Most AdWords accounts use some form of conversion tracking as a metric of success, yet this model is flawed to the point of being meaningless. I’m not going to go into the specifics of why there may be a disconnect between the ad click and the conversion here, but if you want details read Tracking your AdWords return on investment. … Read More
How to find unbelievably effective keywords
Have you ever used a technique for years, only to find out that it blows people away? For SEO purposes I use a very quick and simple system to find the right keywords, that factors in how popular a keyword is with the level of competition. It only takes a few minutes and helps you tap into the gold that lies … Read More
Our SEO Demystified course is now live – with a 25% discount
After an insanely busy six months of work, our SEO Demystified course is now live. We’re running a 25% discount on the pricing – but only for the first 48 hours. At the time of writing this post we’re down to 1 day 20 hours. So what are you waiting for? It’s a great course and comes with an unconditional 30 day money … Read More
I’ve fallen and I can’t get up
SEO has somehow become the exercise equivalent of the online business. Young startups can worry about it later, and many middle-aged companies know they should be doing it, but somehow don’t get round to it. Until, that is, something terrible happens to them. This is the point that many businesses finally get around to taking their SEO seriously. When something like this happens it can … Read More
“This is a really important keyword to rank for”
The following conversation contains scenes of SEO nudity, and may not be suitable for the easily offended, the SEO ignorant, or most CEOs. Reader discretion may be advised. The names and personal details have been changed to protect the clueless. MeansWell: “Okay, but this one, this one here, this is a really important keyword for us.” Me: “Great, let me look into that.” … Read More
Why Google know best (better than you too)
The anti-Google brigade seem to have missed Google’s greatest coup: not only knowing everything about us, but now even understanding our intentions better than we do ourselves. For example when I search for Cloud Computing, of the nine standard results that Google show me, six are variations of “what is cloud computing“, even though I may have been looking for … Read More
What everybody needs to know about tracking
The era of being able to accurately track your online marketing efforts is over. Or more accurately: the era of thinking you could accurately track your online marketing is over. Only a few years ago, we thought we could track almost every single keyword that was used to find our websites. The reality was that we could track the keywords … Read More
How do I know if my AdWords account is working?
When it comes to AdWords, what works for some may not work for others. One account’s goals may be different from another. I might want to show my ads to a large number of people, while you might only want to show your ads to those who are at a specific point in the purchase process. We each have different … Read More
Taking a step back (WWBD)
I recently stumbled across a great source of practical, qualified and tailored advice for our company. He knows our business like no-one else, is an expert in his field, always has time for us, and is completely free. (Despite the publishing date of this post, this is not an April Fool’s Joke.) Aaron and I recently had our annual get-together, … Read More
Data can cause pain and irreparable damage
Tracking is deadly. It skews our perception of reality, gives us a dangerously false sense of security, and pushes us into making poor decisions. In our own company, we track the work that we do to near-psychotic levels of accuracy. Note that isn’t a boast thinly veiled to look like criticism (I’m thinking of “my greatest weakness is my attention … Read More
