There’s so much misunderstanding about search engine optimization that I felt the need to post again on this rapidly changing topic.

Put it this way: In the year since Google rolled out its newest algorithm update, called “Panda,” the world of search engine optimization has become infinitely more complex. The Mountain View, Calif., giant has always guarded its search algorithm like Fort Knox. It still does – and with Panda in place, it’s evolving and changing faster than ever.

SEO has become one of the most important investments in your marketing budget. With Google constantly changing, it’s never been more important to spend time focusing on how your website is doing.

Here are five ways to make friends with Panda:

1. Examine your content.

The foundation for good SEO is a well-structured website with excellent coding and content practices. If your website is more than three years old, it’s time to look under the hood and see if it’s up to Google’s new standards.

But even if it is, you’re still not guaranteed great results. You can only rely so much on organic search – which is the fancy term for “people finding your site after typing a search term into Google.” In addition to following good SEO tactics, you need to make sure you drive qualified site traffic – ideally as part of an overall integrated marketing plan. Your website needs to serve as the hub, not the engine.

A prospective client recently told us he was disappointed with the performance of his new website and asked if we could help. The site was up to snuff from a coding and design standpoint, but we saw missed content opportunities everywhere. A blog existed but was rarely updated, and the most recent case study was years old. While the site was built with SEO in mind, basic practices like image tags and proper page titles were absent. And there was no other active marketing activity going on elsewhere to drive traffic back to the site.

Remember, site architecture and coding is only the beginning. Google likes fresh, continuously updated content that provides value to site visitors. Make sure you provide it.

2. Watch those videos.

Google’s ever-evolving algorithms seem to be showing an increased preference for video. Fortunately, video technology has never been more affordable, and YouTube has made hosting videos a snap.

You should remember a few things when it comes to integrating video into your site. First, insert keywords into file names – “video4.mov” doesn’t cut it anymore. Second, take advantage of YouTube’s massive traffic and search advantages by hosting videos there. Finally, embed those videos throughout your site – and they’ll look better to Google if they’re paired with relevant text.

3. Play John Wayne.

Beware the “black hat” when it comes to SEO. Black hat SEO is a series of questionable practices – overstuffing keywords, endless lists of mismatched content, duplicate content, unrelated links building, negative keywording – designed to “trick” Google into sending visitors your way. Problem is, it may work in the short run, but in the long run it will only hurt your business. In addition to providing an awful user experience, it’s penalized by Google.

This year, examine your SEO practices. If it seems like you’re trying to get one over on Google, cut it out. “White hat” tactics – proper keywording, relevant content, good coding practices – will serve your business much better in the long run, and enable you to better adjust to changes in Google’s algorithms.

4. Think fewer – but better – inbound links.

There was a time when having as many other sites as possible linking to your site was a cardinal rule in the SEO world. But today Google cares only about the quality and relevancy of the sites that link back to your website. Ignore spammers who say they’ll get you to No. 1 through link building. You might see a temporary spike in traffic from such tactics, but the quality of visitors will be poor, conversion rates will be low – and Google will eventually catch up to you. You don’t want that. You won’t like Google when it’s angry.

5. Focus on quality, not quantity.

Here is, perhaps, the most important thing when it comes to SEO: The amount of traffic that your site generates is NOT the sole way to judge its effectiveness. Think quality and “conversions” – what you want a visitor to do once they arrive, such as filling out a form, downloading a white paper or requesting an appointment. No one would argue that it’s better to have 100 qualified people hit your site with a 50 percent conversion rate than 1,000 unqualified visitors at 1 percent.

We recently completed a six-month campaign for a client involving print advertising, PR, trade shows, sponsorships and pay-per-click ads. The client was underwhelmed when he saw a modest increase in traffic to his website – until he noticed a 22 percent increase in the number of visitors filling out a “request more info” form – thus becoming hot leads.

With a little bit of work, you can do the same thing this year. Your website is your business’ most effective selling tool – but only if you attract the right visitors. Use the right SEO tactics, and you can – Panda or no.

One of my favorite things about being part of the Altitude family is the attitude in the office.

There’s no selfishness here; it’s all “can do,” and “what can I do to help?” We work that way, we play that way, and we contribute to our communities that way.

As a board member of Easter Seals Eastern Pennsylvania, I work closely with the organization’s leadership to ensure that people with disabilities and other special needs receive exceptional services, from in-home early intervention to teen camps.

It’s good work, and I’m proud to do it. And I’ve never been prouder than when I recently attended Easter Seals’ holiday party, where I got a chance to meet some of the children we strive to help—as well as potential sponsors, donors, therapists and families.

