I'm at the Toronto edition of SES 2008 and there is no question: there are a lot of companies in this space. Search marketing has become a multi-billion dollar business, almost overnight.
Why so popular? Well, it's hard to match the targeting, agility and return on your investment, as measured by business results.
Yet search marketing, as with most online marketing, can struggle to connect the dots when it comes to off-line actions. If you don't sell online, you have to be creative in terms of how you measure success - what actions exist (or can you put in place) to measure or indicate adoption, an engaged audience, and a message that 'sticks'?
There are a lot of promising secondary technologies on show; call forwarding, chat ... and many facilitative technologies, like profile matching. At Warren Huska Associates, we've been exposed to many of these, and deploy them when we determine they might serve a customer. Like anything else, we test (and negotiate for a free trial if one is not on offer!) - and measure results, so you can be assured that any given tool or technique is workin' for ya.
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I still love the Yellow Pages tagline: "The Find Engine". Good for them.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Case Study: Traffic Segments
Use of Web Analytics to qualify traffic
Specialty clothing retailer
Challenged by our initial campaign results, the client was able to test, and then adjust their assumptions about ‘who’ the primary customers of their products were.
Mounting our web analytics on their existing website, we were able to demonstrate the sources of their most profitable traffic. By showing the relationship of keywords, search engines, and referrals, we were able to not only demonstrate where to focus resources, but identify previously unsuspected characteristics of a large segment of their visitors that 'converted' from visitors to customers.
The insight was that people that bought the specialty clothing were not, in fact, the people that used it. Who the purchase decider was - was in fact the caregiver or institution.
These new insights allowed them to re-deploy their marketing in a way that not only dramatically boosted their website inquiries and sales, but also meant they were able to eliminate wasteful spending.
Specialty clothing retailer
Challenged by our initial campaign results, the client was able to test, and then adjust their assumptions about ‘who’ the primary customers of their products were.
Mounting our web analytics on their existing website, we were able to demonstrate the sources of their most profitable traffic. By showing the relationship of keywords, search engines, and referrals, we were able to not only demonstrate where to focus resources, but identify previously unsuspected characteristics of a large segment of their visitors that 'converted' from visitors to customers.
The insight was that people that bought the specialty clothing were not, in fact, the people that used it. Who the purchase decider was - was in fact the caregiver or institution.
These new insights allowed them to re-deploy their marketing in a way that not only dramatically boosted their website inquiries and sales, but also meant they were able to eliminate wasteful spending.
Case Study: Analysis
Use of Analytics to drive conversions
Promotional products company
Conversion is that slippery state where the visitor makes the ‘buy’ or ‘action’ decision – which we were able to progressively refine for a client in a very highly competitive field.
Tuning the filters, campaigns and website itself yielded a continual improvement of results, where to best target their resources, and informed the client further about their most distinct offerings, as seem by the marketplace.
Promotional products company
Conversion is that slippery state where the visitor makes the ‘buy’ or ‘action’ decision – which we were able to progressively refine for a client in a very highly competitive field.
Tuning the filters, campaigns and website itself yielded a continual improvement of results, where to best target their resources, and informed the client further about their most distinct offerings, as seem by the marketplace.
Case Study - Segments
Distinguishing segments (sources, campaigns, keywords)
National Renovation Brand
We validated their conventional ad agency consumer segments - quite a nifty trick given the expense of the agency effort, and even added additional new categories to target revealed with online marketing research.
An additional benefit - demonstrated returns on investment (or not) of specific pre-existing external marketing campaigns, effectively auditing the performance of POS, print and media buys. Our client was able to lay out powerful decision support tools to measure strategic results.
National Renovation Brand
We validated their conventional ad agency consumer segments - quite a nifty trick given the expense of the agency effort, and even added additional new categories to target revealed with online marketing research.
An additional benefit - demonstrated returns on investment (or not) of specific pre-existing external marketing campaigns, effectively auditing the performance of POS, print and media buys. Our client was able to lay out powerful decision support tools to measure strategic results.
Case Study: Traffic
International ticket vendor
Achieved immediate profile: was instantly featured in selected worldwide online publications, blogs and networks, and generated new customers in markets previously unknown to them.
