Yahoo! at SES NY, 2007

The Big Apple’s the Place to Be

“No one should come to live in New York unless he is willing to be lucky.”—E.B. White

I’ve been captivated by E.B. White’s 1939 classic, Here is New York since reading it many years ago for a class in journalism school. It is a portrait and a paean to “Noo Yawk City” so compelling that one is obliged to follow White non-stop through his marathon-length amble around the greatest city in the world.

If you happen to be in the city that, as White put it, brings “to a single compact area the gladiator, the evangelist, the promoter, the actor, the trader and the merchant,” next week, you’ll surely want a little time to wander. But few ever go to New York without a purpose. If you’re reading this blog and are planning to be in New York next week, chances are you’re going for the Search Engine Strategies New York 2007 conference, to be held Tuesday, April 10 through Friday, April 13.

While you’re strolling around the exhibit hall, you’ll definitely want to saunter up to booth #2400. Yes, that’s the Yahoo! booth, where our dedicated Yahoos will be on hand to answer your questions, hand out schwag and generally make things pleasant and informative.

In addition, you’ll want to catch these Yahoo! panels, which will be informative and get you off your feet.

Tuesday, April 10:

Meet the Mobile Search Engines
Learn more about mobile search, how it operates and where it may be going during this panel consisting of representatives from mobile search engines. Panelist: Paul Yiu, Product Manager for Mobile Search, Yahoo! Search Marketing  

Wednesday, April 11:

Domaining & Address Bar-Driven Traffic
Learn how the domaining business is growing, how it can deliver relevant traffic to advertisers, as well as the issues with typo domains and opt-out issues. Panelist: Paul Boruta, Sr. Manager, Domain Match

Meet the Search Ad Networks
Representatives from major search engines that sell paid listings and other search advertising discuss new aspects to their programs and answer general audience questions. Panelist: Stewart Easterby, Vice President Sales Operations, Yahoo! Search Marketing

Duplicate Content & Multiple Site Issues
More and more site owners are concerned that they might get penalized accidentally or overtly because of duplicate content. This session looks at these issues and explores solutions. Panelist: Amit Kumar, Engineering Manager, Yahoo! Search

Thursday, April 12:

Be a Better Marketer with Yahoo!
Since Yahoo! introduced its new search marketing system, known as “Panama,” last fall, marketers have spent some time getting to know how the new features and capabilities can help maximize their search marketing campaigns. On this panel, you’ll have an opportunity to hear what advertisers and agencies have to say about their experiences with the new system to date, ask questions, and learn about their suggested best practices for becoming a better marketer with Yahoo! Moderator: Andrew Goodman, Page Zero. Speakers: Matt Greitzer, Ave A| Razorfish; Scott Smigler, Exclusive Concepts

Social Search Overview
Humans are hot again when it comes to search. But this time, it’s not the old school method of using a small group of human editors to categorize the web. Instead, search engines are more widely tapping into human knowledge through tagging, click-through tracking, search history features and other methods. Learn about the social search revolution that’s underway. Panelist: Tomi Poutanen, Senior Director of Product Management, Yahoo! Social Search

Searcher Behavior Research Update
How do searchers interact with search engines? New research is constantly coming out that reveals how searchers act. This session explores the latest studies and findings to provide tips and tactics for search marketers to consider. Panelist: Anne Frisbie, Vice President of Category and Sales Intelligence, Yahoo! Search Marketing

And you will definitely want to attend this session:

Auditing Paid Listings & Click Fraud Issues
Did you really get that much traffic from paid listings last month, or is something funny going on? Discover how to spot abnormalities and follow-up with search engines if you suspect a competitor or someone else is creating clicks just to drive up your costs. Panelist: Reggie Davis, Vice President of Marketplace Quality, Yahoo! Search Marketing.

Enjoy the Big Apple and don’t forget to write!

—Michael Mattis