At this years conference TopRank CEO Lee Odden will be giving a solo presentation titled “Optimize This: Integrating Social, SEO, & Content” and co-presenting a session titled “The Convergence of Search, Social, & Content Marketing”.  Want to learn more?

Online Marketing Summit 2012

Tuesday, February 7, 2012
11:45 AM – 12:30 PM – Optimize This: Integrating Social, SEO, & Content
Location: Sapphire H
Solo Presentation by: Lee Odden, TopRank Online Marketing CEO and author of “Optimize”

Lee Odden is a firm believer that If it can be searched it can be optimized and that it’s far more valuable to optimize for customers before keywords.  This session will provide principles and best practices for attracting and engaging more customers through an “Optimize and Socialize” approach to Content Marketing. You’ll learn:

• Strategies for integrating content marketing with SEO and social media across the enterprise
• Develop customer persona-driven content that attracts, engages and inspires action
• Killer creative content ideas for websites, blogging, social media and re-purposed content

As the online marketplace evolves and becomes increasingly competitive, marketers around the world are searching for advantages that can increase their efficiencies, and improve the performance of online marketing efforts.  Many companies are implementing Content Marketing, SEO and Social Media programs but few are integrating them or coordinating optimized and socialized content across the organization. This session will provide a valuable perspective, roadmap and tactical mix for integrating Content Marketing, SEO and Social Media in ways that you can implement today.

Event Details
OMS San Diego
February 6-10, 2012

Hilton San Diego Bayfront
1 Park Boulevard
San Diego, CA 92101

More Info & Register
(Use Discount code TOPRANK10 and save 10%)

SES Accelerator

Tuesday, February 9, 2012
10:00 AM – 10:50 AM – The Convergence of Search, Social, & Content Marketing
Location: Sapphire I
Presenters
Lee Odden, TopRank Online Marketing CEO and author of  “Optimize”
Arnie Kuenn, Vertical Measures President and author of “Accelerate”

What makes great content?  Content does not become great until your audience finds it, reads it, and shares it.  Curious to know what you can do to increase your odds of being found in both Search and Social Media?  This session featuring Lee Odden and Arnie Kuenn will present an approach to content optimization that emphasizes the convergence of Search, Social Media and Content.  Lee and Arnie will provide step-by-step advice and examples that can be applied by an organization of any size to increase relevant website and social media traffic.

Event Details
SES Search & Social Accelerator
February 9, 2012

Hilton San Diego Bayfront
1 Park Boulevard
San Diego, CA 92101

More Info & Register
(Use Discount code TOPRANK10 and save 10%)

We hope to see you all at the Online Marketing Summit and SES Accelerator in San Diego next week.  Be sure to follow the conference buzz on Twitter under the hashtag: #OMS12.  If you’re interested in learning more about the specific sessions or workshops be sure to visit the Schedule page on the OMS website or the Agenda on the SES Accelerator site.

TopRank will be live blogging, Tweeting and networking at the event of course and can find us on Twitter at: @LeeOdden or @AZeckman.

Looking for some interesting things to do while you’re in San Diego?  I found this great list of “25 Fun & Free Things to Do in San Diego.”  Also, I don’t know if there are any other “Top Chef” fans out there but I have heard a lot of great things about Chef Brain Malarkey’s restaurant Searsucker and it’s less than a mile from the conference.  Hope to see you all there!

• What’s the right time to understand who your best customers are? Who are your “worst” customers?
• When is it a good time to know what your prospects and customers care about and why they buy?
• What triggers your prospects to discover, consume and engage with content that inspires sales, social shares and referrals?
• Does having no content plan really mean you’re planning to fail?
• If you don’t tie your SEO, Social Media and Online Public Relations efforts together in a way that’s “manageable” and efficient now, will you wait until your competition does?
• When will you need a community of supporters to help promote your content, provide you with new content and serve as an on-demand focus group?
• When is it a good time to create more efficient and effective means for journalists and the media to use your content in their news stories?
• When is the right time to measure which content messages are working, which are not and to gain actionable insights that will improve overall marketing and PR performance?

