Conductor CEO Seth Besmertnik explains the new universal search optimization features in the Searchlight SEO platform and introduces the Conductor Foundation, a grant and SEO training opportunity for New York area nonprofit organizations.
The makers of enterprise-level SEO platform Searchlight recently started the Conductor Foundation to help local nonprofit organizations increase their organic search visibility. Last week at their C3 event, Conductor awarded a grant to advocacy and service organization Housing Works and announced the addition of universal search optimization to the Searchlight platform.
A new initiative for Conductor, their foundation aims to help local nonprofits increase their reach and operate more effectively through greater online visibility in natural search results. At the Conductor C3 marketing event in New York last week, they announced a grant for a free Searchlight license and training for Housing Works. Their work as an advocacy, service and entrepreneurial group is helping to fight homelessness among those living with and affected by HIV/AIDS.
Housing Works’ grant was the first of many the Conductor Foundation will award to area nonprofits. Valued at approximately $45,000 and $50,000, the license and training grant will help area groups get their mission in front of a larger audience.
Tomorrow marks the first of Conductor’s free educational workshops for New York area nonprofits. SEO 101 for Non-Profit Marketers, led by Director of Customer Search Strategies and the Conductor Foundation Brian McDowell, runs from 2 to 4 p.m. Wednesday, November 2 at the Conductor Office. Nonprofit leaders will learn SEO skills to take back to their organizations and help to increase their natural search visibility. Register on the Conductor Foundation website.
Conductor CEO Seth Besmertnik explained that going forward, the Conductor Foundation grant program will award 1 percent of all Searchlight licenses as grants to nonprofits. One percent of all employee time will also go toward the work of the foundation and to training nonprofits. Those interested in applying for the Conductor Foundation grant program can do so by sending an email to [email protected].
The latest update to the Searchlight platform, unveiled at the C3 event, focuses on enhanced keyword discovery, SEO for multinational companies, and universal search optimization.
In their study The Changing Face of the SERPs, Conductor found that 80 percent of searches contain universal results. In this update, they’ve devised a way for marketers to better track all digital assets and analyze competitors.
Besmertnik tells Search Engine Watch, “The practice of SEO is moving beyond just having individual page content in the search engines, but really thinking about every digital asset you brand owns and seeing how you can show up in search phrases.”
Two new Searchlight features, Traffic Explorer and Visibility Explorer, help marketers identify new opportunities for traffic growth through advanced insight into keywords and ranking URLs. This update also adds localized informational for international companies by allowing them to track and analyze keywords across multiple search engines.
Besmertnik explained that in their research, Conductor did a separate carve out for e-tailers and were surprised to find that 95 percent of their keywords had at least one universal result in the top 10. More often than not, he said, it was a shopping listing.
“Knowing whether or not they have shopping listings and whether they’re branded is important in knowing how much shelf space they have for their search queries,” Besmertnik said. “In the new features, you can see how Top 10 results have trended over time and how your listings and those of your competitors perform in universal search.”