Join us June 8-9 at Seattle’s Bell Harbor International Conference Center for an engaging and intimate conference. SMX Advanced is filled with opportunities to share tactics, exchange ideas and network with many of the world’s most talented and successful search marketers.

All sessions on the multi-track program are fast-paced, Q&A-packed and don’t slow down to review the basics. You’ll leave SMX Advanced enthused, motivated and ready to implement what you’ve learned.

Controversial and ground-breaking keynotes are a hallmark of SMX events. Google’s Matt Cutts returns to SMX Advanced Seattle for another “You&A” format keynote. He made headlines last year by announcing that nofollow tags no longer worked for PageRank sculpting – who knows what news will break this year!

Register for SMX Advanced Seattle before March 21 and you pay just $1195. You get all of the sessions, keynotes, network activities and special events that make Search Marketing Expo conferences famous. It’s a fantastic value. And, your satisfaction is guaranteed.

Don’t wait. SMX Advanced Seattle has sold out in each of three years since it was created. Register today!

Interested in sending the whole team? You save even more when registering at least 3 people. Check out our group rates.

PS: Is London more convenient? Attend SMX Advanced London 17-18 May – full agenda just posted!

Register before March 21 and you’ll receive the best rate offered for the only conference designed exclusively for experienced search marketers.

The focus of SMX Advanced is unique. Conference sessions and keynotes are designed for sophisticated search engine marketers; they are fast paced, sophisticated and don’t review basic concepts. You’ll choose from in depth sessions on organic search engine optimization (SEO), paid search advertising (PPC), and social media marketing. Take a look at last year’s program (2010 agenda will be posted the week of March 22.)

At SMX Advanced Seattle, opportunities abound to get your questions answered and share your own ideas with the best in the industry. We’ve purposely kept this an intimate conference so you’ll be sure to meet the people you want to meet.

Headlining this year’s conference is Google Senior Software Engineer Matt Cutts, who will participate in an hour-long conversation with the SMX Advanced Seattle audience.

Register for SMX Advanced Seattle before March 21 and you pay just $1195. You get all of the sessions, keynotes, network activities and special events that make Search Marketing Expo conferences famous. It’s a fantastic value, plus your satisfaction is guaranteed.

Reserve your spot and save – register today! Interested in sending your team? Save 10%-20% when you register a group.

Two Opportunities: Session Pitches Vs. Speaking Pitches

We have TWO different pitching opportunities.

First, we ask for session ideas as part of the session pitch process. This is the very best way to get to speak. Suggest a great session idea, and if that makes it to the final agenda, there’s an excellent chance you’ll make it as one of the speakers for that panel.

Second, after the final agenda is made, we then have a speaking pitch process. This is where we accept pitches for people to speak for any spots we have remaining open for the final agenda that’s posted.

More information about both processes is below.

Session Pitches Accepted: Now Through March 16

From now through March 16, we’re accepting pitches for sessions at SMX Advanced. This is a search marketing event for EXPERIENCED and ADVANCED search marketers. That means any session ideas that you pitch must be for topics that would make those with years of experience in the field sit up, take notice and go “wow.”

We’re looking for ideas about advanced SEO topics, advanced PPC topics, social media as it relates to search and business aspects of running a search marketing company.

Want to pitch? Then submit your session idea here.

If you’re accepted, you’ll get a pass to the entire SMX event. Travel and accommodation are not provided.

Agenda Posted: Week Of March 22

We expect to post the SMX agenda the week of March 22. If you were accepted to speak as part of the session pitch process, you should be notified by this time. If not, hang in there until speaking openings are posted.

Speaking Pitches Accepted: March 29 Through April 10

Once the agenda is posted, we’ll next accept pitches to speak on particular panels, rather than ideas for the panels themselves. Those will be accepted via this form. If we have late breaking openings after April 10, the form will reopen (and we’ll likely do a blog post about it)

Speaker Acceptance Notices

We expect to tell everyone who pitched if they were accepted or not by April 19, 2010. That date might slip — but that’s what we’re aiming for. Everyone who submits should receive a yes or no message, in the end.

Just want to attend? You can register here and get the pre-agenda rate through March 19. The show sells out every year, so register early. Once the tickets are gone, they’re gone.