The questions above get at some of the core principles and benefits of content marketing. Online marketers rely on channels like email, online PR, search and social media to generate awareness, leads and sales. Content is at the core of all those means of communication and without a plan that coordinates content planning, creation, optimization, social promotion and measurement, companies are simply guessing and getting lucky with their current online marketing efforts.

Without planned content designed to attract, engage and inspire action with prospects, customers and industry influentials, companies may find themselves looking in the tail lights of their competitors in the distance. Why wait to start the race when you can get a head start with Content Marketing today?

I want to really connect with my customers.
The first step in connecting with your customers involves knowing who they are.  Run a survey of your existing customers to help develop personas based upon their answers.  From there you will have a better sense of what type of communication they prefer, how they interact with content, and their pain points.  What steps should you take to get this accomplished?

• Create a 5-10 question survey using a service like www.surveymonkey.com
• Email the survey out to existing customers with a brief explanation stating that you want to better understand their needs.
• Review the data collected and create 3-5 unique personas based on the information.
• Begin creating a marketing plan with unique content streams aimed at reaching those persona types

I want to implement a social media plan and stick with it.
In order to map out a social media strategy you need to first understand where you are at.  A meaningful and engaging social media strategy should be focused on increasing interaction and generating results.

• Repurpose Content: Be thoughtful about the manner in which you are repurposing content.  By slightly changing your posts you can easily highlight different key points while avoiding the need to start from scratch.
• Interact Regularly:  A successful social media strategy contains 1 part promotion, 3 parts great content, and 6 parts engagement.  Plan on scheduling time to interact with potential customers and current clients on a regular basis.
• Optimize Your Content: If your content can be searched online it can be optimized.  Use proper keywords and search phrases when creating customer centric content.

I want to start a blog to share with my customers.
Starting a new blog or refreshing an existing blog can be a daunting experience.  However, there are some simple best practices that you can implement to improve the experience for yourself as well as your customers.

• Sourcing Content:  A great way to source content for your blog is to survey your existing customers.  This will give you insight into their pain points and information that they would like to learn more about.
• Stand Out:  In a sea of blogs, social media sites, and content it is imperative that you create a unique hook or angle that differentiates your blog from other blogs online.
• Do Your Homework:  Spend some time looking at the blogs that you follow and determine what attracts you to them.  Also, you will want to spend some time researching your top competitors to determine how their customers react and engage with their content.

Know Your Audience.  Take the time to learn your audience as well as your competitors.  What Facebook pages do your potential customers like? What sort of information are they sharing?  By identifying and researching your customers you are able to identify what they are doing well (and wrong) and how users are responding to the information that they are providing.

Use Relevant Keywords.  Not only does Facebook have it’s own robust search engine but the content housed on Facebook also filters through to other search engines such as Google and Bing.  Optimize your information and content the same way that you would any other digital media.  Using relevant keywords and keyword phrases will increase your changes of visibility.

Interact Regularly.  Facebook is not a one way street.  Simply soliciting followers to become “fans” of your page is a one sided marketing strategy.  There are some very simple actions you can take to increase your visibility.  For example you may want to consider following prospective clients that you have identified.  If you find a post of theirs interesting take the extra step to not only “like” the information but interact with it as well by posting a sincere comment responding to the topic.

Be Friendly.  Brands, individuals, and organizations like to interact with people that are friendly.  Inserting personality and personalization to posts encourages others to share your content.  In order to increase your following provide information on things that people like that will encourage further communication or next steps.

Create Strong Calls to Action.  Asking questions is a great way to encourage interaction with Facebook users.  However, what other tactics can be used to inspire engagement?  There are a variety of free tools available to create polls, surveys, and run contests to encourage interaction with your Facebook audience.  A simple landing page that offers “10 tips on improving your marketing strategy” for filling out a couple lines of contact information is also a great way to entice your audience to take next steps.   Because you are offering something of value that can be applied their business they will be more likely to participate.

As with any other marketing initiative your Facebook presence should be an ongoing strategy.  You should be constantly researching, creating fresh content, monitoring results, and adapting your strategy to improve results.

