Digital strategist Mike Corak, Vice President / General Manager of DAC Group, provides insights on how to establish goals and benchmark your SEO strategy and improve your website for top SEO performance. You’ll also learn about emerging trends in search engine performance, including local digital marketing and trends not even on your radar.

1. The Shifting Sands
of Search
October 15, 2018

2. Agenda
• Introduction
• SEOWas…
• Modern SEO
• Eyes on the Future
• Q&A
© DAC Group 2018

3. Digital strategist and VPGM at DAC Group
SEMPO Board Member (President)
Won a few industry awards along the way
Lots of search program design and execution for folks
like…
VPGM
© DAC Group 2018

4. Who is DAC?
• 200+
enterprise clients on multi-year
engagements
• 400+
employees across 14 offices in North
America and Europe
• Independent
owner-managed agency
• Specialization
full-service digital agency for
organizations with physical and digital
engagement needs
Founded in 1972
Digital in 1997
© DAC Group 2018

5. Is it possible to drive meaningful results for the
business in digital?Yes
• Hundreds of thousands of people per
month use keyword phrases in Google to
find companies that provide your
services, even when niche:
• Blanket wrap shipping
• Blanket wrap furniture shipping
• Blanket wrap shipping costs
• Blanket wrap shipping definition
• Note: Many other phrases are used
to target
Private & Confidential – Not To Be Duplicated
Paid Search
Organic
Listings

6. How are businesses
doing so?
• Following all Google/ Bing
guidelines
• Creating relevant content
and user experience for all
devices
• Using calls to action that
benefit business + user
• Question - Can you beat
these guys?YES

7. SEO in the News...Is Google Rigged?
© DAC Group 2018

8. No (Probably)
Facts
• We are dealing with secret algorithms
• Organic search results today are less manually
adjusted by a human, and more AI-driven
• We don’t know exactly how they work and
sometimes that can have unforeseen results –
even for Google
• We do have lots of guidance
• Including advice from the Search Engine
developers themselves
• The algorithms change many times a year, so SEO
can never be a set-and-forget exercise
https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/7451184?hl=en

9. BasicTenants of Search Engine Optimization
• Create a user and search engine friendly website
• Make sure your content is visible and relevant
• Follow the technical suggestions provided by the engines
• Distribute and promote your most valuable content
• Don’t try to cheat the system
© DAC Group 2018

10. What level of responsibility do you have for
SEO in your organization?
Private & Confidential – Not To Be Duplicated
I Don’t
Approve
Contract
Manage
Team
Execute

11. SEO, a History

12. SEO Philosophy: Search was…THEN
Keyword Research Keyword Usage
Page elements:
Titles, headings, meta,
body copy, links including
anchor
Keyword Rankings
*Keyword data via
analytics
Research
Measuring
Performance
Tactical
Execution
Keyword Research

13. Major Google search
algorithm changes
used to be named,
with expected results
broadly advertised to
Webmasters.

14. • Biz objectives
• Social listening
• User personas and needs
• Analytic insights
• Keyword research (theme, device)
• Schema research
• Local category research
• Review research
• Website performance measurement
• Competitive research
• Technical SEO
• Website performance
improvement
• Content planning
• User experience planning
• Social posting
• Local messaging
• PPC integration
• Content focused media
• Integration across channels)
• Business KPIs (real world)
• Contributors
• Directional ranking data
• Technical performance
monitoring
• Content
• Related tactic performance
Research
Measuring
Performance
Tactical
Execution
SEO Philosophy: Search is… NOW

15. Google now makes
approximately 2,000
search engine changes
every year!!!!!?
They are no longer
officially named or even
announced. Google rarely
comments on the expected
results, even when they do
acknowledge the change.
https://www.semrush.com/sensor/

16. Modern SEO

17. Modern SEO Ingredients
• Ingredients:
• 1 Part technical consultation
• 1 Part thematic prioritization
• 1 Part content strategy
• 1 Part external considerations
• 1 Part user experience
• An overpowering amount of
integration & coordinated
execution across channels

18. Modern SEO Focal Points
• Technical SEO
• Relevant, Unique &Targeted Content
• User Experience
• Multi-device ready
• Structured Data
• Keyword Groups andThemes
• Social and Listings Management
• Proper Link Building
• Voice Search
• Return of the Long-tail
• Local Search
• Tactical Integration
• Customer Journeys
• Competitive Analysis
© DAC Group 2018

19. Which of these tactics do you feel are most
important to your program’s evolution?
Private & Confidential – Not To Be Duplicated
Technical
SEO
Content &
UX
Voice
Search
Local
Search

20. (1)Technical SEO Basics Still Matter
• Crawl errors
• HTTPS status
• XML sitemap
• Site load time
• Ensure mobile-friendly
• Unique keyword targeting
https://searchenginewatch.com/2018/05/25/the-12-most-important-elements-of-a-technical-seo-audit/
• Check robots.txt file
• Site search
• Duplicate metadata
• Duplicate content
• Broken links
• Appropriate redirects
© DAC Group 2018

21. (2) Relevant content meets ALL user’s needs

22. Informing Relevant Content
• Keyword research
• Social listening
• Competitive analysis
• GoogleTrends & search suggestions
• Website search function queries
• Common customer service questions
• Questions in the sales process
• Brand themes – what topics is your brand about?
• Customer speak
• Semantic relationships
• How should content be displayed?
• What is the user’s intent?
• What data do I know about the user to
inform content?
What content might my users be interested in at each stage of their
journey? How are they searching for us?
© DAC Group 2018

23. (3) User Experience
We already spoke about these
opportunities
• Site speed (Mobile and
Desktop)
• Secure site – look for the https
• Content duplication
• Redirection and broken links
• Thoughtful, relevant
navigation
• Accessibility
https://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/
© DAC Group 2018

