This past weekend proved to be productive between Jennifer Laycock, search engine marketer and owner of the The Lactivist Breastfeeding blog and the National Pork Board, who had ordered her to remove a shirt used to raise funds for an Ohio breastmilk bank.

She has been offered a new, approved slogan - “The Original White Milk”.

But more importantly, the response she got from the Pork Board fit what I had hinted at earlier in another post covering this. I felt that the members of the Board, upon learning of this lawsuit, would not agree with the message. It seemed illogical to think this large group would object to breastfeeding or any association with it. Trademark issues could be resolved, but public wrath is another matter.

The good news is that Jen is satisfied, thankful and pleased to report resolution on this matter. Even better, the Pork Industry membership has chosen to donate funds for the cause that Jennifer sells the t-shirts for. Their contributions will help with the “desperately needed refrigeration units that the milk bank had been struggling to purchase.”

I’m also pleased the title I wrote for my blog post at the SearchEngineRoundtable, where I also reported this, turned out to be a favorite. (Search Engine Industry Blogger, Jennifer Laycock, Ordered to Remove Her Shirt)

It’s good to know that Jen has a sense of humor, and that the Pork Board CEO took measures to turn this around to create an agreeable outcome both sides can feel proud of.

Full story on the outcome: Well Done, Pork

I’ve been reading the comments around the Internet on the TV wedding proposal last night. Of course, not everyone is happy for Rand and Geraldine. Reasons vary from hating public displays of affection to feeling robbed that the SuperBowl didn’t run the proposal, (I think whoever made that decision not to run it made a foolish mistake), to bickering that this was just a marketing tactic.

Was this just a marketing tactic?

Heck no. But, Rand and the people who helped him pull this stunt off do know how to work the system. What they did is to create an online portfolio of what they can do as marketers.

Rand went to incredible trouble to create a wedding proposal. Only he knows for sure what drove him. Yes, he deeply loves his fiance. And yes, he has sales blood in him.

It’s something I don’t have and could use a lot more of. I’m content to work behind the scenes. This is not the way with someone like Rand and people like him. They create a world of excitement that surrounds them wherever they go.

I was thinking about how SEOMoz.org can convert all the publicity into sales leads. I’m not saying they want to. What I’m saying is that from the perspective of their website, which is about their services, the steady stream of incoming traffic is usually coming to their blog. Today, there is gigantic horde of people visiting because of the wedding proposal videos and TV commerical last night.

Some people are commenting that this whole thing was done for “linkbait” or to be Dugg or otherwise hit the social media airwaves. I doubt this was the incentive, but it is certainly a by-product of doing something like this. However, rather than throwing a sales lead form at everyone during this period of time, Rand and Geraldine are off somewhere celebrating their engagement.

Could they convert these visitors to potential customers? Do they have call to action links on the blog thread persuading visitors to inquire about services while they are posting or reading congratulations posts? Is there momentum built into the SEOmoz blog to keep the multitude of people on their website?

No.

People can certainly linger on the SEOMoz site if they wish to, but most will watch the video somewhere else and never visit SEOMoz. If this was linkbait, it was misdirected to the wrong target market. How many web site owners watch the Veronica Mars show? I’ve never heard of it. Had it aired during the SuperBowl, how many viewers would have recognized Rand? The commercial never mentions his company or what he does for a living. Nor, does her “reaction video”.

Was the incentive a marketing ploy? I seriously don’t believe that. What he did demonstrate, along with the help of some marketing friends, is how this can be done. It took six months, a ton of money, travel, secrets, and a clever pre-run marketing campaign. They educated us by making their steps public (and raising funds for the Vanderbilt Childrens Hospital in the process), and Rand demonstrated the skills his company can bring to the table if you wish to hire them.

This is no longer the man who wears his trademark yellow shoes to conferences to be remembered.

Did this highly public proposal bring forth links? Gosh yes. Traffic? Definitely. The kind that makes servers cry. Will everyone know them wherever they go? Yes, for about two weeks and then they melt back into the universe again as regular folks.