The agenda is live, and we’re now accepting submissions to speak at Search Marketing Expo – SMX Advanced London 2010. To increase the odds of being selected, be sure to have read the agenda. Understand what the sessions are about. Ensure that your pitch is on target to the show’s audience and the session. Please also be very specific about what you intend to cover. Also, if you do not see a particular session listed, this is because there are no openings for that session. Use this form to submit your request.

As you might guess, interest is high in speaking at SMX conferences. We literally sift through hundreds of submissions to select speakers for the show. Here are some tips that will increase your chances of being selected.

Pitch early: Submitting your pitch early gives you a better chance of being selected. Coordinators accept speakers as soon as they identify a pitch that they think best fits the session, just like colleges that use a rolling admissions policy. So pitching early increases the likelihood you’ll be chosen.

Use the form: The speaker pitch form (http://searchmarketingexpo.com/speaker-form) is the way to ask to speak. There’s helpful information there about how your pitch should be written and what it should contain.

Write it yourself and be specific: Lots of pitches come in that are obviously written by staff or not specific to the session. These are two of the most effective ways to ensure that your pitch is ignored. If you’re a thought leader, write the pitch yourself…and make certain that it is 100% focused on the session topic.

You’ll be notified: If you are accepted to speak, you’ll be notified by e-mail. If not, you’ll be notified by e-mail by the end of March.

And don’t delay—the speaking pitch form closes on March 19.

Want to attend SMX Advanced London? Click here for the agenda and all the details.

Your investment in coming to SMX West will pay off many times. You’ll be satisfied; we guarantee it.

Check out the agenda. Conference chairs Danny Sullivan and Chris Sherman, and the all-star SMX programming team, have developed a comprehensive agenda that is tactical, strategic and inspiring. Whether you’re a beginner or experienced search engine marketer, SMX West has sessions just for you.

Each day begins with a remarkable keynote – Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer on Tuesday; Peter Norvig, Director of Research from Google on Wednesday; and super-savvy panel of search experts looking to the future on “The State of the Search Union” on Thursday.

In addition, we’ve taken care of the little things that will make your experience more valuable and enjoyable, including:

• Hot lunches, breakfast and snacks all day.
• Free WiFi in session rooms, so you can access speaker presentations (or check to see what’s going on back in the office).
• Networking. Networking. Networking. See the details about the in-person activities and parties.
• Over 30 presentations from leading search marketing solution providers in the SMX Theater – open to all SMX attendees including free Expo Only attendees.

Don’t wait any longer! Register today online or call (877) 242-5242 and you save $200 on an All Access Pass compared to the on site rate (even more for groups – check out our team discounts.)

SMX West happens March 2-4 at the Santa Clara Convention Center. Here’s what’s in store:

Exceptional Content: More than 50 sessions for search marketers of every skill level will be presented. Sessions will cover all of the search topics: paid search advertising (PPC), natural search optimization (SEO), local/mobile search, social media, real-time search and much more. See the agenda for further information.

Keynotes & Presenters: You’ll be treated to three outstanding keynote presentations – Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, Google’s Director of Research Peter Norvig, and The State of the Search Union panel of search experts. They will be joined by over 125 of the best minds in search marketing who will share their tactics and experiences. Take a look at who’s speaking!

Connections: Meeting others at SMX who share your interests isn’t left to chance. Network before the show with SMX Connect, the official online social networking tool of the conference. On site, participate in the “Meet & Greet” kickoff reception, SMX Expo Hall Reception sponsored by Ask.com, and Birds-of-a-Feather topic lunch tables. And you won’t want to miss SMX West After Dark, sponsored by Bing.

Conveniences: We provide the extras that make conference attendance a little easier: Wifi, hot lunches, all-day snacks, online pre-show scheduling and networking, and much more!

Register now to secure your spot. All Access passes are an incredible value at just $1395. Other passes are also available, including free Expo Hall passes for those who pre-register. Click here for descriptions.

SMX West is programmed by the editors of Search Engine Land, who have been reporting on and analyzing the search industry since its inception. You’ll be satisfied with the SMX West experience; we guarantee it!

Register today online or call (877) 242-5242. Become a more effective, innovative and inspired search marketing by attending SMX West!

PS: Interested in sending your team? You’ll save 20-35% when you register 3 or more people. Check out our attractive group rates!

