SEO
8 Stories Of Hope From The SEO Community
February 23, 2022, was a regular Wednesday for Ukrainian marketers and SEO specialists.
We had our morning coffees and did tech audits, built some links, and revamped a couple of landing pages.
We were striving for better visibility and conversions, trying hard to keep up with the deadlines, and hoping to reach our KPIs.
Then, on February 24, the whole of Ukraine woke up in a newly fragile and terrifying world.
Our plans, aspirations, and priorities were transformed.
From that day on, the only thing that mattered was saving the lives of our families, helping those in need to survive the turmoil of war, and defending our right to live freely on our own land.
For this column, my team reached out to eight Ukrainian SEO and marketing specialists and asked them to share their experiences in the time since our world turned upside down.
It turns out they all had one thing in common: in a shattered world full of painful uncertainty, they’ve drawn strength from helping others and contributing to Ukraine’s future victory.
Here is how they’re doing it.
Bringing Accurate News To Russian People
Artem Pylypets is the Head of SEO at SEO7, lecturer, and the founder of an educational YouTube channel “Школа SEO” (SEO School).
Before the war started, Artem’s life was all about doing SEO himself and sharing his knowledge with others.
He led the SEO department at SEO7, ran his YouTube channel called “Школа SEO” (“SEO School), and conducted online training on SEO matters.
Currently, Artem is doing all the same things, but to the sound of artillery shelling.
War brought many challenges to his work. SEO7 team members are now scattered across Europe since many people had to flee their homes.
They are trying to streamline their operations, but it isn’t easy.
Besides, many SEO7 customers seized their operations, which left the team struggling to stay afloat with the few clients who target the U.S. and European markets.
Artem himself stayed in the Kyiv suburbs. He confessed that he is used to hearing artillery shelling and added that it is “not that heavy.”
His neighborhood community has set up roadblocks, and people guard them in shifts to control the situation.
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Image source: Author. The photo on the left was taken three months before the war started. Artem’s T-shirt says, “Content gets better if it comes with a backlink.” The photo on the right shows a roadblock with sandbags, one of Artem’s new workplaces.
“It really pleases me to see how the war united my fellow Ukrainians. The way we help each other, the way we fight for our land, is just amazing.
At the same time, I must admit that I’d rather have a peaceful sky above my head.”
Like many other SEO specialists, Artem decided to use his SEO skills to help Ukraine win the informational war.
His goal is to help Russian search engine users see the true stories of war and not the deceitful official propaganda. For this to happen, he has been working on improving the visibility of international media in the Russian SERPs.
When the war ends, Artem plans to keep building his business and hopes to launch all the projects he always wanted to but never had the time for.
He’s looking forward to reading some good news – not reporting on mounting casualties and destruction in Kharkiv, Sumy, Chernihiv, Mariupol, and other cities.
All he dreams of is celebrating Ukraine’s victory with his closest friends.
Volunteering 24/7 To Help Those In Need
Andrey Kapeltsov is the founder of SEO.Capital and a keynote speaker at leading SEO, Affiliate, and iGaming conferences in Ukraine. He has spent the last 18 years mastering SEO and is always looking for new out-of-the-box ways to keep up with search algorithm updates.
Since 2015, he’s focused on the iGaming industry, working as the CMO at major gaming and betting companies.
Because of the specific nature of the iGaming niche, SEO has always been at the core of every marketing strategy Andrey developed.
Today, Andrey is trying to serve his country and people in every way possible.
Some of his company’s employees lived in the cities ravaged by the Russian army – Andrey helped them escape to a safer place.
Today, he continues to help evacuate people from the shelled cities on the frontline to a place to live in the central and western parts of Ukraine.
With employees moved to safe places, Andrey decided to restore his company’s operations to support Ukraine’s economy – his business provides donations to the Ukrainian armed forces.
Also, they’ve established a charity foundation to support displaced families and volunteers.
In addition to helping out financially, Andrey and his colleagues spend their evenings at humanitarian aid centers unloading goods.
Andrey says that this kind of physical activity works just as well as going to the gym.
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Image source: Author. Andrey’s portrait in peaceful times and photos from current volunteer activities.
“What fascinates me is how the war forced us to quickly establish complex processes – it seemed unachievable in times of peace.
I still sometimes face difficulties finding particular military equipment, but my friends and new acquaintances always help me out.
I had the pleasure of meeting so many great people over the past weeks.”
Andrey notes that his life before the war started seems very distant and blurred. He has a feeling that war lasts forever but has found a role that works for him and is ready to carry on.
When it’s all over, Andrey plans to keep developing his business and actively participate in helping Ukraine recover.
He hopes to spend some time living by the sea, where the only sound would be that of the sea waves. But first, Ukraine has to win.
Helping Ukrainian SEOs Find New Jobs
Olesia Korobka is an SEO entrepreneur running multiple projects before the war started. She offered guidance and consulting to businesses and ran a couple of her own projects sponsored by third parties.
