• Why join us? Focus on Real World experiences!
• Learn from and meet the best in the business!
• Mobile, video, search, social, measurement, and more.

The major Digital Agencies will all be there. Everything from the 101 session, Small / Medium Business to Enterprise. Join our panel of experts in a comfortable environment allowing for direct interaction.

• Ask questions that are pertinent to your organization
• Hear and see how other companies are approaching Social Media, the challenges and successes.
• Case Studies will be emphasized, real world information!
• What tools are being using?
• How do you measure success?
• How do you convince your management?
• What questions do you need to ask to be successful?
• How to address corporate policies around Social Media?

Meet others with similar goals and make new connections. Oh and there’s some great food too. Exceptional prizes are being given away as well!

For additional information please go to: SocialMediaAZ.org (Use #SMAZ on Twitter: SMAZ conversations on Twitter)

Please visit and thank our sponsors:

ExactTarget

KEO Marketing

Vertical Measures

City of Tempe

BulbStorm

Mint Social (Social Media Marketing Company)

SpyFu

Black Dog Promotions

Infusionsoft

The Kelly Law Firm

Shwaag.com

aloft Hotel Tempe

Madcap Theater

PopChips

Our partner associations:

Business Marketing Association (BMA)

Public Relations Society of America (PRSA)

Social Media Club (SMC)

Arizona Interactive Marketing Association(AZIMA)

Search Engine Marketing Professionals Organization Arizona (SEMPO)

Location: 730 S. Mill Ave Tempe, 85281

Date: Friday, October 07, 2011 from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM (MT)

Register TODAY!

Matt O.

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SES San Francisco Conference & Expo is part of the ClickZ Connected Marketing Week.

Sessions Include:

Insider Tips to Ad Optimization

Automating Social Media

Crossing the Digital Divide: The Leap from Search to Display

HTML5: The Interactive Social Web

Advanced Paid Search Tactics

SEO Competitive Analysis

Only members of the Arizona Interactive Marketing Association will have a chance to win these tickets at AZIMA’s next social event on July 12^th featuring a panel of local Chefs and Restauranteurs who’ve been reaping the rewards of creating thriving online communities to support their foodie customers. The only catch is that you do have to be in attendance at the event and be a current member of AZIMA. Are you feeling lucky?

There are 6,000 marketers, programmers, designers, small business owners, and affiliates expected to attend SES San Francisco so you’ll want to be there too! If you aren’t able to make it to next week’s AZIMA event to try your hand at winning free tickets feel free to use the promo code  ‘20AZM’ to receive 20% off your tickets just for being a member or friend of AZIMA.

Redlincook

Elise is the eMarketing Specialist at Empire Southwest, an authorized Caterpillar heavy construction equipment dealer which also offers top brands of used machinery to clients across the United States and Mexico. She specializes in content strategy, content marketing, search and social technologies and has been on the AZIMA Board of Directors since the very beginning.

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With hundreds of entries, the promotion raised over $96k for FamilyFarmed.org, an organization dedicated to expand the production, marketing and distribution of locally grown and responsibly produced food, in order to enhance the social, economic and environmental health of our communities.

Restaurants thrive on repeat business, but customers increasingly expect more than just good service, food and drinks. They want to be engaged and entertained.

Companies like Chipotle are looking for new ways to reach their target audience every day to keep customers loyal and happy. A photo contest provides the opportunity for a brand to interact with customers on a more relaxed level. Similar applications are developed to increase brand awareness through a simple act of kindness.

To learn more about how companies are reaping the rewards of creating thriving online communities to support their foodie customers, join us at our next AZIMA event. On Tuesday, July 12th, Ty Largo, Principal & Creative Director at UP Agency, a local marketing/PR firm, will moderate a panel of Chef Justin Beckett, owner of Beckett’s Table and Jennifer Granillo, a Regional Marketing Consultant for Chipotle Mexican Grill the last ten years.

