Conductor Announces Monumental New Version of Searchlight, the Leading SEO Platform, at C3 Conference

NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire - Sep 20, 2012) - Conductor, the leader in Search Engine Optimization (SEO) technology, today announced major advancements to its market-leading SEO technology platform, Conductor Searchlight™ during the sold-out C3 user-conference in New York City. The new, enterprise-class features were announced by Seth Besmertnik, CEO of Conductor, during his keynote presentation to more than 300 SEO professionals, brand marketers and industry thought-leaders in attendance.

"SEO has reached a strategic tipping point with a quarter of all organizations having a dedicated search marketing department¹ and the C-suite increasingly asking for tangible search metrics tied to business objectives and returns," said Besmertnik in his remarks. "Conductor has responded to this demand, adding a host of new capabilities and functionality to the Conductor Searchlight platform that elevate SEO into the mainstream business acumen and arms the next-generation marketer with the technology, information services and reporting mechanisms needed to take search to the next level."

Conductor Searchlight allows SEO professionals and brand marketers to gather in-depth search and business data in real-time to make informed decisions quickly that will positively impact the bottom line. The business-forward features announced at C3 include:

• Real-Time Performance Reporting: Search marketers who need to monitor daily fluctuations in their search visibility for key terms no longer need to wait for performance data to make critical decisions. Searchlight now gives marketers the real-time information they need for instant decision making and to optimize natural search programs for increased traffic and to grow revenue.
  
  
• Extensive Paid Search Integration: Extending the platform's comprehensive reporting for organic keyword discovery, Searchlight now integrates paid search data, helping search marketers better manage their search budgets and competitive strategies. Unlike other platforms that only offer paid search integration for a user's own domain, Searchlight customers can now see paid search data for competitors -- enabling powerful, game-changing competitive analysis for both paid and SEO campaigns.
  
  
• Predictive SEO: With Searchlight's new Predictive SEO feature, users can build custom models, including click-through curves, enabling them to create projections that are unique to their business. This powerful forecasting model lets users see the future impact of their SEO efforts and quickly convert them to goals that can be monitored by the entire team as they progress toward achieving those goals.
  
  
• KPI-Based Goal Management: Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) help search marketers set quantifiable goals to measure the success of their search programs and whether or not the business is making progress toward achieving those goals. Searchlight now enables users to set specific KPI-based goals to measure and track progress automatically using Searchlight-reported data. SEO professionals can track SEO metrics and competitive analysis, as well as best practices and workflow goals that enable them, and their teams, to stay on track and work toward common business objectives that impact the bottom line.
  
  
• Enhanced Reporting Delivery: Searchlight users can deliver important progress updates automatically through the enhanced delivery of flexible dashboards and reports. Users can now schedule automatic delivery of reports to desired executives and business teams who have a stake in search, whether they are inside or outside the company.
  
  
• Searchlight Reporting API: The SEO Cloud™ enables third-party platforms to interact and exchange data with Searchlight, allowing customers to easily retrieve Searchlight data for integration into their in-house platforms. Using this two-way API, customer systems can interact seamlessly with Searchlight data for managing comprehensive search marketing strategies.
  
  

SEO has become a critical component to digital marketing and what Google calls the "Zero Moment of Truth" -- or the moment when a consumer goes online to research a product and then decides whether to make a purchase. Brands like HSN know the importance of search rankings to brand value and its influence on the purchasing behavior of consumers. They turn to enterprise SEO technologies like Conductor Searchlight to ensure their natural search efforts are always optimized and to identify new ways to increase share-of-search that will propel their businesses forward.

"Conductor's dedication to continuous innovation, proven ability to stay one-step ahead of the industry, and the scalability of its platform has made Searchlight an important strategic investment and key business tool for our organization," said Hugo Guzman, Senior Manager, Online Marketing at HSN. "With its robust reporting capabilities, we're able to tie SEO performance to business metrics which helps influence budgetary decisions and guarantees executive buy-in."

About Conductor
Conductor is the global leader in SEO technology. Thousands of brands and enterprise marketers use its cloud-based SEO platform, Conductor Searchlight™ to measure, improve and manage their natural search efforts to stay ahead of the competition, increase site traffic and boost revenues. The powerful, highly scalable platform processes massive amounts of data quickly to give users real-time information for better, more informed decision making and to identifying new ways to increase share-of-search that will propel their businesses forward. Offering the most robust performance reporting and measurement tools available in the industry, Conductor arms marketers with the intelligence needed to tie SEO success to business objectives and demonstrate the value of SEO across the organization. One of New York City's fastest growing and most admired technology companies, Conductor is routinely recognized for excellence in business and corporate culture. To learn more, go to www.conductor.com or follow Conductor on Twitter @conductor.

¹ Results of a joint survey by Search Engine Watch and Conductor Inc. of more than 600 SEO practitioners conducted in August 2012.