I’m blessed that I’m able to give back. It’s a truly wonderful feeling—and it’s one you can have, too. As you look forward to 2012, ask yourself what you can do to lend a hand to those in need.

No matter who you are, there’s always something you can do to help.

Last August I took a month-long sabbatical from work to take a 500-mile bike tour of Italy and France. Throughout the trip I was reminded again and again that A) Italian food tastes better in Italy; B) French people don’t willingly speak English, even if they can; and C) certain marketing principles are universal.

1. Even small brands are global.

A “brand” comprises the visual, verbal and emotional attributes that define a company and differentiate it from the competition. Increasingly, whether we know it or not, we are all doing business globally. Satellite offices. Suppliers. Distributors. Competitors. Customers. How adaptable is your brand image and messaging to different languages and cultures?

I lost my iPod charger in the French Riviera city of Toulon. No one spoke English (at least voluntarily; see above) and I speak little French beyond “bonjour” and “baguette.” As I strolled the downtown area in search of an electronics store, from more than a block away, in a foreign language, I spotted a Mac store. Couldn’t miss it. That’s the power of branding.

2. Brands are social.

You can run but you can’t hide. “Social media” won’t go away, and it will continue to evolve dramatically. Customers have a louder voice than ever. And they’re talking to each other about your business.

Businesses must pay close attention to what real people are saying.

I spent five days exploring the city of Cannes–but not before I spent a good deal of time online, reading reviews of hotels, restaurants, attractions and shops. I picked my hotel in part due to location–but mostly because of the many positive customer reviews on sites like TripAdvisor and Yelp. Then I connected with my hotel of choice through Facebook, then email, exchanging a number of messages. When I checked in, I felt as if Monique, the innkeeper, already knew me. She greeted me warmly, asked about my trip from Philadelphia and already had some cycling routes mapped out for me.

The lesson? Businesses must pay close attention to what real people are saying. Monitor message forums, Twitter, Facebook and other social media venues where customers–and prospects–are talking. And remember: As Monique knows very well, good customer service is good marketing.

3. Ask for praise.

Happy customers are your greatest marketing tool. Enlist them as brand ambassadors. It is perfectly acceptable to politely ask (or nudge) customers to socialize their positive experiences with your brand on Yelp, VirtualTourist, Trip Advisor, Facebook, Twitter, industry-specific review websites and more. So go ahead and ask–customer praise is far more authentic than any advertising copy that a slick marketing agency can put together.

I had an amazing experience at a cooking school in Tuscany. As the evening wrapped up, the chef/owner gave us all a handout with recipes, photographs of the vineyard, a small bottle of his vineyard’s olive oil (which included a website to order more) and a gentle but pointed request to share our experience with others. Conversely, I stayed at a quaint bed and breakfast in the tiny Italian town of Bedonia. After reading the glowing reviews in her guest book, I asked the innkeeper if she encouraged guests to share positive feedback online. She felt that would be too pushy. I convinced her otherwise and posted my own positive review.

4. Do something to stand out.

It’s a crowded marketplace no matter what business you are in. You need to stand out, to differentiate from the competition–whether it’s a bold approach to your website design, a break from conventional trade show displays, or boldly defining why your products or services are better than theirs.

Happy customers are your greatest marketing tool. Enlist them as brand ambassadors.

Start by taking a hard look at your company messaging, positioning and image. Then study the competition. If it all looks, feels and sounds all the same to you, it will look, sound and feel the same to your prospects.

In Florence, with hundreds of options to drink within 10 square blocks, we stopped in our tracks when we read the sandwich board outside a pub that said, “Beer. Making sure ugly people have sex for more than 2,000 years.” Not only did my friend and I walk in and drop 40 Euros, we ended up talking with at least a dozen other tourists there, many of whom asked us to take their picture in front of the sign. Turned into one great happy hour!

5. America is not the world.

The advertising in France was a bit more, shall we say, risqué than in the U.S. The stuff I saw on billboards, buses and taxi stands would make many people’s jaws drop here. In addition, I encountered a host of country-specific social networking websites during my travels. Facebook, Google and YouTube may dominate the globe, but people are socializing online locally, too.

If you do business globally, take a hard look at the culture of the market. Pay a professional translator who understands marketing to convert your sales and marketing materials to the target language. Remove colloquialism that won’t translate well. Get counsel on cultural differences to know what is and isn’t acceptable. And realize that while even small brands may be global, not everything translates the same way in every country.

