Oh Starbucks. Why are you walking away from the conversation? As a every-day SBUX addict, I was researching their latest loyalty program - the Starbucks Gold Card )which, apparently, is black - not gold. Um'?( For $25, I would get 10% off most purchases, free wi-fi for two hours, access to exclusive sales and what they call "member recognition" )strike one: I have to pay $25 on top of my daily coffee purchases to be "recognized?"(. So, like a good social media chick,

Probably the dirtiest word in the language to me is "comfortable." It's so bad that I call it the "C-word" )really!(. Where some people take comfort in stability, status quo and knowing what's around every corner, I like to shake it up a bit. It's how I roll. Copywriters - even good, highly-paid, experienced copywriters - get into their own comfort zone. They stop growing. They stop learning. Instead,

I used to love Stephen King books.  "Carrie."  "It." "The Stand." As a teenager, I had them all. Heck, I even had them in hardback . Whenever I'd make a new book acquisition, I'd crawl into bed, turn on my reading lamp and faithfully turn to the introduction before chowing down the main story. Why? Because the introduction was just as creepy, scary and weird as the rest of the book - sometimes, even more so.

Don't get me wrong. I adore Starbucks coffee. My friends tease me about how, at every conference, I drag them all over creation to find the nearest Starbucks )and no, in my perpetually jet-lagged state, Dunkin' Donuts coffee just won't do.( Every day around 6am, I walk to Starbucks and get my morning fix.  Heck, I'm even soon-to-be-living with a man who works for Starbucks corporate. If that's not brand loyalty, I don't know what is. But here's the problem.

The comedian Rodney Dangerfield coined a brilliant one-liner - "I don't get no respect." The same can be said for some SEO copywriters. I received this email from a woman we'll call Joanne )names have been changed to protect the innocent.( Here's what she had to say: Hi Heather, I am a fan of your blog and I am also a copywriter for a major search marketing agency where I write both paid search and SEO copy. I have nine years of copywriting experience,

I've just returned from DMA '08 in Vegas. In a neon and gambling chip haze, old school marketers )list brokers, print copywriters( merged with SEO firms, search technologists â€" and yes, even 2.0 social media agencies. I saw 50-something marketers dance to The Village People's "YMCA" )complete with arm movements( and boogie to Rick James' "Superfreak" )in a decidedly psychedelic/Dave Chappelle moment.( And I saw a lot of learned helplessness.

I can't believe it's that time of year already. Next week begins DMA '08, held at the Las Vegas Convention Center. I leave on Sunday for three jam-packed days filled with sessions, meetings, and yet more sessions. Here's the latest and greatest: Wondering how to improve your SEO campaign? Check out the SuccessWorks Search Marketing Experience Labs . A panel of experts will review your site and give you the SEO lowdown on what's great,

Does your Website copy sound like a bad date? Once upon a time, I went on a date with a boy named Mark. During the course of the date, he proceeded to tell me about his acting career )bitchin'- he was starring in his friend's independent no-budget film, his job )he was making killer tips(, his financial situation )awesome â€" he's finally able to move away from home( and his abs )they were in noxious pain, dude, because he was "whalin' on them" earlier.

It's funny when television mirrors reality so closely. I was watching Mad Men , the AMC series about 1960's-era advertising executives. The setup: A client, Playtex, craved a new advertising campaign. A group of men )who assumedly have never tried to squeeze their man-breasts into a push-up bra( and one woman was assigned to the campaign.

It happened again during SES San Jose 2008. In fact, the situation happens so often )actually, every conference for the last 10 years( that I call it "The question." "What kind of keyphrase density should I shoot for in my copy?" I don't blame the person who asked the question. Heck, I'm not surprised they're confused. Ever since the dawn of SEO copywriting time, SEO'ers have been trying to game the content part of the algorithm.

How exciting! SEO Copywriting has been recognized as #37 on Junta42's Top Content Marketing Blog list. According to the Junta42 site: "The Top 42 Content Marketing Blogs list was designed to organize and feature the best blogs on the internet that discuss some aspect of content marketing." Well, we're blushing. Thanks to Joe Pulizzi and the rest of the team at Junta42. We appreciate the honor!

It's hard to believe that it's SES San Jose conference time already. It seems like just yesterday I was hanging with Kevin Ryan and the gang at SES NYC'how quickly five months can pass. I'm speaking on a rocking session this year with Anna Stickney from Forbes.com . Called " The Business Case for SEO Content Development: Turn Words Into Action ," we'll be discussing how SEO content can actually make companies money â€" pretty cool, eh?

So, what new articles are you adding to your site this month? I know, I know. Content development and adding additional Website content seems like "too much work" when time is already short and your nerves are feeling frazzled. You can't ask your marketing department to do it â€" they're already maxed out. Fighting for freelance budget seems too overwhelming. And heaven forbid that you add something new to your plate' 'sound familiar?

My goodness. It's hard to believe that SuccessWorks )my SEO copywriting firm( has been in business for over 10 years now. Where DID the time go? Yesterday, I had the weird, odd out-of-body experience one feels while looking at decade-old marketing materials )it's like looking at old high school yearbooks â€"what was I thinking with that hairstyle?( Back in 1998, SEO copywriting was not the SEO uber-thang that it is today.

Sure, blogs seems like old news. "Everyone is blogging," you say. "How can my catalog company see search engine benefit by creating random bits of blogging fodder." Good question. The answer is this: Blogs can help overcome some common catalog marketer challenges without having to change your site . And that's a good thing. The challenge with online catalogs is the templates are typically text unfriendly.

Dear catalog marketers, It's August 1st. Have you finalized your holiday SEO copywriting strategy? Right now, while we're enjoying vacation time and lazy summer days, the words "holiday season" sound far in the future. Guess what - it's not. Already, you're seeing "Back-to-school" newspaper inserts'and soon, Halloween goblins will be gracing the shelves'after that, holiday music will bombard your ears with cheer and joy.

Where has SEO copywriting gone wrong? I had an interesting moment yesterday. I was chatting with a prospect and discussing how SuccessWorks )my firm( employs experienced writers with highly-honed skills in SEO copywriting and direct response writing. His reply? "What's direct response writing? Ouch. Good reality check. I've drank my own Kool-Aid long enough that I assume that everyone else understands the benefits that really tight writing brings to the table.

Yesterday, I received a voice mail that disturbed me. The caller represented an SEO outsourcing service based in India. He wanted to know if I wanted to save money on writing costs and outsource my SEO copywriting projects to his firm. He then named three high-profile SEO firms that had )supposedly( done just that, indicating that I would not be alone in this outsourced copywriting world.

I admit it. I'm a SEO writing slacker. It's been two weeks since my last blog post - and I don't have a reasonable excuse. I can't play the "too busy" card )although it's true; my life has been unusually full lately.( Nor can I lament how the Muse has left me â€" she's right here, guiding how I craft my emails and pen my copy. It's merely a minor case of "blogger's block." That is, I could write if I had to â€" I just didn't have anything to say.

Oh. My. Goodness. The writing was horrible. The Web page copy was a sight for sore eyes â€" literally. The run-on sentences made my eyes cross. Rampant comma use forced my eyes to eyes pause after ever third word. And please, please tell me â€" what does this paragraph even mean ? In short, this was not conversion-based SEO writing. This was a mess. The person in charge of the horribly-written page was the new marketing director â€" and she had just inherited the Website.