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melty94 · 1 month

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How to build your own SEO ‘second brain’ (and why you need it)

Whether you’re an internal SEO whiz or a digital agency pro, chances are you’ve experienced one or more of these all-too-familiar problems:

Feeling drowned in an ocean of ever-evolving industry trends.

Spending forever in the set-up phase, building deliverable trackers, audit sheets, keyword map templates, content briefs, and backlog grooming can feel like you’re on a never-ending treadmill.

Yes, I’ve been there too. I felt the relentless churn and knew that something had to shift dramatically if I wanted to continue growing as an SEO.

This realization led me to discover the game-changing concept of building a “second brain,” an idea popularized by Tiago Forte.

I’ve since applied this concept to my own SEO practices. Below, I’ll cover how you can build your own SEO second brain.

Why you should consider building an SEO second brain

Before building a second brain, let’s examine what an organic brain excels at and where it falls short. Here’s a quick snapshot:

Our brains are great at:

Generating original ideas.

Interconnecting ideas and spinning compelling narratives.

Fostering empathy with others.

But terrible at:

Retaining information over a prolonged period.

Segmenting and categorizing stored data.

Retrieving and applying stored information.

By delegating the latter tasks to an external database or a “second brain,” you can better store and retrieve crucial documentation, templates, and key learnings between websites.

Most importantly, never again will you forget crucial information when you most need it.

How to start building your own SEO second brain

Building your second brain may seem daunting initially, but take it one step at a time, and you’ll get there. Start with the following steps and tips:

Selecting the right tools to suit the way you work

Structuring your second brain with the PARA system

Operating your second brain: Start with idea capturing

A quick walkthrough of my own SEO second brain

You can use plenty of systems and platforms to build a second brain. It all comes down to your preference and which platform you’re most comfortable with.

I use Notion to build my SEO second brain (and operate most of my SEO projects), so I’ll use examples from Notion throughout this article.

A great way to identify which tool to use for building your SEO second brain is to get to know your style of information organization. Here are some examples Forte mentions:

The architect: Prefers systematizing information in a hierarchical manner, focusing on large-scale projects and using a systems mindset. They have to be careful not to force information into their system when it doesn’t fit. Apps like Notion and Craft are well-suited to this style.

The gardener: Thrives on cultivating many ideas at the same time, favoring relationships and connections. They must beware of getting easily distracted by new, unrelated information. Apps like Obsidian and Roam are well-suited to this style.

The librarian: Practical and project-oriented, they like to capture information from diverse sources and curate a collection of knowledge. Their pitfall might be amassing content without using it. Apps like Evernote and Microsoft OneNote are well-suited to this style.

The student: Usually new to knowledge management or focusing on a specific part of their life. They favor ease of use and avoid complexity. Apps like Apple Notes or Google Keep are well-suited to this style.

Structuring your second brain with the PARA system

The PARA system stands for:

Projects: Specific tasks linked to a goal or deadline.

Areas: Responsibilities that need to be maintained over time.

Resources: A topic or theme of ongoing interest.

Archives: Inactive items from the other three categories.

Here are some examples of which SEO tasks suit each category.

Projects: Your most important and time-sensitive tasks.

Example: Optimize the internal linking structure for a core landing page by the end of the week.

Areas: Your ongoing optimization efforts and routine tasks.

Example: Create monthly performance reports.

Resources: Shared credentials and background information.

Example: CMS logins and target personas.

Archives: Completed tasks and documentation

Example: Title tags updated over the past 24 months.

I’ve adopted some version of the PARA framework to manage SEO campaigns for 35+ websites.

It’s a game-changer to help me get the most impactful tasks done first and still deliver on smaller issues.

But how does this help me better manage SEO projects?

Traditionally, SEOs tend to structure our work into static categories like keyword research, technical audit, link building, and content production. However, this doesn’t mirror the dynamic nature of SEO projects.

This conventional and static way of organizing information is like categorizing your kitchen by individual ingredients rather than usage and priority (a fun analogy credited to Forte).

