Industry veteran releases new book, our top columnists of 2017 and more

Happy new year! If, like me, you’re just getting caught up on industry news and announcements, I’ll share a couple of noteworthy items you may have missed over the past two weeks:

Have some industry or community news you want to share? Drop us a note at community@searchengineland.com!

Our own Barry Schwartz continues his “Honor an SEO/SEM” series at his blog, and this (and last) weeks’ honored nominees are:

Aleyda Solis – nominated by Gianluca Fiorelli and known to all that are fortunate to call her friend as a tiny tornado of tips and tactics – Aleyda represents the very best the digital marketing industry has to offer. As I’ve come to know Aleyda over the past five years, I’m struck by her boundless passion for the topics for which she so willingly shares her expertise. Get to know Aleyda.

Wil Reynolds – founder of Seer Interactive (2002), Wil has spent the past 15 years steadily growing a large, successful SEO agency. With over 100 employees to lead, he also finds time to support and volunteer in local Philly charities. Learn more about Wil.

Pamela Lund is one of those industry veterans that keeps a pretty low profile, and is content to focus on the brands she helps grow vs. promoting her own. Her focus on business and helping others in business is what makes her one of our industry’s most valuable players. I heartily concur with Akvile DeFazio, who nominated Pam and notes “we’re fortunate to have her and her expertise in our industry.” Get familiar with this hidden gem here.

Ross Hudgens founded his SEO agency in 2012. Upon reading that, I was surprised because his depth of knowledge and skill belies his relative ‘newness’ in this industry. Nominated anonymously, his transparency and willingness to share his knowledge were specifically noted. Find out more about Ross.

Joe Hall was nominated by Donna Cavalier who accurately notes “has a brilliant analytical mind, amazing programming chops, and a kick-ass personality.” Joe has been in this industry longer than most, and remains one of the most ‘solid’ colleagues we have. He is unwavering in both his candidness and his willing to help fellow marketers. Get to know Joe, you’ll be happy you did.

Elisabeth Osmeloski and I have been coworkers & friends for the better part of a decade. Working together to grow the Third Door Media brands with such a talented colleague has been incredible. Read about why Carrie Hill nominated Elisabeth and agrees, “you’re the best.”

Rae (Hoffman) Dolan – a veteran industry honoree that is talented, tough, transparent, and consistent. She’s not everyone’s cup of tea – and is perfectly ok with that. As I’ve always been one to ‘say what I mean and mean what I say’ I instantly connected with Rae when we met. She’s incredibly smart, driven and giving with her time and expertise. Learn more about Rae and why Joe Pawlikowski nominated her here.

Matt McGee – Rounding out this week’s group of “industry luminaries that I cannot be unbiased about” is Matt McGee. Matt was most recently Editor in Chief for our publications but spent almost ten years in total at Third Door Media. In that time I came to know what a positive, kind and thoughtful person he is. I cannot ever recall a time where he was not upbeat or smiling. And I defy you to find someone that can. Our own news reporter, Amy Gesenhues, nominated Matt and you can read more about his long history in digital marketing here.

Have some industry or community news you want to share? Drop us a note at community@searchengineland.com!

About The Author

Michelle Robbins, SVP Content & Marketing Technology, oversees editorial direction as Editor in Chief for Third Door Media’s digital publications, Search Engine Land, Marketing Land and MarTech Today, directing a full-time staff of reporters and editors managing contributed content. She is responsible for developing the content strategy across all properties and aligning those initiatives with the programming and audience goals for Third Door Media’s two leading marketing conference series, Search Marketing Expo and The MarTech Conference. In addition, Michelle oversees information technology operations, directing the marketing technology department.

An experienced domestic and international keynote and featured speaker, she enjoys connecting with the community at SMX, MarTech and other industry events. Connect online with Michelle on Twitter @MichelleRobbins, and Linkedin .

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