Careful allocation of resources kept their return on investment at 2000%.
Achieved immediate profile: was instantly featured in selected worldwide online publications, blogs and networks, and generated new customers in markets previously unknown to them.
Careful allocation of resources kept their return on investment at 2000%.
The Drill-Down #1: What? / Why? (Traffic)
1) Website traffic:
Any number of schemes can flood your site with viewers – but what are you paying for? Can you tell what is happening? Are there hidden penalties?
‘Relevant traffic’ means visitors are already interested in what you have to offer. Relevance is determined by proper research and filtering – creating a storehouse of market research you can use everywhere. We keep you relevant – and your name off blacklists and spamlists.
‘Just traffic’ is overrated and misunderstood.
Are you merely a showboat?Just getting people to your website is easy – but it can be very costly, and spectacularly ineffective.
Any number of schemes can flood your site with viewers – but what are you paying for? Can you tell what is happening? Are there hidden penalties?
‘Relevant traffic’ means visitors are already interested in what you have to offer. Relevance is determined by proper research and filtering – creating a storehouse of market research you can use everywhere. We keep you relevant – and your name off blacklists and spamlists.
‘Just traffic’ is overrated and misunderstood.
The Drill-down #2: What? / Why? (Analysis)
2) Site Traffic Analysis:
What traffic is relevant? Measure it. Test it. Modify it in real time.
Which way to downtown?Measurement is critical – do you want only visitors from Bay Street? Do you want visitors who patronize financial publications, but only those who have a higher historical probability of interest in investments?
What traffic is relevant? Measure it. Test it. Modify it in real time.
The Drill-Down #3: What? / Why? (Conversions)
3) Conversion Analysis:
Only then can you work back to determine what sources of traffic are worth paying for: most relevant, most cost-effective, and able to generate continued growth.
Hold your online results to business standards.
That was fun – um, did we make any money?And this is the big secret. With traffic, with analysis, - it is all assumptions until you can measure against your business goals. Are you getting referrals, leads? Do these convert to sales? Or just increase your costs?
Only then can you work back to determine what sources of traffic are worth paying for: most relevant, most cost-effective, and able to generate continued growth.
Hold your online results to business standards.
Monday, June 9, 2008
Your online presence should be a source of pride - for the results it generates your business.
Whether you need to generate leads, disseminate news, provide information, or merely polish your image, Warren Huska Associates has the experience to improve your organization’s online visibility and results.
In-depth understanding of your unique business challenges allows us to position you in the right places, in front of the right people, at the right times. delivering remarkable precision, and constant refinement. Refined information about your market that you can take to the (marketing) bank.
In-depth understanding of your unique business challenges allows us to position you in the right places, in front of the right people, at the right times. delivering remarkable precision, and constant refinement. Refined information about your market that you can take to the (marketing) bank.
Saturday, June 7, 2008
Our Process: a step-by-step
You can take away 'Our Process' as homework: what do you know, or think you know, about your online marketplace?
A typical engagement starts with:
Business Research Interview
Your viewpoint on your markets:
Business Web Marketplace Profile
Obtain all the information that will allow you to craft winning messages:
Campaign
Put all this good stuff on the road and monitor, test, and refine:
A typical engagement starts with:
Business Research Interview
Your viewpoint on your markets:
- what makes you unique, distinctive,
- what are the major drivers in your industry,
- who do you feel are your main and indirect competition,
- what are known and assumed audience influencers,
- and what are the audience segments you are currently aware of
Business Web Marketplace Profile
Obtain all the information that will allow you to craft winning messages:
- Unique propositions,
- distinctive characteristics,
- industry influences and trends,
- who is really the competition,
- revealed audience factors and segments
Campaign
Put all this good stuff on the road and monitor, test, and refine:
- Campaign design - use existing website as baseline
- Campaign launch
- Campaign monitoring and adjustment
- Campaign review (1,2,3 week, 1 per month)
- Website campaign modifications - high-value indicated modifications to organization, features and content
- Website search profile improvement - fold in learning from campaigns, monitor and adjust to seasonality
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