Teaching SEO Today in Lake Norman
Today is the 2nd day of our SEO Class in Lake Norman. It is a pleasure to meet again with Mark Mahoney who owns a Dance Studio Management software company and Keith Crile of Insulfab.
A HIPPO Internet Marketing Training blog by Corey Creed
Archive for May, 2008
The Definition of SEO
Jeremy Schoemaker’s recent post on the definition of SEO has gotten a lot of attention this week. In it, he endeavors to determine the definition of SEO by asking various famous search engine experts what the definition is.
It’s amazing how common the term SEO is, yet it is so difficult to define. I reviewed all the definitions and came up with my own that I believe defines it clearly…
I met David Brooks of Zeno Blue eMarketing
Last week I had a very enjoyable lunch with a local Charlotte SEO expert. David Brooks of Zeno Blue eMarketing is a very interesting person that has a rich background in different forms of Internet Marketing and business development.
We originally met through the local Charlotte SEO Meetup. But after eating for lunch, it will be very interesting to see how we might work together more in the future.
David has an excellent ability in link building and on-page SEO. I think he’ll be successful in future endeavors. I just hope he keeps in touch so I can “enjoy the ride”.
North Carolina News Reporters Use Twitter!
Here’s an interesting point in history for any of you Internet Marketing and Social Marketing fans in the Charlotte, North Carolina region.
One of the local television channels has encouraged their reporters to start using Twitter! You can now follow each of these anchors and reporters from WCNC..
- Bobby Sisk (anchor)
- Michelle Boudin (reporter)
- Melissa Martin (reporter)
- Anjanette Flowers (reporter/anchor)
- Mark Boone (reporter)
However, it looks as if Kayla Gagnet Castille is the true force behind this initiative. It seems as if she uses Twitter at WCNC more than anyone else.
You can see their pictures, learn more about them, and see their latest comments here on the official WCNC website. They wrote a page here about the Democratic primaries in North Carolina yesterday and how they will use Twitter during them.
Kudos to WCNC and to whoever had this idea. Nice try to get these talented individuals into “new media” and work the social space online.
Click here for how to use Twitter.
Hotel Accommodations for Hippo Training
The last couple classes we held, there were quite a few students coming from Asheville, Raleigh, and even Atlanta!
Unfortunately, until now I did not have any recommendations for where they could stay. In fact, when they stayed at the places closest to the class itself, the reports back were not that great.
So last week I was able to find a nice place that is only a few minutes from the class. I’m sure there are cheaper places one could stay in this region, but this place is nice. It has quiet, spacious rooms, good breakfast, a nice pool, whirlpool, and wireless Internet throughout.
The rate is $99 per night.
More info available on this page of our Charlotte Training site.
Here is their official site with more details.
Blogging Class Agenda Now Available
Over the past couple months, we’ve been able to pull off our first classes on Search Engine Optimization and Google AdWords.
But in just about one week, we’ll be holding our first ever blogging class. I’m really excited about this one because I think almost every business could benefit by creating a blog.
I’ve posted regularly to my own blog on Internet Marketing since October 2006. In fact, I owned another blog for about a year before that. Yet, I think most business owners, marketing agencies, and even web developers think that a blog is some mystical thing that takes a lot of work to create and maintain.
Nothing could be further from the truth. Creating a quality WordPress blog is easy. Posting to it is easier than writing an email. Most people email every day. Why can’t they own and operate a blog?
Because they don’t know how!
Today I wrote out the benefits and agenda for our blogging class next week. Check it out and feel free to tell others.
The Charlotte SEO Meetup is Going Strong!
The Charlotte SEO Meetup had another nice meeting last night. This group has grown to over 90 members already and we are having a great time getting to know each other.
For several months the group met monthly and only about 5–10 people actually got together. But last month we had over 20 that met at Panera Bread.
Last night we had 21 attend and the program was a little more structured. Specifically, Keith opened with some basic comments and general housekeeping. Then, I discussed the topic “LINKING – 10 Ideas every site owner can use”
I used a really cool PowerPoint program that I put together earlier in the day which had some unique images to express some basic concepts that I went into in more depth verbally.
I actually handled the PowerPoint in about 30 minutes or less. We then opened it up for discussion. Some new ideas came out and we even put one member’s site up and discussed how he specifically could get links.
We then broke and let everyone chat. Some left immediately, but others stayed for an extra hour or more. It was a good time. There were some very positive comments left on the meetup page. Click here and you can see the comments of others on the right side column.
Next meeting is on Thursday, June 5, 2008 and we’ll be doing site reviews.
Anyone can join the Charlotte SEO meetup for free.