for “Atlanta airport.”

But look how different things are when you do a search for “Atlanta airport parking.”

There are 3 paid listings above atlanta-airport.com plus all the side listings. The likelihood increases significantly that the other sites will get clicked on.

Parking is a big opportunity for paid search.

Look at this search result for “rental cars at JFK.”

The primary JFK website is nowhere to be found.

I’d also encourage you to take a look at the search results at Bing.com. These are a little more wild. Take a look at the results for “Las Vegas airport”

The Enterprise ad is above the McCarran primary site. Plus there are a series of ads on the right trying to get people to book a variety of things on their sites. The risk of losing the visitor is even greater here.

Paid search is a great opportunity for pulling traffic away from where people might have actually intended to go. I strongly encourage you to not let that happen.

I also encourage you to bid on phrases for things like “flights to…”

You can use geo-targeted paid search to get these searchers to your site.

Think of paid search for what it is: an advertisement space for your targeted audience.

You wouldn’t think twice to buy an ad in the local newspaper or TV station. But I think often people are reluctant to do the same in a search engine. These are some of the most qualified people you will ever be able to show an ad. You definitely don’t want to lose them at the very moment they are about to click on your site.

If someone is bidding on traffic you would like to have come to your site I would strongly encourage you to engage with these advertisers. Get in there. Make sure you get the traffic that is yours.

If you would like to test paid search in Google AdWords I have $100 coupons. Just click here to contact me and let me know you are interested in giving paid search a try. I’ll gladly hook you up.

Post from: SageRock Digital Marketing

A Big Opportunity with U.S. Airport Paid Search

I wanted to spend a little time speculating why I think  @LAX_Official has the most Twitter followers of all U.S. Airports. I believe it also is the same reason Richmond International Airport is the #3 most followed U.S. airport even though they are not as big as the top 3 airports in total passengers.

To start this investigation I did a followerwonk report for:

• @LAX_Official
• @BostonLogan
• @Atlanta_Airport

I highly encourage you to use followerwonk to learn really interesting things about your competitors on Twitter.

Here is a screenshot of some of the data:

I often use these kinds of reports to try to determine why someone is out-shining the other players in the field.

You can often determine why they are doing well by looking at how long they’ve been on Twitter and how many Tweets they have.

Age of a Twitter account plays a big role in these things, typically. But in this case, age doesn’t correlate. LAX is actually the youngest Twitter account among the three.

A total number of tweets typically plays a role too. More tweets usually gets more followers. But Boston has that distinction.

In this case, the followerwonk report does very little to help me determine what is happening.

I then went to each of these Twitter accounts to see how engaged they were. All three are regularly having conversations with their followers. All three accounts seem very friendly and helpful.

I was concerned that I may have been stumped. I wondered if west coast people might be more engaged than east coast. That didn’t seem to make sense.

But then I found it! There is one thing Richmond and LAX have in common that Boston and Atlanta don’t:

They promote their Twitter account directly in the center of their home page!

Here is the home page of LAX:

And here is a picture of Richmond’s home page:

They have both integrated social media very aggressively in some of their most prime Website real estate. It’s a very innovative strategy that I don’t see many businesses implementing.

But this is why I think it’s a genius move:

We have entered into a Web that is being socialized. The visitors are taking over control. They want to be heard and they want access to the businesses they purchase from.

Airports are a perfect business for Twitter because you all have vital information that we need. Twitter lets you get that out instantly to everyone who wants it.

I’ve seen many airports that have Twitter accounts but don’t promote them on their sites at all. Invariably, these are the Twitter accounts with the fewest followers. I would highly encourage all airports to learn from the strategies of Richmond and LAX. There are few businesses that have valuable information that changes very rapidly. Twitter is perfect for you.

Why Richmond is so awesome.

I would like all airports (and all businesses) to spend a little time looking at the Richmond Twitter feed.

They are aggressively promoting their Twitter feed. But that isn’t the secret to their success.

The secret to Richmond’s success is they have a great Twitter voice. They are genuine, real and not afraid to touch delicate conversations. Look at this:

The Web is filled with people that just like to say mean things. But I thought it was pretty clever to send back a reply. These kinds of responses do wonders for setting a tone. You can feel that Richmond airport is a fun, genuine place.

I thought this was nice:

The lessons here aren’t complicated. But they are still important:

• You have to promote your social media accounts if you want them to grow.
• The best social media accounts are the ones that clearly feel genuine.

Keep up the good work everyone! You are doing some good stuff here.

Next up… Paid search.

Post from: SageRock Digital Marketing

Why LAX Has The Most Twitter Followers

Here are the full, unedited PDF evaluations I just received from the Hudson Ohio Library 2 part event I did on setting up WordPress Websites.

WordPress for Websites part ! eval 4_23_2012

WordPress for Websites part II eval 4_30_2012

I will say this: I LOVE this topic and I love helping people understand it better. If I’m semi-decent at it then that’s all the better.