SMX West is designed for you! Check out these topic-specific conference previews:

• Advanced SEOs by Bruce Clay
• PPC Professionals by Matt Van Wagner
• Search Marketing Beginners by Disa Johnson
• In-house Marketers by Jessica Bowman
• Analytics Practitioners by Feras Alhlou

SMX West kicks off on March 2 with an exclusive: Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer’s first conversation with the search engine marketing community at an industry event, and his first keynote address since the Microsoft + Yahoo! deal was blessed by regulators. Search Engine Land editor-in-chief Danny Sullivan sits down with Steve to discuss implementation of the Microsoft/Yahoo relationship and Bing’s ambition to revolutionize search and search engine marketing.

They’ll be no less excitement on March 3 with An Insider’s Look At Google Research. Google’s director of research Peter Norvig will share behind-the-scenes demos of some of the cool technology Google is developing, take questions from the audience, and have a lively discussion hosted by Search Engine Land executive editor Chris Sherman.

The energy continues on the last day of the conference when you are treated to a special panel discussion on March 4th The State Of The Search Union. Between harsh economic conditions, major technology introductions and industry consolidation, this past year the search world has experienced as many flips and turns as Olympic snowboarders. This panel of super-savvy minds will make sense of it all, talk about where we stand and where we’re going. Controversy, insights and recommendations will be on the menu for this breakfast-time keynote.

And those are just the keynotes! SMX West also features over 125 search marketing experts sharing their best traffic-driving ideas and tactics. There’s a twelve track agenda offering beginner, intermediate and advanced level content.

Don’t miss the invigorating keynotes, exceptional content, invaluable networking connections and essential conveniences of SMX West. Register today online or call (877) 242-5242.

PS: Interested in sending your team? You’ll save 20%-35% when you register 3 or more people – check out our attractive group rates!

Need help choosing what sessions to attend? See SMX Dream Agendas for:

• Advanced SEOs by Bruce Clay
• PPC Professionals by Matt Van Wagner
• In-house Marketers by Jessica Bowman
• Analytics Practitioners by Feras Alhlou
• Search Marketing Beginners by Disa Johnson

Search Marketing Expo is pulling out all the stops when it comes to meeting the needs of in-house search marketers in Santa Clara March 2-5. Attend and you’ll leave with more than enough ideas, strategies and contacts to keep you ahead of the curve and connected with colleagues until next year.

The agenda is full of valuable SEM nuggets, so it’s difficult to say there is one “dream” agenda. It depends on the challenges you’re facing this year. I’ll preview the sessions I think most in-housers should attend and why. Check out the compete agenda here.

Monday, March 1st

SMX kicks off with the “SMX Meet & Greet” on Monday March 1st at 6pm. This is typically small and full of speakers. If there is a speaker you want to meet, this is the best place to do that. The night before the show, everyone’s on a “conference high” and ready to talk.

Tip #1: At the end of each day’s scheduled activities, the Hyatt bar will be full of search marketers. Come hang out. You’ll meet amazing people and get the best information!

Tuesday, March 2nd

Tuesday’s sessions kick off with Steve Ballmer’s keynote. No one should miss the opportunity to here Steve talk about what’s next for Bing.

The conference sessions ramp up at 10:45. For the search marketing newbies, you’ll find the Keyword Research & Tools session helpful. Those looking at what’s next and how to get to the next level will want to catch the Real Time Search & Major Search Engines session. If you have mobile search interests, there is a Mobile PPC session also competing with this slot.

After lunch there is the copywriting session that you’ll find especially interesting if you write SEO copy or train writers who do. You’ll get many ideas from this session’s speakers, Heather Lloyd-Marting and Jill Whalen, two of the first search marketers to focus on copywriting. Also competing with this slot is a mobile search session; if that is up your alley, one of the speakers is Michael Martin, a fellow in-houser at Resource Nation who will be speaking at the In-house Exchange. For the PPC in-housers, there is a session about new Google formats that’s not to be missed.

Tuesday afternoon gets really juicy! At 3pm, choose from Google’s Personalized Search Revolution or Ranking Tactics for Local Search. Personalized search is changing things dramatically and this session will be packed. If you deal with brick-and-mortar locations Rankings Tactics for Local Search is for you.