Unfortunately, she had to stop working with most sponsors because of their country of origin.
That left her with mostly consulting. She can now keep up with the tasks, but for a while could not work because of a slow internet connection.
Olesia, her son, and her mother were among the 4 million Ukrainians who had to flee their homes.
First, they moved to Poland and then to the Netherlands, where she could get back to work, which she admitted was challenging.
“My brain was reluctant to focus on complex technical tasks.
After operating in survival mode for a while, the first time I looked into coding, I spent several hours on a task that took me 5 to 15 minutes before, and I still wasn’t sure if I did it right.”
At the same time, working on her projects was something she needed badly. It was the only thing that helped Olesia feel she was doing okay and making a positive impact.
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Image source: Author. A selfie made from the life ‘before’ on the left, another selfie made on a bus to Amsterdam (right), and a photo taken at a refugee center.
What inspired her was the new project she organized to support the Ukrainian SEO community. Since the war started, many people have approached Olesia asking for help finding a new job. Many Ukrainian SEO specialists lost their only source of income and felt desperate.
This is how Olesia got the idea to create a listing of Ukrainian SEOs that briefly describes their skills and areas of expertise.
She contacted Aleyda Solis with a request to share the listing on her Twitter and in the #SEOFOMO newsletter, and Aleyda kindly supported the initiative.
Then, Olesia started receiving messages from different companies open to hiring Ukrainians, so she compiled a listing of job openings.
As more and more experts and businesses joined the initiative, the spreadsheet became messy. So, Olesia is currently working on creating multiple websites targeting employers in Australia, the USA, and particular European countries.
Once the sites are up and running, the job-seeking and hiring process should be much easier.
Olesia dreams of the war coming to an end so that she can return home.
She misses her normal life and the people.
Olesia adds that many Ukrainians will have to deal with PTSD once the war is over and won’t lead a normal life anytime soon.
However, she is determined to keep her chin up and carry on with her projects. Olesia is also grateful to everyone who’s supported her in the past weeks.
“Soooooo many people are helping me. It was amazing and kind of even uncomfortable. I’ve never had that in my entire life and never expected that.
I kind of feel a bit guilty, but also very grateful. Thank you all for your support and input.
I cannot always find the proper words to thank everyone, but I’m super grateful for everything.”
Saving Ukrainian Four-Legged Cuties
Anton Shulke is the Head of Influencer marketing at Duda.co and livestream production manager.
Since 2015, Anton has held live events, webinars, and podcasts for leading companies in the SEO industry, such as Duda, Semrush, and Kalicube.
Duda – Anton’s latest workplace – is not a Ukrainian company and wasn’t directly affected (even though the company had about a dozen employees in Ukraine).
Anton was offered paid time off when the war started, but he prefers to keep working, so he is still doing one webinar a week.
On top of that, Anton joined the Ukrainian SEO community to help the affected people by trying to arrange accommodation, find job opportunities, or provide direct financial help.
Anton was amazed by the reaction of the Ukrainian SEO community. He always believed there were many good people but didn’t expect to see such overwhelming support for the less fortunate ones.
Anton added that he felt honored to be a part of it.
He also started a small charity project for collecting funds for cat and dog shelters, which you can learn about and support here.
“I decided to help small shelters because I thought they could be under the radar of big charities, which tend to help children, refugees, and the army.
I get messages from people who run the shelters, and they seem to be surprised and extremely grateful for the help I provide, which gives me motivation to continue.
The hard part is that while initially the reaction from people was very positive and giving, donations are drying up as time passes.
Still, I understand that people get tired, and I cannot blame them.”
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Image source: Author. Anton with his cat and having his traditional morning coffee
Anton hopes to keep his job at Duda, but he also considers putting more effort into the charity initiative.
He will probably keep the cat and dog shelter project, though the format may change.
Another thing he hopes to do is have a coffee with all the lovely people who message him on Facebook.
Every day, Anton publishes a ‘Good Morning’ post with a #coffeeshot on his Facebook page. In reply, many people say they’d love to have a coffee with him.
Protecting Ukrainian Land In The Armed Forces
Eugene Lata is the CMO at Lemon.io and an experienced marketer who has spent the last seven years building marketing teams and developing growth strategies.
Up until January 2022, he was the CMO at SerpStat, an SEO tool company based in Odesa.
He had begun a new job at the Lemon.io marketplace not long before the war started.
In the first days of the war, Eugene decided to join Odesa territorial defense forces, and currently, he is a member of the 122nd brigade.
Due to Eugene’s previous experience, he became a managing paramedic officer in the material supply squadron.
This means he is in charge of training other paramedics and forming special evacuation and emergency brigades.
Such brigades consist of one paramedic and four assault soldiers. They work on the frontline evacuating wounded soldiers and civilians.
Luckily, at the moment, there is no need to evacuate civilians in the regions where Eugene is located.
In addition to training paramedics, he trains various military units on NATO’s methodology of providing first aid.