Find out more information and purchase your ticket at www.joinazima.org

Sarah G

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The Board of Directors couldn’t accomplish much of anything without the mighty help of its volunteers, who assist with everything from keeping up the AZIMA blog, assist in spreading the word about our events, raise the money, give advice and carry out all the other invaluable tasks it takes to keep things running smoothly.  If you’ve attended one of AZIMA’s monthly social events than you are keenly aware that there is a great deal that goes into getting these events off the ground. Currently the Events & Logistics Chairs are seeking a few good (wo)men to pitch in at these events and support these teams.

If you would like to join this merry band, we invite you to email admin@joinazima.org and let us know how you’d be interested in pitching in at the events or preparing for them. We’d love to have you!

Redlincook

Elise is the eMarketing Specialist at Empire Southwest, an authorized Caterpillar heavy construction equipment dealer which also offers top brands of used machinery to clients across the United States and Mexico. She specializes in content strategy, content marketing, search and social technologies and has been on the AZIMA Board of Directors since the very beginning.

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The phrase was coined by John Battelle, a founder of Federated Media Publishing and of Wired magazine, which is quoted below with emphasis added for effect and can be read in full here:

The Database of Intentions is simply this: The aggregate results of every search ever entered, every result list ever tendered, and every path taken as a result. It lives in many places, but three or four places in particular hold a massive amount of this data (ie MSN, Google, and Yahoo). This information represents, in aggregate form, a place holder for the intentions of humankind – a massive database of desires, needs, wants, and likes that can be discovered, supoenaed, archived, tracked, and exploited to all sorts of ends. Such a beast has never before existed in the history of culture, but is almost guaranteed to grow exponentially from this day forward.

Since originally writing the post, he’s expanded this analogy to apply to any website, and implies that marketers can leverage both their own internal data as well as publicly shared data to create their very own database of intentions.

How can we as marketers create our very own database of intentions to help us market more effectively? Look to these sources first, and expand from there with other data you might have available:

• Your Analytics Data – Your analytics data is your very own database of intentions that no one else can see. What kind of content do users most frequently read & interact with? What search queries are they entering to find your website? What areas of the site do they spend the most time on? All of this data will help you understand your customers better and create new content on your website around the topic areas they find most important or interesting.
• Internal search data – If your website has a search feature, then analyze your log files to see what your visitors are searching for. Those search queries represent what your visitors are looking for, what kind of services they are interested in, or what kind of content they want to read but are having trouble finding through your navigation. Analyze your internal search queries for trends & patterns, then adapt to better meet the needs of your customers.
• Google keyword data – Google has a plethora of keyword tools to find popular search queries, correlated search queries, trends, keyword insights and more. All of these give you a sneak-peak into Google’s massive database of intentions to find what searchers are looking for, enabling you to tailor your messaging to directly address the search intentions of your customers.
• Twitter – Part of what makes Twitter so unique is that consumers can so easily communicate directly with brands, whether to complain, praise, or just chit-chat. What kind of questions are your followers asking you on Twitter? If you receive a lot of complaints about a particular area, address it by making a change to that problematic service line or product. If you receive a lot of praise for something, build on that praise and integrate it into your core selling points.
• Facebook, Yelp, and other Social Sites – Much like Twitter, your customers are likely communicating with you, or providing feedback to you, in places like your Facebook Page, your Yelp page, Google Places, and other social media sites. Analyze the feedback & reviews left for your business to gain insights into common pain points & areas of praise, and integrate those findings into your marketing plan.

As you can see, there is a wealth of data out there to analyze the database of your customers’ intentions – allowing you to virtually read their mind and then create a marketing plan that speaks directly to their wants & needs.

Behold the power of the database of intentions.

Nick Roshon

Nick is an SEO Strategist at iCrossing, a global digital marketing agency owned by the Hearst Corporation that helps brands find and connect with their customers online. He's also an active blogger, amateur race car driver, and loves all things social media.

