Sure Oak

How to reach out to Eric Enge:

We’ve been hearing it for years: “This is the year of voice.”

But will voice search ever actually become the norm? According to CEO of Stone Temple Eric Enge, the time is coming, and it’s coming fast.

On this week’s episode, Tom chats with Eric about how you can get ready for voice search and what it will mean for search engine optimization and SEO content.

THE INTERNET OF THINGS

So why are we thinking about Google voice recognition now?

According to Eric, one reason voice is becoming important so quickly is the internet of things.

“So many devices are getting connected to the internet.”

The internet of things consists of all devices connected to the internet that are not PCs, phones, or tablets. That can be anything from a watch, TV, or car, to a fridge or a thermostat.

These machines currently make up 75% of internet devices, and a lot more devices are expected to start connecting soon.

So how are you going to connect with these devices? You won’t be typing something into them or using them to access websites; instead, you’ll be using your voice.

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

Comscore says 50% of queries will be voice based by 2020.

Eric believes that estimate may be a bit aggressive; however, the rise in voice interactions is so sharp, he says the number will at least hit 30% by 2020.

“It doesn’t really matter what those numbers are exactly. It’s a big jump, and we need to be ready.”

This expected jump raises the question: Where do our SEO efforts need to be to help us interact and connect with people?

The nature of the questions people ask will change as voice search becomes more common.

That means we must learn how to get featured snippets in a new way.

Why?

Data shows that when you get a featured snippet, your traffic goes up in the web environment. Although we don’t know how getting featured snippets in voice search will affect revenue, the thought is that it will remain positive.

HOW WILL VOICE CHANGE SEARCH?

Google web searches via search engines have trained us to use choppy, short phrases to find what we want on the web. However, when people are using voice search, they are more prone to speak in natural language. Additionally, they expect to be answered in real language.

That means two things:

* You need to be more prepared to answer with more natural language queries. You have to map out all possible Google scenarios:

Example: “What is an index tag?”

“What the heck is an index tag?”

“What does an index tag do?”

* You need to create a persona for your voice search. Consumers would much rather hear your voice than Google’s.

ACTIONS ON GOOGLE

Actions on Google is an interface that allows you to build a voice-based app for your business.

The app created specifically for your business gets incorporated through the Google system.

Google will then be able to refer people to your business through implicit queries. That means Google will suggest your app to people without them having to ask for your business.

However, since Actions on Google is not quite accessible to just anyone at this time, Eric suggests working with a developer to get your application up and running.

KEY INSIGHTS

* Voice search is coming, so get ready! (And, we can help get you ready with our

Backlinks are still an important part of SEO, but some backlink tactics are past their prime. This week, Tom Casano chats with Bestselling SEO author Tim Cameron-Kitchen from Exposure Ninja about the new and improved ways to acquire quality backlinks.

How to reach out to Brandon Schaefer:

When you’re busy running a business, social media video marketing can seem like a daunting task. It’s time consuming, and what if the finished product doesn’t look as professional as other videos you’ve seen? In this week’s episode of the Sure Oak podcast, Tom chats with corporate business strategist Brandon Schaefer from Companeur about how to do more in less time and turn social media marketing into real business.

BRING THE ENERGY AND BE YOURSELF

“It’s all about doing more in less time.”

What are some things busy marketers can do to drive better results?

Brandon says the first thing is to always “bring the energy.” You do not want anything you do on social to be the dull, boring, putting-people-to-sleep type of content.

“I recommend less-than-one-minute video content.”

Videos that are less than 60 seconds will work perfectly for social networks like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram video. The only outlier is LinkedIn, which doesn’t yet do video content.

We all see the famous people online and we try to copy that. In reality, those people are unique.

When it comes to branding yourself, just be you. Bring the energy. If you are quirky or talk strangely, who cares? That is what makes you unique.

“Don’t follow. Lead.”

Be yourself.

DON’T STICK TO ONE SOCIAL NETWORK

Know where your audience is, but don’t put all of your eggs in one basket.

“Rich people are rich because they have more than one revenue stream.”

Be sure to try all of the most popular social media platforms.

If you don’t try different social media platforms, you will never know what works and what doesn’t.

Be sure to try different social media sites over an extended period of time.

Don’t just try something for a week or two and then decide it doesn’t work. Try it for a few months and then see how it is going.

And don’t be afraid to buy some ads to get your content out to the right people.

COME PREPARED

Everything you do needs to be set up properly.

If you play a sport, before you get in the car you make sure you have your equipment.

It’s the same thing with social.

Have the resources you need available to you, and have the content ready to go.