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Image source: Author. Eugene serving in the territorial defense forces and a photo of him and his labrador dog before the war started
This is not the first time Eugene decided to join the army. Back in 2014, after coming back home from the U.K., he spent six months in the Donbas region fighting the enemies with other volunteers who joined the Dnipro-1 battalion.
This was when he started helping wounded people as a paramedic.
Eight years later, his previous experience allowed Eugene to teach other officers to save lives.
“What inspires me is the progress the guys whom I train demonstrate.
Those who joined just three weeks ago with no relevant experience and no medical background are now trained well enough to provide qualified help. These people are already evacuating people and saving many lives in the Mykolaiv and Odesa regions.
Seeing this gives me a sense of accomplishment.”
Eugene confesses that he preferred his regular job, living under peaceful skies when his biggest worry was a wasted marketing budget or the spread of the coronavirus.
But until the war is over, he can’t imagine himself doing anything other than his current occupation.
When Ukraine wins, Eugene cannot wait to hug his family, now scattered around the country.
His wife and younger sister volunteer in Odesa, getting the necessary military ammunition for Eugene’s brigades.
He wants to go on a walk with his labrador dog.
Being an avid traveler, he’ll surely take on new adventures.
First thing, he’ll go to the Carpathian mountains. Eugene hopes for Ukraine to win before the spring ends – then he’ll enjoy the spring greenery while watching the sunrise.
He’ll also be working a lot because rebuilding a country takes many resources.
Finally, he wants to become a father – he and his wife had planned to start a family before the war broke out.
Fighting A Cyberwar Via SEO Community Chat
Igor Shulezhko is the CEO & Founder at rankUP and co-owner of Shmeo.Link. He has been in the business for over ten years as Head of SEO for several major Ukrainian brands.
Before the war started, he focused his efforts on building his SEO agency, rankUp.
His business was doing pretty well and boasted a varied customer profile that included startups and SaaS companies, ecommerce projects, and news portals.
All these customers were from Ukraine, which means the agency wasn’t impacted as much as other companies with close ties to Russia.
Still, the war forced many businesses to put their marketing spending on hold. Now Igor is trying hard to save his agency.
His team is currently scattered across Ukraine and works remotely.
Igor noted that he can feel how anxious everyone on the team is right now.
“Constantly monitoring the news is extremely exhausting. Besides, air raid sirens keep people awake at night—often there are two to four sirens per night with brief interruptions.
All this makes it hard to concentrate on your tasks. It’s easier to do SEO when all you need to focus on is the work.”
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Image source: Author. Igor on his way to the border and having a meal at a refugee center
One of Igor’s projects is an SEO community on Telegram, an extremely popular messenger in Ukraine. Currently, the community unites about 5,000 people.
Before, it had more participants, but many Russians left once the community started spreading war-related messages.
Igor regretfully notes that many Russians in the group vocally supported Putin and denied all war crimes.
“When the war started, we restricted commenting in the community and limited publication rights to admins only,” he said.
The idea was to use the community chat to deliver the most important initiatives to its subscribers. They shared links to verified charities and details on evacuation opportunities, posted lists of Russian sites whose operations they were seeking to disrupt, and links to communities that spread false news so that community members could block them.
Igor believes that he and his team are contributing to winning the cyberwar against Russia by doing all this.
Igor admits that he misses his peaceful life.
When the war ends, the first thing he’ll do is visit his mom, who lives in the Sumy region.
Luckily, the town is not on the frontline, but with Russian troops all around, it suffers from a lack of supplies. Evacuation is currently too dangerous.
Telecommunications are still operating, so Igor can still regularly call his mother.
He dreams of seeing her in person and giving her a big hug.
Helping Ukrainian Families In Need
Max Karmazin is the Digital Marketing specialist, Country Manager (Germany) at SE Ranking. He returned to Ukraine in November 2021 after living in Switzerland for seven years.
Max was working on his Master’s degree in Sociology and Media Studies, working different jobs, and traveling.
As an expat, he always felt he had limited working hours, income, job, and social standing opportunities.
Feeling detached, he couldn’t completely embrace the new mentality and social rules.
Thus, he decided to return to Kyiv, and three months later, the war started.
The first days after the invasion were tough. Max couldn’t continue working because he was constantly distracted by the news.
When he left Kyiv on the third day of the war to get farther from the danger, he felt saving one’s life and leaving countrymen to fend for themselves wasn’t in accordance with his values.
Doing his regular job also felt wrong at that time.
Max decided he would join the army and fight the enemy back or start volunteering.
This led him to join the territorial defense forces, volunteer military units that protect city residents.
He spent about a week guarding one of the few open gas stations, controlling incoming traffic, and keeping order.
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Image source: Author. Max (left) with his comrade, a 65-year-old veteran of the war in Donbas.
“I had this desire to prove myself that I had the guts to join the army and potentially sacrifice my life for the country I love (and wanted to get back to). I guess many men feel the same way at the time of war.”
