I don’t read a lot of “…for Dummies” books. And I suspect that many of you don’t either. Which, as “Search Engine Optimization All-in-One For Dummies”
demonstrates, appears to be a really bad idea. Written by SEO legends Bruce Clay and Susan Esparza, you’re getting the very best advice from two of the very best SEO’s in the business.
SEO continues to provide one of the best, most cost-effective ways to grow your brand and your business. But, as many search engine optimization techniques remain cloaked in mystery and myth, companies often struggle to improve their site’s search rankings—and their business. Happily, Clay and Esparza shine light into the dark corners, unravel the mysteries and bust the myths to help you accomplish your goals.
More a desk reference than “read it end-to-end” kind of book, the book (really an anthology of multiple, shorter books), bristles with tips, tricks, and techniques you can use right away to improve your SEO efforts and your business results. Clay and Esparza make a key point early on, noting that those efforts,
“…can earn your site a higher ranking in search results pages. However, do not confuse the means with the end. Keep in mind your real goal—getting lots and lots of people to visit your site. [Emphasis mine]“
The authors refer back to this “real goal” repeatedly. They’re not focused on ways to “game” the search engines. Instead, they’re offering results-oriented advice that will help you in multiple aspects of your business. For instance, the section on “Discovering Your Site Theme” works both as an exercise in SEO and almost equally well for developing your overall positioning within the market.
The book provides excellent insights for the on-site, link-building and technical aspects of search engine optimization. So much so that I’d strongly recommend buying a copy for your technical, e-commerce and marketing teams—even if that’s just you. Clay and Esparza offer an intelligent, engaging and entertaining look at an important topic. Don’t let the title fool you. While it may say “…For Dummies” on the cover, grabbing a copy is one of the smartest things you can do.
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“No man is an island” — John Donne
Conventional wisdom suggests that networking remains core to business success, even in our highly connected culture. After all, a Facebook account without any friends is just kind of sad, isn’t it? And a Twitter account with no followers isn’t much of a tweet… er, treat. LinkedIn without any links… well, you get the idea.
Thankfully, Mari Smith’s wonderful new book “The New Relationship Marketing: How to Build a Large, Loyal, Profitable Network Using the Social Web”
illustrates how you can effectively build and nurture your network with an honest, authentic approach too often lacking in modern marketing.
Smith puts more emphasis on “relationships” than “marketing” or the “social web.” Not that she minimizes the importance of the tools or tactics. Not at all, in fact. But, what Smith does do is put the focus first on building the right relationships with the right people in the right way. This focus on how you deepen, enhance and extend your relationships in ways that benefit you and your friends, fans, and followers makes the tools and tactics far more effective than the far more common other way around.
The first half of the book looks at the basics of relationship marketing while the second covers the details how to grow your personal brand. Smith illustrates each of these with personal anecdotes and experiences that demonstrate what works—or doesn’t—in practice. I particularly liked Smith’s detailing the “11 Common Fears” of social media marketing. Rather than dismissing these fears out of hand, Smith looks at where these fears pose valid risks and how you can address those risks in your relationship marketing efforts. That alone may be worth the price of the book.
Additionally, I loved Smith’s tools such as “relationship circles” and “Hollywood Squares” lists for keeping track of your relationship building goals. Ms. Smith knows her topic well and offers practical advice for growing your network, your brand and your business in a clear and conscientious way.
In our “always on,” hyper-connected world, building effective, authentic relationships with people in business and life may matter more than ever. And doing so in a way that’s considerate of the people you connect with will separate you from the pack of smarmy snake oil salesmen so common in the “social guru” game. Pick up a copy of “The New Relationship Marketing”
for yourself and learn how to build not just follower counts, but real relationships, real networks and, ultimately, real business using the social web.
Are you getting enough value out of your small business website? Want to make sure your business makes the most of the local, mobile, social web? thinks helps you understand how to grow your business via the web, every day. Get more than just news. Get understanding. Add thinks to your feed reader today.
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So I finally got around to reading Walter Isaacson’s amazing biography of Steve Jobs.
It’s a fascinating look at a fascinating man.
Part of what I found so interesting is the scale of Jobs’ flaws relative to his gifts. Most people have heard about Jobs’ prickly nature, his treatment of subordinates (and just about everyone else, when it suited him), or how his odd eating habits may have contributed to his death.
But few things illustrate Jobs’ shortcomings more than the stories detailing the man’s relationships with his children. One of the more telling insights occurs late in the book, as Jobs is dying of cancer. Isaacson recounts asking Jobs—a man notoriously in control of his image—why he agreed to a biography that would undoubtedly show his blemishes as well as his brilliance:
“I wanted my kids to know me,” he said. “I wasn’t always there for them, and I wanted to know why and to understand what I did. Also, when I got sick, I realized other people would write about me if I died, and they wouldn’t know anything. They’d get it all wrong. So I wanted to make sure someone heard what I had to say.” [Emphasis mine]
Now, most people, when they want their kids to know them would choose to spend time with their children. They would work to rebuild damaged relationships. They would take an interest in what their kids were doing.
Jobs opted for a biographer.
To be fair, he may have realized too late just how poorly he’d done these things and realized he didn’t have enough time to choose the traditional route. But I found it amazing that a man famous for his “reality distortion field,” accustomed to asserting his will to challenge conventional wisdom and assumed “facts,” couldn’t reconcile his role as a CEO with his role as a parent.
Obviously, as both an entrepreneur and a father, this topic resonates for me. I have never built a company as large or as influential as Apple or Pixar. But I see no reason you can’t build a great company and raise great kids (again, to be fair, it seems Jobs’ kids are pretty well adjusted, in large part due to his wife Laurene).
And it’s this dichotomy between Jobs’ passions and problems that make me recommend it for every entrepreneur, manager and business leader. Because again and again I found myself asking:
- “Do you have to be a prick to produce results?”
- “Do you always have to abandon people to move forward?”
- “What do you have to sacrifice for greatness?”
Isaacson never suggests that Jobs’ way is the only way. Actually, quite the contrary. But he does engage the reader to ask these questions of themselves. And that’s definitely worth the read. Grab a copy for yourself and get ready to learn more about Steve Jobs. And more about yourself.
Are you getting enough value out of your small business website? Want to make sure your business makes the most of the local, mobile, social web? thinks helps you understand how to grow your business via the web, every day. Get more than just news. Get understanding. Add thinks to your feed reader today.
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