SEO Success Stories

Listen as Russ Macumber talks Travel SEO with Brennen Bliss of Propellic

Listen as Russ Macumber talks with the amazing Jakub Rudnik of Scribe about his journey to being the Head of Content Marketing at Scribe.

Listen as Russ Macumber talks with Patrick Stox of Ahrefs about lesser known features of the tool that are amazingly useful.

What is the #1 biggest challenge SEOs face in 2022? “Every niche is becoming more competitive. We need to be more aggressive and relentless with our strategies. SEO is much more expensive than it was 10 years ago. Today a successful SEO approach takes more time, money, content, links, and other technical implementations. The algorithm is better at understanding user intent these days.”Fery Kaszoni is currently the managing director of Search Intelligence, a PR link-building agency that focuses on acquiring high-tier backlinks on reputable and trusted online publications, using research-based insights and PR stories that journalists love. Fery’s first encounter with SEO was unintended, but it sparked his interest in the beneficial alliance between public relations techniques and SEO backlink-building approaches.JOIN RUSS MACUMBER IN CONVERSATION WITH FERY KASZONI ON CREATING NEWSWORTHY CONTENT FOR A SUCCESSFUL SEO BACKLINK STRATEGY.Fery started dabbling in digital marketing around 2008 by experimenting with blogs, XML, and JavaScript. When media outlets were booming with news about water found on the moon, Fery wrote and published an article about the trending topic. Much to his surprise, he gained over 20,000 visitors to his post in less than a day, and his article ranked number one on Google. With a focus on PR link building, Russ Macumber chats with Fery about understanding the media landscape and creating a mutually beneficial exchange with journalists to develop valuable content that produces successful results for the clients. “We don’t care about the client’s product. We need to create a story that interests the journalist and the audience.” - Fery Kaszoni, on creating backlink content that benefits the client and the journalist. Click play to get started!The conversation covers:Fery’s first encounter with SEO (4:09)Fery’s career beginnings (5:55) Fery’s learning process (7:47) The pivotal moment that led Fery to PR link building (9:54) Important learning points (12:04)Client’s involvement in the process (13:28) Coming up with a relevant topic (14:10)Framing content from a unique angle (14:53) How to define a link quality (16:40)The importance of storytelling-focused content (17:36) Building a contact list of journalists (18:49) Industries and niches that suit Fery’s working style and approach (22:01)The structure of the story provided to journalists (23:26)3 key steps to a successful PR link-building experiment (24:42)Quickfire Vox Pop Q&AWhich previous Google algorithm change still keeps you up at night?I started a website in February 2020 and created hundreds of thousands of pages about coronavirus cases for every city and location in the world. I was ranking on page 1 for “Coronavirus Paris” and “Coronavirus London, and I was making many thousands of pounds every month in just passive income. However, a Google update came in May 2022, which turned everything upside down - I lost all the traffic from Google Analytics. Gun to your head… which do you prefer: content or links?Content What’s the most effective link-building technique you have used?PR link building is the most effective technique, but I’m not dismissing other approaches. What do you love most about SEO?The fact that you can be a nobody and in 6 months, you can dominate a certain aspect of a niche. It’s endless opportunities. How do you apply SEO principles to your daily life?If things go wrong, just pick up and go. Things always go wrong with SEO - whether it’s a Google update or the competitors. So pick up, move on, and try different things. WFH life or Office life or Hybrid life?HybridSEMrush or Ahrefs?AhrefsAgency or In-house or Combo?Agency. Agencies are cool. We hope you enjoyed this episode of our podcast! Please tune in for more SEO success stories by hitting “subscribe.”

What is the #1 biggest challenge SEOs face in 2022? “It’s really keeping up with the way that SEO is changing, and it's not just algorithms but integrating SEO with everything else that we're doing in marketing.” “It's another thing to develop authority. This really goes beyond backlinks and has to do with a 360 degree of authority for your campaign.” - Dale BertrandDale Bertrand is a technologist-turned-marketer currently running Fire&Spark, a digital agency in Boston that ignites organic search traffic for a range of industries. With 15 years of experience in engineering and AI systems, Dale has helped develop search marketing strategies for Fortune 500 companies and venture-backed startups to analytically solve marketing problems with highly combustible SEO strategies. When he's not busy with his success agency, you can find him attending a handful of marketing conferences as a Keynote speaker, helping to train marketing professionals from TripAdvisor, HubSpot and many more globally renowned brands. JOIN RUSS MACUMBER AS HE SPEAKS WITH DALE BERTRAND ON EVERYTHING PR LINK BUILDING AND HOW TO CREATE A UNIQUE CAMPAIGN THAT SHOWS WHO YOUR BRAND IS. “We're really starting with what are we gonna do that's remarkable in the space and how are we gonna be a community around that.”- Dale Bertrand.Join us as we hear of Dale Bertrand’s journey to help grow a charitable coffee brand, Fire House, to help support injured firefighters and their families across America. Taking a digital PR link-building focus, we chat with him about this campaign's beginnings and his tips on how to convey your brand's remarkableness in your campaign. The conversation covers:What drew Dale into SEO (3:50)Early experiences of SEO (6:52)Dale’s framework/mindset towards SEO (8:42)Firehouse Coffee journey (11:26)Dale’s view on SEO and Digital PR (17: 44)Initial SEO resources for Fire House Coffee (21:10)First 90 days with Fire House coffee (21:33)Planning process for Fire House campaign (25:22)Major hurdles for Fire House (26:47)Winning stories from the campaign (28:36)Key to continue to grow authority (30:48)Quickfire Vox Pop Q&AWhich previous Google algorithm change still keeps you up at night?All of them. I live in fear that there's another one coming. Gun to your head… which do you prefer: content or links?Backlinks and authority. What’s the most effective link-building technique you have used?PR-related tactics are gonna get you the best links. It’s about questioning what you find remarkable about your brand and what you are doing that's remarkable about your brand in the marketplace. Is the skyscraper technique still relevant today?I believe so. It’s not exactly what we do anymore, but certainly, if you're in a position where it's an opportunity, I’d definitely look into it. What do you love most about SEO?The interdisciplinary aspect such as technical, non-technical, related to marketing/PR, content and, AI etc. But even more than that, I love the folks I get to meet. I get to have conversations with people who do every different facet of marketing and try to understand how their expertise could benefit an SEO campaign. How do you apply SEO principles to your daily life?Most of the grounds on efficient execution and project management, especially when organizing the kids. WFH life or Office life or Hybrid life?I’m an introvert at heart, so a solo office life. SEMrush or Ahrefs?Both organizations have been good to me, and I use both on a daily basis. They're always coming out with interesting tools, so you can't choose. They've also both got some amazing tools in the near future that I'd want to be aware of. Agency or In-house or Combo?I've been both, but I prefer agency life because I want to learn really quickly. We hope you enjoyed this episode of our podcast! Please tune in for more SEO success stories by hitting “subscribe.”

