This is part of the say something nice about an SEO/SEM series - feel free to nominate someone over here.
Brian McDowell is 43 years old and lives with his family in the Charlotte, North Carolina region. He has two kids, a "15 year old daughter who is smarter than I am and 11 year old son that allows me to look in the mirror and stay youthful," he told me. He also just recently celebrated his 20th wedding anniversary with his wife Sarah.
Anyone who knows Brian, knows how important the value of respect is to him. He dishes out respect like no other, because respect is an important attribute people should have. I've written about respect here a lot, I find it important for many reasons. You stand up for your elders, you be polite, you talk to people like you want them to talk to you - you just be respectful to others because it makes you and everyone around you a better person.
Brian has been doing the SEO thing since he was a web designer back in 2008, he has a ton of technical experience, as well as agency and in-house experience. He has been around the block, a few times, and is super experienced and giving of that experience. You can find his content on SEO and SEM across many industry blogs, yes - he also travels and speaks on the topic.
Brian deserves our respect and the industry today is honoring him.
Kate Morris nominated Brian and wrote:
Brian is hands down the most respectful SEO in the industry. He honors everyone he meets. He sees the best in everyone. Brian is a positive person that makes you better with every moment you spend with him. He is the guy that will go out of his way to help you out or answer a question. Be it about SEO or cars. :)Brian and I bonded at a PubCon (dear lord, I have no idea the year at this point) over Ford Mustangs. I had one at the time and he still has his. What grew from that conversation was an amazing friendship. Brian is someone that balances being straightforward and very respecting at the same time. He always looks like a kid in a candy story at every PubCon, even today. The idea of sharing his knowledge, helping others and getting the opportunity to get to know people in our industry is what drives him. He's helped me through some very tough situations and I will always consider him one of the greatest men I have had the honor of knowing and calling a friend.
Brian McDowell Bio: Based in Charlotte NC, Brian likes motivating people to find passion in digital advertising. With university degrees in Computer Information Systems and Computer Science, he started a career in software engineering back in 1997 building websites for SMB along with healthcare management software. His endless pursuit of knowledge and web evolution sparked his curiosity in SEO while working for LendingTree in 2005. With a new understanding of enterprise process and the lack of data tools in the space, he took this knowledge to a local agency in 2007 (Red Ventures) and introduced them to the power of SEO. Within two years Brian was able to build a 10 person team, multiple in house tools, and over $20M in revenue. In 2010, Brian joined the co-founder group built to deliver Conductor Searchlight to enterprise companies around the world. Since then, Brian has been working with large organizations to build strategies and cultures that move the SEO needle. In 2016, Brian joined BloomReach as the Principal Digital Strategist where he continues consulting for enterprise organizations to understand the digital space with a deep focus on E-Commerce. When not at work you will find Brian in his small town volunteering at youth sports events for his son and daughter.
Favorite thing about the SEM community? The continuous mental stimulation of an ever changing landscape is greatly overshadowed by the eclectic professional diversity. If you look around any SEO related conference you will find every stereotype come together and break bread without judgement. In this community the phrase “never judge a book by its cover” rings deep.
One piece of advice to the SEMs out there? Never be afraid to say “I don’t know” and follow that up by intense research. Use “I don’t know” as a catalyst for continued education. Research, Learn, Teach, Repeat. People respect that more than BS or ego driven recommendations which are easily detected.
Favorite things in general? I love to coach youth sports and contribute to young athletes confidence, skill and love of competition (7 seasons of baseball and 9 seasons of flag football). I have also been a board member for our local swim organization for 5 years to help provide a positive environment for kids to enjoy the sport. We (my family) are die hard Buffalo Bills fan and have stood by them throughout their playoff drought. The loyalty is eternal. #BillsMafia
What you want to be known for in the SEM space? Respect - for people and the process. Everything we do for our company, clients, the industry and our families amount to nothing if not handled with a level of respect for others and their abilities. Many say respect is earned but I disagree. Respect is given from the first handshake but can be easily lost. When you lose someones respect it is impossible to ever get it back. This is an important trait when you are dealing with multiple teams that require different approaches. Those who have my deepest respect undoubtedly know it.
To learn more about Brian, connect with him on LinkedIn and follow him on Twitter.
This is part of the say something nice about an SEO/SEM series - feel free to nominate someone over here.
