Wednesday, November 30, 2022
6 Students Of Nagpur Government Medical College Suspended For Ragging
South Korean YouTuber Harassed In Mumbai During Livestreaming, 2 Arrested
Webinar: Your winning CTV advertising strategy in 2023 by Cynthia Ramsaran
Your B2B audience is full of avid TV watchers. In the days of linear television, it was nearly impossible (and very expensive) to target them accurately, which meant the TV screen was virtually off-limits for B2B marketers. Now, Connected TV has entered the scene, with digital roots and third-party data providers that allow for precision targeting of B2B audiences.
You can now reach them whether they’re unwinding after work with reality television or streaming their favorite films on the weekend.
Learn more by attending “Putting in the Work: Understanding B2B Audiences on Connected TV,” presented by MNTN.
Click here to view more Search Engine Land webinars.
The post Webinar: Your winning CTV advertising strategy in 2023 appeared first on Search Engine Land.
from Search Engine Land https://ift.tt/AWFkg9h
via https://ift.tt/AGJhOVN https://ift.tt/AWFkg9h
LinkedIn just released 3 new features for pages
LinkedIn just announced three new features for brands to promote products, monitor trends, and do more with newsletters. Let’s jump in.
Generate more newsletter subscribers. With LinkedIn Newsletters, you can publish recurring Articles and build a subscriber community via a one-time notification to your Page followers and ongoing notifications to your Newsletter subscribers.
If a member searches for your profile they should be able to easily find and subscribe to your newsletter. LinkedIn also suggests incorporating SEO best practices by optimizing your article titles, descriptions, and tags. LinkedIn will also automatically send your new followers a notification to subscribe.
Product pages. Your products can now be discovered via an in-platform search on LinkedIn. Buyers can search by product, company, or category to discover what they’re looking for. You can also use product highlights to showcase specific product content on your Page and point interested members to key details and conversations. You can also re-share content from your product community to your Page and add posts to your product highlights.
Competitor analytics dashboard. There is a new upgrade to the LinkedIn Pages Competitor Analytics dashboard that is now available on desktop and mobile, which can help you understand what competitors are doing and set your brand apart. You can now:
- Track follower growth, recent posts, and engagement rates to see what your competitors are talking about and how members are responding, while also benchmarking your own content creation efforts.
- Quickly surface trending content from competitors to stay on top of what’s happening in your industry and inspire your own content strategy.
Why we care. B2B brands and advertisers managing pages on LinkedIn should test and use these new tools to make the most out of their profiles. Since many brands may be rethinking their social strategies, companies should optimize the platform’s new features to gain first-party data with newsletter signups, as well as new ecommerce options and competitor metrics.
The post LinkedIn just released 3 new features for pages appeared first on Search Engine Land.
from Search Engine Land https://ift.tt/QxRc2tZ
via https://ift.tt/AGJhOVN https://ift.tt/QxRc2tZ
Bag Containing Rs 7 Lakh Missing From Gurugram Wedding: Police
3 Arrested For Murder Of Man Who Filed RTI Query Against UP Village Head
Tuesday, November 29, 2022
Bloodsoaked Bodies Of Woman, Daughter Found In UP Village
6 Of Family Killed As Fire Breaks Out At Furniture Shop In UP: Cops
"Love Jihad Is New Form Of Terrorism": Union Minister Giriraj Singh
Webinar: Do more with less to get ahead in 2023 by Cynthia Ramsaran
As 2022 winds down, marketers are being asked to focus on efficiency and “do more with less.” The most successful have leveraged tools such as calculated metrics, artificial intelligence and real-time insights.
In this webinar, learn how a financial institution with over 21 million active customers connects its customer data, segments audiences faster and delivers personalized experiences in real time.
Join Salesforce in this free webinar and learn real use cases on finding success and business results by sending fewer communications that are more relevant and targeted.
Register today for “Do More with Less: Connect Customer Data to Drive Marketing Efficiency,” presented by Salesforce.
Click here to view more Search Engine Land webinars.
The post Webinar: Do more with less to get ahead in 2023 appeared first on Search Engine Land.
from Search Engine Land https://ift.tt/FVZxhpE
via https://ift.tt/Fw80aVE https://ift.tt/FVZxhpE
Maharashtra-Karnataka Border Row Reaches Delhi Ahead Of Court Hearing
UP Boy, 5, Allegedly Sexually Assaulted, Teen Suspect Detained: Cops
Monday, November 28, 2022
After Sword Attack On Van Carrying Aaftab Poonawala, Police Make Changes
Twitter has launched 3 new ad targeting options
Twitter has just launched new ad targeting options, including a new ‘Conversions’ objective they originally announced back in August.
The new ‘Conversions’ objective. Advertisers are now able to focus their ad campaigns on those users who are most likely to take specific actions.
Previously, Twitter advertisers were able to optimize campaigns to focus on clicks, site visits, and conversions. But now you can further optimize for page views, content views, add-to-cart, and purchases.
As I mentioned, the updates were announced in August but released just before Thanksgiving.
What Twitter says. “Website Conversions Optimization (WCO) is a major rebuild of our conversion goal that will improve the way advertisers reach customers who are most likely to convert on a lower-funnel website action (e.g. add-to-cart, purchase).”
So instead of just aiming to reach people who are likely to tap on your ad, you can expand that focus to reach users that are more likely to take next-step actions beyond that, like:
- Add-to-cart
- Purchase
- Register contact info
- Subscribe
“Our user-level algorithms will then target with greater relevance, reaching people most likely to meet your specific goal – at 25% lower cost-per-conversion on average, per initial testing.”
