Posts tagged andy crestodina
SEO Ethics and Content Marketing: Spammers vs.Thought Leaders
Mar 25th
By {grow} Community Member Andy Crestodina
Blogging is work. Finding time is hard, and pushing back deadlines isn’t easy. 29% of B2B marketers report that “producing enough content” is a challenge (source: B2B Marketing Survey). So why not outsource it?
Great! Let someone else do the work. But delegators beware. Ethical issues pop up when you outsource your blogging, especially when the goal is SEO. As usual, search is on the front lines of marketing ethics.
The ethics of outsourcing content isn’t black and white. There’s a spectrum of SEO ethics, ranging from the easy (but shady) to the difficult (but pure).
Link Spammers
The last few years have been tough for SEOs, especially those who relied on link networks, article spinning, and directory submissions to build links. Google’s rank-crushing (but cute-sounding) algorithm updates, “Panda” and “Penguin,” changed everything. So SEOs turned to guest blogging as a reliable, repeatable way to build links to client websites.
But when the search pros start writing, things get weird. For the first time, clients are able to review the work and not just the rank. They want to read the content for which they paid. And since SEOs care more about the links than the writing, the quality of the writing is low. All too often, the content and the host blog look suspiciously irrelevant, even if they are good for rankings.
It’s unethical because the writer doesn’t care about the writing. In fact, they don’t care if the content is ever seen by human eyes. All that matters is GoogleBot and the juice that the link provides.
The Ghost Writer
The next step on the spectrum is the ghost writer. Since the idea for the content actually originates from you, it’s more legitimate. In this case, you write the topic sentence, the opening paragraph, and/or an outline.
Yes, it takes time to discuss topics, but the SEO vendor does most of the work, researching the topic, finding host blogs, writing, and editing. In the end, they may put your name on it, which is where ethics come into play. The topic is yours, but not the tone. Although it’s not written in your voice, you’re signing your name to it.
The Co-Author
This approach is a true collaboration between you and the SEO partner. You know the industry, so you provide the ideas, but you also do the research and write the first draft. The quality is higher, but quality takes time. The post is two-thirds done when you hand it off.
The SEOs do the editing and optimizing. They’re good at this because they know how to research keywords and SEO best practices. They also know (hopefully) where and how to pitch the piece as a guest post.
In the end, it might make sense to give writing credits to both authors. But only one can get credit in Google as the author. Google Authorship doesn’t allow for more than one author. If you want full social media benefit, put the rel=”author” tag on the link to your own Google+ profile.
Thought Leaders
You know the subject. You know your audience. You care the most. This means you have the best opportunity to find the right topic and shape it with your voice. Through your content, you can become respected for your ideas. That’s what a thought leader is.
It’s the highest quality content. It’s the well-researched articles, the passionate op-eds, the detailed reference guides. This is time-consuming, “cornerstone” content. Not the kind of thing you write everyday.
As a thought leader, you’ll get all the social benefits: a growing following, better traffic through sharing, and new connections. You’ll be an author in the eyes of Google (you’re ready for Authorship and Author Rank) and in the eyes of your peers (you may end up getting invitations to speak at events).
The trick is to find the time…
Take the high road (or the highest road possible)
No one likes a link spammer. So go as far to the right of the chart as time will allow. I suggest combining your options.
- Be a thought leader …when you can. Set aside time to write every week. If inspiration strikes, carry the idea all the way through to completion. Let your SEO or marketing partner help you promote it. If you don’t manage to finish the piece…
- Leverage your SEO partners …but collaborate. Leverage your own time by sharing ideas, information, and connections with them. Let them finish the work so you can keep the content wheels turning.
I’m sure you’ve got a few thoughts by now. What do you think? Should SEOs even try to create content? Will brands ever find the time to write? I’m looking forward to the comments on this one…
Andy Crestodina is the Strategic Director of Orbit Media, a web design company in Chicago. He’s also the author of Content Chemistry, An Illustrated Guide to Content Marketing
Top image courtesy BigStock.com
Content Marketing strategy: Are you good, fast, or cheap?
Sep 26th
By {grow} Community Member Andy Crestodina
There’s a saying in the manufacturing world: “There’s good, fast and cheap. You can choose two.” No business can offer all three.
It’s true throughout the service industry and in all forms of production. It’s why you can’t order a sirloin steak for $5 at a drive-through window. It’s simply a law of business, like the law of gravity.
I thought of this after reading one of Mark Schaefer’s posts last month, How the physics of social media is killing your marketing strategy. It was a straight-forward post with a powerful message: We’re entering an era where the content is being produced faster than ever, but our attention spans are not. Comparing this to colliding forces in physics, Mark points out that it’s going to get a lot harder to “maintain mindshare.”
He suggested three possible responses:
- Create increasingly spectacular content (be more amazing).
- Create content at a lower cost (reduce the time invested in generating content).
- Place your content in front of existing audiences (PR, News-jacking, guest blogging).
Sound familiar? These align with the three possible approaches in business. When we think about Mark’s recommendations, we see that they align with strategies which, in turn, align with specific tactics. Let’s take a look …
You can be GOOD
Produce the best content you can, even if it means staying tightly focused on a few topics. Survive by becoming the trusted authority on a narrow topic.
- Conduct and publish original research.
- Write the ebook/guide that answers prospects’ questions.
- Produce infographics, videos and epic posts.
High quality content with specific focus is just what Google loves, so this strategy works well with search optimization.
You can be FAST
Produce content quickly and efficiently, by delegating and curating. Survive by producing lots of content and making lots of connections.
- Email interviews to thought leaders, turn their responses into posts.
- Source topics and content from sources inside your company.
- Solicit guest posts from influencers through guest blogger outreach.
Since you’ll be involving more people and keeping frequency high, this strategy works well with social media.
You can be CHEAP
Publications have pre-packaged audiences that you can leverage by paying close attention to the changing interests of the press and popular blogs. Survive by being at the right place at the right time.
- Find the sites where your audience spends time, and submit guest posts.
- Nurture relationships with editors and journalists. Establish yourself as a source.
- Watch HARO and Reporter Connection. Respond quickly to relevant topics.
If you’re able to jump in when the timing and topic are right, this strategy works well with PR.
Adapt and survive
Yes, there is a crush of content coming. But you can avoid getting sucked into the black hole if you have a plan. Consider your goals and your strengths, and then choose your survival strategy.
Which survival strategy are you using? (Please don’t tell us it’s a combination of all three!)
Andy Crestodina is the Strategic Director of Orbit Media, a web design company in Chicago. He is also the author of an upcoming book called “Content Chemistry: The Illustrated Handbook for Content Marketing.” You can find Andy on Google+ and Twitter.
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