Good news: my presentation put only one attendee to sleep! Had a wonderful time at Compass Con - our client-only marketing conference. Our experts shared their latest digital marketing, SEO and AI marketing insights with our 100+ attendees. THANK YOU to our fantastic clients for taking the time to learn and connect with us. We appreciate you! AND, thanks to our amazing team - this event takes a lot of planning, and they knocked it out of the park. And thanks to Mac & Cheese, our golden, for greeting and mingling with our guests today.

I'm the CEO of a rare marketing agency that never uses AI to write copy - for clients or ourselves. Claude's announcement that watermarks are coming to its text generation illustrates one of the many reasons for our stance. This is bad news for the MANY marketing agencies that rely on AI for copywriting and have eliminated their human copywriters. Thankfully, we have amazingly talented copywriters who know how to write for the web at @BlueCompass. While we do occasionally use AI tools to help generate ideas, proof, or refine wording, we never use it to actually write the copy. WHY? Because fully AI-written copy is inauthentic. It's similar to a stock photo - it looks good, but users can tell it's fake. It's not original - it's a duplicate by its very nature because it's created based on the words and sentences it finds around the web. Plus, it performs poorly on web pages. Google, ChatGPT and other platforms dislike it. It goes against Google's policy of helpful, original, high-quality, and people-first content (E-E-A-T). Yes, AI copy is quick and easy - but real, authentic copy performs better and serves our clients' audiences better.

We just did the first (to my knowledge) survey of Iowans' AI habits. We uncovered fascinating insights into how Iowans are using AI, the tasks they spend the most time on, their level of trust in the technology, and much more. For instance... Believe it or not, nearly 70% of adult Iowans use at least one AI platform weekly, a higher rate than the national average. ChatGPT is Iowa's favorite AI, followed by Gemini. I was actually surprised that more Iowans aren't using Claude. Find these results, and other intriguing findings, in our new Iowa AI habits study on the @BlueCompass blog.

Google recently announced several major updates to search at its I/O conference. Here are the four most important SEO takeaways that will help your website continue to stay relevant in the new era of AI search, from our experts at @BlueCompass.

The @BlueCompass team split into groups for volunteer opportunities this quarter. I visited one of my favorite places: Meals From the Heartland. @MftH rallies volunteers and donors to pack nutritious meals that fight hunger for kids and families, both right here in our communities and around the world. It's super easy to jump in, pack meals together, and actually help save lives one meal at a time. Also..... man, do I look good in a hairnet.

We're excited to announce Compass Con 2026! ...get the latest digital marketing insights AND a Mac stress reliever! Compass Con is our free marketing conference exclusive to @BlueCompass. Our experts share the latest tips to help you get more out of your digital marketing. Mac & Cheese, our golden retriever, has become a beloved staple of the event. He’ll be there to greet attendees with tail wags and supervise the festivities with his signature golden charm. If you're a Blue Compass client, we've sent out email invites. Register and join us on May 6!

With the rise of AI, is website traffic down? In some cases, yes. Publishers are getting hit hard, for instance. However, many types of websites haven't seen a reduction. But of course, that could come. But here's the silver lining: clicks are slowly becoming higher quality. A SEMRush study shows that website traffic from generative AI is 4.4% more likely to convert. At @BlueCompass, we are seeing longer session durations and more page visits, and higher conversions across most websites. I recently discussed this at ITEXPO in Florida: youtu.be/2zBEI7nWT4w

Our team was surprised by a Super Bowl snack party! 🏈 It's wonderful when positive surprises happen in the workplace. Two of our team members created football-themed drinks and snacks for the rest of the team. Leaders should foster a great workplace culture, of course, but it's also fantastic when everyone has bought into the importance of maintaining it. As Dale Carnegie once said, "People rarely succeed unless they have fun in what they are doing."

Another amazing @BlueCompass Christmas party last night ! Always fantastic to spend time celebrating a successful year with our team. Also, I’m no good at bowling.

Laughter is one of the most telling metrics of great workplace culture. It's a sign of a feeling of safety and strong relationships. Teams that dare to have fun together are more collaborative, resilient, and, yes, more productive. I'm proud of the excessive, daily laughter in at @BlueCompass. In fact, our team takes lightheartedness very seriously. We have leaders who laugh at themselves. We have managers who can take a joke. We tease each other. You know you’re in a great culture when your coworkers can nicely tease each other and don’t fear repercussions. Emotions are contagious! Bring a little lightheartedness and humor to your workplace and it will catch on.

With one of our team members out on vacation, we decided to build a giant cardboard cabin around his desk. Here's what happened: youtu.be/ravXlBdfYyQ

CompassCon 2025 is almost here! 🚀 Each year, we host this free digital marketing conference for our clients. This year, our experts will dive into topics shaping the future of marketing, including: - The evolving role of your website - Boosting visibility with ChatGPT and AI platforms - Key marketing shifts impacting your organization - Live Q&A with our Ask the Experts panel True to @BlueCompass tradition, expect exciting giveaways and surprises! (Last year, we spontaneously tossed homemade sourdough bagels to the crowd—wonder what’s in store this time?) With a packed house, CompassCon grows bigger every year, and we can’t wait to connect with our clients in person. It’s one of the many perks of being part of the Blue Compass family!