Then the unit was rotated and Max joined one of his comrades who was evacuating his family to western Ukraine and Poland a few days later.
Max’s new acquaintance had lost his job a few months before and the family ran out of money a week into the war.
So, Max decided to support them at least financially.
Max was lucky to have good and caring friends from Switzerland and Germany who were eager to help.
They decided that the best option would be to send money directly to Max’s account so that he could provide help to people in dire need whom he knew personally.
“So far, we have helped six families in need, a total of 15 people, and the army. It might not be much, but it’s quality help that provides a sufficient amount of money for a month or two.”
Currently, Max is with his family. He believes that the most important thing he can do right now is support them. He continues working for SE Ranking from his home office.
Max will continue working for SE Ranking, and would love to see everybody back at the office after his colleagues return home when the war ends.
He hopes the war ends before summertime to start new hobbies: canoeing and rowing.
He dreams of rediscovering Ukraine and its beautiful rivers with his friends on camping and canoeing trips.
Max also plans to start voice actor training because he likes listening to audiobooks and has a suitable voice. He had planned to start training on the 6th of March.
Max confesses that he misses small things from his life before, such as going to the movies with friends, having a coriander omelet for breakfast, exercising at the gym, and having a long hot shower.
While the future remains unclear, he believes he’ll be able to fulfill his dreams, from buying a car and going on a road trip with his friends to starting a family.
And he believes that all his dreams can come true here, in Ukraine.
Building A Strong Community Of Marketing Heroes For Mutual Support
Yurii Lazaruk, is the founder of multiple well-known Ukrainian SEO communities, such as SEO Club UA, SalesHero, CPC Real Talk, and Marketing Club UA, and a community development expert.
Before the war started, he used his communities for connecting Ukrainian experts. Yurii helped them share experiences and get notable career growth.
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Image source: Author. Yurii wearing a sweatshirt with his brand’s logo.
After the first day of the war, Yurii set all his earlier initiatives aside. He decided to unite all of the active members of his numerous communities into one group called Ukrainian Hero Help.
The goal of the new community was to bring together Ukrainian SEO people to support each other, share vital information, and help the army and the entire country.
Yurii himself needed assistance finding a job to support his family.
And he found one thanks to David Spinks, a co-founder of CMX, the world’s largest network for community professionals.
Yurii now works as a part-time consultant, providing guidance on community development to Cultivate, an AI-powered coaching platform.
Yurii appreciates the opportunity to use his skills to make U.S. communities thrive.
But since it is not a full-time job, he is still looking for more opportunities.
Yurii is also trying to help his fellow community members by collecting requests from SEO, PPC, marketing, and sales experts, and finding them jobs with the help of international experts communities and great people within them.
So, if by any chance you are currently looking for a digital marketing specialist and are willing to help Ukrainians, you can contact Yurii, who will happily share contacts with you.
All Yurii dreams of is for the war to be over.
He aspires to create an even more powerful digital community in Ukraine, find more international clients to work with, make a lot of money, and rebuild the country!
How You Can Help Colleagues In Ukraine
Search Engine Journal has shared a collection of causes in SEO Community Support For Ukraine & How You Can Help.
The SE Ranking team has a resource on how you can help Ukrainians here, as well, that we’ll be keeping updated.
Image source: Created by author, 2022.
SEO
New Google Search Ads Resemble AI Assistant App
A keynote at Google’s Marketing Live event showed a new AI-powered visual search results that feature advertisements that engage users within the context of an AI-Assisted search, blurring the line between AI-generated search results and advertisements.
Google Lens is a truly helpful app but it becomes unconventional where it blurs the line between an assistant helping users and being led to a shopping cart. This new way of engaging potential customers with AI is so far out there that the presenter doesn’t even call it advertising, he doesn’t even use the word.
Visual Search Traffic Opportunity?
Google’s Group Product Manager Sylvanus Bent, begins the presentation with an overview of the next version of Google Lens visual search that will be useful for surfacing information and for help finding where to buy them.
Sylvanus explained how it will be an opportunity for websites to receive traffic from this new way to search.
“…whether you’re snapping a photo with lens or circling to search something on your social feed, visual search unlocks new ways to explore whatever catches your eye, and we recently announced a newly redesigned results page for Visual search.
Soon, instead of just visual matches, you’ll see a wide range of results, from images to video, web links, and facts about the knowledge graph. It gets people the helpful information they need and creates new opportunities for sites to be discovered.”
It’s hard to say whether or not this will bring search traffic to websites and what the quality of that traffic will be. Will they stick around to read an article? Will they engage with a product review?
Visual Search Results
Sylvanus shares a hypothetical example of someone at an airport baggage claim who falls in like with someone else’s bag. He explains that all the person needs to do is snap a photo of the luggage bag and Google Lens will take them directly to shopping options.
He explains:
“No words, no problem. Just open Lens, take a quick picture and immediately you’ll see options to purchase.
