Do you want to be an average content marketer or a great one? The answer lies in how well you understand how search marketing can help you build a connected brand. As brands wake up and realize they are in the digital publishing business, they have the chance to produce a great publishing strategy that combines search, content marketing, and social media. Here's how the synergy works:

Up until five years ago, I had never used the word disintermediation. In fact, if it would have come up in casual conversation, I would have had to pick my way through its bushel of syllables to figure out exactly what it meant. Today, I am acutely aware of the meaning. I use the word a lot. I would put it up there as one of the three or four most important trends to watch, right up there with the Database of Intentions, which I talked about last week. The truth is, if you're a middleman and you're not dead …

There seems to be an ongoing debate in the SEM world on the role of people vs. technology. Of course, it's not an either/or argument. I've worked on both the agency and tech side of SEM, and I can tell you that there is certainly a role for both people and technology -- and some process, too. The key is knowing which parts are best left to (wo)man and which are best left to machine. Here are a few examples.

The acceleration of users accessing Web content from mobile devices rather than traditional desktop and laptop computers has posed a difficult challenge to webmasters: how should websites be presented to mobile visitors? There are a number of design and UX considerations, coupled with the realities of fragmented mobile OS and device ecosystems that make this very problematic. Responsive Web design has emerged as both one of the hottest trends in Web design and development, as well as the preferred method to address these challenges.

It's been over 10 years since John Battelle first started considering what he called the "Database of intentions." It was, and is: "the aggregate results of every search ever entered, every result list ever tendered, and every path taken as a result." When Battelle considered the implications, it overwhelmed him. "Once I grokked this idea (late 2001/early 2002), my head began to hurt." Yet, for all its promise, marketers have only marginally leveraged the Database of Intentions. In the intervening time, the possibilities of the Database of Intention have not diminished. In fact, they have grown exponentially

Fellow Search Insider Rob Garner recently summarized a few of the key findings from this year's SEMPO marketer survey, noting an interesting data point related to the intersection of search and social marketing. Rob focuses much of his summary on the survey's finding that "60% of companies treat 'social media and search marketing separately,' as compared to agencies, where 58% state that 'social media is very much a part of our search activity.'" Rob goes on to refer to search and social marketing activities as "interdependent," and as a result of that interdependence invites readers to share their perspectives around …

Do you hear that rumble in the distance? It's change coming. What sort of change, you ask? Well, the events of the last few weeks collectively point to a pretty big shift in the search landscape.

People don't trust search ads. At least, 64% of people don't trust search ads. Apparently, search is not unique. According to the same research, nobody trusts ads of any kind. That's not really surprising, given that it's advertising. Its entire purpose is to make us suddenly want crap we don't need. Small wonder we don't trust it. But you know what we do trust? The opinions of our friends. Nothing I should have said up to this point should come as a shock to anyone reading this column. The only thing I found mildly surprising here was that we had …

There are two things I'm wildly attracted to: smarts and celebrity gossip. I attribute the latter to my lacking awareness of cultural happenings. Reading People magazine happens primarily at O'Hare and I've failed miserably at my New Year's resolution to watch more television. So, when I know anything at all, especially something involving real Hollywood, I get giddy. And I know something now that you may not!

Mark Zuckerberg took the stage last week at Techcrunch Disrupt to discuss all things Facebook, including the inevitability of a true Facebook search engine. It was the piece of information that most technology writers gravitated towards; even the stock price took notice (Facebook shares rose more than $2 per following the Zuckerberg interview). Why is the promise of a Facebook search engine so exciting to users and shareholders alike?