Category: Uncategorised

A few weeks ago I wrote my first entry to the 10 Golden Lists on Search Engine Optimization or SEO. Here are some additional notes on SEO to supplement that post:

1. Think local – Google has developed an obsession with giving you local search results when you search for results in a specific location. This makes sense and is a current window of opportunity while other local businesses adapt. A key part of your strategy, if you are a local business, should be to get a good presence on Google Places and optimise locally:
• Make your search keywords include the city/suburb you are hoping to be found in.
• Get links from other local sites – they will be more valuable than links from sites located in different countries.
2. Relevance – a recent observation I have made is that my blog is an SEO nightmare. I do not focus on one topic and for this reason keep confusing the search engines regarding what the purpose of this site is. For this reason, this SEO post is unlikely to ever rank highly in search results, which brings me to my last point.

SEO is NOT everything – I have set up SEO projects on other sites that have done fairly well so I thought maybe I should try something new with this blog. I now get most of my traffic from social media accounts like Facebook and Twitter and I’ve even started using a new term for this kind of digital marketing – Social Media Optimisation. SMO is an exciting new way of thinking that may never live up to my expectations, but pursuing this kind of digital strategy will give me an opportunity to escape the largely uncertain, ever-changing and saturated world of SEO and possibly gain first-mover advantage in what I believe may well be the marketing medium of the next decade.


Oh and look, a Facebook like button below…

New placement, new challenges.

If I had to compare my first two placement companies, the only similarity they share is that they are both agencies – but very different agencies at that.

Expotel is the largest Hotel Booking Agency in the UK. They handle business travel solutions for clients including the government and Virgin Media. After a week I knew that this was the pefect time to be here; the company was ready to embrace a range of changes to the way they do business. There is a real buzz in the small meeting room on a Monday afternoon as I strategically plant words like “social media”, “SEO”, “pay-per-click” and the occassional “AWESOME” into the conversation.

I’m excited.

Looking back I realise that perhaps I didn’t have the maturity or courage to implement some of my ideas at LOVE but I think I’ll do better this time round.

And then there’s all the benefits. Business trips to London, attending the World Travel Market for two days next week, an inter-agency pub quiz and its only week 2. Then there are those awesome “familiarity trips” where hotels invite us to stay over for free (already booked myself for three).

However, as was the case with Love, the most important benefits of all are the lessons, sometime daily, I take away which are relevant to starting and running your own business. I’m taking the “How to’s” but also the “How not to’s” and hopefully by the end of the Manchester Masters, I will be 4 years more ready to be an entrepreneur, from one year’s experience. Expotel for another 10 weeks… Dabs.com next.

So kids what have we learned in class today?