And for the first time, shopping ads will appear at the very top of the results on linked searches, where a business can offer what a consumer is looking for.
This will help them easily purchase something that catches their eye.”
These are image-heavy shopping ads at the top of the search results and as annoying as that may be it’s nowhere near the “next level” advertising that is coming to Google’s search ads where Google presents a paid promotion within the context of an AI Assistant.
Interactive Search Shopping
Sylvanus next describes an AI-powered form advertising that happens directly within search. But he doesn’t call it advertising. He doesn’t even use the word advertising. He suggests this new form of AI search experience is more than offer, saying that, “it’s an experience.”
He’s right to not use the word advertisement because what he describes goes far beyond advertising and blurs the boundaries between search and advertising within the context of AI-powered suggestions, paid suggestions.
Sylvanus explains how this new form of shopping experience works:
“And next, imagine a world where every search ad is more than an offer. It’s an experience. It’s a new way for you to engage more directly with your customers. And we’re exploring search ads with AI powered recommendations across different verticals. So I want to show you an example that’s going live soon and you’ll see even more when we get to shopping.”
He uses the example of someone who needs to store their furniture for a few months and who turns to Google to find short term storage. What he describes is a query for local short term storage that turns into a “dynamic ad experience” that leads the searcher into throwing packing supplies into their shopping cart.
He narrated how it works:
“You search for short term storage and you see an ad for extra space storage. Now you can click into a new dynamic ad experience.
You can select and upload photos of the different rooms in your house, showing how much furniture you have, and then extra space storage with help from Google, AI generates a description of all your belongings for you to verify. You get a recommendation for the right size and type of storage unit and even how much packing supplies you need to get the job done. Then you just go to the website to complete the transaction.
And this is taking the definition of a helpful ad to the next level. It does everything but physically pick up your stuff and move it, and that is cool.”
Step 1: Search For Short Term Storage
The above screenshot shows an advertisement that when clicked takes the user to what looks like an AI-assisted search but is really an interactive advertisement.
Step 2: Upload Photos For “AI Assistance”
The above image is a screenshot of an advertisement that is presented in the context of AI-assisted search. Masking an advertisement within a different context is the same principal behind an advertorial where an advertisement is hidden in the form of an article. The phrases “Let AI do the heavy lifting” and “AI-powered recommendations” create the context of AI-search that masks the true context of an advertisement.
Step 3: Images Chosen For Uploading
The above screenshot shows how a user uploads an image to the AI-powered advertisement within the context of an AI-powered search app.
The Word “App” Masks That This Is An Ad
Above is a screenshot of how a user uploads a photo to the AI-powered interactive advertisement within the context of a visual search engine, using the word “app” to further the illusion that the user is interacting with an app and not an advertisement.
Upload Process Masks The Advertising Context
The phrase “Generative AI is experimental” contributes to the illusion that this is an AI-assisted search.
Step 4: Upload Confirmation
In step 4 the “app” advertisement is for confirming that the AI correctly identified the furniture that needs to be put into storage.
Step 5: AI “Recommendations”
The above screenshot shows “AI recommendations” that look like search results.
The Recommendations Are Ad Units
Those recommendations are actually ad units that when clicked takes the user to the “Extra Space Storage” shopping website.
Step 6: Searcher Visits Advertiser Website
Blurring The Boundaries
What the Google keynote speaker describes is the integration of paid product suggestions into an AI assisted search. This kind of advertising is so far out there that the Googler doesn’t even call it advertising and rightfully so because what this does is blur the line between AI assisted search and advertising. At what point does a helpful AI search become just a platform for using AI to offer paid suggestions?
Watch The Keynote At The 32 Minute Mark
Featured Image by Shutterstock/Ljupco Smokovski
SEO
How Do I Get A Job With A PPC Agency
This month’s “Ask A PPC” question is particularly significant because the job market has been quite volatile.
“How do I get a job with a PPC agency when I have only worked in-house. What experience would they want?” – Karl Toronto
It’s understandable that people want to know which skills employers seek when hiring for a PPC team. There can be a disparity between what people think they need and what the market actually demands.
We’ll delve into some data and commentary to explain why various traits are valued.
It’s crucial to understand that the ideal candidates will be versatile and have an aptitude for all aspects of digital marketing.
However, no one can excel at everything, so leveraging your strengths or preferences is beneficial.
Ensure that you’re securing the best role for yourself while the company hiring you finds the best fit for them.
Here Are The Essential Skills
- Analytics.
- Creativity.
- Ad network knowledge.
- Willingness to test/learn.
- Culture fit.
Discrepancy Between Market Demands And Perceived Needs
I conducted a poll on my LinkedIn to gauge the skills desired by current employers and practitioners.
Analytical skills emerged as the most sought-after trait. Employers seek individuals who can interpret numbers and discern the story behind them.
However, relying solely on analytical prowess may overlook the importance of creativity.
