Each day, search engines seek to improve the Internet experience for millions of people by connecting them to information buried amidst billions of unwanted pages. On the way to reaching this weighty goal, many small enhancements are made, in which a good search marketer (which is my own goal), should keep up with.

So throughout my work weeks, I rely on Twitter to scour the web for the latest and greatest information on search engine optimization, paid search marketing, social media marketing, and general search industry news.

Of all the great insights provided by some of the brightest minds in the game, I’ve decided to share my favorites. Each week, I’ll provide the articles, blog posts, and online discussions that gave me insight into the rapidly growing search engine marketing field. This week features posts pertaining to paid search marketing, analytics, social media and link building:

Dear Avinash: Web Metrics & Analytics Questions, Facebook Edition

Avinash Kaushik writes:

A few weeks back I had asked this question on Twitter: Inspire me: If there is one web analytics question you want answered what would it be? What’s your juiciest / mundane, daily, challenge? The result was this post: Top Web Analytics Questions, Twitter Edition.

Click Fraud 101

Ron Jones writes:

Click fraud often comes up in discussions with clients and during training seminars. Is this something you should worry about? And what should you do if it happens to you? Those of you who run PPC campaigns should arm yourself against this potential foe.

4 signs you’re a social media failure

Denise Zimmerman writes:

Market research firm Gartner projects that more than 75 percent of Fortune 1000 companies with websites will attempt some kind of online social media initiative for marketing or customer relations purposes. Gartner also projects that 50 percent of those efforts will fail.

Link Building from A to Z

Wiep Knol writes:

Although you can easily find lists with 21, 66, 69, 75, 101 or even 131 link building strategies, numbered (link building) tip lists remain very popular. Not because these articles provide shocking new insights – most of the aforementioned mentioned lists mention pretty much the same tactics – but because they remind people of how work intensive the ongoing process of link building can be, and because they make people think due to their in-depth nature.

Each day,  search engines seek to improve the Internet experience for millions of people by connecting them to information buried amidst billions of unwanted pages.  On the way to reaching this weighty goal, many small enhancements are made, in which a good search marketer (which is my own goal), should keep up with.

So throughout my work weeks, I rely on Twitter to scour the web for the latest and greatest information on search engine optimization, paid search marketing, social media marketing, and general search industry news.

Of all the great insights provided by some of the brightest minds in the game, I’ve decided to share my favorites. Each week, I’ll provide the articles, blog posts, and online discussions that gave me insight into the rapidly growing search engine marketing field. This week features posts pertaining to social media marketing:

Google In Talks For Acquiring Twitter

Michael Arrington writes:

Why would Google want Twitter? We’ve been arguing for some time that Twitter’s real value is in search. It holds the keys to the best real time database and search engine on the Internet, and Google doesn’t even have a horse in the game. In a post last month called It’s Time To Start Thinking Of Twitter As A Search Engine.

From Awareness to Extended Action

Chris Brogan writes:

It takes more and more for someone to capture our attention and convince us to change our course of action. Let’s consider this to be the continuum: awareness, attention, engagement, execution, extension.

Google Shows Local Results on Non-Local Queries

Matt McGee writes:

Google is rewriting the local search space. They’re now showing local search results — a map, business listings, and more — even when searchers use generic terms that don’t include a local word…This has potentially huge implications for searchers, local business owners, big businesses with a local presence, and search marketers, too.

Organization is #1 Tip for PPC

Kate Morris writes:

When people ask what the best tips are for PPC, they assume the answer is some tool for bid management, trick in writing ads, or must have for landing page optimization. What is the best tip for real? Organize your ad groups and campaigns like your business depends on it, because it does.

Social Media Influences

Lee Oden writes:

Anyone actively involved with social media as a marketing, PR or customer service communications channel started somewhere… Different people focus their attentions, efforts and expertise in different areas and therefore, offer a different set of influences. A herd mentality towards social media expertise does not inspire innovation.

Each week my feed reader and email inbox fill up with great links on search engine optimization, paid search marketing, social media marketing, and general search industry news. Many of the links become popular on sites like Sphinn, and others end up flying under the radar.  Each week I am going to highlight articles, blog posts, and online discussions that I feel are particularly valuable.  So without further ado, here are this week’s trophy links:

The X Factor: Your SEM program is doomed

Sean X Cummings writes:

SEM is all about efficiency. It may not be the ad venue that’s glamorous, and you’re not going to be able to point to the television or billboard and brag as you tell your friends you did that. But if you start strategically and approach the process diligently, you will see better results with less of a headache.

15 Internet Sites That Can Make or Break Your Brand

Todd Mintz & Brian Provost write:

…profound business implications can occur for brands that become the topic of discussion on certain influential Web sites.

The secret to paid search: treat it like a media buy

Michael Hubbard writes:

Approaching search like a media buy helps increase your brand awareness while delivering ROI via leveraging your other online media buys. By supporting and optimizing search in this way, you can end up with increased conversions and drive brand name searches up even when the industry search trends are flat.