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Fun Friday Photos: Lisa Barone & Mike Grehan at SES San Jose

By Li Evans

SMG has been pretty quiet the past week, that's because the majority of the team was out in San Jose for Search Engine Strategies.  As always it was packed full of fun, but it was also packed full of meeting new people and a whole bunch of new sessions.

Never fear though, my trusty camera (and my new video camera) were right by my side and I managed to snap up a lot of the fun.  From Gordon Biersch on Sunday night to the WebmasterRadio.FM Search Bash on Wednesday night there's over 400 pictures (which finally all got up to Flickr late last night).

I even have a Tuesday's tips video almost together (special edition!) which I can hopefully get up soon!  But until then here's one of the many pictures from SES San Jose.... it's Mike Grehan and Lisa Barone hanging out at the Fairmont Hotel Lobby on Sunday night.

If you like this photo of Mike & Lisa hanging out at the Fairmont, feel free to comment and favorite it on Flickr, Sphinn or Fetch this photo as that's how we'll be judging the photos at the end of the year! Check out the rest of the fun at SES San Jose 2008, there's just over 200 photos in that set and there's over 200 photos in the WebmasterRadio.FM Search Bash photo set.

Why BlogHer Was Different Than Other Search Conferences

By Li Evans

I think Lisa Barone over at Bruce Clay did a wonderful job at surmizing a concise argument against Michael Gray's post that cast a negative light on the BlogHer Conference.  I wanted to add a few more thoughts from my perspective about BlogHer.  Since it was my first time at this event, and believe it or not, I traveled with a guy who attended this conference, as well as going to different sessions than Lisa.

Why is BlogHer different?  Well first, it's not a search centric or search focused conference, not in any way shape or form, it's about Blogging & Community.  Therefore, it's not setup like the type of conferences we are all use to in the search industry.  You know, the type of sessions where there is a moderator to introduce panel members, the audience is basically forced to sit in the audience and watch powerpoint presentation after powerpoint presentation on how great some company is.  After all that's said and done, THEN the audience gets to ask questions and the panel members answer.

BlogHer is not entirely like that.  A lot of sessions that you go to are "discussion based", meaning, the person listed as heading up the session, basically gets the ball rolling.  In the case of the sessions I attended, one in particularly, the woman who headed the sessions handed over the lead to a MAN (*gasp*) and he began discussing the opportunities for women who want to start tech companies.  He spoke for a decent amount of time - without a powerpoint presentation.  Then at another session I went to, another man spoke for a bit too.  Over all though, since this is a conference for women bloggers, put together by a women's online community, predominantly women lead the sessions.

At BlogHer, there is a lot more "Group Discussion" and women sharing their own experiences and giving tips, information, website URLs, email addresses, business cards and just about anything you can swap information wise.  You don't see that kind of information exchange at search conferences.  Not as freely as what happened at BlogHer.  Instead of information being swapped over a drink or dinner in tidbits, this information was freely exchanged in front of a lot of women, in rooms that were overflowing with attendees. 

BlogHer is a different type of community as well as a different type of conference.  Maybe to understand it, you might need to understand how men and women differ in the way they communicate, understanding that would likely give you insight into why things are different.  To understand BlogHer, instead of slamming it as an outsider, perhaps, joining the community and interacting with it, you can understand, men are not turned away at all, in fact they are welcomed, more so than if the situation was reversed.

I spoke to many men at this conference.  All of them remarked at how different it was.  From husbands who tagged along, to men from marketing companies who understood the importance of being there and grasping the whole idea of a conference specifically for women bloggers, not just for themselves, but for their audience. Each of them remarked how totally unlike any other conference it was, and this was in a positive manner.

I've been in session where the panel had no women presenters (I do have to say that each conference head is becoming significantly more aware of the need for balance), I've also noticed a lack of women writers in certain categories on the different tech & marketing news (not just search) sites.  Having a section of this blog that's dedicated for women marketers, I just don't get why the situations I just described are still happening?  I do see the recognition though, so the hope is, this too will change.   

Women like comfort, they love to communicate with each other and tell stories.  The discussion type sessions are perfect format for that.  It's not "business as usual" at BlogHer, it's adaptive to the way women best communicate and that's something that is really tough for a man to get.  Be honest guys, how many times have you remarked about your wife, girlfriend, sister or even you mom "I just don't get you women"?  If you did, there wouldn't be this griping about the "All Women Conference", you'd get that first it wasn't "all women", and 2nd maybe you would have gone yourself. :)

We'll be having some more interviews from BlogHer upcoming, Beau's got to recover from the trip back, and have his camera fixed.