Wouldn’t it be odd to organize your kitchen by carrots, potatoes, and fruits rather than stovetop items, pantry goods, and fridge contents?

Like kitchens, static file structures can lead to “cross-contamination” between outdated and fresh documents, making it challenging to locate the most relevant information quickly.

Enter the PARA framework – a dynamic solution reflecting the shifting priorities of an SEO project:

Immediate concerns reside in the Project folder.

Ongoing work belongs to the Area folder.

Thematic and research material is kept in the Resources folder.

Completed tasks and old data go into the Archives folder.

This way, PARA keeps your SEO project fluid, organized, and current.

Operating your second brain: Start with idea capturing

Let’s say you’ve built an SEO second brain of your own. How do you go about using it in the best way possible?

For me, it’s all about idea capturing. This is the act of quickly and effortlessly storing information you’ve encountered throughout the day in a temporary repository.

It’s the single most important mechanism to master in operating a second brain.

That’s because it enables me to quickly and passively store new information in a temporary space of my second brain so that I can later revisit and move it to relevant sections of the brain.

These can include:

Important algorithm or industry updates.

Interesting articles on new tactics I can apply to my own websites.

Add meeting notes and recordings throughout the day.

Insightful conversations I’ve had with my colleagues.

I’ve built an empty page in my second brain called the Idea Capturing Station, meant to do just this, keeping it immediately accessible to me at all times on both desktop and mobile.

Here’s an example of how I quickly capture an interesting article on desktop:

And here’s how I quickly capture a new idea on mobile:

A quick walkthrough of my own SEO second brain

Here’s a quick snapshot of what my SEO second brain dashboard looks like.

Each of these individual areas, like Project Timeline, is then linked to separate databases where I store and organize information hierarchically. That’s right. I’m a classic architect when it comes to information organization.

In reality, however, I rarely use this dashboard. I use the tool’s internal search function to find specific areas of my second brain I want to navigate to.

For instance, if I’d like to find one of my project timelines, I can search for it and hop straight to it like so.

Building reusable templates

One of the most useful “powers” of this second brain is its ability to create reusable templates, giving me an almost instant set-up each time we onboard a new client at my agency.

With just a few clicks, I am able to populate a full SEO roadmap timeline, each broken into tickets with specified templates to be delegated to team members and shared with clients. Here are a few examples:

Keyword mapping

Content production

Documentation at hand

What about that time you forgot a key piece of information or statistic while meeting with stakeholders?

I have a database called the Knowledge Bank that allows me to pull up key information to reference at all times.

Let’s say I’m trying to convince some stakeholders that it can be worthwhile pursuing keywords with “zero search volume.”

In the middle of the conversation, I vaguely recall having read an article by Steve Toff on discovering zero search volume keywords, showing strong evidence of their ROI potential.

In this case, I can quickly search for the article on my second brain and reference the article almost instantly.

How to make the most of your second brain? Exercise it!

My second brain is far from complete and probably always will be (very much like our organic brains!).

The key here is to exercise our SEO second brain regularly so that we get better at using it to store, retrieve and synthesize information.

Once you’re familiar, extend your second brain to other domains of life!

Our second brain goes far beyond SEO at Criclabs, the digital agency I’m running. We use it to track new hires, document company processes, run employee portals and more.

The good news is many of us already have an SEO second brain in the works, whether we know it or not. If you have a shared drive to store information or occasionally take notes on your phone, your SEO second brain is already on its way.

What you can do now is what we SEOs know best, optimize it!

Opinions expressed in this article are those of the guest author and not necessarily Search Engine Land. Staff authors are listed here.

