aimClear Search Marketing Blog

Socrates and his buddies were really on the ball– 2,500 years later, most (if not all) instances of personal and professional success really require you to “know thyself.” Understanding who you are and what value you provide to your target audience is a pivotal step towards mastering the market. However, this keen awareness must extend beyond just the individual. You must know your enemies– your competition– if you aim to surpass them in market share, among other business benchmarks. Know Thine Enemy: Hot Competitive Intelligence Tactics

By now, you’ve probably caught wind of this thing called “Facebook Places.” In fact, unless your entire last week was consumed by SES San Francisco or Affiliate Summit you may have read, with bated breath,  live blog coverage from Facebook HQ in Palo Alto, CA. It was there CEO Mark Zuckerberg addressed a crowded room that, according to Greg Sterling, resembled “a wedding or luau [rather] than a press conference.” Right. That’s creepy-ominous enough.

If by some chance you’re living under a rock and have not heard of Facebook Places, here’s a 140 character summary: Facebook Places allows users to share their location & the location of their friends by “checking in” at places via an iPhone app. To paraphrase general feedback from social circles: “So… basically, it’s just like Foursquare.” Maybe so. Maybe no. Regardless, the unveiling of this possibly game-changing platform certainly warrants a closer look.

In an effort to help provide just that, we compiled a list of 57 recently-published posts about Facebook Places– from launch coverage to field guides, privacy warnings to tactics on how biz owners & marketers can capitalize on the functionality.  Read on for the complete link roundup. 57 Takes on Facebook Places: Analyzed, Criticized, Evangelized

Search Engine Strategies Conference & Expo is one of those industry events that holds a special place in our calendar’s heart. This past week industries luminaries and knowledge-hungry online marketers alike traveled across the globe to soak up fresh insight and network with like-minded professionals at the much-anticipated San Francisco edition of SES.  The aimClear team enjoyed attending a dynamic variety of sessions this go-round.  Read on for a synopsis of  the conference,  key session takeaways & additional links to comprehensive coverage. SES San Francisco Roundup: aimClear Coverage & Key Takeaways

Everything old is new again. Would you believe that the origins of Google’s algorithm & mission statement may date back to 1945? What can the history of search tell us about where it’s going in the future?

In writing his next search marketing book (due in the fall) Search Engine Strategies’  Mike Grehan explored these questions & more. At this week’s SES Conference & Expo San Francisco, Mike gave the audience a sneak peek at his new book. It was an informative and enjoyable dive  into the curious history of search engine crawling, indexing & rankings.

Search Engine History – From WW2 to WWW

Tim Ash is a man who’s not afraid to tell you your baby is ugly. Author of ”Landing Page Optimization,” a resource Mike Grehan says should live on the bookshelf of anyone who owns a website, as well as super-master salsa dancer extraordinaire, he was a tip-top choice for the morning keynote speaker on the final day of SES San Fran 2010.

Leveraging takeaways from first 2 keynotes, namely (1) use profanity and (2) use self-deprecating unflattering pictures, Tim hit the stage in a swank yet self-described “monkey suit” to take us through the 4 Pillars of Building Instant Trust Online, something any marketer will tell you is no easy feat. 4 Ways To Build Instant & Sustainable Trust Online