Tomorrow, Tuesday, January 28, the annual regional Pubcon Austin conference is being held at the AT&T Conference Center on the University of Texas campus. There are three session tracks covering the latest local social media and search-related research, and some awesome speakers with some great presentations. I’ll be presenting with Eric Enge on Social Signals and SEO, so make sure you don’t miss that one if you’re going to be attending the conference in Austin.
If you’re not attending the Austin conference, then you should follow the #pubcon hashtag on Twitter so you can see all the latest tweets, that I’m sure will include some great tips from speakers. And there will be plenty of live blogging going on, so if you miss a session there will be lots of notes taken. Usually you can find those posts through the #pubcon Twitter hashtag, as well.
This is probably my 15th or 17th Pubcon, I’m not sure which. And there are always great speakers who always put their hearts and souls into their presentations. I already mentioned my session with Eric Enge on Social Signals and SEO. Eric will have a ton of info from his research that he did. Lots of good info on whether or not Google +1s count towards rankings, etc. etc. And it’s even more timely because Matt Cutts just recently said publicly that Google doesn’t use Twitter or Facebook social signals in rankings.
But what about the other sessions? I’ve hand-picked the sessions that I think are going to be great ones, the speakers who you shouldn’t miss if you’re attending Pubcon Austin 2014 this week.
Keynote: Duane Forrester
Duane, a good friend, is a fabulous speaker. I saw his presentation at Namescon just a few weeks ago, and it was great. I imagine he’ll be giving the same similar presentation about what Microsoft and Bing is doing now. And lots of other research. Got a question about Bing or search or SEO in general? Talk to Duane, he’s really good about answering SEO questions and might even tell you about working for Microsoft if you ask.
Local Search
Greg Gifford, Brian Combs
Both of these guys have killer presentations. Lots of good info on local search. They’re the experts (even more than I am, if that’s possible).
SEO and SEM Tools and Services
Christine Churchill
Christine is the pro when it comes to tools. Always has a great set of tools in your tool chest, and isn’t afraid to use them.
Reputation Management
Tony Wright is the KING of online reputation management, especially with his real-world expertise from being in the PR field (public relations, not PageRank). Got an online rep problem? Talk to Tony.
Convergence of Social Media & Search
Rebecca Murtagh
I’ve been on a panel with Rebecca at other Pubcon conferences, and she’s always got great info. She does search and social the “right way” and even wrote a book. Don’t forget to pick up a copy of her book: Million Dollar Websites:
Build a Better Website Using Best Practices of the Web Elite in E-Business, Design, SEO, Usability, Social, Mobile and Conversion
WordPress SEO
Michael David
Have a WordPress site? Well, who doesn’t? If you do, then make sure you see Michael’s presentation. I moderated this panel at Pubcon Las Vegas recently and it’s a great session with a lot of good info.
I’ll be in and out as I have a hectic schedule on Tuesday, so be sure to introduce yourself if we haven’t met already. Mention this post during Pubcon Austin 2014 and I’ll be happy to give you a free half hour of SEO consulting services (usually via phone).