Creative skills are vital in today’s ad networks, especially emphasizing visual content like videos and campaign types that force visual content (Performace Max/Demand Gen). Neglecting creativity can hinder a company’s branding efforts.
Unexpectedly, ad network skills and cultural fit were deemed far less critical than analytical skills. Brands should prioritize team cohesion for long-term success, yet this aspect is often undervalued.
The disparity between job descriptions and actual skill requirements contributes to the difficulty in the job market.
Agencies that hire for how PPC used to work will be left wanting. Practitioners who only focus on popular skills instead of needed ones will be made obsolete by the privacy-first era obscuring data and AI owning creative.
Analytical Skills
Analytical abilities involve knowing where to find relevant data sources and understanding how they contribute to success.
While PPC historically relied on measurable outcomes, the landscape is evolving, necessitating adaptability in data analysis. Technical proficiency and strategic acumen are crucial for navigating different data sources.
These include:
- Customer relationship management (CRM) systems.
- Google Analytics 4 (GA4).
- Ecommerce platforms.
- Content management platforms (CMS).
Empathy for various ad channels improves your candidacy, and knowing how to work with post-click data will give you an edge over those who can only work with ad platform data.
While being highly technical isn’t required, having empathy for coding and scripts will give you a better chance to stay current with evolving data mechanics (especially as APIs become even more important for accessing data blocked by privacy-first regulations).
Here are some takes from PPC experts on why analytics is the most important:
Screenshot from author, LinkedIn, April 2024
Screenshot from LinkedIn, April 2024
Screenshot from author, LinkedIn, April 2024Creativity
Creativity is essential for crafting compelling ad content, yet many PPC agencies struggle in this area.
Clients are often tasked with providing creative materials due to cost or complexity constraints.
You’ll get a competitive edge if you have these skills:
- Video Editing: With the rise of PMax, as well as many ad networks leaning heavily into connected TV, having video editing chops will be a huge asset for any team. If you’re not comfortable using conventional editing tools, AI tools like Descript are a great way to take on those tasks.
- Graphic Design: No matter the ad network your potential employer is hiring for, you will need some ability to design static images. Whether you use stock photos or AI-generated images or come up with the creative yourself, the days of purely text ads are over. Tools like Canva can help bridge the gap for less technical designers, but don’t discount ad network AI.
- Content Creation: While the first two categories leaned toward visual content, written content is still important (i.e., most ad formats include some text). Having the ability to understand how diverse audiences prefer to be addressed while respecting the specific requirements of each format is a great skill to hone.
While some roles may prioritize analytics or ad network knowledge, emphasizing creative abilities can distinguish you during the hiring process.
Here are some experts who value creativity:
Screenshot from author, LinkedIn, April 2024
Screenshot from author, LinkedIn, April 2024Ad Network Knowledge
Ad network expertise is valuable, but adaptability is paramount as platforms evolve rapidly.
Some agencies will have specialists, while others hire folks they expect to be passable at every network they service. It’s important to understand what workflow will enable you to succeed.
If you’re happy working with all platforms, then don’t shy away from it. However, if you do better in focusing on one aspect of PPC, that’s totally valid. Just know it might limit your ability to get hired into smaller “familyesque” agencies.
Understanding auction dynamics and bidding strategies is crucial.
Many of us who entered the industry when manual bidding was more popular have an unfair advantage over those who came in during the Smart Bidding era (i.e., anything from 2020).
This is because manual bidding requires you to think about the mechanics of each ad platform’s auction and how you could use those mechanics to your advantage in building account structure.
Knowing what to track and allocating appropriate budgets are key considerations.
Understanding that some networks require more conversions than others to run (e.g., Meta Ads’ 50 in a 7-day period vs. Google Ads’ 15 in a 30-day period) should influence what you choose to track, as well as how you report the data.
Additionally, if you are under or over budget, you’ll set yourself up to fail. Knowing which channels require a big investment upfront and what the breaking point for each network is (either on underspending or spending too much) is critical.
Awareness of potential pitfalls, such as false positives or negatives, enhances campaign effectiveness. For example, it’s important to know how to check if automatically applying recommendations is on and what tasks it’s on for.
It’s worth noting that none of the experts who chimed in on the poll made a clear case for ad network knowledge specifically.
Willingness To Test
Success in PPC requires openness to experimentation and a willingness to adapt. While this wasn’t one of the criteria in the poll, it was one of the most popular traits experts look for in hiring.
Perfectionism can hinder progress in a fast-changing environment. Testing new ideas and embracing failure as an opportunity for growth are essential.
While analytical skills aid in test design, empathy and creativity are equally vital for devising effective experiments.
Here is an expert who favors a willingness to test:
Screenshot from author, LinkedIn, April 2024Cultural Fit
Cultural alignment with an agency fosters productivity and job satisfaction. However, you can only achieve that by being honest with yourself about what you want and the mechanics of how you work.
Agencies demand intense effort and collaboration, making compatibility with colleagues crucial.