Did they ask any of us to place an order for search engine marketing services after we viewed the videos?

No.

Sometimes the thing that drives us the most is loving somebody very much.

I am such a lush. SUCH a big, romantic baby. Well. It’s done. Rand Fishkin, known to everyone in the search engine marketing industry as the gorgeous heart throb behind SEOMoz.org, popped the question to his long-time girlfriend, Geraldine, during her favorite TV show.

Here is the commerical where he proposed during the Veronica Mars show.

Here is her reaction.

To be honest, I think Rand risked losing her. At any second, I was thinking they would need to call an ambulance, or get some oxygen to her.

But, I had faith. I know Rand, and he’s head over heels in love with her. I only “know” Geraldine from her writings in the SEOMoz blog. She’s a skilled writer who writes from the heart and with humor in all the right places. Her warmth comes through even when she’s put on the spot by a surprise marriage proposal intended to be aired during the Super Bowl game.

I am a lush.

Yes, I cried. I’m still all choked up. I love to witness real love.

We need more of this stuff.

By the way?

She said “yes!”.

Another lawsuit by blind users has been filed. This time, it’s Oracle under fire. Oracle sued by blind workers in Texas.

The suit, filed in Texas state court, alleges Oracle’s human resources software and other products do “not provide equal access to blind persons using screen access technology”. One plaintiff says he is unable to review or enter hours worked, leave taken or information concerning employees he supervises without the help of a sighted colleague. The suit names Oracle and at least three Texas officials. It alleges the Oracle software replaced a package that was largely accessible to blind users.

Hat tip Rosie Sherry

I’m fortunate that when I become busy and can’t write something worthy in my blog, I have good friends to introduce you to. This time, I have something to offer that’s helpful to those who want advice on starting a new website and something else for those who are light-years ahead of the game.

Yuri Filimonov has written Create a small business website on a small budget

I like checklists and articles that organize projects. That’s what Yuri does in his article. He links to affordable resources. He understands you may not have the skills to do everything yourself, and offers ideas on how to deal with that.

Yuri hits on the good stuff, including accessibility, usability, search engine marketing, template modification and optimization, linking and much more. He put some research into it and shares reputable leads to help get you going with confidence.

Reminder

For those of you in the USA who were involved with the launch of Search Marketing Standard magazine, the free ride may be over. It’s time to officially subscribe. To learn more about them, here is reader feedback and their active Search Marketing Standard blog.

Information Foraging

Hardcore folks interested in what makes humans tick when it comes to search and website usage will love this new book, due out in April 2007. It’s called Information Foraging Theory, written by Darwin Peter Pirolli. A peek into this book, called Book Preview: Information Foraging Theory, has this to say:

Most books on human-computer interaction (HCI) and usability give recommendations based on empirical research, guidelines fit to observed user behavior, and cognitive models after the fact. Peter Pirolli, the father of information foraging theory, has written a new book that models and predicts what users will do before they navigate a website. Using mathematical models of human behavior, Pirolli lays out the foundation of information foraging theory, a relatively new field based in part on optimal foraging theory in animals (Stephens & Krebs 1986). The result is a seminal work in Oxford University Press’ series on Human-Computer Interaction.

In case that sounds too complicated, this may spark your engine.

The book answers following questions that have vexed web developers for over a decade.
1. Why we abandon one website for another
2. Why a small decrease in “information scent” can exponentially increase search costs
3. How breakthrough discoveries occur

I may put this on my Amazon WishList, for my birthday in May.

How To Spend Our Money

Bruce Clay Inc. won some scholarship money from Cre8asiteforums and is looking for ideas on how to spend it. The beauty of their award is that they, like Search Engine College, chose to up the anty by targeting two students rather than one.

Because we’ve always supported opportunities for search engine optimization education, we’ve decided to match the money awarded to us in order to create an even greater opportunity for one deserving group or individual.

I’d write more, but my fingers are freezing. If you live on a nice warm island, could you send some of the heat to Pennsylvania? Thank you.