During the 187th episode of “Marketing Today,” I interview Christi Olson, head of evangelism for Bing at Microsoft. Olson has led in-house digital marketing at teams at a number of companies for over a decade. This episode was a part of a series of interviews conducted at the Internet Summit in Raleigh, NC.

Olson, a search practitioner for 15 years, was the first full-time employee at Microsoft to manage search. She left the company to get outside experience before rejoining Microsoft in her current role.

Olson shares with us details about Bing search marketing, accessibility and the impact on SEO, voice as a search method and user interface and trust as it relates to customers. She notes, “most web developers and SEO practitioners don’t really think about accessibility first when they’re developing a site and content.”  Olson shares the importance of leveling the playing field for all people in search and discusses “why we should start thinking about it [accessibility] first and foremost and not as an after-the-fact process.”

Highlights from this week’s “Marketing Today”:

  • Christi’s background and journey to her current role with Bing at Microsoft. 01:12
  • Why accessibility is so critical at this moment. 02:09
  • Ranking factors and accessibility. 05:01
  • Good SEO practices to make accessibility a priority. 06:05
  • The future of voice in search. 08:00
  • What marketers should be thinking about when it comes to voice discovery. 10:22
  • The trust factor: earning customer trust for your products. 13:52 
  • Microsoft’s approach to advertising and trust. 16:10

Resources Mentioned:


Alan B. Hart is the creator and host of “Marketing Today with Alan Hart,” a weekly podcast where he interviews leading global marketing professionals and business leaders. Alan advises leading executives and marketing teams on opportunities around brand, customer experience, innovation and growth. He has consulted with Fortune 100 companies, but he is an entrepreneur at his core, having founded or served as an executive for nine startups.