Unfolding global events and shifts in the economy suggest your marketing strategy may need an about-face. It’s time to find new marketing strategies to protect your business. A hard look at your search marketing can help. In this presentation, Pat Reinhart, VP of Digital Strategies at Conductor, shares how SEO-forward moves can help position your company for challenging business environments in 2020 and beyond. We will: – Uncover how to utilize SEO best practices to safeguard your brand. – Determine which new paths in SEO lead to a more resilient business. – Learn new tactics to safeguard your digital presence.

1. The Future Of SEO
How To Safeguard Your Brand
In An Unpredictable World
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2. vv
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Pat Reinhart
VP, Digital Strategies at
Conductor
Co-lead Customer Success
16 Years In SEO
Bitmoji Enthusiast
Who Is This Guy?

3. There’s Lots Of
Uncertainty In The
World…
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4. #SEJWebinar
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Have You Cut Your Media Budget
During This Time?
We have cut
it slightly
We have cut
it steeply
No it will
remain the
same We have
increased it
steeply
We have
increased it
slightly

5. #SEJWebinar
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65%
of marketers anticipate a decrease to
their annul marketing budget
86%
of marketers predict that their
marketing goals will be harder to
reach
While decreased budgets are
marketers top concern, staff
reductions and channel limitations
are also top perceived threats to
marketing performance
More than half of marketers believe
that SEO is more important during
this time

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35%
Of respondents say a
reduction in
marketing budget
is their greatest
concern surrounding
the impact of COVID-
19 on their marketing
performance.
58%
Of respondents say if
faced with a
global recession,
they will have to
lower their budget.
47%
Of respondents say the
Coronavirus
situation will make
their company’s ability
to achieve their
annual marketing
goals more
difficult.
63%
Of respondents say
SEO will be more
important during this
time.

7. #SEJWebinar
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0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
58%
29%
25%
28%
23%
31%
8%
How Would A Global Recession Impact
Your Marketing Strategy?

8. #SEJWebinar
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Will SEO Be More Or Less Important
During This Time?
It will
decrease
slightly
It will
decrease
steeply
No it will
remain the
same It will
increase
steeply
It will
increase
slightly

9. #SEJWebinar
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No, it will remain the
same; 19.80%
It will decrease slightly;
2.53%It will decrease greatly;
1.92%
It will increase slightly;
34.14%
It will increase steeply;
29.29%
I don't know; 12.32%
Will SEO Be
More Or Less
Important
During This
Time?

10. Why Should I Care
About This?
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11. #SEJWebinar
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Search Is More Important Than Ever In These Times
• Organic & content initiatives are always “on”.
• Easy to pivot and reprioritize given that’s pretty much what we
are always doing.
• People are home searching for answers and help. We can all
create content to help our customers.
• Most cost-effective investment compared to just about every
other digital channel.
• What we create now will help us in the long term.

12. What Can I Do?
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13. #SEJWebinar
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Address What’s Happening, But Don’t Be Afraid To Not Address It
• Create content that addresses what’s going on, like the graphs I just
showed you. Conductor did a survey specifically to address the situation.
• Don’t be afraid to create content for your customers and users. While we
did corona-specific pieces, we are still working on general content.
• BE CAREFUL WITH YOUR MESSAGING – You don’t want to seem like
you are trying to capitalize on the situation.

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Plant Those Trees Now
• SEO takes time, so companies that invest in it will have a
cost-effective engine to keep traffic, leads, and sales coming
during downturns.
• Companies that rely mainly on paid media are hurting
through these times. Help yours not be that company.
• Remember that this is a snapshot in time and there is the
other side to this that we all need to be planning for.

15. #SEJWebinar
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Talk To Other Teams…PLEASE
hey. hey.
If you haven’t already, now is the time to start
collaborating with other teams within your
organization.
• Talk to paid folks
• Talk to social folks
• Talk to content folks
• Talk to IT / Tech
• Big One - Talk to execs
This is a bitmoji I
made of our COO
Selina.
I bug her constantly.

16. #SEJWebinar
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Experiment, Break Stuff, Try New Things & Tools
All of us have wish lists and things we wish we can get to every
day, get to those now.
• Try out new tools
• Try out new processes
• Try to break something that currently “works”
• Try something that will make everyone’s job easier, not just
yours.

17. Old H1

19. New H1

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Recap!
• Uncertain points in time are a given, be ready to pivot and change. You’re in SEO so this
shouldn’t be an issue. The Googs has made us battle ready.
• Search is more important than ever during times like these but is also always important. Make
sure everyone in your org knows that.
• Address the issues but also be ok not addressing them.
• SEO trees planted now will provide shade in the future on hot days.
• Try new things now that will help everyone in your org, not just you.