Research & Use Keywords. Optimize your blog for search engines. Use a keyword research tool to create a keyword glossary of words related to your brand, business, topic or industry that are in demand. Content creators should use the glossary as a reference for planning, writing and publishing content online.

Create a Content Plan. Create a structured, yet flexible content plan for your business blog. Assign topics and keywords to any planned articles, blog posts, curated news and other content. Its okay to expect some “wildcard” posts in case breaking industry news occurs, as long as content creators expect to consult the keyword list when posting.

Use Keywords Everywhere. Have you noticed a theme? Keywords are a blog’s most important feature for attracting organic traffic, but repetitive use in body text can turn readers off. To increase keyword density without sacrificing content quality, use keywords everywhere: In post titles, anchor text for URLs, tags, post categories, image alt text, audio and video title names, metadata, etc.

Create Valuable Content. Varied, compelling content draws readers back frequently to check for updates. Include wide-ranging content and formats in your blog posts, as they relate to your business, brand or industry. Some examples of types of posts that are popular include lists, FAQs, how-tos, interviews, industry news, current events, photo spreads and infographics.

The Three Cs. Get some of your content from the outside your organization through Curation, Comments and Crowdsourcing. Share posts from important blogs in your industry. Write posts that address poignant comments. Create surveys, polls and contests that result in content from your target market. Give audiences motivation to participate. Don’t forget to link – outbound links attract inbound links!

Quality Over Quantity. Some people post once a month, others by the week and even a few swear by blogging every day. But the quantity of posts that you publish isn’t as important as the quality. Quality over quantity will keep the readers of your business blog engaged and coming back for more.

Balance. Find a balance of optimizing blog text keywords and context for readers and search engines: Don’t forget that your target reader isn’t a computer. Offset curated content with original content. Find the right timing, for you and your brand, to publish new posts and remain consistent.

Incorporate Gadgets. You can share your work, but truly successful blog posts are distributed far and wide by zealous readers. Encourage this with gadgets embedded in each post or on each page, like RSS syndication feeds, widgets for social bookmark sites and buttons to instantly share posts via Twitter, Facebook or other social media sites. This gives more visibility and can help to build more links.

Getting the most value from a business blog takes a little knowledge and a lot of strategy, but it doesn’t have to be time consuming. Follow the tips above and you’ll be well on your way to reaping the benefits blogs can provide to companies.

This year TopRank CEO Lee Odden will be moderating a session on “SEO Competitive Analysis” and will be speaking at two sessions on “The Convergence of Search, Social, and Content Marketing” as well as “Content Marketing Optimization.”  Here’s the lineup!

Wednesday, November 16
11:15am-12:15pm – The Convergence of Search, Social, and Content Marketing

The Google Panda update just made great content critical. Social media is grabbing all the headlines. Search gets more powerful every year. But how do they all play together? How do you increase your odds of being found both in search and social media? How will you consistently create content your audience will enjoy? Join this panel as they provide case studies and walk you through a step-by-step approach that any organization can follow to grow their business online.

Moderator:
Anne F. Kennedy, SES Advisory Board, International Search Strategist, Beyond Ink USA

Speakers:
Lee Odden, SES Advisory Board & CEO, TopRank Online Marketing
Aaron Kahlow, Chairman & Founder, Online Marketing Summit
Arnie Kuenn, President, Vertical Measures

Wednesday, November 16
12:15pm-1:15pm - Meet the Experts: Roundtable Forum

Join the ALL NEW “Meet the Experts Roundtable Forum” at SES Chicago where attendees will have a unique opportunity to learn, network and share information with peers and leading industry specialists. Each roundtable discussion focuses on different key topics and features 2 experts.  TopRank’s Lee Odden will be participating in the Content Marketing & SEO discussion so be sure to watch for the table with that sign to ask him your questions.

