As a former journalist, there are times when epic interviews come along. You can’t make them up. You can’t manufacture them. But you know them when you see them, deep in your gut, in your bones. Charles Ramsey, my friends, is one of those rare, epic interviews, and here’s why:

1. No filter. As much as the journo side of me would like to censor Ramsey, I just cannot.  His comments are priceless; cue the part where he says, “Bro, I knew something was wrong when a little pretty white girl ran into a Black man’s arms.” Now, content marketers can’t always use the no filter approach, but think of the campaigns that truly work and resonate with customers. They usually involve real people. Folks want something authentic.
2. His comical expressions. You couldn’t pay for Ramsey’s expressions. Bless his heart; they’re priceless. He’ll go down as a hero, but his interview is hilarious!
3. Authenticity.THIS! Now, this is what content marketers would bottle up and pay millions for. But you can’t fake it. And you know that Ramsey wasn’t faking it, the moment you see him talking. It’s organic, authentic, all those buzzwords. Marketing magic, my friends.

I don’t know what Ramsey does for a living, nor do I care. He reminds me an awful lot of my late 50-ish uncle. He’s a hero, certainly. But I sure hope that he’s able to get his 15 minutes of fame out of all of this.

Tenisha Mercer is an SEO writer in Atlanta with content on page #1 of Google, Yahoo and Bing. She is a digital marketing expert, an Atlanta web content writer and SEO copywriter and social media expert in Atlanta who specializes in powerful, high-impact copywriting that clicks with customers.

Tenisha Mercer has led digital marketing, content strategy and produced and managed content for clients in health care, retail and technology, including the CDC, The Home Depot, Sears, GMAC, NCR, General Motors, 1-800-Flowers and small businesses around the country.

Contact her at info@MercerMediaGroup.com.

www.TenishaMercer.com

Advertisers spent nearly $4 million on single 30-second Super Bowl ads this year; admittedly,not a whole lot of time to engage consumers. But brands who did it well, did so by doing more by just producing commercials to sell sodas, beers and cars; they told stories – and borrowed a page right of a content marketers’ handbook.

Perhaps more than any other year in recent memory, advertisers not only advertised their products, they primarily did it by weaving storytelling into their advertisements. Whether it was Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson fending aliens to get milk, or Chrysler telling the plight of farmers in the U.S., many brands used stories to tie back to their brands.

Be The Brand Storyteller

It’s the very same tactic that good content marketers should use as well — telling a story. Every brand has a story to tell, no matter how boring or asinine it seems. And it’s our jobs to encapsulate that story, weaving it back to our client. Good content marketing is simply that — a good story. And we are in the brand storytelling business; now what will your story be?

When it comes to the Super Bowl, the reason for all of the storytelling is simple: It’s a tough, tough Super Bowl, at least when it comes to advertisers, who seeminglhy compete just as hard as the players on the field jockeying for position among consumers on Super Bowl Sunday.

Cute Won’t Cut It

Spending on Super Bowl ads has risen from $103 million in 2003 to $1.85 billion today. Brands know they’ve got to be more than cute, funny or racy  (Besides, who doesn’t turn into see the talking babies on eTrade or the you-know-it’s-gonna be racy spots by GoDaddy.com).

Viewers have seen it all — and they want to see something different. At the same time, advertisers know they’ve got to raise the ante each year to capture viewers’ attention. More than 111 million viewers were expected to look at the Super Bowl last year.

It’s the same thing with content. Our audiences want more content, in different formats, including videos, infographics and more. They’re tired of boring, run of the mill content without any value. This year, the blackout in New Orleasn provided brands like Oreos with rich opportunities to write content on the fly, such as tweets “newsjacking” the  news story with their messaging.

Using Emotions to Sell

This year, more brands used emotions to tell stories, in long form. Last year, Chrysler got kudos for its 2-minute ad with Clint Eastwood. It tried a similar tactic this year with a 2-minute salute to troops and their families.