Anyone looking to make the shift from in-house to agency needs to be prepared for a much faster pace of work and a lot more agency.
Open communication with leadership regarding preferred management and learning styles will ensure a positive working relationship.
Respect for peers and a supportive atmosphere contribute to a fulfilling work environment.
Here are a few thoughts on cultural fit from polled experts:
Screenshot from author, LinkedIn, April 2024
Screenshot from author, LinkedIn, April 2024
Screenshot from author, LinkedIn, April 2024Final Thoughts
Navigating the current job market can be challenging, but understanding industry needs and honing relevant skills increases your chances of success.
Balancing technical proficiency with creativity and cultural fit is essential for thriving in a PPC role. By aligning with market demands and showcasing your strengths, you can secure rewarding opportunities in the field.
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Featured Image: Paulo Bobita/Search Engine Journal
SEO
Why Every Marketer Should Be On Reddit
In its nearly 20 years of existence, Reddit has built a robust, dynamic, and highly engaged community.
It has cemented itself as not only one of the key influencers for the internet culture we have come to know today, but also as one of the top 10 social media sites in the world, with more than 500,000 monthly visitors across more than 100,000 active communities.
Despite its size and influence, marketers have long avoided, overlooked, and failed to establish a presence on what is arguably one of the most influential social media sites today.
To be fair, Reddit has always been known as one of the hardest communities to have marketing success with, requiring months (if not years) of dedicated commitment to actually being a part of the community and engaging with your audience through meaningful, genuine, and honest interactions.
To many, that is just too much risk and too much work, but let’s be honest – most amazing things take risk and hard work. And for all of you who put in that work to be successful on Reddit, you already see the payoff it brings.
Regardless of the reasons, marketers who continue to overlook Reddit’s potential are missing out on an extremely influential community with ideal targeted demographics, where authenticity and genuine connections lead to valuable information, positive branding, and marketing success.
Not convinced? Let’s take a closer look at Reddit!
Reddit Stats You Cannot Ignore
Reddit users are dedicated to their use of the platform, with a reported 82 million (16.4%) of its 500 million users visiting the site daily, sharing over 1 billion posts, with over 16 billion comments across 100,000+ active communities, making it easily one of the top visited and most active sites in the United States today.
The user base is so loyal that they spend, on average, 20 minutes on the platform each day (and over 45 minutes a day for long-time users of more than 7 years) and, in many cases, are inactive on other social platforms.
This makes Reddit one of the only places to actually get in front of this massive audience, with 32% being inactive on Facebook, 37% on Instagram, 41% on TikTok, and 53% on X.
When it comes to demographics, a 2019 survey concluded that the overall Reddit audience was majority male (59%), ranged in age (36% aged 18-29; 25% aged 30-49), and well educated (42% college degree; 31% some college) making them an ideal audience many businesses looking for success.
They also helped Reddit improve revenues by 21% to $804 million in 2023, with a global addressable market for advertising estimated at $1.4 trillion by 2027.
Thought by many to be mostly a North American audience, Reddit claims more than 50% of its traffic comes from international users, a rather impressive climb from its earlier years.
It is important to remember, though, that Reddit is a platform that allows communities to grow and thrive, so those demographics change from subreddit to subreddit.
If that isn’t enough to grab your attention, surveys have found that 75% of users find Reddit a trustworthy source for making purchasing decisions.
For years now, it has been included heavily and prominently in Google search results, which have become even more visible due to reports following their inclusion in SGE results and with Google’s recent $60 million a year deal with Reddit to have real-time access to Reddit content and to use its content to train Google’s future AI models.
Speaking of Reddit’s visibility in Google’s search results, let’s take a closer look at why that deal is so important, especially to search marketers.
Reddit In Google Search, SGE, And Google’s Reddit Deal
For years, Reddit results have been prominently displayed in Google’s search results – so much so that users have even started adding the term “reddit” to the end of their search queries.
So often, you will see Google suggest search lines with the term “reddit” prefilled at the end.
Even without selecting the query that includes “reddit,” you will notice Reddit’s prominent placement in two places: discussions and forums, and Reddit sitelinks, which are both just below the ads and the first organic result.
Screenshot by author from search for [are purple mattresses good], Google, May 2024This was amplified by Google’s recent Helpful Content Update (HCU), which allowed platforms like Reddit and other forums to show up more frequently in search results,
Reddit’s ability to be helpful in satisfying a user’s search for information is so successful – in combination with reported shortages in new content for AI models from all major platforms – it is not surprising Google struck a deal with Reddit to show its content faster in search results and to use the content in training future AI models.
Since news of the deal between Reddit and Google was reported, there has been a lot of additional focus on Reddit’s visibility in Google’s search results.
Experts throughout the search industry report an increase in not only the total visibility of Reddit going up within search but also the speed at which a Reddit post is indexed and shown to users.
