Spencer Wade is the Founder & Principal Strategist at liftconversions.com, a Google Partner agency with offices in Chicago, IL and Westminster, CO. Spencer has been in digital marketing since 2009 when he took a senior marketing manager position with a leading Chicago SEO firm. He has managed digital marketing campaigns for clients in over 40 verticals across the US. Today, Spencer holds Google Top Contributor status in their three flagship products – AdWords, Search, and Google+. He’s also a Google North American Ambassador and a Mentor in their Programs and was a 2017 DMA Echo Awards Final Judge in New York.
Please introduce yourself and where you work.
My name is Spencer Wade and I’m the Founder of and Principal Strategist for Lift Conversions, my own full service digital marketing agency, and Google Partner, with offices in Chicago, Illinois and Westminster, Colorado.
How do you think SEO has changed over the last 10 years?
I’ve got two words for you – Panda Update. That changed everything. Gone were the spammy links and keyword-stuffing we’d all become so tired of – especially users. Looking back now, it seems we’d all lost our minds and were trying our hardest to turn the web into something only an engine could love. Now, with the rise content as the driving force, the web has returned to a place where we can enjoy ourselves while learning about goods and services. And, the rise of mobile has meant that Local SEO is gaining in importance and finally offering small to mid0sized businesses the chance to compete organically. That’s good for everyone.
How did you get introduced to digital marketing, more specifically SEO?
My story is probably not too different from a great many other digital marketers today and begins in a completely unrelated field – finance. I was a banking executive for many years with hundreds of people working under me. I had security and stability and the expertise it took to do a great job. Well at least until the mortgage bubble burst. That shockwave changed everything.
After speaking to every peer I could find, I realized the market was never going to rebound fully and that meant troubled times ahead. Plus, after the crash, there were families I had helped to get into a home that were facing foreclosure. It was too much to try to answer those questions every day. In fact, none of us even had the answers to give. We didn’t know how it had all happened either. It was tragic and disheartening, so I decided to make a change.
On the recommendation of a peer, I was given a position with the premier SEO agency in Chicago, Illinois and learned a great deal in my time there. However, the lesson that stuck with me the most was how not to treat customers. The business was fee-driven and nothing could ever get in the way of those fees – promises, mistakes, black-hat tactics. In the end, I had a confrontation with the CEO and gave my resignation letter the very same day I enrolled in university.
I went back to school to get my IT degree and follow my passion for technology. It was the best decision of my entire life. I opened Lift Conversions and honed my SEO skills right alongside my talent for PPC. That talent led me to AdWords and I’ve not looked back since. Our blend of SEO with AdWords and targeted content marketing has proved invaluable to clients in over 40 verticals across the US.
After speaking to every peer I could find, I realized the market was never going to rebound fully and that meant troubled times ahead. Plus, after the crash, there were families I had helped to get into a home that were facing foreclosure. It was too much to try to answer those questions every day. In fact, none of us even had the answers to give. We didn’t know how it had all happened either. It was tragic and disheartening, so I decided to make a change.
On the recommendation of a peer, I was given a position with the premier SEO agency in Chicago, Illinois and learned a great deal in my time there. However, the lesson that stuck with me the most was how not to treat customers. The business was fee-driven and nothing could ever get in the way of those fees – promises, mistakes, black-hat tactics. In the end, I had a confrontation with the CEO and gave my resignation letter the very same day I enrolled in university.
I went back to school to get my IT degree and follow my passion for technology. It was the best decision of my entire life. I opened Lift Conversions and honed my SEO skills right alongside my talent for PPC. That talent led me to AdWords and I’ve not looked back since. Our blend of SEO with AdWords and targeted content marketing has proved invaluable to clients in over 40 verticals across the US.
What are the services you provide to your clients?
We’re a full service digital marketing agency specializing in PPC, SEM, SEO, Local SEO, SMM, Content Marketing, Email Marketing, Web Design, and Video Production including drone flight.
What strategy according to you will prevail in 2018 for SEO?
I’m putting all of my money on content again to stand as undisputed champion of the worldwide web. Users have become accustomed to informative content being there when they need it and the businesses that can deliver it to them will stand head and shoulders above the rest. There’s a lot of momentum building behind the usage of social media to drive SEO and I see that continuing – even gaining in importance. Google+ might become a vital resource long after it’s been written off. It’s worth keeping an eye on and can serve an important role in small businesses without budget for traditional SEO.
What would your advice be to people who are looking to take up digital marketing as a career choice?
This is a timely question. Every year at about this time, we begin to receive communications from soon-to-be graduates looking for permanent placement right out of school. This gives us the chance to impart a bit of wisdom to those entering our industry, which we’re glad to do, and offer some advice as they venture out into the real world. That advice is always the same – love what you do. If you don’t, if you’re just looking for a paycheck, this is the wrong business to be in.
Marketing never sleeps. It doesn’t take vacations. Your clients will be relying on you to make their lives better – not the other way around. It’s a serious and long-term commitment and should be entered into with both eyes open. And, most importantly of all, it’s an ever-changing landscape. There’s no resting on your laurels or thinking you’ve got it all figured out. In short, be prepared, be passionate, and be persistent.
Marketing never sleeps. It doesn’t take vacations. Your clients will be relying on you to make their lives better – not the other way around. It’s a serious and long-term commitment and should be entered into with both eyes open. And, most importantly of all, it’s an ever-changing landscape. There’s no resting on your laurels or thinking you’ve got it all figured out. In short, be prepared, be passionate, and be persistent.