skillshare organic search strategy

| #skillshareSEOstrategy | @alexisKsanders
developing organic
search strategies
@alexisKsanders
#skillshareSEOstrategy
i'm excited & nervous to introduce this
training, but mostly i'm honored you're here.
thanks for joining! 

contributor to the moz, search engine
land, oncrawl, raven tools
SEO manager @merkle
(full-service marketing agency)
creator of https://technicalseo.expert
challenge
@alexisKsanders
fan of the color yellow-orange
i also enjoy adding side notes (especially
when they're on the side). no one ever reads
'em, but hey everyone needs a hobby.

what is this course about?
an introduction to building
organic search strategies.

the plan:
define: organic search strategy?
outline: pre-work, work
generate: strategy recommendations
organize: prioritize action items
build, edit, & practice: presentation
i'm excited for this.

core target audience:
SEOs w/3-6 years experience
or
anyone interested in digital strategy
having more tactical experience can help to
create more action-based strategies.

helpful skills to have:
ability to perform general website site,
content, technical SEO, & SERP audits.
but mostly a positive mindset! :-)

what you need:
internet
time
these may help too:
keyword analysis tools
a site crawler
whiteboard
some popular tools on upcoming slides.

toolset
brightedge, semrush, awr, getstat, keywordtool.io,
answerthepublic, google, ubersuggest, moz, majestic,
ahref, moz, gsc, bwt, adobe, ga, screaming frog, botify,
oncrawl, deepcrawl, google's mobile-friendly testing
tool, excel, tableau
keywordtool.io
keyword rankings content ideation
links performance
crawlers mobile-friendliness data

some technical SEO tools:
saijo george has a list of many more tools, check it out
here: https://saijogeorge.com/best-marketing-tools/
<h1>TechnicalSEO.com</h1>
monitor pages status render as search engines
crawlers log file analyzers
structured data tools robots.txt mobile-first
<h1>TechnicalSEO.com</h1> <h1>TechnicalSEO.com</h1>
<h1>TechnicalSEO.com</h1>

some speed tools:
saijo george has a list of many more tools, check it out
here: https://saijogeorge.com/best-marketing-tools/
dissect page speed google's speed fixes prioritized speed report
+
"Network" panel
"Coverage" report
dev working environment CDN finder find server

also, analytics!
use analytics proactively to id' issues, check out
troubleshooting ideas here:
https://www.merkleinc.com/blog/troubleshooting-data-
fluctuations-seo-reporting
performance analytics keyword analytics

proud member of the merkle SEO team
our website is https://www.merkleinc.com/.
the quarterly digital marketing report is
definitely worth checking out.

the project
introduction for a totally
optional(and also potentially mental invigorating,
stimulating, exciting, &/or growth-inspiring) project.

the project
throughout the course: there
are 12 mini-challenges that
lead to a final product.

the project
our goal: create a client-facing
organic search strategy in ppt.
ppt isn't always the best format & we'll go
over that in the course, but it's a commonly
used format for strategic deliverables

mini-challenge.1.0
pick a "client" for your project.
choose from:
1. existing client
2. company of interest
3. non-profit
(local charity, something important to you)
backup options: action against hunger,
susan g. komen, feeding america, unicef,
catholic charities, women's march

mini-challenge.1.1
determine client's top KPIs
(if for-profit: revenue, leads, traffic, etc.)
(if non-profit: increase donations, fundraising events, volunteer sign
ups, traffic)
client goal: improve number one KPI
we're only looking at one kpi to allow for
focus. sidebar: did you know that the word
focus means fireplace, hearth in latin?

so, what is an organic
search strategy?

vision  plan  execution

taking high-level executive goals
& transforming into an working
channel-level strategy, which can
then be broken into tactical,
action items.

a problem w/no simple answers
may have no best practices
may transcend multiple areas of SEO

what the business should be
doing, what they can do, &
providing a roadmap to get
there.

involves:
competitive ecosystem
users
(their interaction w/brand & online experience)
client's KPIs
involves prioritizing for value
(realistic: scoped, resources & time)

mini-challenge.2.0
ponder & jot down some notes:
what areas of SEO could this deliverable affect?
(web content, local, user journey, information architecture)
think: what are obvious areas to tackle?
(if you are doing work for a client) what is scoped?

the pre-pre-work:
questions to know
(before doing any client work)

pro tip: write down any issues
as you come across them
(we'll organize them later).

