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Author: Search Influence Alumni

Search Influence Welcomes Two New Women in Tech

The hustle and bustle of the holiday season is just around the bend. However, here at Search Influence, we’re already celebrating as we welcome two new women in tech to our team!

Ariel Kizer

Ariel has joined the Content Team as a Junior Editorial Internet Marketing Associate. She moved to New Orleans from Oregon in August 2016 and is loving life in the Crescent City. Having graduated from Oregon State University with a BA in speech communication, Ariel competed on the speech and debate teams during her time as an undergrad. In her spare time, she loves to act in local short films or theatre, binge watch Netflix, and go bike riding.

Lindsey Broussard

Lindsey has joined the Online Advertising Department as a Junior Online Advertising Associate. Lindsey was born and raised in Lafayette, LA, where she received her degree in public relations from University of Louisiana. She spent the last year working at a small PR firm in Austin, TX. After missing the food and culture of Louisiana, New Orleans seemed like the next best stop! In her free time, Lindsey enjoys brunching, attending yoga classes, and going to as many music festivals as she can.

Welcome to Search Influence, Ariel and Lindsey!

November 9, 2016
Top 5 Most Read Search Influence Blogs of October

Between Halloween, the World Series, and Election Season, a few Search Influence blogs may have fallen through the cracks. Don’t worry! Here’s the top 5 most read blogs from October to get you caught up!

#1. The Importance of Content Marketing to Your SEO Strategy

Did you know that businesses with websites of 401–1000 pages get 6x more leads than those with 51–100 pages? Find out exactly what content marketing is and how it can help your business with this informative blog post.

#2. Search Influence Adds 8 New Employees

Welcome to the Search Influence family, Ann, Rosie, Amy, Joel, Roane, Sabian, Sam, and Trace! Get to know these friendly faces a little better, and discover which one of them dances Bachata.

#3. What Happened to Facebook’s 20% Text Grid Tool?

Originally published in March, this post is still holding onto its rank as one of our most popular blog posts ever! Learn exactly what changed with the update and how it might affect your business.

#4. A Day in the Life of an Account Manager at Search Influence

Ever wondered what it’s like to be an Account Manager? Ever wondered what it’s like to take over the Search Influence Twitter for a day? This engaging blog post lets you experience both through the eyes of Account Manager Presley Brouillette.

#5. Like Our Facebook Page and Help a Worthy Cause

Read all about the #Likes4Lives campaign, our October fundraiser for Breast Cancer Awareness! We’d like to thank everyone who made it a great success! Discover the campaign’s outcomes in our recent results blog.

November 8, 2016
Fourth Annual Likes for Lives Results

The fourth annual Likes for Lives campaign has come to a close, and it was a great success!

In case you missed it, for every new like the Search Influence Facebook page received during October, the company donated $1 to the Breastoration Fund, a program created by three breast cancer survivors. The Breastoration Fund provides financial and educational assistance for women seeking reconstructive surgery after breast cancer.

Our goal was to get 700 new likes on our company Facebook page, but we ended up with 751! However, instead of just donating $751 to the Breastoration Fund, we rounded up—WAY UP—to $2,500!

Search Influence Co-founders Will Scott (left) and Angie Scott (right) present donation to Kim Sport (middle) with the Breastoration Fund.

“We believe Likes For Lives is a great way for Search Influence to contribute to breast cancer awareness, while also practicing what we preach on the importance of cause-based marketing in social media,” said Search Influence COO and Co-founder, Angie Scott. “To top it all off, we get to involve our employees in supporting an important cause in our community.”

We’d like to give a huge thank you to everyone who participated in this campaign, and we look forward to many more Octobers of supporting breast cancer awareness.

November 4, 2016
#Everything You Need To Know About #Hashtags

A Way of Life Now

When you plan a bachelorette party, wedding, or big birthday bash, you typically ask yourself, “What’s my hashtag going to be?” Choosing the right emoji is just about as important as choosing a killer hashtag for your social media post. Emojis are a form of hashtag, too, called hashflag. The invention of the hashflag is something that I cannot wait to use in addition to awesome hashtags, but creating personal ones isn’t available yet. I absolutely love a good hashtag and creating them is sometimes just as fun as the event itself!

There are some ground rules when creating a hashtag that should be adhered to for maximum success. We have laid out a road map for you of best practices when creating your hashtags.

#Hashtag: Quick Notes Before You Start Creating

The general purpose of a hashtag is to combine like categories on a social media platform. They are typically clickable links that will show you what others have posted with the same tag. It is an instant way to see what’s going on in reference to the topic of the hashtag.

