1:1 Interview with David Eisenman, Internet Marketing Expert.

I sat down with my brother, David Eisenman who works in a field that is closely related to my Viral Marketing class. I interviewed him, regarding his occupation and discussed helpful tools for social networking/boosting traffic. David is employed by Acronym Media, one of the leading global search engine marketing companies and is involved in many aspects of internet marketing.


Where do you work and what do you do?
I work for Acronym Media, a Search Marketing company located in the Empire State Building as the Lead Technology Strategist. I manage the development of proprietary web applications and technology products for both in house use, and for our Fortune 500 client base.

What did you study in college and do you use that knowledge in your current work?
I majored in Business Administration with a concentration in Corporate Finance. I would say I use my business knowledge to help assess our clients needs as well as to manage large groups of people.

How did you make the jump from finance to internet marketing?
I often ask that question to myself, and it's kind of hard to answer. I actually received Series 7 and Series 63 Financial Licenses even before I had began college and I was really into the financial industry from the start of my college career. During my years at college I found myself drawn the the web, and began to start a few online ventures which would eventually turn very profitable, after I made my first dollar I was hooked, and upon graduating decided that online marketing was my true calling.

How does one get into this field of work?
It's hard for me to say, when I was in school there were very few courses on online marketing, and the industry is so fast-paced and dynamic that it constantly changes which I imagine can make courses hard to develop as they become obsolete very quickly. I'm sure however, that there are a lot more classes and resources today than when I was in school (a little over a year ago). I'm somewhat self-taught in that respect, there are literally thousands of fantastic online resources that have been helpful in getting me acclimated with online marketing.

Do you feel that online marketing is more effective than traditional forms of marketing?
In a lot of respects, yes.

How?
Online Marketing, specifically Search Marketing, by nature is very calculable, meaning you can track each dollar spent, and see its direct results. Your ROI (return on investment) is much more visible than running traditional media. Say you buy a billboard, you can never be sure how effective it is since it's somewhat hard to tell if your customers are buying your product because of that ad or from another influence. With the analytics available online, you can be sure that your money is being spent efficiently, and you have much more insight into the path in which it comes back to you.

What do you recommend to a beginner blogger how to increase their visibility on the internet?
First and foremost, it's important to write interesting articles! Secondly, try to leverage social networking to make your articles more visible and accessible to people around the web. Show off your articles to your friends on Facebook and Myspace, and post them to social news sites such as Digg.com and Reddit.com for additional exposure.