“Our Father in Heaven”

• Establish the right posture in conversing with God.
• Stressing a close father figure. God keeps trying to move us toward a close relationship with God.

“Hallowed (set apart, venderated) be Your name.”

• Incorporate praise and worship into our prayer time.
• We recalibrate our thinking to the reality of who God is as we go through difficult life situations. God tends to get small as our problems feel bigger.

“Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

• Call on God to intercede – so that His will would be done.
• Our prayers have a direct influence on what God does not do and does do.

“Give us today our daily bread.”

• We lift up our daily needs to God.
• Prayer is God’s way of adjusting His people to Him, and waiting on discussing personal needs until later in the prayer cycle helps recalibrate our focus to being on Him.

“Forgives us our debts, as we have forgiven our debtors.”

• WE incorporate personal repentance and forgiving others into our prayer time.

“And lead us not into temptation,” but deliver us from the evil one.”

• Commit yourself and your day to the Lord.
• Ask God to lead us through the day.

See In Touch Ministries

Praying for Duluth and surrounding communities

Story of the Good Samaritan

Luke 10:30-37 “In reply Jesus said: ‘A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’ ‘Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?’ The expert in the law replied, ‘The one who had mercy on him.’Jesus told him, ‘Go and do likewise.’

• Priest skipped him
• Levite skipped him
• Samaritan takes care of the man, despite it being inconvenient, he took advantage of the opportunity to help. Here Jesus gave us an example of what it takes to be a real neighbor.
  • He was willing to be significantly inconvenienced
  • He was willing to show love

Being a real Christ follower takes time!

Colossians 4: 2-6 “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

• 2 – Devote yourselves to prayer
• Be watchful – The more we align ourselves with God’s will, the more we see how God sees
• 3 – So that we may explain clearly who Christ is
• 5 – Make the most of every opportunity

It is impossible to have efficient relationships

• Part of prayer is asking God to help us decide which needs we hear about that God wants us to get involved with financially, with our time, and in prayer

Truth

Love is a mega-theme for God.

John 3:16-17 – “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

Matthew 22:37-40 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

• Love God with all your heart, soul and mind
• Love your neighbor as yourself
• The outside world will be able to gauge whether we are real Christ followers, based on whether we do love our neighbors
• And you must do whatever you do with love, or your efforts are no better than a clanging gong, the Bible says

1 Corinthians 13:1 “If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.

Serve Humbly

Matthew 23:11-12 “The greatest among you will be your servant. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

Matthew 25:40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.“

1 John 3:17-20 – Serve Obediently –
“If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth. This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence: If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.

Romans 12:2 – “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

Tenacity

• Jesus was not looking for an easy way out
• Relationship can’t be rushed

Galatians 6:9 – “Don’t become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we have reaped a harvest if we don’t give up.”

Some upcoming projects that Anchor Point Community Church as a body is working on to make this a reality:
1. We are doing a community project at the conclusion of a special 40-day prayer effort, concluding in mid-May
2. Many volunteers from the church are assisting with Art in Me, a Duluth event that offers a free day of crafts for kids and their parents at Chester Bowl
3. Individually, members are working to build relationships with their immediate neighbors

For more information on these activities, visit the website for our [Duluth, MN church]

Connected To The Core:

Ministry “Jesus Style!”

The crowds were not ultimately who Jesus was equipping. It was the disciples.

In Building A Discipling Culture by Mike Breen, he states that Discipling is an intentional pursuit. It doesn’t happen by accident.

Image by Martin LeBar

Churches all across America are in decline.

Matthew 18: 18-20: Whoever wants to be Christ’s disciple must pick up his or her cross and follow Him.

• Discipleship: The Main Thing. It’s always been about following Christ.

Churches spring up where disciples are raised up.

Luke 6:40: “Everyone who is fully trained will be like his or her teacher.”

The focus needs to be not on collecting information about Jesus. Focus on following Jesus into the world to join Him in his redemptive mission.

•  Discipleship: The Main Thing Jesus Did.

Invite people in. Challenge people to change. Create a high learning culture.

Matthew 16:17-19: “¹⁷ Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. ¹⁸ And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. ¹⁹ I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

Just a few verses later however, Jesus calls Peter Satan.

^{Matthew 16:23} ”Jesus turned and said to Peter, ‘Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.’”