Pulling out heartstrings, much? That’s exactly what brands what to do — tie favorable perceptions of their products into emotionable, action-oriented content. And it’s exactly what good content marketers should do as well.

The Super Bowl Lesson

Content marketers don’t have nearly as tough a time telling our stories as advertisers vying for 111 million eyeballs on Super Bowl Sunday. So many stories are out there waiting to be told, if we are willing to break the content mold. Content marketing may never get the ad spread that the Super Bowl gets.

But take a look closely at the ads that did well – and the ads that didn’t go over so well. Collectively, content marketers have just as much influence, if we tell our stories right.

Tenisha Mercer is an SEO writer in Atlanta with content on page #1 of Google, Yahoo and Bing. She is an Atlanta web content writer and SEO copywriter and social media expert in Atlanta who specializes in powerful, high-impact copywriting that clicks with customers. Tenisha Mercer has produced and managed content marketing  and content strategy for clients in health care, retail and technology, including the CDC, The Home Depot, Sears, GMAC, NCR, General Motors, 1-800-Flowers and small businesses around the country.

Superbowl 2013 advertisers are launching a larger amount of ads on social media

Anxiously awaiting those infamous Superbowl 2013 commercials? You didn’t have to wait until kick off on Sunday evening; just go on YouTube, Twitter or Facebook.

More advertisers are pushing their Super Bowl ads out on social media sites than ever before — days and weeks ahead of the big game. Advertisers are using social media platforms like YouTube, Twitter and Facebook to get a jumpstart on the more than 111 million people who are expected to watch the Super Bowl tonight.

Led by national brands like Taco Bell and Anheuser Busch, more than two dozen of the Superbowl’s 36 advertisers got a jumpstart to the Super Bowl hoopla with early ads, according to YouTube.com.

Last year, Super Bowl spending reached $262.5 million. This year, it’s expected to break records with $1.85 billion in advertising, compared to just shy of $130 million in 2003.

YouTube as the Superbowl Contender

Much of those early releases are on YouTube, which has gained the lion’s share of those advertisers’ early commercials in recent years. Last year, early Super Bowl ads were viewed 600% more times, with an average of 9.1 million average views, according to YouTube statistics.

Expect even more this year.

And with the average 30-second Super Bowl spot going anywhere from $3.7 million to as much as $4 million according to the New York Times, it’ s no wonder that advertisers are trying to get as much bang for their Super Bowl dollars as they can on social media sites.

Increasingly, companies involve fans in the ad process. Advertisers like Doritos now pay big bucks to average folks who produce mini commercials featuring the brand  —  and build customer loyalty and the prospect of winning million dollar prizes in the process. So, too, did Pepsi, which let fans create a countdown for Beyonce’s halftime performance.

Still, this doesn’t mean that advertisers like Go Daddy, Doritos, Pepsi and Coca-Cola hope that you don’t tune in on Sunday; it just means they’re getting many more eyeballs than just on the 30-second Super Bowl commercials.

What Super Bowl ads are you looking forward to?

Tenisha Mercer is an SEO writer in Atlanta with content on page #1 of Google, Yahoo and Bing. She is an Atlanta web content writer and SEO copywriter and social media expert in Atlanta who specializes in powerful, high-impact copywriting that clicks with customers. Tenisha Mercer has produced and managed content marketing  and content strategy for clients in health care, retail and technology, including the CDC, The Home Depot, Sears, GMAC, NCR, General Motors, 1-800-Flowers and small businesses around the country.

For quite a while now, I’ve heard so-called SEO experts emphatically declare that “SEO is Dead.” They’d all but nailed the coffin shut and cued the funeral processional.

Many cited Google Penda/Penguin as proof of SEOs untimely demise. Everytime Google rolled out algorithm changes, those doom and gloom proclamations that SEO was unreliable or no longer valid circulated, even from industry analysts.

