There are a couple of search marketing luminaries I really admire. One is the seen-everywhere, cited-everywhere Gord Hotchkiss of Enquiro, whose company originated the heat map research which has been so illuminating to the industry. They do a great job on research, they also specialize in B2B search marketing (we’re just thankful they’re in Canada and we’re in Texas), and I bet they do a bang-up job for their clients.

The other guy I am thinking about is Mark Jackson, who is super sharp and unfortunately right here in Texas. He’s actually the inspiration for this post, with his concise, accurate and insightful column in last week’s Search Engine Watch. He’s someone we all can learn from, and his columns are the ones I pass along to our account managers and biz dev people as excellent models for communicating about the complex world of organic SEO.

Here is a taste of his food for thought–remember, the proof of the pudding is in the eating, so don’t just read it, DO IT! For more specific information on the issues found at the intersection of web design and search marketing, please see his excellent two-part series on “Don’t Hire a Butcher to do a Baker’s Job,” with 13 questions to ask the design firm.

Last weekend, we learned of the death of beloved U.S. newsman Tim Russert. Within minutes, Google’s results reflected the news in its index. Most of the Top 10 ranked URLs on a search for his name were related to the (very) recent news of his passing.

That’s the “new” reality of SEO, and goes to the heart of why every company should create fresh content.

Fresh content will help you achieve top rankings right away, and help your Web site become an “authority” site. Search engines love fresh content and deep Web sites….Keep in mind, the old tried and true SEO method still holds. You should have static pages (pages that have always been there, and will always be there) within your Web site and a regular schedule of developing links to these pages, both externally (links from other Web sites, using a varied description/anchor text) and internally (links from other pages of your Web site).