Matthew 16:24 to 25: “ ²⁴ Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. ²⁵ For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.”

Mike Breen – A gifted discipler is someone who invites you into their lives and changes them.

Discipleship: The Main Thing Jesus did as He walked thorugh life!

If you’re not regularly feeling uncertain in what you are trying to do for Christ, you aren’t fully engaged in living our your Christian faith. (Man this is hard to hear.)

Discipleship is not something we do. It is a way of life.

Action Points:

1. What is the main thing driving your life?
2. Who has the right to speak in your life what you don’t want to hear, holding you accountable?
3. Who are you speaking truth into?

Connected to the Core

Listen Up!

Sermon on March 11, 2012 by Pastor Jeff Sorvik

These notes are those of Patrick Garmoe, and include my personal thoughts. These notes should not be viewed as a directly transcribed version of Sorvik’s sermon. To hear the sermon in its entirety, visit this link to an excellent church in Duluth MN

Key components to hearing God’s voice:

1. Go to the scriptures

2 Timothy 3: 16-17 “16 All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work”

Psalm 119: 105-106: “105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. 106 I have taken an oath and confirmed it, that I will follow your righteous laws.”

Psalm 119:11: “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against You.”

2. Embrace Silence

1 Kings 19:10-14: “10 He replied, ‘I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.’ 11 The LORD said, ‘Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.’ Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. 13 When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, ‘What are you doing here, Elijah?’ 14 He replied, ‘I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.’”

Note: This final statement turned out not to be true, based on the scriptures by Old Testament prophets

• We get addicted to God screaming at us in the big events. We need to have silence in our lives to hear God’s whispers

• Recapture Solitude

• Meditate

Psalm 1: 1-2 “Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers,
2 but whose delight is in the law of the LORD,
and who meditates on his law day and night.”

• Listen when you pray — Just sit and listen to God. Do not only unload concerns and requests in prayer

3. Sharing — We’re called to hear God together

Matthew 18:19-20 “19 Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. 20 For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”

• Desire to be aligned completely with God

• That’s why corporate prayer and worship is so important

  • We want to exchange what we hear
    • God will often in a group setting reveal a theme to people
  • Test what we think we’re hearing

1 Thessalonians 5:19-21 – “19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not treat prophecies with contempt 21 but test them all; hold on to what is good, 22 reject every kind of evil.”

Core Value of Anchor Point Church in Duluth, MN: Hearing

Jesus did only what the Father told him to do, and since we aim to be like Him, we seek to hear what God is asking us to do and do it!

Don’t just be into the Word and prayer a little, but a lot!

The notes and opinions here were taken by Patrick Garmoe, and are not necessarily those of anyone who works or attends Anchor Point Church. To hear the original sermon in its entirety visit click on this link to a large church in Duluth.

This is the first sermon in a new series launched today called Connected to the Core

Connected to the core

Profile of Passion – Four Aspects of Peter’s Life

1) Invest –

Luke 5:10-11 – “10 and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.
Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.” 11 So they pulled their boats up on shore, (they) left everything and followed him.”

John 6:44 – “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day.“
??

Luke 14:26-27 – “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. 27 And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.”

• Full devotion, not holding on to anything from the past, is what is required.

John 10:10 – “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

Passion Point – Our purpose must be experienced

2) Engaged

Luke 9: 1-6 – “Jesus Sends Out the Twelve
1 When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, 2 and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. 3 He told them: “Take nothing for the journey—no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no extra shirt. 4 Whatever house you enter, stay there until you leave that town. 5 If people do not welcome you, leave their town and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.” 6 So they set out and went from village to village, proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere.”

• We need to be in the game. Just watching the game is a completely different experience, but too many church-attendees sit on the sidelines.

3) Stretched

Hebrews 11:1-2 – “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were commended for.”

Hebrews 11:6 – “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”

Passion Point: “Faith grows when we act on what we cannot see.”

Isn’t that how life works as well? Those who are revered took big risks or took steps to reach out with no assurance of a positive outcome, and potentially a lot to lose, whether financially, or in reputation or otherwise.

4) Graced – Petered denied Jesus three times. Later Jesus, through asking him “Do you love me? Three times, was Jesus’s way of saying “I forgive.”

Acts 5:13 – “The Apostles Heal Many
12 The apostles performed many signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon’s Colonnade. 13 No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. 14 Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number. 15 As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter’s shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by.”

