Search Influence in the News > Events

Search Influence, the largest online marketing agency on the Gulf Coast, is holding a contest to honor the hardest working woman in New Orleans in celebration of International Women’s Day on March 8, 2017. The company encourages local businesses and individuals to nominate a woman who either owns her own business or works 40+ hours making a difference with a New Orleans business.

Nominations will be accepted through March 3, 2017, and the winner will be announced on Facebook Live on March 8, 2017. Search Influence will award the winning candidate with a spa package. The goal of the project is to raise awareness about the importance of equal pay for women and company benefits that allow women to succeed in the workplace without sacrificing the responsibilities of motherhood.

“I truly enjoy being a working mom and want the other women that are out there that have the same feelings to be comfortable that they can do it all,” said Angie Scott, the co-founder and chief operations officer of Search Influence. “We all know that moms are serious, playful, organized, and in charge—I know that’s the type of person I want to work with!”

Search Influence supports women in the tech industry with a staff comprised of over 70 percent women and a senior management team that is 66 percent female. The company offers a private breastfeeding room for new moms and was ranked a top place to work in 2016 by New Orleans CityBusiness.

“Search Influence is a flexible place to be a mom or dad, as we do not want our parents to stress about needing to go pick up a sick kid at daycare or school or anything similar,” said Scott.

At the state level, some data places Louisiana at the back of the pack for working women, though there are some signs that the environment in the South is changing. In Louisiana, WalletHub ranks the state 48th for working moms, an analysis that compares 13 key metrics including professional opportunities, work-life balance and child care options. In contrast, Louisiana ranks fairly high for women who want to start their own business. According to a recent analysis by Thumbtack including survey responses from 20,557 women, Louisiana ranks 7th for female entrepreneurs, and the data shows that women in southern states are more optimistic about access to government support for women in business.

To learn more about the International Women’s Day celebration and contest, go to info.searchinfluence.com/hardest-working-woman. Search Influence is located at 935 Gravier St #1300, New Orleans, La. 70112.

Search Influence, the Gulf Coast’s largest online marketing agency, has been named a Best Place to Work by New Orleans CityBusiness in its 14th annual survey. To be considered, Search Influence had to complete an extensive nomination form disclosing workforce data such as salaries, benefits, retention levels, and employee advancement. Then, company employees had to complete a survey to measure workplace culture.

CityBusiness selected 35 honorees in the large company category (more than 50 employees) and 15 honorees in the small business category (fewer than 50 employees). With almost 80 full-time employees in New Orleans and 100+ contracted writers, Search Influence is an honoree in the large company category. All 50 companies chosen will be honored at an awards event on Friday, Dec. 2. The top three large and small companies will be announced at the event.

This is the second time Search Influence has been named a Best Place to Work in New Orleans; the first time was in 2012.

“While we’re proud of all of our awards and accolades we have received in the 10 years Search Influence has been in business, this is the one we cherish the most,” said Will Scott, CEO and co-founder of Search Influence. “Our goal has always been to provide the best possible workplace for our employees. In order to do that, this year, our team developed a list of core values—collaborative, hungry, agile, reliable, genuine, effective, and dedicated—that we could all embrace, celebrate, and reward. We call it “CHARGED.”

“Every day, all team members have the opportunity through KUDOS cards to recognize their colleagues when they demonstrate a core value,” added Angie Scott, COO and co-founder of Search Influence.

“This daily recognition has created an atmosphere where people feel valued and appreciated. The best Kudos cards are chosen, and those team members get gift cards to area businesses,” added Angie. To keep CHARGED top-of-mind, Search Influence created posters, banners, and mouse pads, which can be found all over the office.

According to Paula Keller French, Director of Account Management, “What makes Search Influence different from other companies is that our core values are known and truly embraced by everyone. We hire smart people who embody our values. There isn’t any ambiguity on if a person would be a good fit or not.”

Inc. magazine today included Search Influence on its 35th annual Inc. 5000, an exclusive ranking of the nation’s fastest-growing private companies. The list represents the most comprehensive look at the most important segment of the economy—America’s independent entrepreneurs. Companies such as Yelp, Pandora, Timberland, Dell, Domino’s Pizza, LinkedIn, Zillow, and many other well-known names gained early exposure as members of the Inc. 5000.