Cancel the funeral — they couldn’t be further from the truth. SEO isn’t dead; it’s alive and kickin’.  Those so-called experts are flat wrong. And here’s proof:

SEO raised more than $100 million in 2012 – not too bad for a dying industry, huh? Venture cap firms are making it rain on SEO companies, with seoMOZ raising $18 million in 2012, despite two failed attempts in 2009 and 2011. If that sounds like a “dying” industry to you, then I’d hate to see what it looks like alive.

Google is the Game Changer

Two reasons why SEO isn’t dead — Google Panda and Penguin.  If anything, post Google Penguin and Panda, SEO is more important than ever — and investors and big businesses know this. It’s some SEOs who haven’t gotten the memo.

I know. I know.

Yeah, SEO may be going through its tests and trials; what industry doesn’t? But it’s still needed. For all of the bitching and moaning about Google Panda and Penguin (yes, many legitimate sites have been negatively and unfairly affected throughout the process) these changes have tried to right the ranking that those spammy sites got — and its placed more emphasis on good, legitimate, authoritative content.

Let me repeat: Good, legitimate, authoritative content. Because there is a difference — a big difference.

And while some SEOs drank the Kool Aid, big businesses and investors continue to throw cash at the industry; what more proof do you need that the industry is, in fact, more important now than ever?

The Best Thing for SEOs?

Penguin and Panda were the two best things to happen to SEOs; It made site owners strategically think about their content, forced them to develop content strategy and, more importantly, placed the proper value on good content — or risk Google’s wrath in SEO.

Finally, folks are starting to understand the value of good content and SEO.

So if anyone tells you that SEO is dead, tell them it’s alive and well.

What do you think about SEO?

Tenisha Mercer is an SEO writer in Atlanta with content on page #1 of Google, Yahoo and Bing. She is an Atlanta web content writer and SEO copywriter and social media expert in Atlanta who specializes in powerful, high-impact copywriting that clicks with customers. Tenisha Mercer has produced and managed content marketing for clients in health care, retail and technology, including the CDC, The Home Depot, Sears, GMAC, General Motors Corporation, and small businesses around the country.

It’s 2013 — and for me, it’s all about content.

Naturally, it’s a time of reflection, about the things that went well, that went straight to hell, and the things that I could have done better in 2012.

This year, it’s all about content creation. I’ve got about two blogs that I actively blog on and, I’ll be honest, it’s a challenge for me to update both of them regularly. I’m about to put myself on an editorial calendar and schedule. I can do this for clients, but it’s SO difficult for me to do.

Churning Out Content

Not to mention the ebooks I’m working on this year. Le sigh. So many ideas, so little time. But I really am going to buckle down and get these done. They don’t have to be epic; just readable. And so I’m focusing on creating my e-book empire. This isn’t my first round with this. I’ve said this for a long time but now I’ve got to do less talking and more writing.

Like, dedicate daily time to it. I’ve got a few ebooks and ecourses that are almost finished. They say it takes 28 days to change a habit. Well, day 1 and I’ve already begun working on finishing up those ebooks that are gathering dust on  my laptop.

Making Content Creation A Daily Habit

Writing my own projects has got to be apart of my daily habit — no matter what else I’ve got going on. I start off with all the best intentions, but fall off due to crazy deadlines or working my other business. I’m going to stop beating myself up about it and keep on writing.

It’s also about branding — doing activities for my brand. Whether it’s social media or plain old fashioned marketing, I’m committing to doing everything i need to do to build my brand.

What are your content marketing plans for 2013?

Tenisha Mercer is an SEO writer in Atlanta with content on page #1 of Google, Yahoo and Bing. She is a digital branding expert, an Atlanta web content writer, Atlanta SEO copywriter and social media expert in Atlanta who specializes in powerful, high-impact content that clicks with customers. Tenisha Mercer has produced and managed content marketing for clients in health care, retail and technology, including the CDC, The Home Depot, NCR, Sears, GMAC, General Motors Corporation, NCR, and small businesses nationwide. 