Thursday, November 17
12:15-1:15pm – SEO Competitive Analysis

Competitive Analysis is one of the most important and informative components of an SEO strategy. Your competitors are a wealth of free information. From determining which links are providing your competitors with the most value, to deciphering what their most profitable keywords are, with the right systems in place you’ll be able to capitalize on their mistakes and learn from their successes.

This session will cover:

• On-site competitive analysis: Analyzing the structure of your competitors websites, the keywords they are targeting and how they are optimizing their content.
• Off-site competitive analysis: Analyzing how they are participating in key social networks, what their link building strategy is and which content has performed the best/worst for them.
• Competitor monitoring: What types of trends should you be on the lookout for? What tools are best for keeping track of what your competitors are doing?

Moderator:
Lee Odden, SES Advisory Board & CEO, TopRank Online Marketing

Speakers:
Chris Boggs, Director, SEO, Rosetta
Jin Han, Director of Online Media & Search, Compete Inc.

1:30-2:30pm – Content Marketing Optimization

The core of any search or social media marketing program centers on content. Digital assets, rich media, web pages, MS Office and PDF docs as well as content created and shared by consumers all offer opportunities for optimization. If it can be searched, it can be optimized!

Online marketing is increasingly competitive and brand marketers world-wide are seeking real advantages that will improve the efficiency and impact of their Social Media and SEO efforts. This session provides unique insight into content based optimization strategies and processes as well as tactics for sourcing, creation and promotion of optimized content on the social web.

Solo presentation by:
Lee Odden, SES Advisory Board & CEO, TopRank Online Marketing

Event Details
SES Chicago
November 14-18, 2011

Hyatt Regency
151 E. Wacker Dr.
Chicago, IL 60601

Register Now

If you’re looking for some additional sessions to attend be sure to read our post on: Grab Your Jacket – The Windy City Blows In Big Talent For SES Chicago 2011 for 6 Internet marketing sessions you wont want to miss.

We hope to see all of you at SES Chicago in a couple weeks. Be sure to follow the conference buzz on twitter under hashtags #SESconf and #SESchi. Check out SES Chicago’s information page for a full schedule of sessions and training. TopRank will also be live blogging and tweeting at the event @toprank and @leeodden,for those of you who don’t already follow us.

We’re sure when many people think of the food in Chicago deep dish pizza and ChicagoDog’s come to mind.   Do not fear!  We recently stumbled across a stunning visual gallery of reviews on 15 new restaurants in Chicago. Get your mind ready and your tastebuds optimized for a great experience at SES Chicago.

If you’re an internet marketing professional looking for the latest in industry trends, practical tools, and tips for executing on your own PPC or SEO strategy, then ad:tech New York is an event that you should not miss.  We are pleased to announce that TopRank CEO Lee Odden will be following in the footsteps of Melanie Mitchell, SVP of Search at Digitas, and serving as the Marketing Master for three sessions at the next ad:tech conference.

When asked about serving as a Marketing Master at Ad:Tech New York, Odden had this to say: “It is an honor to be selected to program the Search Marketing track at such an important conference as ad:tech.  We are privileged to have a great team of presenters from some of the top brand marketers around including Intel, REI, Volkswagen and Salesforce.com.  Attendees will gain practical insight about integrated Paid Search as well as SEO that they can put in practice the same day.”

Odden will serve as the Marketing Master for sessions on “Integrating Search with the Rest of Your marketing From Web Optimization to Strategies for Killer Keywords and More”, “Cases and Best Practices for Maximizing SEO-Managing and Monitoring, Stellar Copywriting and Beyond.” and the “Search Marketing Expo Theater Presentation” with 5-7 Search Marketing vendors.

Interested In A Sneak Peak?

Session #1
Integrating Paid Search with the Rest of Your marketing From Web Optimization to Strategies for Killer Keywords and More

Thursday, 11/10/2011, 10:15 am – 11:15 am, Performance Track, Room 13, Hall 1E, Level 1, Javits Center

How can search engine marketers optimize their online marketing approach and paid advertising to account for an ever changing landscape?  Digital marketers must take a proactive approach to develop new and innovative strategies for engaging their consumers.