Dynamic Product Ads. Dynamic Product Ads were initially launched in 2016 (a version at least). But this new update integrates a more privacy-focused approach, in order to optimize ad performance with potentially fewer signals.
Collection Ads. The Collection Ads format enables advertisers to share a primary hero image, along with smaller thumbnail images below it.
Twitter says, “The primary image remains static while people can browse through the thumbnails via horizontal scroll. When tapped, each image can drive consumers to a different landing page.”
Dig deeper. Read the full article on the Twitter blog.
Why we care. Yes, Twitter is still releasing new ad updates, despite cutting most of its staff. But it’s likely that these updates were almost completely finished anyway when Musk took over since they had been in development for months.
Advertisers who are still on Twitter should test the new ad features and options to gauge whether they’re valuable additions.
The post Twitter has launched 3 new ad targeting options appeared first on Search Engine Land.
from Search Engine Land https://ift.tt/EoIr7mR
via https://ift.tt/ldoFyrS https://ift.tt/EoIr7mR
Minor Girl Raped By Father's 57-Year-Old Friend In Greater Noida: Cops
Rich results: 22 things every SEO pro needs to know
Rick and Morty.
Hall and Oates.
Coffee and bourbon.
Rich results and structured data.
All four: iconic duos. But only one can generate over $80k in revenue once added to your website.
On May 17, 2016, Google introduced the concept of “rich cards.” Google has revived rich cards into what SEO professionals call rich results today. Rich results were created to make a more engaging experience on Google’s search result pages.
The result of rich results is a crowd-pleasing SEO tactic that produces an average of 58 clicks per 100 queries. Rich results are a dry and smooth SEO move, with flavors of structured data sprinkled with schema markup alongside sweeter code of JSON-LD.
In the words of the 2022 Women in Tech SEO mentor, Anne Berlin:
- “For my money, I’d recommend implementing your rich result strategy from the get-go with as much detail as possible to extend the window of time before a change in policy forces you to make an overhaul to return your site to eligibility for a rich result which was previously driving traffic.”
Rich results make a great eye-opener and a quick win to start a new SEO project. And our need for SEO quick wins has never been greater.
Ahead are 22 things every SEO professional needs to know about rich results.
1. Rich snippets (previously rich cards) are now officially called rich results
Let’s be honest: Google changes names almost as often as Kanye West. As of today, Kanye West’s official name is now Ye. It’s got a Cher and Madonna vibe to it.
I digress.
When Google first released what SEO professionals call rich results today, rich results were called rich snippets, then rich cards.
Rich snippets and rich cards are rich results.
If you call rich results, rich snippets, or rich cards, you might as well start talking about your troll collection from the ’90s. (Remember yesterday? We were so young then.)
2. Rich results, schema, and structured data are not the same
There is a difference between rich results, schema markup, and structured data.
Schema markup (also called structured data format)
Google doesn’t describe exactly what schema markup is because “schema” is a part of a language from schema.org.
While schema.org is helpful, Google clarifies that SEO professionals should rely on Google Search Central documentation because schema.org isn’t focused only on Google search behavior.
Google refers to schema markup as “structured data format.”
Think of schema markup (or structured data format) as the language needed to create structured data.
Schema markup (or structured data format) is required before you can move on to structured data.
Structured data
Again, in Google’s words:
“Structured data is a standardized format for providing information about a page and classifying the page content; for example, on a recipe page, what are the ingredients, the cooking time and temperature, the calories, and so on.”
Ryan Levering, a software engineer at Google, breaks structured data down even further.
Rich results
In Google’s words:
“Rich results are experiences on Google Search that go beyond the standard blue link. They’re powered by structured data and can include carousels, images, or other non-textual elements. Over the last couple years we’ve developed the Rich Results Test to help you test your structured data and preview your rich results.”
3. Always use Google documentation instead of schema.org
Schema.org is often used by SEO professionals when writing schema markups.
But the reality is Google wants you to use Google’s documentation. Not surprising, right?
Google’s own John Mueller himself answers this question in an episode of Ask A Google Webmaster.
And Google directly states it in its Introduction to Structured Data documentation.
4. There are 32 different rich result types
In Google’s search gallery for structured data today, there are 32 different rich result types.
The rich result types include:
- Article
- Book
- Breadcrumb
- Carousel (only available for recipes, courses, restaurants, and movies)
- Course
- Dataset
- Education Q&A
- Employer aggregate rating
- Estimated salary
- Event
- Fact check
- FAQ
- Home activities
- How-to
- Image metadata
- Job posting
- Learning video
- Local business
- Logo
- Math solvers
- Movie
- Podcast
- Practice problems
- Product
- Q&A
- Recipe
- Review snippet
- Sitelinks search box
- Software app
- Speakable
- Subscription and paywalled content
- Video
5. Google Search Console doesn’t support all rich result types in its report
Have you ever looked at the Enhancements section in Google Search Console?
The Enhancement report gives SEO professionals the opportunity to monitor and track the performance of rich results.
Daniel Waisvery, Search Advocate at Google, shares how to monitor and optimize your performance in Google Search Console with rich results.
Unfortunately, Google Search Console only provides monitoring for 22 out of the 32 rich result types.