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Read more here MIXBOX

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melty94 · 8 months

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The Significance of Dental Treatment: Guaranteeing a Pleased, Healthy Smile

Dental treatment is a vital facet of our total health and wellness as well as wellness. Yet, it is frequently forgotten or overlooked by several people. It is critical to recognize that correct dental health goes beyond just brushing your teeth two times a day. Normal oral exams as well as cleansings play an essential role in preserving a pleased, healthy and balanced smile. Overlooking oral care can lead to a host of problems, including tooth decay, gum tissue condition, and also systemic health and wellness issues.Regular sees to the

dental practitioner not only aid in the early detection and also avoidance of dental issues yet additionally add to much better general health and wellness. Dental professionals are trained experts who can identify and also treat oral concerns before they rise into even more significant issues. They completely clean your teeth, eliminating plaque as well as tartar buildup, which can create cavities and also gum tissue disease. Additionally, dental examinations provide a chance to resolve any type of concerns or inquiries you might have regarding your oral health and wellness, guaranteeing that you are equipped with the understanding and devices to preserve a healthy and balanced smile at home.Paragraph 2: Past the preventative element, correct dental care additionally consists of embracing excellent oral health techniques in the house. Combing your teeth completely with a fluoride toothpaste at the very least twice a day and flossing daily are essential action in preserving healthy and balanced periodontals as well as teeth. It is likewise essential to focus on your diet and stay clear of extreme consumption of sugary and also acidic foods and beverages, which can erode tooth enamel and also lead to cavities.Moreover, oral treatment encompasses other elements of oral wellness, such as dealing with malocclusions or misalignments of the teeth and also jaws.

Orthodontic treatments, such as braces or clear aligners, can not just enhance your smile yet additionally boost your bite as well as overall oral feature. Caring for your oral health and wellness from an early age is crucial, as it establishes the structure for a life time of solid as well as healthy and balanced teeth.In verdict, oral treatment is not just concerning aesthetic appeals; it is an important part of preserving oral wellness as well as general wellness. By prioritizing normal oral check-ups, taking on correct oral hygiene techniques in your home, and also attending to any kind of dental worries promptly, you can guarantee a pleased, healthy smile that lasts a lifetime.

Read more here https://monoimplantdentist.com

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melty94 · 9 months

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YouTube Ads ecommerce guide: When, how and why

Several DTC ecommerce advertisers are doing admirably well with Facebook Ads.

But I don’t think any brand should depend on a single marketing platform.

I’ve written before about how to bring winning Facebook assets over to Google using a Performance Max campaign that replicates the social experience as best as possible.

Today, I want to make a case for when, how, and why to consider YouTube Ads.

What to know before you begin

YouTube is a unique platform – not truly search, not fully social. It’s part of Google, yet it stands on its own. As a result, it’s not easy to master.

I tackled this in 7 important YouTube Ads lessons every media buyer should know. If you don’t want to click through, here’s the gist.

Facebook and Instagram combined great targeting with a captive audience to shorten the conversion cycle, spoiling other platforms for many advertisers. On YouTube, users either watch content they enjoy or learn how to do something.

YouTube lets you target people based on something they searched for, but they’re not actually searching for it at that moment. This intent lag, combined with the diversity of intent, means the “next step” after YouTube has to be particularly compelling.

A brand with a robust organic YouTube program will outdo one that’s using the platform solely for advertising. They have high-quality content waiting for people who end up on their channel from an ad.

A7: It's funny how many companies don't leave their video ad variations unlisted on YouTube. A lot of times you can just go to their channel and see exactly what they're advertising. #ppcchat

— Joe Martinez (@MilwaukeePPC) August 6, 2019

For brand safety, you can opt out of sensitive categories at the campaign level. Paired with audience and interest targeting, you can effectively lock out people who shouldn’t see your ads.

Google leans heavily on automation, so you have to monitor your campaigns. Even with your targeting absolutely right, you still need to feed data back to Google to improve its decision-making.

The reporting for video action campaigns is more in-depth and robust than many other Google campaigns, including Performance Max. You can take advantage of this to optimize quickly and intelligently.

YouTube fits nicely into a wider marketing or media buying mix, whether you need a new platform to expand your audience or want to scale an existing campaign. But you can only succeed if you know and accept its limitations.

With that in mind, here’s why direct-to-consumer (DTC) ecommerce brands should consider YouTube Ads.

Why YouTube and DTC ecommerce pair well

Remember the frame of mind people are in when they’re browsing YouTube.

You’ve got folks in theater mode, looking for a solution or catching up on content. And you’ve got people scrolling through Shorts, similar to the endless scroll of social media.

