3 Search Marketing Resolutions for 2012

We may only be three weeks in to 2012, but already things are chopping and changing in the wonderful world of search. Here are a few resolutions to help make us better search marketers.

1. Never Stop Learning

Someone once told me that they knew everything there was to know about SEO. They lied.

Sure, there are experts out there but in a world that never stops changing, it’s impossible to know absolutely everything, particularly when it comes to search. This is why it’s so important to keep up to date, learn from the best, and share the knowledge so we can keep getting better. If there’s one thing I’ve learned these past few years, is that the search community never stops giving when it comes to great search and social media related content, tips, tricks and hard lessons learned, so there’s really no excuse not to learn.

There are so many changing topics we need to keep on top of, and 2012 will be no exception. We’ve been discussing search, social and personalized search for what seems like forever, but only now are things starting to get really interesting.

2. Use Data Over Opinion 

Sales people think they are experts in marketing. Marketing people think they are experts in sales. Everyone is a guru in social media. Oh, and your website should be blue instead of red.

When it comes to marketing, search marketing, and social media marketing, there are a bunch of opinions out there. But the only opinion that really matters is that of the customer. A lot of direct customer input can be acted on through data that many of us can see every day, including:

• What are customers searching on
• What keywords convert the best
• What feedback you receive directly from customer surveys, tests, or social media
• What online comments, feedback, ratings and reviews customers are providing

2012 for me is not just about data collection, but how to analyze data to better educate, inform and improve business. Using data to answer tough questions, such as:

• Where to prioritize time, based upon the social media channels that your customers are active in
• Whether the content you produce is actually helpful for your customers or not
• Whether products are meeting customer expectations
• What other aspects of business you can improve on
• The list goes on…

3. Talk Less, Listen More

Ok, this is probably more of a resolution that I would like other people to adopt, but know I could do with a bit of this myself also.

Not only is it important to listen to what your customers are saying and listen to what data is telling you, it’s also important to take the time to listen to your peers and colleagues.

Some of the time, we can use data and experience to tell people whether they are speaking total crap. Other times we might just find we learn something new and completely eye-opening. I’ve stumbled on a good few golden nuggets recently, simply by listening. Definitely one to keep up this year.

What resolutions do you have?