Thursday, March 22nd, 2007 by Andy Beal

16

Second Search Engine Marketing Scholarship Contest Launches

It’s back!

After the phenomenal success of last year’s contest, the Marketing Pilgrim SEM Scholarship Contest is back and this time it’s bigger, better and badder than before!

Not only will the winner of the contest have a chance to kick-start their reputation as one of the world’s leading search marketers, but they’ll win a prize package worth over $10,000!!!

Yep, we have a fantastic prize list this year. Not only does it include a full conference pass to Search Engine Strategies San Jose, but the winner will have their article published in the print magazine Search Marketing Standard! How about that for instant publicity?

We listened to your feedback from last year and we’ve made the contest more streamlined, while tapping deeper into your search marketing skills. So, a few changes…

  1. We’re giving you a little more time to get your entry in, the deadline is April 6th.
  2. There will be ONLY ONE ROUND OF ENTRIES. Unlike last year – with four weekly deadlines – there will be just one chance to submit your article.
  3. The biggest suggestion from last year was that one week to build traffic to an article, really didn’t demonstrate the true abilities of a search marketer. This time around, you’ll have a full 4 weeks to spread the word, drive traffic, build links, etc.
  4. We’ll have five finalists this year, instead of four.

If you think having your article read by thousands of Marketing Pilgrim readers is not enough, wait until you see the judges that make up our panel. We’re absolutely thrilled to have a panel of judges that is the cream of the crop of search marketing. Without them – and those that provided prizes – this contest would not exist. The five finalists will go before – and receive the attention of – the following world-renowned experts:

Kim Krause Berg – UsabilityEffect.com
Jim Boykin – WebBuildPages.com
Rand Fishkin – SEOMoz.org
Andrew Goodman – Page-Zero.com
Michael Jensen – SoloSEO.com
Kalena Jordan – SearchEngineCollege.com
Jennifer Laycock – SearchEngineGuide.com
Todd Malicoat – Stuntdubl.com
Boris Mordkovich – SearchMarketingStandard.com
Lee Odden – TopRankBlog.com
Elisabeth Osmeloski – SearchEngineWatch.com
Neil Patel – PronetAdvertising.com
Barry Schwartz – RustyBrick.com
Brett Tabke – WebmasterWorld.com
Laura Thieme – BizResearch.com
Aaron Wall – SEOBook.com

So, don’t just sit there. Get your thinking-caps on! What secret tactic, what proven strategy, what juicy tips can you share with our readers? This is your chance to go for glory, win the gold, expose yourself…ahem! Head over to the official contest page and make sure you read all of the rules.

You’ve got between now and April 6th to submit your entry and convince the industry that you’re the next American Idol top search marketer!

P.S. If, after you’ve read the contest guidelines and rules, you have any additional questions, please leave them in the comments. Thanks!

Don’t miss the contest updates and deadlines, subscribe to our RSS feed!


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16 comments on “Second Search Engine Marketing Scholarship Contest Launches”

  1. Boris Mordkovich Says:

    March 22nd, 2007 at 9:28 am

    Andy,

    Just wanted to mention that we’re looking forward to the contest and are very proud to be a part of the scholarship.

    Good luck to everyone!

    Boris

  2. conversations monetized » Blog Archive » Creating Linkable Content through Group Interviews, Contests and Surveys Says:

    March 22nd, 2007 at 10:43 am

    [...] Update:It appears that Search Engine Marketing Scholarship Contest 2 launched today! [...]

  3. Drew Stauffer Says:

    March 22nd, 2007 at 10:44 am

    Do you remmeber how many entries the contest had last year? I know the format was a little different but a ballpark number is fine.

  4. Jordan McCollum Says:

    March 22nd, 2007 at 10:44 am

    I’m not eligible, am I. (It’s not even a question.)

  5. Andy Beal Says:

    March 22nd, 2007 at 10:49 am

    Drew – 47 – you can see more details and stats here: http://www.marketingpilgrim.com/2006/11/the-anatomy-of-a-search-market ing-scholarship-contest.html

    Jordan – I’d like to give others at least some chance. ;-)

  6. Michael Martinez Says:

    March 22nd, 2007 at 12:23 pm

    Interesting panel. All the “insiders” of the “Good Ole SEOs Club”, as Aaron Pratt might put it. I wonder what he’ll have to say about this contest.

