It’s official; the Student SEO Syndicate is now an official
U of A Club. Major props to our new executive board members, Juan Pantoja
(Tresurer), Stephen Roda (VP of Search Marketing), Alex Screven (Secretary), Roey Chasman (Webmaster) and
Joey Winnicki (VP of Internal Operations).
In our Search Marketing department
we welcome Travis Marr (Affiliate Marketing Lead), Zak Lorenz (Graphic Design
Specialist), Nathan Gamerford (Link Building Specialist), Ryan Nelson (Programming Specialist) and myself, Charlie
Leathers (Text Editor). Positions still open include, Programming Specialist,
SEO Guru, Client Relations Coordinator, Social Media Specialist, Campaign
Manager and a Keyword Research Specialist.
Working with the Internal VP and leading our recruitment effort is Elliot Rosenfeld in the Management Department. Missing positions in the management area are Information Manager,
Meeting Coordinator, Corporate Relations and Lesson Planning.
The members who stepped up to fill these positions are taking on a monumental task. I for one am
excited to work with each and every one of you, we had some good minds in the last
meeting and I’m sure we will do awesome things. The workshop and guest speaker this Tuesday should really be an amazing experience. With that said, lets get to
work and recruit some members to fill these gaps in our syndicate.
Text Editor, SSEOS
Charlie Leathers
@CharlieLeather1
Search engine optimization (SEO) is
a relatively new field of study that is in essence a new style of marketing for
companies. With the advent of the Internet and the virtual shrinking of the
world, any person located any where with an Internet connection is able to
promote their business and products. SEO is one tool that is just beginning to
be used to its potential. Individuals and communities of online forums and blogs
pour hours into learning new processes and techniques to use for promoting
their clients to the top the search charts. By relating keywords to websites of
interests, people have begun to make large sums by promoting websites to their
proper cliental.
One
individual, John Allen, has 25 years of sales and marketing experience, which
involves file-sharing technology in his earlier years, a product he sold to
Microsoft in 1998. He then worked with WireSpeed Communications process of taking
advantage of the marketing possibilities available with Search Engines. During
the 2000’s John has worked with many other companies and is making a living
selling his SEO and Search Engine Marking skills.1
John Allen
will be presenting a lecture for Student SEO Syndicate on April 3rd introducing SEO. The lecture will begin at 6:30pm in Modern Languages Room 505. Anyone is invited to attend!
Did
you stumble here through a link on your Facebook wall
and immediately ask yourself "Why should I care about SEO?"
Or maybe you thought "What the heck is SEO?" There
are explanations for both of these questions, the latter requiring a
much simpler response so I'll start there. SEO is a commonly used acronym for
Search Engine Optimization. Search Engine Optimization is the process of
increasing a websites 'page rank.' Page rank refers to where a particular
website appears on the list of websites a search engine (Google, Yahoo, etc.)
turns up for a particular search inquiry. Secondly, EVERYONE should care about
SEO. Technology is becoming more integrated into our lives every day.
The internet is one of the most important among these new technologies and the
primary cause of the "flattening" of the world as put by Thomas Friedman. Can you guess who the most
prominent/important/valuable online company is? I'll give you a hint, it's not Facebook...It's Google! The
most powerful search
engine of them all, controlling 80% of all search engine traffic, and
one of the most valuable companies in the world on or off the
web.
SEO specialists, figuratively, try to pick
the brain of the mega giant. They compete with other SEOs to be displayed at
the top of search results for certain keywords or keyphrases someone, such as
yourself, enters into Google's search box. This process is extremely
complicated and SEOs are always being forced to adapt new criteria for Google's
ever changing page rank algorithms.
Being informed in the subject of SEO gives
you a competitive edge in today's market. You are able to spread your ideas or
company across the web. You are capable of directing web traffic however you
choose. You have an understanding of how the most powerful company on the web
operates!
If you still are questioning whether or not
SEO matters to you, are you majoring in any of the following?