Fun Photo Fridays: Lorna Harris, Shannon Hall & Lisa Barone, the Newbies at BlogHer 2008

By Li Evans

Last night a "Newbie Mixer" kicked off BlogHer 2008 at the top of the Westin St. Francis in San Francisco, CA.  There was a lot of newbies in the room, and for the first time in a long time, I hardly new a soul in the room, what an overwhelming feeling.  I did get to meet a few new people introducing myself, since this time - I'm the newbie, and can't expect people to just come up to me.  I had forgotten just how overwhelming that can be.

Then Lisa Barone appeared and it was like "Wow, someone I know, yeah!"  It made me feel a bit more at ease.  Then Lorna Harris of Boudica.com joined our little group.  She totally rocks, btw, and she's the one who gave me the goods on "Danny's New Pimpin' Ride." So here's the Search Engine Industry representing at BlogHer 2008!

If you like this photo of Lorna Harris, Shannon Hall & Lisa Barone, the Newbies at BlogHer 2008, feel free to comment and favorite it on Flickr, Sphinn or Fetch this photo as that's how we'll be judging the photos at the end of the year! Check out the rest of the fun at BlogHer 2008 Conference, there's only a few photos to view, right now, more to come!.

Taking Time Out To Thank My Friends in the Search Industry

By Li Evans

You'll have to forgive this post, as is has nothing at all to do with online marketing, but everything to do with the people within the industry.

Sometimes in life, we have to just stop.  Stop and realize what's important, and what really matters in a person's life.  Drama of any kind, is a distraction, especially when dealing with true life and death struggles brought on by medical situation, that aren't your own. 

This past December one word made my whole world stop.  Cancer.

My father is my inspiration for a lot of the things in my life.  I thank him for encouraging my curiousness in computers and love of electronic gadgets and classic cars.  When I got the call, I'm sure you can just imagine the fear and the worry that went through my mind in those seconds. Everything flew by so fast. 

We soon found out my father's condition was limited to a tumor in his esophagus.  He was very lucky because it was found in a very early stage.  But now what was he to do?  Chemo, radiation?  Some of you know my dad's lungs ad heart aren't the greatest, so enduring that would have been a considerable strain on him.  It was decided that he would have an operation that would remove part of his esophagus and attach his stomach up to the end of the area that was removed.  The doctors felt he was strong enough to endure the operation and what came after, rather than what the chemo and radiation would do to his body.

The operation happened on February 4th of this year.  It took 3 hours longer than the 7 hours they originally told us it would take.  In my own mind, that was a signal that this was not going to be an easy road for my family.  That signal was right.  My dad's weak lungs were working against him, although the surgery itself seemed a success, he had to be put on a ventilator.

We soon found out the hospital he was in did not specialize in getting him weaned off the vent.  We had to send him to another hospital.  He was there for over 2 months, and lets just say, his stay at this place was rather horrible (to they point where they told us he wouldn't ever get off the vent nor eat on his own again, which they were wrong about).  Soon the insurance demanded that he be moved to another specialized facility.  Third facility did start to help, but my father fell a few times and the last time he fell, it was likely one of the better things that happened in this whole ordeal.

This 3rd hospital truly helped my dad, they aggressively weaned him from the vent.  They figured out what was really the culprit of why he wasn't progressing.  Not surprisingly, it was what my sister had brought up at the 2nd hospital and the doctor poo-poo'd her, telling us that what my sister suggested looking at wasn't the culprit at all (and they knew better than us).  This 3rd hospital kept us in constant contact and finally we felt we were getting somewhere, and finally, my Dad could go back to the hospital he started off in to finish up his rehabilitation.  Communication, is one heck of a comforting thing.

Five months and 4 days after the operation (as well as 4 hospitals and 1 rehab facility) my dad came home last Tuesday and we celebrated that home coming yesterday.  He's still not ready to run marathons, that'll take time, but my dad is alive, my dad is home and he's cancer free.  I'm very thankful for that, and I'm very aware, not as many families have these types of outcomes.

The reason why I'm telling this story, is to show you how most of the industry is so very giving and caring. 