Russ Macumber from SEO Success Stories speaks with Kevin Indig from Shopify about his journey and experience in SEO. Kevin shares his insights with us.

“I think one of the biggest challenges [facing SEOs in 2022] is one of the biggest opportunities as well: organic marketing has a real opportunity to push for and get buy-in for further investment.”Lindsay Sakraida is currently the Director of Content Marketing at Yotpo, a cloud-based content marketing platform for e-commerce businesses that allows users to collect user-generated content and use that content to build a brand.But don’t call Yotpo a ‘unicorn’ - the company prefers to be referred to as a ‘flamingo:’ a real animal, because Yotpo provides real value. Join Russ Macumber as he talks with Lindsay Sakraida about her journey in content marketing and copywriting.Russ Macumber talks with Lindsay, who comes from a writing and content marketing background, about her SEO journey. As a growth marketer with a strong background in content production, SEO best practices, and media outreach, Lindsay has extensive experience generating content campaigns to support acquisition, retention, and business development goals. Learn about her experience here“Not all traffic is good traffic.”Click play to get started!The conversation covers:How Lindsay started her SEO career (4:03)What does “just write good content” mean? (9:44)The importance of review recency (11:00)Progression from DealNews to WeWork (11:50)About the Yotpo platform (13:48)Lindsay’s experience at Yotpo (17:32)The content marketing structure at Yotpo (19:02)Moving the needle in Lindsay’s first 90 days at Yotpo (20:30)Lindsay’s SEO role models (22:12)Forecasting Yotpo’s direction and success (24:19)Barriers at Yotpo (25:55)Secret software tools: revealed! (30:01)Quickfire Vox Pop Q&AWhich previous Google algorithm change still keeps you up at night?Panda. Duplicate content was a real problem at the timeGun to your head… which do you prefer: content or links?Content, but that’s pretty obviousWhat’s the most effective link-building technique you have used?I think partnering with PR and media outreach (it’s so much more authentic)Is the skyscraper technique still relevant today?I do…What do you love most about SEO?I really love learning what people are searching for. Sometimes you stumble on the funniest things.How do you apply SEO principles to your daily life?I guess just always thinking about “what do people really want?”WFH life or Office life or Hybrid life?Hybrid-life.SEMrush or Ahrefs or Moz?I like SEMrushAgency or In-house or Combo?I think a combo can be really great, especially depending on where your strengths lie and what your goals are.We hope you enjoyed this episode of our podcast! Please tune in for more SEO success stories by hitting “subscribe.”

Listen as show host Russ Macumber talks with the guru Tom Critchlow about his experience as a consultant working with senior leaders, and his journey to starting The SEO MBA program.

Friend of the show, Steve Wiideman, returns for another episode to give us an update on what he has been doing and his experience working with International House of Pancakes (IHOP).

Listen as show hosts Russ Macumber & Gabriel Grossman talks with Eli Schwartz - Growth Advisor, SEO Strategic Consultant, Author and much much more - about his journey and top tips for mastering your SEO quest.

Listen as show hosts Russ Macumber & Gabriel Grossman talks with author, podcast host and SEO teacher Kate Toon about how she got into the industry and what tips she has for budding SEO ninjas.

Listen as show host Russ Macumber talks with Leanne Follis of JLL about what got her interested in SEO and how she used her passion for learning to turn it into a career.

Listen as show host Gabriel Grossman talks with Mordy Oberstein of Semrush about his SEO journey.

Listen as show hosts Russ Macumber & Gabriel Grossman talk with Steve Wiideman from Applebee's, IHOP and more as he talks about his SEO journey.

Listen as show hosts Russ Macumber & Gabriel Grossman talk with Patrick Stox from Ahrefs about his SEO journey.

Listen as show hosts Russ Macumber & Gabriel Grossman talk with Mateen Agha from Virgin Megastore about his SEO journey.

Listen as Russ Macumber of Impressive Digital talks with Gaetano DiNardi, formerly of Nextiva, about his SEO journey and what his key tips and tricks are for any aspiring SEO ninja.

Listen as show hosts Russ Macumber & Gabriel Grossman talk with Lyndon Barnett of Vodafone about his SEO journey.

Listen as show hosts Russ Macumber & Gabriel Grossman talk with Amanda King from Optus about her SEO journey, from content writer to all-round superstar.