Confessions of a Web Professional-Where it All Began.

Part 1 of my Series, Confessions of a Web Professional

Welcome to my new blog series, “Confessions of a Web Professional.” In this series, I will share insights into my life as a web professional, my obsession with search engine optimization, and how working in higher education has transformed my career.

I hope you find these posts entertaining and relatable. I’m curious to hear about your own introduction to the World Wide Web and your thoughts on the digital marketing industry. If you enjoy this post, I would greatly appreciate it if you could share it and keep the conversation going by leaving a comment below.

Part 1 – The Information Super Highway

As I enter my 25th year as a web professional, I’ve worn many hats throughout my career, primarily as a Webmaster. This catch-all title has allowed me to learn a wealth of information and explore amazing directions in my field.

Let’s take a trip back to 1994 when I first discovered the “Information Highway.”

During the Winter Olympics, the concept of the Information Highway or Information Superhighway was repeatedly mentioned. I was curious and eager to understand what it was all about. You might say I had a bad case of “FOMO”…fear of missing out.

Connecting to the internet in 1994 required an AOL disk offering a free trial with a limited number of hours. AOL was everywhere, thanks to their extensive distribution of free disks (which could be seen being used as coasters or hanging decorations).

Once I was online, I was mesmerized by the vast amount of information available in that little box on my desk.

My journey into web design began, and I taught myself HTML using the book “Teach Yourself Web Publishing with HTML in a Week.” I became hooked and developed a passion for building web pages.

In 1995, while working for Ballistic ActionNet as Web Design Director, my colleague and I stumbled upon a search engine optimization technique that propelled our clients’ pages to the top of Google! We thought we had invented something revolutionary – the infamous SEO keyword stuffing trick. It worked for a while until search engines caught up with our tactics. But man! Did we learn.

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Those early days were filled with excitement, and looking back, I’m amazed at how much the digital landscape has evolved. Terms like Digital Marketing, Search Engine Marketing, and Content Marketing weren’t part of our vocabulary, and we couldn’t have predicted the impact of social media.

I invite you to join me on this journey as I explore the next chapter of my life. Stay tuned for more captivating stories and insights.

Cheers,
Robin

When we finally did get logged in, I was fascinated!  How did all that information get tucked into a little box (or rather, clunky box) sitting on my desk?  Who put it there? Would it stay there forever?

To connect to the internet in 1994, you would first need an AOL disk offering a free trial with X amount of free hours. In the mid-’90s, AOL blanketed the U.S.A. with free disks. Free offers showed up everywhere including your mailbox, Wal-Mark, Blockbuster, and even cereal boxes.

In just a matter of a few months, AOL was known by everyone…everywhere..

SEO in 1995

Working for Ballistic ActionNet was my first job as a Web Designer. I worked with Ballistic for about 5 years, made wonderful friends and built hundreds of websites. We were at the dawn of the internet. There were no classes you could take, no degrees or certifications on web design and sometimes we made up our own rules.

Steve, Tim and I quickly figured out a search engine optimization technique that allowed the pages we designed for our clients to pull up at the very top of Google. How? You may have heard of this crazy SEO keyword stuffing technique, but we thought we invented it! And for a little while, we got away with it. Keywords at the bottom of each page, hidden by setting the words as the same color of the page.

Our pages were popular, easy to build and easy to maintain. It didn’t take long for business in our area to realize they needed to hop on board.

Sometimes, you find yourself in the right place at the right time. You may not realize it at the time, but looking back, it stares you right in the face.

I have great memories of those early days and I am amazed at how far things have come. Digital Marketing, SEO and Content Marketing were not terms in the ’90’s. And we never could have imagined how Social Media would change the game in the 2000’s.

I look forward to the next chapter in my life and I invite you will come along on the ride with me!

Cheers,

Robin

Robinette Kelly is a dynamic digital marketer and industry leader with over 20 years of experience driving digital success.