SMX West Agenda - February 25th, 2008

SMX West Agenda - Day 1 - February 26, 2008

SMX West Agenda - Day 2 - February 27, 2008

SMX West Agenda - Day 3 - February 28, 2008

Full Conference Agenda Day 1 - Tuesday, February 26th, 2008

Keynote

Search 3.0, Search 4.0 & Beyond - Search Engine Land editor-in-chief has been covering the search space for 12 years. In this keynote address, he explains how search has recently left behind the Search 1.0 and Search 2.0-eras to reach Search 3.0 today: blended search. He also covers the growth of Search 4.0: personalized and social search, with some further looks at what?s to come.

Break

SMX Boot Camp Track

Keyword Research Tools & Techniques - The first step to success with any marketing campaign is to know your message -- and with search marketing, that means knowing the search terms that are being used by your target audience. Understand what they're searching for, and you can tune-in to their traffic via search engines. This session covers tools and techniques of performing keyword research.

Search 3.0 Track

The Blended Search Revolution - The first generation of search engines ranked pages based on the content of those pages alone -- the words-on-the page. The second generation increased relevancy by analyzing links. The third generation, Search 3.0, is upon us now in full force. Google Universal Search, Ask.com's Morph, Microsoft Live Search Scopes and Yahoo Shortcuts are different names for the same core concept -- automatically blending in results from specialized or "vertical" search engines such as video search or local search. This session looks at the revolutionary change happening with blended search and how search marketers can ride the wave to success.

Paid Search Track

Decrypting Quality Scores - Life used to be so easy. You paid more than your competitor, and you ranked tops as a result. Now the perceived "quality" of your ads can make a dramatic difference in how much you pay and are positioned. Unfortunately, since the exact formula of calculating quality scores isn't revealed by the major search ad networks, marketers have some deciphering to do. This session looks at ways to increase the quality scores of your ads.

Search Insights Track

Legally Speaking: Recent Legal News About Search - What's up with legal issues and search engines? That's what this session is about -- filling you in on the always changing developments. From click fraud to copyright to privacy, this session will hit all the major areas that are seeing legal action. Sit back -- court is in session!

Lunch

SMX Boot Camp Track

Copywriting For Search Success - It's pretty simple. Want to be found for certain words? It helps to actually use those words in your web pages! This session covers the importance of textual content to search engines and how with some forethought, you can create HTML title tags and body copy that works to generate search traffic yet which also pleases your human visitors.

Search 3.0 Track

Video, Images & Blended Results - This session looks at how video and image content is being blended into the main results at major search engines and provides tips on increasing the odds that your content makes the cut for the first page of results.

Paid Search Track

Search Marketing & Persona Models -Personas are a way to model the basic types of visitors you expect to come to your site and tailor the arrival experience to them. This session looks at how personas can be a powerful tool for improving paid search performance, covering how to create them and case studies on their use in PPC.

Search Insights Track

Searchscape: Latest Stats About The Search Engines - What's going on with the major search engines, especially in terms of who is winning in the search engine wars for visitors? In this panel, major online ratings and analytics services share their views on the current search landscape.

Break

SMX Boot Camp Track

Paid Search Fundamentals- Paid search allows you to generate traffic from search engines by purchasing ads, usually on a cost-per-click (CPC) / pay-per-click (PPC) basis. This session covers the basics of how to purchase placement from the major search engines, including best practices for success with your ads.

Search 3.0 Track

Local Search & Blended Results: This session covers how local listings are being blended into the regular results of major search engines and offers tips to increase the chances that your listings will be among those folded in.

Paid Search Track

Defending Your Paid Search Budget Against New Ad Fads - You worked so hard over the years to build a respectable budget for paid search, and now the search engines themselves are pitching non-search ads at you or others are suggesting you try the latest ads on a social network. This session looks at when you want to stand up for search, with strategies on keeping your budget strong and arguing that new ads require new money, not a slice of paid search funds.

