Corporate mergers can be difficult. It basically means that two teams of executives have to find some sort of compromise while devising a new business model, followed by a series of unsavory decisions regarding their staffs.The first difficult merger I witnessed was while I was a content writer at PlattForm Advertising. They bought a small publishing company in the mid-2000s so they could start print publications directed at for-profit education corporations. Professional titles were altered, duties were shifted and toes were stepped on until they were bloody nubs.
Change is tough for professionals who are accustomed to certain game plans. This was much more evident to me after the small marketing agency I contributed to called SPIDERtel merged with In10sity Interactive. In10sity was different; they were hungry and they demanded results. The economy in 2010 was tough, yet every industry report published spoke of rising spending ceilings for online marketing; confusing, but invigorating to agencies willing to put in the hours. In10sity was game. I took the plunge.
In10sity's business model was based on their content management system, InPower 2.0. The back end resembled your regular WordPress interface, with much more versatility. They were also dedicated to search engine marketing, mobile apps, digital marketing tools and paid placement. My duties at SPIDERtel became much more diverse once the In10sity client stable demanded a new level of performance. At In10sity, I continued to develop SEO strategies, but was able to get back to duties more attuned to creative writing and on-page SEO. We had a broad range of clients and an intimidating workload. My duties there lasted until late summer 2011.
So, to recap-
This is what I learned:
- SEO
- PPC
- Google AdSense
- Content management systems
- On-page optimization
- Corporate mergers are tough
- Long hours