http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/ Our Latest Updates en jerfe@silverbackstrategies.com Copyright 2010 2010-02-23T06:19:09+00:00 http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/silverback-strategies-guest-speaks-at-jmu/ http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/silverback-strategies-guest-speaks-at-jmu/#When:05:19:09Z SEO agency Silverback Strategies is becoming a popular guest speaker at universities and organizations interested in the latest trends in Internet marketing, the agency announced today. Case in point was their invitation to speak to some of the nation’s top Internet marketing students at James Madison University, who are currently preparing for the 2010 Google Online Marketing Challenge. Silverback vice president Joseph Erfe and CEO Neil Welsh spoke to this year’s competitors at the university on February 12, 2010. Teams from JMU dominated the 2008 and 2009 Google competitions, which give university students a chance to test out their Google AdWords management strategies on a real business in a real online campaign. JMU students Rachel Bruton, Meredith Rauh and Brandon Sockwell, working with local tour operator mobiletours.org, took first place in the Americas region in 2009. Two other JMU teams were ranked in the top 50 in the Americas region, and in 2008, JMU placed five teams in the top 10% globally. More than 2,000 student teams from 57 countries around the world took part in the 2009 challenge. The JMU teams are students of marketing professor and renowned Internet communications expert Theresa Flaherty, who invited the Silverback experts to speak to her classes about their experiences with Google AdWords management, pay per click management and careers in Internet marketing. Erfe is a JMU alumnus and former student of Dr. Flaherty’s. He offered the students real-world examples of how AdWords campaigns are planned and executed based on the work Silverback does for its clients on a daily basis. “This is my third year implementing the Challenge with JMU marketing students. It’s a very enriching and practical educational experience for students as they develop an understanding of online marketing strategies, Google tools, client relationships and marketing analytics,” said Dr. Flaherty. In addition to teaching courses at JMU, Dr. Theresa Flaherty is co-editor of Advances in Electronic Marketing, and her research has appeared in a broad range of elite journals related to technology, marketing and the Internet. She currently serves on the Google Global Academic Panel and runs the Twitter account and Facebook Fan page for the Google Online Marketing Challenge. The annual Google Challenge enables students around the world to gain practical online marketing experience. Student teams receive $200 of free online advertising with Google AdWords and then work with local businesses to devise effective online marketing campaigns. Teams outline a strategy, run a campaign, assess their results and provide the business with recommendations to further develop their online marketing. Teams submit their reports and are judged by a panel of independent academics from around the world. "The Google Challenge is a great way for students to get practical experience managing an AdWords campaign – we love engaging with groups like this who will steer the future of online advertising,” said Erfe. “My own experience at JMU clearly influenced my career path, and thanks to Dr. Flaherty, the school is well ahead of the curve when it comes to education in online marketing – I know they’ll do well in the Google competition again this year.” “With growing interest in pay per click management and Google AdWords campaign management in particular, we’re getting a lot more speaking opportunities like this one,” says Neil Welsh.“The skills these students are building in their coursework and through competitions like these are becoming more and more valuable – it’s phenomenal to see how astute these kids are about Internet marketing and where it’s headed.” Click the links to read more about the Google Online Marketing Challenge and James Madison University's College of Business and Department of Marketing.  Silverback News 2010-02-23T05:19:09+00:00 http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/adtech-2009-and-google-meeting/ http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/adtech-2009-and-google-meeting/#When:20:05:28Z Our Trek to NY: ad:tech 2009 and Google Meeting Here’s the lowdown on our jam-packed trip to ad:tech NY this year: Google, Affiliate Marketing & Social Networking Trends, Facebook…and more Google.  ad:tech is one of the top advertising and technology conferences, with worldwide shows and a mix of talented keynote speakers, informative panel discussions and workshops. The ad:tech 2009 conference in New York had more than 250 exhibitors, 200 speakers and 60 panel discussions, each one loaded with information to help organizations to not only improve their marketing and advertising techniques but to also get the latest on up-and-coming products and services. Sessions we loved Two conference topics I was eager to learn more on were “Affiliate Marketing:  A better Alternative” and “Social Media Strategies:  How to Take Advantage of a Huge Opportunity.”  Here are some highlights from these phenomenal panel discussions. The Affiliate Marketing panel discussed how billions of dollars are paid out to affiliates globally, yet there are still a lot of growth and opportunity for affiliate marketing whether you’re an advertiser or publisher.  With companies tightening budgets while individuals are spending more and more time online, it is important that both parties know the benefits of advertising or publishing on Affiliate Networks.  Quality control is set for the market when performance-based models are provided for both publishers and marketers (better ads get better payouts).  