As I said, “This year—in addition to growing a pair of truly outrageous mutton-chop sideburns—I plan to shave the top of my head down to the pasty pale scalp in imitation of a certain male baldness pattern.”

And here I provide you with the proof. Be afraid. Be very afraid…

Elaborate intro screens, flashy animations and cheesy auto-playing music, all of which can take a full minute or more to load before the site itself is available.

And Flash. So much Flash. Everywhere.

Finding practical information—hours, location, prices—becomes a frustrating scavenger hunt. Even viewing menus is frequently a hassle, because visitors are often forced to download them as separate PDFs.

I’ve been working as an intern at Altitude Marketing for several months now, and that’s been long enough to learn this isn’t the way to do business online. People visiting restaurant websites want to use them as tools, not sources of entertainment. While glamorous images of empty restaurant interiors may whet the appetite, in most cases people want to find the restaurant’s address, telephone number and hours. Big difference.

Before coming to Altitude, I never really thought much about using Flash animation on a website. From a marketing standpoint, I realize I was wrong. Flash keeps visitors from copying and pasting important information from a site—kind of a big deal when it comes to transferring a restaurant’s address to a map site.

And Flash makes it impossible for smartphone users, who can’t quickly call for reservations or information—if they can even view the site. Unlike formats like HTML 5, Flash isn’t universally supported on mobile devices. Just try to look at a Flash restaurant site on an iPhone. You’re out of luck.

Finding practical information on a restaurant website—hours, location, prices—becomes a frustrating scavenger hunt.

Even Adobe, Flash’s creator, acknowledges the format’s inefficiencies. Earlier this month, they announced they are stopping development on the platform in favor of HTML 5. So why are restaurant websites still falling victim to bad marketing techniques like this?

Part of the issue may be that many restaurant owners are entrepreneurs with limited knowledge of marketing. These individuals can easily fall victim to web designers whose grand ideas and fancy design schemes often outweigh marketing properties of their site designs.

Our website design philosophy at Altitude is that form follows function. Great web designers (like the team under that “About” link up top) excel at creating sites that are both incredibly efficient for marketing and visually appealing.

I can only hope restaurants get the hint. I have to make reservations for Saturday, and I’m not really looking forward to it.

Among these was an ambitious resolution: That day-to-day running of the business should have minimal impact on our employees’ personal/family lives. Separation of church and state, as it were.

Last year, I played Bob Cratchit in “A Christmas Carol”—Bob, that 40-something career drudge with the pain-in-the-ass boss, five hungry kids (including sickly little Tiny Tim), and no healthcare.

Back in the day, of course, Andrew and I were the employees—”two guys in a barn,” one of our early prospects disparagingly called us. Today we’re five times bigger than we were in June of 2004, and have long since left the “barn” behind, but we’ve held fast to that resolution. We—and each of our employees—work very hard but enjoy plenty of flexible “me” time to have a real life outside the walls of our offices in Emmaus.

Which is to say, in my typically long-winded fashion, that thanks to our equal emphasis on both business and personal life, I have the opportunity to play Ebenezer Scrooge in the 22nd annual showing of “A Christmas Carol” at the Civic Theatre of Allentown (Dec. 2-17). (Click here for showtimes and ticket info.)

Last year, I played Bob Cratchit in the same show—Bob, that 40-something career drudge with the pain-in-the-ass boss, five hungry kids (including sickly little Tiny Tim), and no healthcare.

This year I auditioned for the Big Cheese himself—Scrooge—and was fortunate to get the part. But in real life I’m not a 70-year-old curmudgeon. I’m forty-[cough] years old with most of my original hair and, if I may be so bold, a youthful twinkle in my eye. It’s going to take a little more than grey hair dye to get this strapping buck to look like a Victorian septuagenarian.

And so as part of my commitment to the thee-ah-tah, I have committed to going above and beyond in my pursuit of Scrooge-osity. This year—in addition to growing a pair of truly outrageous mutton-chop sideburns—I plan to shave the top of my head down to the pasty pale scalp in imitation of a certain male baldness pattern.

My wife is not amused. And I confess to some amount of trepidation. But as part of my commitment to the ancient art of acting, and to my less fortunate brethren (like Andrew) who live with premature baldness every day, I feel it is important—nay, it is my duty—to go big or stay at home.

In a couple of weeks I’ll post a before/after photo for your viewing pleasure. Until then, “Bah, humbug!”

Even if you live in a mud hut in northern Greenland, you’ve heard all about the impact that social media can have on your business marketing. And that’s exactly why I’m not going to talk about it. Instead, I’d like to point out a growing trend—the use of social media as a customer service venue. (Of course, customer service is a form of marketing, but I digress.)