Search Insights Track

The Economics Of Search - Economists working for the major search engines? Absolutely, and they try to predict where the search economy is going. This session looks at some of their work in predicting and modeling the space.

Break

SMX Boot Camp Track

Link Building Fundamentals - Links are the way search engines made the great leap forward from Search 1.0 to 2.0, and they remain one of the most important factors influencing rankings. This session covers how search engines perform link analysis to rank pages and how to increase your traffic by building quality links in an appropriate fashion.

Search 3.0 Track

Online Retail & Blended Results - The session focuses on how online retail listings from shopping search are being mixed into the regular results of the major search engines and how to better ensure your products are positioned in front of searchers.

Paid Search Track

Avoiding PPC Pitfalls - When done right, pay-per-click (PPC) search ads can be a company's most valuable marketing channel. But there are common pitfalls that can mean the difference between a campaign that bombs and one that makes you the rock star of your marketing program. Fortunately, many of these are easy to fix, once you know what to look out for. This session will cover danger areas such as match types, content network ads, ego bidding, failure to track properly and more. Learn how to increase your ROI on paid search, in this session!

Search Insights Track

Is It Time For Search Marketing Standards? - Now that several groups and organizations are offering certifications in search marketing without massive online debate and uproar, does that mean the oft-discussed idea of agreeing to common search marketing standards of behavior could happen? Let the discussion -- and likely debate -- begin! This session explains the issues involved, with viewpoints all around.

Full Conference Agenda Day 2 - Wednesday, February 27th, 2008

Keynote

Louis Monier: Past, Present & Future Of Search - Cuill Vice President of Products Monier will describe efforts at Cuill to set new standards in search, in addition to providing perspective on developments in the field.

SEO Track

Search Engine Friendly Web Design - "I'm not designing my site for search engines," is a common designer objection to SEO suggestions. But when search engines collectively have more users than either Internet Explorer or Firefox, how can you afford to ignore how they interact with your site. Search engines are like the third major browser, and if your site breaks for them, it breaks for all those potential visitors from search engines. Search engine friendly sites aren't hard to create and can be attractive to both search engines and human visitors at the same time. Learn more, in this session.

Search 4.0 Track

The Personalized Search Revolution - The Search 3.0 revolution of blended search isn't even over, and we're talking Search 4.0 already? Yes, because Google isn't waiting around. Google Personalized Search changes the SEO game dramatically, since those using the service have individually tailored results -- and more and more are using it each day. This session looks at how personalized search works, what SEOs can still to do influence those results and what might happen with personalization at the other major search engines.

Marketing Track

Branding & Search - In this session, a look at how branding interacts with search. How do those searching by brand differ from those searching for generic products? How can branding support search? How can search improve branding? These issues and more.

Wonder Twins Track

Landing Pages & Multivariate Testing - Even if you're not a fan of the animated superhero Wonder Twins, you'll know that two combined into one can sometimes make a stronger force. In this session, a look at what happens when you combine landing pages with multivariate testing tools -- tools that let you change various elements of the page dynamically to see which tests better with people.

SEO Track

Unraveling URLs & Demystifying Domains - Can you find the same page on your site using different URLs? That might cause you duplicate content issues. Does your content management system put out parameters that block crawling? Own multiple domains pointing at the same site? Are you 301 redirecting them or leaving canonicalization to chance? Confused on even how to pronounce canonicalization, in addition to now being worried about it? Relax. This session looks at a variety of URL and domain name issues you should consider to increase your success with SEO.

Search 4.0 Track

Will The Social Graph Change Search?- All eyes seem to be on the growth of Facebook and how it is using the "social graph" -- IE, the social data showing who is connected with whom -- to build a business. Can social data be applied to improve search? If so, would it shake up the current search space? And what impact might it have on SEO? This session explores the hype, reality and possibilities.

Marketing Track

Reputation Monitoring & Management Through Search - What do people find when they search for you by name? Is it negative? If so, what do you do? What can you do? Depending on the situation, there are a range of tactics that may help. This session explores the issue.