24. User Experience Measurement
How do you monitor for other UX improvement opportunities?
Numbers that Matter
• Clicks from SERP to site (up)
• Time on site (up)
• Depth of visit (up)
• Bounce Rate (down)
• Conversion Actions (up)
Engines want to see strong / improving metrics.Work with your UX, creative and
development teams to ever-improve.
© DAC Group 2018

25. Target the Customer's Intent
The initial research phase is typically longtail queries, and
holds few ads to get in the way of the user's quest for
information.
Content must be especially targeted, and focused on the
most profitable search terms and questions.
© DAC Group 2018

26. Target the Customer's Intent
Search queries where Google believes a transaction or
local search result is important – typically contains the
most ads.
Content is targeted to most important keywords, and often
works in conjunction with paid search campaigns.
© DAC Group 2018

27. Target the Customer's Intent
Nobody types in "www..." In the browser window to get to a
website anymore. They type (or speak) the name of the
desired site.
This is largely a branded search. Pro-tip: Ensure all
branded results are positive for your own keywords.
© DAC Group 2018

28. (4) Mobile First

29. Mobile Maturity Checklist
• Responsive website
• Mobile first experiences (site, navigation, content, calls to action)
• Understanding of mobile intent
• Local marketing integration
• Mobile friendly media
• Mobile friendly landing pages
• Mobile analytics and optimization
• Speed, orAccelerated Mobile Pages if applicable
• And...
© DAC Group 2018

30. NEVER
SAY
MOBILE
AGAIN
© DAC Group 2018

31. (5) Structured Data
© DAC Group 2018
Marking up important elements helps in getting rich snippets and extra sitelinks in the
SERPs (search result pages).
Structured data, or Schema
markup is code (semantic
vocabulary) that you put on
your website to help the
search engines return more
informative results for users.

32. (6) Proper Link Building - Earned
• Backlink referrals to site
• Listings and directories
• Content curators
• Social media
• PR & Blogs
• Google My Business/Posts
• Disavow damaging links or old
"Black Hat" techniques
• Utilize all relevant company
partnerships and sponsorships
• Integrate SEO with your content
marketing efforts
© DAC Group 2018

33. © DAC Group 2018

36. © DAC Group 2018

37. Voice Search
© DAC Group 2018

38. Voice & KnowledgeGraph: Return of the Longtail
Current Search & SEO Practices
Voice and Knowledge Graph treat your website as a data source, but
there is a catch: only the top entry wins.
Definitions, answers, and other calculated data held in Position 0 are
longtail focused, rather than keyword-specific. They answer questions.
Like many other technologies before it, voice search is primed to affect
how consumers search, the way in which brands adjust their SEO and
content strategies, and how both consumers and the brands that serve
them must adjust their overall thinking when it comes to how to win (or
even remain relevant) in search.
© DAC Group 2018

39. (8)The Local Search Lens
© DAC Group 2018

40. “Local Search” Encompasses ManyThings
Location Pages
IYPs, Local Directories &
Aggregators
Location Reviews &
Reputation Management
“Maps Pack” SERP Results
Organic Listings
Google My Business

41. And Local Search isVital to the Customer Journey
72% 34x 76% 55%1 in 5
of consumers
who performed
a
local search
visited a store
within five
miles
increase in
“near me”
searches on
Google
of people who
conduct a local
search on their
smartphone
visit a physical
place within
24 hours
searches on
Google are
specifically
related to
location
of millennials
will
ignore brands
that don't show
up in their
searches or
have
poor reviews

42. Local Search Ranking Factors
Sounds a little like SEO
6-8 years ago, right?
Google My
Business
19.01%
Citations
13.31%
On-page
13.81%Links
17.31%
Reviews
13.13%
Social 3.53%
Behavioral
10.17%
Personalization
9.76%

43. © DAC Group 2018
Local Listings ManagementTool ProTip
Listing tools have little differentiation, the effort and brain-power you put
into the program is what will ultimately produce results

44. Basic Local Search Ranking Guide
 Claim your listings on all relevant sites
 Choose your categories wisely
 Manage and distribute your data
 Create a page for each location on your website
 Link your listings to their location pages
 Create relevant local content for each location
 Have an active presence where applicable in social
 Integrated with your Paid Search efforts (location extensions)
 Test and refine
© DAC Group 2018

45. Local Search:
Who Has the
Edge?
Large or small
companies

46. (9) Integration: Silos are your enemy!!!
One Team One
Dream
Common Obstacles
to SEO Integration
• Budget ownership
• Group objectives
• Workload
• Priorities
• Education
http://thecontextofthings.com/2016/06/16/silo-effect/© DAC Group 2018

47. Most Important SEO Integration Points
SEO
UX
Content
Strategy
Creative
DevelopmentSocial
Paid Media
Analytics
© DAC Group 2018

48. The Future of
SEO

49. What’s new and coming down the road?
• Rankbrain – Better machine learning
and natural language algorithms.
• Voice Search – Better understanding
of location and situational relevance
in voice.
• Website as Data Source for Google –
Winning in organic without leaving
the SERP.
• Increased Cross-Device Customization – Every
customer's experience will be a little different.
• Accessibility Rules – As the population ages, the
importance of assistive technology increases.
• SEO Specialists will draw as much from AI
knowledge as from Marketing and Technical best-
practices.
© DAC Group 2018

50. Now, which of these tactics do you feel are
most important to your program?
Private & Confidential – Not To Be Duplicated
Technical
SEO
Content &
UX
Voice
Search
Local
Search

51. Mike Corak
VPGM DAC Group
mcorak@dacgroup.com
@mikecorak
linkedin.com/in/mikecorak
Q&A
ThankYou!