From Dazzlin' Donna, Mike, Deb, Matt, Robert, Julie, Jenn, Simon, Greg, Donna, Diane, Brian, Elizabeth and Kim who'd check in on me and how I was doing emotionally - especially when I seemed a bit more stressed out than usual through email and IM, to MarySue and Beau who'd come over to my apartment or call, I appreciated the support more than you'll ever know. 

My wonderful friend Christine (who happens to be my boss) and her husband Mike and my coworker Jim, helped me deal with this in other ways, and a person couldn't have a more supportive, understanding and caring employer and co-worker than me.  I'm extremely lucky, and thankful to work for KeyRelevace.  Having a support system like this to get me through these truly extraordinary, extenuating circumstances was a blessing I'm so thankful someone bestowed upon me.

As children we all tend to think our parents are indestructible.  Its really tough when you realize, that's not so true.  You become very thankful for those blessings in your life like your family, and friends like I have here in the search industry.  If I didn't have you all for support to bring me back to center while I was traveling to London, Santa Clara, New York, San Francisco and elsewhere or even to the many, many trips to the hospitals, I would have truly broken down.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart to those sent the emails, the im's and the thoughts and prayers to my family.  I hope this gives you an idea of the true depth of my appreciation, and gratitude for the caring hands you extended.  Without all of you, this would have been a lot rougher journey than it was.

Fun Photo Fridays: Tamar Weinberg & Barry Schwartz at SMX West

By Li Evans

Deciding to search on back to the beginning of the year, I found this great photo of Tamar Weinberg (Mashable, Lifehacker & SE Roundtable) and Barry Schwartz (RustyBrick, SE Roundtable & Search Engine Land) from SMX West, taken back in February.  This was right before I noticed that Gabe Riveria of Techmeme was standing close by and snagged a picture of these two with him.  I think this might be one of the only pictures I have of Barry where he's not typing on his laptop!

If you like this photo of Tamar Weinberg & Barry Schwartz at SMX West, feel free to comment and favorite it on Flickr, Sphinn or Fetch this photo as that's how we'll be judging the photos at the end of the year! Check out the rest of the fun at SMX West Conference, there's over 300 photos to view.

Video Interviews with Search Professionals at SES Toronto

By Li Evans

Rather than live blogging at SES Toronto, I decided to take a different spin on things and interview a few of the speakers about SES Toronto, as well as what is going on in the industry, what they are doing and where things are going.

In all there's 13 interviews, including the interview with Brian Eisenberg about the launch of his new book, which I posted about earlier today.  We got to interview Ken Jurina of Epiar, Amanda Watlington of Searching for Profit, Motoko Hunt who's the chair for SES Tokyo and 9 other search professionals.

I've taken the time to put each of these interviews on their own page, since they do hold a ton of great information and insights, so check out each and every one of these video interviews for some great tidbits, and tips from everything dealing with scams, tools and even accessibility issues.

• Anne Kennedy of Beyond Ink:  Speaking about the SES Advisory Board
• Amanda Watlington of Search for Profit:  Speaking about SEO Scams
• Frederick Marckini of iProspect:  Speaking about why SEO isn't Dead
• Jeff Quipp of Search Engine People:  Speaking about Linking Tips
• Jim Hedger of Metamend:  Speaking about Going Beyond Linkbait
• Joe Dolson: Speaking About Accessibility and SEO Issues
• Ken Jurina of Epiar:  Speaking about Search Tools
• Kevin Ryan of Search Engine Strategies:  Speaking about the SES Awards
• Lyndsay Walker of West Jet:  Speaking about SEO Dos and Don'ts
• Matt Van Wagner of Find Me Faster:  Speaking about PPC 101
• Motoko Hunt of AJPR:  Speaking about International Online Marketing & SES Tokyo
• Andy Renieris of Yahoo! Canada:  Speaking about Yahoo's Search Monkey Product
  

Bryan Eisenberg to Launch His New Google Book at SES San Jose

By Li Evans

While at SES Toronto Beau and I did a bunch of interviews with folks, I'll be posting links to those later today.  The one interview that has me really excited about attending and speaking at SES San Jose this year was the interview I did with Future Now's Bryan Eisenberg.

Bryan's the co-author of "Waiting For Your Cat to Bark" and also "Call To Action" with his brother Jeff.  I loved Waiting for Your Cat To Bark, it was really one of those books I started to read and couldn't put down until I finished it.  If you haven't read either one of these books, put them on your list and read them, because they give invaluable insight into online marketing and what you are doing with your website.