Wonder Twins Track

SEO & Social Media Marketing - More and more, people are finding that social media marketing -- SMM -- can help with SEO efforts. Getting your content into the major social media sites can generate links or provide rankings you might not be able to tap into with your own site. In this session, SMM essentials that SEOs need to know.

Sponsors & Partners Track

Creating a Competitive Advantage through Training
Sponsored by: the SEMPO Institute

The trailblazers of the Search Marketing industry had to be self-taught. You can benefit from their experiences and save many trials and errors by formalizing your own and/or your company?s training. Find out how individuals and companies are creating a competitive advantage through formal Search Marketing training and learn about one training option, SEMPO Institute.

SEO Track

SEO 2.0 For Web 2.0 Sites - Let's say SEO 1.0 is about ensuring that 1990s-era web design techniques such as tables and frames are adjusted to minimize search engine ranking issues. Well, now the Web 2.0 design world is firmly upon us, bringing with it CSS, AJAX and other dynamic design techniques that can give search engines fits. SEO 2.0 is all about ensuring that Web 2.0 sites are as search engine friendly as Web 1.0 sites.

Search 4.0 Track

Search Ads & Behavioral Targeting - Searching behavior can be used for more than refining search results. A profile of what a searcher has looked for can be -- and is -- used to deliver ads to them "post search," as they surf the web doing other things. Someone who searched for "travel," for example, might start seeing more banner ads related to travel. More about what's happening now and what may come, in this session.

Marketing Track

The Online-Offline Synergy Of Search - How can search support the purchase of offline goods and services? How can offline advertising and activities drive people to search, which in turn may send them back offline to interact with brands and companies. This session explores how both sides can support and enhance each other.

Wonder Twins Track

SEO & Blogging - Blogging can help SEO in a variety of ways. Blog posts are "syndicated," meaning your content -- and your links -- spread across the web. There are also dedicated blog search engines with readers you might be missing, if you're not blogging. This session introduces you to blogging and the SEO advantages it offers.

Sponsors & Partners Track

In Depth with SEOmoz PRO
Sponsored by: SEOmoz

Rand Fishkin leads a thorough walkthrough of more than 30 unique SEOmoz tools & services and how to leverage them for search engine marketing success. From Page Strength, to the Link Directories, to the brand new SEO Analytics Tool and beyond, Rand will show you how to get the most from all of the features inside the new SEOmoz PRO (formerly "Premium").

SEO Track

Search Engineers Q&A Put your questions to this panel of search engine engineers and representatives who know how things work behind the scenes in terms of indexing and ranking pages.

Search 4.0

Just Behave, A Look At Searcher Behavior - All this talk about making use of searcher behavior -- but how do searchers actually interact with search engines? Glad you asked! This session takes its name from Search Engine Land's "Just Behave" column and like that column looks at the latest research and studies to offer techniques and tips for search marketers to consider.

Marketing Track

Paid Search Roundtable - In this session, representatives from the major search ad networks along with search marketers take questions from the audience about paid search.

Wonder Twins Track

SEO & User Generated Content - Search engines love good content, but good content can take a lot of time to prepare. So why not turn to your users and visitors? User Generated Content -- UGC -- has the advantage of often being full of passion plus the "authors" who create it in turn may turn into marketers for your site. Learn more in this session.

Sponsors & Partners Track

Applied Keyword Research Training
Sponsored by: the SEMPO Institute

At the end of this session you will have the knowledge you need to confidently execute strategic keyword research for your search campaigns. In this session we will work live with two keyword research tools that will give participants firsthand experience on how to grow a handful of keywords into a larger strategic list of word phrases that will perform. This session is based on SEMPO Institute's Advanced Search Engine Optimization course. This is a perfect follow up to the Keyword Research Tools & Techniques session as well as a great stand alone session if you want to advance your knowledge on Keyword Discovery. Bring your laptop.

Full Conference Agenda Day 3 - Thursday, February 28th, 2008

Keynote

Generation Next: Search In The Coming Decade - In this panel, luminaries from the major search engines discuss where they see search going as the decade unfolds.