Since hashtags have migrated from their origin on Twitter to almost all social platforms, it’s not a surprise that they can help out your business’s social presence in a big way. Hashtags can promote campaigns that you are running at your office, get people excited about an upcoming sale that your retail store may be having, or even create buzz around a new procedure you are offering at your clinic.

Creating the Perfect Hashtag

Think of your focus for the hashtag along with some keywords you’d like to include. The keywords should be relevant to what you want to promote as well as the purpose of the hashtag. You want to make sure that you are using a phrase that doesn’t require punctuation or spaces to make sense to the reader as neither of those is allowed. Placing a space or any punctuation after your (#) will result in the hashtag ending whenever those are placed. For instance – #SI’sTBC2016 will stop at the apostrophe and the hashtag will only be ‘SI’.

Make them short and sweet! After you have focused in on the relevant keywords you want to promote, go ahead and choose as few words as possible. The user experience gets lost on a long hashtag like #livelifelikealbuspercivalwulfricbriandumbledore.

Using the Perfect Hashtag

Boosting your social presence by using a hashtag is beneficial for your business’s marketing strategy. Once you have crafted your #totallyawesome hashtag, you will want to make sure to promote it! Come up with a few phrases that are all appropriate length for your social platforms (the character and word count differ between platforms), and get it out there. Make sure that you are not using more than two hashtags in a post. The user experience is muddled when more than two are used in one post.

Let’s Celebrate the Perfect Hashtag

Now that your hashtag is out there and everyone is using it for their photos and online posts, let’s track it! There are plenty of affordable applications online that you can use to track the progress of your hashtag. This is going to give you vital information into when your hashtag was used most, platforms that it was used on, and other key marketing metrics so you can adjust accordingly for your next big hashtag!

November 1, 2016
Influencers Lend Helping Hands to Baton Rouge After the Flood

The recently unanticipated, devastating Baton Rouge flood hit close to home for several Influencers, including Candice P., Rachel M., and Aubrey A. who returned home to BR to help their families and the community return to their normal lives slowly but surely. While Candice went home to help her extended family and close friends, Rachel returned to help a school relocate, and Aubrey offered moral support to relatives who lost their home. With a whopping 60,000 homes damaged or destroyed, 86,500 people filed for federal aid just days after the storm, and that number has since risen to more than 106,000.

Just an hour and a half away, the storm reminded New Orleanians of the tragic aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and how our Baton Rouge neighbors came to the rescue, and quickly. So, it would only be right for NOLA to do the same this time around, and that we did – with open arms and helping hands aplenty. Search Influence offered employees one paid day of community service in response to the natural disaster, and with that, many of us set out to help our neighbors in BR.

Evacuteer

Who: Kayla, Johanna, Sarah Jane, Ryan, Kiersten

They volunteered with Evacuteer, an organization that recruits and trains primarily evacuation volunteers, but also worked with a few local organizations to help in Baton Rouge after the flooding. They went to two houses and helped homeowners clear out their homes of flood damaged items and worked to take out the flooring and drywall.

Animal Rescue of New Orleans

Who: Brittney, Gussie

According to Brittney, “When Search Influence sent the company-wide email offering one paid day of community service in response to the Baton Rouge flooding, I knew I wanted to take this opportunity to help however I could. Fellow Influencer, Gussie, shared on Facebook about her experience volunteering at Animal Rescue New Orleans (ARNO), so I looked into it. Being a bit naive, I thought I’d go in and spend the day loving on sweet pups. I showed up in the morning and was put to work immediately. They are overflowing with rescued dogs from BR, building crates for the anticipated 50+ more coming in, and working tirelessly to keep all of the animals walked, fed, clean, and happy to the best of their ability. There’s a shortage of help, though – so I’ll be honest when I say the work wasn’t exactly glamorous, but when you see all the sweet pups’ darling faces, it is so worth it. If you are in/around NOLA, make the time to volunteer at ARNO! ”

Junior League of New Orleans

Who: Kim, Gabrielle, Rebekah, Alison, and Amanda

The Junior League of New Orleans was collecting items for women and children affected by the floods, specifically diapers, wipes, feminine hygiene products, formula, and gift cards. Each of the Influencers volunteered a three-hour shift and helped them sort diapers and conduct inventory to move to New Iberia, Youngsville, Lafayette, Denham Springs, St. Amant, Gonzales, Baton Rouge, Paulina, French Settlement, Bogalusa, and other areas along the I-12 corridor.

Second Harvest Food Bank

Who: Melissa and Kristin

The two Influencers volunteered at Second Harvest Food Bank – Feeding South Louisiana to help package goods for the flood victims.

