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The Opposite and Equally Powerful Forces of Search Marketing

Posted by Jason Swartz on July 26, 2007 at 11:39 AM

If you think of your Web site as a planet (after all, it is out there in cyberspace), you may begin to see it as one part of a much larger galaxy, comprised of billions of other sites. Each has it's own gravitational pull, in turn affected by the push and pull of other systems. In the case of Web marketing & PR, the “pull” refers to your site's ability to attract other search engines and links from other sites and the “push” refers to all of your out-bound marketing efforts. Together, this push/pull can create a very powerful centrifugal force of growing influence on the Web space.

Push – The combination of your marketing efforts are like probes giving you reach into the depths of cyber space.

• Publicity - search marketing experts know that the success of their programs rely heavily on effective PR. Your press releases and articles land on other sites and attract the search engines and, directly and indirectly, pull traffic to your site.
• Pay-Per-Click Ads - paid ads on Google, Yahoo! and other PPC engines draw users to your site and only charge you if people actually stop by for a visit.
• Link Building - search engines give you credit if other sites think you're important enough to point Web travelers in your direction. This is influenced by publicity and also by a concerted effort to get into the directories and ask for links from other sites.
• Content Targeted Ads - other Web sites run Google ads, specific to the type of site a user is visiting, extending your reach into other systems.
• E-mail – e-newsletters are push-pull content engines in their own right, not only increasing the keyword density of your site (pull), but also making sure the content reaches individuals and drives them directly back to your site.
• Offline marketing - from billboards to bus wraps, offline marketing can increase your overall reach and rocket your site into other worlds.

Pull– Content, together with search engine optimization (SEO), creates gravitational pull by attracting the search engines. The initial challenge however, is creating great content, a task often left to a general search marketer. The problem is that content creation and optimization is not the realm of geeks, because keywords cannot be taken out of the scope of your communications strategies. In fact, it’s your communications efforts that create the nuances of unique keywords. Search marketers need to truly comprehend the language of your market first and not just the mechanics of search engines.

If executed correctly, the opposite, but equally important forces of push and pull can be used to give your site a strong influence in cyberspace.

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Blue Cross Feeling "Sicko"

Posted by Matt Kucharski on July 6, 2007 at 12:58 PM

Maybe this whole Internet transparency thing has gone a bit too far.

VP of Corporate Communications for Capitol Blue Cross Barclay Fitzpatrick goes to Michael Moore's movie "Sicko" and writes a pretty well-crafted reaction memo to his bosses. Basically his job is to help build and protect his employer's reputation, so going out and seeing a movie that has the potential to be damaging to his industry is prudent.

Someone leaks that memo back to Moore, and it appears on his blog with the requisite commentary.

So, my question is this - who is the real culprit here? Is it Fitzpatrick, who from what I can tell did nothing other than give his cogent opinion on the impact the movie would have on his employer? Is it Moore, who took what's basically a straightforward assessment of the movie and turned it into a "smoking gun" for his own gain? Or is it the employee who for whatever reason felt compelled to forward an internal, confidential memo?

Here's what I think...

- Fitzpatrick was doing his job ethically and responsibly. (Fair disclosure -- I know him and he used to work for a client of our firm). However, if the memo truly was confidential, then it should have been sent internally to a very select few people who could be trusted. Obviously that wasn't the case.

- Moore was doing what he always does -- taking whatever information he can get and using it to further his cause. He is not, nor has he ever been, a journalist. He is, however, an excellent storyteller.

- While the employee who leaked the memo will likely try to hide behind "whistle blower" laws, I think he or she should be fired immediately. There was nothing criminal about the memo -- and sending it externally is a violation of employer-employee trust. Nowhere is it written that everything a company talks about needs to be laid bare for public (and competitor) consumption.

My thoughts, however unpopular they may be. What do you think?

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A lesson in PR from a restaurant placemat?

Posted by Matt Kucharski on July 5, 2007 at 11:27 AM

In a recent speech by PSB's CEO Lynn Casey to a group of business leaders, she boiled the concept of public relations down to two simple words -- Performance Recognized.

With that fresh in my mind, I found myself sitting alone at a Legal Sea Foods on the outskirts of Fort Lauderdale (there to do some presentation training for one of our pre-IPO clients). The book I was reading was boring and the conversation non-existent, so I glanced down at my placemat and there it was -- Performance Recognized in a nutshell.

You see, printed on the placemat, right below the brief overview of the restaurant, was a timeline dating back to 1904 describing the history and accomplishments of Legal Sea Foods. No less than 50 major events in the company history were chronicled. You can see an animated version of the Legal Time Wave on the company's Web site.

Sure, there are the things you'd expect -- "best restaurant in Boston," feature on Julia Child's cooking show, "perfect platter" honor at Oysterfest, etc. These "accolades" are great, and are part of any company's public relations arsenal.

But what's more remarkable are these notable events:

- Construction of the Quality Control Center for fish processing and distribution
- Creation of an exchange program with chefs from the Shandong province of China
- Partnership with the Food and Drug Administration and Department of Commerce in developing the HACCP program for industry food freshness and safety
- Hosts expert chefs from China as part of a new "CuisinEast" program
- Development of a heart healthy blend of cooking oil
- Hosts expert chefs and ayurvedic practitioners from India as part of "Spices of Life" program
- Builds state-of-the-art seafood processing facility
- Publishes "The New Legal Sea Foods Cookbook"
- Purchases Lady Grace as a floating memorial to fisherman who died at sea

When you're talking about building your company's reputation -- it's the "acts" that are more important than the "accolades." Take a page from Legal Sea Foods and you'll see your company's "Performance Recognized."

Oh, and you can't go wrong with the chowder and crab cakes...

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