Google Search Console supports these 22 rich result types:
- Breadcrumb
- Dataset
- Education Q&A
- Event
- FAQ
- Fact check
- Guided recipe
- How-to
- Image metadata
- Job posting
- Learning video
- Logo
- Math solvers
- Merchant listings
- Practice problems
- Product snippet
- Q&A page
- Recipe
- Review snippet
- Sitelinks searchbox
- Special announcement
- Video
6. The Knowledge Graph is a type of rich result
Spoiler alert: the Knowledge Graph is a type of rich result.
You know, these things you see in the SERPs.
Bonus tip: Kristina Azarenko (featured in the knowledge graph above) has an epic course with copious amounts of technical SEO knowledge. I’ve taken it, and I’m a better SEO professional for it. And, no she didn’t pay me to say this.
7. Featured snippets are a type of rich result
Just when you thought you could read another SEO article and not see “featured snippets” again, here I am showcasing featured snippets.
It looks like Google will continue to support this tactic as we’re seeing more FAQ rich results displayed in Google search.
8. You can have more than one type of rich result on one page
Video rich results. Breadcrumb rich results. FAQ rich results. All great things on their own. But better together when using markup on one page.
Can you guess how many rich results this product page from Keen Footwear has?
If you answered three rich results, please pat yourself on the back (and enjoy a virtual hug from me).
9. Rich result enhancements are ‘a thing’
Gosia Poddębniak from Onely wrote a great piece on rich results. He explains enhancements from rich results perfectly.
Essentially, the rich result enhancements you can achieve are based on the original rich result you’re going after.
For example, job posting structure data has multiple properties like date, description, organization, job location title, application location requirements, base salary, apply, employment type, etc.
The more properties you complete, the more enhancements you could get in Google SERPs.
10. Rich results must be written in JSON-LD, microdata or RDFa
If you want to be eligible for Google’s rich results, your markup has to be in JSON-LD, microdata or RDFa.
Gentlepeople, I give you: the Googleys. It’s like trying to be eligible for an Emmy, except you’re only eligible for a Google rich result.
JSON-LD, microdata, and RDFa are linked data formats. Ironically, JSON-LD is a form of RDF syntax.
Basically, these linked data formats help Google connect entities to other entities to help search engines better understand the context.
11. JSON-LD is the preferred rich result format
It’s official from the Sirs at Google, JSON-LD is the recommended structured data.
Why is JSON-LD the preferred rich result format?
It’s easy to implement and doesn’t impact page speed performance because it loads asynchronously.
12. It does not matter where on the page JSON-LD is implemented
Unlike many SEO-related code changes, structured data format does not need to go in the <head> section of your website.
Structured data format can be placed anywhere on your website.
13. Use a tool to automate your markup
I’m reminiscing about the words of the legendary Oprah, “You get a car. You get a car.”
So in honor of Oprah, this is your moment of freedom. Yes, you get a rich result tool. You don’t have to be a web developer to add markup to your website.
If you’re using WordPress, plugins like Yoast SEO or RankMath do it for you.
If you’re using Shopify, there are tools in the app store.
If you’re on Drupal or Sitecore (or any other enterprise website custom-coded language), I’d recommend SchemaApp.
Or, if you’re into Google Tag Manager, you can add structured data with GTM.
Just be careful. When I spoke with Anne Berlin, Senior Technical SEO at Lumar, she shared that this can backfire on very slow sites.
- “Where there is an excessive amount of (particularly render-blocking third party) Javascript on a site, the schema may not be injected into the DOM before googlebot's render timeout window is hit, and it moves on from the page. So this is a commonly used method, and has multiple advantages, but important to be aware that there may periodically be detection or validation issues when this method is used on an already slow template.”
14. Always test using the rich result test tool
The rich result tool is your friend.
At the risk of stating the obvious, this rich result test tool is – very useful.
Mostly because now you don’t have to understand what entities, predicates, or URIs are in relation to linked data formats.
If you’re testing in a staging environment, test with the rich result test tool.
After your webpage is live, test with the rich result test tool.
15. If your rich result violates a quality guideline, it will not be displayed in Google SERPs
If you violate Google’s quality guidelines, the chances of your rich result appearing in the search results are about as good as Blockbuster making a comeback.
It’s not going to happen.
16. You can receive a manual action if your rich result violates Google’s guidelines
The only worse than logging into Google Search Console to see you’ve received a manual action is the great Sriracha shortage of 2022.
Repeat after me: I can receive a manual action if your page contains spammy structured data.
One more time.
I can’t tell you how many clients I’ve worked with that asked me to markup reviews and ratings that weren’t made by actual users.
This is against Google’s completeness guidelines, and you will receive a manual action.
17. Google will not show a rich result for content that is no longer relevant
If you have content that is no longer relevant, Google will not display a rich result.
For example, if your job posting is outdated after 3 months, Google will not display a rich result. You must update the job posting.
Or if you’re streaming live and labeling the broadcast as local events, but it’s outdated. Google will not display the rich result.
18. If the rich result is missing required properties, it will not appear in the SERPs
There are a set of “required properties” Google must have for the rich result to appear in the search results.
For example, if you want to markup an article page, you will need the recommended properties:
- Author
- Author name
- Author URL
- Date modified
- Date published
- Headline
- Image
19. Always include recommended properties when available
If Google provides recommended property options, use them.
Lucky me, I’ve had the joy of working with Berlin, fellow SEO and plant lover, who shared her thoughts on recommended properties.
- “When making a play for the added SERP real estate and CTR of product rich results, it is strongly advisable to fulfill more than just the minimum required properties. With competition for online shopping clicks and the associated advertising investments heating up, product rich results have been especially volatile this year. The more properties you've populated, the more new and experimental rich results you'll qualify for as they're rolled out.