Key Takeaways

Optimize Your Posts
It’s very important that you are always providing great content.  In addition to great content you want to make your entries as searchable as possible.  Implement a strong keyword strategy for your LinkedIn strategy as you would any other online marketing strategy.

Chris Brogan & Lee Odden on a panel at BlogWorld - Photo credit: (CC) Brian Solis, www.briansolis.com and bub.blicio.us.

Where do you go when you’re throwing around the idea of purchasing a new product for yourself or making a business investment in a solution?  It’s safe to assume that the majority of people would say that is a no brainer.  You go online!  A recent study shows that over 44% of B2B marketers are utilizing blogs as a marketing channel.

How can you make sure your blog stands out in a sea of content online?  TopRank CEO Lee Odden will  provide insight into using your blog as an engagement tool for your audience.   Odden’s presentation “Optimize and Socialize You Way to Better Blogging” will emphasize the importance of combining both an optimized and a social element to boost your traffic and increase your reach while providing scalable and engaging information that audiences can apply to their own business.

Key takeaways may include:

• Plan your way into an infinite number of compelling and relevant content ideas that boost search traffic & engage readers
• Create campaigns that incorporate blog content with other marketing tactics for extended search & social visibility
• Promote blog content that inspires social sharing, link building and search traffic

If you would like to learn more about SEO, Social Media, and Search events and information be sure to subscribe to our newsroom feed.  Also, be sure to follow us on twitter @toprank or become a fan of Online Marketing Blog on Facebook for more information.

The future of public relations relies heavily on interacting with individuals and companies online.  Building awareness and  brand recognition is only the first step.   What are you doing to make your news content and brand story easily found and talked about online?  In order to reach journalists, analysts, bloggers and influentials on the web, it’s essential that Public Relations and Communications professionals understand the role search and social media play with influencing information discovery, consumption and sharing.

At the annual PRSA International Conference on October 17th, TopRank Online Marketing CEO Lee Odden will provide Public Relations and Corporate Communications professionals with an exciting new roadmap to help “Optimize and Socialize” news content for better discovery through search and social media.

Odden’s presentation, “Advance Your Digital PR Skills With Social Media Optimization”,  will share compelling reasons why search and social fit within a digital PR mix as well as specific search engine optimization tips for the types of social media websites often used by PR and Media Relations professionals including: SEO for blogs, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Flickr and YouTube.

Key takeaways from Odden’s Social Media Optimization presentation include:

• Understand how listening/monitoring can reveal high value SEO keywords and social topics
• 4 keys to building a successful social  and SEO strategy
• How to leverage social media marketing tools to create, promote and measure optimized social content

For a preview of what Odden has in store for you be sure to catch his blog post from earlier this year on the importance of SEO and Social for Public Relations.

Event Details

PRSA 2011 International Conference

Advance Your SEO Skills With Social Media Optimization
Monday, October 17^th, 2011 - 11:30am
Plazzo Salon E

JW Marriott Orlando Grande Lakes
4040 Central Florida Pkwy
Orlando, FL 32837

Register to attend PSRA’s 2011 International Conference.

If you’re interested in learning more about the latest SEO and social media events be sure to subscribe to our newsroom feed.  Also be sure to follow us on twitter @toprank or become a fan of  Online Marketing Blog on Facebook for more information.

The real SEO news is that Bing is launching its brand-new Adaptive Search. This is a tool by means of which Microsoft will attempt to adjust its algorithm to take into account the contextual relationship of a user’s search history.  Microsoft’s Aidan Cook explains the Bing Adaptive Search this way: “Every time you search on Bing, the information provided helps Bing understand what you’re trying to do. The more you search, the more Bing can learn – and use that information to adapt the experience so you can spend less time searching and accomplish what you set out to do.”

So, if you search for “Australia” with travel-related qualifiers, Bing can “surmise” that you’re planning a trip. The search engine can then present search results in line with this and make your search efforts more productive. The goal, in a nutshell, is to personalize search.

And what does this mean for a brand? To have an effective Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy, you have to REALLY know your audience. Search engines are continuing to evolve – with the goal of providing searchers what they really want and not just what they have asked for. So now the time is ripe for brands to look inward to ensure that their offerings, online messaging, and new content are in synch with the demands of their target markets.