Google responded to concerns about Reddit showing up more in search results, saying that “some of the SEO folks who tend to be vocal on this platform (X) really dislike seeing more forum content in our search results. But actual searchers seem to like it. They proactively seek it out. It makes sense for us to be showing it to keep the search results relevant and satisfying for everyone.”
Screenshot by author from X (Twitter), May 2024Although disputed by Google, Roger Montii wrote about one report of Reddit content being indexed within five minutes.
ChatGPT to Surface Reddit Content
Adding to the deal Reddit made with Google, it was recently reported that OpenAI has partnered with Reddit to surface their content in ChatGPT, adding to the clear value that both OpenAI and Google see in Reddit’s content today and in the future.
Of course, this has sparked a lot of interest in companies of all sizes. They want to figure out how their brands can participate and succeed on Reddit in hopes of increasing their visibility in Google’s search results, SGE, and ChatGPT and building their brand’s visibility amongst one of the most influential audiences on the internet today.
**Quick warning: Reddit requires genuine, long-term engagement and a strategy for success. So, I would definitely advise individuals and businesses to avoid trying to game, spam, or blindly jump into marketing on Reddit and take the time to really understand the platform, its audience, and your place of value within its communities.
Let’s look at how some major brands have been successful on Reddit in the past.
noosa Yoghurt
Noosa Yoghurt’s 2021 back-to-school campaign on Reddit was a great example of tapping into niche audiences to create engaging, user-driven content.
To capitalize on Reddit’s community of vocal yogurt enthusiasts, noosa launched a Flavor Poll that invited Redditors to upvote their favorite noosa flavors in the comments. This created a sense of community and interactivity around what could have been a standard poll.
Screenshot by author from Reddit, May 2024After tallying the upvotes, noosa published a Promoted Post that showcased the results using a sleek custom infographic, highlighting the community’s favorites while also giving the brand important insight into consumer preferences.
Screenshot by author from Reddit, May 2024The results:
- 49% increase in brand recall among Reddit users who were exposed to the campaign.
- 30% increase in brand favorability.
- 39% increase in purchase intent (15X the typical lift observed in the food vertical).
- 50+ billion monthly views.
Sony Pictures Germany
To drum up excitement around the release of “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” in Germany, Sony Pictures Germany crafted a Reddit campaign that combined organic and promoted content to engage the platform’s robust fan communities.
The brand created a Reddit account under the protagonist’s name, u/MilesMorales, and used it to share exclusive content directly within Spiderman-related subreddits.
It also organized an AMA with the German voice actor Miles Morales to create a more personal connection with fans and promoted video posts featuring the movie trailer to amplify the excitement.
Screenshot by author from Reddit, May 2024The results:
- Sony Pictures Germany achieved a click-through rate (CTR) that was 344% higher than that of its standard paid media.
- 831 upvotes.
- 618,000 impressions.
- The film remained No. 1 on the German movie charts for three consecutive weeks.
It is important to note that promoting your content and your brand on Reddit is definitely not the only value Reddit can bring you and your business.
Reddit is an amazing place to get honest feedback.
Whether you are trying to figure out what your target audience wants from your brand, test out a new feature or concept before investing and launching it openly, or even just to have continued open communication with your customers to support them and keep them connected to your brand, Reddit can help you succeed in an amazing way.
Transamerica Helping Reddit Make Dollars Make Sense
Transamerica’s campaign on Reddit is a great example of a company identifying an opportunity to connect with its target audience on the subreddit /r/finance.
This allows the company to better understand its customers’ needs and focus on content creation and future marketing plans.
Screenshot by author from Reddit, May 2024Aligning itself with its audience by demonstrating awareness of the topics around personal finance happening in the subreddit, as well as acknowledging the Redditors working at the company, it asked what topics it could create “specifically for the reddit community” around the topic of finance.
It stayed involved and engaged throughout the campaign, responding to threads and maintaining a lighthearted and sometimes humorous tone.
Screenshot by author from Reddit, May 2024After getting all the feedback it needed, it created content around the more popular requests, going as far as branding and designing them similar to Reddit.
Screenshot by author from Reddit, May 2024It even took the time to individually comment a link to the published content on its site, bringing attention back to the overall campaign and the content it created.
This campaign was 10 years ago, and it is still referenced as a core example of engaging on Reddit as a brand in a respectful, thoughtful, and meaningful way.
Why You Should Be On Reddit Wrapup
TL;DR: If your brand has something meaningful to say and is interested in truly connecting with your audience, then yes, you should be on Reddit.
These successful brand campaign examples showcase Reddit’s power when used correctly. With research to understand the specific communities you want to reach, Reddit can have exceptional performance compared to other channels.
The stakes are high to get it right because Reddit communities can be highly negative toward self-serving promotion. But if you put in the effort and solve people’s needs and problems, Reddit has the potential to be a high-performance channel.
Edit: Updated daily active users figure based on Reddit’s Q1 Earnings Report
More resources:
Featured Image: Julia Tim/Shutterstock
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