Tuesday at 4:30 there will be a myriad of different topics. The session I find most interesting is Supercharge Your Descriptions with Sitelinks; anything you can do to get more eyeballs on a listing has a chance to increase the value SEO adds to the bottom line. In-housers active in social media marketing should attend The Current State of Social Search session, where you’ll get great statistics for supporting your social media business case.

At 5:45 the Expo Hall Reception has drinks and appetizers courtesy of Ask.com. Then it’s time for dinner!

Tip #2: After happy hour, a bunch of in-house folks are connecting for dinner. It’s not on the official agenda, so it’s usually fairly small and intimate like the In-house Exchange. For details contact Emily [at] seoinhouse dot com.

Right after dinner everyone is heading to “SMX After Dark”, the biggest party of the show. It’s sponsored by Bing, who always throws memorable parties.

Wednesday, March 3rd

The morning kicks off with the crowning of the SMX Biggest Search Geek. More than 1000 people participated in the contest this year, so winning is a big deal! Last year’s winner was in-house SEO Keri Morgret, who’s speaking at SMX West this year and local to the San Francisco Bay Area.

Bring your IT department if you can swing it, even if it is only one lead programmer or technical product manager. The “Technical SEO Track” happens on Wednesday and hearing SEO needs from the experts at this conference can be invaluable.

Don’t miss Diagnosing Technical SEO Issues. Vanessa Fox usually points you to a checklist for diagnosing technical problems (ask her about it if she doesn’t talk about it). For the PPCers, the Paid Search Bullseye! session looks like a good way to reach and close your ultimate customer, i.e. how to get more qualified people to your site so you can reduce your spend.

After lunch, the 90-Day SEM Fitness Plan is a good choice for companies new to search marketing, especially if you don’t have a solid 2010 plan together already. For those dealing with technical issues related to URLs, the session Dealing With Domains, Parameters & All That Jazz is right up your alley. For the PPC’ers, you’ll love Search Meet Display; Display Meet Search.

At 3:15, enterprise level SEOs will benefit from Industrial Strength SEO. Fellow in-housers Dave Lloyd (Cisco) and Marshall Simmonds (New York Times) are on that panel. They always give great presentations.

The last slot of the day has two highly recommended sessions – 60 Minutes Per Day for Social Media Success and The Need For Speed: Google Says It Matters. Now that page load times will officially impact rankings, this is the stuff you need to forward to your IT department. If you are lucky enough to have your IT person attend on Wednesday, send them to this session. The social media session is very useful because it will show you how to do social media effectively in very little time – a big challenge for most in-housers.

Thursday, March 4th

This day kicks off with The State of The Search Union, an interesting commentary on what’s going on in the industry. Grab your morning beverage of choice and take a peek at the future.

For In-housers, the first 2 sessions are just for you!

At 10am, we have a great lineup that will talk about various aspects of doing in-house SEO, from salaries and job titles to getting things up and running for in-house SEO.

At 11am we have a similar session for PPC. Get salary data, job descriptions and information for starting your PPC program in-house.

Other morning sessions to consider are the Ask the Engines at 11:30, Mystery Search Science Theater, and the SEO and PPC clinics.

After lunch, I recommend Analytics Action Plans for PPC & SEO. Demonstrating results is vital these days. And with budgets getting cut, you need to know how to slice-and-dice your numbers to illustrate the results you’ve achieved.

The last session of the show has goodies too, including Ask the Link Builders and The Conversion Ninja Toolbox. If you’re dealing with reputation management issues, you should check out the Social Media, Search & Reputation Management. If Twitter is your thing, the Twitter Clinic is a practical choice because they’ll look at real examples and provide real-world critiques.

Friday, March 5th

Friday is workshop day. And the In-house SEM Exchange specific for in-house search marketers.

In-house SEM Exchange is an intimate environment of facilitated discussion. No pre-defined presentations, no vendors, no sales pitches. It’s the day where you can ask anything and detailed answers from people who have been there before, because they are doing search in-house!

Learn more about the In-house SEM Exchange.

Tip #3: Be sure to check out my handful of helpful tips for SMX West 2010.

I look forward to meeting you all there! If you haven’t already, here’s the link. Register now!

Not everything that can be counted counts, and, not everything that counts can be counted.
- Albert Einstein

Einstein’s observation wasn’t intended to describe internet marketing, but it certainly applies! Truth is, many of us are bombarded with numbers and reports but can’t seem to get the actionable insights we need.