One potential pitfall – read the recommended property notes in the Google guidelines carefully.
If you're marking up online events and just scan the list and think, eventAttendanceMode is not required, you could miss that if this property isn't defined, Google interprets the event as happening at a physical location.”
20. Adding rich results on the canonical page is not enough if you have duplicates
Google states:
“If you have duplicate pages for the same content, we recommend placing the same structured data on all page duplicates, not just on the canonical page.”
This step often gets skipped because SEO professionals often mistake that if you have a canonical page, you’re golden. Unfortunately, simply adding a canonical tag doesn’t mean you’re done with the page.
21. If you have a mobile and desktop version, add rich results to both versions
If you’re running an m.websitename.com and a websitename.com, you will need to add your rich results to both versions. Search engines treat these as two separate websites.
Whatever you do to the desktop version, you have to complete it on the mobile version.
22. There is no guarantee your page will receive rich results
Well… you did it. You added your product review structured data and tested it in the rich result tool, but nothing happens.
The truth is there’s no guarantee Google will reward your website with rich results.
Yes, this can result in all the feelings you felt when watching Chance and Sassy returning home at the end of Homeward Bound, waiting for Shadow to appear.
If you’re lucky, Google may limp your rich results back home. But it’s a waiting game.
Get rich results or die tryin’
Get rich results or die trying is a nod to the rapper 50 Cent and his relentless hustler mentality.
When it comes to implementing rich results, you’ve got to pull your bootstraps up and get creative to showcase a rags-to-riches story of what you can do before and after rich results.
If SAP can see more than 400% net growth in rich results organic traffic, you can get there too.
But remember this advice from Berlin:
- “Depending on the type of rich result being targeted, you might need to improve a site's internal linking setup or rally the organization to define its voice and mission on an exceptional About page.”
Rich results are more than just the markup on the page.
Rich results require tact and attention to detail to reap the benefits. Just remember to pay homage to Google’s documentation shared above and “pour one out” for all rankings you’ve lost without rich results.
The post Rich results: 22 things every SEO pro needs to know appeared first on Search Engine Land.
from Search Engine Land https://ift.tt/ADjlKRP
via https://ift.tt/ldoFyrS https://ift.tt/ADjlKRP
When to fire your content marketing agency: 7 things to consider
You hired your content marketing agency in good faith.
You had every hope they would soon start producing fantastic content for your brand or your clients’ brands.
That content would help build awareness around the brand, pull in more traffic, and generate more leads.
But your hope started to fizzle as months passed with little to no changes in awareness, traffic, search engine rankings, or conversions.
What gives? Is it time to fire your content marketing agency and move on?
Hold up. Not so fast.
It might be time to say goodbye. But you might also need to take a step back and pause before you leap. (Content does take longer to work than traditional or paid marketing methods – but it’s also more sustainable.)
Here’s exactly what to weigh and consider.
When is the right time to fire your content marketing agency?
1. You’re not seeing results in the expected time frame
Content marketing does not and will not work in a week – unless you have exceptionally rare or specific circumstances. It won’t work in one month or a few months, either.
To see the full ROI from content, it will take anywhere from multiple months to a full year or more.
That said, the needle should start to move before then. You should start seeing gains within a few months – incremental ones, but gains nonetheless. If you’re seeing absolutely no movement of any metric and six months have gone by, you may want to start asking questions.
And, by the way, your content marketing agency should have set accurate expectations for results from the beginning.
You should have set goals, staked out KPIs (key performance indicators) to measure, and strategized about tracking them. They should have given you an outlook about when to expect ROI and what it will look like.
If none of the above happened, that’s a good reason in itself to question the content agency you’re working with.
Remember, marketing for the sake of marketing is silly. You can and should expect ROI from it, and your agency needs to be accountable for moving that needle.
2. The agency makes repeated mistakes in your content
Everyone makes mistakes. The important thing is whether you learn not to repeat them.
For example, say your content marketing agency creates content for your brand with a few glaring errors (like links pointing to low-authority pages or worse, competitors).
Say this happens during the first few months of your relationship. That’s something that can be quickly pointed out and corrected so it never happens again.
If your agency keeps making mistakes in your content, even after corrections, that’s a good reason to dump them.
The entire point of hiring an agency is to take content off your hands so you don’t have to worry about it. It’s their job to:
- Nail your brand voice.
- Link correctly in your blogs.
- Use correct grammar and spelling.
- Use keywords appropriately.
- And generally, produce content you can be proud of.
If they’re not paying attention to details, they may not be the right agency for you.
3. You’re dissatisfied with the content quality overall
Content quality is an organic search ranking factor. That means you absolutely should be concerned with the quality you receive from the agency in charge of writing it.
Bad content can have a domino effect on your brand reputation and visibility. Poor content won’t rank well in searches, if at all, and thus will drive zero traffic from Google. (Click-through rates drop off a cliff beyond page two of a Google search.)
Not to mention, a visitor reading bad content is most likely to:
- Bounce.
- File you away in their mental “do not trust” folder.
Goodbye, ROI.
If the content isn’t cutting it, it probably has one of these things wrong with it. Bad content is:
- Poorly structured with few headings and long paragraphs.
- Unfocused, irrelevant, or rambling.
- Full of spelling and grammatical errors.
- Laden with factual errors and inconsistencies.