While the immediate help was wholeheartedly appreciated, Baton Rouge is still working to rebuild after the flood, even two months down the road. As we get closer to the holidays, why not consider lending a helping hand however you can to someone in need? We shouldn’t wait for a natural disaster to occur to motivate our desire to help – make a difference in someone’s life with simple, random acts of kindness today, tomorrow, and beyond. It will change your life, as well as the way you see the world – a little humanity goes a long way.

October 24, 2016
A Day in the Life of an Account Manager at Search Influence

With all of the great positions available at Search Influence, it’s easy to wonder what each department or each position does every day. Earlier this week, I took to Search Influence’s Twitter to break down what my day-to-day as an Account Manager looks like. Though each day is different, they all share a common theme: client communication, meetings, and managing my team.

Responding to Client Questions

Mornings always consist of answering emails. Each person on the Account Management team has clients from across all industries and locations, all of which communicate with us primarily through email and phone. I like to take the mornings to open up all emails, check for emergencies, and answer any questions our clients may have. It’s great to know that our clients are getting reliable customer service, as we strive to answer all requests within a 24-hour span.

One of my favorite aspects of being an Account Manager is getting to work with clients from all industries. On a daily basis, I talk to everyone from a plastic surgeon to a mortuary cooler provider! Our client rapport is incredibly diverse.

Our Morning Whiteboard Meetings

Every morning at 9:30, the entire Account Management Team meets by our whiteboard to go over metrics and tasks for the day. We also use this time for giving other members of the team “kudos” for being CHARGED.

Paid Search Meeting

On Tuesdays, members from all departments meet to talk about our paid search, or PPC, clients. This meeting is a great way to discuss successes as well as potential roadblocks in our campaigns.

Managing Your Team: Weekly 1-on-1 Meetings

The biggest difference when you are promoted from an only client-facing position to a management position is managing your team. One of the best things about being in a management position at Search Influence is being able to work closely with my team and watch their careers grow.

In order to stay up-to-date with my team, their clients and any questions they have, we have weekly 1-on-1 meetings. This hour-long meeting is a dedicated time for my team to ask any client or career-related questions, as well as a time for me to follow up with any projects that are pending or in progress. This time isn’t specific to the Account Management position either—all departments at Search Influence have these dedicated 1-on-1 times!

Other management duties consist of leading employee reviews at the 6-month and annual mark and reviewing my team’s tasks/projects.

Wrapping Up Big Projects

After lunch, I typically dedicate my time to working on big projects. These can be client-related, internal, or team-related. I’m most productive in the afternoon, so this is the time that works best for me, but it’s different for all members of the Account Management team.

The project that I am most recently working on consists of revamping the presentation deck that we use when we kick off a new client. It was a great opportunity, and I’m so excited to see this project through!

My Account Management Career

Search Influence has been a great career experience so far within my almost three years here. Because I was hired fresh out of college (Geaux LSU!), I’ve worked my way up from Junior Account Associate to the management position I hold now. I’m thankful for the opportunity I’ve been given and would encourage anyone looking for a client-facing role to apply!

October 18, 2016
The Importance of Content Marketing to Your SEO Strategy
A few weeks ago, I wrote about the basics of link building and how content is crucial to any editorial link building strategy. Today, I want to talk about exactly why it’s so important and what you can do to start writing great content, not only for SEO, but also for your overall content marketing strategy.

What Is Content Marketing?

Content marketing is the strategic creation, distribution, and promotion of content to generate leads, sales, and brand awareness. This could be anything from a social media post or a webpage to a regularly updated blog or news section of your website.

Really it applies to any piece of content that a consumer could see.

Content for SEO

That’s why, when it comes to SEO, content is one of the most important factors in search engine algorithms and the basis for multiple other factors that affect search visibility and traffic. It is also why SEO factors into your content marketing strategy.

Did you know:
– 75% of consumers use search engines regularly when doing product/service research (CMI)

– 60% of consumers purchase a product/service based on that research (UpScribed)

Well, search engines like Google do. That’s why they include specific guidelines for creating content:

Because content is the foundation of the consumer experience, search engines have placed a premium on its value as a ranking factor.

Consumer-Focused Content

Like any foundation, you need to build upon your website’s existing content to really reap the benefits. More valuable content equals more visibility and more links. It’s not enough just to have a website with good content. You need to keep creating more new and germane content to maintain your relevance in the eyes of search engines and to continuously provide opportunities for references, backlinks, and lead generation.

