If business owners have one thing in common it is the discipline of a regular and
thorough review of operating performance. There is one possible exception: marketing, and especially search engine marketing or SEM. This is usually the case with established companies that have grown by expanding existing functions rather than acquiring new ones.
Small and mid-size business CEOs can get an effective handle on their SEM activities-and improve the ROI of their marketing investment-by applying the same thoroughness they use in other critical business areas.
Here's a way to start a 52-week search engine marketing activities calendar.
Organization of the Calendar
This calendar is based on the 4-4-5 week (13 total weeks) quarterly calendar. This results in 3 sets of 4 weeks plus an additional fifth week every quarter. Each set of 4 weeks has an identical weekly discipline.
Each week has a focus and 5 activities to perform. In effect, this equates to an activity a day for an entire business year.
Here is the discipline for months with 4 weeks; the extra 13th week of each quarter will be discussed later.
The 4-Week Marketing Calendar
Week 1
Focus: Keyword Optimization
1. Review your existing keyword list. Evaluate keyword effectiveness such as SER (search engine result) rankings.
2. Cull various sources for keyword ideas, including long-tail ideas.
3. Analyze competitor websites and content for new keyword ideas.
4. Search social media sites, including groups, and identify terms that appear more frequently or stimulate comments.
5. Implement new keywords in existing content, plan new content around new keywords, or test the pull of various keyword options.
Week 2
Focus: On-Page Optimization
1. Optimize landing pages and plan new ones as needed. Ensure that the best performing keywords are included.
2. Optimize forms. Learn about what attracts data gathering.
3. Optimize Thank You response pages. Keep enticing the visitor closer by offering new material that draws the visitor deeper into the sales funnel.
4. Expand your use of visuals. Optimize photos with alt tags, add voice-over to your PowerPoint presentations, and examine video options.
5. Optimize your call to action (CTA) buttons. Use color to attract attention.
Week 3
Focus: Off-Page Optimization
1. Update track link quantity and quality.
2. Identify and reach out for new in-bound links with established authority.
3. Analyze competitor links for opportunities.
4. Identify high traffic pages and plan to expand. Identify low traffic pages and decide whether or not to improve.
5. Gather content and link ideas by surveying social media conversations on relevant sites.
Week 4
Focus: Content
1. Expand website content pages using keyword ideas, competitive analysis, and in-bound link targets.
2. Blog. Blog. And blog again. In all fairness, this is an every-week activity.
3. Evaluate your offers-what you trade for lead information. Continually experiment to create increasingly powerful offers.
4. Begin to develop video content. Start simply.
5. Expand the depth, variety, and reach of your presentations. Place them on your website, in blogs, and on social media.
The 13th Week
There are 4 weeks that we call “13th weeks”. Assume that they fall at the end of your business quarter. Here's how you can incorporate them into your 52-Week Search Engine Marketing Activities Calendar:
- First 13th Week: Focus on metrics and analysis.
- Second 13th Week: Focus on best practices.
- Third 13th Week: Focus on who and what influences your target audience.
- Fourth 13th Week: Tour several websites that provide particularly useful content, such as Marketing Experiments, SEOmoz, and Hubspot.
Summary:
Getting the most out of your marketing investment involves the regular disciplines described above. Modify this schedule to fit your particular business needs.
Helpful link:
How to create your 52-week calendar on Google