Conductor Concludes Successful C3 Conference and Shares Research-Backed Predictions for the Year Ahead in Search

NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire - Sep 25, 2012) - Conductor, the leader in Search Engine Optimization (SEO) technology hosted the second annual C3 conference for search and digital marketers in New York City, Sept. 19-20. More than 300 SEO practitioners and leaders in digital marketing converged on the city's SoHo neighborhood to discuss, debate and predict the future of search marketing at the sold-out event. The future looks bright for the industry and SEO technology providers as organizations increasingly turn to natural search as a key component to business success -- touching all marketing channels and nearly every aspect of business. 

C3 conference attendees agreed with the findings of a joint report by Conductor and Search Engine Watch, the web's leading source of information about search engine marketing. During the month of August 2012, visitors to searchenginewatch.com were asked to complete a survey about SEO in their organization. More than 600 respondents representing a cross-section of in-house, agency and consultant positions from organizations large and small, found that when it comes to goals for the coming year search's influence in the organization is increasing at such a rate that a quarter of all organizations surveyed have a dedicated search department -- a phenomenon that would have been unheard of just a few short years ago. 

Other key findings from the survey include:

• Six out of 10 organizations expect to increase SEO headcount in the coming year
• 63 percent of executive leadership teams are more familiar with SEO metrics than a year ago
• 65 percent of respondents say natural search is influencing revenue strategy more than 12 months ago

The findings from the survey mimic many of the themes and conclusions offered by industry leaders during their presentations at C3. Search innovators including executives from Google and Bing were joined by executives from such major brands and digital agencies as Logitech, FedEx, HSN, REI, 2tor, IntraLinks, Catalyst Online, MRM Worldwide and Life Technologies to present and share their observations from the frontlines of SEO. In addition to familiar topics like the inflection of where paid, organic and social channels convene and how to drive more ROI for brands, the common current running through each discussion was the maturation of search marketing, the demand by the C-Suite for SEO results tied to business goals, and how to process Big Data for business insight and data-driven decision making.

The industry has responded by introducing new technologies and robust reporting mechanisms to measure and share search's effectiveness throughout the organization and to deliver real-time information for better decision making. At C3, Conductor announced the most significant enhancements to its Searchlight platform since its market introduction in 2010. The enhanced reporting features enable marketers to set goals, make predictions, share progress with all search stakeholders, both inside and outside the organization, and continually monitor organic and paid search efforts for both user domains and competitors -- to ensure round-the-clock optimization and to identify new, revenue-generating opportunities.

"The wild, wild west days of search marketing are over -- search is all grown up," said Seth Besmertnik, CEO of Conductor. "Organizations demand, and now have, a level of clarity and insight into their search programs never seen before. This real-time business intelligence for data-driven decision making is moving SEO from the marketing department to the boardroom and cementing search's place as a strategic necessity to any business."

As the market-leading SEO platform for companies with SEO teams, and the agencies that support them, Conductor is dedicated to the continued improvement of Searchlight and responding immediately to customer needs. The new performance reporting, goal management and predictive SEO features introduced at C3 were well received by Searchlight users. 

"After working with other top SEO platforms, there's no doubt in my mind that Conductor Searchlight is best-in-class. Not only does Searchlight visualize data in a way that makes insights easy, it also has the technical infrastructure to support enterprise SEO at any scale," said Adam Dince, VP, Director of Search & Content Strategy, MRM Worldwide. "Conductor fosters relationships with its customers, which allow them to keep an accurate pulse on industry needs. At MRM, we consider Conductor to be more than a vendor -- they are a strategic partner."

To download a copy of "Why 2013 Will Be the Year of the SEO," visit: http://www.conductor.com/resource-center/research/why-2013-year-seo

About Conductor
Conductor is the global leader in SEO technology. Thousands of brands and enterprise marketers use its cloud-based SEO platform, Conductor Searchlight™ to measure, improve and manage their natural search efforts to stay ahead of the competition, increase site traffic and boost revenues. The powerful, highly scalable platform processes massive amounts of data quickly to give users real-time information for better, more informed decision making and to identifying new ways to increase share-of-search that will propel their businesses forward. Offering the most robust performance reporting and measurement tools available in the industry, Conductor arms marketers with the intelligence needed to tie SEO success to business objectives and demonstrate the value of SEO across the organization. One of New York City's fastest growing and most admired technology companies, Conductor is routinely recognized for excellence in business and corporate culture. To learn more, go to www.conductor.com or follow Conductor on Twitter @conductor.