2012 is almost to a close, and Content Marketing Institute (CMI) has released 100+ social media nad content marketing trends for 2013. If only we all had a crystal ball…

But seriously, CMI comes close as we can get, with predictions from 80 top content marketing and social media pros. Among their findings:

Visuals will play an ever increasing role in content. This prediction is a no-brainer, with the success of sites like Instagram and Pinterest. Interestingly enough, CMI predicts that infographics will die in 2013. Not so sure if that will happen (they serve a valuable purpose, breaking down complex concepts into easier to learn, digestable pieces).

Content as a cornerstone of marekting content, instead of just a single websites.  Using a  single website as the only method to push out content is sooo old school. Expect more companies and brands to explore the many different ways to distribute content around the web using multiple sources and content curation.

Increase in video content. Video is hot, and YouTube is the second-largest search engine. More brands and exploring creative ways to share content on sites like YouTube.

What do you think is ahead for 2013?

Tenisha Mercer is an SEO writer in Atlanta with content on page #1 of Google, Yahoo and Bing. She is a digital branding expert, an Atlanta web content writer, Atlanta SEO copywriter and social media expert in Atlanta who specializes in powerful, high-impact copywriting and digital content that clicks with customers. Tenisha Mercer has produced and managed content marketing for clients in health care, retail and technology, including the CDC, The Home Depot, NCR, Sears, GMAC, General Motors Corporation, NCR, and small businesses nationwide. 

Google’s EMD update in September affected exact domains matches.

For years, SEOs have managed to almost instantly obtain higher rankings by using “exactmatch” domains — using keywords as domain names, such as teethwhitening.com or RoofingAtlanta.com, for example.

That all changed in September, after Googled announced algorithm updates — called EMD — that focused on spammy or low-quality exact match domains. To be fair, not all exact match domains are spammy. But many are.

Why Exact Domains Meant Higher Ranking

Exact domains worked — for a long time. Many copied this strategy, resulting in keyword-stuffed articles that, essentially were worthless content to human readers, but gold to search engines.

Google’s EMD update is now trying to right that and, according to Google’s Matt Cutts, “reduce low-quality ‘exact-match’ domains in search results.”

What to do Now

This may not be a one-time and done type of thing, but periodic updates to catch those flying under the radar, according to SearchEngineLand. Think long and hard about using exact match domains. If it contains good content and good links, it may still be a good strategy IF you have brand recognition AND good, quality content.

Just don’t expect to instantly dominate rankings as once before.

And, focus on content. Write content for humans, not search engines. Focus on bringing visitors consistent high-quality content that they can’t find anywhere else. Add social sharing buttons to your site, and spread content using social media sites such as Google+, LinkedIn, Pinterest, YouTube, Instagram, and other sites to establish more credibility.

Tenisha Mercer is an SEO writer in Atlanta with content on page #1 of Google, Yahoo and Bing. She is a digital branding expert, an Atlanta web content writer, Atlanta SEO copywriter and social media expert in Atlanta who specializes in powerful, high-impact copywriting and digital content that clicks with customers. Tenisha Mercer has produced and managed content marketing for clients in health care, retail and technology, including the CDC, The Home Depot, NCR, Sears, GMAC, General Motors Corporation, NCR, and small businesses nationwide.  

How important will content marketing be in 2013 and beyond ? A Content Marketing Survey of 1,300 firms by Econsultancy, a U.K.- based digital marketing agency, found that:

• More than  90% of respondents believe that content marketing will become more important over the next 12 months.
• Nearly three quarters (73%) of digital marketers agree that ‘brands are becoming publishers’.
• Opportunities exist: Less than half of companies have dedicated budgets (34%) or individuals dedicated (46%) to content marketing.
• More engagement is the most commonly cited goal for content marketers, with 52% of in-house marketers and 58% of agency marketers listing it as a top business objective.

That’s good news for content marketing professionals.

Sponsored by Outbrain, the survey polled more than 1,300 marketers working for brands, agencies and publishers. Its findings aren’t surprising, considering that more companies realize that content is currency.

How do you feel about the future of content marketing?