A few questions to ask yourself to determine how well positioned you are to provide quality content to your target market:

• When’s the last time you conducted research into your buying audience (i.e. customers and prospects)?
• Do you have an editorial plan that outlines content for your different audience segments?
• Have you created content for each step in the buying cycle?

Your answers to these and other similar questions should serve as a litmus test for how well your content aligns with your target audience.

MN Blogger Conference Audience

Minnesota Blogger Conference Sept. 10, 2011 – Photos courtesy Missy Berggren and Griff Wigley

Minnesota has a substantial blogging community dedicated to writing on a wide variety of topics including politics, food, sports, fashion, technology, communication –  the list goes on.  It comes naturally for this community to come together for some collaborative learning.  TopRank Online Marketing is a leader in leveraging blog marketing as a strategic focal point for social content development and customer engagement. Our internet marketing agency works with organizations large and small to maximize their presence online and convert that presence into sales or other business outcomes.

This year Allina Healthcare hosted the annual Minnesota Blogger Conference at Allina Commons, its administrative headquarters located in Minneapolis’ Midtown Exchange.  TopRank Online Marketing sponsored the event for a second time, along with Allina Healthcare and Kare11.  Their sponsorship allowed for over 200 attendees to join the conference and luncheon at no cost.  TopRank CEO Lee Odden gave the opening keynote presentation entitled Blogs to Riches – A Journey from Blogging Luddite to Successful Business.

Lee Odden at MN Blogger Conference

Odden engaged and entertained the audience in sharing the history of how TopRank came to be and how a passion for learning and blogging led the company to international recognition.  Odden then presented five lessons learned from using a blog to grow the business over the last seven years:

1. No plan is a plan to fail
2. Adapt and thrive
3. It’s not all about you
4. Ask and recognize, repeat
5. The end is near, let’s get started

The Minneapolis audience left the presentation blogging – no surprise there. The event enjoyed many mentions on several renowned blogs and websites including:

• 2011 MN Blogger Conference: a first-rate experience
• Live From Minnesota Blogger Conference
• Hard to Sum it Up — MN Blogger Conference
• Minnesota Blogger Conference 2011 Recap

In addition to blog posts, attendees are reflecting on the presentation via Twitter.  Their Tweets showcase just how well received the conference has been:

Twitter Discussion on MN Blogger Conference

Suffice it to say, the Minnesota Blogger Conference was a success.  TopRank is grateful for the opportunity to sponsor and appreciates the local Minnesota blogging community.  Thanks to Minnesota Blogger Conference organizers Arik Hanson, Missy Berggren and their team of experts for coordinating a fantastic conference.  We’re already excited for next year’s event.

If your business is interested in Online Marketing Consulting Services, please contact TopRank (1-877-872-6628) to have a discussion. For more insights from Odden, be sure to attend an upcoming TopRank speaking engagement:

• MarketingProfs Search Marketing School Webinar Sept. 19, 2011 – Modern SEO Strategy: Adapt or Die
• PRSA International Conference Oct. 17, 2011 – Social Media Optimization Workshop
• Ragan Webinar Oct. 19, 2011 – SEO and Social Media Best Practices that Boost Your Content and News Visibility

We look forward to seeing you there!

MarketingProfs University

In an ever-evolving age of interactive media, search marketers walk a tight rope.  Between paid and organic search, social media, optimization, search rankings and measuring success, it’s no surprise that this balancing act presents challenges.

MarketingProfs University is offering a 13-class course addressing popular questions on these topics to help search marketers find the perfect balance and be more effective in their careers.

Event details:
MarketingProfs University Search Marketing School
Modern SEO Strategy: Adapt or Die
Monday, Sept. 19, 12:00 – 1:00 p.m.
Register and attend online classes live or access recordings

MarketingProfs University provides affordable, comprehensive online training across the disciplines that make up every business’ marketing mix. In addition to learning what businesses need to plan, build and measure successful marketing programs, course attendees have the opportunity to review best practices from peers, discover new tools and processes, and see what’s working in marketing today.  Search Marketing School is a live online presentation featuring several speakers throughout the day.