where is the brand going?
what are the executive initiatives?
what are their core products?
what makes them money?
what are their competitive advantages?
what do their investors & their financial reports?
what do customers say?
any common themes appear within customer reviews?
know the client

who are users?
why do they buy?
what do they need?
what queries are they using?
what is their journey?
know their customer

what are their top ranked pages?
why do they perform well?
what are the site's strengths? weaknesses?
(including: user behavior flow, user experience, mobile, technical SEO)
are there any clear problems or gaps w/experiences?
how are we engaging, priming, & directing the user?
any low-hanging fruit? improvement opportunities?
know the site

what are industry trends?
anything themes appearing w/in the news?
what are experts saying?
what will likely happen within the next year?
what are digital industry standards?
who are top competitors?
where is client not at standard?
what are competitive blind spots? threats? opportunities?
everyone should check out mary meeker &
kp's internet trends report
know the industry

any shape will do. i like hexagons (aesthetically &
for spatial efficiency). side note: cells of a
honeycomb makes efficient use of space &
building materials for bees
weaknesses
opportunities
threats
SWOT analysis
harmful
helpful
externalinternal
strengths
s4
s2
s3
s1
t3
t1
t2
o1
o2
w5
o3
w4
w2
w1
w3
t4

mini-challenge.3.0
research & jot down some notes:
questions w/in this section.

mini-challenge.3.1
perform a
keyword gap
analysis
(where are top competitors
ranking high that we're not)
your non-brand rankings
competitor's non-brand
rankings
overlap
maintain
opportunity

mini-challenge.3.1
perform a crawl of the site,
outline any technical SEO
issues
(focus on: crawlability & efficiency, indexability,
renderability, signaling)
check out this checklist for ideas on what &
where to look: https://moz.com/blog/seo-
cyborg

mini-challenge.3.3
create a SWOT chart relating
to your client's organic search
presence.

pre-work, work:
considerations

define a problem to solve.
(or at least one to start w/)
note: you'll find additional issues along the way,
the problem will likely pivot & what you imagined
at the beginning may be nothing like the end (and
that's okay, probably even better!)

determine time
estimates to complete
action items.

note: managers should account
for difference in the time it takes
them vs a junior employee.

ensure you have approval &
buy-in for addressing this
particular problem.

outline potential research
sources surrounding this
particular problem.

mini-challenge.4.0
outline three potential resource
sources
can you find any relevant:
case studies?
third-party data?
research?

research the problem

are there any commonly agreed upon
best practices?
what have third-party case studies said?
what have we tested in the past? what
were the results?

what are the best-in-class solutions to
this problem?
what are top competitors doing to solve the issue?
what is ideal implementation?
what does client need to do to be an industry leader?

are there any relevant user
journeys?
can we segment the target?

mini-challenge.5.0
research, reflect, & jot some
notes on: what are
competitors doing to solve
this particular problem?

determine message
format

"to ppt, excel, word, or
email, that is the question."
- shakespeare
disclaimer: shakespeare did not actually say
this. the actual quote relates to life & death,
which is

how are you going to present
information?
word
ppt
email
dashboard
discussion

who is your audience?
who will get the item?
what are their needs?
how do they like to receive information?
what did they specifically ask for?
what will give them the biggest bang for
their buck?

breakdowns from HBR -
https://hbr.org/2013/04/how-to-tell-a-story-
with-data/
knowledge level
executive
generalist
expert
less coaching
more coaching
specificgeneral
novice
 more focus on process explanation
 define all technical terminology
 outline benefits clearly
 ensure you understand their knowledge base
 present a healthy mix between:
 what they know (via quickly reviewing)
 what they don't know (via an extended focus)
 include an executive summary
 ensure understanding of approvals needed
 outline resources needed
 keep explanations of process succinct
 focus on why a particular decision is optimal

role
day-to-day executive tactical leads
(developers, content managers, etc.)
well-versed in SEO &
understand what is feasible.
data & story to convince others
to support the cause.
deliverables combining
overview w/ tactical substance.
limited time w/ high-impact
decisions.
to quickly be able to decide if
action is right for the business.
summary, clear next steps (with
“approval” called out), high-level
impact visuals (data
visualization)
implementers
to understand what's being
requested of them, priority, &
timeline
prioritized checklist of
requests
attributes:
common
needs:
example:

pro tip: build/use a
template early to
minimize edit later.

generating ideas

three vital elements of creative thinking:
divergent thinking
acceptance
suspended judgement

what options are
available to you?

brainwriting

provocation techniques:
ask why?
compare & contrast
mix & match
exaggerate
escape
reverse
distort
disprove
they say that it takes five whys to get to the root
of an issue.

mini-project.6.0
list out all of the issues
identified.