That means don’t wait until the last minute to prepare your content. Have a plan for what you are planning to post.

Consider creating a social media calendar to help you space out your content.

GIVE YOURSELF TIME

Create a social media plan.

“Don’t always be up against the gun to get stuff done.”

“It doesn’t work out to go to the gym for 15 minutes 4 times a day.”

Give yourself time to search for the content you want to share.

Plan ahead. Instead of giving yourself five minutes to give the content you need, set aside an entire hour or two to find the pieces of content you need to share that week.

Give yourself time, and don’t get distracted.

TAKE ACTION

It’s easy to write down a long list of things you want to do and then never do any of them.

“Just because you buy the book doesn’t mean you’re going to read it.”

Write down one thing you want to take action on.

That means if you are wanting to start creating video content for your social sites, don’t keep putting it off or thinking of even more th...

How to reach out to Matt Inglot:

Not long ago, Matt Inglot’s business, Tilted Pixel, was failing. He wasn’t sure how to get clients or even what clients he should be trying to get. He believed that if he didn’t get more clients, he was going to go out of business.

But when he looked at what was working and what wasn’t working for his business, he realized there was a certain type of client that kept returning.

He realized that his best clients were the ones he was able to truly help. He was able to add great value to their businesses.

That’s when he decided to not worry so much about trying to find new clients and instead focus his team’s efforts into growing relationships with existing clients and seeing how they could help add value to those clients’ businesses.

CREATE MORE OF WHAT YOUR CLIENTS WANT

“It’s easy to think about things in terms of our own world.”

In the first half of Matt’s career, he only focused on making better looking websites for his clients because that’s what he cared about. That was his area of passion and expertise.

His clients, however, were primarily concerned with adding value to their businesses.

“Which let’s face it, is typically money.”

After determining his best course of action was to focus his attention on his current clients, Matt shifted from creating the best websites according to his standards to designing websites that would drive value to his clients’ businesses.

Matt explains that the value those websites add can come in different forms for different clients.

Sometimes value is time or the impact the business can make.

STRATEGY CALLS

The best upselling strategy Matt has discovered is to build relationships with clients and add value to their businesses through strategy calls.

Once a month, Matt gives an hour of his time to each client to chat about how things are going and to find opportunities to give some free advice.

“You have to be in sync with their business.”

According to Matt, these calls give him a chance to see what’s going on with his clients and learn what their goals are. That’s why he recommends making regular strategy calls a major facet of your client relationships. With each call, you have the chance to see if there is any advice you can give or any additional ways you can help.

DON’T HAVE UPSELLING ON YOUR MIND

Matt also emphasizes the need to always be there to help the client and to be careful with your words.

If you go into a strategy call with the underlying motive of upselling, your client will know and will be apprehensive about talking to you.

These calls should exist as a means to check in and build relationships, not make money for your business.

Not all of these calls will result in sales, but they will help you build stronger relationships with your clients, and who knows what that will lead to down the road.

KEY INSIGHTS

* Your best clients are the ones you already have.

* Discover how you can create value for your clients.

* Use strategy calls as a way to check in with your customers.

MATT’S TAKEAWAYS

Always be there to help the client. Be careful with your words.

* Be open to giving away free advice.

* Be patient. Not all calls will lead to sales.

MORE FROM MATT

How to reach out to Jeff Sauer:

Anyone who has ever logged on to Google Analytics knows that it can be intimidating and confusing, but it doesn’t have to stay that way. On this week’s podcast, Tom chats with Google Analytics pro, Jeff Sauer of Jeffalytics about how you can customize Google Analytics to suit your website’s needs and then use it to boost your business.

GOOGLE ANALYTICS BASICS

When you first look at your data on Google Analytics, it can seem pretty useless.

Most of the data won’t be relevant to you or your business. That’s because that dashboard is set up for the millions of people who are using it for their websites.

That means every website from a single-person blog to huge websites.

So when you look at the homepage, they aren’t telling you what is important for you, it’s just a giant compromise between all websites.

But if you decide you want to keep using and understanding Google Analytics, there are tools and filters you can use to make it perfect for your needs.

CUSTOMIZING YOUR GOOGLE ANALYTICS DASHBOARD

“You can’t break anything by looking at a report.”

It’s okay to just look at your homepage. If that’s all you’ve done for the past 8 years, at least you took that initiative. But if you’re serious about understanding where your site stands on Google, take a look around.

Jeff encourages you to explore Google Analytics and see what sticks out to you.

“You can’t break anything by looking at a report.”