- Brand-centered (instead of user-centered)
- Ignorant of search intent.
- Poorly optimized with either little to no keyword placement or keyword stuffing.
- Not set up to direct leads to their next action (using CTAs).
- Missing external links to authority sites, or internal links to relevant pages on-site.
If you see any of the above markers consistently, it’s time to fire your content marketing agency. They should know better and do better.
4. The content marketing agency isn’t communicating well
You’ll never get good results with a content marketing agency that doesn’t communicate well.
Good communication on their end will help you clarify and pinpoint your goals, set your expectations, understand various stages and processes, get answers to questions as they pop up, and more.
Without solid communication:
- You may be left feeling unsure about where you’re headed with content.
- You might be unclear on what’s happening and when.
- You might feel alone, when in fact you should feel like part of a team.
Some red flags to look out for regarding communication include:
- Getting no response to emails or messages, or waiting days to receive a response.
- Asking questions but getting unsatisfactory answers, or no answers at all.
- Not knowing when you’ll connect with the agency next to go over your strategy, progress, or results.
- A lack of transparency on their part, which leads to confusion on yours.
5. The agency continually misses deadlines
Meeting deadlines isn’t just a matter of adhering to a content schedule or publishing content on time.
Yes, those things are important factors in consistent content, which is important to the overarching success of a content strategy, but let’s not forget another aspect:
Meeting deadlines is also about showing respect and responsibility. If you and your agency specify deadlines in advance (such as when and how often content will go out on your blog), keeping those deadlines also shows:
- The agency respects your time.
- They respect your brand.
- They respect the strategy and are following through with it.
- They put care and thought into your content all the way down to publication.
Continually missing deadlines and offering excuses is therefore a good reason to part ways with an agency.
That leads us to our next point.
6. The agency isn’t treating you like a partner
To see the best ROI, you need to work well with your content agency. Your individual gears should turn in sync, otherwise, the whole operation will jam and stall.
Part of that is good communication, but another part is acting like collaborators and partners in every stage of the game.
For example:
- Does the agency you work with treat your concerns seriously?
- Do they listen well?
- Do they keep you in the loop every step of the way?
This doesn’t mean they allow you to run the show, by the way. They’re the content experts, not you. That said, your content marketing agency should still keep you involved in the process and decision-making, and help you understand the strategy and its moving parts.
They’re accountable to you, just like you’re accountable to them. Mutual trust is important. If you’re not feeling the teamwork, you might want to reconsider the working relationship.
7. You suspect they’re using spammy or misleading techniques to get quick results
Usually, the only way to get uber-fast results with content is to cheat.
Even today, spammy tactics are surprisingly common in content marketing. However, using them is a giant trap. You may see swift gains in rankings or traffic, but these are unstable gains.
They will disappear just as quickly because Google is incredibly finely-tuned and can detect most types of spam through their automated systems as well as through manual action.
That may result in a penalty for your site – which could range from a ranking demotion to being completely removed from Google search.
If you suspect your content marketing agency may be using spammy techniques to quickly rank your site in search, they’re playing with fire. It may work for a short time, but will inevitably result in death for your site’s visibility.
If they’re playing with fire, dump them and find an ethical content agency that will build up your site rankings for longevity and sustainability.
What to remember before firing your content marketing agency
A content marketing agency’s job is to handle your content marketing so you don’t have to. They’ll manage everything from planning to creation to distribution.
If you hired an agency, you most likely don’t have the time or expertise to handle it yourself. At the same time, you expect smart strategy and results from whoever you hired.
And that’s totally warranted – but don’t make the mistake of giving up too early.
Content marketing is a long-term game. It isn’t about quick wins, but rather slow and steady gains that build over time.
It can be frustrating in the beginning, but consistency will pay off dividends in the future.
If your agency is working diligently on your content marketing, publishing regularly, communicating well, analyzing metrics, treating you like a partner, nailing content quality, hitting deadlines, and keeping you in the loop – just hang tight.
Those results you long for will be coming around the bend.
The post When to fire your content marketing agency: 7 things to consider appeared first on Search Engine Land.