mini-project.6.1
use brainwriting & provocation to
expand list of opportunities
(don't worry about priority yet)

going from
possibilities  priorities

everything in client
deliverables should
be prioritized
(most important to least).
this is basically getting to the idea of "not
everything is equally important"

organizing ideas
by impact to KPI
by impact & effort (priority)
by theme
by story
by user journey

sort into a
priority
matrix
high
impact
high
effort
avoidnever
prioritize
low-
hanging
fruit

priority level
logic must be
established
hair on fire
won't affect performance
must to be fixed now
S.O.S…
escalate immediately
urgent priority
"drop everything & do this right now"
it is affecting site performance
fix w/in days
high priority
fix w/in week
fix w/in month
"when you get a chance"
it will probably affect performance
low priority
fix w/in quarter
fix w/in year
shouldn't affect performance

task estimated
estimated
impact
task #1 med high
task #2 low med
task #3 med med
task #4 med med
task #5 high med
task #6 low low
task #7 med low
use priority lists

organizing by story
how can we use data to make it feel obvious?
how does each piece connect to the bigger picture?
by top-down?
big idea to implementation?
by why > what > how?

mini-challenge.7.0
create a priority matrix.

mini-challenge.7.1
use the priority matrix to
organize action items in a
priority list.

setting realistic timelines

steps to achieving the strategy?
make sure responsibilities are clear?
how the project will be reported on?
how about on an ongoing basis?

gantt charts
created by henry gantt at in the early 1900s.
he was a mechanical engineer who focused
in management in maryland.
jan feb mar apr may jun jul aug sep oct nov dec

pro tip: ensure resources are
available to sustain plan
(burnout is not worth it).

mini-challenge.8.0
build a gantt chart for
your project.

building

include:
(table of) contents or agenda
executive summary
opportunity summary
industry research
recommendations
next steps w/timeline

pro tip: build quickly, edit slowly.
if you need photos check out
https://unsplash.com & https://www.flaticon.com,
both offer photos you can use for appropriate
credit

ensure story flows
what should the flow from one slide to the next be?
what's the connection/story?

pro tip: add transition statements
on each slide.
transition: if we dive deeper… transition: next to consider… transition: finally…

mini-challenge.9.0
build a 12-18 slide
presentation relating to one
idea in strategy.

mini-challenge.9.0
include:
(table of) contents or agenda (1x)
executive summary (1x)
opportunity summary (3-5x)
industry research (3-5x)
recommendations (3-5x)
next steps w/timeline (1x)

mini-challenge.9.2
ensure that that the story
flows by adding in transitions
in notes.

editing.

use a checklist
(add any common edits)

basic syntax:
no spelling errors
no repetitive language
no hedge words used
all sources are listed

content:
all elements of client's requests are met
headings summarize main point of slide
data is labelled appropriately

branding:
logos (client & yours) included
branding correct

visuals:
content accounting for natural
assumptions

final touches:
document is consistent
content makes sense when read aloud
any legal disclaimers are included

pro tip:
have another person
review.

mini-challenge.10.0
review presentation w/the
checklist in project files.

presenting

how much should you prepare?
how comfortable are you w/this topic?
can you speak off the cuff about this topic?
how much is "riding" on this presentation?
how many people will be present?
how much experience do you have presenting?
will you be presenting in-person?

practicing:
experiment between scripting & a few bullets
try rehearsing 2-3x
(know that this process is generally painful)
try rehearsing in different spaces
(outside, lecture halls, small rooms, in your head, out-loud, etc.)
focus on intro & closing

presenting (right before):
make sure equipment is functioning
take a deep breathe
remember the work you put into the
content

presenting (in the moment):
be present & focused
make eye contact
smile
breathe at the end of sentences
(versus saying um/ah/so)

presenting (right after):
1. pat yourself on the back
2. ask audience if they have any
questions
3. ensure understanding next steps

mini-challenge.11.0
step one:
write a script or 3-4x
bullets per slide.

mini-challenge.11.1
step two:
rehearse 3-4x.

mini-challenge.11.2
step three:
record a 4-6 minute
video & post on the
discussion board.

(as we approach the end)

key points:
know your client, their industry, & audience's needs
organize everything by priority & within context
have someone else edit
for important presentations make sure to rehearse
(even if the first few times are painful)

fin.

sophia's
aunt
machine won best cookie (if you were wondering),
still not as good as my uncle larry's cookies, but
those are heavenly (the secret is raw sugar &
heath baking bits… yum)
when we made
google's ml cookies
& used our family as
guinea pigs.
when she coerced
me into donuts

thank you for participating!
@AlexisKSanders
/in/alexissanders
you did! way to make it to the end! go treat
yourself! you deserve it. i'm really humbled that
you made it all the way through. thanks, friend.

mini-challenge.12.0
share your content on the forums!
reach out on twitter @alexisKsanders
(i love a good gif or meme)
consider tweeting projects & sending link to
non-profits w/#skillshareSEOstrategy

mini-challenge.12.1
check out these skillshare courses:
Introduction to SEO: Tactics & Strategy for Entrepreneurs
SEO Today: Strategies to Earn Trust, Rank High, & Stand Out

/skyscrapper_1259754
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image credits (https://www.flaticon.com/free-icon+)
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