That means you should feel free to look around without worrying about messing anything up. Click on everything you can and see what you can find.

You might not understand anything, but now you know what’s exciting you to, what you would like to keep looking at, and you’ll have an idea of what you should do next.

Based on your interests, you can begin to customize your Google Analytics dashboard. You can set up your Google Analytics goals, name your channel groupings, group your content markets, and make sure all of your data presented suits your needs.

GOOGLE ANALYTICS ISN’T ALWAYS THE ANSWER

“Google Analytics may not be best in class at any one thing.”

Jeff also reminds us that while Google Analytics is great for presenting data, it is not a one-stop-shop for all of your answers.

“It’s the central nervous system of all of your marketing. It’s at the center of everything.”

Google Analytics is a great place to discover potential problems with your website; however, once you know what needs work, don’t be afraid to move to a specialty tool that works best for your problem.

If you'd like to set-up your first SEO analytics, or if you'd like to get more our of Google Analytics, Sure Oak can help. We offer analytical and metrics tracking services tailored to your business needs.

KEY INSIGHTS

* Don’t be intimidated by Google Analytics’s initial dashboard.

* Look around! “You can’t break anything by looking at a report.”

* Google Analytics isn’t a one-stop-shop for answers.

JEFF’S TAKEAWAYS

* Don’t be scared. It’s a way to get better at everything you are doing.

* It’s not the answer to everything, but it is a good way to find answers.

* Be curious, play around, and discover what is relevant to you. Make it your own.

MORE FROM JEFF

Jeffalytics

How to reach out to Brian Fanzo:

In a world filled with perfectly edited media, creating your own content can be daunting. On this week’s episode, Tom talks with iSocialFanz keynote speaker, podcaster, and writer, Brian Fanzo, about why you should stop chasing perfection, press the damn button, and start creating content to promote your business.

“Press the damn button.”

It’s the mantra for Brian’s life.

Why?

Social media has changed the marketing game. We have always tried to be perfect, but now we are at the point that if you are trying to create something perfect, you are just lying to yourself.

Change is happening so quickly, and if you are waiting for the perfect moment or perfect situation to start blogging, live streaming, or creating video content, it will pass you by.

Everyone can impact people, but you have to just press the damn button. If you want to launch a podcast, launch it. If you want to tell your story on Instagram, tell it!

GETTING COMFORTABLE WITH LIVE VIDEO

“Nobody likes watching themselves on video.”

It’s personal, and people think of it as permanent.

People still think of video as what we watch on TV. It’s filmed and edited by professionals. However, no one should expect that level of quality from themselves when they start their own social media marketing.

Additionally, people fall into the trap of comparing themselves to people online who have crisp, clean video marketing content. When you are just starting out, it is important not to compare yourselves to others who have probably been doing it far longer than you have.

MANAGE EXPECTATIONS

Another thing that trips people up is they commit themselves to unrealistic expectations. They and their viewers begin to have unachievable expectations for their content.

That is why it is important to be honest with yourself and set achievable goals for your content.

Don’t guarantee that an episode comes out every Monday, if you can’t make that deadline. But if you could promise a video every week, that’s a more managed expectation.

If you manage expectations, you and your viewers won’t be disappointed.

“LOOKING” AUTHENTIC IN YOUR VIDEO CONTENT MARKETING

Brian says that people are constantly asking, “How can we look more authentic?”

It’s not about “looking” more authentic, it’s about being more authentic.

Putting it out there, even if it’s not perfect, is better than not putting it out there at all.

BE YOURSELF AND YOUR AUDIENCE WILL APPRECIATE IT

The number one compliment that Brian can get is, “You are the same person online that you are offline.”

We’ve all experienced people who portray one personality online, but in person, they are completely different.

If you can be yourself in everything you do, it will be easy to just press the damn button.

That embodies everything he practices and preaches.

START WHERE YOU ARE MOST COMFORTABLE

People often make the mistake of trying to start where they think their audience is, and you should be starting where you feel most comfortable.

Get really good at doing what you are comfortable doing, whether that is

How to reach out to Bill Slawski:

There can be a lot of mystery behind how Google’s algorithm works when it comes to SEO. On this week’s podcast, Tom chats with Google patent expert, Bill Slawski from Go Fish Digital.

Bill has been a student of SEO since 1996, and more importantly, he has dedicated his time to becoming one of the only experts on Google’s patents. He scours Google’s white papers and keeps up with the patterns and changes in their patents to better understand where SEO is and where it is heading.

In this week’s podcast, Tom chats with Bill about why it is important to study Google’s patents and how some common SEO tactics are not as important as they once were.

WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO STUDY GOOGLE’S PATENTS?

“It’s not always positive, but it’s informative.”

There aren’t many college classes on SEO, and there are a handful of tutorials. However, the best place to learn about SEO is from the search engines themselves.

Google is not advertising how they rank searches. They keep these things a secret to keep their search engine from being manipulated.

However, you can get a good idea of what they are doing and where SEO is headed by taking a look at the patents Google has.

It can reveal the factors you need to be taking into consideration.

Google patents are always changing and evolving, and staying on top of what Google is doing will help you know what you need to go to succeed at SEO.

GOOGLE IS EVOLVING

Through his time studying and understanding Google’s patents, Bill has seen Google’s algorithm evolve from a search engine that uses perfect keywords to rank websites to one that can understand hints and context.

Bill illustrates this by saying if there is a movie you want but can’t remember the name of, you can search the name of an actor and one of their quotes from the film to find the movie’s name.

Google has evolved and your SEO tactics need to evolve with it.

A SEMANTIC APPROACH IS KEY

Bill encourages a semantic approach to SEO.

With tools like Schema Markup, you can make your website rank higher on Google by creating more rich, optimized content. Schema Markup not only uses keywords, it uses context to allow your pages to appear in more complex searches.

BECOME THE AUTHORITY ON YOUR SUBJECT

Bill also encourages businesses to do their best to become the authority on their subjects to earn quality backlinks.

“If you create information that people like, they will find ways to link to it.”

Customers and Google are always interested in businesses using organic ways to gain rankings and viewers, and becoming the authority on your subject is just that.

Just be sure to add share buttons to all of your articles.

KEY INSIGHTS

* Become an authority on your subject.

* Google is evolving, and our SEO tactics need to evolve with it.

* Google is more responsive to an organic, semantic SEO strategy

BILL’S TAKEAWAYS

How to reach out to James Carbary:

In this episode of the Sure Oak podcast, Tom speaks with podcast pro, James Carbary. James is the founder of Sweetfish Media, a podcast agency for B2B brands, and co-host of the B2B Growth Show: a daily podcast dedicated to helping B2B marketers achieve explosive growth. They discuss how having your ideal clients as guests on your show can result in better customer relationships and a growth in sales.

BRANDING YOUR BUSINESS PODCAST

James says that people want to brand their show around themselves or their expertise.

“If they know a lot of AI, they want to make an AI podcast.”

That’s okay if you already have a huge following. That could work because you could turn those listeners into buyers.

However, that is not the case for most of us out there, and that is why you have to change your mindset about your podcast. The change in your mindset is to not brand the show around yourself but your ideal buyer. That way, you can build relationships with customers you would otherwise never have.

You should focus on making and promoting your podcast work from a business development perspective.

INTERVIEW YOUR IDEAL BUYERS

When you interview your ideal buyers on your podcast, you are learning from your peers.

In reference to James’s daily podcast, he says, “Since we have featured so many VPs and CMOs on the podcast, the people listening are also VPs and CMOs.”

Because his guests are also his listeners, he is gaining potential buyers in two ways. He is building a personal relationship and starting conversations with his podcast guests, and he is also allowing his listeners to get to know him as well.

“People buy from people they know, like, and trust.”

LET GUESTS CHOOSE THE CONTENT

“The more granular the content the better the show.”

If you ask your guests to come up with a topic that is something they have been thinking about lately or something they have been struggling with, that is the greatest content.

HOW TO MARKET YOUR PODCAST

“There’s a difference in getting an audience and getting buyers.”

You don’t want untargeted listeners.

If you have an audience of 200,000 listeners, but none of them are your ideal customers, your podcast is not doing you any good. However, if you have only a few listeners who are perfect potential customers, that is far better.

You want to be reaching your niche buyers.

James uses this illustration:

If you’re a pipe salesman, and you have a niche podcast to reach pipe manufacturers, and you only have 100 listeners, but they are all pipe manufacturers, then you are doing great. You should have enough to acquire podcast sponsorship, and you will also be cultivating the right relationships to make sales.

TURNING YOUR MARKETING PODCAST INTO SALES

James shares on the podcast that he used to wait for months before attempting to makes a sale with his podcast guests. He did not want to come across as too forward or come across like he was “baiting and switching.”

He still believes that you should never push a sales conversation.

“Let it happen organically.”

However, having a short, organic conversation about your product or service after the podcast interview is over is not crossing any lines.