SEO & Linking Track

Industrial Strength SEO - When you're doing SEO for a big site -- or tens or hundreds of sites -- you've got to bring in the big tools, lots of organization and know how to integrate SEO as a regular part of web production and employee thinking in general. More in this session.

Analytics & Usability Track

Web Analytics Roundtable - This session provides a short overview of web analytics and how it can be used to analyze search marketing performance, followed by Q&A with web analytics experts and tool representatives.

Special Topics Track

Growing Your Small SEM Firm - You're getting -- or want to get -- more business than your small SEM firm can handle. Do you scale up by hiring more people? If so, what trade-offs do you face, and how do you scale successfully? These issues and more are explored during this panel.

Insights & Checkup Track

Generation Google: A Talk With Today's Teens - They've grown up with search engines as an everyday fact-of-life, rather than some magical new technology that's revolutionized finding information. This panel of "Generation Google" teens, as some have dubbed them, answers questions about how they search, view search engines and yes -- even do search marketing of their own.

Sponsors & Partners Track

The 10 Truths Every CMO Must Know About Search Marketing -
Sponsored by iProspect

Chief marketing officers need to understand some of the most important fundamentals of search marketing, the role it can play in an organization's overall marketing efforts, and what search marketing practices successful marketing organizations - perhaps their competitors - are using to their advantages. This lively panel discussion focuses on ten strategic truths about search marketing that are imperative for success.

Note: This 90 minute session concludes at 12:15

SEO & Linking Track

SEO Q&A - PowerPoint Free! Put your questions about SEO to our panel of experts and get answers about ranking and crawling issues.

Analytics & Usability Track

Analyzing The Competition - What the competition is doing might be what you should be doing. But how to plant a spy? No need! There are variety of ways to perform competitive research from outside the company. This session covers techniques, tools and tips.

Special Topics Track

In House Issues - In this session, a look at topics to help those doing search marketing internally for a company, including how to make the transition from agency work to in house SEM and advice on how to increase your support and success of search marketing from within your organization.

Insights & Checkup Track

Paid Search Checkup - Does your ad campaign need help? This session of paid search experts goes live on the web to review ads and landing pages. Offer up your campaign or review or learn as others are examined.

SEO & Linking Track

Linking Q&A - This panel of search representatives and search marketers takes questions about linking, from link building, to issues about buying links, to internal linkage and more.

Analytics & Usability Track

SEO & Usability: They Can (And Should) Coexist - Search engine friendly design does NOT mean human unfriendly design. In fact, done right, improving the usability of your site for visitors can also improve your SEO. This session looks and how both help each other.

Special Topics Track

Search Marketing, B2B-Style - This session looks at some of the best practices B2B marketers should follow when doing search marketing, including the use of downloadable material, actions beyond offering white papers, testing registration and landing pages plus more.

Insights & Checkup Track

SEO Checkup - This panel of SEO experts reviews sites live on the web and offers advice on improving indexing and ranking. Volunteer your site or learn from the audience as others are reviewed. The session runs twice, with different sites reviewed each time.

SEO & Linking Track

Linking Checkup - In this session, the panel of link building and link experts takes questions about linkage issues. Armed with a live internet connection, they'll go live as needed to checkup on specific issues.

Analytics & Usability Track

Usability Checkup - This panel of experts stands ready with a live internet connection to review sites and offer advice on improving usability. Come offer up your site for review or watch as part of the audience as other sites are reviewed for the benefit of all.

Special Topics Track

Contextual Ads & AdSense Checkup - This panel of contextual ad experts looks at sites live to offer advice and thoughts on improving earnings for publishers running Google AdSense or ads from other contextual ad programs. Come offer your site for review and also learn from watching as others are critiqued.

Insights & Checkup Track

SEO Checkup - This panel of SEO experts reviews sites live on the web and offers advice on improving indexing and ranking. Volunteer your site or learn from the audience as others are reviewed. The session runs twice, with different sites reviewed each time.