If you’re an Advertiser, make sure that you’re providing the right commission to your publisher.  When you are fair with your commissions, you can then leverage quality publishers to carry your ads. They’ll have better sites, more relevant content and can be trusted.  Advice for publishers: when you have relevant sites that don’t spam the system, you’re more likely to make more money and acquire better advertisers on your site. To learn more about Affiliate Marketing:  Check out Shawn Collin’s “Affiliate (Tip)” at:  http://blog.affiliatetip.com/ The social media panel discussion was also very interesting.  There are billions of page views monthly for social networks, yet a lot of companies don’t advertise on them.  Here are some hot topics on whether Social Network Advertising is right for you: First, let’s talk about volume and connections.  Social network usage continues to grow, and more and more pages are being viewed.  It’s all about the getting a slice of social network “Pie.” By connecting people online, service/product reviews, advice and information can now be dispersed instantly.  The beauty of instant connectivity is that consumers can network prior to making any decision to buy. Take a new video game, for example. One good mention on a well-connected user’s Facebook page can entice dozens of friends to purchase the game.  Reggie Bradford, CEO of Vitrue and Rich, remarked that that before the internet, advertising was more promotional. Today it’s about creating a story and letting end users decide for themselves. Face to Facebook We spoke with the Facebook folks at ad:tech and will be following up with more discussions on how we can use Facebook to our clients’ advantage.  With Facebook advertising, we can create targeted ads to promote products, sites, events and more – tapping into the more than 300,000,000 active Facebook users.  Dinner with Google Before we left New York, we had one more stop, a dinner meeting with Meg and Joe from Google to discuss cool new features for our AdWords management at Silverback Strategies. The Google team was kind enough to share some info about one of the latest services, “Google AdWords: Display”, a new image-based feature to drive visibility for your business using Flash, video and other rich media graphics. Call us, and we’ll tell you more. This conference was a great place to learn new techniques and ideas from the best minds in the industry.  If you’re a business professional or even a student, definitely check out upcoming ad:tech conferences at www.ad-tech.com. Silverback News 2009-11-17T20:05:28+00:00 http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/re-designed-better-brain-center-site-launched/ http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/re-designed-better-brain-center-site-launched/#When:19:12:30Z Better Brain Center teams up with Silverback Strategies to launch the new Neurofeedbackconsult.com. Better Brain Center provides the most comprehensive selection of neurotherapy and brain enhancement protocols for a more individualized treatment approach. They offer: full quantitative EEG maps, mini qEEG mapping, traditional neurofeedback utilizing both traditional and low frequency protocols, passive infrared hemoencephalography neurofeedback. With the new site re-design, we have completely updated the look and feel of the brand; a new logo was created, while implementing the latest landing page design trends.  We also organized the navigation to make the overall site experience user friendly.  The Better Brain Center has been featured in several highly regarded publications, like Men’s Vogue, Alternative Medicine, Washingtonian, The Washington Post and more.  With the new design, we feel that image, experience and expertise of the Better Brain Center can now truly shine online as well.  To learn more about Better Brain Center, visit them at http://www.Neurofeedbackconsult.com   Silverback News 2009-11-16T19:12:30+00:00 http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/new-fitone-site-launched/ http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/new-fitone-site-launched/#When:19:25:44Z One of the DC Metro Area’s premier fitness training companies, FitOne Personal Training Studio partners up with Silverback Strategies to launch the new Fitonestudio.com. FitOne offers unique personal training programs that provide the latest fitness techniques in a boutique fitness environment. Their clients can partake in a variety of training programs that include individual, buddy and small group training.  Clients can also participate in specialized programs like, nutrition education, pre- and post-pregnancy exercise, post-rehabilitation, bridal programs and much more. With the new site, user navigation, brand awareness and search engine compatibility were taken into account.  Aside from having the FitOne brand be reflected throughout the overall page designs, we also made sure that the site was not only easy for site visitors to navigate through but also for search engine spiders.  We wanted to make sure the site looked great and that fitonestudio.com continued to rank for search terms like “Alexandria Personal Trainers, Alexandria Personal Training,” and more on major search engines. To learn more about FitOne Studio, visit them at http://www.fitonestudio.com   Silverback News 2009-11-10T19:25:44+00:00 http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/evolving-markets-businesses-consumers-and-search-engines/ http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/evolving-markets-businesses-consumers-and-search-engines/#When:19:33:58Z Evolving Markets:  Businesses, Consumers, and Search Engines Industry expert Silverback Strategies will be presenting an educational seminar for DC Area businesses on how the Internet has changed the way people shop and look for information. Business owners understand that in order to grow their company, they need to target customers. However with more and more people going online to research and purchase goods or services, business owners must also understand the importance of web presence and leveraging Internet marketing, especially SEO Management and Pay Per Click Management. Silverback Strategies, one of the leading U.S. online marketing firms will hold the “2009 Internet Marketing Seminar” for DC Area companies on October 8, 2009 in Alexandria, Virginia.  