Peter chooses to reenter the game, and does not make the same mistake again, even though he suffers physically greatly for it. I think he was also burned upside down on the cross.

Passion Point – Allow the Grace of God to Overcome Your Failures

A Core Anchor Point Church Value: ARDENT: God wants us to live our lives with passion. We aim to live at full throttle for God. – In short, we want to get what Peter got.

Go Together!

These notes are from Pastor Jeff Sorvik’s sermon on March 4, 2012. The interpretation of these notes below are entirely those of Patrick Garmoe, not anyone at Anchor Point Church. To listen to the full sermon in its entirety, visit …

People Interact In Four Key Spaces, according to sociologist Edward Hall

In the United States the distance is:

1. Public Space: 12-foot gap
2. Social space: Four to 12 feet
3. Personal space: 18 inches to four feet

4. Intimate space: 0-18 inches

5. While the distance changes, the four spaces exist in all cultures

The same holds true for how people interact in groups, according to sociologist Joseph Myers

1. Public: More than 70 people, the group you talk to as an audience
2. Social Connections: 20-70 people, contains loose connections
3. Personal: 5-20 people, more meaningful conversations, but nothing terribly deep (think Cheers)
4. Intimate Space: 1-4 people, constitutes the core of who we are. The are the people who have our back no matter what, and we share everything with

God intended for us to live in all four spaces. People therefore who do not function in all four places often, unfortunately struggle with some sort of emotional issue, because they do not have ties to all four categories

Four Spaces:

1. Public -70+ people

Matthew 4:24-5:2: “24 News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed; and he healed them. 25 Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis (Ten Cities), Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed him. 5:1 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them.”

• Characterized by public speaking, like a Sunday sermon, one-way information, not really a dialog

  • Purpose: Jesus gave the crowds a God-inspired vision when in public

2. Social 20-70 people

Luke 10:1-3 “1 After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. 2 He told them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. 3 Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves.’”

Purpose: Being on mission together.

• This size group was about moving from just listening to what Jesus said, to doing something about it.

3. Personal 5-20 people

Mark 4: 33-34 “ 33 With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand. 34 He did not say anything to them without using a parable. But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything.”

• The 12 disciples working in a relational context

• They did life with Jesus

  • Purpose: Intentional Discipleship

4. Intimate space 1-4 people — Peter, James and John

Mark 14: 32-34 “They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” 33 He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. 34 “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.”

• One of the most profound passages in Jesus’ ministry

Purpose: The Place of Deep Life Change

Real life change happens in the context of relationship

• Median size of churches is 75. Most churches stop growing at 90 people, because they socialize but people do not engage further.

• You cannot be intimate with a group of 12 people

• God intended for us to live in all four spaces.

**Connected — Our goal is to be interdependent on each other, working together to reach out and help others

1. Pick a mission
2. Start now!
3. Be willing to train yourself — Get equipped!
4. Start inviting others!

What will it cost?

1. Time
2. Reprioritizing — Putting God’s mission upfront
3. Interdependence — We need to give up on some of our “independence” to be interdependent.

Romans 12: We’re one body. Not Individuals. We belong to each other.

• We need to get more involved in personal circles

• We need to be gathered in groups that catapult us out into the world

• A small group that starts with a mission almost always builds relationships, but small groups that launch around relationships rarely work to achieve missions, even if that is the key goal at the outset

• We’re not just doing life, we’re living out a mission

• Do not have relationships that are a mile wide, but an inch deep

*These notes are from Sorvik’s sermon on February 26, 2012. The interpretation of these notes below are entirely those of Patrick Garmoe, not necessarily anyone at Anchor Point Church. To listen to the full sermon in its entirety, visit

1. God gave us Jesus Christ to span the gap between Him and us. We must work to span that gap for others

God modeled this for us

Click here for an illustration of how of how Jesus Christ spanned the gap.

• We’re waiting for other to come to us, but we’re called to do the bridge-building between God and hurting people who cross our paths.

Matthew 28:18-20: “18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Matthew 16:18: “18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.”

Matthew 5: 13-16: “13 You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
14 You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

(Add picture of lights as you come over the top of Thompson Hill)

2. Go Across

Two Broken Ideas

• Meet our own needs only — We spend too much time focused on our own needs. Too many churches are staffed with doctors and nurses who won’t treat the sick around them.
• Success — People too often in and of itself is taken as an indicator of successful ministry efforts.

