We are pleased to announce the release of our mini beginner SEO guide called “Spoon-Fed SEO for GrownUps”. We decided to go with this tounge in cheek title as it emphasizes the complexities inherent in search engine marketing. Most people new to internet marketing have no idea what search engines are about or how they even earn a profit online.

After talking to many of our new SEO clients and SEO users there was a need for something that ties everything together nicely from A to Z in the SEO world. We have focused a bit on how to make good use of the SEO Studio tools to help webmasters speed up some mundane repetitive tasks in search engine optimization such as rank checking, back link analysis. Seasoned SEOs know 80% of all SEO efforts is connected with some type of external popularity building whether it’s link building through directory submissions, link buying, article distribution or viral marketing. This is where we feel new webmasters need the most help and we hope our SEO guide won’t disappoint you.

Learn SEO the easy way. Download or read online Spoon-Fed SEO for GrownUps

A fascinating documentary called “The Persuaders” on Frontline of PBS looks into the world of off and online media advertising and the new ways advertisers are trying to unlock the code of consumers buying habits.

“Each year, legions of ad people, copywriters, market researchers, pollsters, consultants, and even linguists—most of whom work for one of six giant companies—spend billions of dollars and millions of man-hours trying to determine how to persuade consumers what to buy, whom to trust, and what to think. Increasingly, these techniques are migrating to the high-stakes arena of politics, shaping policy and influencing how Americans choose their leaders.”

If you have noticed more advertising creeping into feature films and television shows through clever product placement you are not alone. According to the documentary it’s no accident advertisers are looking for new ways to present their products. As people watch less and less television and ads due to advanced television programming technologies such as TIVO, it’s easier for consumers to by pass those pesky in your face ads.

I have learned a great deal about persuasion techniques, and how to build the language, images, and sounds around a brand in a subtle way that builds “loyalty beyond reason” as one of participant said in the show. It’s well worth 90 minutes of your time.
 

Check out the latest search market share results (PDF) published by Nielsen//NetRatings for September 2006. Google is leading by a very comfortable lead, no surprise there, but what about MSN?

It seems Microsoft can’t mount a successful counter attack against Google, no matter what they do. We have to wait to see if the launch of Windows live made any difference in their market share when the new search results are published.

Example: An estimated 3.0 billion search queries were conducted at Google Search, representing 50 percent of all search queries conducted during the given time period. Please take note, these searches also include image, news and even map searches.