from Search Engine Land https://ift.tt/tIV4GSC
via https://ift.tt/ldoFyrS https://ift.tt/tIV4GSC
"Another Day In Gujarat": Lions Casually Stroll, Relax In Field
Sunday, November 27, 2022
Techie, 31, Complains Of Chest Pain After Playing Cricket, Dies: Cops
Man, 82, Dies During Police Raid At Home, Probe Ordered: Jharkhand Cops
Cyclist Dies After BMW With VIP Plates Rams Him In Delhi
Mumbai Man Pretends To Be From Royal Family, Extorts From Women, Arrested
"Not Just To Win": BJP Minister On High Voltage Delhi Civic Polls Campaign
Mentally-Challenged Man Smashes Car With Hammer In Goa, Detained: Cops
Saturday, November 26, 2022
For Delhi Civic Body Polls, BJP Chief JP Nadda's Door To Door Campaign
UP Teacher Drills Student's Hand For Not Reciting Number Table: Report
Former Congress Legislator Arrested For Manhandling Cop
"BJP's 10 Videos Vs...": Arvind Kejriwal On Minister's Jail CCTV Videos
Friday, November 25, 2022
Fresh CCTV Of Jailed Delhi Minister Out, Seen Meeting Jail Chief, Guests
Border Dispute: Meghalaya Extends Internet Shutdown For Another 48 Hours
Aaftab Poonawala Undergoes Another Session Of Polygraph Test
"Diversion": Team Uddhav On BJP Raising Maharashtra-Karnataka Border Row
16 Injured As Bus Overturns Near Himachal Pradesh's Bilaspur
2 Suspects Arrested After Man Shot Dead In Rajasthan's Bhilwara: Police
Thursday, November 24, 2022
"Reports Written In BJP Office": AAP On 1,300-Crore Classroom Scam Charge
Man Shot Dead In Rajasthan's Bhilwara, Internet Shut For 48 Hours
Watch: Congress Leader's Fortuner Stolen During Delhi Civic Polls Campaign
Huge Blaze At Old Delhi's Bhagirath Palace Market, 12 Fire Trucks At Site
Woman, 4-Year-Old Son Burnt Alive In Cylinder Blast In Jammu's Poonch
Panic As Leopard Attacks 3 In Residential Area Near Mumbai
Wednesday, November 23, 2022
Man, 26, Dies After Falling Into Open Sewer In Maharashtra
Man Fleeing To Varanasi After Killing Wife In Maharashtra, Arrested: Cops
Aaftab Poonawala Narco Test Likely On Thursday: Report
Tuesday, November 22, 2022
Heroin Worth Nearly Rs 14 Crore Seized In Mizoram: Report
Pune Car Pile-Up: 35 Illegal Structures Along Highway Demolished
Back From Rehab, He Allegedly Killed His Entire Family At Delhi Home
Earthquake Of Magnitude 3.6 Hits Near Maharashtra's Nashik
Haryana Woman Jumps Into Water Tank With 3 Kids, Only She Survives: Cops
Leopard Kills 5-Year-Old Boy In Uttarakhand: Forest Official
Case Against Student For Filming Girls Inside Bengaluru University Toilet
Monday, November 21, 2022
"Why Should We Doubt Police?" Court Says No To CBI Probe Into Delhi Murder
Google Search adds new spam policy: Policy circumvention
Google has added a new spam policy to its search spam policies today, the new spam policy is named “Policy circumvention.” In short, if you find ways to get around the current spam prevention measures, Google may take action on your content, site, or account.
The new policy. Google posted the new policy over here, it reads:
“If you engage in actions intended to bypass our spam or content policies for Google Search, undermine restrictions placed on content, a site, or an account, or otherwise continue to distribute content that has been removed or made ineligible from surfacing, we may take appropriate action which could include restricting or removing eligibility for some of our search features (for example, Top Stories, Discover). Circumvention includes but is not limited to creating or using multiple sites or other methods intended to distribute content or engage in a behavior that was previously prohibited.”
The penalty. Google said if you violate this new policy, Google may restrict or remove the content from showing up in search or for some search features.
What is a policy circumvention? In short, it sounds like any action you take to bypass the other Google Search spam or content policies. This includes creating new sites, using other sites or other methods to distribute that content, maybe on third-party sites or other avenues.
Why we care. Knowing Google’s spam and content policies is a prerequisite for performing SEO services and other marketing services on Google Search. This is a new policy but the fundamentals of logic behind the policy match most of the already published Google Search spam policies. In short, don’t try to manipulate Google Search’s ranking algorithms and if you do, you run the risk of having your site removed or downgraded in Google Search.
The post Google Search adds new spam policy: Policy circumvention appeared first on Search Engine Land.
from Search Engine Land https://ift.tt/uRbLWCv
via https://ift.tt/cJrdWX8 https://ift.tt/uRbLWCv
Delhi Excise Department Raids Birthday Party, Seizes 65 Alcohol Bottles
How to choose the right content marketing agency
With just a few strategic pieces in place, content marketing can work outrageously well.
Businesses that blog generate 67% more leads than businesses that don’t blog.
They also get 55% more website visitors and 434% more pages indexed in search engines.
The problem is, how do you put those necessary pieces for results in motion?
Content marketing strategy is notoriously complex for the uninitiated. It can seem like a giant machine with countless cogs, wheels, and whirligigs that connect in multiple ways.
43% of businesses don’t have a documented content strategy – and they perform less well than brands that do have one.
What if you could hand off content – the entire thing, from planning to creation to publishing – to someone who already knows how it all fits together? Who has a proven record of making it work?
That’s what a content marketing agency is for.
If you want content done right, but don’t have the expertise or experience to do it yourself, you can hire a content agency. Here’s everything you need to know about finding the best one.
What is a content marketing agency?
A content marketing agency is an expert team that helps businesses plan, create, and execute a content marketing strategy.
That team usually includes project and account managers, content strategists, content writers, editors, SEO experts, graphic designers, consultants, salespeople, and more.
What does a content marketing agency do?
Most agencies are full-service, which means they’ll take the entirety of your content marketing off your plate and handle it all. That includes planning your strategy, creating your content, and distributing it to your content channels. They’ll also:
- Create content marketing campaigns.
- Do market and SEO research to discover the best audience, topics, and keywords for a brand.
- Create a brand content calendar.
- Create most types of content, from written blogs and lead magnets to designed infographics and visual social media posts.
- Make sure a brand’s site and content are search engine-optimized.
- Manage a business’ website and blog.
- Track and measure results.
As you can see, a content marketing agency can do it all. Their teams are robust and cover a vast range of skills. This makes hiring a content agency an all-in-one solution for getting a content plan in place or helping a stagnant one start moving.
What to look for when choosing a content marketing agency
There are a lot of content marketing agencies out there these days.
How do you choose the right one? Consider these criteria.