“Churches driven by either of these big ideas (1. Creating a church that meets the needs of its members, but focuses only on that. 2. Defines growth as success and “more”) become, in truth, islands without bridges — spending their influence mostly on themselves in an isolated and disconnected world.“ – Pg 59 of “The Church of Irresistible Influence,” by Robert Lewis.

3. Come Home Again

1 Peter 3:15-16: “15 But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, 16 keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.”

1. Respond: Programs in church will never make a dent in what Christ is trying to accomplish in the world.

2. Invite: Become more engaged in inviting.

Matthew 9:10-11: “10 While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. 11 When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

3. Influence

Matthew 5:16: “16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

• Think of how you can bring Jesus into your passions. Perhaps I can invite people on hikes and geocaching, and at least can use the time for prayer.
• Also seems like I can devote some of my social networking time online to building bridges in this effort.

4. Engage

Colossians 4:3: “3 praying at the same time for us as well, that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned;”

• Pray for opportunities to serve God. Be looking for them throughout my day.

Bridge Building Steps!

Anchor Point Core Values:

Net: Jesus said in Matthew 4:19: “I will make you fishers of men.” We are a fishing church— committed to going where the needs are real and urgent.”

• Feel free to contact me if you have questions, or you can reach an amazing Evangelical Free church by calling (218) 625-6200.

These notes are those of Patrick Garmoe, and include my personal thoughts. To hear the sermon in its entirety, visit this link to an excellent church in Duluth MN

Beyond Religion

Doing Religion Right!

James 1: 26-27 – “26 Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. 27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”

So basically here James is emphasizing the need to live out what you believe, or it’s not really any belief at all.

Do not be polluted by the world, and allow yourself to think you’re following God while gossiping about others.

James 2:14-17 “ 14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? 15 Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. 16 If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.”

Doing Religion Right

1. Motivation is an internal. We have to take responsibility for our own motivation.

Ephesians 1:15-17 Thanksgiving and Prayer
“15 For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, 16 I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. 17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit[f] of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.”

The Christians in Revelation were leaning into Christ and persevering, but lost site of Christ in the process:

Revelation 2:1-6 – To the Church in Ephesus
1 “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write:
These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands. 2 I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked people, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. 3 You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. 4 Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. 5 Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. 6 But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

2. Goal – What their goal ought to be:

Ephesians 1:18 –I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope (heaven) to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people…“

• We are HIS inheritance. That’s how important God says we are. Too often our focus is about being comfortable.

• Keep heaven and God’s glory as my goal for life:
  Ephesians 1:19-22 – “19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength 20 he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22 And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.”

God has been an unstoppable power that is designed to be showcased through us.

• http://dis.tl/dk6N59 How to justify the value of SEO: An Excel spreadsheet Will Critchlow at Distilled put together
• Referrals have no long tail. They tend to all come from a small group of people, so working hard to get referrals doesn’t make a lot of sense
• Create unique research for presentations
• Give away information and tools not already posted anywhere else
• Don’t hold back. The more you educate, the more people want to learn from you.
• R&D is Marketing.
• If you come into a pitch, and you don’t already have an unfair advantage, you’ve already lost. You want to have built a relationship and wowed the potential

•  Massive growth in search volume year over year, more searchers, more searches per searcher Comscore.
• Google: Every day there are more than a billion searches on Google
• Search has a specific intent to find
• Social media has a different intent
• Leverage social proof
• Forrester does a great report every year: Search “File: PDF” to get Forrester reports
• Growth of SEO spending
• SEO is the fastest-growing investment. We’re falling behind the average
• Show how your competitors are ranking
• Show what keywords your competitors are ranking on
• Ideally do the above side-by-side (great slide)
•  #1 show the listing/monthly traffic/$ that amount represents etc.
• #2 etc.
• #3 etc.
• Objection: “We will naturally rank in search based on content”
• Use a case study like Amazon to showcase the vastly better results when you actively try to optimize for search vs. just putting information online and trying to rank
• Objection: “We’re Too Busy & Other Programs are Easier”
• Little things can help out, such as one new blog post getting the company ranked for a few new keywords
• Objection “We’re too boring to get links”
• Mint.com killed it with a blog
• Some sites are focused around visual economics