But unlike Facebook, ads on YouTube are interruptive. Whether they appear at the start of a video or in the middle, you’re asking for attention when people would rather be doing something else.

But if there’s one thing DTC ecommerce advertisers are good at, it’s thumb-stopping hooks.

Ultimately, both platforms are about the retention graph. Like Facebook, YouTube shows you a chart of how many viewers stay on a video until the end. You’ll want to refer to that chart and tweak your creatives accordingly.

How do you get more people to stay to the end? Make your content more interesting.

With a strong hook and compelling storyline, your “ad” could be anything from a music video to a fix-it guide.

As long as it’s entertaining, people will watch videos several minutes in length because that’s what they came to YouTube for.

Another approach is to build around short-form, snackable content. Take your winning ads from Facebook, chop them up if they’re longer than 60 seconds, and populate your channel with several organic Shorts.

You can use these to start advertising (see below for how to set this up). Any content that does well organically should also do well in the ads platform and vice versa.

5 recommendations for new YouTube advertisers

It’s easy to get things wrong on YouTube, from unrealistic expectations to expecting crystal clear attribution. But with the right approach, an already strong brand will likely be elevated further.

Here are five things you should do to give your brand the best chance of achieving that.

1. Know what you’re getting into

YouTube has over 2.68 billion users, making it the second-largest search engine behind Google. So once you’ve tapped out other networks – Search, Shopping, Performance Max, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and everything else – YouTube offers tremendous scale to diversify further.

Note: Google’s attribution is largely click-based, so you won’t see as many reported conversions. Both your ROAS and CPA will be lower than you’re accustomed to, while campaigns will need more time before you start seeing the results in post-purchase surveys.

2. Understand the platform

YouTube Shorts is particularly interesting, but Google doesn’t offer the ability to create a Shorts-only campaign. There are ways of getting past this – kind of.

Create a new video action campaign that targets only mobile devices. This somewhat forces the system to go only to mobile devices, and in that format, it tends to lean towards Shorts.

Be sure to only provide vertical video assets shorter than 60 seconds.

3. Adopt the right mindset

You won’t get the same ROAS you do on Facebook, at least not the same reported ROAS. But it can provide a similar level of incremental revenue and scale.

Your approach must differ since YouTube is about creating awareness so other platforms can win more conversions.

Whatever revenue is reported by Google, know that it’s just a drop in the bucket in terms of its incremental impact on your business.

4. Don’t try too much at once

If you go in heavy with YouTube, there’s a good chance you won’t get any results. Start with one campaign and see how things go. YouTube is budget-intensive.

Without sufficient investment, there’s a good chance that you’ll go months without seeing any scale. Or worse, pull the plug on what could have been a high-potential campaign.

5. Use your own attribution

There’s a strong chance you already use post-purchase surveys to ask customers where they first heard about your brand. This is a good way to find people who discovered you on YouTube but converted elsewhere.

But it’s self-identifying and not foolproof, so you may wish to consider tools like Northbeam or Triple Whale to measure impact. Just remember, no attribution is ever perfect.

YouTube is the next frontier for high-performing ecommerce brands

I like to think of YouTube Ads clicks as the beginning of a beautiful journey.

Some people go on to become website traffic and enter your remarketing campaigns. Some will join your email list. A few may not click or visit your site but think about you later and look for you by name, eventually entering your funnel via a branded ad.

Naturally, attribution and reporting aren’t robust enough to track all that. So you’ll need to be patient, trust in YouTube as well as your own creatives, and look for incremental correlation rather than causation. This means not testing out other platforms as you expand to YouTube.

Keep in mind what YouTube means to people. It’s a source of entertainment, an escape from reality. A place where people go to have their biases confirmed, problems are solved, and businesses and careers are made.

It’s only natural that users value their time there and have demanding attention spans.

But if you’re sitting on winning assets that offer and align with what they’re looking for, ignoring YouTube is as good as leaving money on the table.

Opinions expressed in this article are those of the guest author and not necessarily Search Engine Land. Staff authors are listed here.

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