Hacker Moments: Ian on Earned Influence

Ian talks about the importance of "Earned Influence" for a sustainable business and online presence. This Hacker Moment is straight from Ian's SEI (Search Engine Influence) playbook. Earned Influence makes the world go round whilst "Bought Influence" is a bit of a fake it to you make it situation. 

Transcription:

"Today I'd like to talk about earned influence versus bought influence.

Advertising is a critical piece and building brand awareness. Don't get me wrong about that. But you need to back it up with an organic and a sustainable online presence. That's just how it is these days. And you probably don't need me to tell you that businesses have been relying on advertising since day one. The thing is, though, in this heavily distracted modern world, it's just not going to work on its own. This whole advertising thing is in a state of flux. It's changing. And people are starting to mistrust what's put in front of them. Can you blame them?

When it comes to search engine advertising, like Google AdWords, it's not that the users think that they're being deceived. But there's an intrinsic trust, for the organic result above all else. Unfortunately, a ton of businesses out there still rely on Google AdWords as the sole method of getting new customers.

These godforsaken businesses, are yet to discover the benefits of earned influence. Earned Influence involves developing the core of the individuals in the organisation, aligning purpose and projecting that online with real strategy. Anyone can spin up a bunch of tactics and tools and a marketing plan. But that's not what this is about. Now, there's nothing wrong with buying some awareness, but it has to be backed up with a strong organic presence. This means a compelling story, a clear message, a real brand, engaging content on the right platforms targeting the right audience. at the right times.

And it has to be optimised.

Search engines rely on webmasters to set up their website and their web presence so it can easily retrieve the information. I'm sick and tired of people out there saying that organic activities like SEO, don't matter anymore. If anything, at this moment in time right here right now, it's never been more important.

So let's get the mix right.

Do you want your customers to find you, understand you, trust you, have a real relationship with you?

I'm Ian Hopkinson.

And you're listening to Human Hackers."