The Inc. 5000 is a list of the fastest-growing private companies in the nation. Started in 1982, this prestigious list of the nation’s most successful private companies has become the hallmark of entrepreneurial success.

“We’re thrilled that what started in a spare bedroom after Hurricane Katrina has now grown into one of America’s fastest-growing private companies. We love that we are based in New Orleans and are proud that Search Influence now employs almost 80 of the area’s best and brightest,” said Will Scott, CEO and co-founder of Search Influence.

“We hire smart, local people and train them to be expert online marketers,” said Angie Scott, COO and co-founder of Search Influence. Depending on their role, new employees receive 40-60 hours of training during a 3-month onboarding process. “It is important to us that our staff understands online marketing and can offer true solutions to help grow our customers’ businesses,” added Angie.

For more information about Search Influence or for a listing of open job opportunities, please visit www.searchinfluence.com.

Search Influence promotes entrepreneurship in New Orleans through $10K donations to New Orleans Shotokan Academy and PowerMoves NOLA. The donations helped to expand their online marketing efforts.

In January 2016, Search Influence celebrated its 10-year anniversary and commemorated the special milestone by awarding two local organizations each $10,000 in marketing services. The recipients of the prize money were New Orleans Shotokan Academy and PowerMoves NOLA. Since then, Search Influence has made great strides in implementing these organizations’ SEO and social media packages.

About the Organizations

New Orleans Shotokan teaches the ancient art of self-defense known as Shotokan Karate to both youth and adults. In an effort to serve the Greater New Orleans area, the academy holds classes in four studios across the city including JCC Karate, Tulane Karate Dojo, Broadmoor Karate Dojo, and Newman Karate. Upon being awarded the $10,000, New Orleans Shotokan Academy Owner Dimitri Papadopoulos said, “This is a dream come true. This will bring our program to new heights and give us opportunity to establish our company in the New Orleans community.” He chose to implement a comprehensive SEO strategy and to strengthen his organization’s social media presence so that more people could find his services online. His campaign was a success — after completing a site analysis, doing keyword research to see what search terms people were using, Search Influence optimized the content that was already on his website, as well as added new page content and a blog that would help with search rankings.

Papadopoulos is pleased with the results and Search Influence’s in-depth knowledge of internet marketing. “Each person I have dealt with has been very personable and helpful. If I have any questions, they are there to help,” he said. “What I find most impressive about the service is its flexibility; the marketing package is tailored to your vision of your business.”

PowerMoves NOLA is a national initiative that encourages entrepreneurship among minority communities by providing minority entrepreneurs with access to the capital, advisers and support they need to succeed. To achieve this, they have established a fellowship program, host annual pitch competitions and a put their entrepreneurs through an intensive boot camp. So that several of their participants could get help with their online marketing, PowerMoves NOLA split the $10,000 donation and gave Smart Coos, InstaFunds, and Acrew.com $3,333.33 each.

“When we heard there were going to be three rising entrepreneurial businesses, our team was thrilled,” said Will Scott, CEO of Search Influence. “We know that 85% of searches for products and services now happen online. In order for these startups to have the best chance for success, online marketing is essential.”

Smart Coos is an interactive web-based platform for parents and teachers to help children learn another language. Their goal is to encourage children to master multiple languages through the use of live language sessions, e-books and text nudges. They offer online classes and resources for Baby Sign Language, Spanish, French, English and Mandarin.

After meeting with Smart Coos Co-founders Mirta Desir, Esq., and Harold Jean-Louis in February, the Search Influence team kicked off an SEO campaign with the goal of increasing the company’s website search engine rankings on Google and Bing. To track the campaign’s effectiveness, the team first set up Google Analytics on the Smart Coos’ website. Since then, members have verified credentials among top sites, created and implemented HTML, XML sitemaps and the KML file, submitted robots.txt to Google and Bing, conducted a keyword research, and wrote and posted one blog. Next steps will be mapping and creating content guides for both website and blog content.