Any searchable content or media can also be optimized for better search engine performance.  For a business to stand out, it must implement a holistic, strategic and customer-centric approach to search engine optimization.  TopRank Online Marketing CEO Lee Odden and fellow search marketing experts including Maile Ohye of Google and Rand Fishkin of SEOMoz will be speaking on the art and science of search marketing.

Odden’s presentation will show attendees how an adaptable SEO strategy enlists the proper mix of content marketing, online public relations and social media to ensure that brand content shows up wherever customers are looking.  Odden will discuss how creating an SEO strategy is about understanding marketing strategy and how SEO fits in the scheme of your business, touching on:

• How SEO, social media and content create more opportunities for customer acquisition and engagement
• The seven-step process for holistic SEO using searcher personas, social keywords and social content for link promotion
• Best practices from B2B and B2C companies using this holistic approach as part of their online marketing strategy

Audience interaction will take place throughout the presentation via text-based chat.

Content Marketing World 2011

While it’s important for business website content to be optimized for search engines, don’t forget that your customers are communicating and making purchasing decisions every day on social media and networking sites.  Unfortunately, few companies excel at incorporating both Search and Social Media Optimization in their content strategies.

On Sept. 6 – 9, Content Marketing World is hosting a lineup of over 50 presenters including elite B2B, B2C, small business and non-profit marketers and thought leaders speaking on using content marketing to drive and retain business.  One session will take a deep dive into content marketing for search and social.  This presentation is designed to equip content marketers with an effective process for any organization, large or small.

Event details:

Content Marketing World 2011
A Content Marketer’s Guide to Social Media and Search Strategy
Thursday, Sept. 8, 2011
2:00 p.m.
Renaissance Cleveland Hotel
24 Public Square
Cleveland, OH 44113

Where content strategy makes content intentional through creation, concept and management, content marketing drives traffic and converts it to a sale or other desired outcome. Content Marketing World aims to showcase the successes and failures of brands around the world, equipping attendees with tangible ideas that can transform businesses into storytelling factories

TopRank Online Marketing CEO Lee Odden will present on how content marketers can use search and social media optimization in tandem to ensure that content is both findable and topically relevant to an increasingly social media savvy audience.  He will show attendees how applying both keyword research and what is known about the customer in developing an all-encompassing content plan drives success online.

DreamForce Cloud Computing Event on SEO

Historically, the social media aspects of selling have been controlled by marketers.  Sales people traditionally are kept out of the loop until after a new lead is generated.  In today’s business landscape, successful sales reps are taking control of emerging social technologies to bring in new leads and close deals more quickly, marking the onset of a new era in social selling.

On Aug. 31, Dreamforce ’11 will host a session on tips and techniques addressing how businesses can effectively adopt the integration of sales and social media as a new norm.

Event details:

Dreamforce ‘11
Social Sales Revolution: 7 Steps to Get Ahead
2:00 – 3:00 p.m.
Moscone Center
747 Howard Street
San Francisco, CA 94103-3118

Dreamforce is an annual event that brings leaders in cloud computing together to collaborate, connect and inspire. Attendees will be exposed to ways that the latest cloud computing can help their businesses succeed through breakout sessions, hands-on training, networking events, keynote speakers, interactive demonstrations, in-depth discussions, technical training and more.

TopRank Online Marketing CEO Lee Odden joins a panel of Salesforce.com and Radian6 professionals at Dreamforce to discuss the 7 Steps to Get Ahead in the Social Sales Revolution, a new whitepaper published by Salesforce.com. Odden will discuss how sales reps can master the art of being useful to prospects in a way that inspires new business inquiries. He’ll share practical examples of companies (including TopRank client PRWeb) leveraging social channels like Facebook, Blogging and Twitter to develop a community and inspire interest in products and services.

Stay tuned to the TopRank Blog for a live blog session from Dreamforce ‘11.