Search Advisory

I was pleased to speak yesterday on the topic of “Search & Social: A Symbiotic Relationship.”  The presentation was to the Search Marketing SIG of AiMA (Atlanta Interactive Marketing Association).  It was generously hosted by Cox Media and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.  My topic:

Search engine marketing benefits from social media because social profiles and content offer more web pages and other online assets that can be optimized and show up in the search engine results.  Social media can also be used for link-building purposes, which can help websites rank higher.  On the flip side, social media benefits from search engine marketing because search engines can drive more traffic to social sites.  Come hear about the social media sites that will provide the biggest benefits, and how to leverage social and search to work together symbiotically.

I always love speaking about topics like this that are near and dear to my heart, but I was especially excited because I was trying out a new presentation technology.  PowerPoint is great – especially when you know how to use it to get away from deadly lists of bullet points – but there’s a new kid on the block, Prezi.  It basically allows you to (easily, quickly, and for free) use Flash to put all your information on a digital whiteboard that you can then zoom in and out of to step through the presentation.  Take a look:

http://prezi.com/zcwrcbsw7xpg/

Reaction to the content of the presentation was good – this was, overall, a sophisticated audience, and they added a lot to the conversation during Q&A.  Reaction to Prezi, however, was mixed.  The technology easily worked, and the “whiz bang” factor was definitely there.  But some folks had trouble reading the copy on the screen.  I don’t know if this is because I didn’t zoom in closely enough on the copy, or if it was because the screen was absolutely enormous.  So I’ll definitely be doing some more testing with Prezi.  If nothing else, it has expanded my horizons in terms of creating and delivering memorable, impactful presentations!

Stacy presents "Search & Social: A Symbiotic Relationship"

Special thanks to Timothy Goleman for being photographer!