Social channels are the ideal place to listen to your constituents and provide unparalleled customer support. One stellar example is Media Temple, a webhosting company that supports mega-brands like Sony, Toyota and NBC Universal as well as small businesses and entrepreneurs.

Web hosting is a tough business and for many businesses not being online comes at a huge cost, and Media Temple takes their responsibility very seriously. As one would expect, they have a well-defined process to log support requests online or over the phone. But we’ve found that they respond even faster if we use Twitter to point out a problem we’re having.

Think about what that means internally: Media Temple has assigned someone (probably more than one) to monitor the Twitterverse for mention of the company, to parse the information for customer service opportunities, to make a decision, and then to act upon it. That indicates a very thoughtful process that has been allotted both time and resources to succeed.

During Hurricane Irene, I also had the time and opportunity to observe some local and regional businesses use social media to talk to their constituents. Out of all these experiences, I came up with a few guidelines for using Facebook and Twitter as a customer service tool.

Think of social media as a two-way street.

To quote Yoda: “Do, or do not. There is no try.” If you don’t have the personnel or the process to monitor it, don’t even bother having a social media presence. Seriously. Done well, it can win your business praise and patience. Done poorly, it will win you ridicule and resentment. It takes a commitment of time and resources to do consistently and effectively. During the hurricane, one regional utility provider gave regular updates presented in a personable company voice. They were responsive to questions from the audience, kept long hours and provided exceptional value in each of its communications.

Get ahead of problems whenever you can.

For all but the largest businesses, being everywhere that your customers need you is nearly impossible. Service requests and repairs need to be triaged. Social media as a broadcast tool can help set expectations for your customers as you make your priorities clear—particularly important during a crisis. The same utility provider made a very strong push on Twitter BEFORE the hurricane, getting out the word to follow them and to explain what to expect in the days ahead.

Be transparent, honest and helpful.

What you say on Twitter or Facebook is coming straight from the brand. It doesn’t take much on a social media channel to give your company a reputation for being unprofessional, secretive and obstructive. Typos, misspellings, grammatical mistakes all . make your business look amateur. You can still be conversational—but treat it like any other official communication channel. Be wary about delegating the responsibility to someone who’s not ready for prime time.

The key takeaway? As more of your customers embrace social media, your marketing and customer service functions need to do the same. Consumers expect you to be responsive, sincere and honest. Failure to do so could cost you their business and the business of their friends and family. That’s a pretty high price to pay for not being ready and willing to embrace change.

Altitude had already designed some fantastic vehicle graphics for the sides of the truck showcasing the water’s source in New Zealand—the Blue Spring. For the back of the truck—the part that drivers see most often while in traffic—we wanted to show a healthy, active person enjoying the water.

Kiwaii needed something professional, they needed something fast—and they needed something that suited their budget. Usually these three things don’t go hand-in-hand.

The Photographer

In addition to being the lead web designer and programmer at Altitude, I’ve also been a professional photographer for more than 5 years. I was able to provide the expertise, the equipment and the creativity that Kiwaii needed for this project.

The Model

Our very own Amanda Dickson was our “Running Girl”—a fit and attractive young lady who was more than happy to provide the right look that suited Kiwaii’s brand and messaging.

The Art Director

We brought along Liesel Miskits, our designer, to oversee the photo shoot in the beautiful Lehigh Parkway. As the newest member of Team Altitude and a fantastic designer, she was an excellent source of creativity, direction—and even small wardrobe adjustments when needed. Details matter, folks.

Combining our talents, we were able to provide Kiwaii with great photography—not only for this particular advertising campaign, but for many to come. And we did this all in-house with Kiwaii’s limited budget. The client couldn’t be happier with the results.

The proof is in the pudding. We adapt. We improvise. We innovate. All for our clients.

The Results

Today’s digital display advertising is more powerful and compelling than the banner ads of yesteryear, for various reasons, including:

Google now offers very powerful and free tools that permit businesses of all sizes to move quickly and economically into digital display advertising. But what are the options for business owners and marketing managers, and where and how to start?

• The availability of performance-based (pay per click or per engagement, rather than the cost-per-impression model) display advertising.
• Enhanced rich media and video options.
• Improved contextual targeting options and capabilities.
• Remarketing – the ability to show ads across the network specifically to users who have visited your site(s).
• Display advertising options on the fast-growing mobile platforms.
• Dramatically increased online video viewing, and a corresponding increase in options for advertising in and around topical videos.
• Improved response and sales when an advertiser can show a product, and even show how a product works.

