Empathy-Focused SEO: Kim Herrington’s Marketing Agency Secrets The YouTube video transcript features Lydia Lee interviewing Kim Herrington, an SEO and Google Ads consultant. Herrington shares her journey from Olympic hopeful to entrepreneur, detailing how she built her agency, Orsana, which focuses on “intent-based marketing.” She emphasizes the importance of empathy and authentic connections in SEO, focusing on understanding human behavior and searcher intent.
Herrington discusses her company’s evolution, her decision to hire employees over contractors, and partnering with her husband. She also provides advice on conducting market research and understanding customer needs to improve marketing effectiveness. Her overall approach is to provide solutions and make marketing relevant for the people being served rather than just working to please algorithms.
Kim Herrington’s Journey into Entrepreneurship
Kim Herrington’s path to entrepreneurship began unexpectedly after struggling to find a conventional job following the 2010 financial crisis. She initially sought a traditional role, even flipping through phone books to find employment. This led to a job with a local government agency, managing their new paid parking program.
Despite gaining valuable customer service and negotiation skills, Kim knew this wasn’t her long-term career. She networked within the WordPress community and eventually landed a full-time freelancing role as an SEO copywriter. This experience allowed her to learn SEO on the job, analyzing analytics and researching effective strategies.
After a couple of years, Kim transitioned to working for herself, driven by a desire for greater autonomy and better pay. She initially aimed to create an influencer agency but later shifted to a traditional marketing agency. Serendipitous moments, such as a chance encounter at her parents’ archery store, helped her secure initial clients. Kim acknowledges her privilege in having connections and resources that facilitated her entrepreneurial journey.
Kim emphasizes the importance of building a strong reputation and network, as past colleagues often become valuable clients. Her journey highlights the significance of adaptability, perseverance, and leveraging opportunities in the transition to entrepreneurship.
Intent-Based Marketing and the Human Element in SEO
Kim Herrington emphasizes intent-based marketing, focusing on understanding the searcher’s intent behind their queries. This approach involves marketing to people already looking for specific solutions or information related to a business’s offerings. For example, someone searching for “virtual CFO services” demonstrates a clear intent that SEO can address.
Kim believes that algorithms like Google’s are designed to replicate human behavior, aiming to provide the best answers to users’ queries. Therefore, focusing on human understanding and empathy is crucial for successful SEO. This means considering the emotional, physical, spiritual, and mental state of potential customers and why they turn to search engines.
Rather than solely focusing on keywords, Kim prioritizes topics and topical relevance, as Google’s algorithms can understand the meaning behind words. By understanding the problems customers face and the solutions a business offers, marketers can create content that aligns with the customer journey. This approach aims to attract the right kind of traffic that converts into paying customers.
Kim also notes that technical SEO is often overemphasized for small businesses. Unless competing with large multinational corporations, small businesses can focus on the bare minimum, ensuring their website works on mobile and loads quickly.
Empathy and Audience Understanding in Digital Marketing
Kim Herrington underscores that empathy and audience understanding are foundational to any modern digital marketing campaign. To effectively connect with an audience, especially when expertise creates a gap, marketers must delve into market research. This involves understanding what questions the audience is asking, even at odd hours, to ensure the content addresses their needs.
One effective method is conducting audience surveys to gather insights into their struggles and preferences. Another approach is to analyze existing website data to understand how people are currently finding the business. Additionally, competitor research can reveal what strategies are resonating with the target audience.
Kim emphasizes the value of direct customer interaction through sales calls or informational interviews. These conversations uncover the problems customers face and the resources they consult. By asking for feedback, businesses can gain valuable insights into how to reach and help more people.
In light of increasing privacy concerns and reduced access to consumer data, building relationships with customers is crucial. Small businesses have an advantage over large corporations in this regard, as they can foster direct communication and understanding. Kim recommends prioritizing customer interviews, competitor research, and then surveys to refine marketing strategies.
Building a Meaningful Business: Ethical Choices and Partnerships
Kim Herrington highlights the importance of aligning business decisions with personal ethics and values. Herrington chose to hire employees rather than rely heavily on contractors due to concerns about potentially abusive relationships. She also saw it as an opportunity to contribute to her local economy and prevent brain drain from Arkansas.
Providing good benefits, flexibility, and a positive work environment were key considerations in her decision to build her agency with employees. Herrington’s husband joined the business, bringing complementary skills in finance and organizational structure. This partnership allowed them to scale the company effectively and avoid mistakes in hiring and management.
Herrington and her husband made a financial investment in the company. While Kim remains the majority owner, her husband’s ownership ensures a shared commitment and partnership. This decision-making process underscores the importance of conscious choices in building a business that aligns with one’s values and goals.
She acknowledges that choosing employees may result in slower growth compared to using contractors. But she believes it fosters a stronger team culture and greater overall success. Herrington’s approach demonstrates that there is no one-size-fits-all model for business, and the best path is the one that aligns with individual values and ethics.