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Thanks for being so loyal, Rita! Don’t forget to register for Online Marketing Summit in Phoenix June 15-17! Register with promo code IMA15AZ, as a friend of AZIMA and  save 15 percent!

Abby Gilmore

Abby Gilmore is an Interactive Media Analyst at Ryland Homes and a member of the AZIMA Communications Committee. She enjoys blogging, connecting with others via social media and volunteering whenever she can. Follow her on Twitter @abbygilmore.

This week, I’d like to introduce long-time AZIMA attendee Steve Bitter of Bulwark Pest Control. Steve has been attending AZIMA events for the past seven months, and doesn’t plan on stopping!  He credits his loyalty to AZIMA to the quality of speakers featured at each event.

Thanks for attending, Steve!  And if you haven’t yet registered for next week’s event, Register today! The event (on the FIRST Tuesday of May, rather than the second) will feature Vanessa Fox and will be focused on search engine marketing.

Abby Gilmore

Abby Gilmore is an Interactive Media Analyst at Ryland Homes and a member of the AZIMA Communications Committee. She enjoys blogging, connecting with others via social media and volunteering whenever she can. Follow her on Twitter @abbygilmore.

This week, I’d like you to meet Jason Miller of P.F. Chang’s and Pei Wei. He attended April’s AZIMA event to learn more about the industry he lives and breathes every day! He also loves to meet new, like-minded people.

Nice to meet you, Jason. Hope to see you next month, too! And don’t forget, May’s event is the first Tuesday of the month, May 3rd, featuring Vanessa Fox. Register today!

Abby Gilmore

Abby Gilmore is an Interactive Media Analyst at Ryland Homes and a member of the AZIMA Communications Committee. She enjoys blogging, connecting with others via social media and volunteering whenever she can. Follow her on Twitter @abbygilmore.

Largest Interactive Marketing Event in AZ

• JAY BAER (AUTHOR / SPEAKER / CONSULTANT) – ConvinceAndConvert.com
• AMBER NASLUND (VP of SOCIAL MEDIA) – Radian6.com
• MATTHEW O’BRIEN (FOUNDER AND PRESIDENT) – MintSocial.com
• BART STEINER (CEO AND FOUNDER) – Bulbstorm.com
• ARNIE KUENN (PRESIDENT) – VerticlaMeasures.com
• LAURIE BUCZEK (SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGIST) -Intel
• FRED VON GRAF (MANAGING PARTNER WEB3MAVENS, LLC.) – SocialMediaAZ.org
• MIKE CORAK (VP OF STRATEGY) – Tallwave.com
• FIONN DOWNHILL (PRESIDENT) – ElixirInteractive.com
• TIFFANY WINMAN (SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGIST) – IBM.com
• JESSICA CARLSON (SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER) – OffMadisonAve.com
• AL MAAG (CCO) – Avnet.com
• PAM SLIM (ENTREPRENEUR COACH, WRITER & SPEAKER) – EscapefromCubicleNation.com
• SARA WATCHER-BOETTCHER (DIR. INTERACTIVE CONTENT & MKTG. STRATEGY) – OffMadisonAve.com

 

Location: The MadCap Theaters in beautiful downtown Tempe. We have all of the theaters on the 2nd floor, open areas and ‘healthier’ concessions slated for the event. All this means that our event is ready for more attendees.

The MadCap Theaters

730 S. Mill Avenue

Tempe, AZ 85281 Google Map

Parking Details (There will be free and discounted parking available)

Matt O.

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December’s AZIMA event proved to be another great one as David Mihm of GetListed.org presented a comprehensive and mind-blowing presentation on Local Search. David authored

Photo from DavidMihm.com

an acclaimed report on Local Search Ranking Factors and his work is used and cited by SEO & Local search experts worldwide. In his presentation he didn’t hold anything back, giving out advanced tips and sharing many secrets about local search optimization – his presentation was so well received that comments such as “I’m learning 10 years of local search marketing in 1 hour. My mind is about to explode from awesomeness” were heard and echoed on Twitter.