Google has long been the undisputed leader in text-only search engine marketing (which still produces the vast majority of its revenue), but the company recognized the growing importance of display options, and has been investing heavily in display capability over the past several years.

Display Network Options Through Google

The Display Network, as described by Google, “is comprised of Google properties like YouTube, Google Finance, Gmail, and others that offer display advertising, as well as a network of millions of partner sites on which you can place your ads.”

Google display inventory comes from websites in Google’s AdSense network (they sign up with Google and insert code on their pages for a share of revenue) and the DoubleClick Ad Exchange.

Ad formats that can be presented in the Display Network include text ads, static image ads, video ads, and rich media ads.

Available image ad formats include:

• Leaderboard (728 x 90 pixels)
• Banner (468 x 60)
• Small square (200 x 200)
• Skyscraper (120 x 600)
• Wide skyscraper (160 x 600)
• Square (250 x 250)
• Medium rectangle (300 x 250)
• Large Rectangle (336 x 280)

Rich Media Ad Options

Rich media ads presented in the Google display network include “video ads, Flash animated ads, and ads that mix text, animated content, and designs,” as described by Google.

Video ads may be presented as:

• Click-to-play
• In-video as an overlay message at the bottom of a video
• In-stream, as a video ad that plays at the beginning or end of a “content” video.

All of these ad types—image, rich media, and video—may be quickly and cost-efficiently designed by advertising professionals using Google’s built-in display ad builder tool.

Contextual Targeting

After you’ve created your display ads, how do you present them to the right audience at the right time? Google provides a powerful set of tools to help your AdWords pro identify good potential sites. You may also work with your AdWords pro to identify and select specific sites for testing your ads.

After you’ve created your display ads, how do you present them to the right audience at the right time? Google provides a powerful set of tools to help your AdWords pro identify good potential sites. You may also work with your AdWords pro to identify and select specific sites for testing your ads.

Most often, we recommend a combination of using Google’s automated targeting tools to prospect for good sites, while also individually selecting known affinity sites, and excluding sites that are not a good match with your message.

Remarketing

Potential customers or clients often go through a three-step process to buy online. These steps include research, consideration, and purchase.

Remarketing is a way to continue to reach potential customers as they browse sites across the Google content/display network.

If a potential customer visits your site, then moves on without buying or completing a lead form, for example, remarketing lets you add them to your Google AdWords “audience” list and continue to offer ads to them as they browse other sites. You may even develop your own set of separate audience lists to remarket to, based on which part of your site was visited.

Remarketing helps you bring customized messages to potential customers or clients in each step of the three-step buying process as they browse. You may work with your AdWords pro to develop and implement a remarketing strategy and campaign – the underlying remarketing technology itself is provided free of charge by Google (though of course you still pay for clickthroughs). Like other AdWords campaigns, Remarketing campaigns include full performance metrics, including clickthroughs, conversions, cost-per-conversion, etc.

Mobile Pay-Per-Click

You’re no doubt aware of the rapid growth and reach of mobile devices, including smartphones, iPads, and more. Mobile presents opportunities to reach potential customers when they may be near one of your locations. Mobile ads for smartphones may also include convenient-for-the-customer click-to-call phone numbers.

You may run text-only mobile ads, but there are display ad options as well. There are 15 different mobile image ad sizes available, ranging from 167 x 30 pixels, to 200 x 200 pixels and larger.

Work with your AdWords pro to create a mobile-specific campaign that includes a separate budget, mobile-specific ad copy, and mobile features, such as click-to-call.

YouTube Options

There’s no need to recap the power and reach of Google-owned YouTube here – you’re already familiar with it. But you may not be aware of its advertising opportunities. Within YouTube you can…

• Reach audiences through traditional keyword targeting, and contextual targeting.
• Select by age, gender, location, and language preference.
• Select where your message appears by interest category, and through remarketing campaigns.

YouTube formats include in-stream ads, which, Google states, may be up to 30 seconds long, and appear before a user watches a video on YouTube.

Another YouTube option: If you already own and post video content, YouTube promoted videos let you promote your videos in appropriate interest areas of YouTube.

As with other formats discussed here, YouTube campaigns may be quickly and efficiently launched and then made performance-measurable by your AdWords pro.

While search-based text-only advertising is still a great (and the predominant) way to reach potential customers and clients in an extremely targeted way, emerging display, remarketing, rich media, mobile, and video options provide a rich palette for enhancing digital campaigns.

Thanks to Fred Zahradnik, our Google AdWords partner, for his research and writing for this blog post.