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The folks over Bruce Clay have released two new SEO tools and the best part is that they’re free.

The first one is called the Search Engine Optimization/KSP tool. It helps you know how competitive the keyword term or phrase is that you wish to optimize for. Just type in the keywords and the results appear in a chart below. Here’s a screenshot of how it works.

The second tool is the SEMToolBar. It’s only available for Internet Explorer. Use the search box with the toolbar to conduct a search for the keyword or phrase you’re interested in. Once the regular results load, wait a few moments as the toolbar performs its magic. Underneath the results, you’ll see a variety of competitive intelligence data including page rank and inbound links.

Related Reading:
CrazyEgg: Free SEM/SEO Analytics Tool Blows My Mind
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TNS Unveils Next Generation of Online Advertising Monitoring Tools
magnify360 Launches New Paid Search Tool: Google Cost Optimizer
AdWords Keyword Tool Now Shows Numerical Data

Any well-rounded Internet marketing campaign must include a strong e-mail marketing campaign. In today’s small business search engine marketing column, “E-mail Marketing Tips for Small Business,” Carrie Hill shows how search plays a role when you use PPC or organic search to grow your subscriber list.

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It’s Christmas Eve. If you’re in need of a last minute gift, might I suggest gift cards? You won’t be alone, contrary to reports that gift cards are on their way out. At least, that’s according to new data on gift card searches released by Hitwise.

Sure, there’s been a dip in searches, but gift cards are very much alive.

Besides, this data doesn’t even include the number of people going directly to a website and ordering a gift card. That’s what I do. I’ve bought e-gift cards for Apple iTunes, Amazon.com and Southwest Air without ever conducting search.

But those conducting searches reveal an interesting trend: searching for discounted gift cards that can be found via Craigslist. Sometimes people get or purchase gift cards they won’t use so they sell them for less than the value of the card on Craigslist.

An analysis of search terms “breadth” shows just how popular this trend is:

Want to win an American Express gift card? Then take the Search Engine Watch Readership Survey and enter to win a $200 gift card.

Related Reading:
Bill Tancer of Hitwise Analyzes Economy on SES Webcast
Keyword Research from Hitwise

Times are tough, but you can weather this economic downturn by taking advantage of some remarkable opportunities for those willing to think outside the box. In today’s online promotion & linkbuilding column, “Look for SEO Opportunities in these Dire Economic Times,” Justilien Gaspard shows you some ways to be poised to outrank your competition when the economy turns around.

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The economic downturn may not be affecting search advertising, according to the latest Mid-Quarter Search Engine Update from AdGooroo. The report shows that first-page advertising activity on all three search engines was up sharply during the first two months of Q4. Google active advertiser counts were up about 54.9%, Yahoo up 11.2%, and Microsoft up 29.6%

Some of the uptick is due to increased spending on holiday campaigns across the engines. Some of Google’s large increase in advertiser counts is due to the increase in ads per page that Google implemented this quarter.

In addition, AdGooroo reports that We estimate that Microsoft has increased its advertiser share from 11.5% in Q3 to about 15.8% in Q4, a 37% increase. That brings Microsoft much closer to second-place Yahoo, which stands at 22.1%, with Google squarely in the lead at 80.3%.

The full 4-page report is available for download.

According to new research by Citigate Dewe Rogerson, 51.4% of marketers in the UK and Ireland use search engine optimization (SEO) tactics for public relations (PR) purposes. Brilliant!

And almost two-thirds of respondents suggesting that internet-based PR was important. Brilliant!

However, just over four in 10 marketers in the UK and Ireland said that they did not have the in-house digital skills to develop a sound online PR strategy, while 31.2% indicated that their organizations did not fully understand the business benefits of internet PR.

Well, to remedy that situation, all marketers need to do is attend Search Engine Strategies London, February 17-19, 2009. On the agenda are sessions like:

Universal & Blended Search — Search result multiplicity is not a new phenomenon, but recent advancements guarantee that the world of search and marketing will be changing forever. Before you attend this week’s optimization and best practices sessions, learn from industry gurus how the steps that follow the search are developing. Our ongoing series on universal search will include research data available only at SES.

Online Video Update: The Next Wave — This session will provide tips on how to navigate the new wave of online video, as more people are watching, sharing, and finding videos online. It will cover the four contributing factors to the massive surge in popularity and predicted continued growth for online video, as well as the converging factors that have led to the next wave of online video search. The panelists will also discuss the issues with video search, and the industry’s desire for standards on how to tag, organize, and find videos.

SEO Through Blogs & Feeds — Not yet running a blog? Not syndicating your content through web feeds? Then you’re missing out on an important area that can help your overall SEO efforts. Learn more about the unique advantages blogs and feeds offer to search engine optimization.

News Search SEO — News search engines offer a great way to receive targeted traffic related to breaking topics or to help with a public relations launch. In this session, we look at how to make use of press releases and news content to tap into the power of news search.