Desir has found working with Search Influence to be a satisfying experience, “The tailor-made experience they provide was very much appreciated in a our one-size-fits-all industry.”

InstaFunds, the second of the PowerMoves NOLA companies, is an app that allows users to track their finances without having to provide and sync to their banking information online. The app’s founder Sheena Allen decided to devote her share of the $10,000 to promote InstaFunds on social media platforms like Facebook. Search Influence developed a social media optimization package, audited Allen’s Google Analytics and submitted her app to a download directory found during a competitive backlink analysis.

The final business Search Influence worked with is Acrew. This business’ primary product is an interview software which connects job seekers with businesses searching for employees.

According to Crystal McDonald, founder and CEO of Acrew, “Search Influence helped build the foundation of our marketing efforts.” The team performed keyword research, developed blog topics, claimed optimized major directory listings, advertised on Facebook, and provided best practice recommendations for soliciting reviews. “The deliverables they provided will be used by our team now and in the future to help Acrew achieve their growth objectives.”

Photo caption: Pictured are New Orleans Councilman-At-Large Jason Williams, Search Influence COO and Co-Founder Angie Scott, Search Influence CEO and Co-Founder Will Scott, and New Orleans Shotokan Academy Owner Dimitri Papadopoulos.

NEW ORLEANS, La. — Search Influence recently celebrated its 10-year anniversary by giving away $10,000 worth of free online marketing services to one New Orleans-based business in its “Make Your Dreams Come True” 10K Giveaway. New Orleans Shotokan Academy won the contest by receiving the most number of votes via Search Influence’s Facebook page between December 28, 2015, and January 8, 2016. Other finalists included Jolie & Elizabeth, Red Stick Gutters, Offbeat Media, and Prevent Child Abuse Louisiana.

“This is a dream come true,” said New Orleans Shotokan Academy Owner Dimitri Papadopoulos. “Winning this contest will bring our program to new heights, and give us opportunity to establish our company in the New Orleans community.”

“We are happy to be celebrating 10 years in business and are thrilled that we can offer another small business the chance to grow,” said Will Scott, CEO and co-founder of Search Influence. “New Orleans Shotokan Academy will be able to redeem the $10,000 prize for online marketing services, including search engine optimization (SEO) and social media management,” he added.

Search Influence began operating out of a spare bedroom after Hurricane Katrina and has now grown to be the largest online marketing company on the Gulf Coast. It employs 85 full-time employees in New Orleans and 150 contract writers. A company timeline can be viewed here.

The effort to get more young people to choose careers in the booming New Orleans technology sector is getting a boost thanks to a new initiative by Greater New Orleans Inc. and help from local tech company Search Influence, the largest online marketing company on the Gulf Coast.

Representatives from more than eight New Orleans charter management organizations will visit Search Influence May 8 from 2:30 to 4 p.m. as a part of GNO Inc.’s Future Building Fridays. In partnership with GNO Inc. and New Orleans Business Alliance, Search Influence’s offices at 935 Gravier St., Suite 1300 will host an interactive demonstration where educators will learn about the variety of jobs and talents needed in the online marketing industry.

The group will also hear candidly from real employees who took different paths to become Web developers, Internet marketers and online marketing account managers.

“Contrary to popular belief, not everyone who works in tech has a computer science degree. Of course some do, but Search Influence hires phenomenally talented people from all sorts of backgrounds—those with marketing degrees, communications degrees and even mathematics degrees,” said Search Influence CEO Will Scott.

“Tech is a big driver of the New Orleans economy. We want to show teachers and counselors in a tangible way the many job opportunities available in tech and the multitude of ways their students can get their foot in the door,” Scott said.

The new initiative, Future Building Fridays, seeks to educate counselors, STEM and career and technical education teachers about regional workforce trends, aligned with the Louisiana Department of Education’s Jump Start pathways, through site visits and first-hand exposure to employers. The Future Building Fridays series is just one part of GNO Inc.’s World of Work programming, which offers and promotes high-quality career awareness and exploration opportunities for regional schools and businesses. Through GNO WOW, as it is known, the organization is committed to raising educator and community awareness of the key sectors that drive the Greater New Orleans economy.