How to reach out to Purna Virji:

It is predicted that by 2020, 50% of searches will be done by voice. This week Tom discusses the prediction with Purna Virji, Senior Manager, PPC Training at Microsoft and PPC Hero’s  “Most Influential PPC Expert of 2016.” They talk about the future of search and how you can make sure your business is ready for voice search.

Voice search is Purna’s favorite topic. After breaking her wrist a few years ago and being put in a cast that kept her from holding books or electronics, Purna’s only source of entertainment was her voice search devices.

Six weeks in a cast made her fascinated with voice search, and she began dedicating her time to studying just how it worked and how it would eventually change the way people search.

There is a shift in how we search. Back in the early days, we treated search like a phonebook. Now, we want a more personalized experience. We expect new, efficient ways to search. And that’s where voice search comes in.

Voice search helps us at times when we otherwise would not be able to pick up a phone or computer to search. Now, we can search while driving, cooking, or just don’t want to stop and pick up a device. Voice search makes searching convenient and really brings it to the consumer.

WHERE IS VOICE SEARCH HEADED?

Voice search is on the rise. Google published a report last year saying 20% of their mobile queries were done via voice. There is a 24% growth in home voice search device purchases between October 2017 to December 2017. And Juniper Research predicts there is going to be 5 billion voice assistants in use by 2021. Additionally, comScore predicts that 50% of search will be either visual or voice.

Voice search is all about “what is the easiest way to get to an answer?” If you think about the evolution of search so far, it has gone from having to sit down and open your browser, to using your phone, and the natural next step is moving on to voice search. It’s about not interrupting what you are doing.

And while search by voice is still a ways off, Purna recommends people start paying attention to it.

HOW WILL SEO EVOLVE WITH SEARCH BY VOICE?

With voice search, the website is no longer going to be necessary. For example, you don’t need to go to Pizza Hut’s website to order a pizza anymore. All you have to do is ask your voice search for your easy order.

As a business, you have to start thinking about how you can use voice search as an alternative route to customers only using your website as a means to learn more or order your products.

That means that SEO may change slightly. Metadata and structured data will still be important elements. However, adding certain descriptors like “best” into your keywords will help you when it comes to voice search SEO.

Purna also points out that if you are scoring near the top of Google and Bing searches, you are more likely to come up in a voice search when your voice app is up and running.

How to reach out to Matt Heinz:

In this episode of the Sure Oak podcast, Tom speaks with founder and president of Heinz Marketing, Matt Heinz, about how marketing and sales are really the same things. They discuss why marketers need to focus on revenue generation when measuring outcomes and how ultimately, business to business marketing is just like business to consumer marketing.

MARKETING AS A PROFIT CENTER

According to Matt, sometimes the marketing department can be seen as a glorified arts and crafts center. They create branding and put logos on pens, but Matt says that marketers need to start seeing themselves as a profit center.

Matt says, “It is important to invest in foundational things like brand and awareness and not just focus on what email you are sending out next Tuesday.”

Your marketing team should create content that drives people back to you again and again. Those are the building blocks of creating sustainable, repeatable business.

MEASURING YOUR B2B MARKETING STRATEGIES

“The faster you measure, the less important it is.”

If you send out an email, you can track the email open rates. Whether that drives prospects to better understand your goals is not something you will see right away. Often there is short-term thinking going on in marketing, like clicks, reads, and tweets.

However, sometimes being too caught up in the instant data can keep you from seeing the long-term effects of your B2B marketing campaigns.

Instead, it is important to look at the long-term results on those clicks, reads, emails, tweets, and other content created by your marketing team.

How is that being translated into sales?

Ultimately, your marketing should have the same goal as the sales division. You should put more emphasis on the outcome of leads instead of just gaining leads.

Watch what you are measuring. You need to start thinking about who you are trying to sell to, what do you want to measure, and what really matters.

Even if you are going after fewer prospects, focus on the RIGHT prospects.

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SALES AND MARKETING?

There is a combined, integrated effort between sales and marketing today, especially when working with large, complex businesses and customers.

Matt says that if he has an excellent, highly qualified sales team, then he wants them to be speaking with customers who are engaged and motivated.

And you will only get those top-notch, ready-to-buy customers if you have a marketing team that is getting those consumers informed and excited about your product.

FOCUSING ON BUYING IN THE B2B MARKET

To simplify B2B marketing, Matt gives us three words: focus on THEM.

If you are focusing on building your sales process, you are looking at it wrong. Your sales process doesn’t matter. The BUYING process is what matters.

No one cares about your story until you can prove that you care about theirs. Matt recommends reading the book How to Win Friends and Influence People if you haven’t already.  It shares the basis for insight-based relationship selling that works tod...