Video & Podcast SEO — New products make it easier to locate video content from across the web or to find “podcast” programs, on-demand radio-like shows people can listen to on MP3 players or their computers. This session will provide a look at various services and how to get your content visible and audible within them.

Brand & Reputation Management — Can you use a competitor’s trademark in your own search advertising? Or what if a competitor has an ad running on your trademarked brand name? Should you engage professional legal help or are there other options? What if bloggers are posting negative or false claims about your brands and these are spreading with viral speed through other blogs? Are there ways to get these damaging messages out of the search engines? This session will provide an exploration of these and other brand protection issues.

Beyond Linkbait: Getting Authoritative Mentions Online — Link building is crucial, but linkbait tactics that worked this year may not be as effective next year. This session focuses on the underlying quality as well as ingenuity needed to get other websites to link to you early and often. It will also explain how you should approach journalists, bloggers and other authoritative sources to enhance your company’s online reputation, whether or not you get links.

And on Friday, February 20, 2008, there are half-day workshops, including:

Reaching Your Audience Through Blogs, taught by Jennifer Laycock of Search Engine Guide.

Link and Reputation Workshop, taught by Dixon Jones of Receptional.

In other words, marketers can develop the in-house digital skills to develop a sound online PR strategy. And, if their organizations don’t fully understand the business benefits of internet PR now, they will by the end of SES London 2009.

At SES London 2008, I interviewed Lee Odden, CEO of TopRank Online Marketing, about some of the public relations oriented sessions at that conference.

And if you register for one of the SES conference packages before Dec. 22, 2008, you can save up to £300 with the Early Bird Rate. Brilliant!

The year-over-year gains for Google that we saw in Nielsen Online’s October 2008 search engine rankings were mirrored in comScore’s rankings for the same month.

Google enjoyed a nice 63.1% share, up from 58.5% during the same time last year. Yahoo was at 20.5% down from 22.9%> Microsoft was at 8.5%, down from 9.7%.

There was one major difference between Nielsen and comScore. Nielsen said the number of searches declined, while comparing comScore’s October 2008 data to its 2007 data shows that the number of searches increased to 12.6 million billion up from 10.5 million billion.

Check out the rest of the data here:

Google AdWords has released a new keyword tool. This one lets users plug in their website and a few keywords. The tool, dubbed Search-based keyword tool, takes a look at the site and makes suggestions for keywords that may be relevant to your paid search campaign.

The idea is that you might be missing out on terms that are being searched for. I have to admit, when I’ve used keyword tools, I’ve often been wishing I knew what people were searching for instead of guessing.

But the SEO copywriter in me also knows that so many sites are already optimized for keyword terms based on traditional keyword research, which often starts with a guess.

Plus, the existing keyword tool takes keywords and phrases plugged in by the user already returns a bunch of suggestions.

The tool’s strength lies in avoiding human error. In other words, the existing AdWords keyword tool relies on human entry. This tool looks at the site and can help marketers avoid overlooking terms they may have missed.

Still, remember the tool is in beta. And Google makes it clear that it’s not responsible if you use their suggested keywords in a way that violates the law. Say, by creating an ad that includes a trademarked term.

Related Reading:
AdWords Keyword Tool Now Shows Numerical Data

Women are planning to spend less according to two surveys released today.

In a survey by the Marketing to Moms Coalition, moms plan to cut spending on holiday gifts. Offline is expected to be hit the hardest, with an 8% drop over last year. Online will decline by 2%.

“Older kids tend to want expensive presents like cell phones, video games, trendy clothes and computer equipment,” says Maria Bailey, a founder of the Marketing to Moms Coalition, and author of the book, Mom 3.0, Marketing with Today’s Mother by Leveraging New Media and Technology. “Moms are telling their older kids that this year, they’re just going to have to wait.”

Another survey from Frank About Women shows that women (not just moms) are planning to cut holiday spending. First on the chopping block? Themselves.

62% of women are asking friends and family to forgo buying them a gift this year due to the economy.

They asked survey participants who would be cut from the gift list that normally would be on.

So, who is getting a gift this year?

“Not only are women planning to spend less on others, they are actively encouraging their friends and family to omit them from the gift list this year,” says Nicole Green, senior strategic brand planner at FAW. “This self-sacrificing mindset represents a significant cultural shift as a renewed sense of fiscal responsibility and frugality trump spending and splurging for many women. Marketers who speak to the real meaning of the holidays are more likely to resonate with women this season and benefit from their spending power.”

Related Reading:
Microsoft Study Reveals Online and Digital Behavior of Women
Mom Bloggers Prove Powerful Resource to Marketing and Branding Success
Moms See Search as Task-Oriented; Websites as Entertainment

When you look at what is and isn’t working for a small business Web site, you’ll find that the most frequent issues fall within six categories. Some are flaws in site architecture, while others are the result of poor planning or marketing discipline. In today’s small business search engine marketing column, “Six Things You Might Be Doing Wrong (And How to Fix Them)!,” Carrie Hill shows you that all six of them are fixable, if you know what to look for.

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