“GNO Inc. understands the critical importance of career awareness and exploration programs, like Future Building Fridays, for educators, students and community,” said GNO Inc. President and CEO Michael Hecht. “We must continue to connect the world of work and our industry partners to our K-12 classrooms. We want to empower educators with an understanding of the significant high-wage and high-demand job opportunities that are available throughout the GNO region.”

“A major part of our work consists of resolving barriers to economic growth,” said Melissa Ehlinger, interim president and CEO of the New Orleans Business Alliance. “Ensuring we have adequate pipelines to employment—creating opportunities for students to experience the work world and prepare for it—is imperative to an equitable, sustainable economy for the city. NOLABA acts as the connector between what employers tell us they need and how educators approach career and technical education. Future Building Fridays offers us a great way to make that connection.”

While the tech industry, and other key sectors, will create more than 100,000 high-wage, high-growth job openings region-wide over the next decade, the lead influencers on students’ post-secondary careers (such as counselors, teachers and parents) are often unaware that these careers exist, let alone, how to access needed training.

Educators must constantly update their knowledge and skills about current workplace practices, requirements and tools by gaining an “on the ground” understanding of economic and career trends that will affect their students. This is where Future Building Fridays comes in. Through first-hand interactions with employers in high-growth sectors, teachers and guidance counselors have the opportunity to see, touch and feel the array of jobs available.

About Search Influence

Search Influence is a national, full-service online marketing company based in New Orleans, La. The only New Orleans firm on the 2011 Inc. 500 list of America’s fastest-growing private companies, Search Influence is the largest online marketing company on the Gulf Coast. It has hundreds of direct and partner customers, including local merchants and clients in the automotive industry, law, plastic surgery, cosmetic dentistry and dermatology industries as well as publishers and Yellow Pages companies who provide SEO and other online marketing products for their advertisers.

About GNO Inc.

GNO, Inc. is the regional economic development organization, serving to coordinate, consolidate, and catalyze economic development activity. The GNO, Inc. Mission is to create jobs and wealth in the Greater New Orleans community. The GNO, Inc. Vision is for the Greater New Orleans region to fulfill its potential as one of the best places in the country to grow a company, and raise a family.  More information can be found at www.gnoinc.org.

About the New Orleans Business Alliance

A public-private partnership, the New Orleans Business Alliance is the official economic development organization for the city of New Orleans. Its creation resulted from a long-term effort by the business community to adopt national best practices in economic development for the growth of Orleans Parish. NOLABA’s 17-member Board comprises a cross-section of New Orleans leaders, including Mayor Mitch Landrieu and a diverse group of business professionals. For more information on NOLABA and Prosperity NOLA, the city’s five-year plan for economic growth, please visit www.nolaba.org.

Will Scott, CEO and co-founder of Search Influence, the largest online marketing company on the Gulf Coast, says auto dealers in particular can supercharge content marketing strategies using infographics, compelling photos and videos. Scott will join Mat Siltala and David Mink of Avalaunch Media to detail real-world visual content marketing strategies as a featured speaker at the 18th Digital Dealer Conference & Exposition in Tampa, Fla., Thursday, April 23.

Scott’s session, “The Power of Visual Content – Learn to Dominate the Competition with Shareable Visual Content,” is set for 10 a.m. at the Tampa Convention Center.

“With social media sites putting more and more emphasis on visual content, auto dealers have a real opportunity to stand out online using compelling car photos, video testimonials and data-rich graphics to tell their brand story,” he said. Scott has been helping small businesses succeed online since 1994, and now leads nearly 100 professionals at Search Influence who put results first and help businesses successfully market online.

With the Avalaunch team, Scott will discuss the types of visual content that matter most to the auto dealer industry, and will also give tips on social media strategy to make sure compelling visual content is seen and shared.

About Search Influence

Search Influence is a national, full-service online marketing company based in New Orleans, La. The only New Orleans firm on the 2011 Inc. 500 list of America’s fastest-growing private companies, Search Influence is the largest online marketing company on the Gulf Coast. It has hundreds of direct and partner customers, including local merchants and clients in the automotive industry, law, plastic surgery, cosmetic dentistry and dermatology industries as well as publishers and Yellow Pages companies who provide SEO and other online marketing products for their advertisers.

