Many of us think of our SEO and social media teams as having very little that connect each other. But what if successful social media could improve our SEO efforts? This is exactly what Merriam-Webster — the 180-year-old dictionary — did. In her session, Lisa will be walking through how Merriam-Webster used social media to find an authentic, engaging voice and connect with data-driven trends across topics from politics to pop culture. Learn how the result was an ecosystem effect that also drove SEO ranking and CTR success.

1. The Ecosystem Effect:
How Our Social Voice
Boosted Our SEO
Lisa Schneider
Chief Digital Officer & Publisher
Merriam-Webster

2. How we got started

3. How we got started:
Cognitive Dissonance

4. Our social presence

5. IRL

6. Yessssssssss!!!!!!!

7. Yessssssssss!!!!!!!
Autocorrect has no idea of the power
of teenage girls to change language.

8. Important Qs from 2nd Grade

9. Important Qs from 2nd Grade

10. Important Qs from 2nd Grade

11. Merriam-Webster Mission:
• Propagate our irrational love of the English language

12. Merriam-Webster Mission:
• Propagate our irrational love of the English language
• Help people understand language better, so they can better
understand and communicate with the world around them.

13. Our voice works because
it’s not a marketing construct —
it’s who we really are.

14. Ecosystem

15. Engagement Content:
Our “On-Ramp”

16. Engagement Content

18. Ecosystem
Content

19. The power of
creative constraints.

20. Some of our constraints:
• Rigorous criteria for defining
• Use of data to connect with public discourse
• Social & political objectivity: we stick to the words

21. NO

23. Candidate for entry must have:
• Widespread use
• Long-term use
• Meaningful use
• Organic use

30. We have been data driven
for nearly 200 years.

31. More data online.

32. Top lookups: a (fairly) static list
• Socialism
• Fascism
• Culture
• Serendipity
• Empathy
• Integrity

33. Trending words: enter the top
list for a few hours to a few days

34. Trending words: enter the top
list for a few hours to a few days
• Tells us that people care enough about language
to turn to the dictionary when a word is used in a
way that raises the question of meaning.
#WordsMatter

35. Trending words: enter the top
list for a few hours to a few days
• Gives us a platform to engage with current events,
while maintaining our objectivity: we are reporting
lookup data, and answering users’ curiosity.

36. Trending words

37. Trending words

53. Ecosystem
Rules
Content

58. Our debate coverage was proclaimed a winner

59. Merriam-Webster has been covered by
a wide variety of established media and new online-only media,
appealing to thought leaders across every demographic.

60. Ecosystem
Rules
Content

61. Ecosystem
Rules
Content
SEO WINS!

62. Social à SEO
• All that press coverage gave us high-quality, organic,
inbound links

63. Social à SEO
• All that press coverage gave us high-quality, organic,
inbound links
• Users who love our voice, or read about us, are
more likely to choose Merriam-Webster

64. The Ecosystem Effect:
How Our Social Voice
Boosted Our SEO
Lisa Schneider
Chief Digital Officer & Publisher
Merriam-Webster