As we approach the Labor Day holiday, it’s a good time to look back and review all of the great content that’s been published so far this year. It’s been a busy time in the world of digital marketing, considering everything from the highly influential launch of the Penguin algorithm update to shifts in the way consumers engage with social networks and mobile devices.

If you’re feeling behind the times, here are a few of the best articles I’ve seen published so far this year:

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SEO Industry Changes

So far in 2012, Google’s Penguin update launch has been far and away the biggest story in SEO. However, don’t let the dominance of Penguin-related coverage fool you. There have been plenty of other important tweaks as well.

For example, although it seems like ages ago, Google’s “Search, plus Your World” feature was only launched in January of this year. In addition, we’ve also seen changes made to sites that feature copyrighted content, to the way keyword data is displayed within Google’s SEO tools and to the impact negative SEO can have on a site’s search rankings.

Take a look at the following articles to brief yourself on these topics:

Social Media

Beyond changes made to the search engine algorithms, the role and impact of social media have been changing as well. As consumers begin to rely on these popular websites more and more—and as the search engines give an increasingly large priority to certain signals found on these networks—2012 can be described as the year in which social media became a “must have” for organizations, rather than just an added perk.

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To brush up on your social media marketing techniques or overhaul your company’s strategy, check out the following articles on the subject:

Link Building

Link building remains important, but given the focus of the Penguin update on unnatural link building techniques, it’s safe to say that this aspect of SEO has changed more than any other in 2012. If you’re concerned that your link building techniques may be out-of-date according to new SEO best practices, read on for updated guidelines:

Blogging and Content Marketing

Content marketing is poised to make one of the biggest jumps in importance ever, given the potential for natural link creation this tactic provides. If you don’t yet have a company blog or a content marketing strategy in place, you simply must give the following articles a read:

Branding and Marketing

Google hasn’t shied away from sharing its love of big brands. From the search giant’s standpoint, this makes sense, as customers are often more likely to report positive user experiences on branded sites than on their “no name” competitors.

Unfortunately, this isn’t always good news for smaller websites, who may have lacked the budget, resources, or wherewithal to develop their brands in the past. If you find yourself in this tenuous position, the following posts will provide the guidance needed to help you develop and launch a new branding campaign:

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Pay-Per-Click Advertising

If you’re in the market for fast traffic, you simply can’t beat pay-per-click (PPC) advertising. However, given the steep learning curve that’s sometimes associated with this marketing method, you’d be wise to take heed of the following advice on how to manage these campaigns effectively:

Conversion Rate Optimization

Conversion rate optimization (CRO) should be a priority for any webmaster working today, whether you’ve set up a website to sell products or to simply disseminate a message. If it’s true that “what gets measured, gets managed,” it’s easy to see why failing to implement a proper CRO plan on your website (according to the recommendations found in the following articles) limits your site’s overall effectiveness!

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Mobile Marketing

Smartphone penetration and usage have never been higher, and there’s no sign these trends will slow down or reverse any time in the near future. Smart companies are investing in marketing strategies that allow them to capture these mobile users, so you’ll want to take a look at the guidelines found in the following great blog posts:

General Business Topics

Finally, not all great blog posts need to revolve around an actionable technique or specific aspect of SEO. Indeed, the following articles all have important business insights to share, even if they can’t be classified by a single SEO category:

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Have you read another great digital marketing article recently that didn’t make this list? Share your own recommendations in the comments section below!