How are you (informally/professionally) using social sites these days?  In the beginning of the online party, there was sparse professional participation.  MySpace and Friendster were more or less social sites, platforms where friends could connect in informal fashions.

What's the importance of a business' personality?  That might seem like an odd question; isn't your business a thing, not a person?  Sure, but creating associations to your company is a large part of branding, a process not to be ignored.  I referenced personification this week in a post about getting consumer attention.  Maybe for some, it's easier to regard your business as a person; entrepreneurs are a suitable population to personify.  The group has a lot in common with aspiring businesses.

Along with other bloggers and copywriters, I love to write.  That's what I do.  What do you do professionally?  Search engine optimization providers partner with businesspeople in a variety of industries: medical, industrial, automotive, legal, and so on.  Each client has their own respective areas of expertise, which may or may not overlap with my own.  For instance, while lawyers are likely good writers, they may not have the time to invest in online marketing pursuits throughout their day; rather than write a blog post for their site, they'll approach SEO copywriting professionals, who can help with search engine optimization objectives.

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Who's who in [insert your brand's name] -ville?  Knowing users' levels of clout was a major factor influencing former 'gamification' engagements.  Brands enjoyed user participation but did not know too much about its Badgeville 'citizens' otherwise.  Who is who is becoming more important in 'gamification' as a player's level of social 'clout' is crucial info for brands to identify.

There are a lot of online marketing options these days.  Social media alone hosts a party of solutions.  We know (through SEO best practices and a series of 2011 Panda updates) the production of content is important.  We also have come to understand (especially considering the popularity of social media) that the dissemination of content is also integral, elongating the reach of marketing initiatives, offering a better chance to secure consumer relationships.

If you're old enough to remember, some prime-time television stars (Roseanne Barr) were credited using only their first names.  I'm not really sure how one 'officially' reached such plateaus of stardom regarding 80's television, but if you're exceptionally 'down' in today's pop culture and social media world, Facebook will dial-up your account asking you to confirm your 'alternate' identity (a nickname, brand name, well-known moniker or otherwise).

Cinderella

Happy Valentine's Day, valued WebiMax readers.  Are your customers headed, straight as an arrow, toward your site's services and products, not just today, but each day of the year?  Search engine optimization facilitates a love connection and the endless search for brand attention.  Brands engineer goods and services to meet the needs of valued customers.  Online marketing helps align and spark brand-consumer connections.

How's your brand getting attention today?  There are in-house and external ways to beckon attention.  Seek search engine optimization information; vendors offer an array of choices, addressing technical, social, and copywriting needs.  Do you want ongoing commerce from customers once you have their immediate attention?  While SEO offers opportunities to drive traffic to your site, your company has the power to make your brand a 'regular hangout,' enjoying endless attention.  That's what you want, right?

Happy weekend, search fans!  You have some time this weekend.  Catch-up on your online marketing/search engine optimization reading.  I've read, synopsized, and delivered links to informative tidbits from around the world of search.  Take a gander at what I've gathered:

Happy Friday!  It's time to put in a day of work and then dine on the fruits of our labor.  Everybody's working for the weekend, right?  Pull some cash out of your account and take a ride on the weekend's ferris wheel.  If you bank with Citibank, you may have recently gotten confused by the numbers.  Sometimes that happens – getting confused about numbers that is, not how much cash is in your account; the latter is a scary thought.

Have you seen Google in the news?  Do you use Google's services to get your news?  As Greg Sterling of Search Engine Land reports, a lot of people use Google across multiple verticals.

Mark Zuckerberg and crew may have just dialed-in some hefty numbers associated with Facebook's past-Wednesday IPO.  According to the numbers, things are going swimmingly for the social media giant.  However, as sources tell the New York Times, "We do not currently directly generate any meaningful revenue from the use of Facebook mobile products, and our ability to do so successfully is unproven."

The culmination of the football season is knocking at this weekend's door.  Who's going to win the big game!?  My personal excitement is feigned; I share sentiments with another 'Googler.'  However, I do hope your consumers view your brand as a 'giant' in its industry and a 'patriot' regarding customer service and meeting mission statements.

I don't need to be jostled from sleep by Sonny and Cher; judging by the "Phil Murray" and "Punxsutawney Phil" Twitter trends, it's February second.  How many more days of winter?  I live in LA; don't hate; there's plenty of sunshine, yes, but smog, ebb-less traffic, and unrelenting crowds of people live here too.  I'm not worried about the fate of winter; but, being in online marketing, I am interested in link building processes.  If you operate a business, tips on link building should have you 'walking on sunshine,' because it's no secret of success – link building improves authority, rankings, and exposure.

Do you have something to add to the conversation, or just calling attention?  I would address high school students in this manner who were temporarily 'off task' during class.  High school students are socially savvy; most got the point and understood the difference elucidated by my question; were they serving the good of the community or engaging in personal endeavors at the moment?