Tenisha Mercer is an SEO writer in Atlanta with content on page #1 of Google, Yahoo and Bing. She is a digital marketing and branding expert and is an Atlanta web content writer, Atlanta SEO copywriter and social media expert in Atlanta who specializes in powerful, high-impact copywriting that clicks with customers. She directs content strategy and social media for clients in health care, government, retail and technology, including the CDC, The Home Depot, NCR, Sears, GMAC, General Motors Corporation, and small businesses around the country. Contact her at HireAnSEOWriter@gmail.com.

Facebook is preparing to change search as we know it, with a search engine of its own.

A few weeks ago, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg told Disrupt they “are uniquely positioned to answer the questions people have.” As far as a search engine, he said: “At some point we’ll do it. We have a team working on it.”

With more than 1 billion active users, the social networking giant gets about 1 billion searches a day, according to Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. And that’s without trying.

With that many searches, it’s not a question if if, but when. It would be a complete game changer for search, making Facebook even more ubiquitous than it is now.

How Facebook Could Impact Search

If I only had a dollar for every time I say this: We should have seen this coming a long time ago! I’d be RICH!

Already, YouTube is the second largest search engine. But Google can probably kiss that status goodbye if Facebook debuts a search engine. This would totally shake the search world up, as Facebook struggles to build revenue sources amid intense pressure from Wall Street.

Search would be a no-brainer. Facebook would be stupid not to, especially considering the number of searches they receive without trying. Imagine would could happen if they tried — and if they tied it to revenue?

Facebook’s search engine features are horrible right now. Imagine would could happen if it improved? Ranking features could potentially change overnight, from traditional keywords, unique content, links and on-page optimization, to more social features like engagement  — friends’ interests and activities, and social networking.

Social Just Got Even More Important than it is Now

It would be one of the biggest blurring lines of social and SEO — a line that has blurred for some time as more companies realize the SEO value that social media brings.Social marketers would be primed, but SEO that doesn’t use social could be forced to play catch-up.

My take: Get moving on social or get left behind. This Facebook search engine could totally blow search up.

Stay tuned to tenishamercer.com for more about Facebook’s search engine.

Tenisha Mercer is an SEO writer in Atlanta with content on page #1 of Google, Yahoo and Bing. She is an Atlanta web content writer and SEO copywriter and social media expert in Atlanta who specializes in powerful, high-impact copywriting that clicks with customers. Tenisha Mercer has produced and managed content marketing for clients in health care, retail and technology, including the CDC, The Home Depot, Sears, GMAC, General Motors Corporation, and small business around the country.

After announcing last week that it reached the 1 billion user mark, Facebook is adding new buttons — beyond the “Like” buttons.

Facebook is testing new “want” and “collection” buttons. The new buttons appear on Facebook’s new Collections feature, and only on select pages. They allow users to create wish lists of things they want — sounding an awful lot like Pinterest.

Who gets the new Features?

It appears that the features are only allowed on large users, and it’s live on Pottery Barn as well as Fab.com, Michael Kors, Victoria’s Secret and Wayfair.com — signaling Facebook’s move deeper into the e-commerce space. It’s expected, though, as Facebook faces growing pains as it faces growing demands from Wall Street to generate money after going public.

Last week, Facebook released Gifts, which lets you buy items for friends on Facebook.

You can discover collected items in new feeds, they are shareable, and include a click through link to buy the product off Facebook. What does this mean to you? Unless you are managing a reatailer’s Facebook spend, nothing; it’s just one more way for you to share your interests with your friends.

What do you think of Facebook’s move into e-commerce?

Tenisha Mercer is an SEO writer in Atlanta with content on page #1 of Google, Yahoo and Bing. She is an Atlanta web content writer and SEO copywriter and social media expert in Atlanta who specializes in powerful, high-impact copywriting that clicks with customers. Tenisha Mercer has produced and managed content marketing for clients in health care, retail and technology, including the CDC, The Home Depot, Sears, GMAC, General Motors Corporation, and small business around the country.