Silverback Strategies will be presenting important statistics and reporting from Google to help business owners and management gain a better understanding on how the market has evolved.  Companies that attend the engaging seminar will learn where consumers spend most of their time searching for products and services; they will also learn how online marketing can help grow their business. “More and more people are looking online first whether it’s for information or to purchase products or services.  I think that the statistics and reports from Google will help the seminar attendees gain a better understanding to properly attract new customers or members,” said Kurt Lambert, Account Manager, Silverback Strategies.  “With the seminar, businesses will definitely learn how to save more on their marketing budget by cutting back on ineffective tactics that don’t provide strong return on investments.” To register for this seminar, visit:  http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/seminar About Silverback Strategies: Based in Alexandria, Virginia, Silverback Strategies partners with businesses large and small to provide state-of-the-art web design, search engine marketing and pay per click campaign strategy, consulting and execution. The company is privately held.  For media inquiries, speaking engagement and interview requests or additional company information, please visit: http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/ or call (888) 434-7775. </p> Industry News 2009-10-07T19:33:58+00:00 http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/advertising-week-dc-attendance/ http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/advertising-week-dc-attendance/#When:20:05:37Z   Advertising Week DC (ADWKDC) Session and New York Information- Washington DC 9/16/2009 Morning Session: 2009 marks the 6th year of Advertising Week DC.  ADWKDC is hosted by the Advertising Club of Metropolitan Washington for professionals in the communications industry.  It is a week of celebrating creativity around the DC Metro Area. Even though it’s been super busy at the Silverback Strategies office, we were glad that we had some time to sneak out for a few to attend the Wednesday morning session of ADWKDC 2009.   Here's a snap shot of today's morning session: The morning session kicked off with Liz Dolan, CMO for The Oprah Winfrey Network.  Liz's presentation showcased her past experiences as VP of Global Marketing for Nike along with her "Favorite Mistakes."  "The team that makes the most mistakes wins," Liz stated, explaining that even large companies like Nike make mistakes and that it's okay (as long as you learn from it).   Liz also commented that we as communications professionals are innovators, and we have to convey a message or try new tactics that have never been done before in order to sell or promote anything, whether it be a product, a service, a person…etc. (and sometimes trying things may lead to mistakes but remember it's "OK").  She also shared some epic Fail and Winner commercials as examples for her topic.  A great commercial that took a big risk and eventually turned out to be extremely successful for Nike was when the company first signed Tiger Woods; it was a gamble at the time and the big question was, "How do you promote a tremendously talented amateur that’s never won a major pro competition?"  The Answer: Nike launched a commercial (Tiger Woods’ – Hello World Campaign) that broke boundaries; Nike understood their core value of sportsmanship (Just Do It) and it evoked a lot of "I'm a winner attitude" which helped paint the stage for Tiger and Nike's partnership/sponsorship even before Tiger won the Masters. According to Liz, the feeling of risking it all on an amateur eventually disappeared after Tiger won his first pro competition a few months after the commercial launched. The "Truths and Myths of Mobile" discussion was held after Liz's presentation.  The topic covered trends for mobile devices.  Even though there's huge growth for mobile device usage, mobile devices are still classified in a wide variety of buckets and only a small fraction have smartphone capabilities.  So within these buckets you have non-smartphones vs. smartphones, plus there are different sub-groupings within the buckets based by phone type and service providers.  With the much larger non-smartphone user base in the mix, it is often difficult to communicate or market to these mobile devices since the phones can't handle the technology.  And what about the small group that use smart technology?  The Panel explained that even with smart technology this market segment is still fragmented, for example the iPhone vs. BlackBerry vs. the Palm Pre…etc. markets are all unique in their own way that it is often difficult to cater and update applications on a timely manner.  Just like Liz, the panel touched upon making mistakes and learning from it for the mobile industry.  The mobile industry is still a work in progress and there is a major need for a more streamlined way to reach out to consumers; the good news is that a lot of groups are working to make it better. The mobile industry is and will continue to be a hot topic, not only from the marketing and advertising but also from the usage and consumption stand points.  