I read an entertaining article this morning regarding public relations work.  A PR professional listed thirteen ominous mentions, which sound cacophonic bells and whistles off within a service provider's head.  Is your business currently receiving public relations services or working with an in-house professional?  Are you resounding some of the same sentiments mentioned in the article?  Is your campaign a bleak, dramatic picture of what it's supposed to be, leaving participants in a state of mystery?  Let's explore some things mentioned in the article and better your understanding of what is and isn't under a PR pros control.

Remember Bo Jackson?  I sure do; I ripped through his Bo Knows biography with the fervor of a twelve-year-old kid, mesmerized by a titan of a multi-dimensional athlete.  Along with popular trends of the day, such as French-rolled jeans and Umbro shorts, I was into the 'Bo knows' commercials and campaign.

Could you believe a student tried pulling that on me once!?  As if a little wit would tickle my funny bone, excusing him of his in-class trespasses.  I'm a sucker for wit; it did; I let him go.

I enjoy reading, writing, and increasing knowledge on a number of SEO and online marketing topics, but I especially enjoy the topics of branding and reputation management.  I would say the former relates to creating associations to your brand (and its elements: Web pages, executives, products, etc) while the latter focuses on your business' 'personality,' personifying a reputable "professional."  I think branding and rep management are highly important regarding consumer relations.

I used to write for a business-to-business outfit, providing content on an array of services.  Naturally, marketing (on and offline) were amongst the provided services.  I recently came across an article penned years ago on customer retention.  I think it has "evergreen" sentiments, and though today's offered online marketing company initiatives are prolific, culminating in SEO, SMO, PPC and other opportunities, I don’t think such processes always "work" as expected (by some SEO and online marketing clients).  Some may inquire, "Why?  Aren't you people supposed to get me more exposure and revenue!?"

I recently scheduled a visit to the eye doctor; I can't see two feet beyond without corrective lenses but I behold some insight regarding human nature and "customer" service.  I sought the services of the eye doctor because I had a need, yet the service provider exhibited horrific customer service, "misplacing" my records, making me wait over forty-five minutes (I arrived ten minutes before my scheduled appt) then wait another fifteen minutes in an inner-office room (the second waiting room), ultimately offering no sentiment of apology or recognition of the value of my time and as a patient (consumer), as if I was inextricably under the mercy of my circumstances.  I'm not; I changed doctors after my experience.

Yesterday, I urged you to snippet good.  Today, I want you to realize the potential of abuse; try to detect and neglect it.  Not too long ago, great posts on improved snippets and implementing them using Schema.org were posted.  Perhaps many Web masters took heed, realizing it was not very difficult to implement rich ones, using a variety of available formats.  Google encourages the use of rich snippets, as they aid browsers in securing desired information.

Do you host a large site, one with a multitude of products and services?  Are you a review provider?  Is yours a business-to-business site, offering listings to a host of vendors?  If so, it's likely there are many pages within your Web site.  That's great news, inviting more opportunities for commerce.  However, you want to ensure each page is getting deserved attention.

Should my brand be using Google+?  That is a question posed to many SEO and online marketing professionals by business owners who are novices to online practices.  Coincidentally, I read a post this morning, calling social's benefit to business into question.  Google's social media platform is still very young; the passing of time will help us better assess its true value, but immediately, considering the platform allows for brand pages, it's another source for online marketing in the least. 

Are you on team Edward or team Jacob?  Oops wrong drama; I meant, are you on team Google or team Twitter?  I'm on team "user experience" myself; I always had to blaze my own trails.  If you have been vacationing on Mars the last few days, there's been some talk in the SEO world regarding Google's modification to its Google+ social platform.  There's no need to reiterate a multitude of Google+/Twitter information you can read on the topic popping up here, there, and everywhere on the Web.  What I would like to call attention to is my disappointment as a user.

Google, Google, Google!  Are you trying to dominate the SERPs on such major search engines as...well, Google?!  There's been a lot of talk about the brand lately.  Buying links, being unfriendly to Twitter, hiding owner reviews…despite best intentions, some brand behaviors have been weighed and measured…

It's been an interesting season for online marketing and the search engine optimization industry.  As SEO practitioners closely follow the evolution of search, it’s becoming more apparent personal trends and social media engagement are making way into the SERPs.  Google, the most coveted of SEs, suffered a blow to its ego in 2010, a year Facebook received more visitors.  2011 stats read a bit differently, yet at this point, Google can't ignore the sight of Facebook.  Perhaps G knew it was time to engineer a "move."  Google did move into the social media stratosphere, offering Google+, its own social service, but now it's a lot more…

I read a good post today related to clients and their respective search engine optimization providers.  The author raises a good point, pointing focus to a sometimes-divide in understanding taking place between clients and SEO providers, especially regarding "results."  Both parties have responsibilities to foster understanding.  Providers must illustrate the usefulness and effectiveness of services and clients must clearly relay expectations and areas of need.  Of course, it's an ongoing process; regular communication is always paramount in any kind of marketing campaign.