  7. Andy Beal Says:

    March 22nd, 2007 at 12:28 pm

    Michael – I can point to a few on the list that weren’t well-known just two years ago.

  8. Michael Martinez Says:

    March 22nd, 2007 at 1:33 pm

    Andy, I’m not really taking exception with your selections. It’s just that Aaron has, in my opinion, raised a very good point. I read a lot of second-tier SEOs whose blogs actually offer more value than most of the 1st-tier SEO bloggers right now.

    The popular blogs are becoming stale. It’s all about news, less about technique and methodology these days. And half the news seems to be back-slapping cross-linking.

    Aaron’s rants have made me look at the SEO blogosphere in a new light.

  9. Andy Beal Says:

    March 22nd, 2007 at 2:30 pm

    Michael – I hear ya. I subscribe to a number of blogs that you probably wouldn’t consider “1st tier”. That said, this contest is designed to find the up and coming SEO stars, so I wanted to give them a chance to at least get on the radar of the “Good Ole SEOs Club”, as you put it. ;-)

  10. SoloSEO Blog » Search Engine Marketing Scholarship Contest Begins Again Says:

    March 22nd, 2007 at 4:22 pm

    [...] Andy Beal announced today the launch of the second Search Engine Marketing Scholarship. This is a fantastic opportunity ($10,000 worth of prizes) for any of you Solo SEOs looking to get out and be known with your expertise. Sharpen your copywriting skills and impress the SEO world with your insight into Search Marketing. As one of the prizes, SoloSEO is giving out a free year of the SoloSEO.com tools. I’m also honored to be on the judging panel! [...]

  11. Become an Overnight Success as a Search Engine Marketer : Website Promotion and Online Marketing Strategies - Alibi Productions Says:

    March 22nd, 2007 at 6:29 pm

    [...] Breaking into the search marketing industry isn’t the easiest career choice. There are many marketing giants out there and even more skeptics that think Search Engine Marketing is a hoax. But there is at least one opportunity for Search Engine Marketing hopefuls: Andy Beal at Marketing Pilgrim is having the second annual SEM Scholarship Contest. [...]

  12. Marketing Pilgrim SEM Scholarship Contest: Spring 2007 - TheVanBlog Says:

    March 22nd, 2007 at 7:14 pm

    [...] About a month ago I mentioned the second Marketing Pilgrim SEM Scholarship was on it’s way. Earlier today Andy Beal made the announcement that it’s begun. You can start submitting articles now and have until 9:00 EST on April 6th to get one in. The prizes have increased from the last time and the prize package for this second contest is valued at $10,000 [...]

  13. Pronet Advertising Says:

    March 22nd, 2007 at 10:31 pm

    Search Engine Marketing Scholarship Contest

    Andy Beal from [Marketing Pilgrim](http://www.marketingpilgrim) is holding a [search engine marketing scholarship contest](http://www.marketingpilgrim.com/2007/03/second-search-engine- marketing-scholarship-contest-launches.html) where he gives away $10…

  14. kelvin newman Says:

    March 23rd, 2007 at 5:13 am

    It’s a noble cause and I can wait to read some of the high quality content that will hopefully be headed our way.

  15. Kim Krause Berg Says:

    March 26th, 2007 at 6:26 pm

    And here I thought someone would complain because a non-SEO is on the panel. Hummmm, wonder what SHE’s doing there? Could it possibly have something to do with marketing and persuasive copywriting, or optimizing for engines and following through? To name a few things… :)

  16. Marketing Pilgrim SEM Scholarship Contest: Spring 2007 | TheVanBlog Says:

    January 29th, 2008 at 11:47 pm

    [...] second Marketing Pilgrim SEM Scholarship was on it’s way. Earlier today Andy Beal made the announcement that it’s begun. You can start submitting articles now and have until 9:00 EST on April 6th [...]

 
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