Bryan was the 2nd day keynote at SES Toronto.  His keynote was just as lively and informative as Frederick Marckini's on the first day.  This was Bryan's first time as a keynote at an SES Conference, and from my perspective, he should do more!

Right after the keynote, I got the opportunity to interview Bryan and ask him about his keynote.  Bryan also gave me some other news.  His new book "Always Be Testing:  The Complete Guide to Google Website Optimizer", will be launching the week that SES San Jose takes place.  So that means, if you are planning, or hadn't made up your mind yet, or need one more reason to go, Bryan's book is a big reason to go to SES San Jose.  Bryan even says he'll sign some books.

Bryan discusses what his new book is all about in our interview, so see for yourself, maybe all of us should start thinking about PPC and SEO in the ways that Bryan suggests.

Full Video Transcript: Bryan Eisenberg's Interview

Fun Photo Fridays: Jim & David Hanging Out at SES Toronto

By Li Evans

Due to the July 4th Holiday yesterday here in the states, I took the day off from most things search related.  So other than searching for a place to stay in Ocean City, Maryland, it was all grilling steaks, hanging out with friends and watching fireworks in the rain for me!  Today though, before I head south to hang out on the beach and traverse the boardwalk, I bring you this week's Fun Friday Photo.

Another picture straight from the expo hall floor of SES Toronto.  In this picture, I managed to catch two of the savviest guys in search hanging out and just enjoying the networking event that evening.  Jim Hedger of Metamend (and WebmasterRadio fame!) and David Szetela of Clix Marketing obliged this roaming shutterbug, long enough for me to get this great image, thanks guys! 

If you like this photo of Jim & David Hanging Out at SES Toronto, feel free to comment and favorite it on Flickr, Sphinn or Fetch this photo as that's how we'll be judging the photos at the end of the year! Check out the rest of the fun at SES Toronto Conference, there's over 90 photos to view.

Welcoming Matt McGee to the KeyRelevance Team

By Li Evans

Working for KeyRelevance, I have one of the best perks in this industry.  I get to work with some of the best minds in search.  From analytics, to pay per click (PPC), to search engine optimization and keyword research.  Jim Gilbert teaches me all the time about the ins and outs of PPC and working with Christine Churchill who's the preeminent authority on keyword research is an opportunity that a lot of folks can only dream about.

Well, yesterday, we added one more "great mind" to our staff.  Matt McGee joined KeyRelevance! If you didn't know, Matt owns the Small Business Search Marketing Blog .  I've known Matt for a number of years, and when he let me know he'd be available, both Christine and I jumped at the chance to have him join KeyRelevance.

So if you didn't know who's all at Key Relevance, there's Christine Churchill, Mike Churchill, Jim Gilbert (all three write at SEMClubhouse with me), Bill Slawski (of SEO By The Sea) and myself (Liana "Li" Evans).  Check out all about KeyRelevance.... and stayed tuned we have a lot more to come in the next few months!

Fun Photo Fridays: Feeding the Yahoo Search Monkey as SES Toronto

By Li Evans

Well I missed one week, and I'm late a few days on the Fun Friday Photo.  I certainly hope you can forgive me!  Life has been extremely busy at "home", and unfortunately one or two things have been missed the last two weeks.  Things though, are settling back to normal and I'm hoping by the beginning of next week, my months of hospital visits will be finished (more on that next week!).

So, this week's photo is straight from the Expo Hall Floor at SES Toronto.  I have to say, Yahoo! Canada had the COOLEST booth I've seen in a while.  The folks on Andy Reniersis' team were really clever when they put this together to promote Yahoo's Search Monkey Product.  The booth was totally about monkeys, down to even being able to play against the "Search Monkey" in a game of Mario Cart.  There was this really neat display that was two monkeys with bananas made out of balloons, and even real bananas as a treat.  I even got to interview Andy (video coming tomorrow!) about the Search Monkey product, and then, I got this photo.

If you like this photo of Andy Renieris & the Yahoo Search Monkey at SES Toronto, feel free to comment and favorite it on Flickr, Sphinn or Fetch this photo as that's how we'll be judging the photos at the end of the year! Check out the rest of the fun at SES Toronto Conference, there's over 90 photos to view, I even got to feed the Search Monkey, too.