That’s where SMX West comes in – running March 2-5 in Silicon Valley. Aspiring conversion specialists will leave the conference equipped with tips and techniques to measure the metrics that really count. If measurement, analytics and conversions are important to you (and they should be), take a few minutes and review this Analytics & Conversion Dream Agenda.

Monday, March 1 – Pre-conference Event

Warm up for SMX West by joining the Monday evening “Meet & Greet” reception. Turn off your iPhones, Blackberries and NexusOnes, and be ready for some good old-fashion in-person networking from 6pm to 7:30pm.

Tuesday-Wednesday, March 2 & 3

Generating traffic to your website is what Tuesday and Wednesday are all about. After all, you have to have *something* to count before counting it. There are over 30 sessions to choose from on Monday and Tuesday, so spend the first two days getting up to speed on all of the SEO, paid search advertising, real time search and social media marketing topics that interest you. I recommend you attend sessions that interest you and ask very specific questions on how to measure the effectiveness of these channels.

Thursday, March 4

We really get down to the business of counting with the “Analytics & Conversion” track on Thursday. Start off your morning with Landing Pages & Multivariate Testing to Increase Conversions. Landing pages are key to paid search — as well as many other channels. This session explores how testing alternative landing pages can provide you with downright amazing results. Why settle for a lower conversion rate when testing can get you improvements of 10%, 20%, 30% or even 100%+?!

Next, get ready to conquer the offline-online attribution puzzle! You spend time and energy on paid search advertising and optimization, but does that translate into offline sales? How do you explain that to the boss – and justify the need for more budget? Make sure to attend Measuring How Search Ads Drive Offline Conversions and learn how to approach measuring search marketing’s contribution to offline sales.

Want to continue the conversation over lunch? Be sure to sign up for one of the birds-of-a-feather topic tables – you’ll sit with other SMX participants interested in similar topics. I’ll be moderating the – you guessed it – Analytics table. You can sign up ahead of time via SMX Connect, the SMX West social networking site.

Feeling refreshed and rejuvenated? Right after lunch, it’s Analytics Action Plans for PPC & SEO. You’ll be introduced to a number of key search metrics and insights that will help you get much more bang for your search marketing buck. Best of all, this session provides case studies from real-life analytics-driven search marketing plans – so you know the focus is practical, not theoretical.

Wrap up the day with the Conversion Ninja Toolbox – A Review of Tools & Technologies session. I’ll be covering the many cool features of the Google Website Optimizer, and my fellow presenters will highlight their most valuable tools and technologies for measuring conversions. Not to be missed!

Friday, March 5 – Continuing Ed for Analytics!

Friday is Google Analytics day! I’ll be leading a 1-day workshop entitled “Using Google Analytics to Improve Your Online Marketing & Business!”

This workshop is for marketers and webmasters. It helps organizations and individuals use data to optimize current campaigns and plan for new ones.

To reach that stage, you need to plan your web analytics strategy, understand your reports and define what constitutes success for your business. This workshop will show you how – more details on the program here.

I look forward to seeing you all soon in Santa Clara! Not registered yet? Don’t miss out – register today!

Register for your All Access pass and get 3 days of exceptional content and invaluable industry connections for only $1395 ($200 off the on-site rate). For a description for alternative pass options click here.

SMX West is created by the editors of Search Engine Land, who have been reporting on and analyzing the search industry since its inception. This year’s opening keynote is a conversation with Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, in his first presentation to the search marketing community at an industry event.

Want to learn more? Here are some helpful links:

• Check out the multi-track agenda with over 50 stimulating sessions offered at beginner, intermediate and advanced levels.
• Read conference chair Danny Sullivan’s guide to the program.
• 125+ search experts are ready to share proven traffic-driving tactics and tips. See who’s speaking.
• Attend many networking opportunities to renew industry connections and make new ones.
• Get the tools to help you do your job better with access to leading vendors in the Expo Hall and educational theater presentations. Open to all SMX West attendees.
• Continue the learning beyond the conference with in-depth workshops on SEO, in-house SEM and Google Analytics.

Don’t miss out. Register online or call (877) 242-5242 today! Attractive group rates are available. Click here for details.