A Sagan approach to SEO

There is much to be said about the dynamic nature and analytical thought process necessary to be successful in what the SEO industry has become. Although search engine optimization has evolved corporately, and has come a long way since its inception,  from the looks of things, we’re just getting started (not to mention there is tremendous innovation right around the corner).

“The brain does much more than just recollect, it intercompares, and synthesizes, analyzes, it generates abstractions.”            – Carl Sagan

So what does Carl Sagan, one of the more brilliant minds of our time have to do with SEO (the title of the post)? Well, I think there’s a couple lessons about the future of SEO to be learned from some of his prolific (and not so prolific) words of wisdom.

“The brain has its own language for testing the structure and consistency of the world.”

Challenging the status quo, and in essence, testing the boundaries of convention is common to analytical thinkers and social critics…it also happens to be one of the more important characteristics of a talented SEO.  The search engine game is always changing, and as such, a successful SEO must be both adaptable and versatile in their respective strengths. Research may be the key to strategy, but as a wiser SEO than I so eloquently stated, “focus on execution, not research”.  The proactive implementation of innovative search marketing strategies is far more important than the conceptual development. Especially as the value of SEO tactics evolves.

“I am often amazed at how much more capability and enthusiasm for science there is among elementary school youngsters than among college students.”

Having just visited an elementary school in Tsuda, Japan a few weeks ago, this quote rings true with me. One of my favorite aspects of the search engine optimization field is the constant learning involved…and for some reason, eagerness to learn seems much more prevalant in elementary school kids than everyone else these days.  I spend a fair bit of time consuming industry news and studying progressive SEO techniques to stay ahead of the curve (or at least in tune with it), which for me, is an invaluable experience every day.  I’m still as excited to learn about SEO today as I was when I started…and i’m constantly amazed by the massive amounts of information and commentary available.  The SEO world is in many ways a community of free thinkers pushing the boundary of search, testing new methods of enabling peer to peer communication, while systematically cataloging the evolution of search through blogs, comment section arguments, and video recordings. The enthusiasm and hunger for knowledge in the SEO community is unparalleled by any other marketing discipline in my opinion. To me, every piece of SEO knowledge and strategic problem solved is  a discovery.

“Science is a way of thinking much more than it is a body of knowledge.”

I feel the same could be said for SEO. I am constantly amazed by the neglect SEOs receive in the grander scheme of the marketing industry. As social media hype continues to propogate wildly, it seems search is never at the forefront of the discussion. I find this fundamentally confusing, especially because search has become such an integral part of American culture…Google has become synonymous with the basic act of looking up information online, which to me, means it’s only going to get bigger and more integrated into our lives.  After all, we still don’t copy things…we xerox them…and when i look for information online…I still Google it.