1. Evidence of expertise and credibility
You’re hiring a content marketing agency because they’re supposed to have the expertise that your team lacks. That means you should make doubly sure it’s actually there.
Look for past examples of the agency’s work. Check their website for testimonials and case studies. Look for a list of past clients and partnerships.
Specifically, look for examples of past work similar to what you need. Do they typically serve your industry? This will be important for brands in specialized niches like healthcare, finance, or law, where certain standards for content must be met.
Most agencies will list the industries they serve on their sites, but looking at work examples will show you more detailed proof that they can handle your niche.
If the agency doesn’t have any samples on its site, it might not have had any clients yet. This isn’t a deal breaker if you’re on a budget – they may have related experience that demonstrates their expertise.
If this is the case, check their “About” page for staff bios and information on what they’ve done that makes them experts.
2. A good reputation
Have you seen/heard other people talk glowingly about this agency? Have you read lots of good reviews? Or does the agency seem to exist in a vacuum of silence?
The information you can find about the agency online should speak volumes about its reputation. Usually, you’ll find proof of reputation in these places:
- Featured on the agency’s website:
- Reviews
- Testimonials
- Lists of past clients or partners
- On social media:
- Mentions, tags, or comments from customers
- On review sites like Expertise, Agency Match, and Clutch.co
- From a Google search of the brand name or “[brand name] reviews”
Weigh good, neutral, and bad reviews carefully, and consider them in light of the services you need.
3. An emphasis on strategy, goals, ROI
Strategy is everything in content marketing. Without a plan of action, your content will go nowhere.
That must include goal setting, how you’ll track and measure those goals, and the type of ROI you’d like to see from content.
78% of marketers who said their content marketing was very successful also reported having a documented content strategy, per a Semrush survey. Most focused on content quality, SEO, and visual content in their planning.
A formal process and documentation attached to content marketing give you a map to follow, essentially.
If the prospective agency you’re looking at doesn’t emphasize strategy at the bottom of a working content marketing plan, they have no map to follow to reach success. Move on.
4. A skilled team of creators
Most brands want skilled creators behind their content. After all, content quality is a giant Google ranking factor, not to mention a huge reason your audience will stay with you.
When you measure the skill of a creator, think about their subject matter expertise along with their storytelling ability.
For many niches, it’s impossible to create great content without specialized knowledge – be sure that the agency you’re considering has creators with the right expertise or background.
Also, think about the specific skills you need behind your content. For example, say you need video content creation. If the agency doesn’t have videographers on staff, that’s a reason to look elsewhere.
5. A clear project management process
Content marketing agencies tend to juggle a lot of clients, projects at various stages, and all the associated moving parts. That means they need good project management in their wheelhouse.
You need to know whether your chosen agency has the capacity to deliver results both on time and under budget. For that reason, look for these criteria to ensure they’re up to snuff:
- They have project management listed as an included service with their other offerings.
- They provide an outline of their process, going from the idea stage to results and what happens in between.
- They give an overview of which team member will touch your project at what stage.
Remember, if you can’t find this information on their website, you can always ask about it if you get to the consultation stage with the agency.
6. Good communication
Good communication is a cornerstone of any business relationship. You know it, we all know it – but putting it into practice is another story entirely.
While you’re evaluating your final choices for content marketing agencies, pay careful attention to how they communicate with you. Bad communication can be both the canary in the coal mine and the nail in the coffin.
- How quickly did they respond to your initial inquiry?
- Have you been passed from person to person since, or have you always talked to the same person?
- Have replies to emails and phone calls been prompt and courteous?
- Have you felt like your questions have been answered to your satisfaction?
Finally, consider this preliminary communication as the initial step toward building a relationship with your agency.
It will give you a giant clue about what they’re like to work with – whether this will be fun and exciting, or difficult and tedious. If your gut tells you it’s not a good fit, you’re probably right.
7. Solid values for ethical content marketing
Ethics matter in content marketing, and you should expect your agency to adhere to them.
Look for the agency’s values that guide their business on their website. What have they emphasized? What’s important to them? Are those same things important to your brand?
A good agency will also have zero-tolerance policies for issues like plagiarism, poor-quality content, manipulative content, content created only for search engines, or content that violates Google’s spam policies.
The right content marketing agency should be fully transparent about their business practices, their past clients, their staff or contracted employees, and their rates.
For example, if the agency is promising the moon for a ridiculously cheap rate, that’s a red flag. It’s also a red flag if it seems like they’re trying to hide something.
Comb their website carefully, ask lots of questions, and expect clear answers. The right agency will be fully transparent and happily provide them.
Tips for working with a content marketing agency
To give your business the best chance of success with content, you should have some key knowledge under your belt before working with an agency.
Know the basics
Before hiring a content marketing agency, it's a good idea to study the basics of how content works. This helps keep your expectations realistic and gives you a better understanding of what's going on behind the scenes.
- Get an overview of the process of planning and creating a content strategy, including all the necessary pieces that go into it.
- Research what high-quality content looks like, and what it takes to create it (from planning to publishing).
- Understand that content is a long-term game, and not for you if you want fast, quick wins.
Know your needs and goals
Before you hire a content marketing agency, you should know what your needs are. For example, maybe you don't have a blog on your site yet and want to set up a content marketing system and strategy for blogging.
You should also set clear, reasonable goals attached to a time frame for the results you want to see. What do you want that blog to do for your brand in the next six months? In the next year?
The clearer you are on both of these things, the more productive your conversations will be with an agency.