Nearly two-thirds of Americans are now smartphone owners, and for many, their smartphones are a vital entry point to the online world, according to a survey released this month by the Pew Research Center. That means today’s savvy small businesses are looking for a winning mobile website strategy—a key trend in online marketing, according to Will Scott, CEO and co-founder of Search Influence, the largest online marketing company on the Gulf Coast. Scott will discuss this strategy as a featured speaker at the 2015 Local Search Association Conference in Los Angeles, Calif., Monday, April 20 at 1:30 p.m.

“Mobile Internet usage is growing at a startling rate. For many of our clients in local businesses, mobile is now approaching a whopping 50 percent of their reported traffic—and that’s just the beginning of this surge,” Scott said. “Coming April 21, Google will focus on mobile-friendly websites, which means small businesses must pay attention to their mobile strategy in order to continue to attract customers.”

Scott has been helping small businesses succeed online since 1994, and now leads nearly 100 professionals at Search Influence, who put results first and help businesses successfully market online.

Scott is speaking as a part of the Local Search Association’s newly launched in-depth workshops April 20. Access is included with conference registration, but space is limited. Reserve a spot online.

About Search Influence

Search Influence is a national, full-service online marketing company based in New Orleans, La. The only New Orleans firm on the 2011 Inc. 500 list of America’s fastest-growing private companies, Search Influence is the largest online marketing company on the Gulf Coast. It has hundreds of direct and partner customers, including local merchants and clients in the law, plastic surgery, cosmetic dentistry and dermatology industries as well as publishers and Yellow Pages companies who provide SEO and other online marketing products for their advertisers.

Will Scott, CEO and co-founder of Search Influence, the largest online marketing company on the Gulf Coast, will share some top strategies for local businesses (and the online marketers who love them) to harness the power of content marketing to attract customers. As a featured speaker at the 2015 Association of Directory Publishers Annual Conventions and Partners Trade Show, Scott will share his tips during a session Tuesday, April 14 at 1:30 p.m. The conference, hosted by an international trade association serving the online directory industry, is held in in Orlando, Fla.

The full agenda is available online.

“Small businesses today must make their online content ‘sticky.’ There is so much content on the Internet and only so many connected hours in the day,” Scott said. He has been helping small businesses succeed online since 1994, and now leads nearly 100 professionals at Search Influence who put results first and help businesses successfully market online.

In order to create content that will engage new and current customers alike, Scott will detail real-world strategies every small business can use, including:

• Focus on what people want to know: Produce online content—whether for a website or for social media channels like Facebook—that communicates what people want to know, from answering real questions and providing product information before a purchase to communicating the latest news and entertainment. This doesn’t just apply to text: Small businesses can use images, infographics and videos, too.
• Get that knowledge to the people: Sharing content begins by posting it online to social media sites, a business website or even a corporate or business blog. In fact, 82 percent of marketers who blog daily gained customers using their blog, according to HubSpot.
• Pay to Play: “Sorry, it’s not all available for free in a content-littered world,” Scott said. “With so much great content flowing online, it can be a struggle to get noticed.” Pay-to-play is a hard reality when sharing content on social media platforms like Facebook. Your fans on social media aren’t really yours, and the network decides what they’ll see. Scott will discuss how small businesses can make sure good content reaches the people who are interested—all on a budget of $100 or less for a promoted post.

The Association of Directory Publishers—serving an industry that mainly focuses on providers of Yellow Pages content—strives to highlight the features, benefits and effectiveness of print and online business directories.

About Search Influence

Search Influence is a national, full-service online marketing company based in New Orleans, La. The only New Orleans firm on the 2011 Inc. 500 list of America’s fastest-growing private companies, Search Influence is the largest online marketing company on the Gulf Coast. It has hundreds of direct and partner customers, including local merchants and clients in the law, plastic surgery, cosmetic dentistry and dermatology industries as well as publishers and Yellow Pages companies who provide SEO and other online marketing products for their advertisers.