MarketingExperiments Blog: Research-driven optimization, testing, and marketing ideas

If you’re joining us for this afternoon’s SEO live optimization web clinic, you already know the topic is way too broad for one hour.

Learning the fundamentals of search engine optimization is only step one. Keeping up with the frequent changes, learning and testing the latest best practices, and steering clear of the mountains of misinformation? That’s a full-time effort.

If you’ve been around the block with SEO, you’re already a regular reader of the following sites and tools. Still, when it comes to reliable SEO info, these resources consistently rise to the top of my shortlist.

10 SEO resources you’ll want to bookmark

• SEOMOZ
• SEOBook
• Search Engine Roundtable
• SearchEngineWatch
• SearchEngineLand
• SearchEngineGuide
  
• TopRank Blog’s Resources list and Big List of SEO Blogs
• HubSpot and Website Grader tool

That’s it? Why not an exhaustive list of 400+ SEO sites?

A few reasons: First, TopRank already has a megalist; it’s right up there (thanks, Lee!). Second, from the sources above, you can branch out to any number of free and paid tools and augment your own list based on your experience level, needs, and preferences. And third, if you really have time to regularly read more than a dozen sites on SEO, more power to you and your Google Reader and/or RSS feeds.

Feel free to add your own favorite SEO resources in the comments section.

And check back with the blog as we’ll be following up today’s SEO clinic with responses to the live audience Q&A, additional resources and specific articles, plus our clinic contest winners — some lucky marketers will not only have their pages optimized, they’ll also win seats at our Landing Page Optimization Training Tour.

Over the years, our analysts have created numerous marketing tools and resources to make optimization easier and more effective.

We’ve made several of these tools available to research partners, web clinic and workshop participants, and through our research briefs.

Now our Sciences producer and blogger, Austin McCraw, has compiled 11 of the most popular MarketingExperiments tools (spreadsheets, PDFs, Word docs) so we can offer them in one easy-to-access location, for free, no strings attached.

In today’s flailing economy, marketers can use all the free help and resources they can get. So we invite you to take these tools for a spin, give us your feedback, and let us know about other areas where you could use a hand.

Note: When you subscribe to the MarketingExperiments Journal (also free), you’ll find out first when we release new tools, research and case studies.

Free Tools from MarketingExperiments
1. Value Proposition Worksheet
One of our most downloaded resources, this worksheet will help you evaluate and present your value proposition more effectively.

2. Compounding Effect Spreadsheet
This tool measures the (usually large) impact of incremental increases in conversion through testing.

3. Price Testing Analysis
Created to help marketers accurately analyze the overall results of price tests.

4. Subscription Site Metrics Tool
Allows subscription sites to determine the profitability of their own PPC campaigns.

5. Max Bid Analysis Spreadsheet
This is a tool that can help marketers calculate the maximum bid they could make in a PPC campaign and still remain at a specific profitability margin.

6. Customer Service Analysis Tool
This tool is designed to help companies see and calculate the possible profit that can come from inbound costumer service calls.

7. A/B Testing Template Doc
A basic template that guides marketers though the A/B split testing process.

8. Competitive Analysis Spreadsheet
Walks you through a thorough competitive analysis (also valuable for identifying potential partners).

9. Data Sample Statistics
Explains how to determine the statistical validity of a test. This document also introduces the test validation section of the Test Protocol tool we offer to our live workshop and certification students.

10. Metrics Dashboard Tool
This dashboard helps marketers monitor the essential metrics that they need to track when testing online.

11. Optimization Scenario Tool
Want to compare key metrics and results between different landing page optimization scenarios? Try this tool.

Got feedback? Suggestions for our Sciences team about these or other resources you’d like to see? Please use the comments field to let us know.

Photo: Ladyada