We as communication professionals should definitely keep an eye on this fast growing industry. The next topic, “Adventures in Social Media:  The Good, the Bad and the Ugly” was moderated by Online Marketing Expert, Tim Rudder and Discussion Speakers:  Claire Alexander, COL Mike Jones, and Chris McGill provided their feedbacks.  The panel discussed the importance and adventures in Social Media.  Claire, VP for Discovery Communications said that social media should be engaging and should be used to drive loyalty to the product, company, brand, etc.  She also added that companies need to have clear, set goals prior to jumping into social marketing and that users need to be rewarded.  Chris Jones, Founder and CEO of Mixx said that social marketing is not temporary and needs to have a long term investment.  COL Mike Jones, a Commander in the Army National Guard explained that one of the biggest mistakes that companies fail to comprehend is that they treat Social Networks like a Website, he said that users drive Social Networks and it should be tailored for them.  He also added that if the Social Networking site fails to answer the questions on what people are looking for, then it becomes a waste of money.  “People are looking for a community, answers,” COL Jones said.    Overall there are nothing but positive comments for ADWKDC.  If you’re in the marketing and advertising industry, a student, or in the communications field, check out the conferences.  We're definitely doing the whole package next year and we hope to see you there too.  We highly recommend people to attend ADWKDC next year and also check out New York's Advertising Week. Thanks again to the organizers.   To register or to get more information about ADWKDC and Advertising Week in NY, visit their Websites: www.advertisingweek.com/ www.adweekdc.com/ Industry News 2009-09-16T20:05:37+00:00 http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/google-team-visits-silverback-office/ http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/google-team-visits-silverback-office/#When:18:31:58Z One of the reasons Silverback gets such extraordinary results on clients is that we have a phenomenal dedicated account team at Google. In fact, they came East to pay us a visit recently, giving us a look at some of Google’s newest products and the latest PPC management techniques. That kind of attention and access to Google experts really makes a difference to our clients’ search performance. Artina Sheikh, who leads Google’s National Agency Team, had this to say about our visit: “Spending time face to face with the Silverback team was very productive and enabled us to partner even more closely with them. We discussed opportunities on both our Search and Content networks and reviewed new strategies for increasing conversion rates.” We thank the entire Google team for their time and ongoing support. Silverback News 2009-09-01T18:31:58+00:00 http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/harrys-tap-room-site-re-designed-by-silverback-strategies/ http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/harrys-tap-room-site-re-designed-by-silverback-strategies/#When:18:43:06Z Silverback Strategies is proud to launch the newly re-designed website for Enovo Restaurant Ventures, LLC’s “Harry's Tap Room”, an all-natural restaurant chain with locations located in the DC Metropolitan Area. It was built and developed using the Expression Engine content management system, which provides Harry’s Tap Room with the utmost flexibility on its website while remaining extremely easy to use. We believe their new web design and development goes along with the image and atmosphere that Harry's Tap Room portrays to each patron -- one of sophistication and elegance. The new site also features the latest updates to their delicious menus, renowned bar and wine lists. Social networking has also been added to the site; patrons can now stay connected to get the latest news and specials via Harry’s Facebook page. To learn more about Harry’s Tap Room, visit www.harrystaproom.com and check out the locations located in Clarendon, Pentagon City, and Dulles International Airport Silverback News 2009-07-23T18:43:06+00:00 http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/silverback-helps-kids-charities/ http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/silverback-helps-kids-charities/#When:19:48:15Z We have been fortunate enough to attend the Rock the Boat DC tour and help support the Wake up and Dream organization and FLOC (For the Love of Children) organization: For Love of Children’s mission is to provide young children and high-risk youth with the resources to achieve educational and personal success through a continuum of educational services that prepares them to become confident, life-long learners and contributing members of their communities. To learn more or to get involved with these great charities please visit the links below: Silverback News 2009-06-30T19:48:15+00:00 http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/silverback-launches-new-terrene-jewelry-site/ http://www.silverbackstrategies.com/blog/silverback-launches-new-terrene-jewelry-site/#When:16:42:45Z Silverback Strategies is proud to announce the launch of Terrene Jewelry, a website created for those who seek unique gemstone jewelry from all over the world. The online jewelry store was built using the content management system Expression Engine and smoothly integrated with the popular and secure FoxyCart e-commerce program. Silverback was hired by Greenwood Marketing to professionally design the e-commerce website, in addition to offering pay per click management with complete visitor conversion tracking to optimize the Terrene Jewelry’s traffic. With the e-commerce website, visitors can now purchase handmade or hand-finished products from around the globe with just a simple click of the mouse and have authentic, exotic jewelry shipped right to their homes. Check out Terrene Jewelry to find out more at www.shopterrene.com. Silverback News 2009-05-20T16:42:45+00:00