Know your budget
What are you willing to spend on content marketing? Set a limit, but don't set it in stone.
You may need to nudge it up or down depending on how well you understand the costs associated with content. (If you have no idea, you might want to do some research on what content marketing typically costs brands of your size.)
Also, remember that most agencies will be willing to work with your budget and set realistic goals you can reasonably meet with the amount you've invested.
Find the right content marketing agency for real growth
When content marketing is set up smartly and the right creators and strategists are behind it, you'll be surprised at the ROI you'll eventually see.
The right content marketing agency can fill in any business's marketing gaps for better reach, visibility, brand awareness, leads, and results.
Carefully vet the agency you hire, because they'll take on a lot of responsibility for you. However, they can also help your brand grow in ways you never imagined.
The post How to choose the right content marketing agency appeared first on Search Engine Land.
from Search Engine Land https://ift.tt/OweTDsu
via https://ift.tt/cJrdWX8 https://ift.tt/OweTDsu
Father Shot Delhi Woman Whose Body Was Found In Suitcase In UP: Sources
Dalit Woman In UP Claims She Was Threatened To Withdraw Rape Case
Sunday, November 20, 2022
Delhi Records Coldest Morning Of Season, Air Quality Remains "Very Poor"
Man Kills Wife After She Refuses To Give Earrings To Pay For Rituals
Delhi Murder: Cops Find Part Of Skull, Bones In Forest, Sent For DNA Match
3 BSF Personnel Among 5 Arrested For Gang-Rape In Rajasthan
Poor Living Conditions Behind Measles Outbreak In Mumbai: Officials
Saturday, November 19, 2022
Ex-Navy Officer Killed By Son, Body Parts Found In Bengal Pond: Police
Man Allegedly Kills 6-Year-Old Son After Fight With Wife In Mumbai
Video: Pregnant Dog Beaten To Death In Delhi, Dragged Across Field
Friday, November 18, 2022
Mumbai Local Trains On 2 Lines To Shut For 27 Hours, Affect 37 Lakh People
At 9 Degrees Celsius, Delhi Records Season's Coldest Morning Today
Body Found In Audi Parked On Mumbai-Goa Highway, Murder Case Filed
Man Arrested From Maharashtra 3 Months After Committing Murder In Odisha
Are we officially saying goodbye to Twitter? It depends on who you ask
The last few weeks have been nothing short of dramatic over at Twitter headquarters. But before we get into that, I just want to thank dark-paul gosselaar for our cover image inspiration.
And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that I sympathize with all of the employees who have been let go, by choice or not. Thousands of people losing their jobs isn’t a laughing matter and in no way am I making light of it.
How we got here
Elon Musk posted eight tweets today, which is surprising for someone who should be busy running a company (into the ground).
But his latest round of changes is an undoing of one of his earliest acts as new CEO, which was to ban Kathy Griffin and others for poking fun at his leadership.
But the week started with Musk sending out an (encrypted?) email to all staffers informing them that they will be fired unless they work at an “extremely hardcore” rate to build “Twitter 2.0”.
The result?
Shortly after the email went out, Twitter announced that they were locking their doors (some say they’ll reopen on November 21). All remaining employees were informed that their badge access had been revoked.
This was the scene at Twitter HQ last night:
And Musk tweeted:
He does know people love watching a train wreck, right?
Either way it seems like conversations are flowing, opinions are flying, and engagement is through the roof.
It’s no wonder that so many people think this is the end for Twitter. Even Musk is joining in on the …er, fun?
Let this sink in. Musk started his first day on the job by firing top executives, including the CEO, Parag Agrawal. Soon after, several others followed suit. Let’s look at who’s gone:
- CEO Parag Agrawal
- Chief Financial Officer Ned Segal
- Head of legal policy, trust and safety, Vijaya Gadde
- General Counsel Sean Edgett
- Chief Information Security Officer Rinki Sethi
- Head of Security Peiter Zatko
- Chief customer officer, Sarah Personette
- Chief people and diversity officer, Dalana Brand
- Chief marketing officer, Leslie Berland
- General manager of consumer and revenue product, Jay Sullivan
- General manager for core technologies, Nick Caldwell
- Chief accounting officer, Robert Kaiden
- VP of global client solutions, Jean-Philippe Maheu
- Head of International Communications, Julie Steele
- Head of Trust and Safety, Yoel Roth
- The global head of social and editorial
- The director of ML ethics, transparency, and accountability
- Chief information security officer
- Managing director of Twitter Studio
- Head of location strategy
Those who haven’t been fired are choosing to quit on their own terms. The reasons? Peter Clowes helps explain why some are choosing not to follow Musk:
Why I left @twitter or rather why I did not sign up for “extremely hardcore” Twitter 2.0
— Peter Clowes (@peterclowes) November 18, 2022
So is Twitter done?
Maybe? One of its remaining employees has told Newsweek reporter Travis Akers the website “has about a week left before it’s dead.”
Some people aren’t convinced.
It is difficult to believe that Musk would spend $44 billion on the platform just to watch it all burn in a matter of weeks. But I also think he underestimated how much the staff would endure. With all of the conflicting information out there, it’s hard to know what to believe. We’ll try to keep this page updated with the latest information as it’s coming out. Stay tuned!
The post Are we officially saying goodbye to Twitter? It depends on who you ask appeared first on Search Engine Land.
from Search Engine Land https://ift.tt/iSHK58u
via https://ift.tt/lpuqjvI https://ift.tt/iSHK58u