Ever wonder why your posts with links don’t get much traction on X? It’s no accident... Like most social platforms, X wants to keep users on its platform. So, adding a URL to your LinkedIn post can slash its reach by around 10x. I recently caught Rand Fishkin's presentation at @affiliatesummit, where he dropped a striking stat: adding a URL to your post can slash its reach by as much as 10x. So, here’s the marketer’s dilemma: is that URL worth up to 90% less visibility Often, it is. Driving traffic to your website is one of the most powerful things you can do. I often choose to include links in my posts. But it’s a trade-off worth pondering. Next time you’re crafting a post, ask yourself: does the link justify the reach I’m giving up? Strategic choices like these can make all the difference.

We're hearing rumblings that Google's starting to penalize AI-generated images in its rankings. Google has advocated for original content for years, and its stance is becoming even stricter. Google recently updated its Site Reputation Abuse Policy to say it will reduce visibility for websites that rely heavily on third-party content. And yes, AI-generated content falls into that category by definition. Key Takeaway: Don't put all your eggs in the AI basket. Investing time and effort into creating fresh, original content and using authentic images for your website is crucial. This approach aligns with Google's guidelines and can enhance user engagement and trust. ...but I have to admit, that AI-generated panda is pretty cool. h/t SE Roundtable

Search engine optimization (SEO) is incredibly complex. Here's how we simplify it. This "SEO Health Score" is a metric we created years ago to represent the quality of a website in the eyes of search engines. Quite simply, the better the score, the more potential the website has for visibility on Google and other platforms. Naturally, platforms like Google, ChatGPT, Gemini, Bing, Grok, and others are in a state of continuous evolution. As a result, our specialists consistently revise the SEO Health Score to align with the latest algorithm updates. But it's more than just a number. When we determine a website's SEO score, we provide a clear list of what's working, what's not, and what should be improved. The score is a great metric, but we give clarity on many other factors, like content, user experience, and load times. Reach out if you're interested in seeing your website's score.

Redesigning your website in 2025? We've created hundreds of websites. Here are 10 things we've learned: 1. Define the number one purpose of your website - What's the main thing you want your target audience to do when they visit your website? Clearly define your desired conversions and focus your entire site on them. 2. Review your current website's analytics - How's your audience using your current website? What's working and what's not? Your analytics tell the story. Listen. 3. Make SEO a priority - Keep SEO in mind throughout the entire process. Use the terms your audience uses, not the terms your industry uses. Do keyword research. Add schema markup. Include numerous internal links. 4. Include a clear call-to-action on EVERY page - Help your audience get where you'd like them to go. A large, prominent button or form should be present on every page. 5. Prioritize helpful, original content - Your website shouldn't just be about your services or products. It must give away your expertise and be valuable to your target audience. Make it a resource for them. 6. Celebritize your team - Feature your team members. List them as authors of your content. Show personality. Be authentic. It humanizes your brand, AND it's great for SEO. 7. Craft intuitive navigation - Think long and hard about your navigation structure. Base decisions of analytics. Allow your audience to get where they want to go in two clicks or less. 8. Create a clean, attractive design - Your website gives most people their first impression of your brand. Take the time and budget to make it clean, uncluttered, modern and attractive. 9. Ensure quick load times - Slow, clunky websites provide a bad user experience and can negatively impact SEO. Ensure it's properly developed, images are compressed and marketing pixels are kept to a minimum. 10. Add a cool factor - Catch their attention. Add a little creativity. Cool animations, unique design elements, videos, etc. Make it unique. I hope that's helpful for you! Reach out if we can help with your redesign. We have a full team of designers, developers and marketers at @BlueCompass who've helped hundreds of organizations improve their websites and business. #websiteredesign #webdesign

Here's a cool case study that shows the power of ongoing SEO: We launched a new website for a client in January 2023. Due to its quality, the website slowly began to gain traction in search results. THEN, in April 2023, we were able to begin ongoing SEO. The website started gaining keywords in search more rapidly. In a year, it saw a 723% increase in keywords ranking in Google - that's incredible! But, the best (and more important) part is that this increased visibility has led to a dramatic increase in visitors and leads. Launching a great website and letting it sit idle is like buying a sports car and never changing the oil. Supporting your website with high-quality, ongoing content and SEO will help you get much more out of it. Let me know if our team @BlueCompass can help. #SEO

This may not seem like a very exciting photo. But it IS... After our team meeting, we asked if anyone had time to rearrange the West48 Conference Center. That's a BIG task that's not on any @BlueCompass team member's job description. Every person had work they needed to get to. Yet nearly EVERY one of our team members stuck around and rearranged the room (some couldn't - likely due to meetings they had to get to). I'm thankful to have incredibly caring, supportive team members. Leaders - cultivate a supportive culture where team members work together rather than competing individually. How do you do this? Start by leading by example.