SEO Content Marketing Roundup, Week Ending February 22nd, 2012

Analyze this! In this week’s latest and greatest Web-writing news, the common theme running throughout is analytics in some shape or form. Be it applied Google Analytics for content and social media, or web analytics of the SEO/search kind, marketers from all corners of the blogosphere seem focused on data-generated insights into consumer behavior.

The collective fallout from this shared focal point is an especially rich roundup of truly intriguing insights, stat’s and perspectives… So eat of the fruit of analysis, dear marketer, and go forth empowered with information!

Content Marketing

At Marketing Land, Matt McGee reports comScore data indicating that U.S. web users reached a record high of 36 hours (average) spent online last month (January 2012).

Roger Dooley shares the most desired brands of 2012 (in the U.S.) as reported by Buyology, Inc. at Neuromarketing.

Nine ways to make your marketing analytics actionable are shared by Pamela Vaughan at HubSpot.

Mack Collier posts a beginner’s guide to blog analytics at his site.

A practical approach to content analysis (using content quality parameters) is discussed by Patricia Redsicker at Content Marketing Institute.

Magdalena Georgieva talks old-school copywriting in “How to Write Call-to-Action Copy That Gets Visitors Clicking” at HubSpot.

David Jackson posts 17 exceptionally useful YouTube marketing channels (“that you should bookmark”) at SiteProNews.

Referring to an earlier post by Ann Smarty, Marketing Profs advises that before you name your company you should consider how Google will rank it.

What privacy? Seth Godin posts “The illusion of privacy (and what we actually care about)” at his blog.

Corey Eridon posts a how-to on mapping lead-nurturing content to each stage of the sales cycle at HubSpot.

Ian Lurie shares the slides from his recent presentation on web writing, “Writing for leads: how professionals can market themselves online,” at Conversation Marketing.

Roger Dooley discusses when personalization crosses the line with “Forget Evil, Don’t Be Creepy!” at Neuromarketing.

SEO & Search

Avinash Kaushik discusses the biggest mistake web analysts make (and how to avoid it) at Occam’s Razor.

At the other end of the spectrum, Sarah Carling posts a beginner’s guide to Google Analytics (“What to Track”) at Search Engine Watch.

Gabriella Sannino captures the frustration of many in the SEO/search industry with Google+, posting “Are You Seriously Focusing on G+ for SEO??” at Search News Central.

Ian Lurie posts an impressive report on what factors weigh into what appears in that coveted Google+ box on search results pages, having conducted his own extensive research, at Conversation Marketing.

Bas van den Beld posts a fun infographic guide to website optimization under the brilliant title, “What Would Google Bot Do?” at State of Search.

Sujan Patel shares 13 unconventional link-building strategies at Search Engine Journal.

Tom Schmitz posts the comprehensive “Everything You Need To Know About SEO Web Structure & Internal Links” at Search Engine Land.

SEO Creative discusses website design, with “What is Responsive Design?”

Michael King posts an interesting read on “the new SEO process” at SEOmoz.

Speaking of the Big G, it’s in big trouble again – this time for bypassing Safari users’ privacy settings, reports David Angotti at Search Engine Journal.

Bill Slawski reports that Google has acquired the pending patent applications of its former search rival Cuil – once touted as a “potential Google killer” – at SEO by the Sea.

Neil Patel posts an “advanced guide to an effective SEO commenting strategy” at QuickSprout.

Michael Cottam discusses how your physical location can affect your organic ranking at SEOmoz.

Christian Arno posts four localization tips “for savvy global businesses” at Search Engine Watch.

Jackson Lo posts a how-to on segmenting local search traffic in Google Analytics at CardinalPath.

Brafton News cites a report from xAD on the effectiveness of local search campaigns, showing that over half of local (mobile) search clicks result in calls directly to a business.

Shari Thurow discusses the challenge of spreading SEO awareness to those with either no clue or negative/false preconceptions at Search Engine Land.

Simon Heseltine posts a thoughtful read, “SEO: A Force for Good” at Search Engine Watch.

At Top Rank, Lee Odden discusses the critical importance of planning for SEO migration (as he is participating in a presentation on the subject at SES London 2012.

Social Media Marketing

Twitter ads for small businesses headlines Social Media Examiner’s weekly news.

Tom Anthony posts how to use Google Analytics to monitor which social networks your visitors are logged into, at SEOmoz.

Gabriella Saninno posts 12 Twitter Commandments at Level 343.

Katelyn Watson posts “A brand’s guide to handling social media jerks” at iMedia Connection.

Danny Sullivan discusses Google’s new “share box” (for G+) on its home page at Marketing Land.

Mashable also reports on Google’s new home page G+ box, quoting Danny Sullivan’s personal opinion about it.

Citing a recent report from BrightEdge, Marketing Land’s Greg Finn reports that the top 100 brands which were early to adopt G+ saw a massive growth spurt in their circles (over 1400 percent) in February.

Noting the explosive growth of G+, Marc Pitman shares six G+ tips for businesses at Social Media Examiner.

Melissa Fach shares an infographic (by Infographic Labs) showing some amazing 2012 Facebook stats at Search Engine Journal.

Jeff Bullas posts “An Insight Into Facebook Marketing” via an infographic, as well as a brief discussion on print vs. online display advertising.

At Marketing Land, Greg Finn reports that Facebook will offer verified accounts and higher visibility to its top users (those with the most subscribers).

Responding to a social media beginner, Level 343 shares four tips for using YouTube as a marketing platform worthy of any social media marketer’s time.

Mark Schaefer pens an interesting piece on “the six elements of human behavior that drive social media” at {grow}.

Brian Solis posts an insightful look into social media overload and consumer disconnect with “Brands Face Stream Fatigue as Consumers Look Beyond Gimmicks in Social Networks.”

Cindy King asks 13 experts to share their favorite tools for simplifying their social media marketing at Social Media Examiner.

Bill Kalma discusses the four characteristics of a “winning social enterprise strategy” at Mashable.

Tom Pick discusses the two “core elements” of successful B2B social media marketing at Webbiquity.

Jeff Bullas posts “Why Business Should Take an Interest in Pinterest”.

Rebecca Corliss posts a how-to on mastering Pinterest for B2B marketing at HubSpot.

Pinterest’s 10 most-followed users are posted at Mashable.

photo credit to Herme´s