SEO consulting firms and the in-house SEO
branch of some larger businesses hire graduates primarily with one of these
degrees. There is no formal 'SEO major' and it's not a topic typically covered
in college classes (I could not find any mentioning of SEO by any department at
the U of A, despite looking through courses in Eller's marketing courses,
Computers Science courses, SISTA courses, and speaking with students and staff
in each department). Theses majors cover topics relevant to different
occupations in an SEO company but do not touch on it directly. Being informed
in SEO gives you an advantage over other graduates who may also want a job at
an SEO company, but lack any actual SEO skills or abilities because they never
joined the Student SEO
Syndicate at the U of A.
Why would anyone want to work in SEO?
Working in SEO appeals only to those
wanting a 6 figure salary, those wanting to learn a trade that is
valuable to almost any business, and those wanting the option to work for
yourself as a consultant, at a small SEO agency or large companies with
in-house SEO specialists.
It is truly hard to believe that SEO is not
yet a major. If you want to learn something that is going to give you an
advantage over others and make you stick out to companies even at a young age,
I urge you to come to our first meeting. The more people we have in our
club, the more we can all learn. Keep in mind we will be using SEO on
real companies in the Tucson area and you will be able to watch your hard work
be put to use in the the business world.
What:
Student SEO Syndicate's introductory meetings
When:
Friday, March 2. 5:30pm-6:30pm and Wednesday, March 7. 5:30pm-6:30pm
Where: U of A campus,
Psych building, room 308 52DNT 530 5ND1C8
It's official!
The Student Search Engine Optimization Syndicate is having it's first meetings
next week. It will be held on the University of Arizona campus in room 308 of
the psychology building. There will be two introductory meetings
to accommodate everyone's schedules. The first will be on
Friday, March 2 from 5:30pm to 6:30pm. The second will be Wednesday, March 7
from 5:30pm to 6:30pm. To clarify, these are both introductory meetings
so there's no need to go to both (unless you are super stoked about
SEO!!). Due to this being an introductory meeting, we will not be going too in
depth about the complicated practice of SEO, instead we will be focusing on the
structure of the club and the roles of it's members. If you are looking for a
way to get involved on campus or to gain a great resume builder, then
definitely stop by at the meeting that works best for you next week! Members of
the Search Engine Optimization Syndicate this semester will influence the
operations for years to come. Critical components that comprise the
architecture of SEO Club's operations will be molded by the collective input
from its founding members. If you are looking to have an even larger impact on
campus then consider running for an officer position at the Student SEO
Syndicate. Officers will be expected to contribute more to the club than a
standard member but rest assured, all efforts made towards the furthering of
SEO club in it's early stages will see an exponential return on investment
in years to come. I encourage anyone willing to help out a few hours each week
to run for a position. Even if you aren't sure what the acronym, SEO, stands
for, if you have a strong drive and want to be at the core of the club's
operations, RUN FOR AN OFFICER POSITION! You will be brought to speed on the
role your position plays in The Syndicate and any specialized abilities you may
need to understand to be a capable officer. I understand not everyone is
an expert at this, but anyone with leadership skills is encouraged to run for a
position.
We will also cover two important aspects of
the club functionality that operate almost completely independent of each
other. The first is the educational side. This is an avenue for members who
would like to learn how search engine optimization works and also for
experienced members to share their knowledge. The second is the professional
side, where members will team up to practice and experiment with SEO on
businesses' customer websites and our members' own websites.
Here is a general list of topics for
the first meeting:
1. What is SEO?
2. How will we learn to practice SEO?
3. How will we be implementing SEO in a professional
environment?
4. Topics of discussion for upcoming guest lectures (Microsoft, Intel,
Apple, Google, and local SEOs)
5. Club structure
6. Officer positions and elections
I
will also post the power point from the meeting on the Student SEO Syndicate
Homepage if you can't make either of the meetings. This will be an
important meeting if you plan to run for an officer position! Feel free to
contact me for any reason: will@sseosyndicate.com. I look forward to seeing you soon!
What:
Student SEO Syndicate's introductory meetings
When:
Friday, March 2. 5:30pm-6:30pm and Wednesday, March 7. 5:30pm-6:30pm