Did you know:
– 86% of consumers stated that using a search engine allowed them to learn something new or important that helped them increase their knowledge. (Pew Research Center)

– 95% of B2B buyers are willing to consider vendor-related content as trustworthy. (Curata)

– Businesses with websites of 401–1000 pages get 6x more leads than those with 51–100 pages. (Hubspot)

It all loops back to user experience. Search engine algorithms are developing to incorporate user experience as a ranking factor.

Content Creation Strategies

So, how can you create a content marketing strategy with search engines in mind?
1. Create custom topical content. One of the major rules in SEO is to avoid duplicate content, so let’s start there. Your content should be completely unique and each page should have one main topic or focus, ideally centering on something potential customers would search.
2. Utilize titles and headings. By organizing your content with descriptive titles and headings that focus on the topic you’ve picked, you’re more clearly indicating to search engines and users what the page is about.
3. Reference products and services by name. Don’t skirt around the subject with euphemisms and colorful language. While advanced, search algorithms aren’t the best at gleaning information that’s not explicitly stated.
4. Create new pages. Like I said before, each page should have a topic of its own so if there’s something you want to talk about, make a new page or post for it. Locations, products, and services are all examples of things that warrant their own pages, as long as there’s enough to say about them.
5. Which leads me to my last tip: Fill up your pages. If you can’t come up with at least 300-ish words on a subject, it probably doesn’t actually deserve its own page.
Did you know:
– The average length for content ranking in the top 10 results of Google is at least 2000 words. (Quicksprout)

Just remember, search engines are ever-developing to match user intent. So, when in doubt, write for your potential customers and make sure your content is reaching them.

Image Sources:
Image 1 (Keyboard Graphic): Google Photos
Image 2 (Screenshot): Google Support
Image 3 (Office Space Meme): Relatably
October 17, 2016
#NOLATech Week 2016: How To Drive More Traffic To Your Site

In conjunction with NOLATech Week 2016, Search Influence hosted a workshop to help support small businesses in their online marketing efforts. Paula Keller and Mary Silva presented on how to boost your local search rankings and ways to drive traffic to your website respectively.

Paula Keller’s “How To Boost Your Local Search Rankings”

Paula’s “How To Boost Your Local Search Rankings” presentation took the audience through what types of businesses benefit from local SEO efforts. It also detailed the different types of Google My Business pages and how to use them. With the insight from Paula’s presentation, business owners can better understand how to optimize their business both onsite and offsite to gain better local search rankings.

Mary Silva’s “10 Ideas To Drive Traffic To Your Website”

Mary’s “10 Ideas To Drive Traffic To Your Website” presentation tackled concepts that influence your site’s user experience and actionable ways to help improve traffic to your site. It covered topics ranging from highly technical concepts like Schema markup and Google Search Console Analysis to less laborious efforts like directory and authoritative link earning. She explained how to use Schema.org rich snippets to create more engaging search results for your website on Google. Her presentation also went into detail on how to use social media efforts effectively to not only post but also promote engaging content like infographics. “Think of your online marketing efforts as a service,” said Mary, Internet Marketing Team Lead at Search Influence. “We know our users, and we’re getting them closer to their end goal faster. Make your overall goal to give users a cleaner, better experience and make users lives easier. ”

In utilizing some of the tips and tools explained in these two presentations, guests could help increase their business’s online success in many ways including, but not limited to, improved visibility in local search results and increased traffic to their sites.

For more information on the event, visit townsend.bunksite.com/ or contact the office directly at 504-208-3900 or Search Influence, 935 Gravier St #1300, New Orleans, La. 70112.

October 12, 2016
Search Influence Adds 8 New Employees

This past month, Search Influence was named a Best Place to Work by New Orleans CityBusiness. As a two-time nominee, we can say with certainty that the key to creating a great work environment is hiring smart people who embody our core values: collaborative, hungry, agile, reliable, genuine, effective, and dedicated. These eight new Influencers are no exception and were thrilled to join our team in September.

Ann Wanserski

Ann arrived in New Orleans a year and a half ago by way of Chicago, IL, where she earned a dual degree in journalism and anthropology from Loyola University Chicago. She found a passion for marketing (and pizza) while working for a restaurant startup in Chicago, and she most recently served as an AmeriCorps VISTA with a local nonprofit. In her free time, she enjoys biking around the potholes of NOLA, attempting to garden, and adding to her rock collection.

Amy McIntosh

Originally from Atlanta, GA, Amy graduated from Georgia State with a degree in Art History and minor in Marketing. She moved to Louisiana over three years ago, where she worked in outside sales in Houma, before relocating to New Orleans. Amy is a self-professed dog lover, and in her spare time, she enjoys learning about the English Monarchy.

