Metrics, Analytics, Social Media, SEO, SEM - for insiders within the search industry, these words are a typical component of everyday conversation. But what do these things actually mean for the small to medium size business? How can mid-level companies take high-end concepts and apply them to their respective marketing strategies? The answers to these questions have often proved elusive.For the newbie search conventioneer in the past, translating conceptual session material into practical website application can present a hearty challenge. Shows such as PubCon, however, have made concerted efforts toward steering presentation material from an insider mentality toward a format and style that is easier for the average conference attendee to intake, process, and digest.Mark Fouts is a search convention veteran, having traveled internationally to attend some of the industry’s foremost conferences and seminars. WebProNews had the opportunity to talk to Mark at PubCon in Las Vegas, and he gave some insight into the changes he has witnessed in the convention scene in recent years.Residing in Indiana, Mark notes the lag time it takes for new ideas and methodology to migrate from the innovation hotbed that comprises the west coast, to the more traditional and increasingly resistant to change areas of the United States that lie east of the Mississippi River. To increase the flow of modernization throughout the country and the world, important conferences such as PubCon must continually strive to present quality information in a manner which experts and beginners alike can quickly and effectively translate into workable business and search marketing strategies.