The presentation started off with any explanation of why local search is important, and then he explained the Google Places algorithm in three parts – Relevance, Prominence, and Distance. His presentation included intermediate & advanced tactics, a discussion on analytics, and even best practices for uber-competitive markets – it was an impressive amount of ground to cover in just under an hour, but David kept a great pace and wow’d the audience for an hour straight.

Local Search – Why It’s Important

First off – why should you pay attention to local search? David explained that 20% of desktop searches have a local intent – a staggering 2 BILLION queries per month. It’s more important than ever to concentrate on local search, as Google has recently revised their search results to blend organic and local listings throughout the search engine results, as opposed to separating the local results in a “7 pack” above the organic results as they used to. As Google explains in their blog, this change was made to make local results even easier to find, and it definitely gives local results (and specifically, links to Google Places) more prominence in the search results. This fundamental shift means that search marketers will need to focus on both organic and local optimization to be successful, and that local business owners should focus not only on their website, but also on their Google Places page to make it provides a useful & informative experience for users.

The Places Algorithm – How Does it work?

The Places algorithm solves a very difficult question – how do you rank a phonebook? Yet the answer is pretty simple and based off of a pretty basic framework of just three factors – Relevance, Prominence, and Distance. This is a much different algorithm than organic search due to the local intent of the user. David then broke down each element of the algorithm further.

Distance

Optimizing for distance is impossible – you are where you are. This is one factor that you cannot control. The other two – Relevance and Prominence – are where you should focus your efforts.

Relevance

There are many steps you can take to improve your relevance to local search keywords – many are straightforward like having a keyword in your business name, adding yourself to the appropriate categories, and making sure your Google Place page is claimed and filled out completely. In addition to just claiming and filling out your place page, make sure to make it compelling – the goal is to get clicks, and convert visitors – not just rank well. Otherwise, increasing your relevancy is much like organic search, pick keywords that are relevant to your business, including some longer tail keywords that will convert well, and then use those keywords throughout your copy in a natural sounding way.

Prominence

Prominence is the third and perhaps most difficult aspect of local search optimization – generally the intermediate and advanced tactics. Simply put, prominence is what others say about you. The easiest thing you can do to improve your prominence is to manually claim your Google Places listing. Be sure to claim your listing using an email address on your own domain, and not a Gmail account, as this will help Google verify you are the owner of the website and not just a random Gmail user. The other big factor in improving your prominence is to have a lot of high quality citations – a citation is considered a mention of your Name, Address, and Phone Number (or N.A.P. for short). Having high quality citations that are geo-relevant and related to your industry or vertical will help your business thrive in local search prominence. Another aspect of prominence is reviews – having lots of reviews will help your business, especially positive ones. There are many other advanced tactics to improve prominence, such as presence on Flickr, popular YouTube videos, and even geo-tagging in Wikipedia. There is a great write up on the SEO Training SW blog that shares some of these more advanced tactics if you are interested.

Organic Optimization for Local Search

A good SEO strategy is holistic of both local & organic – David shared with us some strategies to make organic search strategy work together with your local search optimization for optimal results. Tactics such as including the city & state in your title tags, and creating separate pages on your website for each of your locations are two easy steps you can take to improve your local & organic search optimization. And of course, links matter, as they do for all aspects of organic search – to help your local search the most, try to get links from geo-relevant sites, or with geo-specific anchor text, as those links will help reinforce the relevance of your business’ location and service offerings to the search engines.

Conclusion

David’s presentation was an eye-opener for many local business owners, organic SEOs, and other internet marketers as we learned just how complicated and advanced local search optimization has become. For retailers, brick and mortars, or anyone with a local presence, it is essential to start learning local search optimization and creating a holistic optimization strategy that accounts for both local and organic tactics.

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Arizona Interactive Marketing Association is a nonprofit organization created to help you better understand interactive marketing through education tools, events, and networking.

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