Joel Willson

Meet Joel. He is from Baton Rouge and is the father of three boys. He loves music and anything tech. Joel regularly performs as a singer/songwriter and with his band, Minos the Saint.

Roane Babington

As a New Orleans native, Roane is happy to come home after being away for 22 years. He has spent the last two years in New York City working as a sales executive at two different tech companies. Prior to NYC, he went to James Madison University in Virginia where he studied history and education and played football. In his free time, Roane likes to cook and go on runs when the weather is nice.

Rosalie Nolan

Rosalie (or Rosie for short) is from Jackson, MS, and moved to New Orleans in 2013 after graduating from Millsaps College. She earned a B.A. in Communication Studies with a minor in English. She spent one year as a Corps Member for City Year New Orleans and two years teaching Kindergarten and 1st grade at Firstline Schools before joining the Search Influence team. Three of her most favorite things are her Calico cat (Piper), peanut butter, and naps.

Sabian LaGarde

As part of Search Influence’s commitment to YouthForce NOLA, a program that helps match students with local businesses to offer real world work experience, we have welcomed Sabian LaGarde to our team this fall. Sabian is a senior at Sophie B Wright Charter School, where he is part of both the track and robotics team. He wanted to intern at Search Influence to learn more about online marketing. After high school, he plans to attend Tulane, Loyola, or LSU on his way to becoming a doctor.

Sam Merritt

Born in Lubbock, TX, and raised in Batesville, AR, Sam relocated to New Orleans in August of 2015, after graduating from the University of Central Arkansas in May of 2015. Before working at Search Influence, Sam worked as a booking agent for a talent and modeling agency where he worked on a number of feature films, television shows, and national commercials. Sam is a pop culture junkie and foodie, and enjoys anything outdoors.

Trace Allen

Trace is from Vacherie, LA, and earned a B.S. in Psychology with a Sociology minor from Mississippi College in May 2015. After graduating from MC, Trace spent a year in Portland, OR, working with the Portland Leadership Foundation, where he was able to work directly with local nonprofits, mentor local coaches and student athletes, and a lead a humanitarian trip to work with orphans and vulnerable children in Jinja, Uganda. Trace is a lover of 90’s R&B and Hip-Hop, bachata dancing, traveling, and all things related to sports.

Welcome aboard!

October 11, 2016
New Orleans Nonprofit Spotlight: Rebuilding Together’s Annual October Build

October is one of my favorite times of year. Reason 1: It’s the beginning of fall (though only a mild change from the normal New Orleans heat). Reason 2: It’s Halloween-month, of course. And reason 3: I get to take part in Rebuilding Together New Orleans‘s October Build.

About Rebuilding Together New Orleans and October Build

October Build is an annual event organized by Rebuilding Together New Orleans (RTNO), a New Orleans Preservation Resource Center program and chapter of the national Rebuilding Together organization. They’ve worked since 1988 to help local elderly, disabled, veteran, and single head of household homeowners repair their homes. RTNO services seven neighborhoods in New Orleans year round.

Check out my original post for Rebuilding Together New Orleans’ 25th Annual October Build to learn more about the history of the organization and the event.

Getting Ready for October Build 2016

For two weekends, I take a brief respite from my somewhat sedentary lifestyle, and join hundreds of volunteers in providing necessary home repairs to local homeowners who otherwise are unable to do it themselves.

What’s more, this year a few other Search Influence employees and I started work early! While October Build takes place October 7, 8, 14, and 15, we were able to help prep Mr. Ernest Watson’s house this past weekend for volunteers to finish during October Build. We met up at 8:30 AM on-site and worked with Rebuilding Together’s own Americorps and employees to scrape paint and prime the Bywater house. While I’m by no means a skilled laborer, RT’s members also worked on replacing fascia and siding that had been damaged by fire or was rotting.

*Fun fact: Fascia are the bands of boards directly under the roof edge.

Employees at Rebuilding Together New Orleans have been working tirelessly for months to coordinate volunteers and houses for October Build. This past weekend was just one of the many pieces of prep necessary to get these houses ready for volunteers of all skill levels.

Next weekend and the one after, these volunteers from sponsor organizations, local businesses, and other local & national groups will gather to finish repairs on 8 different houses. The work will range from scraping and painting to flooring installation and accessibility ramp building in one huge community effort.

For more information about this year’s event, check out RTNO’s own October Build 2016 news post. Here, you’ll find stories about the homeowners they’re helping (including Mr. Watson’s) and how you can contribute!

Rebuilding Together New Orleans Images Credit

October 6, 2016