Here’s a couple points that where particularly nice:

• Keep Sage Lewis coming back!
• Entertaining and very informative!
• I really learned a lot—
• very happy!
• Great program.
• Sage is simply an awesome teacher…humor, enthusiasm, knowledge, honesty.

Those comments mean more to me than you can know.

Thank you SO much!

Post from: SageRock Digital Marketing

Hudson Library – WordPress for Websites Testimonials

I recently avoided staying at a hotel because multiple reviewers said everything was great but they hated seeing the manager berate his employees in public.

I stayed at a hotel where that happened. It’s not pleasant.

Marketing and branding used to be something you concocted. You painted a picture of what you wanted your business to be. And then you told that story regardless of whether that was you or not.

Today marketing is the truth. Your brand statement is being written by your customers not your consultants.

Great leadership becomes a requirement because it is transparent. Your customers see it and tell the truth to the world.

And the secret to great leadership?

Know your weaknesses and get someone else to pick up the slack.

If you can’t manage people find someone who can.

For example, here are a few of my weaknesses:
I can’t deal with details. I wish I could describe what details do to my brain. It feels like I’m trying to find a seed in a big pile of spaghetti.

I have a terrible middle game. I can start things. But I rarely know what to do with them once I get them started.

I get sick with worry when people are not happy with me. I’ve broken out in hives. I regularly can’t sleep. I get mouth blisters.

Those are 3 off the top of my head. There are many more. But the point is: knowing these things, and admitting them, allows me to deal with them.

I believe good leadership is the foundation of good marketing.

Post from: SageRock Digital Marketing

Leadership and Marketing

I’m still on the road today. I’ll be back in the office tomorrow.

But I wanted to quickly point you to my ClickZ article that came out today:

http:// clickz.com/clickz/column/2172543/google-penguin-tips-people-didnt-hurt

This article talks to people who didn’t get just on the most recent Google Penguin update. There are still important lessons you need to learn.

Post from: SageRock Digital Marketing

My ClickZ article – 5 Google Penguin Tips

I am 40 years old. But often I feel like I’m a rebellious teenager.

“Loose canon” is an adjective that is not an uncommon descriptor I hear of myself.

There are pros and cons to being this kind of person.

The major cons are that I believe I’m virtually unhirable. I’ve never been hired for a job other than restaurant work. This is a fact that actually terrifies me in the middle of the night. If something were to go wrong and I lost all my entrepreneurial skill, I truly think I might have to go back to the hotel food service business.

But the pros are that I believe I am outside of the rules of most of society. I often feel like Neo in the Matrix.

Spoon boy: Do not try and bend the spoon. That’s impossible. Instead… only try to realize the truth.

Neo: What truth?

Spoon boy: There is no spoon.

Neo: There is no spoon?

Spoon boy: Then you’ll see, that it is not the spoon that bends, it is only yourself.

That’s how I live my life. “There is no spoon.” The rules of society are all optional in my mind.

Today I’m writing this post from Assateague Island State Park. The only way you can stay on this island is by camping. If you have to stay in a hotel you can’t stay here. But this is the benefit:

That’s the pony that came into our campsite this morning. There were actually 6 ponies that came through. There are 120 wild ponies on the island that do pretty much whatever they want.

I can hear the surf of the Atlantic ocean on the other side of a protected sand dune about 200 feet away.

I bring this all up because Chris Brogan just wrote the post: Pattern Break. Chris is a highly regarded thinker in the digital media landscape.

It’s not surprising he would write an article like this. There is endless change in digital media. The leaders in this industry question everything. How can you not? Can you imagine still doing search engine optimization like we did in 1999? Can you imagine just blindly marketing your company on MySpace because it was the thing to do in 2005?

Everything today has to be followed with the question: Why?

• Why do you do it that way?
• Why do you use that tool?
• Why do you sell the products you sell?
• Why do you have an office?
• Why do you live in a house or condo?
• Why do you own your home?
• Why do you rent your home?
• Why do you think you need to make the amount of money you make now?
• Why do you own all the stuff you own now? How much happiness is it all bringing you?

Everything is a question of why today. Not questioning is a bigger risk than blindly keeping on the same path you are on now.

As you go through the rest of your day today try asking why you do what you do.

• Why do you have the job you have?
• Why do you eat what you eat?
• Why do you talk to the people you talk to at work?

I bet you are going to run into something that you do for no other reason than its easier than changing and doing something you would prefer to do.

Please remember this: This life is not a dress rehearsal for an upcoming life. If you get it wrong even though you had the option of doing something else you might like better you are entering into the realm of turning your life story into a tragedy. Please don’t let that happen to you.

Just ask why more often.

The question “Why?” will make your business better and your life better.

P.S. Don’t forget Friday Internet Marketing. It’s today (and every Friday) at 3:15 Eastern time. Click here to register for free. I’m going to attempt to do today’s show from the beach.

Post from: SageRock Digital Marketing

Why?